Warriors Rumors: Draymond, Core Trio, Poole, More
While the future of president of basketball operations Bob Myers remains uncertain, the trio of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are still likely to be on the Warriors‘ roster in 2023/24, sources tell Marc Stein at Substack.
That aligns with reporting from Tim Kawakami of The Athletic, who hears that the franchise is “in no rush” to break up the core that has won four championships together.
After Green famously punched Jordan Poole during training camp, it seemed unlikely the former Defensive Player of the Year, who holds a $27.6MM player option for next season, would remain in the team’s long-term plans.
However, he won back the team’s respect over the course of the season, according to Kawakami, who says that Curry has long considered Green his “first pick” as a teammate. Kawakami also notes that Green’s value on the open market may be limited and he’s “more valuable to the Warriors and with the Warriors than anywhere else.”
Thompson, meanwhile, will be entering the final year of his contract and eligible for a veteran extension, but there’s no indication the team has any plans to trade him at this point — quite the opposite.
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- Green has said he’s undecided on whether nor not he’ll pick up his player option, but either way, he wants to “be a Warrior for life.” A report from The Athletic indicated that the team intends to discuss a multiyear contract with the big man, though it didn’t specify if that would be a new deal or an extension if he exercises his option. It sounds like it might be the former — sources tell Logan Murdock of The Ringer that the Warriors would be open to a multiyear contract if Green declines his option.
- Murdock’s story is full of interesting details on Golden State’s season. He writes that not only did Green punching Poole negatively impact their own relationship — Poole viewed Green as a mentor during his first three seasons — but it also deepened the divide between the old guard and the team’s young players. “I don’t have no answer for you,” Poole said of his relationship with Green. “Other than that, we was just on the court and teammates, and we was out there trying to win games. What I do recall saying at the beginning of the season is that, ‘We’re coming. We’re going to come out here. We’re going to play on the court. We’re going to try to win a championship.’ We were teammates. It’s just business, honestly. And that’s really all it was, it is, it has been. It’s just been business. It’s been basketball.”
- The free agency departures of Otto Porter, Juan Toscano-Anderson and Gary Payton II (who was later re-acquired at the trade deadline) also played a factor in the divide, according to Murdock. Not only did having the veterans stabilize the rotation, but they held the respect of both the old and young players. This season, the young players grew frustrated with their lack of minutes, Murdock writes. “That’s the normal NBA, and we haven’t had to deal with normal NBA,” Andre Iguodala told Murdock last month. “We’ve been in fantasyland for so long, and this year was more like the real NBA.”
- Poole was criticized throughout the season — and particularly in the postseason — for his shot selection, turnovers and poor defense. Yet after the Game 5 victory against the Lakers, Curry told Murdock that Poole was “the key” to bridging the present and the future, showing the Warriors still have faith in the 23-year-old.
- Poole’s future is reportedly up in the air, as the team might explore the trade market for him if it decides to make a cost-cutting move with the new CBA about to kick in. “I don’t know why I wouldn’t be [back],” Poole told Murdock. “It wasn’t a bad year. I mean, career highs in two categories. I was able to make history with Klay and Steph. My first game-winner. It was a lot of good things that happened this season. It wasn’t a bad season. Yes, I’m in the fabric. Yes, I belong here in this organization, bridging the gap. And I’m a young guy who was drafted here. We won a championship last year, and we have another chance to do it again. And I don’t know why anybody else would feel otherwise. I don’t think anybody is thinking like that.”
Bob Myers’ Future With Warriors Remains Uncertain
Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers, whose contract expires at the end of next month, “plans to take a couple of weeks” to determine what he wants to do in the future, telling ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that he’s “torn” on returning largely due to his close relationships with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and head coach Steve Kerr (Twitter video link).
That aligns with a recent report from Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, who heard from sources that Myers was going to take some time before coming to a decision.
One interesting part of Shelburne’s report that got lost in the shuffle was that owner Joe Lacob pitched lucrative contract offers to Myers that would have given him the flexibility to take time off if he so desired. Reading between the lines, it’s clear that the team is well aware of Myers’ career uncertainty.
Myers is the most likely of that longtime core group to depart the Warriors, sources tell Marc Stein in his latest article at Substack. There’s a “strong expectation” within the organization that if Myers doesn’t re-sign, he’s more likely to take “at least” the 2023/24 season off to spend time with family rather than join a rival front office, according to Stein.
A two-time Executive of the Year, Myers is a former college basketball player (UCLA) and sports agent who has been an executive with the Warriors since 2011, winning four championships. A recent report from The Athletic indicated that VP of basketball operations Mike Dunleavy Jr. may take over for Myers if he decides not to return.
Schröder Replacing Vanderbilt In Lakers’ Game 6 Starting Lineup
Guard Dennis Schröder is replacing forward Jarred Vanderbilt in the Lakers‘ starting lineup for Friday’s Game 6 versus Golden State, tweets Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
It will be the first change head coach Darvin Ham has made to L.A.’s starting lineup in the 2022/23 postseason. Vanderbilt had gotten the nod in the previous 11 playoff games.
After a solid first-round series against Memphis and a strong defensive performance in Game 1 against the Warriors, Vanderbilt has struggled mightily over the past four games against the defending champions, averaging just 2.5 PPG and 3.8 RPG and going a combined 2-of-15 from the field in 14.4 MPG.
He has been particularly ineffective over the past two contests, recording a minus-23 plus/minus in his 22 minutes of action after the Warriors went small by inserting Gary Payton II into the starting lineup. Now the Lakers will match the guard-heavy approach with one of their own.
Schröder, on the other hand, had a quiet first-round series against the Grizzlies, but has come to life against the Warriors, averaging 11.8 PPG, 2.6 APG and 1.0 SPG on .476/.333/.778 shooting over five games. The team is plus-28 in his 64 minutes over the past two contests.
The Lakers currently lead the series 3-2 and have a chance to eliminate Golden State tonight at home. In case you missed it, Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins will be active despite dealing with a left costal cartilage fracture.
Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins Available For Game 6
Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, who was previously listed as questionable after sustaining a left costal cartilage fracture (the area of the rib cage that connects the ribs to the sternum), has officially been upgraded to available for Friday’s Game 6 against the Lakers, tweets Kendra Andrews of ESPN.
Andrews reported earlier today that Golden State was hopeful Wiggins would be able to suit up despite dealing with the injury. He went through his pregame routine and felt good enough to play.
According to Andrews, the Warriors believe Wiggins suffered the fracture in the fourth quarter of Game 5, which the team won in no small part due to his efforts. Wiggins was clearly in pain after the game and tried to downplay the severity of the injury by saying he’d be OK, but an MRI later revealed the fracture, sources tell Andrews.
Wiggins is wearing a protective pad on his chest, telling Andrews (via Twitter) that he’s feeling better today than he was yesterday.
Head coach Steve Kerr said he hadn’t discussed a minutes restriction for Wiggins, but added he would be monitoring the former No. 1 overall pick based on “his movement, his feeling, how effective he can be,” per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Through 12 playoff games (34.5 minutes) in 2022/23, the 28-year-old is averaging 17.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks on .468/.311/.698 shooting. The defending champions trail their second-round series with the Lakers 3-2, so it’s another must-win game for the Warriors.
Western Notes: Landale, Grizzlies, Towns, Gobert
Backup center Jock Landale, who will be a restricted free agent if Phoenix gives him a qualifying offer, hopes to remain with the Suns long term.
“This is a city and a fanbase and an organization I’d love to be a part of for the rest of my career if I could,” Landale said (Twitter video link via PHNX Suns).
The 27-year-old Australian had relatively modest numbers in the regular season, averaging 6.6 PPG and 4.1 RPG in 69 games (14.2 MPG).
However, after making just one brief appearance in Phoenix’s five-game series against the Clippers, Landale made his mark against Denver, as Phoenix was plus-34 over his 106 minutes in the series, with a positive plus/minus in five of his six games despite the club losing four of those contests and ultimately getting eliminated.
Here’s more from the West:
- Tyus Jones, Steven Adams, Brandon Clarke, Ziaire Williams, David Roddy and Jake LaRavia are among the players who could be on the move if the Grizzlies decide to go after a major upgrade at small forward, according to Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal, who notes that general manager Zach Kleiman said the team plans to be aggressive in looking for roster reinforcements.
- In another story for The Memphis Commercial Appeal, Cole lists five small forwards the Grizzlies could target in free agency with their mid-level exception. Those five players are Caris LeVert, Kelly Oubre, Jae Crowder, Harrison Barnes and Bruce Brown.
- On the Podcast P podcast with Paul George, Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns said he was taken aback by last summer’s Rudy Gobert trade. “It was definitely something I wasn’t ready for,” Towns said, per Michael Rand of The Star Tribune. “I remember being in London and getting that call. I didn’t actually have no idea that was happening. I was told by social media like everybody else, so that was something.” Towns added that he had already been preparing as though he was going to be playing center, so moving to power forward was “definitely an adjustment.”
Atlantic Notes: Brunson, Quickley, Raptors, R. Williams, Harris
There was a general perception that the Knicks may have overpaid point guard Jalen Brunson last summer when they signed him to a four-year, $104MM contract. Instead, he has been outperforming his nine-figure deal to an extent that’s rare for New York sports stars, according to Howie Kussoy of The New York Post (subscriber link).
Kussoy points to the contracts signed by various players across the four major North American sports leagues as examples, writing that most haven’t lived up to the lofty expectations of their enormous paydays.
Brunson, meanwhile, had an All-Star-caliber debut season with New York and has been the Knicks’ best player in the playoffs, averaging 26.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals on .457/.300/.915 shooting through 10 games (39.8 minutes). Kussoy states that Brunson has the “inside track” on becoming the best free agent addition in team history.
Here’s more from the Atlantic:
- Knicks reserve Immanuel Quickley has been ruled out of Friday’s Game 6 in Miami, head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters, including Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (Twitter link). The third-year guard is still battling a left ankle sprain and had previously been listed as doubtful. Quickley will miss his third straight game with the injury.
- The 2023 free agent class isn’t the strongest, particularly the group of players who might be available for the Raptors‘ mid-level exception or less, according to Eric Koreen of The Athletic, who lists 25 players Toronto could target. Among the top candidates Koreen considers realistic are Bruce Brown, Donte DiVincenzo, Nickeil Alexander-Walker (for part of the MLE, not full) and Josh Richardson. Brown and DiVincenzo hold team-friendly player options for 2023/24, while Alexander-Walker will be restricted if Minnesota gives him a qualifying offer — only Richardson is an unrestricted free agent at the moment.
- Celtics guard Marcus Smart was thrilled with head coach Joe Mazzulla‘s adjustment of inserting Robert Williams into the starting lineup for Game 6, per Jamal Collier of ESPN. “I was ecstatic about it,” Smart said. “To have Rob in there, he changes the game a lot … that just goes to show you, Joe is learning. Just like all of us. I know he’s been killed a lot. Rightfully so. He needs to make some adjustments, and he did that. And that’s all you can ask for, just continue to be the best he can be. It takes everybody; it’s a full team effort.” Williams recorded 10 points, nine rebounds and two blocks, and the Celtics were plus-18 in his 28 minutes.
- It was reported in April that Sixers owner Josh Harris had reached an agreement to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders. Harris and the team released a joint statement on Friday officially announcing the sale, as Sam Robinson of Pro Football Rumors relays. The agreement still has to be approved by the other NFL owners, but that’s considered a formality.
Central Notes: Pacers, Pistons, Duren, Cavs
Indiana will be hosting six prospects on Friday for the team’s first pre-draft workout, the Pacers announced in a press release.
The six players are UConn’s Andre Jackson, UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez, Missouri’s Kobe Brown, Creighton’s Arthur Kaluma, North Dakota State’s Grant Nelson, and Liutauras Lelevicius, a Lithuanian prospect who played for Zalgris II this past season.
Jackson (30), Jaquez (32), Brown (43), Kaluma (90), and Nelson (94) all appear on ESPN’s top-100 prospects list, while Lelevicius is unranked. The Pacers control their own lottery pick, two late first-rounders (26th and 29th), and two second-round picks (either 50th or 32nd, plus 55th).
Here’s more from the Central:
- Hiring the right head coach, having a successful draft, and acquiring forward depth in free agency are among the top offseason priorities for the Pistons, according to Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscriber link), who thinks the team should pursue Nets restricted free agent Cameron Johnson.
- Pistons center Jalen Duren, who was recently named to the All-Rookie Second Team, was mostly pleased with his debut season, but he’s going to work on his conditioning and consistency in year two, Curtis writes in another subscriber-only story. “Consistency is a huge word,” Duren said. “To be great, you have to be consistent. For me, it’s honestly just being locked in and trying to understand what’s going on. ‘Being where my feet are,’ I like to say, and try to take over games, dominate games and affect games in any way possible. … I feel like that will come. I’m excited about what I can be in this league.”
- Josh Richardson, Kelly Oubre, Max Strus, Gary Trent Jr. and Jalen McDaniels could be the types of wings the Cavaliers choose to go after in free agency with their mid-level exception, Kelsey Russo states in a mailbag for The Athletic. I don’t see Trent falling to that price point, especially since he could just opt in to his $18.8MM player option if he isn’t confident about getting a better payday, but the other four might be attainable (whether or not they’d be a good fit is another story).
Suns’ Ayton Out For Game 6; Nuggets’ Murray Questionable
The Suns have ruled out center Deandre Ayton for Thursday’s pivotal Game 6 against Denver due to the rib contusion he sustained in Game 5, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
On Wednesday, Phoenix ruled out point guard Chris Paul, who is battling a left groin strain, while Ayton was listed as questionable. Something troublesome must have been discovered during his medical evaluation, as the big man has been downgraded to out.
The team will now be playing without two starters in an elimination game, as the Suns trail the Nuggets 3-2 in their second-round series.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (Twitter link) hears that guard Landry Shamet will enter the starting lineup tonight — I’m assuming that will be in place of Cameron Payne, who has been filling in for Paul, and not for Ayton. Backup centers Jock Landale and Bismack Biyombo figure to see extended playing time in the middle with Ayton out.
Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report argued before the news broke that the Suns would be better off giving the majority of Ayton’s minutes to Landale. Phoenix is minus-59 in Ayton’s 149 minutes in the series, but plus-27 in Landale’s 74 minutes.
The Nuggets might be shorthanded as well. Guard Jamal Murray is questionable with a non-COVID illness that has been traveling through the team, according to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter links).
Murray was unable to participate in Thursday’s shootaround, which was cut short due to the illness that’s going around, but Denver is hopeful he’ll be able to suit up, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Head coach Michael Malone and a “handful of players” are among those who have been affected, Youngmisuk adds.
And-Ones: Thompson Twins, Dekker, In-Season Tournament, More
Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson, twin brothers who bypassed college to compete in the Overtime Elite program, are projected lottery picks in the upcoming 2023 NBA draft. Israel Gutierrez of ESPN recently caught up with the brothers during Game 3 of the first-round series between Atlanta and Boston.
While much of the hype leading up to June’s draft has centered on French phenom Victor Wembanyama, the projected top overall pick, and G League Ignite’s Scoot Henderson, a projected top-three pick, Amen says he’s confident he’s one of the top players in the world.
“They always bring up those names, ‘How you going to pass Victor and Scoot, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah,” Amen said. “And it’s just like, I’m going to do my thing. I’m going to run my race. And I think if I run my race, I’m one of the best players there is.”
The biggest question marks surrounding Amen and Ausar are the level of competition they faced at OTE and their jump shots, writes Gutierrez. Both players worked extensively on their jumpers over their two years at OTE, but it’s still a focus for improvement going forward.
“I’m improving on shooting, working on pick and roll reads, just reads in general,” Ausar said, per Gutierrez. “My ability to get paint touches, collapse the defense and kick it out for others. Then for myself, just getting open and being able to rise up over defenders and hit a jump shot, or get to the cup.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Former NBA forward Sam Dekker, a 2015 first-round pick, has signed a long-term extension with the London Lions of the British Basketball League, the team announced in a press release. The team captain averaged 18.2 PPG, 5.6 RPG and 2.9 APG during the 7Days EuroCup last fall and is under contract through 2026, per the Lions.
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic spoke to four NBA players who are Premier League fans about the NBA’s new in-season tournament, which will begin next season and was roughly modeled on European soccer tournaments. All four like the idea and believe it could be an interesting way for younger teams to get experience in a more competitive environment. “It’s gonna be really good for our league,” Pacers guard T.J. McConnell said. “Seasons can — not necessarily drag on — but adding an in-season tournament there just to like reinvigorate fan interest and give something that the players are playing for, another competitive type of environment, I think it’s going to be really good.”
- Although the majority of the moves didn’t draw as much attention as the blockbusters over the past year, five guards acquired via trades have made a significant impact in their respective teams’ playoff runs, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. The five players Hollinger points to are the Nuggets‘ Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (a trade he says he wasn’t a fan of at the time, but has been proven very wrong), the Knicks‘ Josh Hart, the Celtics‘ Malcolm Brogdon, the Sixers‘ De’Anthony Melton, and the Lakers‘ D’Angelo Russell.
Bucks Notes: Griffin, Coach Search, Giannis, Budenholzer, More
The Bucks have been granted permission to interview Raptors assistant coach Adrian Griffin for their head coaching vacancy, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (via Twitter).
After a nine-year NBA career, Griffin quickly made the transition to coaching. He actually got his start as an assistant with Milwaukee back in 2008/09, Wojnarowski notes.
Griffin has also been an assistant with Chicago, Orlando, Oklahoma City. He has been with Toronto since ’18/19.
The 48-year-old has interviewed (or was expected to interview) for nearly every open head coaching job over the past season-plus, including the vacancies that popped up after the ’22/23 season concluded for the Rockets, Pistons, Raptors and now the Bucks. Griffin just completed his 15th season as an assistant.
Here’s more on the Bucks:
- While general manager Jon Horst has shown an openness to interviewing a wide range of candidates, the fact that he went with an experienced head coach who’d had previous success during Milwaukee’s coaching search in 2018 might inform how he’ll approach the process this time around, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Horst has stated that expectations are much higher now than five years ago, so he will likely once again value experience and winning, Nehm notes.
- Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo took to Instagram to thank former head coach Mike Budenholzer, posting photos of the two embracing after winning the championship in 2021, according to Jamal Collier of ESPN. “Thank you for five meaningful years Coach,” Antetokounmpo wrote. “We accomplished something unbelievable and I’m forever grateful.”
- Antetokounmpo had been named to the All-Defensive First Team for four straight seasons prior to ’22/23, but despite finishing sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting, he didn’t make either of the two All-Defensive teams this season. He took to social media again to voice his apparent displeasure at the snub, per Christopher Kuhagen of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “I’m tired of the disrespect. I’m coming,” the former Defensive Player of the Year wrote.
- Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel recently joined Michael Scotto on the HoopsHype podcast to discuss the Bucks’ coaching search, possible offseason moves, how the new CBA will affect the team, and more.