Northwest Notes: Bailey, Jazz, Nuggets, Cissoko
Ace Bailey knows that not everyone is a fan of his game or his approach to the 2025 draft. However, coaches and players who know him sing a different tune, Kevin Reynolds writes for the Salt Lake City Tribune.
“If anybody calls about Ace Bailey, I f—ing call back right away,” said Steve Pikiell, Bailey’s coach at Rutgers. “I’ve been coaching 42 years, and he’s as good of a kid I’ve had.”
Pikiell adds that he believed that certain teams that had been heavily scouting Bailey and then fell in the lottery might have helped contribute to some of the negative narratives surrounding him on draft night. According to Reynolds, Bailey has rewarded Utah’s faith in him on an interpersonal level.
“He’s such a great kid, man. Off the court, he’s such a joy. On the court, he’s putting it together,” former teammate Kyle Anderson said. “I didn’t pay attention to the noise during the draft process, but I’m glad to see that really hasn’t surfaced.”
While Bailey has learned to fit into Utah’s locker room, the coaching staff has worked to make sure he plays a role that will benefit him the most long-term.
“We want to help him get through this season and be a way better player than when he started,” coach Will Hardy said. “I’m not pro Ace just bombing away to get stats and clicks.”
The strategy seems to be working, as Bailey has played some of his best basketball of late, averaging 15.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game since mid-January.
We have more from around the Northwest Division:
- The Jazz were furious about being fined $500K by the NBA, Tony Jones reports for The Athletic, as they believe they were singled out for a widespread practice among tanking teams of resting players in key situations. Jones writes that while Utah has tanked in recent seasons, they had plans to make at least one substantial win-now trade roughly three years ago, but it fell through when the player’s agent informed them that he would rather play elsewhere.
- The Nuggets currently have a disconcerting trend going: they are falling apart in clutch situations, and it only seems to have gotten worse with Nikola Jokic back, Bennett Durando writes for the Denver Post. Denver is 26th in clutch net rating at -9.9, and the number falls to -19.3 when Jokic is playing. Coach David Adelman acknowledged the issue and said he’s looking to add wrinkles to get Jokic and Jamal Murray easier looks while Aaron Gordon is out and not occupying his usual area in the dunker spot. “We’re trying to maintain who we are, playing the two-man game without the things that matter behind it,” Adelman said. “Like, if we play a two-man game with Aaron Gordon, it’s a very different rotation (in help defense) for teams. So you don’t want to scrap something that you know you’re gonna do (in the playoffs), and you’re presupposing that those guys are gonna be out there. … We have to figure out a way to finish games when teams are full-rotating to (Jokic and Murray). Sometimes three guys, sometimes four.” Durando notes that the sample of clutch games with Jokic playing is small, but it can still impact the playoff race.
- The two-year standard contract that Sidy Cissoko recently signed with the Trail Blazers is a minimum-salary deal that’s non-guaranteed in 2026/27, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype notes (via Twitter). In order to promote Cissoko, the Blazers had to waive Rayan Rupert, his best friend on the team, making the move bittersweet, writes Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report (subscriber link). “For me, it’s tough because he’s the guy that helped me with everything when I got here. I’ve got a lot of experience with him,” Cissoko said. “We’ve played together since we were 16 or 17.” Cissoko added that the promotion to the standard roster represents a step toward his goal of playing in the NBA for over a decade. “I’ve done great by being myself,” he said. “I’m not going to change because of my contract. It’s the same Sidy. I’m going to play the same way.”
Nuggets Notes: Gordon, Watson, Johnson, Simpson
The Nuggets have had to deal with a barrage of injuries impacting starters and rotation players this season, but head coach David Adelman is optimistic it won’t be much longer until the roster is healthy again. Adelman told reporters today that he’s hoping the team will be fully healthy with about 20 games to go in the season, as Ryan Blackburn of Mile High Sports tweets.
The Nuggets will be playing their 62nd game of the season on Monday in Utah, so if we take Adelman literally, he’s suggesting that players like Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Peyton Watson (hamstring) might be able to return in a week or so. For what it’s worth, Blackburn says he’s heard it could be more like two or three weeks before Gordon and Watson are back.
Adelman provided a positive update on Gordon’s progress today, indicating that the veteran forward did “basically everything but the contact stuff” in Tuesday’s practice, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (Twitter link).
“He got up and down (the court). We did some situational defensive drills. He was a part of that,” Adelman said. “But it’s just gonna be a day-by-day thing. … Aaron’s been great. He’s understood the process.”
Gordon, who last played on January 23, was ruled out for at least four-to-six weeks due to a right hamstring strain, while Watson has been out since February 4 with a left hamstring strain and is expected to be reevaluated in early March.
We have more on the Nuggets:
- The odds are high that Denver will have to part ways with a key player this offseason, Durando writes in a mailbag for The Denver Post (subscription required). As Durando explains, the Nuggets have essentially treated the second tax apron like a hard cap in recent years, but re-signing restricted free agent Watson – who has had a breakout 2025/26 season – would require them to either surpass that threshold or move off another one of their highest-paid players. According to Durando, sources he has spoken to view Cameron Johnson as the most likely trade candidate if the team makes a move to create more financial flexibility to re-sign Watson.
- The Nuggets still have an open spot on their 15-man roster, and Durando thinks the team will most likely use that opening to add more size on the wing. However, he cautions that the front office is expected to wait to see who else shakes free on the buyout market in the coming days before making any decisions on that 15th roster spot.
- The two-way contract that guard KJ Simpson signed with the Nuggets last week covers two years, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. Denver will have the ability to hang onto Simpson through the 2026/27 season on that deal.
And-Ones: MVP Race, No. 1 Pick, Peterson, P. Gasol
Reigning Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander remains the favorite to claim the award again in 2025/26, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps, who recently conducted his second MVP straw poll. The Thunder guard was the only player to appear on all 100 ballots and accumulated 930 points.
Injuries to top players have significantly impacted the MVP race this season, Bontemps writes, as multiple contenders for the award may not qualify due to the 65-game rule. Despite being sidelined with an abdominal strain, Gilgeous-Alexander isn’t in imminent danger of not meeting that threshold — he’ll likely have 10 total missed games when he’s reevaluated later this week.
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic remains in second place (700 points), but the gap between the two players has grown since Bontemps’ initial poll in December. That’s largely because the three-time MVP missed 15 games because of a knee injury and can’t have more than two additional absences without becoming ineligible for major postseason awards.
Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (382 points) and Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama (242 points) were the only other players to receive first-place votes. Lakers guard Luka Doncic (177 points) rounds out the top five of Bontemps’ poll.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- How much would the No. 1 overall pick in the loaded 2026 NBA draft be worth if it were available in an auction? Brian Windhorst of ESPN briefly discussed that topic on the Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to RealGM). “I was talking to a league executive today and he said to me, this is after Darryn Peterson had 23 points in 18 minutes and after we’ve seen some other top guys have big time games over the last four or five days,” Windhorst said. “… I had an executive tell me that the No. 1 pick this year is worth $100 million. If you gave the opportunity to buy that pick, teams would pay $100 million for it. Keep that in mind when the Jazz were fined $500,000.”
- Although Peterson’s sporadic for Kansas this season has undoubtedly been frustrating for him, the school, and its fans, his health issues are unlikely to have much of an effect on the 19-year-old guard’s standing as a top prospect in the 2026 draft class, per Brendan Marks and Justin Williams of The Athletic. “He’s elite, elite, elite,” one NBA scout told The Athletic. “When he’s fully healthy, the shot-making is on another level. … When it comes down to it, man, if you’ve seen this guy play in high school, and you saw those matchups, like, Darryn is the guy. For sure.”
- Hall of Famer Pau Gasol has been selected by Olympic athletes to represent them on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) board through the 2028 summer games in Los Angeles, according to The Associated Press.
Nuggets Notes: Simpson, Jokic, Murray, Gordon
KJ Simpson attended the championship parade in 2023 as the Nuggets celebrated their first NBA title, and now he’s on the roster with a chance to help them win another one, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Simpson was playing at the University of Colorado at the time and had a high school rivalry with Denver swingman Peyton Watson. As he watched Watson go by in the parade, Simpson was hoping to be able to have the same experience.
“That was the closest I had been to seeing or being there to experience a championship team, I guess,” Simpson said. “Seeing them just go by. The job is finished. That was mad inspiring to me. Like, man, I want to feel that one day.”
Simpson’s NBA career began last season when he was selected by Charlotte with the 42nd pick in the draft. He was waived on February 6 and signed a two-way deal with the Nuggets on Thursday. His debut came Friday at Portland, as he contributed three points and four assists in seven minutes.
“I’m just excited to play in front of that fan base,” Simpson said. “It’s bigger than just CU Boulder. Colorado in general. … I was there for three years. First place I lived other than home. So to me, that was considered like home. I loved my time there. I loved everything about it. The people. And we would go to Denver a lot just to go see games. … So I’ve always felt that connection to Colorado. It’s just crazy how full-circle it is.”
There’s more on the Nuggets:
- Nikola Jokic didn’t wear tape on his right wrist Friday night, but the pain is still affecting him, Durando states in a separate story. Jokic estimates he has been dealing with wrist discomfort for six years, and it started flaring up again before the All-Star break. He still provided 32 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, scoring 19 points in the first quarter as Denver pulled away early. “When I tape it, I don’t feel it, and I don’t feel the ball. So that didn’t work really well for me,” Jokic said. “It’s pretty much the same.”
- Jamal Murray was listed as questionable for Friday with right hamstring tightness, Durando adds, and after playing 25 minutes he may be held out of Sunday afternoon’s game at Golden State. “If he feels anything, he’s not gonna play,” coach David Adelman said on Friday. “We played a 7:30 (Pacific time) game last night. We play 7:00 tonight. We play 12:30 on Sunday. It makes absolutely no sense for me to put him in a torture chamber and then be surprised if he gets hurt.”
- Aaron Gordon is making progress toward returning from a strained right hamstring, Tim MacMahon said on the latest edition of The Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to Jordanna Clark of NuggLove). MacMahon reports that the Nuggets sent a trainer to Orlando with Gordon during the All-Star break, and he was able to participate in portions of practices this week. Gordon has been dunking and playing one-on-one games, and the team hopes to slowly expand those to five-on-five. MacMahon adds that the Nuggets are being careful with the injury and projects it will be a couple more weeks before Gordon resumes playing.
Projected NBA Taxpayers For 2025/26
While seven NBA teams are still operating in luxury tax territory following the All-Star break, that total has been cut in half since the start of the month.
Prior to an eventful trade deadline week, a total of 14 teams projected to be taxpayers, per Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link) observes, with the 16 non-taxpayers on track to receive about $13.8MM apiece in tax distribution money at that point.
However, the Celtics, Nuggets, Suns, Mavericks, Sixers, Magic, and Raptors all ducked below the tax line with their pre-deadline transactions, while a few other teams remained in the tax but took steps to significantly reduce their end-of-season bills.
Cleveland, for instance, had been projected to pay nearly $164MM in tax penalties, according to Marks. The Cavaliers will likely still have the NBA’s highest tax bill, but their deadline deals reduced their projected payment by more than $95MM, according to Eric Pincus of Sports Business Classroom.
Here are the current projected tax penalties, per Pincus’ data:
- Cleveland Cavaliers: $68.67MM
- Golden State Warriors: $65.67MM *
- New York Knicks: $44.44MM
- Los Angeles Lakers: $22.65MM *
- Houston Rockets: $7.07MM
- Los Angeles Clippers: $6.67MM *
- Minnesota Timberwolves: $5.48MM
Total: $220.65MM
Note: Teams marked with an asterisk are paying repeater tax rates.
These numbers may fluctuate a little before the end of the season. For instance, the Clippers recently increased their projected bill when they promoted Jordan Miller to their standard roster, while the Knicks did the same when they signed Jeremy Sochan. The Warriors, Rockets, and Timberwolves all have open roster spots that they could fill before the end of the season, which would increase their respective tax bills. Various contract incentives that go earned or unearned could also impact the end-of-season tax totals.
Based on the current figures from Pincus, each non-taxpayer is projected to receive a payout of about $4.8MM. That figure is determined by cutting the total league-wide tax penalties in half, then dividing them evenly among the non-taxpaying teams (in this case, 23 clubs).
While it’s no real surprise that that figure is far below the $13.8MM projection from a few weeks ago, it’s worth noting that it’s significantly less than what non-taxpayers received last year. In 2024/25, 10 taxpayers paid a total of $461.21MM in penalties and the 20 non-taxpayers received $11.53MM apiece, according to Pincus.
Assuming these are the seven teams that finish the season in tax territory, the Warriors, Lakers, and Clippers would all be subject to repeater penalties in 2026/27 if they’re taxpayers again next season. Additionally, the Bucks, Celtics, Suns, and Nuggets would pay repeater rates if they’re in the tax in ’26/27, since all four clubs were in the tax for three straight years from 2023-25. They’ll each need to spend one more season as a non-taxpayer in order to reset the repeater clock.
KJ Simpson Joins Nuggets On Two-Way Deal
February 19: Simpson’s two-way deal is official, the Nuggets announced (via Twitter).
February 18: KJ Simpson will sign a two-way contract with the Nuggets, sources told ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link).
The 23-year-old point guard was selected by Charlotte with the 42nd pick in the 2024 draft and inked a two-year, two-way deal. He remained on the roster until he was waived earlier this month to open up a spot for the Hornets to sign Tosan Evbuomwan.
Simpson appeared in 50 games and made 17 starts during his time in Charlotte. He averaged 7.3 points, 2.9 assists and 2.8 rebounds in 21.3 minutes per night with .346/.266/.773 shooting numbers. He hasn’t appeared in a game since December 18.
Denver will have a two-way opening after promoting Spencer Jones to a standard contract.
If Simpson’s new deal becomes official today, he will be eligible to appear in up to 16 regular season games. That number goes down to 15 if he doesn’t sign until Thursday.
Contract Details: Gardner, Highsmith, Houstan, Jones, Two-Ways
Heat swingman Myron Gardner will receive a minimum salary ($395,029) for the rest of the 2025/26 season after being promoted from his two-way contract. However, Miami had to use a portion of its non-taxpayer mid-level exception in order to complete his deal, since it includes two additional years beyond this season.
Gardner’s second year features a partial guarantee of $500K, and he’ll receive his full minimum salary of $2,150,917 for 2026/27 if he remains under contract through January 7 next year, Hoops Rumors has learned. The third year of the deal is fully non-guaranteed, but the Miami wing would receive his full $2,525,901 salary if he isn’t waived on or before July 15, 2027.
Here are a few more details on the contracts recently completed around the NBA:
- Haywood Highsmith‘s two-year, minimum-salary contract with the Suns includes a $1MM partial guarantee for 2026/27, per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). It also features language protecting the team in the event that the veteran wing re-injures his surgically repaired right knee, Hoops Rumors has learned.
- As expected, both Caleb Houstan of the Hawks and Spencer Jones of the Nuggets were unilaterally converted from their two-way contracts to rest-of-season, minimum-salary contracts rather than negotiating new deals. Houstan will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, while Jones will be eligible for restricted free agency.
- The two-way contracts recently signed by Tyrese Martin (Sixers), Trevor Keels (Heat), and Jeenathan Williams (Warriors) are each for one year, while Riley Minix‘s new two-way deal with the Cavaliers will cover two seasons, Hoops Rumors has learned.
Nuggets Convert Spencer Jones To Standard Contract
February 19: Jones’ conversion to the Nuggets’ standard roster is official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.
February 18: The Nuggets will convert Spencer Jones‘ two-way contract to a standard deal covering the rest of the season, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Jones’ promotion to the 15-man roster had been expected long before he reached his limit of 50 active games earlier this month. With nearly all of Denver’s top players missing time due to injuries this season, Jones has emerged as an important part of the rotation, starting 34 games and averaging 23.6 minutes per night.
The second-year small forward has posted relatively modest numbers, including 6.0 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. However, he has been efficient on his limited shot attempts – 50.5% from the floor and 41.4% on three-pointers – and has provided solid, versatile defense on the wing for a team with championship aspirations.
Jones suffered a concussion on February 4 and missed the last three games before the All-Star break, which is one reason why he wasn’t promoted to Denver’s standard roster a little earlier. The Nuggets also likely would’ve preferred to work out a multiyear deal with the 24-year-old.
However, as Bobby Marks of ESPN points out (via Twitter), Denver had limited flexibility below the luxury tax line to offer Jones the sort of first-year salary that would make him comfortable adding a team-friendly second year to his new deal. The Nuggets were operating just $1.8MM below the tax.
As a point of comparison, the Sixers had to give two-way standout Dominick Barlow $3.4MM two weeks ago in order to include a second-year team option on his new contract.
Instead, it appears Denver will unilaterally convert Jones’ deal to a rest-of-season, minimum-salary contract, which will make him eligible for restricted free agency at season’s end. As Charania notes (via Twitter), if Jones makes seven more starts, he’ll meet the “starter criteria” for RFAs-to-be, making him eligible for a $5.9MM qualifying offer. It’ll be worth keeping an eye on whether the team lets him reach that 41-start threshold, since it would make his free agency a little more complicated for the cap-strapped Nuggets.
Denver has two openings on its 15-man roster, so it will still have one spot available after Jones is promoted, as well as a newly opened two-way slot.
Former NBA Coach Of The Year Doug Moe Dies
Former NBA head coach Doug Moe passed away on Tuesday at the age of 87, the Nuggets confirmed (Twitter link). According to Mike Monroe and Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required), Moe had been battling an illness.
Moe, who played professionally in Italy and the ABA from 1965-72, had his career cut short by knee issues and became better known as a coach than a player. He was hired as the head coach of the Spurs in 1976 and spent four years in San Antonio before embarking on a lengthy stint as the head coach of the Nuggets (1980-1990).
Moe was hired as the Sixers‘ head coach in 1992 but was let go midway through his first season on the job. He later returned to Denver and served as a coaching consultant (2002-05) and assistant coach (2005-08) before calling it a career.
Known for his up-tempo, run-and-gun offense, Moe compiled a 628-529 (.543) regular season record as an NBA head coach and went 33-50 (.398) in the postseason. His 1981/82 Nuggets still hold several league records, including the highest scoring average for a single season (126.5 points per game). That Denver team is the only one in NBA history to score at least 100 points in all 82 regular season games.
Moe ranks 26th on the league’s all-time list of coaching wins, just behind Flip Saunders and Chuck Daly, and was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year in 1988 after leading the Nuggets to a 54-28 record, a 17-game improvement on the previous season.
“Coach Moe was a one of a kind leader and person who spearheaded one of the most successful and exciting decades in Nuggets history,” the Nuggets said in their statement today. “He will forever be loved and remembered by Nuggets fans and his banner commemorating his 432 career victories as head coach will hang in the rafters to forever honor his incredible legacy.
“The organization’s thoughts are with Doug’s wife Jane, his son David, and all of his family and loved ones who are hurting in this moment.”
We at Hoops Rumors echo that sentiment and send our condolences to Moe’s family and friends.
Roster Moves Required For Wolves, Nuggets, Celtics
NBA roster rules require teams to carry at least 14 players on standard contracts for most of the regular season. Clubs are permitted to dip below 14 players for no more than 14 days at a time and 28 days in total during a season.
[RELATED: 2025/26 NBA Roster Counts]
Several teams around the NBA dropped below 14 players on standard contracts earlier this month as a result of trade-deadline deals. While some have since made additions to get them back to the league-mandated minimum, there are a few exceptions who will have to make roster moves this week.
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Timberwolves went from 14 players on standard contracts to 13 on February 3, two days before this month’s trade deadline, when they sent Mike Conley to Chicago in a three-team trade that also involved the Pistons. That means they must re-add a 14th man on Feb. 17 — today.
It sounds like the Wolves’ new 14th man will look a whole lot like their old 14th man. Because Conley was subsequently flipped from Chicago to Charlotte before being waived by the Hornets, NBA rules don’t prohibit him from returning to Minnesota, and that’s reportedly the plan. Word broke back on Feb. 6 that Conley intended to re-sign with the Timberwolves after he cleared waivers.
At the time, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that Conley and the Wolves were working on the timing of the deal. With Minnesota operating in luxury tax territory and the All-Star break around the corner, it made sense for the team to take advantage of its two-week allowance below 14 players and to give Conley a bit of a vacation before bringing him back. I expect he’ll officially sign on Tuesday.
Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets’ situation is pretty straightforward. They dipped from 14 players to 13 on Feb. 5, deadline day, when they traded Hunter Tyson to Brooklyn in order duck below the luxury tax line. They have until this Thursday (Feb. 19) to get back to the 14-man minimum, and there’s an obvious candidate to fill that roster spot: Spencer Jones.
The second-year forward, who is on a two-way contract, reached his limit of 50 active games prior to the All-Star break, but he suffered a concussion in that 50th game, which likely delayed his promotion to the 15-man roster.
Assuming Jones is fully healthy, it would be a surprise if anyone besides him is added to Denver’s 15-man roster on or before Thursday. If he still needs more time to recover, the Nuggets could add a veteran on a 10-day contract as their 14th man for the time being, but Jones’ promotion is happening sooner or later. The 24-year-old has started 34 games and averaged 23.6 minutes per night — Denver needs to make sure he’s eligible to play once he’s ready.
Boston Celtics
The Celtics, who had been carrying 14 players on standard contracts, made a series of trades on deadline day that saw them send out four players (Anfernee Simons, Xavier Tillman Sr., Chris Boucher, and Josh Minott) and bring back just one (Nikola Vucevic). They also promoted Amari Williams from his two-way contract to a standard deal on Feb. 5, but they’ve had just 12 players on their 15-man roster since then, so they’ll need to make two roster additions by this Thursday (Feb. 19).
Boston will have to operate very carefully to remain below the luxury tax line this season and has likely already plotted out the timing of its roster moves for the rest of the season. As we wrote in a post-deadline Front Office article, that plan will likely involve two-way players Max Shulga and John Tonje, since they’ll both count for the rookie minimum for tax/apron purposes if they’re promoted to standard contracts, whereas a rookie free agent wouldn’t due to the “tax variance” rule.
That doesn’t mean both Shulga and Tonje will be converted right away, but I expect at least one of them to be involved in Boston’s roster moves this week. A 10-day deal for Tonje along with a 10-day deal for a veteran free agent is one path the Celtics could take — that would allow them to dip back to 12 players for another two weeks after those 10-day contracts expire.