And-Ones: Postponement, Goodwin, Adams, Smith
The Sixers and Kings will have to find room on their schedules for a make-up game after tonight’s contest in Philadelphia was postponed because of excess moisture on the floor of Wells Fargo Center. Crews worked for about an hour trying to dry the court before the game was officially called off. No makeup date was announced, but there is speculation that it will be rescheduled when the Kings make their next Eastern swing in late January. Both teams are off and the arena will be available on January 30th, tweets The Vertical’s Bobby Marks.
There’s more basketball news tonight:
- Archie Goodwin, who was waived by the Pelicans November 20th, has been claimed by the Greensboro Swarm of the D-League, according to a tweet from D-League Digest. The Hornets’ affiliate reportedly tried to trade Goodwin’s rights, but couldn’t work out a deal (Twitter link). Goodwin spent the last three seasons with the Suns, but was released in the preseason. The Pelicans signed him earlier this month when injuries left them shorthanded, but he played just three games in New Orleans.
- Shooting guard Jordan Adams, who was claimed by the Oklahoma City Blue on Monday, has failed his physical, according to D-League Digest (Twitter link). The team will still retain the rights to Adams and will not move back to the top of the waiver order (Twitter link). Adams, a UCLA product, was waived by the Grizzlies during the preseason. A first-round pick in 2014, he had spent the past two seasons in Memphis, playing 30 games in 2014/15 and two games last season.
- Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue says a mental lapse by J.R. Smith that led to an easy Bucks basket Tuesday night is a sign of an overall focus problem by the team, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Smith walked to the Milwaukee bench to greet Jason Terry during an inbounds play, leaving Matthew Dellavedova open for an easy layup. “Obviously we both know it wasn’t intentional, but it was just a lack of focus,” Smith said. “One of the multiple things that compounded onto the loss was just as a team we haven’t been as focused as we previously were.”
Dellavedova Settles Into New Role
- Matthew Dellavedova, an important reserve on the Cavaliers‘ championship team, is settling into his new role as a starter with the Bucks, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Cleveland entered the summer planning to match any offer to the restricted free agent, but decided the four-year, $38MM agreement he reached with Milwaukee would have placed too great a strain on the salary cap. “It was tough to decide to leave because you’re coming off the highest of highs and I loved my time in Cleveland,” Dellavedova said. “Fun team, great group of guys, great organization and fans, obviously. But I had an opportunity here that I couldn’t pass up to see how good I could be as a starting point guard and really challenge myself. You never know if or when that opportunity will come along again.”
Chalmers Possible Pickup; McRae's Minutes Increasing
Signing Mario Chalmers could be an option if the Cavaliers are desperate for a backup point guard in January, writes Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Vardon stresses that the team would prefer to trade for someone in December, but if that doesn’t happen, Chalmers could become an attractive option. The 30-year-old is still recovering from an Achilles injury. He has been working out since August, but hasn’t been medically cleared for full basketball activities. Because the Cavs are well over the salary cap, Chalmers would have to accept the league minimum to come to Cleveland.
- Jordan McRae‘s increased playing time probably means the Cavaliers are showcasing him for a possible trade, Vardon contends in the same piece. McRae, who joined the team in March, has seen at least 10 minutes per night over the past five games. That has meant reduced playing time for offseason acquisition Mike Dunleavy Jr., although Vardon says it’s possible that coach Tyronn Lue is just resting the 36-year-old.
Channing Frye On Indefinite Leave
Channing Frye will be on leave indefinitely from the Cavaliers as he grieves the loss of his father, Thomas, who passed away on Thursday, Tom Withers of The Associated Press reports. Frye has been excused from the team and won’t suit up tonight against Dallas. The team’s next contest is on Sunday at Philadelphia. Frye is the second player to lose a parent over the holiday, with Zach Randolph of the Grizzlies also going on leave after the passing of his mother on Thursday.
Frye posted a message Thursday on Instagram saying: “Be thankful for the person next to you. My father passed away today. Y’all better love on your family.” The 33-year-old lost his mother, who succumbed to her battle with cancer, approximately a month ago. Frye missed two games after her passing.
The big man has appeared in 11 games for Cleveland this season, averaging 11.3 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.9 blocks in 18.0 minutes per outing. Frye’s shooting line on the campaign is .439/.485/1.000.
Cavs Not Actively Seeking Backup Point Guard
The Cavaliers don’t have a ton of depth at the point guard position behind Kyrie Irving. However, the team isn’t actively looking to add a point guard to its roster, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
As Kyler notes, the Cavs are currently happy to move forward with Irving, Iman Shumpert, LeBron James, and even J.R. Smith sharing the ball-handling duties. While Shumpert, James, and Smith aren’t technically point guards, they’re capable of running the offense for a few minutes at a time when Irving is resting. The club also has another pure point guard in Kay Felder, though the rookie has played sparingly so far, appearing in just four games.
The Cavaliers invited veteran Toney Douglas to training camp, and also continue to carry Mo Williams on their 15-man squad, but Douglas didn’t make the regular-season roster, and Williams has decided to retire — the team has kept him on the roster in the hopes that he’ll agree to a buyout or that his contract can be used to match salaries in a trade.
Although the Cavs aren’t actively seeking a point guard at the moment, the team will likely keep an eye out for opportunities to fortify its backcourt. If its current point guard rotation struggles at all, a trade could be an option later in the season. Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com suggested last week that Cleveland could poke around the trade market after December 15, when offseason signees like Deron Williams, D.J. Augustin, and many others become trade-eligible.
Cavs May Look For Point Guard Help
The Cavs will likely examine the trade market if they are going to make an upgrade at their back-up point guard slot, Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. Vardon adds that Norris Cole is no longer on the team’s radar since he may not be available to come back to the NBA until February or later, depending on how far his team in the Chinese Basketball Association advances in the playoffs. It has been reported that Cole does indeed have an NBA opt-out clause in his deal, though Cleveland believes he will not truly be available until after his season in China.
- If the Cavs trade for a point guard, it likely won’t occur until December 15, the date in which offseason signings are first eligible to be traded, Vardon speculates in the same piece. The scribe names Deron Williams and D.J. Augustin as possible targets.
Kevin Love Has No Regrets About Re-Signing
- Kevin Love has no regrets about signing his five-year contract with the Cavs, Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal writes. Love could have signed a one-year deal during the summer of 2015 and positioned himself to take advantage of this past summer’s exploding salary cap. Instead, Love chose security over taking a risk to maximize his earnings. “When it’s your time [to sign], it’s your time. You’ve got to figure it out,” Love said. “Maybe the shoulder had something to do with it, but you’ve got to think about risk adversity. How much risk do you want to take? Knowing I could be with this team, locking in for five years, it was an easy choice.”
Knicks Notes: Jackson, Anthony, Noah, Rose
Knicks president Phil Jackson took to social media in an attempt to diffuse the reaction to his controversial comments regarding LeBron James, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Jackson has taken criticism for referring to James’ entourage as a “posse,” drawing reactions not only from James, but also from Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. Jackson re-tweeted a post from team advisor, Clarence Gaines, an African-American, who was promoting the “Posse Foundation,” which was set up to help black students succeed. Jackson refused to discuss the situation with reporters on Tuesday.
There’s more today out of New York:
- Jackson’s statements were part of a continued effort to take the focus off the job he has done with the Knicks, contends Mike Vacarro of The New York Post. The writer called Jackson “petty” for focusing on James and Heat president Pat Riley in recent public comments and blasted Jackson for not talking to New York media since September 22nd.
- Joakim Noah, one of the team’s prize offseason additions, will continue to start, but may not play much during fourth quarters, Berman writes in a separate piece. The Knicks have been more successful lately with coach Jeff Hornacek’s “small-ball” lineup that has Kristaps Porzingis playing center. Hornacek said Noah, who hasn’t scored in three games and is averaging just 4.3 points per contest, needs to become more “aggressive” on offense. “We don’t mind him taking the little mid-range shot, keeping teams honest if they’re going to stay back,’’ Hornacek said. “We want him to continue rolling to the basket, get low in the dunk area if guys penetrate and a big helps, he gets the dump and can just dunk it. If he stays outside, that’s what another team wants. We want for him to be more aggressive when he does get the ball around the basket.’’
- Derrick Rose is seeking $70K in court costs related to his civil trial that concluded last month, according to ESPN. A woman’s $21.5MM suit alleging rape was rejected by a jury, and the law permits winners of civil trials to ask the court to have some of their costs covered by the losers.
LeBron James: I “Had” Respect For Phil Jackson
When we passed along some of the highlights from Phil Jackson‘s interview with ESPN’s Jackie MacMullan on Monday, we didn’t include a comment from the Knicks president on LeBron James. Jackson suggested that the reigning NBA Finals MVP “likes special treatment” and “needs things his way” when he discussed LeBron’s 2014 departure from Miami.
“There were a lot of little things that came out of that,” Jackson said. “When LeBron was playing with the Heat, they went to Cleveland, and he wanted to spend the night. They don’t do overnights. Teams just don’t. So now [head coach Erik] Spoelstra has to text [president Pat] Riley and say, ‘What do I do in this situation?’ And Pat, who has iron-fist rules, answers, ‘You are on the plane. You are with this team.’ You can’t hold up the whole team because you and your mom and your posse want to spend an extra night in Cleveland.”
As Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com tweets, James addressed those comments today, telling reporters that he “had nothing but respect” for Jackson as a coach. Asked to clarify his use of the past tense, LeBron confirmed that he no longer has that same level of respect for the Knicks president. The Cavs star also took exception with Jackson’s use of the word “posse” to describe James’ camp.
“To use that label, and if you go and read the definition of what the word ‘posse’ is, it’s not what I’ve built over my career,” James said, per Jordan Heck of The Sporting News (Twitter link). “It’s not what I stand for. It’s not what my family stands for. And I believe the only reason he used that word is because it’s young African-Americans trying to make a difference.”
Maverick Carter, one of LeBron’s business partners, also took exception to Jackson’s comments, according to McMenamin: “It’s the word ‘posse’ and the characterization I take offense to. If he would have said LeBron and his agent, LeBron and his business partners, or LeBron and his friends, that’s one thing. Yet because you’re young and black, he can use that word. We’re grown men.”
While a conflict with a rival player won’t necessarily have any short-term negative impact on Jackson and the Knicks, it’s not a great look for a team executive who will be trying to recruit players in free agency in the summer. It’s also worth noting that Knicks star Carmelo Anthony is close friends with James, and probably wouldn’t be thrilled to be caught between the two.
Fewer Fourth Quarter Minutes For Thompson
Boban Marjanovic didn’t play at all in his return to San Antonio Friday, which has been a familiar story in his time with the Pistons, writes Rod Beard of The Detroit News. The 7’3″ Serbian came to Detroit this summer when the Spurs elected not to match a three-year, $21MM offer sheet. He has gotten off the bench in just four of the team’s first nine games and is averaging 4.5 minutes in those. Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said the team wants to see Marjanovic become more aggressive offensively. “In the preseason, he fit well. He’s a very good offensive player and highly skilled,” Van Gundy said. “He’s unselfish, almost to a fault. There’s times he could use his size and be dominant down there offensively, but he really likes to pass the ball — which promotes good team play — but at the same time, we want him to use his offensive skills.”
There’s more tonight from the Central Division:
- Van Gundy is closely monitoring the progress of rookies Henry Ellenson and Michael Gbinije, who were sent to the D-League during the Pistons’ western road trip, Beard notes in the same story. The organization wanted them both to get expanded playing time, at least 30 minutes per night, during their time in Grand Rapids. Ellenson was told to focus on his defensive development. “He knows [defense] is his ticket to getting on the floor [with the Pistons],” Van Gundy said. “He’s very confident, as we are, in his offensive skills.”
- Tyronn Lue‘s lineup juggling is resulting in fewer fourth quarter minutes for Tristan Thompson, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal. Lue still recognizes Thompson’s value as a defender, but he wants to have more shooting on the floor at the end of games, so Kevin Love has been playing center alongside Channing Frye.
- The Pacers’ 4-6 start may be a result of all the roster changers over the offseason, according to Jordan J. Wilson of The Indianapolis Star. Indiana traded for two new starters in Jeff Teague and Thaddeus Young and added Al Jefferson, Aaron Brooks and Kevin Seraphin as free agents. The team also hired a new coach in Nate McMillan. “We’re trying to figure out how to play with one another,” Paul George said. “We’ve got guys who don’t want to step on guys’ toes. It might call for that at this point. We need guys to step up and be confident.”