Pacific Notes: Green, Griffin, Lakers, Bryant
The Warriors‘ Draymond Green should be Defensive Player of the Year, argues Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders. It’s a somewhat surprising choice, given the widespread opinion that the Clippers’ DeAndre Jordan is the front runner for the award, but Dowsett contends Green’s versatility and performance against the pick-and-roll make him the league’s most valuable defender. If he were to win DPOY, it would strengthen Green’s bargaining position heading into restricted free agency this summer.
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders wonders if Green is worth a max contract. At 6’7″ and 230 pounds, the Warriors’ standout is a uniquely stocky small forward who can also play power forward effectively and guard every position except for center. However, his per-game stats fall below what you’d expect from a max level player.
- Clippers coach Doc Rivers says there’s still no timetable for Blake Griffin to return from his staph infection, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). The timetable remains the same as it was before for Griffin, Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com adds (on Twitter). The original estimate was 4-6 weeks, and Monday will mark four weeks since his surgery.
- The Lakers will have plenty of options in June’s draft, writes Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders. Los Angeles, of course, needs to have its pick fall in the top five or it will be transferred to Philadelphia. Assuming the Lakers keep their pick, Davis writes that Duke’s Jahlil Okafor or Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns would form a solid front-line nucleus with injured rookie Julius Randle. If they decide to go for backcourt help, options include Emmanuel Mudiay of the Chinese Basketball Association and Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell.
- It may not be a coincidence that Kobe Bryant was on the Lakers‘ bench tonight for the first time in many games, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. The Lakers are hosting the Mavericks, and Bryant may want a closer look at soon-to-be free agent Rajon Rondo.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Warriors Not Interested In JaVale McGee
It remains to be seen where JaVale McGee will land, but it apparently won’t be in Golden State. A Warriors source told Tim Kawakami of The Mercury News (Twitter links) that the team continues to have very little interest in signing the big man. The W’s entertained the thought at one point but have since moved on.
The Warriors told McGee that they’d think about signing him and after some deliberation, they arrived at a point where they had “very limited interest.” McGee, of course, was waived by the 76ers just prior to the deadline for playoff eligibility. McGee, a B.J. Armstrong client, fielded interest from a number of clubs at that point, but wound up on the verge of a deal with the Celtics. That union surprised many and a double swerve was thrown everyone’s way when the prospective deal was called off. The C’s wanted McGee’s 2015/16 season to be a team option while his camp wanted a player option.
Now, McGee remains on the open market with one less suitor now that Golden State is likely to take a pass. Things are also “dead” between the 27-year-old and Boston and will not be revived. Still, the Mavericks, Rockets, Raptors, and Heat are among the playoff-bound/hopeful teams in the hunt to sign him.
The athletic big man appeared in just seven contests for the Sixers after being acquired from Denver, averaging 3.0 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per contest. In 382 career games McGee has averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks.
Western Notes: Clippers, Lin, Nuggets
The Clippers‘ desire to find a veteran who could play right away led to today’s signing of Nate Robinson, according to Rowan Kavner of NBA.com. Robinson, who agreed to a 10-day contract, is expected to ease the loss of Jamal Crawford, who is sidelined with a calf contusion. “We looked at a lot of different guys,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We looked at another three, we almost brought in a two, there’s a four out there we could’ve brought in. At the end of the day, I just said, ‘Who’s the best player of the group?’ (The staff) said Nate, and I said, ‘Let’s sign Nate,’ and I know Nate.”
There’s much more from the Western Conference:
- There were reports this week that Blake Griffin could rejoin the Clippers for Sunday’s game against the Warriors, but that now appears doubtful, Kavner reports in a separate story. Sunday marks the four-week anniversary of the first game Griffin missed with a staph infection in his elbow, roughly the time he was expected to be out of action. But he hasn’t received clearance to play yet from team doctors.
- The emergence of Jordan Clarkson virtually ensures a break-up between Jeremy Lin and the Lakers, writes Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times. Clarkson’s rise has meant less playing time for Lin, who will become a free agent this summer. Clarkson, a rookie, will earn just slightly more than $845K next season, making him a low-cost solution at point guard. “I’m not going to answer any of those free agency questions until after the season,” Lin said after Friday’s loss to Memphis. “I’ll discuss that later.”
- Mike D’Antoni might be the answer to reviving fast-paced basketball in Denver, opines Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post. D’Antoni, 63, became famous for his up-tempo style during his time as coach of the Suns, Knicks and Lakers. He said he would love to get back into coaching after a year away from the game and would have strong interest in the Nuggets’ job. “You get addicted,” he said. “There’s some really good basketball being played in the league right now, from Golden State to Atlanta.”
Western Notes: Ellis, Smith, Lee
Monta Ellis has no regrets about his relationship with the Warriors, the team he spent his first seven seasons with, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. “I don’t live in the past,” the Mavs guard said. “I mean, the situation was best for both of us. Me being in Dallas is a great situation for me. Them going with him to be with the face of the team and franchise worked out good for them. And it’s working out good for me. I don’t live in the past. I always go ahead.” There is some belief that Ellis will reportedly opt-out of the third year of his team-friendly deal given his level of play this season.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Josh Smith insisted he has moved on from his tenure with the Pistons before he had eight points and seven rebounds for the Rockets Friday night in his second game facing the team that released him, Brendan Savage of MLive writes. “It’s water under the bridge,” Smith said. The veteran forward who’ll be a free agent this summer, signed a one-year deal with the Rockets after the Pistons surprisingly waived him.
- Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy has been impressed with how well Smith has played with the Rockets, Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle writes. Smith is hitting 44.1% of his shots since arriving in Houston, compared to the 39.1% he logged this season in Detroit. “I think when they moved him to the bench, he has played very well in that role for them,” Van Gundy said. “Coming off the bench, he is helping them offensively and rebounding the ball. His shooting percentage has gone up.”
- It’s been easy for David Lee to accept his role as a reserve because the Warriors are winning and his replacement Draymond Green is playing well, writes Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders. “It’s not frustrating at all. It’s just a role change,” said Lee, who missed 24 of the Warriors’ first 25 games due to injury. “If we were losing a bunch of games I probably would be saying to Coach [Steve Kerr], ‘Hey maybe we should try something different.’ But the way we are playing as a group and the way Draymond is specifically playing, this is the way it’s supposed to be right now.”
Will Joseph contributed to this post.
Hoops Rumors Weekly Mailbag 3/1/15-3/7/15
In addition to our weekly chat, which Chuck Myron facilitates every Wednesday, we have added a second opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap, or the NBA draft? Drop me a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com or @EddieScarito on Twitter. Now for this week’s inquiries:
“Now that JaVale McGee isn’t going to be a member of the Celtics, where does he end up playing this season?” — Andrew R.
The pairing that makes the most sense for both sides is for McGee to sign with the Warriors. With Golden State a serious title contender this season, and given the injury histories of Andrew Bogut and David Lee, adding a big with McGee’s ability would be a very wise move from an on-the-court perspective. It’s in the locker room where McGee becomes a risk, with Warriors coach Steve Kerr even making it a point to comment that he doesn’t want to risk upsetting the team’s excellent chemistry. I’m not sure if he was referring to McGee specifically, but probably so. I do think McGee would behave himself for the remainder of the season in Oakland. With him being in need of employment next year, McGee has far too much to lose.
From McGee’s perspective, joining the Warriors would be a wise career move for the big man. Not only would he have the chance to chase a ring with this extremely talented team. But if McGee behaves like a professional and answers the bell when he is on the court for the remainder of the season, then his next contract will get a healthy boost as a result. I should note that Golden State currently has the league maximum 15 players on its roster, so someone would need to be waived in order to add McGee.
“Do you think Brian Shaw will get another shot at being a head coach?” — Curtis
Shaw had a tough situation in Denver, and his old school personality was not a great fit with the group of players currently on the team’s roster. I put a lot of the blame on the players for Shaw getting the boot, but NBA coaches also need to be able to overcome obstacles of this nature. But this was Shaw’s first head coaching gig and I’m sure he learned quite a bit that will help him out in the future. There are a number of coaches who failed at their first job only to turn things around when given a second opportunity. Shaw isn’t a bad coach, he just needs more seasoning in how to manage players.
I do see Shaw getting another shot, seeing how the league loves to recycle. But he’ll most likely need to go the assistant coach route for at least a season or two before he’ll be seriously considered to take over another team. Look for Shaw to possibly end up as an assistant with the Knicks, a move which has already been speculated about by Marc Berman of The New York Post. If Fisher can’t turn things around next season, who knows, maybe Shaw slides into his spot on the bench. It’s the Knicks, so anything is possible…
“Who’s the next head coach you see getting his walking papers?” — Tyreese J.
The answer to this question depends on whether or not you want to include interim coaches to the list. If so, then the Magic’s James Borrego is the coach most likely to be let go of first. But if we are talking about a non-interim coach, then I would have to say that the Hornets’ Steve Clifford would be my pick, with OKC’s Scott Brooks a close second.
Clifford had a great start to his career, guiding Charlotte to a 43-39 record and a surprise playoff berth last season. An accomplishment that is somewhat diluted when realizing Charlotte plays in the Eastern Conference. But his encore isn’t going so well, with the team sitting at a disappointing 27-33. Clifford may get one more season, but his seat is definitely one that could get hot rather quickly. As for Brooks, unless the Thunder make it to the conference finals, I believe the team will bring in a new face and voice to coach the team. Someone who will likely require future free agent Kevin Durant‘s seal of approval to get the job, since OKC won’t do anything to jeopardize its shot at re-signing the forward in the summer of 2016.
“In order, who are the five best point guards in the 2015 NBA draft?” — Jimmy P.
It’s not necessarily a banner year for drafting at the one-spot, seeing as there are only about eight point guards in this year’s NBA draft who are likely to stick in the league. But that doesn’t mean a few teams won’t be able to snag a useful player at the position. As requested, here are my top five…
- Emmanuel Mudiay (China)
- D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State)
- Tyus Jones (Duke)
- Jerian Grant (Notre Dame)
- Delon Wright (Utah)
Out of this group only Mudiay and Russell have star potential, with Mudiay possibly being the best player in the entire draft. It’s hard to tell given Mudiay’s limited body of work, but this player can be something special. The remaining three players on my list will all need some development time, but each could turn out to be an extremely solid pro. I should note that Russell is playing shooting guard in college, but he is projected as a point guard in the NBA.
“How do you rate the strength of the 2015 draft against the way too overhyped class of 2014?” — Kev
While I do think that in a few season’s time the 2014 draft class will prove themselves worthy of the attention they received, the 2015 crop of players is possibly the deeper of the two. The top four players in this year’s draft (Mudiay, Russell, Jahlil Okafor, and Karl-Anthony Towns) all have star potential, and their ceilings could actually be higher than last year’s group of draftees. After the big four is a scrum of about 10-15 players who are relatively interchangeable right now as far as draft position goes. This level of depth is a big reason why I am sweating doing my mock draft this year. Once individual pre-draft workouts begin that will hopefully change a bit, but the second tier in the 2015 draft is quite intriguing, and could end up being superior to last year’s. There should be a number of late first round value picks made this June, which should make for an exciting draft.
Well folks, that’s all the space I have for this week. Keep sending in your questions and I’ll see you back here next Saturday.
Multiple Teams Interested In JaVale McGee
10:06pm: Teams that are still interested in signing McGee also include the Rockets, Raptors, and Heat, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports tweets.
FRIDAY, 8:48pm: The Mavericks are still interested in McGee, but other teams that could offer the big man more playing time could be more appealing, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. Dallas is unable to offer McGee more than a minimum salary contract for the remainder of the season, Sefko adds.
11:48am: There’s “no way” the Raptors would cross the $76.829MM tax line to sign McGee in spite of GM Masai Ujiri‘s affection for him, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. The Raptors have a team salary for tax purposes of $76.096MM, as I pointed out earlier. A prorated minimum-salary contract until season’s end for McGee would only cost the team $231,503 if he signed today, after he clears waivers at 4pm Central time, so presumably the club can still bring him in and avoid the tax. So it follows that the Raptors won’t engage in a bidding war, Wolstat adds (on Twitter). However, the Raptors may be closer to the tax line than it appears based on incentive clauses in player contracts, which aren’t always fully reported.
WEDNESDAY, 10:10am: The Raptors are thinking about pursuing McGee, Stein tweets.
5:27pm: The Warriors have expressed major interest in McGee, and view him as an insurance policy for Andrew Bogut, Chris Broussard of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).
TUESDAY, 3:59pm: The Mavericks are “seriously interested” in JaVale McGee, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but the sense is he won’t rush to choose a team should he clear waivers as expected on Wednesday, Stein adds (Twitter links). Plenty of other teams are interested, Stein notes, echoing a Monday report from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports indicating that no less than 10 teams are in the mix. It’s nonetheless somewhat surprising to see Dallas emerge as one of them, since the Mavs earlier today committed their final open roster spot to a contract through season’s end Bernard James.
The teams that are in the mix for McGee reportedly envision him as a third-string center and won’t offer the big man more than the league minimum to sign. The Heat are among those interested in the oft-injured veteran, Stein tweets. While the remainder of the teams considering making a run at McGee are not yet known, the Wizards are not one of them, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post notes.
The 27-year-old appeared in just seven contests for the Sixers after being acquired from Denver, averaging 3.0 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.2 minutes per contest. In 382 career games McGee has averaged 8.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks. His career slash line is .540/.200/.587.
Western Notes: Afflalo, Lee, Robinson
Arron Afflalo should fill a lot of the void for the Blazers that was created after soon-to-be unrestricted free agent Wesley Matthews‘s season ending injury, Joe Freeman of the Oregonian writes. Afflalo, who has a player option for next season worth $7.75MM, was acquired in a February deal. His skill-set and unselfishness make him a solid replacement for Matthews, Freeman wrote. “I’ll be me,” Afflalo said. “Even before Wes went down, the goal wasn’t for me to come in here and try to be somebody that I wasn’t. Obviously adjusting to a new role is difficult and takes time, but the way I lead, be it vocally or by example, I’ll continue to do that.”
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- The Clippers continue to show interest in free agent guard Nate Robinson, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter link). It was first reported back in January that the Clippers were Robinson’s preferred team, and Los Angeles possessed some level of interest in the diminutive guard.
- Celtics coach Brad Stevens says that the Spurs have thrived, in part, because of their roster continuity, according to Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com (Twitter links). “Obviously, there’s going to continue to be some change but I think a lot of these guys are going to be in Celtics uniforms for a while coming, and that’s encouraging,” the coach said.
- The Jazz had serious discussions with the Warriors at the trade deadline about acquiring David Lee, according to Spencer Checketts of 1280 The Zone (via Twitter). The Warriors were said to be willing to trade Lee, but they were looking to get assets of value in return.
- David Stockton, son of Hall of Famer John Stockton, in his return to the D-League’s Reno Bighorns, Sacramento’s affiliate, scored a season-high 44 points in what Erika Marmolejo of NBA.com called a “statement game.” The Kings previously decided against signing Stockton to another 10-day contract. Stockton was unable to find decent time behind starting guard Ray McCallum and newly acquired veteran Andre Miller, Marmolejo notes.
Zach Links and Eddie Scarito contributed to this post
Western Notes: Green, Johnson, Hamilton
Despite the Grizzlies going on a 13-2 run after acquiring Jeff Green from the Celtics the forward has been a mild disappointment so far in Memphis, Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal (subscription required) writes. Herrington cites Green sinking multiple three-pointers in a game only once in February, and the starting lineup with Green in it being 12 points worse offensively, per 100 possessions, than when Tony Allen was the starter.
Here’s more from the Western conference:
- The Rockets are sending Nick Johnson down to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the D-League, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (on Twitter). Johnson will likely rejoin the Rockets in Portland on Wednesday, he adds.
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr was coy when asked if Golden State had interest in signing free agent big man JaVale McGee, Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group relays. Kerr did say that he didn’t want anything or anyone to disrupt the team’s excellent chemistry, Kawakami adds.
- Justin Hamilton, whom the Wolves claimed off of waivers from the Pelicans, has been on Minnesota’s radar for some time Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press tweets. The Wolves tried to work out a trade with Miami for the big man before he was dealt to New Orleans, Krawczynski adds.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Ray Allen Says He Won’t Play This Season
Ray Allen will not play this season, as he says in a statement released through agent Jim Tanner and the Tandem Sports and Entertainment agency. He’s not ruling out a return for 2015/16 but adds that he’ll take rest of this season and the offseason ahead to decide about that, suggesting that it’ll again be a long wait before we know if, much less where, Allen will play again. The 39-year-old has languished as the most sought-after free agent since the start of training camp, though the Cavs, long the front-runner for the friend and former teammate of LeBron James, recently appeared to drop out of the running. They were one of of 14 teams who expressed serious interest, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
“Over the past several months, I have taken a lot of time to deliberate what is best for me,” Allen said in the statement. “I’ve ultimately decided that I will not play this NBA season. I’m going to take the remainder of this season, as well as the upcoming off-season, to reassess my situation, spend time with my family and determine if I will play in the 2015/16 season.”
The Grizzlies, too, appeared no longer to be in the Allen sweepstakes as of this weekend, not long after executives around the league reportedly began losing faith that he’d sign. The Warriors, Wizards, Spurs, Heat and Hawks were keeping in touch with Allen’s camp as of early February, and Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said at about that time that he’d recently spoken to him.
Just about every playoff-bound team reportedly reached out to Allen at some point this season. The Wizards were apparently the most aggressive suitor as of January, though LeBron visited Allen’s home in Miami to woo the sharpshooter while the four-time MVP was in town for rehabilitation.
The Bulls were another suitor, though a trip he made to Chicago earlier this season wasn’t basketball-related, Tanner said. Tanner batted down reports that indicated his intentions regarding one team or another all throughout the process that began when he became a free agent in July. Allen said over the summer that it would take a “perfect storm scenario” for him to play this season, and he pointed to a desire for a veteran coach and more than the minimum salary.
Allen was seemingly leaning toward retirement in late December, though he indicated during the middle of last season that he wasn’t planning to retire so soon. If he doesn’t return, he’ll walk away as the NBA’s all-time leader in three-pointers made and career earnings in excess of $184.356MM, according to Basketball-Reference.
Pelicans Sign Elliot Williams To 10-Day Deal
WEDNESDAY, 10:19am: The deal is official, the team announced. The move, coupled with Justin Hamilton’s release, leaves the Pelicans with 14 players.
TUESDAY, 2:53pm: The Pelicans are expected to sign guard Elliot Williams to a 10-day contract, reports John Reid of The Times-Picayune (Twitter link). The former 22nd overall pick has been playing for the D-League affiliate of the Warriors since shortly after the Hornets terminated their 10-day contract with him early so they could pull off the Mo Williams trade last month. The 25-year-old Elliot Williams would fill the Pelicans’ lone roster vacancy.
New Orleans would be the third team with which Williams has signed a 10-day contract this season, joining Charlotte and Utah, as our 10-Day Contract Tracker shows. He didn’t see action on his lone pact with the Hornets, but he averaged 3.6 points in 8.4 minutes per contest in five appearances for the Jazz, who signed him to two 10-day deals.
Jrue Holiday hasn’t played for the Pelicans since January, so Williams will be the latest to try to plug that gap after the team cycled through 10-day pacts with Nate Wolters and Toney Douglas. Williams is just a season removed from seeing 17.3 MPG in 67 contests for the Sixers.