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Atlantic Notes: Barrett, Raptors, Yabusele, Springer

September 7th, 2024 at 8:31pm CST by Arthur Hill

RJ Barrett enjoyed his time with the Knicks, but he tells David Stol of Sharp Magazine that the chance to play for the Raptors in the city where he lived as a child is “a literal dream come true.” Barrett’s homecoming occurred last December when New York sent him to Toronto as part of a five-player trade involving OG Anunoby.

“I grew up with my dad taking me to games,” Barrett said. “[…] When I found out I was coming home, I didn’t know how to act. I was pinching myself and telling my people, ‘We’re really here. We’re playing for the Toronto Raptors.’”

Barrett became the focus of the Raptors’ offense after the deal, averaging a career-high 21.8 PPG in 32 games. He’s looking forward to his first training camp with the team and seeing what he can accomplish in a full season. He also has fond memories of his years in New York, where he helped to turn around a floundering franchise after being selected with the third pick in the 2019 draft.

“I think people forget that we really built something there,” he said. “When I arrived, we weren’t contending. We weren’t close, really. My sophomore year, we made the playoffs. Then, we just kept building. We gave the fans something to cheer for. And they deserve it, man. It’s a tough city but you earn their love. I’m glad we got there for them.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Not much is being expected from the Raptors as they look ahead to their 30th season, notes Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun. A lack of star power will likely limit Toronto to a play-in tournament spot at best, Wolstat adds, as Washington and Brooklyn are the only Eastern rivals that appear to be significantly worse. Wolstat also cites a difficult early schedule, with 22 of the first 25 games against teams coming off postseason appearances.
  • Guerschon Yabusele is probably in a better spot with the Sixers than he would have been if he had tried to return to the Celtics, Brian Robb of MassLive states in a mailbag column. Yabusele signed a one-year deal with Philadelphia last month after a standout performance with France in the Olympics. Robb points out that his main competition for playing time as the backup power forward to Caleb Martin will be KJ Martin and Ricky Council. Robb also suggests the Celtics may have been more interested in Yabusele if they hadn’t reached new deals with backup big men Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta and Xavier Tillman.
  • Jaden Springer is eligible for a rookie scale extension through October 21, but sources tell Robb that the Celtics aren’t likely to consider a new deal until the fourth-year guard has played a full season with the team.
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2024/25 NBA Over/Unders: Atlantic Division

September 4th, 2024 at 9:18am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2024/25 NBA regular season set to tip off next month, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.

With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including Bovada and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

In 2023/24, our voters went 16-14 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’24/25?

We’ll begin our series today with the Atlantic Division…

Boston Celtics

New York Knicks

Philadelphia 76ers

Toronto Raptors

Brooklyn Nets

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Teams Limited To Minimum Salary Contract Offers

September 3rd, 2024 at 7:57am CST by Luke Adams

There won’t be a ton of free agents who sign for more than the veteran’s minimum between now and the end of the NBA’s regular season. The majority of the players whose markets exceeded the minimum came off the board pretty quickly in July, and teams aren’t looking to spend big on the players who are still available.

Still, that certainly doesn’t mean every signing for the next seven months will be of the minimum-salary variety. In some cases – especially on the buyout market in February – being able to offer a couple million dollars more than the minimum could be the difference between a team landing a free agent and missing out on him.

With that in mind, it’s worth checking in on which teams don’t currently have the ability to offer more than the minimum. By our count, a third of the NBA is in this boat, though some of those clubs could generate some spending flexibility by making cost-cutting trades.

Here’s a breakdown of the teams currently limited to minimum-salary contract offers for free agents:

Teams above the second tax apron:

  • Boston Celtics
  • Milwaukee Bucks
  • Minnesota Timberwolves
  • Phoenix Suns

Teams operating above the second tax apron, which comes in at $188,931,000 in 2024/25, face a series of roster-building restrictions, including being prohibited from using any form of the mid-level exception, as well as the bi-annual exception.

The Celtics, Bucks, Timberwolves, and Suns all fall into that group of teams above the second apron and therefore don’t have any cap exceptions available to use on free agents besides the minimum salary exception.

Teams very close to the second tax apron:

  • Los Angeles Lakers
  • Miami Heat

Because their team salaries are below the second apron, the Lakers and Heat each technically have the ability to use their taxpayer mid-level exception, which is worth $5,168,000 this season.

However, both clubs are operating so close to the second apron that using any portion of the taxpayer MLE would push team salary above that threshold, which isn’t permitted — a team that uses the taxpayer MLE can’t have a salary above the second apron upon the completion of the signing (or at any time after that).

Therefore, unless they make a move to shed salary, the Lakers and Heat will be limited to minimum-salary signings from here on out.

Over-the-cap teams that have used all their cap exceptions:

  • Denver Nuggets
  • Philadelphia 76ers

The Nuggets are currently operating between the first and second tax aprons and have already used their taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Dario Saric. Because the bi-annual exception isn’t available to teams above the first apron, Denver can no longer offer more than the veteran’s minimum.

The Sixers, meanwhile, used their entire room exception to re-sign Kelly Oubre after spending all their cap space. They’re now well over the cap and only have the minimum salary exception left to sign a free agent outright.

It’s worth noting that acquiring a player via sign-and-trade is technically a possibility prior to opening night for teams who have used up all their cap exceptions and want to add a free agent for more than the minimum. However, that’s not currently a practical option for either Denver or Philadelphia, who are both above the first tax apron.

Teams right up against their hard caps:

  • Dallas Mavericks
  • Golden State Warriors

The Mavericks have about $4.25MM of their mid-level exception still available after using a portion of it to sign Naji Marshall, and both Dallas and Golden State still have their full bi-annual exceptions on hand.

Based on the roster moves they’ve made so far this summer though, both the Mavs and Warriors are hard-capped at the first apron of $178,132,000 and are less than $1MM away from that hard cap. In other words, unless they shed salary by trading or waiving one or more of their current players, those two teams aren’t just prohibited from using their remaining exceptions — they’re also unable to add another minimum-salary player on a standard contract.

Dallas and Golden State are each carrying at least one player with a non-guaranteed salary, so it would technically be possible for, say, the Mavs to cut A.J. Lawson and then use a portion of their mid-level exception to sign a free agent. However, their breathing room below the hard cap is so limited that any signings above the minimum are unlikely, unless a cost-cutting trade generates more flexibility — the same goes for the Warriors.

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Community Shootaround: Who Can Take Down Boston In The East?

September 1st, 2024 at 4:29pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Celtics seem well-positioned to repeat as NBA champions in 2024/25.

After posting a league-best 64-18 regular season record, Boston blitzed the competition in the playoffs, going 16-3 en route to the franchise’s record 18th championship.

The reigning champs have retained all of their top rotation pieces, extending Jayson Tatum, Derrick White, and Sam Hauser this summer. In fact, 12 of Boston’s top 13 players from its 2023/24 vintage are back on this year’s roster. The only exception? Free agent forward Oshae Brissett has yet to sign anywhere, but has alluded to a possible Celtics return.

With a focus on vanquishing Boston, several other Eastern Conference contenders retooled significantly during the offseason.

The Sixers are of course the headliners of the offseason, having almost completely reconfigured their roster around incumbent All-Stars Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. Although Paul George was the big addition on a four-year, $211.6MM deal, Philadelphia president Daryl Morey also made some savvy role player signings, including forward Caleb Martin. But both Embiid and George have had some uniquely underwhelming postseason performances in recent years, and both are on the wrong side of 30 with growing injury histories. Can they keep it together in the playoffs when it matters most?

Last year’s No. 2 seed, the Knicks, saw their playoff run hampered by escalating injuries to much of their rotation. Although New York lost starting center Isaiah Hartenstein to the Thunder in free agency, the team made its own splash with a blockbuster trade for former All-Defensive swingman Mikal Bridges, acquiring him from the Nets.

Despite frequent trade rumors, the biggest offseason change for Cavaliers happened on their bench. Cleveland president Koby Altman jettisoned now-former head coach J.B. Bickerstaff after two consecutive playoff seasons as a top-four seed, replacing him with former Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson. The team is hoping for internal development from its four stars and more cohesion out of its other pieces.

As the No. 3 seed heading into the playoffs, the Bucks may have been upset by an Eastern Conference Finals-bound Pacers squad in the first round. But Milwaukee has a key asset Indiana does not: All-NBA power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, still very much in his prime. After trading to acquire All-Star point guard Damian Lillard late in the 2023 offseason, Milwaukee struggled to build out its depth around a pricey top six and underwent a mid-season coaching change. This year, however, the Bucks added several ring-chasing veterans on below-market deals. Will it be enough to get them deep into the playoffs again?

Indiana, to its credit, played the hand it was dealt, riding some injury luck to its first East Finals appearance in a decade. After an underwhelming Olympics run, wherein he did not play in Team USA’s gold medal game, could All-NBA point guard Tyrese Haliburton be due for a leap? Could newly re-signed forward Pascal Siakam develop more chemistry with the team’s longer-tenured stars after his first full offseason in Indiana?

We want to know what you think. Can anyone among the aforementioned crop best Boston and emerge out of the East? Will a spoiler with present talent and the assets to make a trade — perhaps the Magic or Heat — make a surprise run? Weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section below.

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Celtics Notes: Holiday, Walker, Bench, Front Office

August 31st, 2024 at 5:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Celtics guard Jrue Holiday is one of the NBA’s most accomplished players, but even he was impressed by the amount of talent on the U.S. Olympic team, writes Souichi Terada of MassLive. Holiday, who has two gold medals and two NBA titles in the past four years, said this year’s Olympics was especially memorable because of the quality of the players involved.

“Those are some of the best players in the world,” he said. “It was fun to go out there and play. Devin Booker, the way that he played, kind of how you play off each other with him is pretty easy. I think Steph Curry is just different, I mean, one of the best players in the world. So to go out there and be his teammate for the first time ever was cool, too. It was an amazing experience. Played with some legends and against some legends, and again, brought back some gold.”

The offseason is nearly over for Holiday and his teammates, who will report to training camp in a few weeks to begin the process of defending their title. The summer has gone by quickly, as Holiday said his memories are still fresh from Boston’s championship celebration in June.

“The medal in Paris was cool, it was obviously against France, so it was kind of literally us against the world,” he said. “But winning here was amazing. I’m not sure anything tops that. To be able to win here in Boston, Game 5, the crowd, the (halfcourt) shot Payton (Pritchard) hit. It was all just so overwhelming that was amazing. Then the parade was crazy, too. I still feel like I’m still on a high with everything going on.”

There’s more from Boston:

  • After signing an Exhibit 10 deal, Lonnie Walker IV is hoping to win a roster spot in camp just like he did last year on a veteran’s minimum contract in Brooklyn, Terada adds in a separate story. Terada calls the signing a low-risk move for the Celtics and points out that Walker is only 25 even though he has six years of NBA experience. Walker could provide depth at shooting guard behind Pritchard if he makes the team, or he could wind up with Boston’s G League affiliate in Maine.
  • Playing time for Boston’s bench appears to be unsettled behind Pritchard and Sam Hauser, Brian Robb of MassLive states in a mailbag column. Walker will be given a chance to earn a reserve role, but he’ll have to outperform midseason acquisition Jaden Springer and rookie Baylor Scheierman in training camp.
  • In the same piece, Robb gives Boston’s front office an A for how it handled this summer. The roster of last season’s title team returns nearly intact, and big men Luke Kornet, Xavier Tillman, and Neemias Queta were retained on club-friendly contracts.
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Lonnie Walker Seems Unlikely To Make Roster

August 30th, 2024 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • Don’t expect Lonnie Walker IV to make the Celtics’ opening-night roster, according to Brian Robb of Masslive.com. The veteran wing was signed to a training camp deal and there are financial incentives for the Celtics to leave him off the roster, since it would cost the team millions more in luxury tax penalties to retain him. Robb pegs Walker’s chances of sticking on the 15-man roster to start the season at 30 percent.
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Celtics Sign Lonnie Walker To Exhibit 10 Deal

August 30th, 2024 at 3:56pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

AUGUST 30: Walker’s Exhibit 10 deal is official, according to RealGM’s transaction log.

AUGUST 28: The Celtics are signing free agent shooting guard Lonnie Walker IV, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), Walker will receive an Exhibit 10 training camp contract.

The 6’4″ swingman will be competing for the reigning champs’ 15th and final regular season roster spot. If Walker is waived before the regular season begins and decides to play in the G League with the Celtics’ affiliate, his Exhibit 10 contract would make him eligible for a bonus worth up to $77.5K.

Should he make Boston’s regular season roster, Walker could actually compete for rotation minutes off the bench, at least during the regular season. Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer notes (via Twitter) that the veteran wing connected on almost 40% of his catch-and-shoot three-point tries across his past two seasons, while with the Lakers and Nets.

The 25-year-old is also deceptively athletic, and can finish effectively around the rim when given more extended time on the ball.

The high-flying guard spent his first four pro seasons with the Spurs, who selected him with the No. 18 pick out of Miami in 2018. He spent 2022/23 with the Lakers, providing useful bench minutes sporadically during L.A.’s run to the Western Conference Finals. In 2023/24, while on the lottery-bound Nets, Walker averaged 9.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.6 steals across 17.4 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .423/.384/.763.

Boston’s interest in Walker dates back at least to last season. Ahead of February’s trade deadline, the Celtics inquired with Brooklyn about a potential deal for Walker, tweets Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

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Tatum Ready To Move On After ‘Challenging’ Olympic Experience

August 29th, 2024 at 5:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jayson Tatum‘s benching became one of the big storylines during Team USA’s run to the gold medal in the Paris Olympics. The Celtics star didn’t see the court in the team’s opening game against Serbia. He did play in four of the other five games and says he’s not bitter over his modest role.

“I wasn’t moping around. I didn’t have an attitude. I wasn’t angry at the world,” Tatum told Jared Weiss of The Athletic. “I stayed ready and did what was asked of me and I won a gold medal, right?”

The first-game benching was big news and Tatum was well aware of it.

“It was a lot. In the age of social media, you see everything,” Tatum said. “You see all the tweets and the people on the podcasts and people on TV giving their opinion on whether they thought it was a good decision or it was an outrageous decision or whatever. Obviously, I wanted to contribute more, and I’ve never been in (this) situation. I started playing basketball at (age) three at the YMCA, and I’ve never not played, so it was different and it was challenging.”

Tatum, who also won a gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics, averaged 5.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 17.7 minutes in his Olympic appearances this summer.

If there was a lingering issue to come out of his individual Olympic performances, it’s that his jump shot went AWOL. He shot  38.1% overall and missed all four of his 3-point tries.

Tatum also struggled from long range throughout the NBA playoffs, as he made only 39-of-138 three-point attempts (28.3%). He was still an offensive force while winning the first championship ring of his career, posting averages of 25.0 points and 6.3 assists in 19 playoff games.

He isn’t concerned that his shooting woes will carry into next season.

“I have two (gold medals) now, I have a championship, and everything doesn’t necessarily go the way you expect it to go, right?” Tatum said. “I’ve learned to be like, ‘OK, that’s a part of it.’ You move on, and I’m getting ready to enjoy the last little weeks I have before the season starts and get ready for another season.”

Tatum was one of several Celtics who received extensions after the season. He was rewarded with a five-year, super-max contract that will begin in 2025/26. He’s not going to rest on his laurels as Boston aims to become the first team since Golden State in 2017-18 to win back-to-back titles.

“I’m of the mindset that after ring night, in a weird way, we got to put that behind (us),” he said. “Last year was last year. We did it. It was a dream come true. We worked our (butt) off for it. But after ring night, we gotta move on. We gotta get ready for game two.”

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And-Ones: Anthony, Toupane, 2024 Offseason Moves

August 29th, 2024 at 1:32pm CST by Rory Maher

Former NBA star Carmelo Anthony would like to become part of a team’s ownership group, he said on his 7PM in Brooklyn podcast (YouTube link). However, he’s not quite sure how to go about becoming a minority stakeholder.

“I’m out there trying to raise money now, trying to raise money with my sports fund … it’s hard to raise money,” said Anthony, who earned $250MM+ in NBA contracts over his career. “… It’s hard to raise money. … And getting people to understand what sports is. It’s so much money being spent into sports, and people really don’t understand it. People really don’t understand sports.

“(The NBA) is a small piece of sports globally. A small piece in the grand scheme of things. This is one market. … That’s North America, they control basketball, but it’s like, they going global with it.”

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

  • French guard/forward Axel Toupane, who won a championship with Milwaukee in 2021, is signing with the Diablo Rojos for the Mexican LNBP season, a source tells Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Toupane appeared in 33 regular season games with three different teams over the course of his three NBA seasons. The 32-year-old has had a long international career, playing for teams in France, Lithuania, Greece and Spain since 2011. He played for Metropolitans 92 last season in France’s top basketball league (LNB Elite).
  • Dan Favale of Bleacher Report lists the biggest 2024 offseason win and loss for each of the NBA’s 30 teams. For the defending champion Celtics, Favale views Derrick White signing a long-term extension as their biggest win, while their biggest loss was losing top assistant coach Charles Lee, who is now head coach of the Hornets. At the other end last season’s standings, Favale liked the contract the Pistons handed out to Simone Fontecchio (two years, $16MM), but was not a fan of the trade that shipped Quentin Grimes to Dallas for Tim Hardaway Jr. and three second-round picks.
  • In case you missed it, Real Madrid and Guerschon Yabusele have reached an official agreement to end his contract, clearing the way for the French forward to finalize his reported deal with the Sixers.
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Atlantic Notes: Knicks Storylines, Drummond, Tatum, Holiday

August 28th, 2024 at 5:59pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Following a 50-32 season in 2023/24, the Knicks underwent a couple significant changes this summer, acquiring All-Defensive Team swingman Mikal Bridges and losing center Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency. Ahead of training camp, Fred Katz of The Athletic reflects on some of the top storylines in New York, including All-Star forward Julius Randle‘s fit on the new-look squad, how All-NBA point guard Jalen Brunson will quarterback the club’s offense, and more.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

  • The Sixers reacquired reserve center Andre Drummond in free agency this summer. Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer spoke with Bulls beat reporter Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune about what to expect from the 6’11” big man, after he spent two years in the Windy City. Poe notes that Drummond, though a great rebounder, struggled to carve out a significant role behind starter Nikola Vucevic, in part due to his erratic rim protection and finishing efficiency.
  • Appearing at a Raising Cane’s event on Wednesday, Celtics combo guard Jrue Holiday discussed teammate Jayson Tatum‘s limited role for Team USA during the 2024 Olympics, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. “I think everybody knows JT — he’s the ultimate professional,” Holiday said. “He already knows what it is and what the ultimate goal is. I don’t think he needed any encouragement. I think it’s more so like staying ready whenever it’s his time to be called.” The All-Defensive Second Team guard had a bigger, more consistent role in the Paris games than Tatum did. Tatum was benched entirely during the Americans’ semifinal game against Serbia.
  • In case you missed it, former Knicks All-Star Carmelo Anthony recently revealed that New York offered him a bench role when he last hit free agency, in 2022.
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