Bucks Apply For Disabled Player Exception
The Bucks have applied for a disabled player exception in the wake of a major injury to Taurean Prince, who underwent neck surgery last month to address a herniated disk, league sources tell Eric Nehm of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Nehm’s report suggests the Bucks think Prince, who is officially out indefinitely, will miss the remainder of the season. While that may end up being the case, it hasn’t been confirmed yet, since the request has not yet been granted by the NBA.
An NBA team becomes eligible for a disabled player exception when one of its players sustains an injury that is considered more likely than not to sideline him through June 15 of that league year.
A disabled player exception doesn’t grant the team an extra roster spot, but it generates some additional cap flexibility. The exception can be used to acquire a player on an expiring contract via trade or waiver claim, or to sign a free agent to a one-year deal.
The value of the disabled player is equivalent to either the non-taxpayer mid-level exception or half of the injured player’s salary, whichever is lesser. Prince’s cap hit is $3,303,774, well below the MLE, and if the DPE is granted, it would only be worth $1,651,887.
Still, there’s no reason for Milwaukee to not apply for the disabled player exception, particularly if the team thinks Prince will miss the rest of the year. The value may be relatively modest, but it’s another potential tool for the Bucks to work with as they consider roster changes.
More Details On Chris Paul’s Exit From Clippers
Longtime point guard Chris Paul is in his final NBA season and is technically still under contract with the Clippers. However, Los Angeles announced that it was “parting ways” with the future Hall of Famer on December 3, and he is no longer around the team.
Reporting after Paul’s departure shed more light on the situation, with multiple outlets suggesting that the 40-year-old had clashed with players, coaches, and the front office due to his leadership style, which the Clippers found to be “acerbic” and unhelpful in a veteran locker room.
Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com takes an in-depth look at Paul’s acrimonious exit, writing that there was no “smoking gun” incident that led to his departure.
“There really wasn’t one thing,” one source close to the situation told Shelburne. “This isn’t like J.R. Smith throwing the soup in Cleveland.”
Instead, there were personality clashes between Paul and various members of the organization, including arguments with head coach Tyronn Lue and “especially” assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy. There were also major differences of opinion on Paul’s role.
According to Shelburne, the Clippers viewed Paul as a low maintenance veteran leader who would play a “very limited” on-court role; Paul confirmed he was OK with that, sources tell Shelburne, but he also wanted a chance to earn playing time and would try to be an “extension of the coaching staff.”
While Paul’s second stint with the Clippers started out well in the offseason, that quickly changed during training camp, as players and coaches “recoiled” from Paul’s suggestions and “abrasive” personality, Shelburne writes.
“That’s how Chris is,” one executive with another team said. “He wears you out. He’s convinced he’s right — and he often is right, which kind of pisses you off — and he’ll go around to everyone until you agree with him.”
Paul’s expectations for his role also changed during that time, as he was spearheading a second unit that was regularly “kicking (the starters’) ass” during camp, as forward John Collins put it. The 12-time All-Star had a substantial role during the preseason as well, Shelburne notes.
“If all they wanted was a cheerleader,” the same rival executive said, “why did they sign Chris Paul? I mean, they had him before. They knew what he was like.”
According to Shelburne’s sources, Paul attempted multiple times during the season to engage in team-building exercises and was concerned about the Clippers’ culture, but his efforts largely fell flat in a quiet locker room. Shelburne also provides more details on Paul’s disagreements with Lue and Van Gundy, his final meeting with president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank, and reports that Brook Lopez and Kawhi Leonard were Paul’s “most ardent supporters.”
Shelburne’s story is worth checking out in full for fans of Paul and/or the Clippers.
Heat’s Nikola Jovic Day-To-Day With Elbow Injury
December 16: After undergoing MRIs, both Jovic (elbow contusion/laceration) and Herro (big toe contusion) are being considered day-to-day, tweets Winderman. As Reynolds notes (via Twitter), that’s especially good news for Jovic, given how scary his fall looked.
December 15: Just 12 seconds into his return to the rotation, Heat forward Nikola Jovic was forced to exit Monday’s game vs. Toronto due to a right elbow injury, as Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel relays.
Jovic, who was getting an opportunity to play in part because Tyler Herro was a late scratch due to a toe injury, went up for a dunk attempt on a fast break and was fouled by Toronto rookie Collin Murray-Boyles (YouTube link). Jovic fell extremely hard, with most of his weight appearing to come down on his elbow and lower back.
While there was no ill intent from Murray-Boyles, it was still a scary-looking play. After Jovic was down on the court for a few minutes, a stretcher was brought out. He didn’t end up needing the stretcher, but he was helped off with assistance, with his arm being held up by a trainer in some type of protective brace.
X-rays on Jovic’s elbow were negative and he will undergo an MRI on Tuesday, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
A former first-round pick (27th overall in the 2022 draft), Jovic is off to a disappointing start to his fourth season, averaging 7.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists on .390/.283/.718 shooting in 18 appearances (19.3 minutes per game) heading into Monday’s contest. The 22-year-old Serbian is earning $4.45MM this season before his four-year, $62.4MM rookie scale extension begins next summer.
Pistons Reportedly Not Targeting Anthony Davis
Shams Charania of ESPN reported last week that the Pistons were expected to be among the suitors for Mavericks big man Anthony Davis. However, league sources tell Hunter Patterson of The Athletic that Davis isn’t currently on Detroit’s radar, as the team is focused on “internal growth” rather than a major win-now acquisition.
As Patterson notes, president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon has publicly stated multiple times that the Pistons want to build patiently and continue developing their promising young core. Detroit improved to 21-5 on Monday after picking up a victory in Boston, and currently holds the best record in the Eastern Conference.
Langdon said a couple weeks ago that the front office would be “opportunistic” if the right trade opportunity presents itself, but the team didn’t plan to aggressively seek out upgrades. Patterson has heard similarly, writing that the Pistons are “content” with the current roster and aren’t contemplating any drastic shakeups.
Patterson acknowledges that stance could change in the weeks leading up to the February 5 deadline, but as of now, a marginal upgrade looks far more likely than a blockbuster deal.
If the Pistons do decide a major trade is necessary down the line, they would probably be better off making that type of move in the offseason, when Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey will be restricted free agents and Ausar Thompson and Isaiah Stewart will be up for extensions, Patterson notes. Acquiring a maximum-salary star like Davis would significantly impact the team’s financial flexibility moving forward, on top of the risk inherent in dealing for an oft-injured player who’s on the wrong side of 30.
Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press explained a few days ago why a Pistons trade for Davis was unlikely, reporting that the two teams hadn’t had any talks about the 32-year-old forward/center. Keith Langlois of Pistons.com was also dubious about the possibility of an in-season deal for the 10-time All-Star.
Raptors Notes: Giannis, AD, Trade Options, Barrett, Battle
The Raptors are one of only seven NBA teams that fully control all of their own future first-round picks, which is why they can’t be ruled out as a potential suitor for Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, Mavericks big man Anthony Davis, or any other star who comes available in the future, according to Eric Koreen of The Athletic.
However, Koreen argues Toronto should avoid both Antetokounmpo and Davis because the Raptors still wouldn’t be good enough to contend for a title after the potential acquisition.
A deal for Antetokounmpo would likely start with the Bucks asking for Scottie Barnes and draft picks, Koreen writes, and while Barnes is probably unlikely to ever reach Antetokounmpo’s level as a perennial MVP candidate, he’s also nearly seven years younger, makes less money, and has a less extensive injury history. There’s also the significant question of whether Antetokounmpo or the Bucks would be open to the idea.
If Barnes isn’t involved, Koreen continues, the Raptors could try to offer a package of RJ Barrett, Jakob Poeltl, Collin Murray-Boyles and picks; ignoring whether the Bucks would accept such a trade, Toronto would be left without a true center, the team’s primary position of weakness, would have less depth, and fewer ways to improve the roster going forward.
Davis would certainly cost less to acquire from an asset standpoint, considering he’s older, less impactful, and has a longer injury history than Antetokounmpo, Koreen notes. But the trade would still require giving up two starters to make the money work, hurting the Raptors’ depth, and although Davis is obviously a major upgrade over Poeltl, he doesn’t like to play center and they share a couple of weaknesses (contract situations and injuries), Koreen observes.
Here’s more on the Raptors:
- Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca covers similar ground, writing that Davis would probably make more sense to pursue from a cost-acquisition standpoint, but noting that there are logical reasons why a deal might not appeal to Toronto, Dallas or Davis. While it remains to be seen whether or not the Raptors will target a major move, they will certainly be active ahead of the February 5 deadline — they’re currently less than $1MM above the luxury tax line and will undoubtedly dip below that threshold in some fashion, per Grange.
- As for potential trade targets, Grange suggests the Raptors try packaging some combination of Ochai Agbaji and other salaries to find a backup center who is also capable of filling in as a starter when Poeltl is unavailable, as Sandro Mamukelashvili is more of a “face-up power forward” than a true big man. The Raptors have expressed some interest in Davis’ teammate Daniel Gafford in the past, according to Grange, who says the “most enticing” hypothetical trade target might be Magic center Goga Bitadze. Grange lists five other big men the Raptors could consider as well.
- Barrett, who has been sidelined since November 23 due to a right knee sprain, will return to basketball activities sometime this week, the Raptors announced on Monday (Twitter link via Grange). Barrett received a PRP injection to promote healing in his knee last week. The Toronto native is the team’s third-leading scorer.
- Second-year sharpshooter Jamison Battle, who sprained his left ankle on Dec. 5 and missed the past two games, was active for Monday’s contest at Miami, tweets Zulfi Sheikh of Sportsnet. Battle is only averaging 8.1 minutes per game across 17 appearances, but he has been highly efficient offensively in a very small sample size; he is 12-for-15 on twos (80%) and 13-for-22 on threes (59.1%).
Grizzlies’ Konchar Undergoes Thumb Surgery, Out At Least 3 Weeks
Grizzlies wing John Konchar has undergone successful surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his left thumb, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link).
According to the Grizzlies, Konchar sustained the injury on December 7 vs. Portland, a game in which he recorded two points, three rebounds and three steals in 17 minutes during a 23-point victory. The 29-year-old guard/forward is expected to make a full recovery and will be checked out again in about three weeks, per the team.
Memphis first announced that Konchar would require a procedure for the UCL tear on Dec. 11, when the Grizzlies said starting center Zach Edey would be out at least four weeks. They didn’t provide a return timeline for Konchar at the time, and still haven’t beyond stating the seven-year veteran will miss a minimum of three weeks.
Konchar has played a fairly modest role for Memphis this season, averaging 3.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 1.2 APG and 0.9 SPG in 13.0 MPG across 22 appearances off the bench. While Konchar isn’t much of a scoring threat, he generally makes sound decisions on offense (career assist-to-turnover ratio of 3-to-1), is an above average rebounder for his position, and is a solid defender.
It’s a small sample size, but Konchar has some of the best on/off numbers on the team.
A former undrafted free agent, Konchar has spent his entire NBA career with the Grizzlies. He’s earning about $6.2MM this season and has an identical cap hold for 2026/27.
The Grizzlies have been hit very hard by injuries once again this season, with several players missing extended time, including Brandon Clarke (knee surgery), Scotty Pippen Jr. (toe surgery) and Ty Jerome (calf strain), all of whom have yet to play ’25/26.
Hawks Waive Jacob Toppin
The Hawks have waived forward Jacob Toppin, who was on a two-way contract, according to the official transaction log at NBA.com (hat tip to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype).
The news doesn’t come as a major surprise, as Toppin underwent season-ending right shoulder surgery last Monday to repair a torn labrum he suffered in a G League game with the College Park Skyhawks.
Atlanta now has a two-way vacancy in addition to a open standard roster spot, notes Brad Rowland of Locked On Hawks (via Twitter). As our tracker shows, the Nets are currently the only other NBA team with a two-way opening.
Toppin hasn’t played much in the NBA to this point in his career, making 31 total appearances for a total of 131 minutes (4.2 minutes per game). The 25-year-old appeared in five games for Atlanta in ’25/26, averaging just 3.4 MPG.
While his NBA role has been very modest, Toppin has been a productive contributor in the G League. In five games with College Park this season, he filled the stat sheet, averaging 18.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.2 blocks in 31.0 minutes per contest, with a shooting slash line of .480/.357/.600.
Jazz’s Georges Niang Out At Least Two More Weeks
Veteran forward Georges Niang still isn’t close to making his season debut, according to the Jazz, who announced in a press release that the 32-year-old continues to progress through rehab but will be out at least two more weeks, which is the next time he’ll be reexamined.
It has been 11-plus weeks since the Jazz first announced that Niang had sustained a stress reaction of the fourth metatarsal in his left foot during offseason training and conditioning. While Utah has repeatedly said that Niang has been making progress in his recovery, he remains sidelined indefinitely.
A former second-round pick (50th overall in 2016), Niang has carved out a long NBA career as a three-point marksman, converting 39.9% of his career attempts from behind the arc. In 79 games last season (21.5 minutes per contest) with Cleveland and Atlanta, he averaged 9.9 points and 3.4 rebounds on .461/.406/.793 shooting.
Niang was traded from Atlanta to Boston in July and then was flipped to Utah in a salary-dump deal in August. He’s on an expiring contract, which will pay him $8.2MM in 2025/26.
Heat Notes: Losing Streak, Threes, Herro, Wiggins, Jovic
The Heat were grateful to have an extended break after losing their fourth straight game on Tuesday, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. Miami has spent the past three days practicing after taking a couple of rest days in the middle of the week.
“Look, we don’t like losing,” head coach Erik Spoelstra said. “We have a very competitive group in the locker room. We’re just focused on getting better, not getting caught up in all the panic and narratives that potentially can be out there, just have to rally around each other.
“Look, it’s a competitive league. There’s so much parity right now. You have to play well and then you have to find different ways to win games. There’s going to be a lot of teams that are going through what we’re going through right now. You can’t panic for all the noise. You just have to focus on, ‘How do we get better?’”
As Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald notes, the Heat had gotten pretty lucky during their 14-7 start to the season, as opponents were converting three-pointers at a much worse rate than expected, while the Heat were one of the top outside shooting teams in the league. Both of those trends have reversed during their recent stretch of poor play.
“They’re doing a great job of scouting how we play our offense,” guard Norman Powell said. “They’re up higher. They’re two, three steps up above the three. They’re denying passing lanes. They’re trying to make us play one in the half court and then two inside the line.
“So we’ve just got to be better collectively, really working the offense like we were at the beginning of the season. We’re all on everybody’s scouting report in how we want to play, the pace, and trying to slow us down. So individually, we can all be better in how we navigate the offense, attack, kickouts, not taking so many tough two-pointers once we get into the paint.”
Here’s more on the Heat:
- Spoelstra strongly pushed back on the notion that having Tyler Herro back has disrupted the team’s offensive rhythm, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. “It’s just a total overreaction that’s misguided. We need Tyler,” Spoelstra said Friday. “And it will be a little bit of a process working him back into the mix. But to get where we need to go, we need Tyler’s skill and talent. We need our guys healthy, and that’s what we’re working on right now. We can be very dangerous when we get guys on the same page, committing to our identity, and Tyler’s a big part of that.” The Heat are just 3-3 when Herro plays, but they’ve been better when he’s on the court than when he’s off, Chiang observes, and the 25-year-old guard is once again putting up big offensive numbers.
- While he admits there are pros and cons to the role, veteran wing Andrew Wiggins has grown accustomed to spending most of his time as a small-ball power forward, per Winderman. “It hasn’t been weighing on me at all. I’ve been feeling pretty comfortable,” he said. “It was more so newer at the beginning of the year. But, like I said, I feel comfortable now and I feel like I’m doing a solid job being the power forward. I mean, it has its advantages and disadvantages.”
- Spoelstra says fourth-year forward Nikola Jovic will have an opportunity to play rotation minutes again at some point, Winderman adds, though when exactly that will take place is still up in the air. “He just has to stay with it,” Spoelstra said. “And each day is an opportunity for him to get better and to make an impression. That’s good that he has practice days, to show us. But he’s been working behind the scenes and he’ll get his opportunity again.”
Kristaps Porzingis Out At Least Two Weeks Due To Illness
Hawks center Kristaps Porzingis will miss at least two weeks as he undergoes additional evaluations due to an illness, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
According to Charania, both Atlanta and Porzingis are taking a big-picture view of the Latvian big man’s health in the hope of having him more available later in the season.
The Hawks have confirmed the news in a press release (Twitter link). According to the team, Porzingis will only participate in limited basketball activities over the next two weeks, after which time his status will be updated.
Porzingis, who is earning $30.7MM in 2025/26 and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer if he doesn’t sign an extension before then, will miss his third consecutive game on Sunday against Philadelphia after returning for one game earlier this month following four straight absences because of the unspecified illness.
Porzingis discussed the illness in general terms after the December 5 loss to Denver, his lone appearance in the past few weeks. The 30-year-old said his most recent ailment wasn’t related to postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), the condition he was diagnosed with after missing extended time last season.
“No, I wouldn’t say it’s the same thing,” Porzingis said. “I just wasn’t feeling too good, honestly. Just not being healthy healthy, you know? But I wouldn’t say it’s the same stuff from last season, so that’s good.
“I think I kind of put that behind me even this summer playing for the (Latvian) national team, but anyway, just catching whatever, it’s frustrating, you know? I want to be healthy. And I will be healthy.”
Porizingis will miss at least six more games beyond Sunday, with his earliest possible return date likely being Dec. 29 at Oklahoma City.