Raptors Sign Kevin Obanor To Exhibit 10 Contract
AUG. 1: Obanor’s deal with the Raptors is official, per team release.
JUNE 26: The Raptors are signing free agent forward Kevin Obanor to an Exhibit 10 contract, reports Bryan Kalbrosky of For The Win (Twitter link).
Obanor went undrafted last week after a five-year college career. He spend his first three seasons with Oral Roberts and final two with Texas Tech.
As a “super senior” for the Red Raiders in 2022/23, Obanor averaged 14.4 PPG and 6.4 RPG on .492/.331/.810 shooting in 32 games (30.9 MPG). He shot 38.1% from deep over 156 college games.
If Obanor is waived and then spends at least 60 days with the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G League affiliate, he’d be eligible for a bonus worth up to $75K. His Exhibit 10 contract could also be converted into a two-way deal if he impresses during Summer League and training camp.
And-Ones: D. Rivers, M. Jackson, Bahamas, Shooting Tech, Contracts
After letting go of Jeff Van Gundy last month, ESPN/ABC has also laid off fellow analyst Mark Jackson, sources tell Andrew Marchand of The New York Post. Jackson confirmed the news in an interview with Peter Vecsey, Marchand adds (via Twitter).
As Marchand writes, the new top NBA broadcast team at ESPN/ABC will be comprised of longtime play-by-play announcer Mike Breen, former Sixers head coach Doc Rivers, and Doris Burke, who is being promoted. The hiring of Rivers and promotion of Burke aren’t yet official, but they are “quickly moving in that direction,” according to Marchand.
Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald confirms Marchand’s reporting (via Twitter).
Here’s more from around the basketball world:
- The Suns‘ Deandre Ayton and Eric Gordon, Pacers wing Buddy Hield, and Hornets big man Kai Jones are on the 2024 Olympic qualifying roster for the Bahamas, per Marc J. Spears of Andscape. The Bahamian national team will play its qualifying games in Argentina from August 14-20. “I’m excited to be back playing for Team Bahamas and to see how much the program has grown,” Ayton told Spears. “Can’t wait to play with my guys. It’s truly a special experience to compete with teammates – who are from where you’re from – with Bahamas on your chest.”
- Tim MacMahon of ESPN details how Breakaway Data — a startup focused on the biomechanics of shooting — has partnered with Overtime Elite and Las Vegas Summer League to provide detailed breakdowns of each player’s shot. “I thought it was very informative,” Overtime Elite product Amen Thompson, drafted fourth overall by the Rockets, told ESPN. “Not everything works for everybody, but that [data] can’t really be a bad thing. It can only help to get as much information as possible. I felt like that’s what it gave us.”
- Which players have inked the most lucrative contracts in NBA history? Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype provides the list. Jaylen Brown‘s new super-max extension with the Celtics is the current largest deal ever, Gozlan notes.
Amir Coffey Arrested For Misdemeanor Gun Possession
Clippers wing Amir Coffey was arrested in Hollywood, California, at approximately 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning for misdemeanor possession of a firearm, according to TMZ (hat tip to Kurt Helin of NBC Sports).
Coffey was a passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over for speeding. When police approached the vehicle, they reportedly smelled marijuana and subsequently searched the car. They found a loaded gun, which Coffey conceded was his.
According to TMZ, the 26-year-old was subsequently arrested for the misdemeanor charge, booked into jail, and released four hours later on his own recognizance. Coffey’s court date is scheduled for August.
The Clippers have yet to comment on the matter, Helin notes.
Coffey, who reportedly would have been sent to the Wizards in June in a three-team trade that fell apart at the last minute, has been with the Clippers since he went undrafted in 2019 out of Minnesota.
He had a breakout third season in 2021/22, averaging 9.0 PPG, 2.9 RPG and 1.8 APG on .453/.378/.863 shooting in 69 games (30 starts, 22.7 MPG), which led to him being promoted from a two-way deal to a standard contract in March 2022. He signed a three-year, $11MM contract with L.A. last summer — he’ll earn $7.6MM over the next two seasons.
Last season, Coffey struggled to produce at the same level in a limited role. He averaged just 3.4 PPG, 1.1 RPG and 1.1 APG on .386/.275/.778 shooting across 50 contests (nine starts, 12.5 MPG).
Western Notes: Jackson, Smart, Hughes, Pokusevski, Thunder
Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr., the NBA’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, says he’s excited to team up with Marcus Smart, who won the award in 2022, writes Jerry Jiang of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Smart was acquired from the Celtics last month in a three-team trade, and Jackson reached out to him when the news broke.
“That doesn’t happen pretty often or ever,” Jackson said, referring to a team having two DPOY winners at the same time. “I just know what he brings to Boston. I’ve seen it before I was in the league and it’s crazy.”
Here’s more from the West:
- The Mavericks intend to hire Eric Hughes as an assistant coach, sources tell Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link). Hughes got his NBA start as an assistant with Toronto and previously worked under head coach Jason Kidd with the Nets and Bucks, MacMahon notes. He has been with the Sixers for the past four seasons.
- Thunder big man Aleksej Pokusevski won’t be able to represent his native Serbia in the FIBA World Cup next month, according to Eurohoops.net. The 17th pick of the 2020 draft, Pokusevski suffered a broken arm during an offseason workout at the end of May and won’t receive medical clearance to train with a basketball until late August, the report states. The World Cup starts August 25 and runs through September 10. The 21-year-old was hoping to secure a spot on the Serbian national team’s 12-man roster.
- In a mailbag for The Oklahoman, Joe Mussatto predicts that Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Victor Oladipo, Jack White, Usman Garuba and TyTy Washington are the the most likely players to be on the chopping block due to the Thunder‘s roster crunch. However, Mussatto notes that OKC has a few months to figure things out and more trades could be in order rather than outright waiving all five players.
Eastern Notes: Knicks, Sixers, T. Jones, Black
The Knicks might not be championship favorites entering 2023/24, but they’re in a strong financial position going forward, without any of the NBA’s 50 highest-paid players, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News.
As Bondy outlines, the Knicks’ top earners rank just outside the top 50, headlined by point guard Jalen Brunson ($26.3MM, No. 52) and forward Julius Randle ($25.7MM, No. 53). Bondy hears Josh Hart will receive an extension next month in the neighborhood of $75MM over four years (similar to what Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported three weeks ago), while Immanuel Quickley is looking for more than that on a rookie scale deal.
Having good players on reasonable long-term deals should help the Knicks avoid the restrictive second tax apron for the foreseeable future, Bondy notes, and could help the club swing trades in the future.
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com answers several Sixers-related questions in his latest mailbag, writing that the Clippers have been “fairly unserious” in trade offers for James Harden to this point, a sign that teams around the league might not value the former MVP the same way they used to. Neubeck is skeptical Paul Reed will attempt many three-pointers in ’23/24, despite talk of a potential expanded role.
- The Wizards‘ acquisition of Tyus Jones flew under the radar a bit due to the bigger names involved in the three-team deal, but he’s a solid player with plenty of desirable attributes. Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington examined Jones’ career statistics to get an idea of what he might bring to the table next season.
- Anthony Black, who was selected No. 6 overall last month by the Magic, recently spoke to Sam Yip of HoopsHype about a number of topics, including which NBA players he enjoys watching and what he needs to improve on entering his rookie season.
Heat Notes: Lillard, Cain, Audige, Free Agents, Roster
As of Friday afternoon, nothing appeared to be imminent regarding a possible Damian Lillard trade, reports Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.
According to Jackson, the Trail Blazers‘ front office is currently on vacation and has shown no inclination to comply with Lillard’s trade request to the Heat. That said, Lillard remains focused on landing in Miami and doesn’t plan expand his list to include additional teams, a person with knowledge of the situation tells Jackson.
Jackson believes the Blazers may have spurred the league to investigate Lillard’s request and the comments made by his agent (Aaron Goodwin) in order to drum up trade interest, hence the NBA’s memo on Friday. Since Lillard and Goodwin told the league the star guard would fulfill his contract and play for any team that trades for him, the Heat will have to hope rival teams don’t decide to make “legitimate trade offers” for the 33-year-old, Jackson observes (Twitter links).
If Portland decides to wait until midseason to move Lillard, that could work against the Heat, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. As Winderman notes, the Nets received far more in return for Kevin Durant at the February trade deadline than the rumored offers they were receiving last summer for the superstar forward.
Here’s more out of Miami:
- The Heat are interested in bringing back Jamal Cain on a two-way contract, which is why they gave him a qualifying offer, but the young forward hopes to land a standard deal and continues to discuss that possibility with other teams, Jackson writes. Miami could match a potential offer sheet for Cain since he’s a restricted free agent.
- Miami is interested in signing former Northwestern guard Chase Audige, who played for the Heat’s Summer League team, to a training camp contract, but his agent declined to say whether or not Audige would accept the offer, Jackson adds. As a senior for the Wildcats in 2022/23, the 6’4″ Audige averaged 14.1 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.9 APG and 2.4 SPG in 34 games (34.4 MPG), though he struggled with scoring efficiency (.368/.325/.832 shooting line).
- The Heat have had discussions with Goran Dragic‘s representatives about a possible reunion, but a potential deal likely wouldn’t come to fruition until later this summer, according to Jackson. The veteran free agent guard made his lone All-Star appearance with the Heat, but he’s 37 years old and dealt with a knee problem last season that required surgery. The Heat can only offer the veteran’s minimum, which may take them out of the running for free agents like Christian Wood and Kelly Oubre, who are looking for more money, per Jackson.
- In a mailbag for The Miami Herald, Anthony Chiang answers questions about the Heat’s roster and how the new second apron might affect the team going forward.
NBA Sends Memo Regarding Damian Lillard’s Trade Request
The NBA sent out a memo on Friday to all of the league’s 30 teams regarding Damian Lillard‘s trade request, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter video link via The Rally).
According to Charania, the NBA interviewed the Trail Blazers star and his agent, Aaron Goodwin, about the narrow scope of his trade request and said Lillard may face punishment if further public comments are made about only wanting to end up with the Heat.
Goodwin told two different reporters earlier this month that he had been telling rival teams it would be “futile” to engage in trade talks about his client, given Lillard’s singular focus on playing for Miami.
Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report has a full copy of the league’s memo (Twitter link). The two most noteworthy sections are as follows:
“Goodwin denied stating or indicating to any team that Lillard would refuse to play for them. Goodwin and Lillard affirmed to us that Lillard would fully perform the services called for under his player contract in any trade scenario. The relevant teams provided descriptions of their communications with Goodwin that were mostly, though not entirely, consistent with Goodwin’s statements to us.
“We have advised Goodwin and Lillard that any future comments, made privately to teams or publicly, suggesting Lillard will not fully perform the services called for under his player contract in the event of a trade will subject Lillard to discipline by the NBA. We also have advised the Players Association that any similar comments by players or their agents will be subject to discipline going forward.”
As Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald notes (via Twitter), it’s a little odd that the NBA has taken a harder stance on Lillard’s request given that plenty of other stars have desired to be traded to specific teams over the past handful of years, including Anthony Davis (Lakers), Paul George (Clippers) and Kevin Durant (Suns), among others. Though in fairness, I don’t recall any of those players’ agents discussing the matter publicly.
The NBA could fine Lillard up to $150K if he were to publicly say he wants to be traded to the Heat, tweets Jackson — obviously the veteran has done no such thing to this point.
John Hollinger of The Athletic believes the league is attempting to address its “oversight” of a player requesting a trade to one specific team (Twitter link). The NBA could have negotiated something about it in the new CBA, Hollinger notes, but did not.
Lillard, 33, has spent his entire 11-year career with Portland, the franchise that drafted him sixth overall in 2012. The star guard is coming off arguably his best individual season, averaging a career-high 32.2 points per game on a career-best .645 true shooting percentage.
However, the Blazers went into tank mode down the stretch of 2022/23, going 2-15 over their final 17 games to finish 33-49. Lillard had called upon the front office to build out the roster around him this offseason, but the team was unable to find any suitable deals with the third overall pick (or its young players), ultimately selecting G League Ignite guard Scoot Henderson.
Pelicans Notes: Williamson, Ingram, Alvarado, Lewis
William Guillory and John Hollinger of The Athletic take stock of where things stand for the Pelicans entering 2023/24, with both writers noting that it will be a critical season for the organization.
New Orleans doesn’t have much choice but to see whether or not a core of Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram can be successful together, according to Hollinger, despite the duo only playing 12 games together over the past two seasons. However, he would seriously consider trading one of them next summer if the team has another disappointing season.
As Guillory points out, the Pelicans will be facing salary cap difficulties in both the short and long term, so the pressure entering ’23/24 will be much higher than in previous years. Finding a replacement at center for Jonas Valanciunas, who is entering the final year of his contract, should be a priority going forward if the team doesn’t plan to retain him, according to both authors.
Here’s more on the Pelicans:
- Technology company Ankr PBC has filed a civil lawsuit against Williamson, his stepfather and his mother, writes Brett Martel of The Associated Press. The lawsuit alleges Williamson and his family failed to pay back $1.8MM of a $2MM loan. Ankr had hoped Williamson would be a spokesperson for the company, with his stepfather, Lee Anderson, serving as his representative during negotiations, per Martel. Anderson is the person who requested the loan a couple years ago, the lawsuit states.
- Jose Alvarado is still recovering from the stress reaction in his right tibia, which he sustained in February, and the injury will prevent him from representing Puerto Rico during the upcoming World Cup, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN. Pelicans sources tell Lopez that the move is precautionary, but it certainly seems somewhat problematic that a recent MRI indicated Alvarado’s tibia isn’t fully healed after five months. The point guard’s minimum-salary contract for 2023/24 is fully non-guaranteed, as we noted earlier today. That’s not to say he’s in any danger of being released — prior to going down with the leg injury, he was a regular part of the Pelicans’ rotation, averaging 9.0 points, 3.0 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 21.5 minutes per night (61 games).
- Former lottery pick Kira Lewis remains a trade candidate worth monitoring, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who notes that dumping Lewis’ salary would take New Orleans out of luxury tax territory. The 22-year-old returned from a torn ACL last season, averaging 4.6 points and 1.3 rebounds in limited action (9.4 minutes per night in 25 games).
Spurs Interested In Evan Fournier?
In addition to a few playoff hopefuls, the Spurs have also shown some interest in trading for Knicks wing Evan Fournier, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv.
As Begley outlines, Fournier shares an agent with fellow Frenchman Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall pick of last month’s draft. Fournier spoke last week about being intrigued by the possibility of joining San Antonio.
The 30-year-old’s $18.9MM pseudo-expiring contract (he has a team option worth $19MM in 2024/25) wouldn’t be viewed favorably by rival teams after he was pulled from New York’s rotation early last season. Fournier appeared in just 27 games in ’22/23, averaging 6.1 PPG and 1.8 RPG while shooting career worsts of 40.4% on twos and 30.7% on threes.
On the other hand, Fournier started all 80 of his games in ’21/22, averaging 14.1 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.1 APG and 1.0 SPG while converting the fourth-most three-pointers in the league (241, a career high). He holds a career mark of 37.9% from beyond the arc.
After making multiple deals this offseason, the Spurs no longer have the salary cap room to accommodate Fournier’s salary outright, Begley notes — they’d have to send salary back to adhere to the NBA’s trade rules. The Knicks also haven’t shown any inclination to attach draft assets to move off Fournier’s contract, Begley adds, but presumably would be more open to doing so if they could get a potential rotation player or two in return.
Fournier has come up in a couple other trade rumors this summer, but he remains on the Knicks’ roster for now, although he certainly hopes that isn’t the case when the season starts. It’s worth noting that Begley’s article is a week old, and a report a few days ago indicated Fournier could eventually become a buyout candidate if New York can’t trade him.
Begley’s mailbag column also touches on a handful of other topics. For example, he expresses skepticism that the Knicks were ever seriously interested in Bulls guard/forward Zach LaVine this offseason, despite having exploratory trade talks on the two-time All-Star at the February deadline. Begley also hears the Raptors were shutting down trade inquiries on OG Anunoby — a player the Knicks like — earlier this month.
Bronny James Discharged From Hospital After Cardiac Arrest
After suffering cardiac arrest on Monday during a workout at USC’s Galen Center, incoming Trojan freshman and potential 2024 first-round pick Bronny James has been discharged from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, writes Jeff Borzello of ESPN.
“Thanks to the swift and effective response by the USC athletics’ medical staff, Bronny James was successfully treated for a sudden cardiac arrest,” Merije Chukumerije, the consulting cardiologist for James, said in a statement. “He arrived at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center fully conscious, neurologically intact and stable. Mr. James was cared for promptly by highly-trained staff and has been discharged home, where he is resting.
“Although his workup will be ongoing, we are hopeful for his continued progress and are encouraged by his response, resilience, and his family and community support.”
NBA superstar LeBron James, Bronny’s father, sent out a tweet on Thursday indicating his son was home.
“I want to thank the countless people sending my family love and prayers,” LeBron wrote. “We feel you and I’m so grateful. Everyone doing great. We have our family together, safe and healthy, and we feel your love. Will have more to say when we’re ready but I wanted to tell everyone how much your support has meant to all of us!”
A family spokesperson told Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter) that Bronny was released late Tuesday night, so he was in the hospital for less than 48 hours.
A report from TMZ early Wednesday morning indicated the James family was “relieved” and feeling “optimistic” about Bronny’s prognosis. That said, sources tell TMZ that more tests need to be run before doctors can determine why the young guard suffered the cardiac arrest.