T.J. Warren Eyeing NBA Return, Says He’s Fully Healthy
Veteran forward T.J. Warren remains an unrestricted free agent after he was unable to find a new team during the 2023 offseason. Speaking to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Warren said he’s still focused on finding another NBA job and is fully healthy after playing just four games from 2020-22.
Here are a few highlights from Scotto’s interview with the nine-year veteran, who averaged 7.5 points and 2.9 rebounds in 42 regular season games (16.4 minutes per contest) with Brooklyn and Phoenix in 2022/23.
On Warren’s preparation while he waits for another NBA opportunity:
“Every day, I’m working out, staying sharp, and staying ready. I’m continuing to do everything I can to prepare myself physically and mentally. All is well. I’m continuing to control what I can right now.”
On what type of role he envisions and for what types of teams:
“There are a lot of teams that can use bench scoring for sure. I watch the NBA every day, and I’m watching to see where I can see myself helping playoff teams get over the hump and be a presence on both ends of the floor. I take pride in being a two-way player. I know a lot of people doubt my defensive ability because I score easily. I take pride on both ends of the floor. There are definitely a lot of playoff teams I can contribute to and make an impact.”
On his health:
“I’m 100 percent healthy now. The foot injuries were a part of my career during those two years. I feel like I was reaching a crazy pinnacle right around the bubble. It was a great situation. Unfortunately, I had the injuries, and it set me back a little bit. I want to go out there and prove myself like I always have my whole career, being kind of under the radar. I feel like my production speaks for itself. I understand the concerns because two years was a long time, especially when you don’t know the situation thoroughly, but I’m completely healthy now and looking forward to the opportunity to prove myself again.”
Warren, 30, holds career averages of 14.6 points and 4.0 rebounds in 374 regular season games (27.4 minutes). Scotto’s full conversation with Warren can be found right here.
Grizzlies Sign Harrison, Nowell To 10-Day Contracts
NOVEMBER 24: The 10-day deals for Nowell and Harrison are official, the Grizzlies announced today in a press release (Twitter link). They’ll run through December 3, covering Memphis’ next five games.
NOVEMBER 23: The Grizzlies are signing guards Shaquille Harrison and Jaylen Nowell to 10-day hardship contracts, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
As Wojnarowski explains, the NBA recently granted Memphis two extra roster spots via the hardship provision because the club has five players who have missed at least the past three games with injuries and will be sidelined for at least the next two weeks. Those five players are Steven Adams (knee surgery; out for the season), Brandon Clarke (torn Achilles tendon), Marcus Smart (sprained left foot), Jake LaRavia (eye surgery) and Luke Kennard (left knee bone bruise).
It’s possible the Grizzlies could qualify for a third 10-day hardship deal, depending on the prognosis for big man Xavier Tillman — he’s considered week-to-week as he recovers from a left knee injury. Memphis is already carrying one extra player on its standard roster while Ja Morant is on the suspended list.
Harrison spent training camp and preseason with the Grizzlies this fall after inking an Exhibit 10 contract. He was waived before the season started. There was speculation that Harrison might receive the initial extra roster spot after Morant missed the first five games and was placed on the suspended list, but that went to center Bismack Biyombo once Adams was ruled out for the season.
There were also rumors that Harrison, who is now in his seventh NBA season, might head to Europe, but apparently those talks fell through. The defensive standout has appeared in 180 total regular season games with Phoenix, Chicago, Utah, Denver, Brooklyn and Portland, holding career averages of 5.3 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.7 APG and 1.0 SPG on .435/.281/.718 shooting in 15.4 MPG.
Nowell averaged 10.8 PPG, 2.6 RPG and 2.0 APG in 19.3 MPG across 65 appearances in ’22/23 as a regular part of the Timberwolves’ rotation. However, after becoming an unrestricted free agent, he remained on the open market for nearly three months before eventually settling for an Exhibit 10 contract with Sacramento. The Kings waived him last month before the season started, making him an unrestricted free agent once again.
Still just 24 years old, Nowell was the 43rd pick of the 2019 draft. He spent his first four seasons with Minnesota, averaging 9.1 PPG, 2.2 RPG and 1.9 APG in 184 regular season games (17.0 MPG).
While the 3-11 Grizzlies need help up and down their roster, it makes sense that they would prioritize a pair of guards with NBA experience to help out in the backcourt. Ordinarily, Morant, Smart and Kennard would receive major minutes, but they’re all unavailable at the moment.
Pacific Notes: Clippers, Lyles, Murray, Reddish
After losing six consecutive games, the Clippers have reeled off three straight victories, and they feel encouraged by their recent play, as Janis Carr of The Orange County Register relays.
“I think we’re in a good place. We kind of know at this point what the rotation is, and I think we’re getting in a rhythm,” Paul George said. “There’s consistency there, and I think that we’re in good shape. We liked how we looked offensively and defensively, and now it’s time to test it.”
The Clippers have been incorporating multiple new pieces after the trade to acquire James Harden and P.J. Tucker, plus the signing of reserve center Daniel Theis. Still, while they’ve played better of late, their past two victories came against the Spurs, who have the worst record in the West at 3-12. The upcoming schedule is more challenging, and Kawhi Leonard says there’s always room for improvement, Carr notes.
“We want to win every game and it shows that we’re getting better,” Leonard said after Wednesday’s win in San Antonio. “But like you said, we still got a lot to learn and to get better at. You guys could see at the end of that game, we had some careless turnovers, and they got some easy looks at the basket and wide-open layups. So, we got to buy in and figure that out.”
Here’s more from the Pacific:
- Kings big man Trey Lyles, who had been dealing with a calf strain, made his 2023/24 season debut in Wednesday’s loss to New Orleans. Head coach Mike Brown said Lyles would immediately resume playing a similar amount of minutes as last season despite the layoff, according to Chris Biderman of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). The 28-year-old finished with 12 points and eight rebounds in 28 minutes — he averaged 16.9 MPG in ’22/23.
- Part of the reason Lyles played 28 minutes is because Kings forward Keegan Murray was sidelined with lower back soreness. Murray’s status for Friday’s contest in Minnesota is “uncertain,” but the injury isn’t expected to keep him out long term, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link).
- Cam Reddish‘s MRI was “clean,” Lakers head coach Darvin Ham told reporters, including ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (Twitter link). Reddish, who was sidelined for Wednesday’s game with a groin injury, is considered day-to-day. Max Christie got the start in his place.
Central Notes: Giannis, Griffin, Bogdanovic, Hield, Cavs
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Adrian Griffin appeared to have a “heated” disagreement during the third quarter of Milwaukee’s loss to Boston on Wednesday, but the Bucks‘ head coach downplayed the incident after the game, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
Antetokounmpo didn’t want to be subbed out midway through the period after being called for a carrying violation and sat on the scorer’s table talking to Griffin, eventually checking back in at the next dead ball.
“He wanted to stay in, I wanted to give him a breather. That’s all it was,” Griffin said. “And then I told him to stay at the table for one possession, and he got right back out there.”
Antetokounmpo simply said “no” when he was asked what transpired.
As Bontemps writes, the matchup between the East’s top two seeds was lopsided for most of the contest, with Boston reeling off 10 straight points to open the game and never trailing. The Bucks made things interesting late, but the Celtics prevailed by a final score of 119-116.
Here’s more from the Central:
- Sharpshooter Bojan Bogdanovic is nearing his 2023/24 season debut for the Pistons, writes Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscriber link). Bogdanovic, who has been battling a right calf strain, was recently cleared for contact work and was a full practice participant on Wednesday. Getting their top scorer from last season back in the near future is certainly welcome news for the injury-ravaged Pistons, who have lost a league-worst 12 straight games and once again hold the worst record in the NBA at 2-13.
- Pacers wing Buddy Hield got his second straight start on Wednesday in place of Bennedict Mathurin, tweets Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Head coach Rick Carlisle was noncommittal when asked if the lineup change he implemented for Tuesday’s contest would be permanent or temporary. Aaron Nesmith, who replaced Obi Toppin at power forward on Tuesday, was sidelined with a sprained wrist, so Toppin was back in the starting lineup yesterday. Hield, who had been in a shooting slump, has been scorching hot the past two games, averaging 27.5 points while shooting 75.0% from the floor and 72.2% from three-point range.
- Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell missed his fourth straight game on Wednesday due to a hamstring strain, notes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald (via Twitter). While there weren’t many positives from the Cavs’ blowout loss to the Heat, rookie guard Craig Porter Jr. got his first career start and continued his streak of strong performances, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). Porter, who went undrafted in June and is on a two-way contract, recorded 16 points (on 6-of-12 shooting), five assists, two rebounds, two blocks and a steal in 35 minutes.
Bulls Notes: Slow Starts, LaVine, DeRozan, Caruso
Poor play in first quarters has been a consistent theme for the Bulls early on in 2023/24 and Wednesday’s loss in Oklahoma City was no different, writes Annie Costabile of The Chicago Sun-Times. The Bulls trailed the Thunder by 12 after the first period, scoring just 14 points on 4-of-23 shooting, and were down 18 at one point in the second frame.
Chicago managed to claw its way back into the game, but ultimately lost 116-102. The Bulls have now dropped five of six and currently hold a 5-11 record — certainly not what the front office was hoping when it decided to bring back most of the same group.
“We have not been consistent enough, quite honestly,” head coach Billy Donovan said.
The upcoming schedule won’t make things any easier. OKC was the first stop on a four-game road trip, with upcoming games in Toronto, Brooklyn and Boston. The Bulls will also play New Orleans, Milwaukee (twice), Denver, Miami (twice) and Philadelphia over the next 10 games, with four of those contests coming on the road — things could get very ugly in the near future unless they manage to right the ship.
Here’s more on the Bulls:
- Zach LaVine missed a game for the first time this season on Wednesday due to a right mid-foot sprain, Costible adds in the same story. LaVine, who was initially listed as probable, said he’s been dealing with the injury since Saturday’s victory over the Heat. “I cut my tape off at halftime because it was bugging me to play through it,” LaVine said. “Felt the same way the next game. Two [games] in a row, the same thing. You don’t want to get to that third [game].” The two-time All-Star is considered day-to-day.
- Several players on Chicago’s roster, including LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, Alex Caruso and Patrick Williams, have been involved in trade rumors this fall. DeRozan, who previously said the rumors wouldn’t impact the locker room, is maintaining a level head amid the outside noise, Costible writes for The Sun-Times. “People have to make decisions however they see fit,” DeRozan said. “You may agree with them, you may not, but it’s part of being in this game.” DeRozan added that he hasn’t spoken to LaVine or Caruso about the speculation, choosing instead to focus on their work with the team.
- Caruso has been one of the few bright spots for Chicago. The 29-year-old is averaging career highs in several statistical categories, including points per game (10.0), field goal percentage (56.3%) and three-point percentage (47.9%), among others. Speaking to Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic, Caruso expressed optimism that Chicago is “really close” to being a good team, but has been plagued by inconsistency. Asked if the Bulls needed a “shakeup,” Caruso said the term was too general to really answer the question. “You play so many games,” he said as part of a larger quote. “And we’re not even 20 percent of the way through the season. I don’t know if shakeup is the right word for it. But definitely just some changes to our daily routine and changes to our daily habits. Like I said, consistency’s been something we’ve talked about. We have to change that from within.”
Southwest Notes: Popovich, Leonard, Spurs, Nance, Thompson
In an extremely unusual — perhaps even unprecedented — move, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich took a microphone from the scorer’s table while Kawhi Leonard was shooting free throws to urge the home crowd to stop booing, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscriber link).
“Excuse me for a second,” Popovich said after telling referee Tyler Ford he was going to interrupt the game to make an announcement. “Can we stop all the bull and let these guys play? It’s got no class. That’s not who we are. Knock off the booing.”
His words had the opposite effect, as Leonard was booed even louder after Popovich stopped speaking (Twitter video link via Nate Ryan of KENS 5).
After Wednesday’s game, Popovich claimed that he didn’t want Leonard to be motivated by the booing, but that’s obviously a much different reason than what he told the fans, notes Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News (via Twitter).
“Anybody who knows anything about sports, you don’t poke the bear,” said Popovich, who declined to clarify those comments.
Leonard asked to be traded from San Antonio back in 2018 after spending his first seven years with the club, and has been relentlessly booed by Spurs fans ever since, Orsborn adds. The two-time Finals MVP said he was nonplussed by the incident, tweets Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times.
“They’re probably going to boo me the rest of my career…They’re one of the best fans in the league and very competitive,” Leonard said (Twitter link via Orsborn). “Once I step on this court, they show that they’re going for the other side. When I’m on the streets or going into restaurants, they show love.”
Here’s more from the Southwest:
- Prior to their loss to Memphis last weekend, the Spurs held a players-only meeting, Orsborn writes in another subscriber-only story for the Express-News. There was “no drama” involved in the meeting, according to Orsborn, and guard Devin Vassell said he hopes to step into a leadership role — something the young team has been lacking early in 2023/24. “We addressed a lot of stuff,” he said. “I think there’s going to be changes as the year goes on and stuff like that.”
- After missing the past four games with a rib fracture, Pelicans forward/center Larry Nance Jr. was able to suit up on Wednesday against Sacramento, tweets Will Guillory of The Athletic. Nance finished with four points, four rebounds and a steal in 12 minutes during New Orleans’ victory.
- Rockets head coach Ime Udoka said first-round pick Amen Thompson has been able to do more individual on-court work in recent days and may be able to practice in the next week or two, according to Danielle Lerner of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter links). Thompson, the fourth pick in June’s draft, has been battling a Grade 2 right ankle sprain.
Northwest Notes: Henderson, Ayton, Caruso, Daigneault, Jazz
Scoot Henderson, the third pick of this year’s draft, will return to action on Wednesday against Utah, Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups told reporters, including Aaron J. Fentress of The Oregonian (Twitter link).
Billups added that Henderson will come off the bench and be on a minutes restriction, though he declined to specify the number, tweets Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report. Henderson has been out of action since November 1 after spraining his right ankle.
Unfortunately, just as Henderson was about to return, center Deandre Ayton was a late scratch due to back soreness. Duop Reath, who’s on a two-way deal, will start in Ayton’s place, according to Highkin (Twitter link).
Here’s more from the Northwest:
- Speaking of Ayton, the Trail Blazers big man faced his former team on Tuesday in Phoenix. After the game, Suns guard Devin Booker said he had a “challenge” for the former No. 1 overall pick. “He played extra hard tonight,” Booker said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “I saw that. My challenge for him is to play like that every night.” Ayton’s inconsistent effort level has been called into question throughout his career.
- Bulls guard/forward Alex Caruso isn’t surprised by Mark Daigneault‘s success with the Thunder, writes K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Daigneault coached Caruso while the two were with the Oklahoma City Blue — the Thunder’s NBA G League affiliate — back in 2016/17. “He coaches and talks exactly the same as he did with the Blue,” Caruso said. “He was always keeping us in really good perspective of how to play and how we were going to be successful. I really enjoyed playing for him.”
- Jazz head coach Will Hardy said the team needs to play harder, pass the ball and make fewer excuses after Tuesday’s blowout loss to the Lakers, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune. “I mean, the only two things that I care about are: play hard and pass,” he said. “And we’re at a point now where if you’re not willing to do both of those things you cannot play for the Utah Jazz. I think we have had pockets where that’s been our identity. And we’ve had pockets where we have wavered in both departments. I think the biggest thing right now is we just need more of a consistent focus on those two things and those two things only.” Hardy’s comments are worth reading in full for Jazz fans. Utah is now 4-10.
Southeast Notes: Isaac, Wagners, Washington, Adebayo
Last week, Magic forward Jonathan Isaac played back-to-back games for the first time in nearly four years, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.
“I felt good and I’ve just been trying to do a better job of getting my rest when I need it,” Isaac said. “I definitely feel like my legs are getting back under me and I’m starting to just run free and jump free out there.”
Isaac, who missed two whole seasons — 2020/21 and ’21/22 — while recovering from a torn ACL, was limited to 11 games last season. He has already exceeded that total in ’23/24, appearing in 13 of Orlando’s 15 contests, including Wednesday’s vs. Denver — the second of another back-to-back set.
Still just 26 years old, Isaac is averaging a modest 13.7 minutes per night off the bench. But he’s recording 1.4 blocks and 1.0 steal per game in those limited minutes, and his coach and teammates have lauded Isaac’s defensive abilities, referring to him as “special” and “amazing” on that end of the court, according to Beede.
“He’s our defensive anchor,” guard Gary Harris said. “And we still have guys out right now so we can be a very scary team defensively, especially when everybody gets healthy.”
The 9-5 Magic have the top defense in the league early on this season, holding a 106.4 defensive rating. With Isaac on the court, that figure drops to a remarkable 94.0.
Here’s more from the Southeast:
- Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports details how Franz Wagner and Moritz Wagner — brothers who won a gold medal at the World Cup with the German national team — are helping turn the Magic into a possible playoff contender. “It was purely about, how can we all come together and do something that’s greater than each individual by themselves?” Franz said of the World Cup. “I think we’re creating that same vibe here in Orlando.”
- P.J. Washington has started for most of his five-year career with the Hornets, but he was moved to the bench once Miles Bridges returned from a suspension. He took the move in stride, per Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. “At the end of the day it’s a team game,” Washington said. “When we win, we win as team and when we lose, we lose as a team. For me, I just try to come out here and try to be a professional and do whatever coach asks me to do. Whether it’s play the ‘5’ play the ‘3,’ play the ‘4.’ I’m just trying to do everything I can to win. It’s as simple as that.” Washington was a late scratch for Wednesday’s game against the Wizards due to right foot discomfort, the Hornets announced (via Twitter).
- Heat center Bam Adebayo was ruled out of Wednesday’s game against Cleveland due to hip discomfort, tweets Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. With Kevin Love also out for personal reasons, Miami turned to Thomas Bryant and Orlando Robinson to man the middle.
Central Notes: Holiday, Bucks, Pacers, Allen
The top two teams in the East — the Celtics and Bucks — face off on Wednesday night in Boston. It will be All-Star guard Jrue Holiday‘s first matchup against his former club this season.
Holiday, who was traded to Portland in the Damian Lillard blockbuster before being rerouted to the Celtics, says he has no hard feelings towards the Bucks, though he would’ve appreciated a heads-up that he might get dealt, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Holiday expressed a desire to be a “Buck for life” just days before the trade was made.
“I think that they got what they wanted, so I can’t be mad at that,” Holiday said. “A warning would’ve been cool. But other than that, I’m in the best place that I can be to compete against them, which is for the top team in the East and, hopefully, the top team in the league.”
Holiday helped the Bucks win their first championship in 50 years in 2021, but he says Wednesday’s matchup doesn’t hold any particular significance to him other than two of the best teams in the league competing against each other.
“It’s not like I circled this one on my calendar or anything,” Holiday said. “I think that this is a big game because of the two teams that are playing, I think because of the caliber players that are on the court and all that, so that’s what I would like for it to be about, not me playing against the Bucks.”
Here’s more from the Central:
- The Pacers made a change to their starting lineup on Tuesday, replacing Bennedict Mathurin and Obi Toppin with Buddy Hield and Aaron Nesmith. Hield and Nesmith started most of last season, but had been coming off the bench in 2023/24. As Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star writes, head coach Rick Carlisle said the move was designed to give the starters more shooting, with the Pacers trying to clinch their in-season tournament group — which they did after defeating Atlanta. All four players performed well in a game that didn’t feature much defense — the final score was 157-152. However, Carlisle wouldn’t commit to that new starting five going forward, and Nesmith will be sidelined for Wednesday’s game against Toronto with a right wrist sprain, Dopirak tweets. Second-year guard Andrew Nembhard will also miss his third straight game with lower back soreness.
- The Pacers selected Jarace Walker No. 8 overall and Ben Sheppard No. 26 overall in June’s draft, but neither player has been in the team’s rotation this fall. On Wednesday, the two first-round picks were sent to the G League to play for Indiana’s affiliate, the Mad Ants, and were recalled ahead of tonight’s matchup with the Raptors, per Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. “I was happy,” said Walker, who scored 30 points in a Mad Ants win. “Hooping is hooping to me at the end of the day, no matter if it’s NBA, G-League, JUCO, I just love basketball. Just being out there, even with an awesome group of guys that I got to get closer with today, I had a good time today.”
- A slow 2-3 start for the Cavaliers this fall coincided with the absence of center Jarrett Allen, who was dealing with a bone bruise in his ankle. As Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com details in a subscriber-only story, the Cavs have started to climb the standings upon Allen’s return, going 6-3, including four straight victories, despite other players being injured. While he doesn’t always put up gaudy individual stats, the 25-year-old is the defensive anchor for Cleveland, according to Fedor, who notes that Allen did an admirable job slowing Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid the past two games.
Central Notes: Bulls, LaVine, Lakers, Cunningham, Cavs, Walker
While Zach LaVine has been mentioned in several rumors this fall after it was reported that both he and the Bulls are increasingly open to exploring a trade, the two-time All-Star isn’t one of the two players on Chicago’s roster that rival teams have shown the most interest in thus far, reports Marc Stein at Substack. Six-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan and two-time All-Star Nikola Vucevic aren’t on the list either.
All-Defensive guard Alex Caruso is the Bulls player opposing teams are most intrigued by, per Stein, followed by forward Patrick Williams.
As Stein writes, the Bulls haven’t made Caruso available, but he would have a “double-digit list of suitors” if that were to happen. As for Williams, who was the No. 4 overall pick in 2020, Stein says rivals still find him intriguing despite a very poor start to the season. Williams is set to hit restricted free agency in 2024.
In the same article, Stein says he’s heard the Lakers‘ rumored interest in LaVine is “best described (at most)” as to be determined. According to Stein, L.A. hopes that Jarred Vanderbilt (heel) and Gabe Vincent (knee) will provide a “meaningful boost” once they return from their respective injuries.
Here’s more from the Central:
- As a former No. 1 overall pick who was the top recruit in his high school class, plenty of hype has followed Cade Cunningham. But advanced stats are extremely low on the third-year Pistons guard, according to Zach Kram of The Ringer, who writes that Cunningham has trouble scoring efficiently from all over the court. Kram takes an in-depth look at Cunningham’s game and his advanced metrics, suggesting that he might be more of a No. 2 offensive option on a good team rather than the No. 1 option he’s been made out to be.
- The Cavaliers had perhaps their best win of the season on Sunday, defeating the defending-champion nuggets without Donovan Mitchell (hamstring) and Caris LeVert (knee). However, the victory didn’t answer the two biggest questions facing the franchise, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic: Has Cleveland has improved enough to advance past the first round of the playoffs? And is Mitchell “happy enough” to sign an extension next year to stay long term?
- Jarace Walker, the No. 8 overall pick in June’s draft, has only played 41 total minutes over four games for the Pacers to this point, mostly in garbage time. Head coach Rick Carlisle has told the young forward to stay ready, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. “This is what being a professional is all about,” Carlisle said. “He’s probably always played at every level he’s played at from middle school to high school to college, AAU, you name it, but given the present circumstance, you gotta be a pro and work at your craft and you gotta be ready. I talked to him two days ago and let him know. I said, ‘I don’t know when it’s gonna happen but your time is coming. That’s how it works in this league.'”