Community Shootaround

The Bucks announced yesterday that they have extended the contract of GM John Hammond through the 2017/18 season. Hammond’s deal was originally set to expire at the end of this coming campaign. “A great deal of our team’s success and progress is due to the vision and hard work of John,” Bucks owner Wes Edens said of his GM. “He’s assembled a talented and competitive roster and we’re very pleased that he will continue to lead basketball operations.”

Hammond has been the team’s GM since April of 2008, and during his tenure the franchise has an overall regular season record of 240-318. During his tenure Milwaukee has made three playoff appearances, all resulting in first round exits, but the Bucks are certainly a franchise on the rise, and the roster is packed with young, talented players who have intriguing upsides. All of these players were either drafted or acquired on Hammond’s watch, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, who the team outright stole with the 15th overall pick back in 2013. But before I praise Hammond too much for being a draft whiz, he was also the man who made the call to take Joe Alexander with the No. 8 overall pick back in 2008. That was Hammond’s first draft as a GM, so I’ll cut him some slack on that pick, though I’m not so sure Bucks fans will be so quick to forgive. The GM is also responsible for landing one of the bigger free agent prizes of this offseason in Greg Monroe, who surprised quite a few people when he announced his decision to join the Bucks.

This is a good spot to segue into the topic of the day: What are your feelings on John Hammond’s contract extension with the Bucks, as well as the job he has done thus far with the team?

Are you a believer in Hammond and his ability to shape the Bucks into a title contender? Or are you on the other side of the debate, and question if he is the right man for the job? What were his best and worst moves since arriving in Milwaukee? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the subject. We look forward to what you have to say.

The Timberwolves have named assistant coach Sam Mitchell as interim head coach while Flip Saunders continues to battle cancer, which was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports on Thursday. The team still has the hope that Saunders will be able to return to his coaching duties sometime during the coming campaign. The first concern, of course, is with Saunders’ health. But the franchise also has to worry about the coming campaign, which will be an important one, as it needs to determine which of its talented young players are long-term building blocks.

This brings me to today’s topic: How will the absence of Flip Saunders affect the Timberwolves’ 2015/16 season?

The Timberwolves are not expected to be title contenders this season, and the team will need to show marked improvement to even have a shot at a playoff berth in the notoriously difficult Western Conference. Mitchell has previous head coaching experience, having spent four plus seasons as coach of the Raptors from 2004/05 through part of the 2008/09 campaign. Through 345 regular season games Mitchell has compiled a mark of 156-189, and he owns a lackluster 3-8 postseason mark. He was named Coach of the Year back in 2007, when he guided Toronto to a 47-35 regular season record, and secured the Atlantic Division crown.

Advancing to the playoffs would be a huge step for the Wolves as a franchise, but that should be considered a secondary goal in 2015/16. The team’s priority should be to develop the wealth of young talent it possesses on the roster. Mitchell, being a former NBA player, may have an advantage over Saunders in that regard, having had first hand experience regarding what is required to be an NBA player. Mitchell does have the reputation of being more of a staunch disciplinarian than Saunders, and it’s unknown how that may affect the team’s locker room chemistry.

What are your thoughts on the matter? Will the absence of Saunders hamper the team’s development, or will things remain status quo in Minnesota this season? What chance do you give Mitchell of having the interim tag removed from his title and officially becoming the head coach? He is a favorite of owner Glen Taylor after having spent 10 seasons with the franchise as a player, which certainly won’t hurt Mitchell’s cause.

Take to the comments to share your thoughts and opinions on this topic. We look forward to what you have to say.

On Tuesday, the NBA’s Board of Governors unanimously approved changes to how teams qualify for the playoffs and how they will be seeded. Teams will now be seeded based on the order of their regular-season records. Previously, every division winner was guaranteed a top four seed in its conference regardless of record but did not receive home-court advantage if its playoff opponent had a better regular season mark.

The Board also approved changes to tiebreaker criteria for playoff seeding and determining home-court advantage. Head-to-head results have become the first criteria to break ties for playoff seeding and home-court advantage between two teams with identical regular season records, with the second criteria being if a team won its division. Under the old system, a division winner was awarded the higher seed and received home-court advantage in series between two teams with identical records.

This brings me to today’s topic: What are your thoughts on the new playoff seeding structure?

Will this new seeding structure make for improved playoff matchups, as well as increase the overall importance of regular season contests? Do these new rules penalize teams in weaker divisions since a top four seed would have been guaranteed to divisional champs under the old system? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts, opinions, and concerns regarding these dramatic changes to the current playoff structure. We look forward to what you have to say on the matter.

The Mavericks are reportedly encouraged by what they have seen from Deron Williams during informal workouts this Summer, with the veteran said to be looking leaner and quicker than he has in recent seasons. Williams certainly has quite a bit to prove this season after securing his release from the Nets via a buyout arrangement and signing on with Dallas this offseason.

This will be the second season in a row that the Mavs have added a former All-Star point guard to the roster, with the ill-fated trade with the Celtics for Rajon Rondo last December not working out for the franchise in the least. Williams’ departure from Brooklyn will likely have few fans shedding tears over the loss, with him not nearly coming close to fulfilling the expectations that came with his arrival via trade back in February of 2011. The veteran is expected to be the starter at the point for the Mavs in 2015/16, though exactly how much he has left in the tank at this point is certainly up for debate. In fact, that’s the perfect segue into today’s topic: How will Deron Williams fare in Dallas this season?

While I seriously doubt that many fans will expect a return to the star-level production of his Utah days, the change of scenery could certainly help revitalize Williams’ career in the NBA. What do you predict Williams’ stats to be this season in Dallas? Does anyone believe he can be an All-Star in 2015/16, or do you see his downward slide continuing this season? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts, opinions, and predictions regarding Williams’ upcoming season. While there’s no prize for being right, there is a certain measure of satisfaction that can be had by being proven correct…and having had your predictions documented in the comments section below for all posterity. We look forward to what you have to say.

Earlier today, we learned Jared Sullinger, David Lee and James Young are the players on the Celtics who have the most riding on this season, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com.

All three make a lot of sense because Sullinger will be a restricted free agent if he does not get an extension, Lee is on a new team after losing his starting job last season with the Warriors and Young is a entering an important season in terms of his growth.

Those players are not alone in the league. From Wesley Matthews to Reggie Jackson, there are so many other players with something to prove this season because of large contracts, pending free agency, age and many other factors.

Thus, our topic of the day: Who are some players with the most to prove this season and why?

Please share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below. We look forward to what you have to say.

Note: Since these Shootarounds are meant to be guided by you the reader, we certainly welcome your input on the topics we present. If there is something you’d like to see pop up here for a discussion, shoot us a message at hoopsrumorsmailbag@gmail.com.