Brooklyn Nets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nets To Allow Kyrie Irving To Return As Part-Time Player

December 17th, 2021 at 6:08pm CST by Luke Adams

6:08 PM: Nets GM Sean Marks has released a statement regarding Irving’s return:

“After discussions with our coaches, players and staff, the organization has decided to have Kyrie Irving re-join the team for games and practices in which he is eligible to participate. We arrived at this decision with the full support of our players and after careful consideration of our current circumstances, including players missing games due to injuries and health and safety protocols.

“We believe that the addition of Kyrie will not only make us a better team but allow us to more optimally balance the physical demand on the entire roster. We look forward to Kyrie’s return to the lineup, as well as getting our entire roster back together on the court.”

4:10 PM: The Nets have reconsidered their stance to hold Kyrie Irving out of action indefinitely and have begun the process of reintegrating him as a part-time player, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links).

As Wojnarowski explains, the Nets have been hit hard by injuries and COVID-19 cases and find themselves leaning heavily on their stars, including Kevin Durant, who is averaging 37.0 minutes per game, his highest minutes average in eight seasons. As a result, Brooklyn has decided to allow Irving to play in road games to help ease the burden on the rest of the roster.

The Nets had initially made the decision during the preseason to have Irving remain away from the team, since he was unvaccinated and was ineligible to practice or play games in New York due to the city’s vaccine mandate. Management and ownership deemed it untenable to have Kyrie only active on the road. Two months later, the team is reversing that stance.

Irving is still unvaccinated, so he remains ineligible to play in games in New York, including the Nets’ home games and away games vs. the Knicks. He also won’t be able to travel to Canada to face the Raptors. However, he will be eligible to play in Brooklyn’s other games on the road.

According to Woj (via Twitter), Irving’s return isn’t imminent. He’ll have to pass a series of COVID-19 tests before he’s cleared to return to team workouts, then he may require a little time to get back into game shape.

Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links) first reported that Irving is beginning the ramp-up process toward making his season debut, adding that he’s expected to practice with the Nets in the coming days. Nets owner Joe Tsai, GM Sean Marks, head coach Steve Nash, and key players on the team all support the decision, tweets Wojnarowski.

It remains to be seen what the long-term plan for Irving is. While having him available for about half the Nets’ games should help provide a boost in the short term, it’s hard to imagine the team will be happy only having him available on the road once the playoffs arrive. That’s still a few months away though, so the two sides have some time to figure things out.

Nash Focused On Reducing Durant's Workload; Griffin Praises Ennis Deal

December 17th, 2021 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

Nets head coach Steve Nash badly wants to find a way to reduce Kevin Durant‘s workload, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Durant is averaging 37.0 minutes per game this season, including 41.0 MPG over his last nine games with the team shorthanded. “I know he’s enjoying playing at the rate he’s playing at and trying to bring his teammates along with him and all the responsibility that he’s accepted and crushed, basically,” Nash said. “It’s just been incredible. But, at the same time, it’s not safe or sustainable to lean on him like that. There’s gonna be a lot of consideration and we’ll have to figure out ways to give him breaks.”
Blake Griffin, who played with James Ennis in Detroit, is happy that the Nets are signing his former teammate. “Great guy, plays hard, great defense,” Griffin said of Ennis (Twitter link via Brian Lewis of The New York Post). “Kind of just one of those guys that can do a little bit of everything.”

And-Ones: Franchise Valuations, Maker, Ferrell, J. Smith

December 16th, 2021 at 9:46am CST by Luke Adams

Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico has released his annual NBA franchise valuations, with the Knicks ($6.12 billion), Warriors ($6.03 billion), and Lakers ($5.63 billion) leading the way. Those three clubs are far and away the NBA’s most valuable, in Sportico’s view — no other team is valued above $3.61 billion, which is where the fourth-place Nets land, and the average league-wide valuation is about $2.6 billion.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Former NBA lottery pick Thon Maker and Hapoel Jerusalem have parted ways, the Israeli team announced earlier this week (via Twitter). Maker, who spent part of last season with the Cavaliers, is once again a free agent.
Veteran guard Yogi Ferrell recently signed with a team in Slovenia, but he remains focused on playing his way back to the NBA, he said this week on Eurohoops’ EurohooPOD podcast. “I definitely want to get back over there and still show I belong in the league,” Ferrell said.
While Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren have long been viewed as the consensus top two prospects in the 2022 draft class, John Hollinger of The Athletic says that Auburn’s Jabari Smith is making a legitimate case to be considered at No. 1.
The Bulls‘ organization is being impacted by COVID-19 at multiple levels. Like the NBA squad, the G League’s Windy City Bulls have had their schedule affected by the health and safety protocols and won’t take part in the upcoming NBAGL Winter Showcase, the league announced in a press release.

Nets Sign Langston Galloway Via Hardship Exception

December 16th, 2021 at 8:08am CST by Luke Adams

DECEMBER 16: The Nets have made it official, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed Galloway to a 10-day contract.

DECEMBER 15: The Nets have agreed to sign veteran guard Langston Galloway via a hardship exception, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Galloway will receive a 10-day contract.

Brooklyn is eligible to sign multiple players due to the hardship provision, since the team currently has seven players in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, with Joe Harris (ankle) also on the shelf. It’s unclear how many more free agents – if any – the team will sign besides Galloway.

Galloway had decided within the last week to play in the G League and joined the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s NBAGL affiliate. It appears his stint with College Park will be brief. He appeared in his first game for the Skyhawks on Tuesday night, and while he struggled with his scoring efficiency, putting up 12 points on just 5-of-18 shooting, he had seven assists and was a team-best plus-15 in a victory over the Raptors 905.

A former St. Joseph’s standout, Galloway played a role off the bench for Phoenix last season, averaging 4.8 points in 40 games while shooting 44.9% from the field and 42.4% from three-point range. He signed a non-guaranteed training camp contract with the Warriors in late September, but was waived before the season started.

Galloway, who turned 30 this month, has put together a seven-year career with the Knicks, Pelicans, Kings, Pistons and Suns since going undrafted in 2014. He has appeared in 445 NBA games with career averages of 8.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

The Nets will assume a cap hit of $95,930 for Galloway’s 10-day contract, while he earns a $128,709 salary, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Brooklyn will also take on approximately $504K in additional tax penalties as a result of the deal, Marks adds.

Trade Rumors: Simmons, Pelicans, Lakers, Harris, Magic

December 15th, 2021 at 4:13pm CST by Luke Adams

In the latest episode of the HoopsHype Podcast, Michael Scotto said he’s heard the Pelicans discussed a deal with the Sixers that would’ve seen New Orleans give up a series of first-round picks and swaps in exchange for Ben Simmons. The 76ers have been seeking an All-Star caliber player in any Simmons deal, but Scotto says Brandon Ingram wasn’t included in those discussions.

The Pelicans do have an excess of first-rounders as a result of their Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday trades. However, I imagine Philadelphia would want to turn those picks into players who could make an immediate impact, rather than simply loading up for the future. So perhaps a third team would be necessary in order for the Pelicans and Sixers to make real progress.

Scotto and his guest, Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, talked about a handful of other trade rumors from around the NBA during the podcast. Here are some of the highlights:

Following up on his report about the Lakers internally discussing the possibility of trading Russell Westbrook, Fischer says the team’s only outgoing call in which Westbrook’s name may have come up was to the Sixers about Simmons. “The conversation pretty much was, ‘We’re interested in Ben. How would we get there?'” Fischer explained. “The obvious solution is Russell Westbrook. He’s not a player on that Sixers list that they have.”
Fischer also said he received some push-back from Brooklyn about his report that the Nets may be open to moving sharpshooter Joe Harris. “Perhaps, teams who had early conversations with Brooklyn about Joe and they didn’t categorically shut them down, maybe that’s all this was,” Fischer said.
Addressing Shams Charania’s recent report that the Magic want a first-round pick for Terrence Ross, Scotto says some executives have talked about being open to giving up two second-rounders for the veteran swingman. However, Scotto’s not sure that would “move the needle” for Orlando. As I noted on Monday, Ross is under contract through 2022/23, so there’s no urgency for the Magic to move him.
Fischer has heard that before the Nuggets agreed to send R.J. Hampton the Magic as part of the Aaron Gordon trade in March, they were trying to include Bol Bol in Hampton’s place.

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Kyrie, Knicks Trade Possibilities, Frazier

December 14th, 2021 at 8:25pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Celtics are trying to fight through what has been an uneven start to their 2021/22 season on both sides of the ball, writes Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. Under new head coach Ime Udoka and head coach-turned-team-president Brad Stevens, Boston is currently the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference with a 14-14 record thus far.

“Obviously we’re coming back from a tough stretch,” wing Jaylen Brown said, in reference to a recent 1-4 Celtics road swing. “We’ve got to just take care of business and take it one game at a time and just get back to playing basketball the right way and keep moving in the right direction.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Though reports this week suggested there’s optimism about Kyrie Irving potentially returning to the Nets, head coach Steve Nash hasn’t heard any news to that effect, writes Adam Zagoria of Forbes. “I have no updates,” Nash said on Tuesday. “We connected last week, but not with any intel or any insight that things are changing… I know he’s working out and he’d love to be playing but I think the boundaries are still the same as they were before recent reports.” Irving, who is unvaccinated against COVID-19, is not allowed to play on his home court in accordance with local ordinances. Brooklyn opted to shut Irving down completely rather than essentially only allow him to play with the Nets for road games in cities with more lenient coronavirus policies.
With the 12-15 Knicks struggling to start their 2021/22 season, Fred Katz of The Athletic discussed some trade possibilities in a recent reader mailbag. Among Katz’s preferred big-ticket targets are Pacers center Myles Turner and Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox. Katz also suggested that reserve point guards along the lines of Dennis Schröder, Jalen Brunson and Eric Bledsoe could fit well in New York.
Longtime MSG Network Knicks television broadcaster (and Hall of Fame shooting guard) Walt Frazier has entered COVID-19 health and safety protocols, per Marc Berman of the New York Post. Knicks players Obi Toppin, RJ Barrett and Quentin Grimes are also all sidelined in the NBA’s coronavirus protocols. In his playing days, the now-76-year-old Frazier was a seven-time All-Star with the Knicks, with whom he won two titles.

James Harden, Bruce Brown Newest Nets In COVID-19 Protocols

December 14th, 2021 at 5:46pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Nets suddenly have seen seven players enter the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols within the 24 hours. All-Star guard James Harden and versatile swingman Bruce Brown have joined five other afflicted comrades on the sidelines for Brooklyn, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

It was reported earlier that Nets role players LaMarcus Aldridge, Paul Millsap, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter, and James Johnson are all in the NBA’s coronavirus protocols.

Brooklyn currently has just reached the league minimum for available players to stave off a cancelation of its scheduled game against the Raptors tonight. In addition to the team’s seven coronavirus-related absences, the Nets are also still missing COVID-19 vaccine holdout Kyrie Irving and injured wing Joe Harris. All-Star forward Kevin Durant had been listed as questionable due to a sore ankle, but he’s set to suit up for the Nets now, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN (via Twitter).

Bontemps notes in a separate tweet that both Brown and Harden had been in the Nets’ home arena, the Barclays Center, ahead of the team’s game against Toronto this evening. Brown had apparently even been warming up on the hardwood before he received the bad news.

Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets that the Nets will be eligible to sign up to five players via the hardship provision due to this swath of absences. Marks adds that Brooklyn will be dinged approximately an extra $500K in tax penalties for each 10-day signing the team completes.

The league postponed two games this week for the Bulls, who are currently missing as many as 10 players due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols. Should further spread of the virus among the Brooklyn locker room continue, the league could take similar precautions with the Nets.

Central Notes: Bulls, Boucek, Pistons, Lee

December 14th, 2021 at 5:39pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Bulls have announced (Twitter link) that their next contest, scheduled to be a Sunday matinee matchup against the Lakers, has been pushed back to a later start time. The game will now tip off at 7 p.m. CT, after originally being scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. CT.

It was announced yesterday that the NBA would postpone Chicago’s two other scheduled games this week – tonight against the Pistons and Thursday night against the Raptors – after it was revealed that as many as 10 Bulls are currently in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago tweets that Coby White, Javonte Green, Derrick Jones Jr., and star wing DeMar DeRozan all have a chance to be cleared by the new tip-off time Sunday. It was reported over the weekend that White had returned to the Bulls’ Advocate Center practice facility for the first time since his diagnosis.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

After missing the Pacers‘ Monday loss to the Warriors, Indiana assistant coach Jenny Boucek is now in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols, per Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. The first-season assistant will be replaced by Calbert Cheaney on the front of the bench, Agness adds.
Pistons head coach Dwane Casey has revealed that the NBA will examine game tape to determine which Nets players came into “close contact” with Detroit players, per James Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). Brooklyn players Paul Millsap, LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter, and James Johnson are currently in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
The Pistons are optimistic that the G League play of second-year point guard Saben Lee will translate at the NBA level, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Langlois notes that the early returns have been positive, and could lead to more minutes with Detroit for Lee. “I’m just doing whatever the coaches ask me to do,” Lee said. “Up here, I know there’s a lot of scorers, a lot of shooters. Whatever coach [Casey] asks me to do, I’m going to do that. That’s how I navigate that.” Saben played with Detroit’s NBAGL club, the Motor City Cruise, for his first seven contests this season.

Cuban Says Mavs Haven’t Talked To Nets About Irving

December 14th, 2021 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban says his club hasn’t had any trade discussions with the Nets about point guard Kyrie Irving, according to veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link).

Cuban is responding to a report from Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who heard from sources that the Mavs are among the teams to have reached out to Brooklyn to inquire about Irving. Begley stated that Kristaps Porzingis‘ name was brought up in those discussions, but added that it’s unclear if the talks progressed beyond the preliminary stage.

Whether or not the Mavs and Nets had a conversation about Irving, it certainly sounds – based on both Begley’s report and Cuban’s dismissal – as if there’s no momentum toward a deal.

Cuban has repeatedly shot down trade rumors involving Porzingis, denying that Dallas has shopped him at all. The Mavs’ owner said last month that he came into the season believing the former Knick had yet to play his best basketball. Porzingis, who has dealt with some minor injury issues in 2021/22, has averaged 19.5 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in 20 games (29.8 MPG) under new head coach Jason Kidd.

Irving, meanwhile, hasn’t played at all this season due to a vaccine mandate in New York City and the Nets’ decision not to make him a part-time player in road games. If Irving were traded to a team in a city without a similar mandate (essentially anywhere but New York, Golden State, or Toronto), he’d be eligible to play without being vaccinated.

Multiple reports have suggested Brooklyn is willing to listen to inquiries on Kyrie, but a report on Monday indicated there was “renewed optimism” about the possibility of the seven-time All-Star playing for the team this season. It’s unclear if Irving has become more open to being vaccinated or if the Nets may decide to allow him to play in road games.

Four Nets Players Enter Health And Safety Protocols

December 14th, 2021 at 9:58am CST by Luke Adams

Four Nets players have joined forward Paul Millsap in the health and safety protocols, the team announced this morning. As Ian Begley of SNY.tv relays (via Twitter), LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter, and James Johnson have all entered the protocols and have been ruled out for Tuesday’s game vs. Toronto.

We don’t have information yet on whether any or all of the five Nets players in the protocols have tested positive for COVID-19. If they’ve registered a false positive or have been deemed close contacts of someone who tested positive, it’s possible they could be cleared later this week.

However, if they’ve all tested positive for the coronavirus, they’ll be sidelined for at least 10 days or until they can return two consecutive negative tests at least 24 hours apart. In that scenario, the Nets would be eligible to add multiple extra players via the hardship provision.

The Nets, who are also without Kyrie Irving and Joe Harris, will now find themselves a little shorthanded when they host the Raptors on Tuesday. They should have as many as 10 players available, but there are a few little-used rookies in that group, including David Duke, Kessler Edwards, and Day’Ron Sharpe.

Kevin Durant and James Harden will, of course, be leaned on heavily to carry the scoring load, assuming Durant plays — he’s listed as questionable due to right ankle soreness (Twitter link via Marc Stein).

The Nets aren’t the only New York team currently being affected by the health and safety protocols. The Knicks announced this morning (via Twitter) that rookie guard Quentin Grimes is out for Tuesday’s game vs. Golden State due to the protocols.

Grimes is the third Knick to enter the protocols within the last four days, joining RJ Barrett and Obi Toppin. It’s unfortunate timing for 2021’s No. 25 overall pick, who had his best game as a pro in his first career start on Sunday when he scored 27 points with seven 3-pointers vs. Milwaukee.