Nikola Jokic, Jalen Brunson Named Players Of The Month
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Knicks guard Jalen Brunson have been named the NBA’s players of the month, the league announced (via Twitter).
Jokic, the Western Conference’s winner for the second straight month, averaged 22.6 points, 14.2 rebounds and 10.2 assists on .642/.500/.806 shooting in 11 February games (33.3 MPG). Denver went 9-2 in games he played and got blown out in the one game he missed (four starters were out). The Nuggets are 44-19, the No. 1 seed in the West.
The reigning back-to-back MVP recorded eight triple-doubles last month and now has 24 on the season — the team is undefeated on those occasions. According to the Nuggets, Jokic has shot 50-plus percent from the field in 49 straight games, which is the third-longest streak in NBA history.
Brunson, meanwhile, averaged 27.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 6.0 assists on .529/.426/.776 shooting in 10 games (37.8 MPG) last month. The Knicks went 9-2 in February, including 8-2 with Brunson in the lineup, and are currently on a seven-game winning streak, which has moved them up to the No. 5 seed in the East.
According to New York (Twitter link), Brunson is the first Knick to be named the East’s player of the month since Julius Randle won in April 2021. The 26-year-old guard is having a stellar season for the Knicks, averaging career highs in points (23.8), assists (6.2) and three-point percentage (41.0%).
The other nominees in the West were Anthony Davis, De’Aaron Fox, Damian Lillard, Lauri Markkanen and Klay Thompson, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, Joel Embiid, Donovan Mitchell, Randle, Pascal Siakam and Trae Young were nominated in the East, per the NBA (Twitter link).
Walker Kessler, Paolo Banchero Named Rookies Of The Month
Jazz center Walker Kessler and Magic forward Paolo Banchero have been named the NBA’s rookies of the month, the league announced on Thursday (via Twitter).
In 11 February games (29.1 MPG), Kessler, the No. 22 overall pick of last year’s draft, averaged 10.6 PPG, 11.4 RPG and 3.2 BPG while shooting 68.9% from the floor and 51.9% from the line. The 21-year-old ranks second in the league in block percentage at 8.2%, only trailing Jaren Jackson Jr., per Basketball-Reference.com. Kessler won for the Western Conference.
Banchero, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2022 draft, has now won the award three consecutive months for the East. He averaged 16.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 3.3 APG, though he did struggle with scoring efficiency, posting a .374/.030/.711 shooting line in 11 games (33.7 MPG). Banchero is considered a strong frontrunner for Rookie of the Year.
According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Malaki Branham, Tari Eason, Jabari Smith Jr., Keegan Murray and Jalen Williams, while Jaden Ivey and Bennedict Mathurin were nominated in the East.
LeBron James Out At Least Three Weeks With Foot Tendon Injury
Lakers superstar LeBron James has been diagnosed with a tendon injury in his right foot and will be reevaluated in about three weeks, the team announced (Twitter link via Jovan Buha of The Athletic).
Even if his reevaluation goes well in a few weeks and he’s medically cleared, it seems safe to say that James will need some time to ramp up his conditioning. If he were to return to the lineup in exactly three weeks, the Lakers would have nine games remaining on their schedule.
This is the first official update the Lakers have given since reports surfaced on Monday that James could be out multiple weeks. He suffered the injury during Sunday’s game against Dallas, in which the Lakers rallied from a 27-point deficit to pull out a 111-108 win, with James scoring 11 points in the fourth quarter despite being injured.
“It’s been better,” James said after the game. “That’s for sure. But I definitely wasn’t going to go to the locker room and not finish the game out tonight. Just understood the importance of the game, and then with the momentum that we had, I felt like we could still win after being down. We’ll monitor it the next couple days, see how it feels and go from there.”
James reportedly will not require surgery for the injury. He was spotted wearing a walking boot and moving “gingerly” during the Lakers’ loss in Memphis on Tuesday night, but returned to L.A. and was away from the team during Wednesday’s victory in Oklahoma City.
If there is one silver lining to James’ absence it’s that the Lakers have the third-easiest remaining schedule of any team, according to Tankathon. As Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times tweets, over the next three weeks, the Lakers have a five-game homestand against Minnesota, Golden State, Memphis, Toronto and New York, followed by road games in New Orleans and Houston, then another homestand versus Dallas, Orlando and Phoenix.
The 38-year-old has been limited to 47 games this season, but continues to play at a very high level, averaging 29.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 36.1 minutes per night. James became the NBA’s all-time scoring leader last month and was named to his 19th All-Star team, tying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for another league record.
At 30-33, the Lakers are currently the No. 11 seed in the West. However, the standings are so close they only trail the No. 5 seed Clippers by 2.5 games.
Pacific Notes: KD, Suns, D-Lo, Westbrook, Clippers
Superstar forward Kevin Durant had a successful debut with the Suns on Wednesday, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. The 34-year-old had been out of action since January 8 after sustaining a right MCL sprain, but he contributed 23 points (on 10-of-15 shooting), six rebounds, two assists and two blocks in 27 minutes during Phoenix’s 105-91 victory in Charlotte.
“I feel like I fit in pretty well. Everybody out there was trying to make me as comfortable as possible,” Durant said. “I just got to keep grinding, man, and this jersey on me will look normal as games go on.”
Durant had never been traded in the middle of a season prior to being sent to Phoenix from Brooklyn last month, and he admitted he was nervous about his first game in Suns uniform.
“New environment, new situation, new teammates, I mean I always feel I got to prove myself to my teammates and my coaches every single day no matter what I’ve done in the league,” Durant said, per Windhorst. “So I feel like there’s pressure to be who I am every day.”
Here’s more from the Pacific:
- Suns head coach Monty Williams said after the game that Durant will be on a precautionary minutes restriction for “at least the next week,” as Shane Young of Forbes Sports relays (via Twitter). Williams was noncommittal about Durant’s status for Friday’s game in Chicago, Young adds.
- Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell continues to be hampered by a sprained right ankle. He told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that he will miss Friday’s game versus Minnesota, his fourth consecutive absence (Twitter link). When asked if he could potentially play Sunday against Golden State, Russell wasn’t sure. “We’ll see once we get through Friday,” he said.
- Wolves guard Austin Rivers believes Russell Westbrook is a “natural fit” with the Clippers, according to Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints.com. “He starts, that’s exactly what he wanted to be in that situation,” Rivers said before Tuesday’s matchup with the Clippers. “The pressure’s not on him to close games. They got two closers, so he gets to go play and just kinda be him and not have to worry about all the pressure. I think it’s a great fit, honestly.” Rivers, who played with Westbrook in Houston a few years ago, explained that the Clippers’ shooting should give Westbrook more room to drive and make plays. Westbrook has put up strong individual numbers with the Clippers, averaging 16.0 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 9.3 APG (4.3 TO) and 2.3 SPG on .529/.444/1.000 shooting, but the team is 0-3 with him in the lineup thus far, Azarly notes.
Clippers Waive Keaton Wallace, Sign Xavier Moon To Two-Way Deal
11:05pm: Moon’s two-way deal is official, per the Clippers (Twitter link).
8:32pm: The Clippers have officially waived two-way guard Keaton Wallace (Twitter link via ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk) and are expected to replace him with point guard Xavier Moon, Moon’s agent, Stacey Leawood, tells Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
Wallace just inked his two-way deal last Tuesday. He went undrafted in 2021 and has spent his first two pro seasons playing with the Clippers’ G League affiliate, averaging 14.7 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 3.6 APG and 1.6 SPG on .488/.447/.714 shooting in 21 regular season games (32.1 MPG) with Ontario. He has yet to play an NBA game.
Moon has spent much of his professional career overseas. He signed three 10-day hardship deals with the Clippers last season and later a two-way deal, averaging 5.8 PPG and 2.4 APG on .490/.357/.600 shooting in 10 games (13.7 MPG).
The Clippers chose not to give him a two-way qualifying offer, but he signed an Exhibit 10 deal for training camp and was waived before ’22/23 began. The 28-year-old has excelled for the Ontario Clippers this season, averaging 21.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.6 SPG and 1.4 BPG on .522/.422/.829 shooting in 20 regular season games (31.5 MPG).
L.A. has a full 15-man roster and both two-way slots will be filled once Moon’s signing is official.
The Clippers have now signed both Wallace and Nate Darling to two-way contracts and waived them shortly thereafter. The team appears to be rewarding some of its G League standouts by essentially giving them a bonus on their NBAGL salaries in the form of a prorated two-way salary, which doesn’t count against the cap. It’s unclear whether the plan is the same for Moon or whether he’ll hang onto his two-way spot for the rest of the season.
Bucks Waive Sandro Mamukelashvili
10:49pm: Mamukelashvili has officially been waived, the Bucks announced in a press release.
4:06pm: The Bucks will waive big man Sandro Mamukelashvili, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link), Milwaukee worked with Mamukelashvili’s agents to try and help with his options in the future. We’ll have to wait and see whether the young forward/center has another opportunity lined up if he clears waivers.
After spending four college seasons at Seton Hall, Mamukelashvili was selected 54th overall in the 2021 draft. He has spent the past two seasons on a two-way contract with the Bucks, but his playing time was very limited at the NBA level — he averaged 3.2 PPG and 2.1 RPG on .439/.345/.750 shooting in 65 games (9.6 MPG) from 2021-23.
The Bucks have one of league’s best frontcourts, so it’s understandable why the 23-year-old’s minutes were limited. Still, he put up strong numbers in the G League with the Wisconsin Herd this season, averaging 23.3 PPG, 13.0 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.0 SPG and 1.0 BPG on .486/.471/.667 shooting in four regular season games (36.5 MPG).
Once Mamukelashvili is officially waived, the Bucks will have one two-way slot open. They also have a couple of standard roster spots available; Meyers Leonard is temporarily occupying one, but his 10-day deal expires in a couple days.
Injury Notes: AD, Schröder, Isaac, Embiid, Simons, Vassell
Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said star big man Anthony Davis was held out of Wednesday’s game in Oklahoma City for precautionary reasons and it had been planned for “weeks,” writes Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times.
“He’s frustrated as hell,” Ham said of Davis. “He wants to be out there, but he also understands the process of us managing his foot the right way. And again … it’s a stress reaction, so anything could set that thing off. The more stress you put on it, the more it’s gonna react. I’m not saying it flared up or anything. He’s absolutely playing pain-free. It’s just something we’re monitoring that we want to be extra careful and cautious about.”
The Lakers were playing on the second night of a back-to-back, so that likely played a significant factor in the team’s thinking. Point guard Dennis Schröder, who was starting in place of the injured D’Angelo Russell (right ankle sprain), sprained his left ankle on Wednesday night, but he had the ankle retaped and was able to return to the game, per Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group (Twitter links).
Schröder had called Wednesday’s matchup with the Thunder a “must-win” game, per Goon (via Twitter), and he toughed out the injury and finished with a game-high 26 points, six assists, two steals and was plus-16 in the six-point victory.
Here are some more injury notes from around the NBA:
- Magic big man Jonathan Isaac missed his third straight game on Wednesday night with a right hamstring/adductor strain, but he did rejoin the team in Milwaukee and was able to go through parts of Tuesday’s practice, according to Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel (subscriber link). Price reports that the Magic are “operating with an abundance of caution” due to the amount of time Isaac has missed the past few years. The 25-year-old has played 11 games thus far in ’22/23.
- Sixers star Joel Embiid was ruled out of Wednesday’s game in Miami due to left foot soreness, tweets Rich Hofmann of The Athletic. Despite missing their best player, the Sixers trounced the Heat by 25 points. It’s worth noting that it was the front end of a back-to-back, so the Sixers were likely just being cautious with Embiid; they play in Dallas on Thursday.
- Anfernee Simons returned to the Trail Blazers‘ starting lineup on Wednesday night, the team announced (via Twitter). The fifth-year guard was dealing with a Grade 2 right ankle sprain, but he returned to action fairly quickly; he was technically out 15 days, but only missed three games due to the All-Star break.
- Spurs guard/forward Devin Vassell is listed as probable for Thursday’s home game against Indiana, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. Vassell has been sidelined since January 2 after undergoing a left knee procedure. His potential return was anticipated, as coach Gregg Popovich previously said the team was hoping he would return on Thursday.
LaMelo Ball Officially Out For Season After Ankle Surgery
Point guard LaMelo Ball underwent successful surgery to repair his fractured right ankle, the Hornets announced in a press release. He has been ruled out for the rest of the season and is expected to make a full recovery, per the team.
The non-contact injury occurred when Ball fell awkwardly after a behind-the-back dribble during the third quarter of Monday’s victory over Detroit. He also missed a significant amount of games early in ’22/23 due to three left ankle sprains.
Still just 21 years old, Ball was the No. 3 overall pick of the 2020 draft. In 36 games (35.2 MPG) this season, he averaged 23.3 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 8.3 APG and 1.3 SPG on .411/.376/.836 shooting.
As a former first-round pick entering his fourth season, Ball will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer. It will be an interesting offseason for the Hornets, as they currently hold the league’s fourth-worst record at 20-44 and figure to land an early lottery pick in the upcoming draft.
Wizards’ Monte Morris Week-To-Week With Back Soreness
Starting point guard Monte Morris received an epidural injection on Wednesday to combat the lower back soreness he’s been experiencing, the Wizards announced in a press release. He had missed the previous two games with the injury and is considered week-to-week going forward, per the team.
In response to the announcement, Morris sent out a tweet saying “Be back soon” with a fingers crossed emoji.
Morris, 27, was selected by Denver with the 51st overall pick of the 2017 draft after four years at Iowa State. He spent his first season on a two-way contract before signing a multiyear standard deal the following summer.
The veteran guard played for the Nuggets in his first five NBA seasons prior to getting traded to the Wizards last summer. In his first season with Washington, he’s averaging 10.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 5.3 APG on .483/.406/.806 shooting through 51 games (28.1 MPG).
Long known as a steady hand in the backcourt, Morris leads the league in assist-to-turnover ratio in ’22/23 at 5.4-to-1, per NBA.com. Delon Wright has started the past couple games in Morris’ place, with newly promoted Jordan Goodwin and Kendrick Nunn also receiving minutes at guard.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Central Division
For the rest of the regular season and postseason, Hoops Rumors is taking a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents during the 2023 offseason. We consider whether their stock is rising or falling due to their performance and other factors. Today, we’re focusing on a handful of Central players.
Brook Lopez, C, Bucks
- 2022/23: $13,906,976
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Up
Lopez has been one of the NBA’s best stories this season, rebounding from a mostly lost season in 2021/22 after undergoing back surgery (he played just 13 regular season games and 12 playoff games). He’s having an outstanding year and has been a major factor in Milwaukee’s league-leading 44-17 record, averaging 14.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 2.4 BPG on .508/.370/.766 shooting through 60 games (30.3 MPG).
The veteran center, who is one of the leading candidates for Defensive Player of the Year, has said he hopes to remain with the Bucks, and the interest is reportedly mutual. Lopez has definitely earned a raise, but given his age (he turns 35 next month), I’d be a little surprised if he gets more than a two-year deal.
Khris Middleton, F, Bucks
- 2022/23: $37,948,276
- 2023/24: $40,396,552 (player option)
- Stock: Down
Middleton’s stock is down primarily due to injuries, which have limited him to 20 games to this point. The Bucks have been very cautious with the three-time All-Star, as he’s been coming off the bench lately and averaging his fewest minutes per game (21.5) since he was a rookie. However, despite the small sample size, it’s worth noting that the Bucks have been terrific with Middleton on the court – he has a plus-9.7 net rating, per NBA.com.
A career 38.9% three-point shooter, Middleton is making just 29.9% from deep this season, which has hurt his offensive efficiency (the rest of his shooting numbers are very close to career norms). That seems more like an aberration than a long-term concern.
The remaining 21 regular season games and how he fares in the postseason will likely determine whether or not the 31-year-old decides to pick up his player option for ’23/24. Let’s not forget that Middleton averaged 23.6 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 5.1 APG and 1.5 SPG during Milwaukee’s championship run a couple years ago — I would not be surprised at all if he bounces back from a disappointing season over the next few months.
Ayo Dosunmu, G, Bulls
- 2022/23: $1,563,518
- 2023/24: RFA
- Stock: Neutral
The 38th pick of the 2021 draft, Dosunmu had a strong rookie campaign, earning a spot on the All-Rookie Second Team after averaging 8.8 PPG, 2.8 RPG and 3.3 APG on .520/.376/.679 shooting in 77 games (40 starts, 27.4 MPG).
His numbers have been quite similar in year two, with the 23-year-old averaging 9.3 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 2.8 APG on .498/.316/.806 shooting in 60 games (49 starts, 28.1 MPG). Obviously the three-point percentage is down, which is unfortunate, and he hasn’t necessarily progressed from a statistical standpoint like some second-year players do.
Advanced stats aren’t very high on Dosunmu, and the Bulls have been better by a pretty significant margin when he’s not on the court. While Dosunmu may not have made a second-year leap, I still like his defensive potential and he reportedly has a strong work ethic and team-first attitude.
Dosunmu met the starter criteria, so the value of his qualifying offer increased to $5,216,324. It will be interesting to see how his restricted free agency plays out.
Hamidou Diallo, G/F, Pistons
- 2022/23: $5,200,000
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Up
Diallo is challenging to evaluate because his strengths and weakness are more pronounced than most players. He is a non-shooting wing with pretty bad tunnel vision, which you would expect would make him ineffective in a league constantly looking for floor-spacers.
That isn’t the case. The 24-year-old is one of the most athletic players in the NBA and he plays with a tremendous amount of energy. He utilizes those strengths to play strong defense, crash the boards, drive, and catch lobs, and he’s been very effective at all of those things in ‘22/23.
The Pistons have an overall defensive rating of 117.6, which ranks 28th in the league. When Diallo is on the court, Detroit has the equivalent of the league’s fourth-best defense. He is shooting a career-high 58.1% from the field in large part because he is converting 71.8% of his attempts at the rim, per DunksAndThrees.com – a better mark than many centers.
Sometimes Diallo’s energy carries over into recklessness. He fouls too much and can be turnover-prone. Even if his game is polarizing, I think he deserves a raise, perhaps a deal in the range of $6-10MM per year.
Oshae Brissett, F, Pacers
- 2022/23: $1,846,738
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Down
After averaging 9.6 PPG and 5.4 RPG on .428/.368/.716 shooting in 88 games (41 starts, 23.7 MPG) with Indiana from 2020-22, Brissett had an opportunity to establish himself as a reliable rotation player in a contract year. Unfortunately, that has not come to fruition.
The Pacers have been relatively weak at power forward all season. Brissett hasn’t helped much. He’s averaging 5.5 PPG and 3.4 RPG on .388/.333/.693 shooting in 49 games in ‘22/23, with his playing time cut back to 16.0 MPG. He has been a healthy scratch in seven of the last eight games.
Still just 24 years old, Brissett should land another (relatively small) deal in free agency — he’s a solid rebounder and defender. But those shooting numbers are a problem, and his stock is definitely down compared to the past couple seasons.