Southeast Notes: Poole, Heat, Hawks, Risacher, Carter, Lee
Jordan Poole was a little “quiet” and “standoffish” during his first year with the Wizards, according to Kyle Kuzma, who believes that was out of character for the 25-year-old guard and notes that he seems more comfortable entering his second season in D.C.
“I don’t think last year he necessarily was (Jordan Poole last season),” Kuzma said, per Varun Shankar of The Washington Post. “… We have the same agency, and I know for a fact from conversations that was not him. And I think that I see more of what Jordan Poole is now.”
As Shankar details, the Wizards’ plan to get the ball into Poole’s hands more and let him serve as a primary play-maker is one key reason for his increased comfort level. He had 16 points, six assists, and no turnovers in 22 minutes of action during Sunday’s preseason opener vs. Toronto.
“(Playing point guard has) allowed me to have more influence, more impact, get my hands on the offense,” Poole said, adding that his goal in his new role is to be “aggressive” and to “find ways to get my teammates involved.”
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- The preseason game between the Heat and Hawks originally scheduled to be played at Kaseya Center in Miami this Thursday has been postponed until Wednesday, October 16 due to Hurricane Milton, the Heat announced today (Twitter link).
- This year’s No. 1 overall pick, Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher, isn’t coming into the league with nearly as much as hype or pressure as some past top picks, but as his pro career begins, he’s still eager to reward the club’s confidence in him, as Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution details.
- The three-year, $58.65MM contract extension that Wendell Carter signed with the Magic features a third-year team option, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). That means the deal will only include about $37.65MM in fully guaranteed money, with a $21MM option for 2028/29.
- Having gotten a head coaching opportunity after what he estimates was 10 interviews with teams over the years, Charles Lee is focused on building a culture of togetherness with the Hornets, writes Jared Weiss of The Athletic. “I think that we try to talk about right now just our competitive habits and how we all affect each other,” Lee said. “Knowing that if one person isn’t holding up their end of the bargain or their end of the competitive bargain, then all of us are going to feel that.”
Jazz Cut Max Abmas, Taevion Kinsey, Isaiah Wong
The Jazz have trimmed their preseason roster from 21 players to 18, announcing today in a press release that they’ve waived camp invitees Max Abmas, Taevion Kinsey, and Isaiah Wong.
Abmas, Kinsey, and Wong joined Utah in September on non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contracts. They remained on the roster through training camp and a pair of preseason games, but none of them saw any action in either of those contests.
In all likelihood, the trio is now headed for the Salt Lake City Stars, the Jazz’s G League affiliate. Hoops Rumors can confirm all three players received maximum Exhibit 10 bonuses, so as long as they spend at least 60 days with the Stars, they’ll earn $77.5K apiece on top of their standard G League salaries.
Utah is now carrying 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts and three on two-way deals. The team will likely enter the regular season with those 18 players, but could continue to shuffle others in and out of the final three spots on its 21-man preseason roster for G League rights/bonus purposes during the next couple weeks.
Injury Notes: Barrett, Carter, Wallace, Herro, Jaquez
Raptors forward RJ Barrett will miss the rest of the preseason after being diagnosed with a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder, the team announced on Tuesday in a press release. Barrett left Sunday’s game against Washington early after sustaining the injury.
As Michael Grange of Sportsnet and Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca note (via Twitter), while Barrett has only been ruled out for the preseason and will be reevaluated before opening night, it’s very possible he’ll miss some time at the start of the regular season as well.
It’s a disappointing setback for Barrett, who looked good on Sunday before getting hurt and was penciled in as Toronto’s starting small forward, and for the Raptors, who have been hit hard by the injury bug this fall. The team is also currently without Bruce Brown and rookie Ja’Kobe Walter — Brown is recovering from knee surgery, while Walter is dealing with a sprained AC joint of his own.
Here are a few more health-related updates from around the NBA:
- After turning his left ankle during Monday’s preseason opener vs. New Orleans, Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. has been diagnosed with a sprain and is considered day-to-day, per Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter links). The timing of Carter’s return will depend on how his ankle responds to treatment, Beede adds. Monday was still a good day for the big man, who signed a three-year, $58.7MM extension with Orlando before the game.
- Thunder guard Cason Wallace sprained his ankle in Monday’s preseason opener against San Antonio, but the sprain is considered a mild one, according to Bally Sports Oklahoma sideline reporter Nick Gallo (Twitter link). It’s unclear if Wallace will be available for Wednesday’s game vs. Houston, but it doesn’t at this point as if his availability for the start of the season is in jeopardy.
- Tyler Herro (right groin strain) and Jaime Jaquez (left groin strain) of the Heat didn’t participate in an intrasquad scrimmage on Monday, and Jaquez underwent an MRI on his injury, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. However, imaging on Jaquez didn’t reveal anything concerning, Chiang says, and Herro didn’t even get an MRI because his strain is considered mild. “Everybody can take a big breath. Everything is OK,” head coach Erik Spoelstra said, referring to Herro and Jaquez as day-to-day. “This is not a storyline about new protocols. This is just the appropriate thing right now. … I expect Tyler and Jaime to be back in full contact soon. But they’re already doing a lot of stuff.”
Mavericks Waive A.J. Lawson
The Mavericks have waived shooting guard A.J. Lawson, the team announced today (via Twitter).
Although Lawson was on a non-guaranteed contract, his release is a little more notable than many roster cuts this month, since he was on a standard multiyear deal that had carried over to this season, rather than an Exhibit 10/training camp contract.
Lawson, 24, signed a two-year, two-way contract with Dallas back in December 2022, shortly after being waived by Minnesota. He remained on that deal until March 2024, when he was promoted to the standard roster on a new four-year contract that was only guaranteed for the remainder of the 2023/24 season.
Lawson appeared in a total of 56 NBA games for the Mavericks during his two seasons with the team, including 42 in 2023/24. He averaged 3.4 points and 1.3 rebounds in 7.4 minutes per contest and posted a shooting line of .457/.307/.548 at the NBA level. The former South Carolina standout also played seven times for the Texas Legends in the G League last season, averaging 20.7 PPG and 7.0 RPG with a .530 FG%.
Dallas is carrying 14 players on guaranteed contracts. Veteran forward Markieff Morris, who has a non-guaranteed salary, is considered the heavy favorite to claim the 15th standard roster spot, assuming the team carries a full roster to open the season.
It’s worth noting that the Mavs do have a two-way slot available, so if they still like Lawson and want to bring him back, they could re-sign him to a two-way contract as long as he clears waivers — his multiyear deal wasn’t eligible to be directly converted into a two-way.
NBA GMs High On Thunder’s Offseason Moves, Celtics’ Title Chances
The Thunder made the best roster moves during the 2024 offseason, according to the NBA’s general managers. Within his annual survey of the league’s top basketball decision-makers, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes that 37% of his respondents picked Oklahoma City as having the best summer, with the Sixers coming in second place at 33%. The Knicks got 20% of the vote share, while no other club received more than a single vote.
It was one of many favorable outcomes in the survey for the Thunder, who were overwhelmingly selected as the team with the best young core — 60% of GMs selected OKC, compared to 20% for the second-place Magic.
New Thunder guard Alex Caruso was chosen by general managers as the most underrated offseason acquisition, receiving 23% of that vote share, while last year’s Most Valuable Player runner-up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was picked as this year’s MVP favorite (40%), narrowly edging Mavericks star Luka Doncic (30%).
The Thunder also received a handful of votes from the league’s GMs as the team that will win the 2025 NBA Finals, but at 13%, they finished a distant second to the Celtics, who earned a whopping 83% of the vote. Besides those two clubs, only the Mavericks (3%) received a vote to become this season’s champions.
Here are a few more interesting results from Schuhmann’s GM survey, which is worth checking out in full:
- New Sixers forward Paul George got 60% of the vote as the offseason acquisition who will have the biggest impact in 2024/25, followed by new Knicks Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns at 13% apiece. The Towns trade, meanwhile, was named the most surprising offseason move, eking out George leaving Los Angeles for Philadelphia (27% to 23%).
- Unsurprisingly, Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama was the overwhelming choice (77%) for which player the GMs would most want to start a franchise with. Gilgeous-Alexander and Nuggets center Nikola Jokic each earned three votes in that category, while Doncic got one.
- The league’s general managers are high on No. 3 overall pick Reed Sheppard — the Rockets‘ guard is their pick to win the Rookie of the Year award (50%) ahead of betting favorite Zach Edey of the Grizzlies (30%). Sheppard also comfortably received the largest vote share (43%) when the GMs were asked which rookie will be the best player in five years. Spurs guard Stephon Castle (17%) and Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (13%) were the runners-up in that category.
- There was no consensus among the GMs on which 2024 draftee was the biggest steal. Wizards guard Carlton Carrington, Kings guard Devin Carter, Pacers wing Johnny Furphy, Lakers forward Dalton Knecht, Timberwolves guard Terrence Shannon, and Thunder guard Nikola Topic each received three votes to lead the way.
- Among newly hired head coaches, Mike Budenholzer of the Suns is the one GMs feel will have the biggest impact on his new club. Budenholzer received 40% of the vote, beating out Kenny Atkinson of the Cavaliers and J.B. Bickerstaff of the Pistons (20% apiece). Meanwhile, Spurs guard Chris Paul (30%) and Raptors guard Garrett Temple (20%) are the active players that GMs feel would make the best head coaches down the road.
- Asked what they’d change about the NBA, 20% of GMs said the rules related to the tax aprons, trades, and roster construction are too restrictive and/or should be “indexed to (a) team’s market,” per Schuhmann, making it the top response.
Southwest Notes: Morant, Zion, Pelicans, Mavericks
Playing on Monday for the first time since January 5, Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant looked like he was rounding into top form in his 18 minutes of action vs. Dallas , contributing 13 points, four rebounds, and three assists in the team’s preseason opener.
However, Morant briefly exited the game and went to the locker room in the first half after turning his ankle, then appeared to have issues with the same ankle after returning before checking out of the game for good in the second half.
Speaking to reporters after the Grizzlies’ win, head coach Taylor Jenkins referred to the first half injury as a “minor tweak” and added that Morant experienced a little discomfort trying to push off the ankle in the second half, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Jenkins, Morant will be evaluated in the coming days, but his removal from the game was mostly precautionary.
For his part, Morant downplayed the issue in his own post-game media session, telling reporters that he’s “all good” and pointing out that he was able to walk fine (Twitter link via Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com).
While it doesn’t sound at this point like the minor ankle injury will affect Morant’s availability for the Grizzlies’ regular season opener in a couple weeks, it’s worth keeping a close eye on the star guard after a season in which he was limited to just nine games due to a suspension and a shoulder injury. Memphis’ ability to bounce back in 2024/25 will hinge in large part on his ability to stay on the court.
Here’s more from around the Southwest:
- Morant and Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, the top two picks in the 2019 draft, each have a pair of All-Star nods under their belts but have had stop-and-start ascents to stardom due to health issues and – in the case of the Grizzlies guard – off-court behavior, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Vardon considers what heights the two young stars could still reach and explores their potential importance to USA Basketball, which could lose a handful of longtime stars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant by the next Olympics.
- In a pair of stories for NOLA.com, Christian Clark highlights Williamson’s impressive preseason debut vs. Orlando on Monday and writes that the Pelicans believe they have the personnel necessary to finally reach their longtime goal of averaging 40 three-point attempts per game this season. It’s a lofty objective, given that only one team (Boston) cracked the 40-attempt threshold last season and New Orleans ranked 24th with 32.6 per game. “It’s manageable for the lineups we have out there,” reserve sharpshooter Matt Ryan said. “We are going to have so much shooting. So much guard and wing play.”
- The Mavericks aren’t stressing the loss of reserve guard Dante Exum to a wrist injury, according to Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News, who notes that Spencer Dinwiddie and head coach Jason Kidd were among those to laud the backcourt depth on the roster. Dinwiddie – who called this iteration of the Mavs “the most talented team I’ve been on” – and Jaden Hardy are expected to get more opportunities with Exum out.
- Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal (Substack link) and Curtis (Dallas Morning News subscriber link) each shared their takeaways from the Mavericks‘ training camp, discussing Klay Thompson‘s smooth integration, the impressive two-way versatility displayed by newcomer Naji Marshall, and Dereck Lively showing the potential to take another big step forward in his second NBA season.
Nuggets Waive Three Camp Invitees
The Nuggets have waived forwards Gabe McGlothan and Jaylin Williams, along with guard Jahmir Young, according to NBA.com’s official transaction log. McGlothan, Williams, and Young were in camp with Denver on Exhibit 10 deals.
With the Nuggets carrying 15 players on guaranteed contracts and three on two-way contracts, it always appeared the plan was to have the trio eventually report to the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s G League affiliate. That’s likely to be the next stop for all three players, who will receive Exhibit 10 bonuses worth $77.5K apiece if they spend at least 60 days with the Gold.
Young got a chance to play 14 minutes in the team’s second exhibition game in Abu Dhabi against Boston on Sunday and delivered eight points, two rebounds, and two assists. However, Williams (not to be confused with the Jaylin Williams in Oklahoma City) didn’t see action in either of those preseason contests and McGlothan appeared only very briefly in Friday’s game, checking in with three seconds left in the fourth quarter.
The cuts leave Denver with 18 players on its roster, three shy of the preseason limit. The Nuggets have reportedly reached an agreement to sign big man Charles Bediako and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they rotate other players in and out of those back-end roster spots before the season begins, primarily for G League purposes.
Signing and waiving players on Exhibit 10 contracts before the season allows teams to secure players’ NBAGL rights and/or ensure those players will receive bonus money for spending 60+ days with the team’s G League affiliate.
Reported Camp Deals That Still Aren’t Official
As we noted when we passed along word earlier today that the Pistons have officially signed Aaron Estrada to an Exhibit 10 contract, that signing was initially reported months earlier — 101 days ago, to be specific.
That’s not an uncommon pattern during the offseason, especially if an agreement between a team and a player is an Exhibit 10 deal primarily designed to secure the player’s G League rights and/or to ensure he’ll receive a bonus by spending at least 60 days with the club’s NBAGL affiliate. The two sides could agree to terms relatively early in the offseason but be in no rush to officially complete that deal until the fall.
[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Exhibit 10 Contract]
That’s likely what’s happening with Estrada. If the Pistons intended to have him vie for a spot on their 18-man regular season roster, they probably would’ve brought him to training camp last week and given him every opportunity to compete in those practices and scrimmages. So his deal is presumably more about his G League rights and his Exhibit 10 bonus.
Estrada won’t be the last Exhibit 10 recipient to join an NBA team this fall. Those signings will continue all the way up until October 19, which is the last day that a player on a non-guaranteed contract can be waived without counting against a team’s salary cap for the 2024/25 season.
With that in mind, here are several of the non-guaranteed training camp contracts reported over the course of the offseason that have not yet been finalized but still could be completed within the next couple weeks:
- Brooklyn Nets: Mark Armstrong (story)
- Brooklyn Nets: KJ Jones (story)
- Cleveland Cavaliers: Darius Brown II (story)
- Denver Nuggets: Charles Bediako (story)
- Indiana Pacers: Jahlil Okafor (story)
- Los Angeles Lakers: Sean East II (story)
- New Orleans Pelicans: Elfrid Payton (story)
- Oklahoma City Thunder: Buddy Boeheim (story)
- Oklahoma City Thunder: Javonte Cooke (story)
- Orlando Magic: Robert Baker (story)
- Phoenix Suns: Boo Buie (story)
It’s entirely possible that one or more of these deals was reported erroneously or has since fallen through. That usually happens at least a handful of times every year.
But in all likelihood, most or all of these signings will still be completed by October 19. We haven’t seen any reporting indicating they’ll no longer happen. And in some cases, the teams’ G League affiliates have acquired the returning rights for these players, signaling that those players remain very much in those teams’ plans.
We’ll be keeping an eye out in the coming days and weeks to see if these moves are announced by teams or if they show up in the NBA’s transaction logs. If they don’t happen before opening night, it’s safe to assume they’re not going to get done after all.
Kings Notes: Ellis, Huerter, Injuries, Jones, Brown, Murray, DeRozan
There’s no question that Domantas Sabonis, De’Aaron Fox, DeMar DeRozan, and Keegan Murray will be part of the Kings‘ starting lineup this fall, but the fifth member of that group has yet to be locked in, as James Ham of The Kings Beat and Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee write.
Malik Monk, Kevin Huerter, and Keon Ellis are all realistic candidates to start at shooting guard for Sacramento. However, it seems likely that Monk will reprise the sixth-man role he thrived in last season. Huerter, meanwhile, hasn’t yet been cleared for full-contact work after undergoing surgery in late March to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
That may make Ellis the frontrunner to start alongside Fox in Sacramento’s backcourt. As Anderson writes, Ellis’ ability to play good defense and to operate on offense without the ball in his hands also makes him a good fit in the team’s starting group, whereas Monk and Huerter could handle a larger offensive load with the second unit.
“If you think about it, Keon, out of all three of those guys, is probably the one who will command the least amount of shots and/or the time the ball is in his hands,” head coach Mike Brown said last week. “He’s shown the last two years that he’s a capable catch-and-shoot shooter, and if you leave him open, he’ll make you pay on the catch-and-shoot shot from the three-point line. He shot 40-something percent from three in both years, so for us that is a little bit of a factor, making sure we put the right combinations on the floor that fit instead of just trying to throw guys out there because we think those guys can all score the best.”
Here’s more on the Kings:
- Huerter, who was cleared for on-court workouts near the end of August, said he’s feeling good about the progress he’s made and is eager to advance to the final stage of his rehab process, per Anderson. “The last step for me is really just getting 5-on-5 full contact,” Huerter said. “I haven’t gone contact against a player yet. I haven’t been cleared to do that, but everything else. I’ve been 1-on-0 for four months now. … Itching to get back and go against somebody else.”
- The Kings are battling the injury bug this fall, with Huerter and Devin Carter recovering from shoulder surgeries and Trey Lyles (groin), Jordan McLaughlin (ankle), and Orlando Robinson (knee) all dealing with health issues of their own. According to Ham, McLaughlin is expected to be back within the next few days and Huerter should be cleared for contact around the middle of the month, while Lyles will probably be sidelined until the end of the preseason schedule. Robinson and Carter will remain out for the start of the season.
- As Anderson details in a separate story for The Sacramento Bee, Brown delivered a profanity-laced tirade near the end of a Saturday scrimmage. As the Kings’ head coach later explained, two-way player Mason Jones capped off a “really, really good day” by turning the ball over and giving up on the last couple plays of the day. Brown responded by calling out Jones and several of his vets. “I got on Foxy and Domas and DeMar a little bit because those three guys can’t let that slide,” he said. “I shouldn’t have to be the one saying that we all have to hold each other accountable. … We all have to hold each other accountable all the time, and if our vets see something like that from a young guy in Mason, then you’ve got to let him know, ‘Hey, Mace, you had a good day, but we can’t finish like that.'”
- In another story for The Sacramento Bee, Anderson explores how Murray can continue to grow as a player as the former No. 4 overall pick enters his third NBA season.
- A Los Angeles native, DeRozan hasn’t played for one of his hometown teams since entering the NBA in 2009, but he’s thrilled to be living in California again as a member of the Kings, so close to his family in L.A., he recently told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “It means so much,” DeRozan said. “Even one of my daughters, she is asking every day when she can come up — even a day where she could just come up for a day, spend time with me and go back. Her knowing that gives her excitement. That makes me extremely happy.”
Pistons Sign Aaron Estrada To Exhibit 10 Contract
The Pistons have officially signed undrafted rookie free agent Aaron Estrada to an Exhibit 10 contract, the team announced today (via Twitter). The move brings Detroit’s roster to the maximum allowable 21 players.
The move had been long anticipated, with the agreement between the two sides initially reported in June shortly after the draft. Estrada subsequently appeared in five games for the Pistons’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, averaging 5.6 points, 2.2 assists, and 1.8 rebounds in 13.4 minutes per contest.
Estrada bounced around from school to school over the course of his five-year college career, playing for St. Peter’s, Oregon, Hofstra (for two seasons), and Alabama. In his final year of NCAA eligibility in 2023/24, the 6’4″ guard averaged 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 30.9 minutes per game across 37 starts for the Crimson Tide.
While he made just 44.9% of his field goal attempts and 31.3% of his three-pointers as a super-senior in ’23/24, Estrada’s rates were 46.5% and 34.4%, respectively, in his first four college seasons. He also knocked down 86.3% of his career free throws.
While it’s possible that Estrada could have his Exhibit 10 contract converted into a two-way deal before the season begins, the fact that Detroit is bringing him in well after the start of training camps signals that he may not get a chance to compete for that open spot. The more likely outcome is that he’ll join the Motor City Cruise – the Pistons’ G League team – as an affiliate player and will earn an Exhibit 10 bonus worth up to $77.5K as long as he spends at least 60 days with the Cruise.