All-Defensive Team Valuable For Bogut
The Warriors and Andrew Bogut have a lot of money riding on whether the center earns a spot on the All-Defensive team, according to Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Bogut’s contract states that he must play at least 65 games and become a member of either the first or second All-Defensive team to collect a $1.8MM bonus. If he earns the bonus, Golden State would be on the hook for nearly $4MM in additional tax penalties, bringing the team’s total tax bill to an estimated $18.8MM. Bogut’s cap hit for next season would fall from $12.6MM to $11MM if he doesn’t get the bonus, giving the Warriors an extra $1.6MM to spend over the summer. Bogut needs to play in five more games to satisfy that part of the bonus requirement. Golden State tweeted that he will miss tonight’s contest with a left foot issue, but coach Steve Kerr said Bogut underwent an MRI and isn’t expected to be out long, tweets Ethan Strauss of ESPN.com.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 3/19/16
The NBA’s top two teams are meeting tonight for the second time this season as the 58-10 Spurs host the 62-6 Warriors in San Antonio. The Spurs have done their best to present themselves as the most formidable challenger to the Warriors’ throne, lagging just behind Golden State’s record-setting pace all season. However, when the teams met on January 25th, it was a complete mismatch. Stephen Curry put up a 37-point performance as Golden State grabbed a 120-90 victory.
San Antonio made the biggest free agent splash of last summer, adding LaMarcus Aldridge to a franchise that has remained among the NBA’s best throughout Tim Duncan‘s 19-year career. Add in All-Star small forward Kawhi Leonard and a veteran crew loaded with playoff experience, and the Spurs have grabbed their annual spot among the league’s elite teams.
The Warriors made few changes from their title-winning 2014/15 team, keeping their core together when they re-signed Draymond Green to a five-year, $82MM deal and inked Leandro Barbosa to a one-year contract at $2.5MM.
Golden State blitzed through the league for a scintillating 24-0 start, and only the Spurs have gotten close to challenging for the NBA’s best record at any time this season. Both teams have been nearly unbeatable anywhere this season, but especially at home, where the Spurs are 34-0 and Golden State is 32-0.
Each of Golden State’s six losses this season have come in road games against the Bucks, Mavericks, Nuggets, Pistons, Blazers and Lakers. Portland enters tonight in sixth place in the Western Conference playoff race at 36-34, with Dallas in eighth at 34-35, so either would at least know how it feels to beat the Warriors if they wind up as Golden State’s first-round opponent.
That brings us to tonight’s topic: Which team has the best chance of taking down the Warriors in a seven-game series? Is it the Spurs with their experienced roster and one of the league’s best coaches in Gregg Popovich? Or are the Thunder more of a threat with two unstoppable scorers in Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook? The Clippers have an intense rivalry with Golden State and appeared headed to a Western Conference Finals showdown last season before letting their series with Houston slip away. Do any of the other Western Conference contenders have matchup advantages against the Warriors that could lead to a major upset?
How about in the East? The Cavaliers put up a good fight in the NBA Finals, despite missing Kevin Love and not having Kyrie Irving after Game 1. Does Toronto have the right mix to challenge Golden State, or maybe Miami, Boston, Atlanta or someone else?
Please use the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the topic. We look forward to what you have to say.
Lee: No Hard Feelings For Kerr
- The Mavericks‘ David Lee, who faced the Warriors for the first time Friday since they traded him to Boston, is looking forward to next week’s trip to Golden State, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. That’s when Lee will receive the championship ring he earned with the Warriors last season. It wasn’t the path to a title that Lee wanted, as he fell out of the rotation during the season, but he doesn’t blame coach Steve Kerr for cutting his minutes. “Coach was always very up front and very fair to me last year,” Lee said. “And of course when he came to me and needed something in the playoffs, I was able to deliver.”
Coach/Exec Rumors: Jackson, Kupchak, Walton
People close to Knicks president Phil Jackson raise the possibility that the Zen Master would offer to coach home games for the team next season and have Kurt Rambis coach on the road, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. It’s unclear what the chances of that coming to pass are, but it would stand as an intriguing compromise if Jackson meets resistance to the idea of hiring Rambis full-time, Shelburne posits. Jackson has often cited his health as he’s maintained in recent years that coaching is out of the question, but people around the 70-year-old say he appears to have more energy than usual, and he’s lost 20 of the 30 pounds he gained since taking the Knicks job, according to Shelburne. The ESPN scribe has several other coaching and front office revelations:
- Sources close to Jackson and the Lakers tell Shelburne it’s unlikely he leaves the Knicks to work for the Lakers and owner Jeanie Buss, Jackson’s fiancee. Jackson is enamored with his life in New York, Shelburne points out, nonetheless cautioning that nothing is certain, especially with the ever-cryptic Zen Master.
- Multiple vacancies may well open in the Lakers front office after next season, the last in the three-year timetable for executive vice president of basketball operations Jim Buss. It’s tough to see GM Mitch Kupchak continuing if Jim Buss steps down, even though Kupchak’s contract carries past next season, Shelburne writes. The Lakers must advance to at least the second round of the playoffs for Buss to keep his job, sister Jeanie Buss said to Sam Amick of USA Today last month, though she’s otherwise been vague about that benchmark, referring to the conference finals in another interview.
- It’s tough to say whether Warriors assistant Luke Walton would take either the Knicks or Lakers head coaching jobs if offered, those close to the situation tell Shelburne. Both teams are reportedly poised to target him in the offseason.
- Former Knicks coach Derek Fisher didn’t tell anyone from the organization that he was going to Los Angeles for a weekend in October, the trip on which he and Matt Barnes had their controversial encounter. Fisher had planned to make it back in time for practice the next Monday, but mechanical problems led to a flight delay that prevented him from returning, and his absence sparked the questions that brought the incident with Barnes to light, as Shelburne details.
- Fisher replied in only one-word answers when Jackson would text observations and suggestions, and the former point guard missed a Knicks coaches’ retreat that Jackson organized at the end of summer, according to Shelburne, but Jackson downplays the lack of communication. “Trying to create autonomy for Derek kind of separated me from direct contact,” Jackson said to Shelburne. “[GM] Steve Mills was [in] closer contact with Derek than I was because of our relationship in the past. Also, you guys [in the media] want to harp in on the fact that he was a puppet perhaps. I wanted him to have the autonomy to make decisions on his own and not feel like I was an overload.”
Pacific Notes: Griffin, Booker, Looney
The Clippers did not seem to miss power forward Blake Griffin during the initial aftermath of the quadriceps tendon tear he suffered on Christmas, but that has changed, Andrew Han of ESPN.com writes. Point guard Chris Paul told Han and other reporters after the Clippers lost to the Cavs by 24 points on Sunday that Griffin’s extended absence is taking a toll. “[Playing without him] gets real tough,” Paul said. “They have three, four guys out there that [with a] low shot clock can bail you out. Just all that tension that he brings opens it up for all of us.” The Clippers won their first nine games without Griffin but have stumbled recently, losing by double digits in three of their last five games. Griffin’s hand, which he fractured in a January 23rd fight with assistant equipment manager Matias Testi, has healed faster than his quad. Once he is cleared for game action, Griffin still faces a four-game team-imposed suspension for that incident.
- The Clippers are likely to keep their superstar trio of Paul, Griffin and center DeAndre Jordan intact this summer, a panel of ESPN Insider experts opines. As Jeremias Engelmann points out, superstars rarely get dealt unless they request a trade. A majority of the panel also believes the Clippers will be better off when Griffin returns from his injuries and suspension.
- Rookie shooting guard Devin Booker is often initiating the Suns’ half-court offense, even with the return of point guard Brandon Knight from a sports hernia, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports. Booker recorded 11 assists against the Warriors on Saturday. “Both of us can bring the ball up the floor, so you get the rest,” Booker told Coro. “If you have to bring it up every time, it’s tough on a team.”
- Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was instrumental in the Warriors hiring Bob Myers as their assistant GM in 2011, as owner Joe Lacob discusses at length in an interview with Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News. Myers was promoted to GM the following year.
- The Warriors recalled power forward Kevon Looney from their D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to the team’s website. Looney has appeared in 12 games with Santa Cruz this season, including two games during his latest assignment.
Pacific Notes: Cousins, Karl, Dawson, Davis
DeMarcus Cousins and George Karl can’t find common ground on much these days, even on the matter of whether they spoke with one another in between his one-game suspension and Sacramento’s loss on Sunday to the Jazz. Karl said before the Utah game that he and Cousins had engaged in small talk, but Cousins insisted after the game that the Kings coach hadn’t said a word to him, reports Marc J. Spears of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. People around Cousins believe Karl has pushed the Kings to suspend him on several occasions this season, according to Spears, who adds that a November tirade Cousins directed at Karl deeply affected the coach. GM Vlade Divac, when told that Cousins believes the suspension came from Karl and not the organzation, only smiled and said simply that he loves Cousins, Spears observes.
“There is a lot of chaos,” Cousins said. “Usually, there is just frustration with coming out and winning games. But so much extra stuff this season. Extra unnecessary stuff. It’s a lot of stuff within. There are battles with guys that should be on your side.”
See more on the Kings situation amid news from the Pacific Division:
- Cousins insists he’s not the only one frustrated with the situation, notes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. “I know for a fact there’s a lot of frustration in this locker room,” Cousins said. “I believe everyone believes we should be a lot better than we are and we’re just frustrated that we’re not. We haven’t performed to the level of expectations, so there’s a lot of frustration with that.”
- Clippers rookie Branden Dawson was freed from jail on $50K bond Sunday afternoon, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). Dawson was arrested Sunday morning on felony domestic violence charges, according to TMZ Sports. His first court appearance is set for April 7th, notes Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). That’s an off day before an April 8th game at Utah. “Obviously, it’s an awful situation,” Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said, as Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com relays (Twitter link). “…We’ll figure out what we want to do and how we want to handle it.”
- It’s a long shot, but Baron Davis would prefer to rejoin the Warriors if he makes it back to the NBA, notes Jay Mariotti of the San Francisco Examiner. Davis has nonetheless said he’d play for any team as he tries to return, having recently joined the D-League affiliate of the Sixers.
And-Ones: Cousins, Hinrich, Richardson, Varejao
Kings center DeMarcus Cousins took another verbal swipe at coach George Karl, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports. After being suspended for Friday’s game following a tirade directed at Karl, Cousins remained combative following tonight’s loss to the Jazz. “That wasn’t a suspension from the organization,” Cousins said. “That was a suspension from the head coach.” Their ongoing battle has led many to speculate that neither will be in Sacramento next season.
There’s more tonight from around the basketball world:
- Veteran guard Kirk Hinrich is probably looking at a short stay with the Hawks, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Coach Mike Budenholzer said Dennis Schröder will be the backup point guard, and it’s not in the “plans” to use Hinrich in that role any more. The 35-year-old soon-to-be free agent to be has appeared in just three games since coming to Atlanta from the Bulls in a deadline-day trade.
- Josh Richardson is shaping up as a major bargain for the Heat, writes Ethan Skolnick of The Miami Herald. He has settled into Miami’s rotation and now trails only the Sixers‘ Richaun Holmes in minutes played among 2015 second-round picks. Richardson is signed through 2017/18 and will make a little less than $875K next season.
- Anderson Varejao is still adjusting to the idea of not being with the Cavaliers, writes Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon-Journal. After 12 years in Cleveland, Varejao was shipped to the Blazers in a deadline-day trade, and he signed with the Warriors after Portland released him. “If you told me at the start of the season I’d be here, I never would’ve believed it,” he said. “With my contract, how could anyone have predicted this?”
- The Warriors were honored as the“Best Analytics Organization” at this year’s MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. The Chicago Blackhawks, Houston Astros and FC Midtjylland, a Danish soccer team, were the other finalists for the award.
- The Hornets have assigned rookie guard Aaron Harrison to Erie of the D-League. Harrison is averaging just 4.3 minutes in 16 games with Charlotte, along with 0.8 points and 0.6 rebounds.
And-Ones: Noah, Pressey, D-League
Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg confirmed that Joakim Noah will not return to the court this season as he recovers from surgery that that repaired his dislocated left shoulder, Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Noah has not played since the middle of January.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Phil Pressey will head to the Idaho Stampede of the D-League after the Suns declined to bring the point guard back after consecutive 10-day contracts, Chris Reichert of Upside Motor tweets.
- The Thunder have recalled Josh Huestis from their D-League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, according to the team’s website. Huestis averaged 12.2 points and 1.32 blocks in 19 D-League games this season.
- The Warriors have assigned Kevon Looney to their D-League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, according to Golden State’s website.
- The Clippers have recalled Branden Dawson from the D-League, per a team press release. Dawson was on assignment with the Erie BayHawks.
Western Notes: Augustin, Gordon, Barton, Varejao
Nuggets deadline trade acquisition D.J. Augustin has quickly taken to his new surroundings and says he’d love to re-sign with Denver when he hits free agency this summer, as Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post relays. Coach Michael Malone is a fan of the point guard, particularly his offense, as Dempsey relays.
“I would love to be here,” Augustin said. “It’s a great city, great fans. I love the coaching staff and organization. Everything is great. So, I would love to find a home here.”
Augustin hoped for a chance to join a team that would give him more playing time as he faded from the Oklahoma City rotation this season, and while he expressed his appreciation to the Thunder for facilitating such a deal, he said he didn’t ask for a trade, Dempsey notes. See more on the Nuggets amid news from the Western Conference:
- Eric Gordon is having surgery today on his broken right ring finger, a source told Scott Agness of VigilantSports (Twitter link). No timetable exists for the soon-to-be free agent who suffered the injury Saturday, though the Pelicans reportedly fear it’s a season-ender. It’s the same finger Gordon broke in January, an injury that forced him to miss about five weeks. The final day of the regular season is five weeks from Wednesday.
- Malone knew little about Will Barton when the coach took over the Nuggets in the offseason, but the 25-year-old shooting guard is team’s second leading scorer this year, the first on a new three-year, $10.6MM deal, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee examines. “I’d be lying to you if I said I expected him to play as well as he has this year,” Malone said. “He’s a hard worker. He committed himself to getting better, coming back as an improved player and, like all players, I feel he’s taken full advantage of the opportunity given him. We play him 25, 30 minutes a night, put the ball in his hands and allow him to make plays and he’s done a great job of doing that, especially in the open court.”
- Warriors assistant GM Travis Schlenk acknowledged that recent signee Anderson Varejao isn’t what he used to be, but Schlenk said in a radio appearance with Matt Steinmetz on 95.7 The Game’s “NBA This Week” show that Varejao and Joakim Noah were the best centers in the NBA three years ago. The 33-year-old Varejao only twice averaged double-figures in either points or rebounds, peaking in 2012/13 at 14.1 points and 14.4 rebounds per game, though he played only 25 games that season because of injury.
And-Ones: Weems, Mirotic, Augustin
The Sixers acquired swingman Sonny Weems to reach the salary floor but they plan to take a hard look at him, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The Sixers claimed Weems from the Suns on Monday, allowing them to reach the minimum team salary requirement for the season since they’ll get credit for his full $2.814MM salary, even though they’ll only have to pay less than $700K, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders points out (Twitter link). The Sixers made similar moves to reach the floor last season, including a claim of power forward Thomas Robinson, whom they did not re-sign, Pompey notes. Weems may be a different case. Robert Covington, Nik Stauskas and Hollis Thompson are the only true wing players on the roster, and thus Weems should get some opportunities to play, Pompey adds. A league source conceded to Pompey that it looks unseemly for the Sixers to work the system to meet the salary floor two years in a row but argued that the team has a legitimate need for a wing player that Weems can fulfill.
In other news around the league:
- Bulls power forward Nikola Mirotic has to prove he’s part of their future, now that he’s returned from an appendectomy, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times opines. He endured major growing pains during his second season with the team prior to the injury and he now has to work his way back into shape and be productive, Cowley continues. “You can’t play scared that if you get hit, something may happen, or you’ll have a setback,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg told Cowley and other members of the Chicago media. “You just have to go out there and react and play. I think it was big step for Niko. Now it’s a matter of getting his lungs in shape and getting his wind back.’
- Point guard D.J. Augustin has revived his career with the Nuggets, Erik Horne of The Oklahoman writes. Augustin averaged 12.8 points and shot 54.3% on 3-point attempts in his first nine games with Denver after he was acquired in a trade deadline deal from the Thunder. Meanwhile, Oklahoma City has averaged 16.4 turnovers, fourth-most in the league, since the trade, Horne notes.
- The Warriors recalled power forward Kevon Looney from their D-League affiliate, as the Santa Cruz Warriors tweet.
- The Thunder assigned forwards Josh Huestis and Mitch McGary to their D-League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, according to the team’s website. Huestis has already appeared in 16 D-League games this season, while McGary has played 17 games with the Blue.