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Eastern Draft Notes: Hawks, Barrett, Knicks, Pistons

June 10th, 2019 at 3:53pm CST by Luke Adams

With six of the top 44 picks in the 2019 NBA draft, the Hawks have been understandably busy when it comes to bringing in prospects for pre-draft workouts. While Atlanta is unlikely to keep all six of its selections, the club is doing its due diligence on players who might be available at each spot — or as undrafted free agents.

On Sunday, the Hawks worked out Darius Bazley (Princeton HS), Robert Franks (Washington State), Matur Maker (Zlatorog Lasko), William McDowell-White (Baunach), Miye Oni (Yale), and Trayvon Reed (Texas Southern), according to the team.

The Hawks conducted another workout on Monday, bringing in Jordan Bone (Tennessee), Brian Bowen (Sydney), Dewan Hernandez (Miami), Jordan Poole (Michigan), Justin Robinson (Virginia Tech), and Dean Wade (Kansas State) in for a look.

On Tuesday, the Hawks will host yet another workout, with Charlie Brown Jr. (St. Joe’s), Zylan Cheatham (Arizona State), Keldon Johnson (Kentucky), Nassir Little (UNC), KZ Okpala (Stanford), and Kevin Porter Jr. (USC) set to participate.

Here are a few more updates on pre-draft workouts from around the Eastern Conference:

R.J. Barrett doesn’t have many team visits on his schedule this month. According to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (via Twitter), Barrett’s individual workout and meeting with the Knicks today represents his first and only session of the pre-draft process. “This is the place I want to be. So I hope they draft me,” the Duke forward said today (Twitter link via Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic). Barrett is widely viewed as the favorite to be selected with the No. 3 overall pick.
Croatian forward Luka Samanic, an early entrant who will keep his name in the 2019 NBA draft pool, will have an individual workout on Tuesday with the Pacers, the team announced in a press release.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Virginia Tech), KeVaughn Allen (Florida), Robert Franks (Washington State), Tyler Herro (Kentucky), Christ Koumadje (Florida State), and Greg Malinowski (Georgetown) worked out for the Magic on Monday, tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic.
The Pistons worked out Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Virginia Tech), Luguentz Dort (Arizona State), Amir Hinton (Shaw), Talen Horton-Tucker (Iowa State), Nassir Little (UNC), and Shamorie Ponds (St. John’s) on Friday, then auditioned Oshae Brissett (Syracuse), Barry Brown Jr. (Kansas State), Digue Diawara (France), Nikola Miskovic (Serbia), Zach Jackson (Omaha), and Josh Perkins (Gonzaga) on Monday, per Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter links).

Hornets Notes: Zeller, Kemba, Draft Workouts

June 6th, 2019 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Hornets center Cody Zeller had some fun with Kemba Walker‘s impending free agency by jokingly setting up a lemonade stand to raise the necessary $221MM for his teammate’s new super-max contract, as Roderick Boone of The Athletic details in an entertaining story. While Zeller’s fundraising efforts were obviously in jest, he recognizes the importance of Kemba’s upcoming decision, acknowledging that it’s a “pretty serious situation” for the franchise.

“I mean, our careers and a lot of the organization, to be honest with you, depends on what Kemba decides this summer, whether he stays or goes,” Zeller said. “I think it really depends on his choice. But our team and our future can go two very different ways depending on what he decides. So I was kind of trying to make light of a serious situation.

“I think he likes Charlotte,” Zeller said of his All-Star teammate. “I think he’s a good fit here. But the reality of it is we haven’t been able to make deep runs in the playoffs. So hopefully that will still come in the future. But at the end of the day, Kemba has to do what’s best for him. And I’m going to support him, whatever decision he makes.”

Here’s more on the Hornets:

Scott Fowler of The Charlotte Observer doesn’t believe the Hornets should give Walker a super-max deal. As good as Walker has been as a Hornet, the team hasn’t won a playoff series during his time in Charlotte, and Fowler doesn’t envision that changing anytime soon if the club has to commit 35% of is cap space to him.
In his latest mailbag, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer discusses the Hornets’ strategy if Walker returns, the possibility of waiving and stretching Bismack Biyombo‘s contract, and much more.
The Hornets continue to scout this year’s draft prospects, announcing in a press release that they worked out Ty Jerome (Virginia), Christ Koumadje (Florida State), Jalen Lecque (Brewster Academy), Greg Malinowski (Georgetown), Joshua Obiesie (Germany), and Trayvon Reed (Texas Southern) on Wednesday.
Another group of six prospects is auditioning for the Hornets today, according to the team. That group is made up of Jordan Caroline (Nevada), Torin Dorn (N.C. State), Robert Franks (Washington State), William McDowell-White (Germany), Travis Munnings (Louisiana-Monroe), and Justin Wright-Foreman (Hofstra).