Lowry Out For Game 2; Smart Probable, Horford Doubtful
The Heat and Celtics have released their latest injury updates (Twitter links) for Game 2 of their Eastern Conference Finals matchup on Thursday. Miami’s Kyle Lowry (hamstring) remains out for Game 2, but Boston’s Marcus Smart (right mid-foot sprain) has been upgraded to probable after both players missed Game 1.
In addition to Smart, Al Horford (health and safety protocols) is listed as doubtful for Boston, while little-used backup Sam Hauser (right shoulder) is out.
For Miami, Max Strus and Gabe Vincent are both listed as questionable with hamstring issues, but both Heat players have appeared in all 12 postseason games to this point, so it would be surprising if they’re unavailable on Thursday.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reported earlier today that Smart was targeting a Game 2 return and that Horford was “highly unlikely” to be available, and Boston’s official designations align with Haynes’ sources.
Strangely, the Heat have gone 7-0 in the playoffs in Lowry’s absence to this point, and lost both games he played against Philadelphia, when he was clearly still hampered by the hamstring strain. Vincent has filled in admirably for the team’s normal starting point guard, and that’s likely to continue.
Miami leads the series 1-0 after a 118-107 victory on Tuesday, led by 41 points, nine rebounds, five assists, four steals and three blocks (plus stellar shooting) from Jimmy Butler. The turning point in the first game was the third quarter, when Miami outscored Boston 39-14, led by Butler’s 17 points.
Barnes, Cunningham, Mobley Head All-Rookie Team
Scottie Barnes, Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Franz Wagner and Jalen Green comprised this year’s All-Rookie First Team, the NBA announced in a press release.
Barnes, Cunningham and Mobley were all unanimous selections, receiving the maximum total of 200 points each. Wagner received 183 points, followed by Green with 158. Strangely, one media member left Wagner off their ballot completely, as he received 99 of 100 possible votes.
Raptors wing Barnes, who narrowly edged Cavaliers big man Mobley for the Rookie of the Year award, ranked third in points (15.3) and rebounds (7.5) among all rookies, and fifth in assists (3.5). Mobley was fifth in points (15.0) and led all first-year players in rebounds (8.3) and blocks (1.67) per game.
Pistons guard Cunningham, the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft, was first among rookies in points (17.4), second in assists (5.6) and fifth in rebounds (5.5). Magic forward Wagner also had a great year, averaging 15.4 points (fourth among rookies), 4.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 79 games. Rockets guard Green finished the season strong, scoring 20+ points in 17 of his last 25 games on his way to averaging 17.3 points, second among first-year players.
Pelicans defensive ace Herbert Jones (123 votes) and Thunder floor general Josh Giddey (122 votes) headline the Second Team. Jones averaged 9.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.7 steals (first among rookies) and should at least receive votes for an All-Defensive nod, even if he doesn’t end up making one of the two teams.
In addition to averaging 12.5 points, Giddey was second among rookies in rebounds (7.8) and first in assists (6.4), but he only appeared in 54 of 82 games, having missed the final 23 contests with a hip injury, which is likely why he didn’t receive more First Team votes.
Here are both All-Rookie teams in full, with their voting point totals noted in parentheses. Players received two points for a First Team vote and one point for a Second Team vote.
2021/22 All-Rookie First Team:
- Scottie Barnes, Raptors (200)
- Evan Mobley, Cavaliers (200)
- Cade Cunningham, Pistons (200)
- Franz Wagner, Magic (183)
- Jalen Green, Rockets (158)
2021/22 All-Rookie Second Team:
- Herbert Jones, Pelicans (123)
- Josh Giddey, Thunder (122)
- Bones Hyland, Nuggets (81)
- Ayo Dosunmu, Bulls (75)
- Chris Duarte, Pacers (52)
Ten other rookies received votes — you can view the full voting results right here. Among the group that missed the cut, Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga (47) was just behind Duarte, with Kings guard Davion Mitchell (28) the only other player receiving a significant number of votes.
Timberwolves In “Serious Talks” With Tim Connelly To Lead Front Office
The Timberwolves are pursuing Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly for their own president vacancy, sources tell Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, who report that the Wolves recently requested and were granted permission to speak with Connelly, and the two sides “have moved beyond exploratory” discussions.
Although the Wolves are in “serious talks” with Connelly, nothing has been agreed to yet and “nothing appears imminent,” write Charania and Krawcyznski.
Connelly is widely-respected around the NBA for his work with Denver, having drafted back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Bones Hyland, and Monte Morris, among other current and former Nuggets players. He has been the head of Denver’s basketball operations since 2013, when he was named vice president of basketball operations and general manager. He was promoted to president in 2017.
The Nuggets have made the playoffs four straight seasons under Connelly, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2019/20. He has also hired and promoted several important coaches and executives, including head coach Michael Malone and former GM Arturas Karnisovas, who now leads the Bulls’ front office.
Connelly is the first external candidate to be officially linked to the lead basketball job in Minnesota’s front office. Executive vice president of basketball operations Sachin Gupta, who has been serving as the head of the basketball operations department on an interim basis following the dismissal of Gersson Rosas in September, remains a candidate to land the job permanently and is considered a “significant part of the organization’s long-term vision,” according to Charania and Krawcyznski.
Gupta was empowered by ownership to make some key front office decisions recently. He declined to pick up the option on the final year of former assistant GM Gianluca Pascucci‘s contract, replacing him with newly-hired Steve Senior, who was poached from Memphis. Senior will be in charge of the team’s player development.
Minority owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez, who will become majority owners at the end of 2023, have pushed for a prominent figure to lead Minnesota’s basketball operations. In Lore’s other business ventures, he’s employed a philosophy centered on hiring “the best possible people, no matter the cost,” per The Athletic’s duo.
However, current majority owner Glen Taylor would be the primary decision-maker for a significant hire like Connelly. Taylor has been impressed with Gupta’s work, but also wants the transition to Lore and Rodriguez taking over as majority partners to go smoothly, so it’s a delicate balance.
A person “very close” to Connelly tells Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link) that Connelly would be looking for a significant payday in addition to a stake in the franchise in order to leave Denver for Minnesota, saying, “I don’t see it unless they give him $10M per (year) and equity.”
Mike Singer of The Denver Post reports that Connelly is among a list of big-name executives that the Wolves have circled for the vacancy, and he’s apparently considered the most “gettable,” assuming the compensation is right. A source tells Singer that Sam Presti of the Thunder, Masai Ujiri of the Raptors, and Bob Myers of the Warriors are the other executives the Wolves are interested in. The upcoming season is an option year for Connelly’s contract with the Nuggets, according to Singer.
As Chris Hine of the Star Tribune observes, hiring Connelly might be more complicated than just giving him a significant payday. Gupta negotiated a multiyear contract extension with head coach Chris Finch (and all of his assistants), and the two have a good working relationship.
New presidents typically want to hire the people they deem most suitable to work with — would Connelly want to retain Gupta and Finch? Would Gupta and Finch want to work with Connelly? There are lots of factors to consider in a very important offseason for the Wolves, says Hine.
Mavericks Fined $50K By NBA
After receiving a $25K fine for “bench decorum” infractions during Game 2 of their second-round series vs. the Suns, the Mavericks have been fined $50K for similar infractions during Game 7, with the increased penalty partly based on the prior violation, the league announced (via Twitter).
“On multiple occasions, several players and a member of the coaching staff stood for an extended period in the Mavericks’ team bench area, stood away from the team bench, and were on or encroaching upon the playing court” during Game 7, the NBA said.
As ESPN’s Tim MacMahon wrote a couple weeks ago, the boisterous bench squad, led by two-way player Theo Pinson, who is ineligible for the playoffs, has been credited with improving team chemistry as well as annoying opponents.
“He (Pinson) gave us something we didn’t have, and now he has a group over there,” head coach Jason Kidd said before Dallas’ closeout Game 6 win over Utah.”They’re all into the game from jump ball to the end. Win or lose, those guys are connected and the team is connected.”
“We’re involved all game,” Pinson said, per MacMahon. “We’re involved, up, ready, helping our teammates. We’ve seen the importance of it.”
As evidenced by a combined $75K in fines to this point, clearly the league believes the figurative and literal line has been crossed several times. Kidd previously said the NBA had the wrong priorities when it came to the first fine, but noted that it was going to a good cause (charity).
Owner Mark Cuban responded to the first fine (via Twitter) with a link to a video in which he cursed a second time at an Esports event after learning that his first F-bomb had resulted in a $15K fine that went to charity, so obviously he doesn’t seem to mind being docked, especially given the team’s postseason success. The Mavs are in the Western Conference Finals for the fifth time in franchise history, and the first time since 2010/11, when Dallas won its first title.
Sixers Notes: Harden, Thybulle, Embiid, Toughness
As we previously relayed, when James Harden was asked whether he’d opt in to his $47.37MM player option for next season, he said, “I’ll be here.”
Following up on Harden’s statement, Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey confirmed that the team plans on having the former MVP on its roster going forward.
“That’s the plan, is to have him back,” Morey said, per ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. “That’s been the plan since the trade. Obviously, we have to work with his representation and that’ll be between us to figure out how that works.”
Morey added that improving the defense will be a focus in the offseason, while coach Doc Rivers said the team needs to improve its toughness.
“Well, I think it’s something that our players can grow,” Morey said of a lack of mental toughness being a common theme in exit interviews with players. “I mean, going through losses and how you respond to that and how you take it as your own look in the mirror. I think we all need to look in the mirror and say, ‘How can we each be better?’ … And that goes for myself as well.”
Here’s more from Philadelphia:
- In an appearance on “Get Up,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said, “Nobody in the NBA believes that the Sixers are going to give James Harden a max contract.” If Harden is willing to take a pay cut to improve the team’s financial flexibility, Windhorst points to Chris Paul‘s contract structure with the Suns as something that might work for both sides. Paul declined his $44MM player option last summer and signed a four-year, $120MM contract, but only $75MM is guaranteed.
- Matisse Thybulle, who was only partially vaccinated and thus ineligible to play in Toronto, was removed from the starting lineup for the postseason after starting 50 of 66 regular season games. Thybulle was asked at his exit interview whether he regretted his decision to not get fully vaccinated, with the hindsight that it impacted his performance and – by his own admission – his confidence. However, Thybulle said he was content with his choice and had no regrets, according to Kyle Neubeck of Philly Voice (Twitter link). Thybulle averaged 25.5 minutes per contest in the regular season, but just 15.2 during the playoffs.
- Joel Embiid was understandably frustrated that his otherwise-healthy season ended with injuries, writes Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “I’m not looking for any excuses, but those are just the facts,” Embiid said of his orbital fracture and torn thumb ligament. “It [stinks]. I don’t think anybody would believe that I was 100%, so it does [stink] to get to this stage and not be yourself, not being able to do what you want and your body not allowing you to just be yourself … I would say [I should] try to make sure it doesn’t happen again, but those are freak injuries. If it happens, there’s nothing I can do about it.”
- Rivers’ comments about improving the team’s toughness were initiated by Embiid, who said the Sixers have “never had P.J. Tucker” during his tenure, a nod to Tucker’s hard-nosed defense and all-out effort. “[He] believes that he can get from Point A to Point B and he believes that no one can beat him,” Embiid said of Tucker, per Mizell. “They [Miami] have a few of those guys. … Since I’ve been here, I’d be lying if I said that we’ve had those type of guys. Nothing against what we have. It’s just the truth.”
Warriors’ Otto Porter Jr. Out For Game 6
Warriors acting head coach Mike Brown told reporters, including Mark Medina of NBA.com (Twitter link), that Otto Porter Jr. will miss Friday’s Game 6 against the Grizzlies. Porter had previously been listed as questionable with right foot soreness.
Brown said he’s contemplating tweaking the rotation with Porter sidelined, with more minutes for Kevon Looney, Jonathan Kuminga and Nemanja Bjelica, Medina tweets.
As Anthony Slater of The Athletic observes, Porter’s absence is a major loss for the Warriors, as he’s been a key cog of Golden State’s best lineups against Memphis. In the second-round series, the Warriors are +45 in Porter’s 106 on-court minutes, and -55 in 134 minutes without him (Twitter links).
In 63 regular season games this season, Porter averaged 8.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.1 steals on .464/.370/.803 shooting in 22.2 minutes per night. Those figures seem relatively modest, but the 28-year-old forward is a good rebounder, smart defender and has a high basketball IQ. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
In other Warriors news, Tim Kawakami of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that head coach Steve Kerr, who’s currently in the league’s health and safety protocols, might miss Game 7 if the Grizzlies win tonight. The Warriors currently lead the series 3-2, so it’s an elimination game for Memphis. Kerr still needs to return two negative COVID-19 tests prior to making his return, but he’s been actively involved in creating game plans via phone and video calls, Kawakami notes.
Northwest Notes: Forrest, Jazz Offseason, A-Rod, Wolves
Sarah Todd of The Deseret News wonders what’s next for Jazz guard Trent Forrest. The 23-year-old spent the past two seasons on a two-way deal with Utah after going undrafted out of Florida State, but his contract was converted to a standard deal on the last day of the regular season.
Although that technically made him eligible for the playoffs, Forrest was dealing with a left midfoot sprain, so the conversion was mostly ceremonial. The front office deferred to coach Quin Snyder‘s preference for the 15th roster spot, and Forrest was rewarded after earning the trust of Snyder, sources tell Todd.
As of last week, Forrest was still experiencing pain while rehabbing the injury and had yet to resume on-court work, but it’s not a long-term concern, Todd writes. Forrest will be a restricted free agent this summer if the team tenders him a qualifying offer worth just over $2MM.
Although he’s considered a strong defender, he knows he needs to work on his shot to have lasting success in the NBA.
“This summer is going to be a lot of the same thing,” Forrest said. “I don’t need much pick-and-roll or things like that. A lot of (my work) is just gonna be a lot of left hand finishing and working on my shot.”
Here’s more from the Northwest:
- In a mailbag column about how the Jazz should approach their offseason, Tony Jones of The Athletic says he believes Utah should keep both Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert and surround them with “bigger, longer, more athletic” players who are significantly better defensively. Juancho Hernangomez and Danuel House — two players who were on the verge of being out of the league — both made a big impact on the club due to their length, athleticism and competitive defense, and Jones thinks the Jazz need several more players in that mold. If he were part of the front office, he says he’d try to trade for a second-round pick in the draft and use the taxpayer mid-level exception (projected to be $6.4MM) to acquire players who meet that criteria. Utah does not own a pick at the moment.
- After recent rumors that Timberwolves minority owner Alex Rodriguez might be interested in purchasing the Miami Marlins, his PR representative denied the claim. “Alex Rodriguez is 100 percent focused on owning the Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Lynx. Any report of him having interest in also buying the Miami Marlins or any other MLB team is entirely false,” said Ron Berkowitz of Berk Communications (via Twitter). A-Rod and co-owner Marc Lore are set to become majority shareholders of the Wolves in 2023/24.
- Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News reports that the Timberwolves worked out several draft prospects on Thursday and Friday, including UCLA’s Johnny Juzang, Maryland’s Fatts Russell, Alabama’s Keon Ellis, North Carolina’s Kerwin Walton, and Richmond’s Jacob Gilyard (all Twitter links here).
Celtics’ Robert Williams Out For Game 6 Vs. Bucks
Celtics center Robert Williams will miss Friday’s Game 6 against the Bucks due to pain from the bone bruise in his left knee, which he suffered in Game 3, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN.
Williams collided with Giannis Antetokounmpo in Game 3 and later experienced swelling from the incident, which kept him out of Game 4. The swelling has subsided, but the pain from the injury has lingered, causing him to miss Game 5 and now Game 6. He’d previously been listed as questionable.
“I’m disappointed, as we all are, but looking out for his health first and foremost,” said head coach Ime Udoka, adding that Williams won’t play until he’s 100 percent (Twitter links via Jared Weiss and Jay King of The Athletic).
Williams is considered day-to-day and there’s a chance he could return for Game 7 if Boston defeats Milwaukee, per Weiss (via Twitter). The Bucks currently lead the second-round series 3-2.
Although Williams underwent left knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus at the end of March, the bone bruise is unrelated to that procedure and stems solely from what happened in Game 3.
The 24-year-old has had a breakout fourth season, emerging as a legitimate candidate for an All-Defensive nod. He averaged 10.0 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 2.0 APG and 2.2 BPG with an impressive .736 FG% in 61 regular season games (29.6 MPG).
He’s been limited by conditioning and foul trouble in some postseason games, averaging 6.2 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 1.8 BPG in five games (20.2 MPG). Still, it’s a big absence for Boston in a must-win elimination game on the road. Game 6 tips off at 6:30pm CT on ESPN.
Timberwolves To Hire Steve Senior As Assistant GM
The Timberwolves plan to hire Steve Senior from the Grizzlies as an assistant general manager with a focus on player development, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter links).
Senior has worked with several members of Minnesota’s organization in the past, including executive vice president of basketball operations Sachin Gupta and head coach Chris Finch with the Rockets, and assistant coach Pablo Prigioni with the Knicks, Krawczynski notes. Senior is highly regarded throughout the league.
Senior worked in player development with Memphis in addition to serving as director of video operations, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. He spent several years with the Knicks in player development and as a video coordinator, among other roles, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who adds that Senior is “well-respected” in New York.
It’s an interesting hire for the Timberwolves for a couple of different reasons. Firstly, they’re poaching Senior from the Grizzlies, the team that just beat them in the first round of the playoffs. Grizzlies GM Zach Kleiman was named the Executive of the Year earlier today, and player development has been a big factor in the team’s success.
Secondly, it’s one of the first major moves for Gupta, who received a first-place vote for Executive of the Year despite still only having an interim head of basketball operations title following the dismissal of Gersson Rosas in September. Minnesota previously signed Finch and all of his assistant coaches to multiyear contract extensions after the regular season concluded, and Finch and Gupta have publicly supported each other.
Nets Notes: Simmons, Irving, Marks, Draft, Offseason
As we relayed yesterday, Nets general manager Sean Marks said at his end-of-season press conference on Wednesday that Ben Simmons is feeling better after having a microdiscectomy to relieve the pain from the herniated disc in his back, which had gotten worse over time. Brian Lewis of The New York Post has more details from Marks on how Simmons is doing post-surgery.
“Ben had a tricky buildup, to be quite frank,” Marks said on Wednesday. “He got here and there was a setback obviously as he went through his ramp-up and we saw him on the court. We saw him participating in 3-on-3 and 5-on-5 games with the stay-ready group. We were hoping, just like Ben was, he was going to be out there.
“It got to be too much and we had another follow-up MRI and we could see the herniation had expanded. At that point, there was really nothing but surgery that was going to fix this. … From the communications I’ve had with him multiple times since the surgery, he’s feeling relief already and feeling great. He knows that, it goes back to that five months, he has a big buildup to get ready and contribute.”
Simmons battled physical and mental health problems for several months and missed the entire 2021/22 season. Lewis asked Marks how the team plans to assist Simmons in both of those areas to see him return to action next season.
“Regarding Ben post-surgery, I don’t want to speak for him but I can sense there’s a relief. There’s a new lease on life, when you’re able to take a problem and say that should be fixed and move that out of here and now it’s on to the rest,” said Marks, hesitant to discuss the touchy topic of Simmons’ mental health. Marks added that the Nets plan to have Simmons in the gym and around the team as much as possible, as we previously relayed.
Here’s more from Brooklyn:
- Head coach Steve Nash envisions Simmons playing multiple positions, saying that he’ll act as a facilitator on offense at times and a “positionless” role at others, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
- All of the drama and lack of availability from Kyrie Irving since he signed with the Nets is no one’s fault but Marks’, argues Ian O’Connor of The New York Post, who adds that the Nets GM “is the one who made this mess (and) is the one who will almost certainly fail to clean it up.” Irving has appeared in just 103 of a possible 226 games with the Nets, and the team has only won a single playoff series in his three years with the team. Trading for James Harden, who sulked his way out of Houston and then Brooklyn a year later, further eroded team chemistry and created a “culture of player appeasement,” if there was any culture at all, says O’Connor.
- Marks said the Nets plan to keep their draft pick (via the Sixers) as long as they can find a player who can help in 2022/23, Lewis tweets. The Nets hold the No. 23 pick and have until June 1 to decide whether they want to keep it or defer it until 2023.
- Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer explores seven key questions Brooklyn will be faced with this summer, including whether the team should keep Irving.