Cavs Notes: Mitchell, Garland, Small Forward, Okoro
New Cavaliers backcourt mates Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland showed off instant chemistry in their first game together on Wednesday, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said before the game that he wanted the two guards to look for their opportunities in the flow of the offense instead of taking a “your turn, my turn” approach, tweets Tim Bontemps of ESPN, and Bickerstaff was pleased with what he saw vs. Philadelphia.
“I thought it was pretty seamless the way they played together, the way that the ball moved and everybody got involved,” Bickerstaff said, per Fedor. “As long as we play in the same style we want to play where it isn’t just based on one guy, but it’s based on the team, I think it’s gonna work out well for us.”
While more time will likely be required to ensure that the two high-scoring guards are firing on all cylinders, Mitchell was pleasantly surprised with how quickly he and Garland meshed.
“I think we did a lot of things well,” Mitchell said. “You walk up the floor and it’s like, ‘He’s got it.’ But it’s not like, ‘He’s got it in isolation.’ It’s like, ‘He’s got it, make a play, create.’ I said in the locker room, we really didn’t call a lot of plays in the first half and it just speaks to our ball movement, playing together and trusting each other. It looked better than I anticipated.”
Here’s more on the Cavs:
- Caris LeVert got the first chance on Thursday to start at small forward alongside Mitchell, Garland, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen, but the team is still evaluating which player will be the best fit at the three, as Bontemps outlines in an ESPN story. Dean Wade and Isaac Okoro are among Cleveland’s other possible options at small forward. “It’s just going to be truly about the fit, and that’s going to be who makes those four guys better,” Bickerstaff said. “Who helps them on the offensive end of the floor? Who helps them on the defensive end of the floor? Who can protect guys in certain situations defensively? How does it help our matchups? Offensively, how does it help us space the floor? Those are all things we’re taking into consideration.”
- Okoro spent the offseason focusing on his ball-handling, shooting, and finishing around the basket, as the defensive stalwart aims to become a more complete offensive player, writes Kelsey Russo of The Athletic.
- John Hollinger of The Athletic believes the Cavaliers may still be one year away from taking a big jump forward, but believes they’re capable of another step in the right direction in 2022/23, projecting a 47-35 record and a sixth-place finish in the East.
Hornets Waive Isaiah Whaley
The Hornets have waived rookie forward Isaiah Whaley, tweets Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer. The move opens up a spot on Charlotte’s 20-man preseason roster.
Whaley signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Hornets this offseason after going undrafted out of UConn. In five seasons with the Huskies, he appeared in a total of 138 games for the Huskies, including 32 in 2021/22, when he averaged 7.7 PPG and 4.8 RPG in 28.5 MPG as a full-time starter.
Although Whaley wasn’t a major offensive threat at UConn, he earned a reputation as a talented defender. He averaged 2.4 blocks per contest across his final two college seasons, and was the co-winner of the Big East’s Defensive Player of the Year award in 2021.
Whaley will likely be headed for the Greensboro Swarm – Charlotte’s G League team – as an affiliate player after being waived by the Hornets. He’ll earn a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with the Swarm.
Jalen Crutcher, Jaylen Sims, and Anthony Duruji remain on the Hornets’ roster on Exhibit 10 deals. They could be in the mix for the team’s open two-way slot.
LeBron James Reiterates Desire For NBA Team In Las Vegas
After playing a preseason game in Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday, Lakers star LeBron James once again made it known publicly that he wants the NBA to expand to Las Vegas, and that he wants to be part of that expansion team’s ownership group, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
“I would love to bring a team here at some point. That would be amazing,” James said, before directly addressing NBA commissioner Adam Silver. “I know Adam is in Abu Dhabi right now, I believe. But he probably sees every single interview and transcript that comes through from NBA players. So, I want the team here, Adam. Thank you.”
James previously expressed a desire to own an expansion team in Las Vegas during an episode of his show ‘The Shop: Uninterrupted.’
Las Vegas has been arguably the fastest-growing U.S. sports city in recent years, getting an expansion franchise in the NHL (the Golden Knights) and serving as the new home base for the NFL’s Raiders, who relocated from Oakland. Basketball also has a significant presence in the city — in addition to hosting the NBA’s annual Summer League, Vegas is the home of the 2022 WNBA champions, the Aces.
“I remember a day when you barely knew the NBA was in the city during Summer League,” Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said on Wednesday, according to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times. “Now it’s a huge extravaganza. It’s a whole rollout, a whole layout of excitement and entertainment built around those 14 or 15 days the guys are here. I think Las Vegas is a hotbed for entertainment, obviously, and having the Raiders here now and the Aces.
“… I think it’s only a matter of time before Jerry West shows up permanently — that logo is on the jersey representing the city of Las Vegas. I think it’s a great city, the natural organic energy that’s here built into the city, it goes hand in hand with the level of sports that have been considered to be placed here. … It’s a no-brainer. Down the road, I don’t want to speak for the NBA or the commissioner, but I think at some point you’ll see a permanent NBA team here calling Las Vegas home.”
While Las Vegas and Seattle have been the subject of expansion rumors for years, Silver and the NBA have consistently pushed that conversation down the road. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), the league intends to negotiate its new television deal and Collective Bargaining Agreement before seriously considering expansion. So while the prospect of expanding to Vegas and Seattle is legitimate, it’s probably still a few years away.
That timeline would work out well for James, who is under contract for at least two more years, with a player option for the 2024/25 season. He would have to be retired as a player in order to own a team, according to McMenamin, who notes that LeBron would also need to link up with a deep-pocketed partner — the longtime NBA star reportedly has a net worth exceeding $1 billion, but a new NBA franchise would cost significantly more than that.
As James makes a public push for expansion to Vegas, Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times explores where things stand in Seattle, another city that is hosting NBA preseason games this fall. Those preseason games are being played at the Climate Pledge Arena, which was developed by the Oak View Group at the site of the SuperSonics’ old home, KeyArena. CEO Tim Leiweke believes the building is ready for an NBA team, but said he doesn’t want to pressure Silver and the league into making a decision.
“You don’t want to get ahead of the league, you don’t want to force a decision,” Leiweke said. “You don’t want to think at the end of the day that you have leverage or you have the ability to force an issue like this. You don’t. This is really first and foremost if and when Adam and the Board of Governors want to even consider it.”
Heat Notes: Herro, Cap Outlook, Adebayo, Yurtseven
When the Heat signed Tyler Herro to a long-term deal on Sunday, this year’s rookie scale extension deadline was still over two weeks away. But Herro told reporters, including Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, that he was happy with the Heat’s offer and didn’t feel the need to take negotiations down to the wire to try to squeeze out a few more million.
“It was a number I couldn’t pass up,” Herro said. “It wasn’t worth going into restricted free agency. And at the end of the day, this is where I want to be. … So it made sense.”
Herro’s new contract has a base value of $120MM and can technically be worth up to $130MM, but his incentives won’t be easy to achieve. As Anil Gogna of NoTradeClause.com details (via Twitter), Herro’s various bonuses are tied to being named to an All-NBA team, winning the MVP, and/or being named Defensive Player of the Year.
Here’s more on the Heat:
- With Herro locked up for the next five seasons, the Heat will face a cap crunch going forward, according to Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. As The Herald’s duo observes, any major roster addition Miami makes in the next few years will likely have to come via trade, since the team won’t have any cap room available anytime soon, barring some major roster reshuffling. Re-signing Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, and/or Omer Yurtseven beyond 2022/23 will only push team salary further over the cap (and the tax line), Chiang and Jackson note.
- After playing Bam Adebayo and Yurtseven together for just 18 total minutes last season, head coach Erik Spoelstra had the duo on the floor for 20 minutes in the Heat’s preseason opener on Tuesday, showing that he’s committed to determining whether the frontcourt pairing can work, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “They’re not going to play this many minutes together (during the season), if they play together. We’ll figure that part out,” Spoelstra said. “But that takes more time than some of the space or speed lineups. That’s why we’re dedicating time to that now in the preseason and in training camp.”
- Spoelstra intends to continue using the preseason as a time to experiment with different lineup combinations, telling reporters that he’s “open to whatever” as he gets a sense of what works and what doesn’t, per Winderman. “We view all of this as training camp until we get to that Chicago game,” Spoelstra said, referring to Miami’s first game of the regular season on October 19.
Warriors Notes: DiVincenzo, Poole, Iguodala, Baldwin
Although he was prepared to be on the move at the 2022 trade deadline, Donte DiVincenzo was surprised when he found out he was headed from Milwaukee to Sacramento, telling Anthony Slater of The Athletic that he thought he’d end up with the Celtics in a trade involving Dennis Schröder.
“I don’t know what happened. Somebody might’ve wanted too much,” DiVincenzo said. “But that was my impression, that I was going to Boston. The Sacramento one came out of nowhere.”
Since he was eligible for restricted free agency over the summer, DiVincenzo was fully prepared to remain with the Kings and was once again caught off guard when Sacramento opted not to give him a qualifying offer. DiVincenzo said he had “mixed emotions” about the chance to become an unrestricted free agent.
“I can pick where I want to go, but then you have the other side, like, ‘Damn, they didn’t want me? Do they still want me? Are they trying to do something with a cap hold or whatever?’” DiVincenzo said. “I didn’t understand all that stuff. But my mind was just open, spinning, hectic for a couple days.”
The former Villanova standout ultimately landed in Golden State on a two-year deal that includes a second-year player option, and he’s enjoying the Warriors experience so far, telling Slater that he has been especially impressed by the team’s communication on defense.
“Draymond (Green) is contagious. He’s the engine on defense. He calls out everything,” DiVincenzo said. “Once he does that, you hear (Kevon Looney), you hear (Andrew Wiggins), you hear Steph (Curry), you hear everyone talking. Last night, when I was playing with the younger guys, I felt like if I lock in and communicate on defense, it’ll be contagious to them. That’s fun. Dudes want to do things that normally guys don’t like doing in the NBA.”
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Tyler Herro‘s four-year, $120MM deal with Miami will likely change the way extension negotiations play out between the Warriors and Jordan Poole, Slater writes for The Athletic. While the two sides would like to reach an agreement on a new deal, the floor for Poole is probably higher now than it would’ve been when contracts like Anfernee Simons‘ ($100MM) and RJ Barrett‘s ($107MM) were the primary reference points.
- After picking the Warriors to win just 39 games last season, John Hollinger of The Athletic admits he may not have a great feel for the team, but he projects the Dubs to go 53-29 in 2022/23 and views them as a “slight favorite” to return to the NBA Finals.
- Having Andre Iguodala back for one more season may have a positive impact on the Warriors’ future, according to Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic, who notes that getting guidance and feedback from Iguodala for another year could benefit the club’s young prospects in the long run.
- Could forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. enter the Warriors’ rotation as a rookie? Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area explores that possibility, noting that Baldwin’s teammates and coaches like what they’ve seen from him so far.
- In case you missed it, the Warriors increased their preseason roster count back to the maximum of 20 earlier today by officially signing Anthony Lamb.
DeMarcus Cousins: “I Have A Lot Left In The Tank”
With opening night less than two weeks away, four-time All-Star DeMarcus Cousins remains unsigned. However, Cousins continues to seek a new NBA home, telling Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports that he’ll be “prepared” if and when he gets his next opportunity and that he’s hoping to dispel the notion he’s a negative influence in a locker room.
“I think the misperception of me is that I’m this angry monster that just goes around bullying people, beating people up, uncoachable, and a cancer in the locker room,” Cousins said. “I think it’s all false. I played for coach (John) Calipari, a legendary coach. I was more than coachable. Steve Kerr would attest to that and Coach (Michael) Malone.
“Obviously, you can always go back to my time in Sacramento. I was a young kid. I was still figuring this business out. I was ignorant to a lot of things. I handled a lot of things the incorrect way, but I’ve also learned from those mistakes. … To hold my time in Sac over my head, I think that’s unfair. I believe we all should have a chance to grow and change and actually have that change be embraced. I just want a fair shot.”
Cousins hasn’t played more than 48 games in a season since 2016/17 due to a series of injuries and an inability to stick with one team (he has played for six clubs during that time). Still, he has shown in limited minutes that he’s still a talented scorer and rebounder, having averaged 9.0 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 48 appearances (15.0 MPG) last season for the Nuggets and Bucks. The 32-year-old believes he still has plenty to contribute to an NBA team.
“It would mean everything in the world to me to be back in the NBA,” Cousins told Haynes. “I know I belong in this league. I feel like I’ve paid my dues and earned my stripes. I’ve hit some bumps in the road with injuries and I’ve always worked my way back to be 100 percent healthy. I’ve worked my tail off to get back to this point. I just want the opportunity to show the work I’ve put in and continue to put in. I also just want an opportunity to also earn my keep and that’s all I really want.
“I have a lot left in the tank. A whole lot. I feel like I’ve actually become an even better player, just sharpening all my skills. I’ve had nothing but time in the gym. I’ve gotten better in all aspects of my game.”
Cousins’ 15 minutes per game last season represented his lowest average since he entered the NBA in 2010. However, he wouldn’t necessarily be pushing for a larger role with his next team, telling Haynes that he recognizes he’s no longer “the franchise player I was when I was younger” and has accepted that.
“Whatever role is given to me, I will do it willingly and to the best of my ability,” Cousins said. “Obviously, me being a competitor, I always want to reach for the stars, but I’m going to do what’s asked of me. And if it’s me starting, if it’s me coming off the bench, or if it’s me having to be at the end of the bench cheering the next guy on, I’ll do it. Whatever it takes. I’m willing to do whatever is needed to win.”
Clippers Sign Malik Fitts, Nate Darling
The Clippers have signed forward Malik Fitts and guard Nate Darling, the team announced on Wednesday. Terms of the deals weren’t disclosed, but they’re likely non-guaranteed training camp contracts with Exhibit 10 language included.
Fitts, 25, spent time in 2020/21 with the Clippers and their G League affiliate after going undrafted out of Saint Mary’s. Last season, he appeared in 15 total games for Utah and Boston, but played a very minimal role for both teams, logging just 63 total minutes. After finishing the season with the Celtics, Fitts had a non-guaranteed salary for ’22/23, but was traded to Indiana in the Malcolm Brogdon deal and was subsequently waived by the Pacers.
Darling, meanwhile, went undrafted out of Delaware in 2020 and spent his rookie season on a two-way contract with Charlotte, appearing in seven games for the Hornets. Last season, he was a fixture in the backcourt for the Clippers’ G League team, averaging 17.1 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 3.1 APG in 31 NBAGL appearances (32.4 MPG).
Both Fitts and Darling look like good bets to be waived before opening night and eventually join the Ontario Clippers in the G League. It’s also possible one or both will be in the mix for L.A.’s open two-way slot.
The Clippers, who made three cuts on Tuesday, now have 19 players on their training camp roster.
Corey Kispert Out 4-6 Weeks With Sprained Ankle
Second-year swingman Corey Kispert will be sidelined for approximately four-to-six weeks due to a left ankle sprain, the Wizards announced today in a press release.
According to the team, Kispert sustained the injury when he stepped on an opponent’s foot during the first quarter of Sunday’s preseason contest vs. Golden State in Japan.
Viewed as one of the best shooters in the 2021 draft class, Kispert was selected 15th overall a year ago and appeared in 77 games as a rookie, averaging 8.2 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 23.4 MPG. He got off to a slow start, making just 28.6% of his three-point attempts through 35 games, but heated up in the second half, knocking down 37.6% of his tries in his final 42 games.
While Kispert shouldn’t miss a significant chunk of the season while recovering from the ankle injury, it’s a tough setback for a player who was looking to solidify his place in the Wizards’ rotation for opening night. The club will also miss his outside shooting, having ranked last in the NBA in 2021/22 in three-pointers made, notes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).
Kispert’s absence to open the season should create a path to expanded roles for players like Will Barton, Delon Wright, Deni Avdija, and Johnny Davis.
Sixers Notes: Expectations, Joe, Bassey, Harris, Reed
In his preview of the coming season in Philadelphia, John Hollinger of The Athletic wonders whether the NBA world is sleeping on the Sixers after last season’s fourth-place finish and second-round exit.
As Hollinger outlines, signing P.J. Tucker, Danuel House, and Montrezl Harrell while trading for De’Anthony Melton – whom Hollinger refers to as one of the NBA’s most underrated players – helped shore up virtually all of the roster’s glaring holes, and the time might be right for the 76ers to break through in the Eastern Conference.
Hollinger is expecting big things from this year’s team, predicting that Philadelphia will finish the 2022/23 season with the second-best record in the East and will win the title, with Joel Embiid earning MVP honors.
Here’s more on the Sixers:
- The Sixers are relieved not to have this year’s training camp dominated by questions about Ben Simmons‘ holdout, like last year’s was, writes Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Head coach Doc Rivers told reporters that it’s “nice not having to deal with this stuff,” while Georges Niang suggested everyone on the roster is on the same page heading into this season. “We know who we have and you know who’s in your circle and you feel like you can build,” Niang said. “With all of us last year, it was kind of like we didn’t know who was going to get traded, who was going to come back. I think it’s good to just know who’s going to be here.”
- Isaiah Joe, whose minimum-salary contract is non-guaranteed, isn’t a lock to make the Sixers’ regular season roster, but he says he’s not stressing about his future, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “My mindset through this is as long as I’m the best version of myself, I believe that I will be all right,” Joe said. “I believe that I will be all right, especially with the guys that we got.” Pompey suggests that the last spot on Philadelphia’s roster could come down to Joe, Trevelin Queen, and Charles Bassey, with Bassey perhaps the longest shot to make the team.
- Originally cast as the Sixers’ third star, Tobias Harris now finds himself fourth in the pecking order behind Embiid, James Harden, and Tyrese Maxey. In a separate story for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Pompey explores how Harris will adjust to his new role.
- The acquisition of Harrell seemed likely to make Paul Reed the third center on the 76ers’ depth chart, but he continues to serve as the primary backup center to Embiid so far in the preseason, Pompey writes for The Inquirer. Even Reed himself has been somewhat surprised by that decision. “I was a little shocked,” he said. “But at the same time, I still want to stay humble, you know? I don’t want to get too big-headed, you know? I want to keep doing what I’m supposed to be doing so I can keep earning more trust and keep getting more minutes.”
Community Shootaround: Best Potential Landing Spot For Wembanyama
There were more than 200 NBA scouts and executives in attendance on Tuesday to watch the projected top two picks in the 2023 draft square off, as Victor Wembanyama and French club Metropolitans 92 faced Scoot Henderson and the G League Ignite, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
Henderson, widely viewed as the second-best prospect in next year’s draft class, lived up to that billing, racking up 28 points to go along with nine assists and five rebounds. He led the Ignite to a 122-115 victory.
But it was Wembanyama who stole the show, even in a losing cause. The 7’3″ Frenchman poured in 37 points on just 20 field goal attempts, knocking down seven three-pointers and blocking five shots. According to Matt Williams of ESPN (Twitter link), only one player in NBA history has ever made seven threes and blocked five shots in a single game before — Danny Green did it in a triple-overtime game in 2014.
Wembanyama admitted after Tuesday’s game that the longer G League quarters affected his stamina, but his incredible performance showed why he’s considered one of the best NBA prospects in years.
“He was amazing,” Metropolitans 92 coach Vincent Collet said, per Myron Medcalf of ESPN. “What he can do with his size, his agility, mobility, not only his ability to shoot the three, moving very well. He even made a couple of very good passes. I think he (had) a real good game but he also will learn from the first half. He has to fight more because he knows to expect that kind of aggressive defense.”
As Jeremy Woo of SI.com writes, after Tuesday’s game, the idea of tanking for a shot at Wembanyama may look even more appealing to a handful of the NBA teams likely headed for a lottery spot this season.
As we outlined when we conducted our over/under polls last month, the Thunder, Pacers, Spurs, Rockets, Jazz, and Magic are projected to be the NBA’s bottom-feeders in 2022/23. But even the league’s very worst team will only have a 14% shot at the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery, so a number of clubs will be in play for Wembanyama.
In the wake of Tuesday’s impressive showcase, we want to know what you think. Which lottery-bound team would be the best landing spot for Wembanyama?
You can interpret that question in any way you like — there are, of course, certain teams that might be more ideal for the big man’s development, while certain landing spots would just be flat-out entertaining. For instance, as Tom Ziller notes on his Substack, if the Lakers’ 2023 first-round pick lands at No. 1, the Pelicans would be able to swap their own first-round pick for it and pair Wembanyama with Zion Williamson.
Does that Pelicans scenario sound like one you’d want to play out? Or would you rather see Wembanyama join forces with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren in Oklahoma City; Jalen Green and Jabari Smith in Houston; Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner in Orlando; Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and Jalen Duren in Detroit; or Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin in Indiana?
Head to the comment section to weigh in with your thoughts!