Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Ainge, Finals, Nets
Brad Stevens made an unexpected decision to change roles one year ago, leaving his head coaching job and becoming the Celtics’ president of basketball operations. Boston then hired Ime Udoka as Stevens’ replacement.
While the decision to lean on a first-time executive and a first-time head coach were viewed as audacious, they ultimately led to the club’s first NBA Finals berth since 2010, Brian Windhorst of ESPN explores.
“It was a different situation that a lot of people may not think is appealing, but I think it’s only a benefit to have a guy that’s coached for seven, eight years in the building with the same guys down the hall,” Udoka said of Stevens.
“We talk about every situation [Stevens has] been through and kind of lend his support as far as that. But also step back and let me do my thing. In a unique situation, it’s helped out this year for sure.”
Here are some other notes from the Atlantic:
- Former Celtics president Danny Ainge compared this year’s team to the 2007/08 team that won an NBA title, Jay King of The Athletic writes. Ainge sees shades of Kevin Garnett in Al Horford and likes the club’s outlook, complimenting its size and defensive intensity. “It’s a little bit like the team is structured now,” Ainge said.
- In an Insider-only story for ESPN, Brian Windhorst examines how the Celtics are hoping to pass the Lakers by winning another championship. The Celtics and Lakers have both won 17 titles, so Boston could pass Los Angeles by defeating Golden State in the Finals this year.
- Ian O’Connor of the New York Post details why the Nets will regret letting Ime Udoka go. Udoka served as an assistant with Brooklyn last season, but Boston offered him a head coaching job, so it’s difficult to blame Brooklyn. The team could’ve fired Steve Nash and replaced him with Udoka, but Nash was just hired the summer before and nearly guided the Nets to a series win over the NBA champion Bucks last year.
Heat Notes: Herro, Vincent, Tucker, Roster
Heat guard Tyler Herro believes he has earned a starting role with the team next year, prompting Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel to explore whether such a role change would make sense. Herro won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award this season, averaging 20.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 66 regular-season games.
“I would like to start,” Herro said during a recent media availability. “I think it’s my fourth year, so hopefully, I’ve earned it, and we’ll see what happens.”
Assuming Miami doesn’t trade Herro, starting him would give them another halfcourt point-of-attack, which would be useful against elite Eastern Conference defenses such as Milwaukee or Boston. In addition to being the Heat’s second-leading scorer, Herro also shot a career-high 45% from the floor and 40% from three-point range this season.
Here are some other notes out of Miami:
- In a separate story for the Sun Sentinel, Ira Winderman examines whether Gabe Vincent provides a solution to the team’s depth issues at point guard. Kyle Lowry dealt with a strained hamstring during the playoffs, which allowed Vincent to play more minutes at times. In 18 playoff games, he averaged 8.0 points and 3.2 assists per contest, shooting 38% from the floor and 31% from behind the arc.
- Winderman also considers whether the team’s power forward carousel will stop with P.J. Tucker. The Heat started Jae Crowder in its 2020 NBA Finals run, then experimented with Kelly Olynyk and Trevor Ariza in 2021. The team ultimately signed Tucker to fill the role last summer, but he can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
- Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald provides a player-by-playe rroster breakdown for the offseason. Miami is coming off a seven-game defeat to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. The team was the No. 1 seed in the East this season, but dealt with several injuries in the playoffs.
Western Notes: Warriors, Finals, Wood, Grizzlies, Lakers
The Warriors are thankful to have plenty of rest ahead of the NBA Finals, Kendra Andrews of ESPN.com writes. By defeating Dallas in five games, the Warriors put themselves at a competitive advantage over the Celtics and Heat — who needed a Game 7 to decide their series on Sunday night.
“We gave our guys two straight days off, which is almost unheard of, in playoffs or even just regular season,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “So it was a great chance to decompress the last couple of days.
“We won’t have a formal practice until tomorrow. It’ll be the first day we’ll build on our opponent. So I’ve said it many times: You go to the Finals, it’s almost a two-month journey filled with stress and fatigue, so if you can build a little break, it’s very meaningful.”
Golden State is dealing with injuries to Gary Payton II, Andre Iguodala and Otto Porter Jr., but Payton and Iguodala will likely return in the Finals and Porter’s injury isn’t considered serious.
On the flip side, Miami is dealing with injuries to Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, Jimmy Butler, P.J. Tucker, Tyler Herro and Gabe Vincent, while a pair of Boston starters – Marcus Smart and Robert Williams III – have missed time in the Finals due to various ailments.
There’s more from the West this evening:
- The Rockets are continuing to receive trade interest for big man Christian Wood, Kelly Iko reports for The Athletic. Wood, 26, complements the Rockets well offensively, but the team may consider moving his contract and focusing on its younger core. He averaged 17.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game this season.
- Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal examines 14 players to watch for the Grizzlies’ three draft picks next month. Memphis owns the 22nd, 29th and 47th selections in the event, which takes place on June 23.
- New Lakers coach Darvin Ham is expected to have control over choosing his coaching staff, Marc Stein confirms in his latest article at Substack. Stein also reports that senior advisor Kurt Rambis will not be a regular presence in coaching meetings as he was under Frank Vogel‘s leadership.
And-Ones: Seattle, Las Vegas, Expansion, Baker, Tatum
The NBA may have earmarked Seattle and Las Vegas as potential expansion locations. According to John Canzano of 750 The Game, the league is eyeing both cities if it adds expansion teams, though no further details have been made available. Canzano made his comments on Seattle radio station 93.3 KJR (Twitter link).
It’s worth noting that a similar report was shot down by the league in March, as Chris Daniels of King5.com wrote at the time. However, several players and league officials hold Seattle in high regard, and Las Vegas is currently used by the NBA for its annual summer league, which will be held July 7-17 this year.
Here are some other odds and ends from the basketball universe:
- The Thunder have received a summer league commitment from Robert Baker, his agent Jerry Dianis told Hoops Rumors. Baker, a 6’10” forward, played with the Kings’ G League affiliate this year. The 23-year-old also played collegiately at Harvard from 2017-20.
- Celtics star Jayson Tatum would like to see some changes to the All-NBA Team voting, per ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. Tatum received All-NBA First Team honors, but he was left off last year’s three teams — costing him tens of millions on his current deal, as Bontemps notes. Among Tatum’s adjustments would be making the teams positionless. He used Joel Embiid as an example, since Embiid finished second in Most Valuable Player voting this season, but was relegated to the All-NBA Second Team because the MVP winner, Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, made the First Team. Tatum also voiced his concerns about the process back in February.
Tyler Herro To Return In Game 7
Heat guard Tyler Herro (groin strain) will warm up with the intent of playing in Sunday’s Game 7 against the Celtics, the team announced on social media (Twitter link). The other players on the official injury report — Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, P.J. Tucker and Gabe Vincent — will do the same.
Herro suffered the injury during the second half of Game 3. He missed Games 4, 5 and 6 as a result, with Miami going 1-2 during those outings. The Heat have missed his scoring presence, as the 22-year-old averaged 20.7 points per game on 45% shooting this season.
Herro’s production has dropped during the playoffs. In 14 games, he’s averaged 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 26.7 minutes per contest, shooting 41% from the floor and just 23% from distance.
Herro won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award this season. He made significant progress in his recovery, one that could’ve lasted two-to-four weeks during the regular season, as ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne previously reported (video link).
Eastern Notes: Adebayo, Herro, Knicks, Nets
Heat star Bam Adebayo didn’t have a problem with the team getting fined $25K for its “bench decorum” in Game 6, Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes. While this shouldn’t come as a surprise, Adebayo did have a positive way of looking at it, explaining why the fine didn’t bother him.
“At the end of the day, it just shows how much support your teammates have for you, to the point we get fined,” Adebayo said.
The Heat aren’t the only team to be fined for violating bench decorum rules this postseason, as the Mavericks were fined three separate times for a total of $175K for the same issue. According to the NBA, several Heat players stood for an extended period in the team bench area. They were on, encroached upon or entered the court during live game action.
Here are some other Eastern Conference notes:
- The Heat remain concerned about Tyler Herro‘s injury in the short term, Ira Winderman writes in a separate story for the Sun-Sentinel. Herro, who suffered a groin strain earlier in the team’s series against Boston, was the club’s second-leading scorer at 20.7 points per game this season and won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award, so his absence has naturally been felt. “It’s a sensitive injury, so got to take his time,” Adebayo said of Herro.
- Steve Popper of Newsday explores whether the Knicks or the Nets are in a better spot going forward. The Knicks entered 2021/22 coming off a successful campaign with a young core, but their season became rife with injuries and chemistry issues. The Nets had championship expectations, but Kyrie Irving‘s part-time availability, James Harden‘s trade request and Joe Harris‘ season-ending injury harmed their hopes.
- Brian Lewis of the New York Post examines why the Nets‘ lack of length is no longer an issue they can live with by simply scoring more. Brooklyn was often overmatched in its first-round series against Boston, playing two or three point guards at a time against the Celtics’ bigger lineup. The team simply lacked wing depth, something that Harris and Ben Simmons can help address when they play next season.
Western Notes: Ham, LeBron, Russell, Jazz, George
New Lakers coach Darvin Ham has already secured his first win, Bill Oram of The Athletic contends, by receiving the support of star forward LeBron James, an important first step in his head coaching journey.
“So damn EXCITED!!!!!!!! Congrats and welcome Coach DHam!” James tweeted after word broke on Friday night that Ham is being hired by the Lakers.
The Lakers are coming off a 33-49 season in which they missing the playoffs after dealing with several key injuries to star players. The front office hopes Ham can guide the team back to contention.
There’s more out of the Western Conference tonight:
- Nekias Duncan of Basketball News considers possible trade destinations for Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell. In 65 games this season, Russell averaged 18.1 points, 7.1 assists and 1.0 steals per contest, shooting 41% from the floor and 34% from three-point range. He’s set to become an unrestricted free agent in 2023.
- Tony Jones of The Athletic continues analyzing the Jazz roster by examining the forwards, taking a closer look at Bojan Bogdanovic and Eric Paschall, among others. Utah is coming off another disappointing postseason, having lost to the Mavericks in six games during the first round.
- The Jazz will work out BYU forward Gideon George on Sunday, Tony Jones tweets. Utah doesn’t own a draft pick this year, but it still plans to hold workouts and conduct its due diligence. The team could acquire a pick or prepare for undrafted players. George averaged 8.8 points and 5.0 rebounds in 22.1 minutes last season.
Atlantic Notes: Nets, Irving, Raptors, Siakam, Knicks
Rival teams believe the Nets would be open to making a sign-and-trade deal involving Kyrie Irving this offseason, Ian Begley of SNY.tv writes. Irving could turn down a $36.5MM player option to enter unrestricted free agency.
The 30-year-old appeared in 29 games this season, averaging 27.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.8 assists per contest. He missed much of the season because of New York City’s vaccine requirement, which prevented the team from building needed chemistry.
Finalizing a sign-and-trade agreement involving Irving would be challenging, given that his value isn’t at its peak right now. Whether or not Kyrie is back, the Nets intend to target high-character players this offseason to complement Kevin Durant, according to Begley.
Here are some other notes from the Atlantic:
- Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca puts together a Raptors free agency primer, highlighting the team’s free agents, draft picks and general outlook. Toronto is coming off a season in which it finished with the fifth-best record in the Eastern Conference at 48-34. The team lost in six games to Philadelphia in the first round of the playoffs.
- Raptors star Pascal Siakam discussed receiving All-NBA honors for the second straight season, as relayed by Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Siakam made the All-NBA Third Team this season, averaging 22.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. “Going through what I’ve been through as a person and as a basketball player it makes me grow,” Siakam said. “And knowing how fast things can change, I also understand the responsibility that I have to keep the pressure on, keep my foot on the gas, knowing that there’s always [new] levels I can get to.”
- Fred Katz of The Athletic examines the Knicks’ offseason in his latest mailbag. New York missed the playoffs this season after an impressive 2020/21 campaign. The team owns the No. 11 pick in the draft and has center Mitchell Robinson entering unrestricted free agency.
Heat Notes: Green, Butler, Wade, Game 7, Lowry
The Heat used Draymond Green‘s recent NBA Finals prediction as motivation to beat the Celtics on Friday and force a Game 7, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports writes. Green predicted his Warriors would face the Celtics after Golden State advanced this week, prompting several Heat players to respond.
“Draymond broke the code,” veteran Udonis Haslem said. “You ain’t supposed to say some s–t like that. That’s disrespectful. He know better than that.”
Heat forward P.J. Tucker also felt as if Green crossed a line with his comments.
“I don’t know what part of the game is that,” Tucker told Haynes. “A player picking a team before they’re out. That’s crazy, bro.”
Miami could advance to play Golden State in the Finals by defeating Boston on Sunday. The team is dealing with an array of injuries, but was led by Jimmy Butler‘s 47-point performance to win Game 6 on the road.
Here are some other notes from Miami:
- The Heat also received motivation from Dwyane Wade, according to Nick Friedell of ESPN, who details how Butler used that motivation en route to his dominant Game 6. “He was telling me that I could do this,” Butler told ESPN, referring to how Wade called him before the game. “Knee a little banged up, but nobody cares. Go out there, continue to build your legacy. It meant the world to me, so I appreciate you D-Wade.” In addition to his 47 points, Butler also finished with nine rebounds, eight assists and four steals in 46 minutes.
- Following the Heat’s Game 6 win, Butler expressed immediate confidence about the team’s chances in Game 7, as relayed by Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link). “We knew we were going to win this one. And we’re going to win the next one too.”
- Kyle Lowry‘s key performance in Game 6 seemingly came out of nowhere, Joe Vardon writes as part of a story for The Athletic. Lowry has been dealing with a hamstring strain for over a month, but he managed to record 18 points and 10 assists to keep the Heat’s season alive. “I’m never going to make an excuse,” Lowry said. “I played bad before. I have an opportunity to redeem myself. I got great guys in the locker room, great guys on our team, great organization, great people in my life who support me no matter what it is, ups, downs. They always say, ‘Just do you.’ Tonight was one of the chances that I think Coach said it, a legacy game.”
Pacific Notes: Howard, Lakers, Green, Ayton, Kings
The Lakers expressed interest in former NBA player and current Michigan coach Juwan Howard for their head coaching job, but Howard declined the overture, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Los Angeles reportedly has Darvin Ham, Terry Stotts and Kenny Atkinson advancing to the final stage of interviews. Howard has experience coaching Lakers superstar LeBron James as an assistant with the Heat, but he’ll stay at Michigan and coach his two sons next season instead, Wojnarowski reports.
Howard interviewed for the Lakers’ head coaching job in 2019 before joining Michigan. The Lakers ultimately hired Frank Vogel, who guided them to a championship in 2020 and was fired last month after the team finished 33-49.
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN examines why this is the best version of Draymond Green yet. Green has been productive for the Warriors, averaging 7.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists with his usual versatile defense. He’s also shot a career-high 52% from the floor and a below-average 25% from deep.
- The Suns may be willing to pay Deandre Ayton what he’s seeking in restricted free agency, but Greg Moore of The Arizona Republic says the team first needs to determine whether he actually wants to stick around. Ayton only played 17 minutes in the team’s season-ending loss to Dallas last round, attempting just five shots. He did, however, average 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds for Phoenix this year, helping the club win 64 games.
- James Ham of The Kings Beat examines whether the Kings would consider moving up in the draft. Sacramento currently owns the No. 4, No. 37 and No. 49 picks in the event.