Pacific Notes: Moody, Kings, Nurkic, Stoudemire
Moses Moody‘s strong defense on Jalen Brunson was one of the keys to the Warriors‘ victory over the Knicks in New York on Thursday, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. The 21-year-old wing has experienced inconsistent playing time throughout his first three NBA seasons, but he had an unusually grounded take on the way his role has fluctuated to this point in his career.
“It’s real life,” Moody said. “Different things happen. You gotta be able to keep your head, control your emotions. All my friends are in that space where they’re leaving college, trying to figure out life. Everybody’s going through different adversities. Who am I to think I should have an easy road to whatever I want? It’s just kind of how it goes.”
The 14th pick of the 2021 draft, Moody will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the offseason. He’s currently starting in place of Andrew Wiggins, who is away from the team for personal reasons.
Here’s more from the Pacific:
- Prior to Friday’s overtime victory over the Wolves in Minnesota, the Kings held a players-only meeting that lasted about 35 minutes, per Chris Biderman of The Sacramento Bee. It was the first time the team held such a meeting since Mike Brown became head coach in 2022/23. “We had a team meeting to talk about (how) we have to take this s–t seriously because we got 23 games left now,” Malik Monk said after Friday’s game. “The coaches are going to say what they’re going to say, but we’re out they’re playing. We knew we had to come together and outwork somebody.” Monk finished with a season-high 39 points, including 35 after halftime, and Brown was “thrilled” that the players took accountability for their up-and-down play, Biderman adds.
- Suns center Jusuf Nurkic pulled down a career-high 31 rebounds on Sunday vs. Oklahoma City — the most in an NBA game in 13 years and a new franchise record for Phoenix — but he wasn’t in a celebratory mood after the loss, according to a report from ESPN.com. “I don’t know, man, I’m just trying to do my role the best I can. But it’s kind of really messed up when you have 13 offensive rebounds and 16 shots then zero free throws,” Nurkic said. “As hard as I work, and I feel like [I’m] getting fouled as [much as] anybody in the league. And I’m not here saying — we lost the game, it is what it is — [but] it’s just, it’s not really common sense. At least one [free throw]. [To] not even have one? But I know it happens. I ain’t the first one, and I ain’t going to be the last, either, unfortunately.”
- On Saturday, former Suns star Amar’e Stoudemire — one of the most electrifying dunkers in league history — was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor. Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports passes along several quotes from the occasion.
Lakers Sign Harry Giles To Two-Way Contract
MARCH 2: The Lakers announced that they’ve signed Giles and waived Windler (Twitter link).
MARCH 1, 8:30pm: A team source tells ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that Windler will be released to make room for Giles, who will join the Lakers on Monday (Twitter link).
MARCH 1, 7:17pm: Free agent big man Harry Giles is signing a two-way contract with the Lakers, agent Daniel Hazan tells Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (Twitter link).
As Charania observes, the Lakers are a little thin in the frontcourt due to injuries to Christian Wood (knee swelling) and two-way center Colin Castleton (right wrist fracture). Castleton hasn’t been in the rotation as a rookie this season, but it’s possible he may have gotten a chance with Wood out.
L.A. currently has Castleton, Skylar Mays and Dylan Windler on two-way deals. One of them will have to be waived in order to make room on the roster for Giles.
A former first-round pick, Giles returned to the NBA in 2023/24 after missing two full seasons due to knee injuries. He signed a non-guaranteed, minimum-salary contract with the Nets, earning a spot on the team’s regular season roster and then having his full salary guaranteed when he remained on the roster through January 7.
Giles played sparingly in Brooklyn, appearing in 16 games and averaging just 5.1 minutes per night. He posted 3.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game in his limited role.
The 25-year-old forward/center was a roster casualty last month, with the Nets waiving him to complete a trade before the deadline.
As our glossary entry on two-way contracts shows, in the 2023 CBA, the league and the players’ union agreed to implement what is informally known as the “Harry Giles rule.” Prior to signing with Brooklyn, Giles had been on an NBA roster for four seasons, but missed the entirety of his 2017/18 rookie year due to an injury, so he had only actually played in an NBA regular season game in three separate seasons.
The new rule allows Giles – and any other player who has four years of NBA service but missed one or more of those seasons due to an injury – to sign a two-way contract. That’s how Windler was able to sign two-way deals with the Knicks and Lakers as well.
Spurs Sign RaiQuan Gray To Two-Way Deal, Cut Diakite
MARCH 2: The Spurs have officially signed Gray and waived Diakite, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link).
MARCH 1: The Spurs are signing free agent forward RaiQuan Gray to a two-way contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that Mamadi Diakite will be waived to create a roster opening.
The 59th pick of the 2021 draft out of Florida State, Gray signed a two-way deal with Brooklyn at the very end of last season, posting 16 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and one block in his lone NBA appearance in 2022/23. That one game means he’s now in his second season.
Gray signed a training camp deal with the Spurs in the fall and was waived before the ’23/24 season began. He has been playing for the team’s G League affiliate in Austin, averaging 18.3 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 3.9 APG and 2.1 SPG on .629/.353/.780 shooting in 19 regular season games (29.4 MPG).
Diakite, 27, is in his fourth NBA season, having made previous stops with the Bucks, Thunder and Cavaliers. The Guinea native made three brief appearances for the Spurs this season.
Spurs Promote Barlow, Sign Bouyea To Two-Way Deal
MARCH 2: The Spurs have officially promoted Barlow to the standard roster and signed Bouyea to a two-way contract, tweets Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News.
MARCH 1: The Spurs are converting Dominick Barlow‘s two-way deal into a standard contract, agent Todd Ramasar tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
San Antonio will fill Barlow’s former two-way spot by signing free agent guard Jamaree Bouyea, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).
Barlow went undrafted out of the Overtime Elite league in 2022 and caught on with the Spurs that summer, signing a two-way contract. The 20-year-old forward/center re-signed with San Antonio last offseason, inking another two-way deal.
Barlow has appeared in 51 games with the Spurs over the past two seasons, averaging 4.2 points and 3.6 rebounds in 14.0 minutes per contest. San Antonio had an open spot on its standard roster, which means no subsequent roster move is necessary to promote Barlow.
Bouyea, 24, has appeared in 11 NBA games with the Heat, Wizards and Trail Blazers over the past two seasons, averaging 2.3 points in 11.6 minutes. While he struggled in his limited run with Portland in 2023/24, the former San Francisco star has been on fire in the G League of late, averaging 29.3 points, 11.3 assists, 9 rebounds and 2.3 steals over his last three games, per Charania.
Bouyea, who went undrafted in 2022, has spent most of his first two professional seasons with Miami’s NBAGL affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Nets Sign Jacob Gilyard To Two-Way Contract
MARCH 2: Gilyard’s two-way deal is now official, according to an announcement from the Nets.
MARCH 1: The Nets intend to sign former Grizzlies point guard Jacob Gilyard to a two-way contract, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
Gilyard was previously on a two-way deal with the Grizzlies, but Memphis waived him last week in order to sign Jordan Goodwin.
Players on two-way contracts can only be active for 50 NBA games in a season. Gilyard was nearly at the 50-game limit, and the Grizzlies had a full 15-man standard roster. Instead of promoting him and having to waive someone from the standard roster, they decided to cut ties.
Gilyard, 25, was a college star at Richmond before going undrafted in 2022. He signed a two-way deal with Memphis at the end of 2022/23, appearing in one game as a rookie. In 37 games this season, he averaged 4.7 points and 3.5 assists while shooting 42.5% from deep in 17.7 minutes per contest.
On Friday afternoon, the Nets used a portion of their mid-level exception to promote rookie forward Jalen Wilson to a multiyear standard contract. That opened up a two-way spot, which Gilyard is set to fill.
Sixers Notes: Melton, Bazley, Payne, Rubin
Sixers guard De’Anthony Melton was sidelined for Friday’s contest vs. Charlotte and won’t be with the team for its upcoming two-game road trip, tweets Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports. The Sixers will play in Dallas on Sunday and in Brooklyn next Tuesday before returning home for Wednesday’s game vs. Memphis.
Melton has been battling a lumbar spine injury for the past few months, which caused him to miss 18 consecutive games before returning last Friday vs. Cleveland. However, in his third game back — on Tuesday vs. Boston — the 25-year-old experienced back spasms, limiting him to nine minutes of action and now at least three more missed games.
The former USC guard will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason if he doesn’t sign an extension with Philadelphia. Melton is earning $8MM in 2023/24, the final season of his current contract.
Here’s more from Philadelphia:
- Darius Bazley, a former first-round pick who has spent most of the season playing for the Delaware Blue Coats, Philadelphia’s NBA G League affiliate, was on a 10-day contract that expired Thursday night. It doesn’t sound like a second 10-day deal is imminent, as he has rejoined the Blue Coats, per Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). The fifth-year forward/center played 10 minutes across three appearances with the 76ers, who now have 13 players on standard contracts and will need to sign another player within 14 days.
- Cameron Payne‘s role with the Sixers has been changing along with the team’s post-deadline roster. Payne went from starting with Tyrese Maxey out to serving as a backup to moving to the third string with the addition of Kyle Lowry. The ninth-year guard knows what’s being asked of him in order to establish himself in the rotation, according to Pompey. “I’ve needed to be more aggressive, more offensive, from where I came from,” Payne said. “That wasn’t needed from me. So just honestly having the ball in my hand is the change.“
- Former Sixers minority owner and Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin said he feels more connected to sports now that he’s no longer a part-owner of the Sixers, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Gina Mizell. Rubin joked he was “violating every rule the NBA had” while owning a stake in the Sixers, Mizell writes, which included taking bets on Philadelphia players after Fanatics entered the space. “If you look through the rules of the leagues, it didn’t work for me to own part of a team,” Rubin said. “It was holding back Fanatics. It was a great privilege and honor to be a part of.“
Tristan Tucker contributed to this post.
Russell Westbrook Sustains Left Hand Fracture
Clippers guard Russell Westbrook sustained a broken left hand on Friday vs. Washington, the team announced (Twitter link via ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk).
Head coach Tyronn Lue told reporters after the game that he’s not yet sure whether Westbrook will require surgery or how much time he might miss (Twitter link via Youngmisuk).
The 2016/17 league MVP, Westbrook has made nine All-NBA teams over the course of his 16-year career. After the Clips traded for James Harden, Westbrook has primarily come off the bench in 2023/24, averaging 11.1 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 4.5 APG and 1.1 SPG on .451/.268/.672 shooting in 57 games (22.8 MPG).
Unfortunately, Westbrook is the second noteworthy player to suffer a fractured left hand tonight, joining Raptors forward Scottie Barnes.
While Westbrook, 35, is clearly no longer in his prime, he’s still a terrific rebounder for a guard who can get in the paint and make plays. Earlier in the season, he talked about being keyed in defensively.
Before the Harden trade, Bones Hyland was the team’s backup point guard, and now that Westbrook is injured, he’ll likely receive some rotation minutes.
Westbrook holds a $4MM player option for ’24/25.
Scottie Barnes Out Indefinitely With Fractured Hand
Forward Scottie Barnes sustained a fracture to the third metacarpal bone of his left hand in the second quarter of Friday’s loss to Golden State, the Raptors announced in a press release. He’s out indefinitely.
It’s a tough blow for the former Rookie of the Year, who is averaging career highs in every major statistic this season, including points (20.0), rebounds (8.3), assists (6.1), steals (1.3) and blocks (1.5) though 59 games. His shooting slash line in those contests was .474/.340/.781.
An All-Star for the first time in 2023/24, Barnes has assumed a larger role on both ends of the court for Toronto in 2023/24 after the team lost Fred VanVleet in free agency last summer and then decided to trade impending free agents Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby during the season.
Since the team is now built around Barnes, who was the fourth overall pick in 2020, it’s hard to say who will take on larger roles in his absence. Trade additions Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett seem like obvious candidates, but neither has Barnes’ size or unique skill set.
If the team elects to go with smaller wings, Gradey Dick, Bruce Brown and Ochai Agbaji could receive more run. If the Raptors want to go bigger, they could play Kelly Olynyk more minutes in the frontcourt alongside Jakob Poeltl.
At 22-38, the Raptors were already on the outside looking in of the postseason picture, currently trailing the Hawks by 4.5 games for the final spot in the East’s play-in tournament. With Barnes sidelined, their odds of making the playoffs — slim as they were — are all but eliminated.
Barnes, 22, will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the offseason, and there’s a very good chance he’ll receive a maximum-salary offer from Toronto.
Sixers Waive Kenneth Lofton Jr.
10:02pm: Lofton has been released, the 76ers confirmed in a press release.
9:45pm: The Sixers intend to waive Kenneth Lofton Jr., who is on a two-way contract, reports Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (via Twitter).
A burly forward/center, Lofton went undrafted out of Louisiana Tech in 2022. He caught on with the Grizzlies, signing a two-way contract before being converted to a standard deal at the end of his rookie season in 2022/23.
Lofton became the victim of a roster crunch in Memphis when the team needed to open up a roster spot to activate Ja Morant following the completion of his 25-game suspension. He was released in December, signing a two-way deal with Philadelphia a few days later.
After averaging 5.0 PPG and 2.1 RPG while shooting 52.7% from the floor in 24 games (7.3 MPG) as a rookie, the 21-year-old has struggled in his brief NBA minutes this season, averaging a combined 2.4 PPG and 1.1 RPG while making just 34.9% of his field goal attempts in 17 games with Memphis and Philadelphia (6.4 MPG). He only played two games for the 76ers, having spent most of his time with the Delaware Blue Coats, their NBA G League affiliate.
In 10 regular season games with the Blue Coats, Lofton put up big numbers, averaging 27.2 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 4.0 APG and 1.8 BPG on .577/.324/.746 shooting (29.8 MPG). He was named to the NBAGL’s Up Next Game, but wound up being replaced last month due to an injury.
Philadelphia has two openings on its standard roster and will have one open two-way spot once Lofton is officially released.
Pistons, Shake Milton Agree To Contract Buyout
The Pistons and veteran guard Shake Milton have agreed to a contract buyout, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who says “multiple postseason contenders” are interested in signing Milton once he clears waivers.
The 54th pick of the 2018 draft, Milton spent his first five NBA seasons with the Sixers before hitting unrestricted free agency last summer. He signed a two-year, $10MM contract with the Timberwolves, with the second year being non-guaranteed.
Despite initial enthusiasm, the deal didn’t work out well for either party, as Milton averaged just 4.9 PPG, 1.6 RPG and 1.3 APG on .400/.264/.818 shooting in 38 games with Minnesota (12.9 MPG), well below his career marks. The Wolves wound up trading him to Detroit last month as part of a package for Monte Morris.
Milton appeared in four games for the Pistons, averaging 6.8 PPG and 4.5 RPG in 15.8 RPG. He’s only 27 and has been a productive reserve as recently as last season, so it’s not surprising that he’s expected to draw interest from several suitors.
Players must be waived by 11:59pm ET on Friday in order to maintain their postseason eligibility, so we can safely assume Milton be cut before the end of the day.