Summer League Commitments: Blazers, Mavericks, Bulls, Wizards
Free agent guard Colbey Ross has committed to play summer league with the Trail Blazers, according to a league source. Ross last played for Era Nymburk in the Basketball Champions League.
Prior to going undrafted in 2021, Ross played four collegiate seasons at Pepperdine. He’s the only men’s player in NCAA Division 1 history with 2200+ points, 800+ assists, and 400+ rebounds in his career.
Here are a few more updates on summer league commitments:
- Undrafted Clemson guard David Collins has agreed to play summer league with the Mavericks, his manager Ariel Levy told Hoops Rumors. Collins averaged 10.3 points per game last season, shooting an efficient 51% from the floor and 38% from three-point range.
- The Bulls are adding guard Perrion Callandret to their summer league team, his agents Austin Eastman and Solomon Yon told Hoops Rumors. He played for the team’s G League affiliate this past season.
- The Wizards are adding guard Craig Sword to their summer league roster, according to his agent, Josh Goodwin. Sword signed a 10-day contract with the team this past season. He also played 14 games for Washington’s G League affiliate.
Summer League Commitments: Blazers, Grizzlies, Mavericks, Wizards
The Blazers have received a summer league commitment from guard Craig Randall II, league sources told Hoops Rumors. Randall was named the G League Most Improved Player this season, averaging 26.0 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.7 assists for Long Island.
Randall also shot well enough during those outings. He finished the season shooting 43% from the floor and 36.5% from three-point range, adding efficiency to his production. He’s expected to compete for a training camp or two-way deal in summer league.
Here are a few more summer league updates:
- The Grizzlies are adding shooting guard Dakota Mathias to their summer league roster, his agency Edge Sports told Hoops Rumors. Mathias holds two-way experience with the Sixers.
- The Mavericks are bringing free agent forward Justin Gorham to summer league, his agent Adie von Gontard said. Gorham, 23, recently impressed at the team’s free-agent mini-camp.
- The Wizards have received a summer league commitment from Tahjere McCall, according to his agent, Zack Charles. McCall last played in the NBL and was a key part of the Lakeland Magic’s championship team in 2020/21.
Atlantic Notes: Tsai, Irving, Nets, Celtics, Thybulle
As of Thursday night, Nets owner Joe Tsai was supporting general manager Sean Marks‘ decision not to offer Kyrie Irving a max extension, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. Irving has until June 29 to decide whether to exercise his $36.9MM player option for next season, and the two sides seem to be far apart in negotiations on an extension.
Should Irving leave, it could prompt Kevin Durant to further consider his situation with the Nets, as we previously relayed. Irving didn’t get vaccinated this season, so he only appeared in 29 games due to New York City’s vaccine requirement. He averaged 27.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists during those outings, shooting 47%.
We have more notes from the Atlantic Division to pass along:
- Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype takes a look at how Irving’s list of interested teams can acquire him. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the Lakers, Clippers, Heat, Knicks, Mavericks and Sixers are among the teams on Irving’s list of preferred landing spots.
- Yam Madar will no longer play for the Celtics during summer league, Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe tweets. Madar, Boston’s No. 47 pick in 2020, will use this time to focus on his Israeli national team commitments. The Celtics are bringing free agent big man Mfiondu Kabengele to Las Vegas, however, Himmelsbach tweets.
- Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer explores how Matisse Thybulle will be remembered if he gets traded by the Sixers this offseason. Thybulle, a defensive-minded wing, started in 50 of his 66 games this past season for the team.
Summer League Commitments: Sixers, Celtics, Jazz, Mavericks
The Sixers are bringing guard Malik Ellison to summer league, his agent Jerry Dianis told Hoops Rumors. Ellison is the son of Pervis Ellison, who was drafted No. 1 overall in 1989. He signed a 10-day deal with the Hawks this season.
Ellison spent most of the campaign with the Hawks’ G League affiliate, averaging 8.0 points and 4.2 rebounds in 12 games. The 24-year-old also shot 45% from the floor and 46% from deep.
Here are a few more summer league commitments:
- Free agent guard Jordan Bone has committed to play summer league with the Celtics next month, a source told Hoops Rumors. Bone, 24, holds NBA experience with the Magic and Pistons.
- DJ Funderburk has committed to play with the Jazz during the Salt Lake City Summer League and Las Vegas Summer League, his agent Cervando Tejeda said. Funderburk played in Russia and France this past season.
- The Mavericks are adding swingman Isaiah Brown to their summer league roster, according to his agent, Andre Buck. Brown, 24, attended a free-agent mini-camp with the team last week.
Pacers Notes: Nembhard, Mathurin, Summer League, Trades
The Pacers selected Andrew Nembhard with the No. 31 pick in Thursday’s draft, adding to a young core that also includes Tyrese Haliburton, No. 6 pick Bennedict Mathurin and others. As Gabby Hajduk of the Indianapolis Star explores, Nembhard is older than most draft picks at 22, so he’s expected to bring intelligence and maturity to the club.
“The word that stands out for me is feel,” head coach Rick Carlisle said. “(Nembhard) has just got an amazing feel for the game. I love point guards. I’ve had the real privilege of working with some great, great point guards.
“I mean, Jason Kidd, we won a championship with Jason Kidd, we had J.J. Barea on that team. Jason Terry was a point guard that converted to a scoring guard. I see some of all those qualities in Andrew. Love his size, love playmakers that can control the game, not only with their skill but with their mind.”
Nembhard receiving strong praise from his new championship coach is justified. He averaged 11.8 points, 5.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game last season, shooting an efficient 45% from the field and 38% from behind the arc.
There’s more out of Indiana tonight:
- As the Pacers continues to push toward a full rebuild, Mathurin should be viewed as a quality piece to the puzzle, Evan Sidery of BasketballNews.com opines. Mathurin, 20, is a 6’7″ guard who held per-game averages of 17.7 points and 5.6 rebounds at Arizona last season. His confidence certainly isn’t lacking, as apparent by his recent comments regarding Lakers superstar LeBron James (hat tip to Yahoo Sports). “A lot of people say he’s great,” Mathurin said of James. “I want to see how great he is. I don’t think anybody is better than me. He’s going to have to show me he’s better than me.”
- Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files examines the team’s summer league roster, which still isn’t fully completed. In addition to Mathurin and Nembhard, the Pacers are expected to have Chris Duarte, Terry Taylor and others when the team plays in Las Vegas next month.
- While Mathurin may be a good draft pick, the Pacers struck out on making major draft-day trades last week, Bob Kravitz of The Athletic writes. Indiana still has Malcolm Brogdon and Myles Turner under contract. Both players are known to be available on the trade market.
International Notes: Dotson, Lucas III, Okobo, Leaf
Free agent guard Damyean Dotson has signed overseas in Turkey with Gaziantep Basketbol, the team announced on Saturday. This marks the first overseas stint in Dotson’s professional career, which began when he was drafted No. 44 overall by the Knicks in 2017.
Dotson stayed with New York for three years, then spent time with the Cavaliers during the 2020/21 season. He joined the Spurs for training camp last fall and spent most of the season in the G League. The Knicks also signed him to two 10-day hardship contracts in December.
Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- John Lucas III is drawing coaching interest from Italian club Pallacanestro Varese, as relayed by Sportando. The team has offered the job to several NBA assistant coaches, including Pablo Prigioni (Timberwolves). Lucas joined the Lakers as an assistant last fall.
- Former NBA guard Elie Okobo has signed a lucrative deal overseas with AS Monaco, according to EuroHoops. Okobo most recently played for ASVEL. He played 108 games with the Suns between 2018-20, averaging 4.8 points in 15.5 minutes per contest.
- Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel) is signing forward T.J. Leaf to a contract, Eurohoops reports. This will be the first European stint for Leaf, who was selected No. 18 overall in the 2017 NBA Draft. He holds experience with the Pacers and Blazers.
Heat Notes: Durant, Oladipo, Free Agency, Tampering
With Nets superstar Kevin Durant said to be losing confidence in the team’s management, the Heat could be a team to watch if he requests a trade, says Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. As we relayed, Durant reportedly hasn’t spoken to anyone from the Nets in weeks.
Brooklyn is currently dealing with Kyrie Irving‘s uncertain situation, as Irving holds a $36.5MM player option for next season. His departure could prompt Durant to further consider his future. Miami can offer young pieces such as Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, as well as multiple first-round picks in talks.
Should the team be forced to offload Adebayo, it would naturally have a gaping hole at center. Durant is known to be friends with P.J. Tucker, an impending free agent for Miami. He also played with Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowry on Team USA in 2016.
Here are some other notes from Miami:
- In his latest mailbag for the Miami Herald, Anthony Chiang examines how far the Heat may go to retain Victor Oladipo in free agency. The 30-year-old is coming off a postseason where he averaged 10.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 24.5 minutes per game, shooting 37%. He only appeared in eight regular-season games before the playoffs — one of which was a 40-point outing against the Magic.
- Ira Winderman discusses several topics in a story for the Sun Sentinel, including how free agency tends to be trade season for the Heat. Miami acquired Butler in a sign-and-trade during the summer of 2019, then did the same with Lowry last summer.
- In a separate article for the Sun Sentinel, Winderman explores whether the Heat’s free-agency timing could be thrown off by last year’s tampering investigation. The NBA found Miami to be guilty of “gun-jumping” when news of Lowry’s anticipated deal broke before free agency technically opened, taking away this year’s second-round pick as a result.
Will Hardy A Leading Candidate For Jazz Coaching Job
The Jazz view Celtics assistant Will Hardy as a leading candidate for the team’s vacant head coaching job, according to Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake City Tribune. Larsen notes that Utah’s decision-makers reportedly favor a young candidate to replace Quin Snyder.
Snyder left the Jazz earlier this month after an eight-year stint. Utah has interviewed roughly 15 candidates for the position, searching for the right replacement to guide the team back into contention.
Hardy started his NBA career with the Spurs as a video intern in 2010. He was the team’s video coordinator from 2013 to 2015, then became an assistant coach under Gregg Popovich. He was hired by the Celtics when former Spurs assistant Ime Udoka took that head coaching job last year.
In addition to Hardy, the Jazz are also strongly considering Suns assistant Kevin Young, according to Larsen. The 40-year-old was an assistant coach with the Sixers from 2017-20, then was hired by current Suns head coach Monty Williams. Before that, he served as an assistant at Utah Valley University and coached in the G League.
Marc Stein previously identified Hardy and Young as two candidates who impressed the Jazz during the first round of interviews.
Blazers Guarantee Josh Hart’s 2022/23 Salary
As expected, the Trail Blazers have decided to fully guarantee Josh Hart‘s salary for the 2022/23 season, according to Aaron J. Fentress of OregonLive.com (Twitter link). Hart will now make $12.9MM next year.
The deadline to guarantee his salary was today. Portland could still dangle Hart in a trade, as the team reportedly pursued Raptors forward OG Anunoby in trade talks leading up to the draft.
Hart appeared in 13 games last season after being traded from the Pelicans to Blazers, averaging 19.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists per contest on 50% shooting. While those stellar numbers are above the norm for him, the 26-year-old still put up a solid 14.9 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 4.1 APG in 41 games with New Orleans before getting traded.
Hart is a prime candidate to start at small forward unless the Blazers make a move. Portland agreed to trade for Jerami Grant this week, adding him to a core that already includes Damian Lillard and restricted free agent Anfernee Simons. Starting center Jusuf Nurkic will enter unrestricted free agency next week.
Summer League Commitments: Bulls, Hawks, Mavericks, Magic
The Bulls have agreed to a summer league deal with point guard Carlik Jones, a source told Hoops Rumors. Jones signed 10-day contracts with the Mavericks and Nuggets this past season. He averaged 22.1 points per game with Dallas’ G League affiliate, shooting an efficient 46% from the floor.
Jones, 24, was also named to the All-NBA G League Third Team and NBA G League All-Rookie Team. He played for the Mavericks in summer league last year after going undrafted.
Here are some other summer league commitments to share:
- The Hawks have received a summer league commitment from Chris Clemons, a league source told Hoops Rumors. Clemons averaged 21.3 points per game with the Celtics’ G League affiliate this season, which included a 52-point outing. The 5’9″ point guard was one of the top scorers in the G League this season.
- Free agent guard Jalen Lecque has accepted a summer league invite from the Mavericks, a source told Hoops Rumors. The 22-year-old averaged 16.8 points per game with the Wisconsin Herd this season, shooting 42%. He holds experience with the Suns and Pacers.
- Free agent forward Emanuel Terry has committed to playing summer league with the Magic, according to a source. Terry, 6’9″, holds brief NBA experience with the Suns and Heat. He averaged 15.6 points and 8.4 rebounds with the Stockton Kings this year.