Charles Lee Talks About His, Hornets’ Offseason
Hornets head coach Charles Lee is in Rwanda as a part of the NBA’s yearly Basketball Without Borders program, and he’s hoping that his time there can pay unexpected dividends for his up-and-coming team, writes Roderick Boone for the Charlotte Observer.
Lee is working with a group that includes forward NBA forward Marvin Williams, who spent five-and-a-half seasons with the Hornets. That growing relationship has borne unexpected fruit, according to Lee.
“He’s been my assistant coach and he’s drawn up some beautiful [after-time-out] plays,” Lee said. “He brings a knowledge to the game that probably supersedes mine at that time, and so I’m learning from him.”
While Williams has been a helpful presence, he’s far from the only person to provide that educational experience for the Hornets’ head coach.
“There’s a lot of growth ideas that come from a trip like this,” Lee said. “Number one, you get to watch other coaches coach their teams here at BWB and watch their practices and learn some of their terminology and the different ways that they teach things… In between camp sessions, you get to spend time with other head coaches, assistant coaches… The conversations never stop, the learning never stops. So, there’s a ton of growth opportunities and ideas that I can kind of take from this experience.”
While Lee is continuing to grow as a coach, he’s also making sure to keep tabs on the Hornets, both through his coaching staff and through personal check-ins. Despite being away from the group, he’s excited about the progress the team has made this summer.
“I just love the offseason that we’ve had,” he said. “I think the focus that everyone’s had, the commitment to trying to get better, increasing their intensity of their workouts, and I’m looking forward to getting back after it… Charlotte Hornets basketball is always on my mind. Everything I do is for that organization, that program while those players just continue to get better.”
Lee added that he’s particularly excited about the team retaining restricted free agent Tre Mann.
“Tre has this great quality about himself where he can build the relationships, gain the trust and earn the trust of his teammates,” he said. “So, I’m looking forward to having him back out there on the court and off the court as well, to help kind of keep just bringing this thing together and building.”
Bogdan Bogdanovic Leaves EuroBasket Game With Injury
The Serbian national team, and possibly the Clippers, suffered a blow during Serbia’s EuroBasket game against Portugal as Bogdan Bogdanovic exited the game with an apparent hamstring injury.
Bogdanovic, who serves as the captain of the national team, was injured on a drive to the basket late in the second quarter, according to Semih Tuna of EuroHoops. BasketNews adds that Bogdanovic came up grabbing the back of his leg, and wasn’t seen on the bench in the second half.
“He’s dealing with a hamstring problem, stayed in the locker room, and will need scans to determine more,” commentator Slobodan Sarenac clarified later in the game.
Bogdanovic ended the game with seven points and five rebounds. Serbia held on for an 80-69 victory, powered by Nikola Jokic, who led the way with 23 points and 10 rebounds, and Nikola Jovic, who contributed 18 points.
Bogdanovic dealt with hamstring injuries early in the 2024/25 season, but finished the second half of the season with the Clippers, averaging 11.4 points and 3.2 assists in 25.0 minutes per night off the bench for LA
Team Serbia also lost Filip Petrusev, who was ejected after four minutes for what was deemed a violent act during a box out. Petrusev will be fined €5,000, and placed on a three-year probation, FIBA announced after the game. If he commits a similar offense during that three-year period, he would be suspended for one game on top of any additional sanctions handed out for the new incident.
Diogo Brito, who was the subject of Petrusev’s foul, expressed some level of disagreement with the referee’s ruling after the game, according to Alessandro Maggi of Sportando. “It was a hard box-out, but I still think it was just a basketball play,” Brito said.
Knicks Notes: Robinson, McBride, Brunson, Thibodeau
The Knicks took care of plenty of business this summer, extending Mikal Bridges, hiring Mike Brown, and adding Guerschon Yabusele and Jordan Clarkson in free agency. But one area the team has yet to address is the upcoming free agency of center Mitchell Robinson.
In a mailbag for The Athletic, James Edwards III discusses the Robinson conundrum for the Knicks, which revolves around both the immense value he has displayed for the team in back-to-back playoff runs, as well as the injury concerns that have limited him to just 48 games over the last two regular seasons.
Edwards’ sense is that the Knicks would be interested in a team-friendly extension, but if Robinson wants to bet on himself, that could complicate extension talks. Edwards also notes that should the center stay healthy during the first half of the season, the Knicks could consider trading him for value ahead of February’s deadline rather than risk losing him in free agency.
We have more from the Knicks:
- One player who could see an uptick in responsibility this season is Miles McBride, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. Bondy notes that Bridges struggled in his role as the primary point-of-attack defender last season and was less effective than in the past at staying in front of high-level ball-handlers, a role McBride is perfectly suited to. Having McBride take primary guard matchups would allow Bridges to slot in as a tertiary defender while not forcing Jalen Brunson into defensive matchups he would struggle with. Bondy notes that former head coach Tom Thibodeau didn’t lean very heavily on lineups that included both McBride and Brunson, likely due to size concerns, but that Brown might be more open to the idea.
- The addition of Brown is expected to bring more balance and structure to players’ roles, Bondy writes, and to increase the pace at which the team plays. As Bondy notes, that change may impact Brunson,w ho held the ball longer than any player in the NBA last season, with an average of 6.06 seconds per touch. By comparison, Tyrese Haliburton averaged just 3.65 seconds per touch. While Brunson is undeniably elite with the ball in his hand, encouraging him to make quicker decisions, especially when it comes to finding Karl-Anthony Towns along the perimeter, could help energize the offense and introduce more unpredictability.
- At least one prominent coach is still grappling with the Knicks’ decision to fire Thibodeau, according to Bondy, who cites recent comments by Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue. “Should he have been fired? Hell no,” Lue said on the Club Shay Shay podcast. “The players did a hell of a job. And Thibs did a hell of a job. And to take a team to their first [conference finals] in 25 years and then get fired, like, it just doesn’t make sense.” Lue also believes that the circumstances around Thibodeau’s firing and the expectations conveyed by the front office make for a difficult situation for Brown. “That’s a tough spot to be in,” he said.
Team Greece Finalizes EuroBasket Roster
Greece officially announced its finalized national team roster on Sunday. The EuroBasket tournament is tipping off this week, with the Hellas tipping off Group Play in a bracket with Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Spain, Georgia, and Cyprus as part of Group C. Their first game will be against Italy on August 28.
Giannis Antetokounmpo will headline the team as the lone NBA player on the roster. The two-time MVP is coming off an All-NBA First Team season in which he averaged 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game.
While Antetokounmpo is the only player on the roster who is still in the league, the Greek team boasts a handful of former NBAers who now play in Europe, including two of Antetokounmpo’s brothers. Here is the complete list of players who will represent Greece in EuroBasket:
- Giannis Antetokounmpo
- Kostas Antetokounmpo
- Thanasis Antetokounmpo
- Tyler Dorsey
- Panagiotis Kalaitzakis
- Dimitrios Katsivelis
- Giannoulis Larentzakis
- Dinos Mitoglou
- Kostas Papanikolaou
- Alexandros Samodurov
- Kostas Sloukas
- Vasileios Toliopoulos
Outside of the trio of brothers, Dorsey and Papanikolaou are likely the two names most familiar to NBA fans. Dorsey played 107 games over three seasons, starting 16 of them, and averaged 6.6 points on 35.1% three-point shooting. Papanikolaou played two seasons, one with the Rockets and one with the Nuggets, averaging 2.6 points and 2.3 rebounds in 15.8 minutes per night.
The 20-year-old Samodurov is another interesting name to watch after being named to the All-Star Five in FIBA’s Under-20 tournament this season. A 6’10” center, Samadurov averaged 17.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.4 blocks in the seven games Greece played.
Antetokounmpo recently began official work with the team, following a delay related to the size of his contract relative to FIBA’s insurance policy for players.
He played in the team’s exhibition game against France, which Greece lost 92-77 as Antetokounmpo scored 18 points on seven shots in just under 22 minutes. Team Greece ended the exhibition games with a record of 4-3.
P.J. Washington Likely To Reach Extension With Mavericks
After Dallas unexpectedly earned the No. 1 pick and the ability to draft Cooper Flagg this spring, the team’s crowded frontcourt has been a popular topic of speculation. In Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, the recently extended Daniel Gafford, and Dwight Powell, the team has a number of talented big men. Add in Flagg, Naji Marshall and Caleb Martin as forwards who can play the four, and the rotation quickly fills up.
However, P.J. Washington shouldn’t be considered the odd man out, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Substack link). It’s a sentiment shared by general manager Nico Harrison, who has expressed enthusiasm this summer about the idea of Washington and Flagg sharing the floor together.
Washington will become extension-eligible this Friday, two years after he signed his current contract, for a four-year deal worth nearly $90MM, according to Stein, who hears from league sources that the two sides are expected to reach a deal.
Stein notes that the newly-27-year-old Washington has admirers around the league following a productive season-and-a-half in Dallas, including the 2024 Finals run in which he averaged 13.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game and hit the clutch free throws that helped the Mavs advance to the Western Conference Finals.
However, due to extend-and-trade restrictions, any extension that includes a first-year raise exceeding 20%, has a subsequent raise exceeding 5%, or adds four new years to his deal would make Washington ineligible to be traded before the 2026 deadline, ensuring he plays out the season in Dallas.
Washington started all but one of his 57 games last year for the Mavs, averaging 14.7 points, a career-high 7.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 blocks per contest while shooting 38.1% from three.
Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers Take Home Big3 Championship
Eleven years after helping the LeBron James-led Heat reach the Finals, Mario Chalmers and Michael Beasley once again found themselves as Miami teammates vying for a championship, this time in Ice Cube’s Big3 league. Unlike in 2014 against the Spurs, when the Heat lost in five games, the pair came out victorious in the 3×3 title game on Sunday, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Beasley put up 25 points and 12 rebounds, but his biggest play of the night came off an isolation possession in which he found Chalmers waiting in the corner to hit a game-winning three-pointer to clinch the championship. Chalmers, the team’s captain, had just five points, but three of them were the biggest of the night.
Former Pacers wing Lance Stephenson was the second-leading scorer for the Miami 305 with 14 points. Beasley, Chalmers, and Stephenson were joined by former NBA players Reggie Evans and Sean Williams. They beat the Chicago Triplets, whose roster includes former NBA big men Montrezl Harrell and Amir Johnson.
Winderman notes that the title marked the fifth different league in which Chalmers has taken home a championship. The 39-year-old point guard also won two titles with the Heat, two championships in high school, an NCAA championship with Kansas in 2008, and a Champions League title with Virtus Bologna in 2019.
Beasley and Chalmers had previously made the 2024 Big3 Finals but ultimately lost to the team Bivouac, which featured Gerald Green and Corey Brewer.
Heat EuroBasket Notes: Jovic, Spoelstra, Larsson, Fontecchio
The Heat should have several prominent roles available for the taking this fall. While Tyler Herro, Andrew Wiggins, and Bam Adebayo all seem to have their starting spots locked up and Davion Mitchell and Kel’el Ware made strong cases for themselves last season, there are still plenty of regular minutes in the rotation to be won.
Nikola Jovic could get a head start on staking his claim during this summer’s EuroBasket competition, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Winderman writes that head coach Erik Spoelstra wants to see Jovic step into a leadership role as one of the Serbian team’s leading men.
Last season, Jovic saw his responsibilities dip as Ware came on strong. The Serbian forward started just 10 games after making 38 starts the season before, though he was still productive, averaging 10.7 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.8 assists while shooting 37.1% from three. A strong EuroBasket could help Jovic hit the ground running next season and carve out a key role with the Heat.
In a recent exhibition win against Slovenia, Jovic scored 18 points on 7-8 shooting with Spoelstra in attendance.
We have more from the Heat’s EuroBasket players:
- Speaking of Spoelstra, the Heat head coach has been on a European tour, checking in on his international players, Winderman writes in a separate article. Prior to watching Jovic help lead Serbia to a 34-point victory over Luka Doncic‘s Slovenian squad, Spoelstra dropped in on Pelle Larsson as Larsson and the Swedish squad battled Estonia.
- EuroBasket offers Larsson a chance to spread his wings and show his complete skill set to the Heat, who already like the approach he takes to the game. “What he does are the things that we value,” Spoelstra said of Larsson, per Winderman. “He’s so tough. He makes winning plays. He’s a great role player. He fits around guys, the best players. And he will continue to get better, because he has a great work ethic.” Spoelstra has been interested in watching how the second-year guard fares as a ball-handler, but declined to put Larsson in a box as far as his role, citing the variety of ways in which the 6’5″ wing can impact the game. Winderman adds that Spoelstra’s comments seemed to indicate that Larsson had already won himself a role in the rotation for this coming season.
- EuroBasket is also a chance for new addition Simone Fontecchio to bounce back and show what he can bring to the Heat after he followed up a strong 2023/24 performance with a disappointing ’24/25 in Detroit. With the long-tenured Duncan Robinson heading to the Pistons this offseason, Winderman notes that there’s hope Fontecchio can get back to the 40% three-point shooter he was two years ago in an effort to replace some of what Miami lost.
Danilo Gallinari Hasn’t Ruled Out NBA Return
Danilo Gallinari hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2024 playoffs, but he hasn’t necessarily given up on the idea of making it back to the league. Gallinari, reflective and self-aware at 37 years old, spoke recently about his desire to stay in the NBA for another year (Twitter link via Iacopo De Santis of Pianeta Basket).
“I always hope so. If I were to return, it would be as a veteran, kind of like insurance for a franchise,” he said. “I wouldn’t play much and would serve as a helpful presence.”
De Santis also writes that Gallinari expressed doubt that his long-held desire to return to Olimpia Milano – the team with which he got his start and played for three years before being selected sixth in the 2008 draft by the Knicks – would come to fruition.
“I’m not saying it’s impossible, but I consider it very, very unlikely. The more time passes, the more complicated it seems,” he said. “In order to return to Milan, you have to be wanted. Even during my last years in the NBA, I thought about coming back to Milan. But again, to return, you have to be wanted. It’s not like I wake up one morning, make a call and say, ‘Hey guys, I’m ready to come back, do you want me?’ That’s not how it works.”
He adds that he received calls from European teams throughout his NBA career, as well as more recently, but never from Milan.
Gallinari spent time in 2023/24 with the Wizards, Pistons, and Bucks, averaging 5.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 12.9 minutes per game. He appeared in three playoff contests for the Bucks, averaging 3.7 PPG in 12.3 MPG.
Gallinari played this season in the Puerto Rican league, where he helped lead the Vaqueros de Bayamon to a championship and was named Finals MVP after he scored 24 points with six rebounds and four assists in the title-clinching game. He has recently joined the Italian national team for what he says will be his final international competition.
History Indicates Brad Stevens, Celtics Unlikely To Tank
The Celtics have been one of the teams hit particularly hard by the CBA’s second apron rules, especially in conjunction with the team being sold and the Achilles injury to Jayson Tatum that has forced them to take a step back from their title contention goals. That has led to the team trading away players such as Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, and Georges Niang (who was acquired in the Porzingis deal) in an effort to shed salary.
However, just because the Celtics have been working to get their books in order doesn’t mean that fans should expect them to outright tank this season, writes Chris Forsberg for NBC Sports Boston.
In a mailbag, Forsberg shares a story from general manager Brad Stevens‘ coaching days to illustrate his mindset. Forsberg writes about the 2014/15 season, when the Celtics, coming off their first missed playoffs since 2007, started the year 13-26.
When confronted by Jae Crowder about whether he was okay with losing, Stevens refused to consider tanking, and the team eventually pulled together a 40-42 season and a trip to the first round of the playoffs. Forsberg writes that the refusal to accept losing helped define Stevens’ tenure as head coach, and will likely do the same for his tenure in the front office.
While there would be an undeniable benefit in the Celtics landing an unexpected top pick in a loaded 2026 draft class, Forsberg believes the esteem in which Stevens holds winning and competitiveness will likely preclude the front office from selling off important future-facing pieces — even if the team falls well behind the pace established by last season’s 61-win squad.
Windhorst: Kevin Durant, Rockets Expected To Reach Extension
The Rockets and Kevin Durant haven’t yet come to terms on an extension following the Rockets’ trade for the 36-year-old former MVP.
While there has been speculation that Houston is unlikely to offer Durant a full max deal and that the star forward is comfortable heading into the season without a new contract in place, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reports that there is a belief that the two sides will, in fact, come to terms on an extension sooner or later.
Windhorst cites a source that confirms the two sides have had discussions about an extension and believes such a deal will materialize, though he reiterates that Durant may need to take a deal less than the max to stay a Rocket long-term.
Durant is still a massively talented player, averaging 26.6 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 4.2 assists over 62 games last season while shooting 43% from three and earning his 15th All-Star nod. However, Windhorst writes that rather than seeing Durant as the centerpiece of their team, the Rockets view him as the final puzzle piece meant to turn their already highly talented roster, which secured the No. 2 seed in the West last season, into a true contender.
The Rockets signed Jabari Smith Jr. to a five-year extension and re-upped Fred VanVleet on a one-plus-one deal this summer. They also signed Alperen Sengun to a five-year extension last summer. Meanwhile, Tari Eason is currently extension-eligible, and Amen Thompson will follow suit in 2026. The team will likely need to be deliberate with its spending to avoid crowding its books in a way that makes it prohibitively expensive to keep the core together.