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Q&A With Duke Guard Quinn Cook

June 5th, 2015 at 1:58pm CST by Zachary Links

Leading up to the draft, Hoops Rumors will be talking with some of the most intriguing prospects in this year’s class. Today, the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Q&A series continues with Duke guard Quinn Cook, who is ranked No. 62 in this year’s class by both Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and Chad Ford of ESPN.com.

After helping Duke win the National Championship, Quinn Cook couldn’t have asked for a better way to end his collegiate career. Now, he’s busting his tail on the draft circuit in order to solidify his place on draft boards around the league. Cook told Hoops Rumors (Twitter link) that he has the Nets, Knicks, Jazz, Lakers, Clippers, and Thunder all on his workout schedule and there could be even more to come. The speedy point guard spoke with Hoops Rumors recently about Coach K, making funny faces during games, and his draft stock heading into June 25th.

Zach Links: How much did it mean to you to end your college career in the best way possible, with a National Championship?

Quinn Cook: It meant a lot to me to end my college career as a champion. I had some tough losses in my four-year career at Duke. To leave winning the tournament, that’s the best thing you can do as a college player. I’m just really proud of my team.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

ZL: Do you think you might be better prepared for the NBA than other guys in this year’s class thanks to your time spent playing for Mike Krzyzewski?

QC: Definitely. He’s the best coach of all-time and for him to have the respect of guys like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, KD [Kevin Durant], it just shows how great he is. He has coached everybody, but he has also learned from these guys. He learns from other coaches too like Tom Thibodeau and Monty Williams. He prepares us very well. Guys who leave our program have a leg up going into the pros because we’ve been around Coach K. He’s a pro’s pro.

ZL: At 6’2″, you’ve shown that you can give taller opponents trouble. Is that something you pride yourself on?

QC: That’s going to be my niche in the league. I think I’m going to be a guy who comes off the bench and causes havoc for the guys on the other side of the ball.

ZL: At your banquet ceremony this year, you spoke a bit about becoming the leader of your Duke team. When did you really start embracing that leadership role and what do you think makes for a great leader in a locker room?

QC: I started embracing that after we were eliminated from the tournament in my junior year. From March 2014 onward, I was determined to be a leader.

To be a leader I think you first have to lead by example. Some guys are more vocal than others, but I think the leader has to be there every day and lead by example more than anything. You can be a “rah rah guy,” as we say at Duke, but the leader has to be the first one in and the last one to leave, setting the tone for everybody.

ZL: What’s the main thing you want to work on?

QC: Everything. I want to just get better in every aspect of the game. I want to be a more consistent shooter off the dribble, finish around rim better, and defend the ball better.

ZL: Do you have an idea of where you might be drafted?

QC: I’m a second round guy. It could be anywhere in the second round. I was a champion and an All-American at Duke, I think I have a solid resume and I think I performed really well at the combine. Hopefully, I’ll get my name called.

ZL: You spent your first three years of high school at DeMatha before transferring to another high school powerhouse in Oak Hill Academy. What was the reason for that change?

QC: I just wanted a new challenge. My best friends, Jerian Grant and Victor Oladipo, they were at DeMatha with me and that was a lot of fun, but I needed a new challenge. My mom had a great relationship with [Oak Hill head coach] Steve Smith so I decided to go there and team up with Ben McLemore.

ZL: You enjoyed some internet attention during the tournament for your unique facial expressions. What was your reaction to inadvertently walking into a new kind of fame?

QC: It was fun! You kind of forget how big the NCAA tournament is and how many people pay attention to it. It was cool to see a few pics go viral and for me to become Instagram and Twitter famous. My teammates kept sending me new pictures that popped up and my friends were too, so that was funny.

ZL: Why Tandem and Jim Tanner?

QC: They’re first class. Jim is first class and everybody in the office is first class. I was comfortable with them…It was a tough decision but I made the right one.

Royce White, Clippers Near Summer League Deal

June 5th, 2015 at 12:56pm CST by Zachary Links

Former first-round pick Royce White is closing on a commitment to join the Clippers for the July Summer League, league sources told Shams Charania of RealGM. White also had summer league interest from the Bulls, Spurs, and Pelicans, but Charania says that he built trust with Clippers front office members through recent dialogue.

White, the former No. 16 overall pick in the 2012 draft, has only three NBA games on his resume, all which came with the Kings in 2014. The forward had promise as a rookie three years ago but serious anxiety issues knocked his career off course. White’s fear of flying meant that he was largely unable to travel with the team and the NBA’s road schedule isn’t terribly conducive to road travel.

The 24-year-old never ended up playing for the Rockets, the team that drafted him, and was traded to the Sixers along with the rights to Turkish forward Furkan Aldemir and cash in July 2013, for a conditional second -round draft pick. White played for the Sixers last preseason, but was waived before the season’s start.

Q&A With San Diego State Forward Dwayne Polee

June 5th, 2015 at 9:52am CST by Zachary Links

Over the next few weeks, Hoops Rumors will be talking with some of the most intriguing prospects in the 2015 NBA Draft. Today, the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Q&A series continues with San Diego State forward Dwayne Polee.

A product of Los Angeles powerhouse Westchester High School, Dwayne Polee arrived at St. John’s in 2010 with a great deal of hype. The small forward thrived under first-year head coach Steve Lavin, but an illness at home prompted him to relocate back to the West Coast. Leaving St. John’s was a difficult decision for Polee, but he landed with another solid program in San Diego State, where he enjoyed multiple appearances in the NCAA tournament. The 23-year-old is now auditioning for teams in hopes of hearing his name called later this month. Recently, Polee took some time out of his schedule to chat with Hoops Rumors about his career going forward.

Zach Links: This year, San Diego State made the NCAA tournament and your first game was against St. John’s. Was it strange facing your old teammates in such a high stakes game?

Dwayne Polee: No it wasn’t awkward or anything because I still keep in touch with so many of those guys. I loved my time at St. John’s. I have a very close bond with my teammates that I played with in that year. Steve Lavin and that whole coaching staff was great to me. It was just a great experience all around.

Mar 7, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego State Aztecs forward Dwayne Polee II (5) dunks during the second half against the Nevada Wolf Pack at Viejas Arena at Aztec Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Photo courtesy of USA TODAY Sports Images.

ZL: Have you bumped into Phil Greene or any of your former Red Storm teammates on the draft workout circuit?

DP: Nope, not yet. Could happen over the next few weeks though.

ZL: What do you feel like your greatest strengths are on the court? What do you want to work on?

DP: I think my greatest strengths are probably my defense, athleticism, and length. With my wingspan I can clog the passing lanes and pressure ball handlers a lot more than other guys can. I want to become a more consistent shooter and a more consistent ball handler.

ZL: Your father played professionally and was drafted in the third round by the Clippers. What sort of advice has he given you about the draft process?

DP: He just told me just go out there and play like you’re in the backyard. He told me to play as though there are no GMs or scouts are watching me, because that can be a big distraction. I just go out there and play my hardest like nobody is watching.

ZL: What NBA player would you compare yourself to?

DP: I think I would compare myself to a Jeff Green or a Tony Allen type of player. They play great defense and they’re solid athletes. They can nail the open shots and they just bring their team a lot of energy.

ZL: What workouts have you had so far?

DP: Dallas and the Clippers.

ZL: What are you hearing about your chances of getting drafted?

DP: I haven’t really talked about that with my agent too much just yet, but [Jim Tanner] is just telling me to go out there and play hard. He’s pretty sure that I’ll be able to shock some teams.

ZL: Late last year in a game against UC-Riverside, you had a scary moment where you collapsed mid-game and had to be taken off the court on a gurney. I know that doctors held you out of practice for a while and you weren’t allowed to return to the court until February. We’ve heard players talk about their trepidation in cutting on a surgically-repaired knee or ankle for the first time – what was it like coming back from this incident?

DP: It was kind of weird mentally because you got to get back to the business of basketball. Being with your teammates, running the plays, the rhythm and everything…I would say that was the most challenging part for me. The rest of it didn’t stress me out too much. The way I play is that even if I don’t score a single point, I still go out there and play hard and give it my best.

ZL: What led you to choose Jim Tanner as your agent?

DP: For me, everything is just based on vibes, you know. Jim, when I met with him, he just gave me a great vibe and I just felt comfortable signing with [Tandem Sports and Entertainment]. Since then, everyone I’ve come across tells me that I picked the best agency. I’m very comfortable with the decision that I made.

Q&A With Harvard Guard Wesley Saunders

June 4th, 2015 at 7:07pm CST by Zachary Links

Throughout the spring and summer, Hoops Rumors will be talking with some of the most intriguing prospects in the 2015 NBA Draft. Today, the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Q&A series continues with Harvard point guard Wesley Saunders.

Many notable figures in U.S. history have cut their teeth at Harvard, but there haven’t been a ton of high-level professional athletes to come out of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Point guard Wesley Saunders, however, could be an exception. After leading the Crimson to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances and two memorable upsets, Saunders is now looking to continue his career at the highest level. Saunders, who is racking up serious frequent flyer miles as he auditions for teams all across the country, spoke with Hoops Rumors at the airport before heading to Atlanta to work out for the Hawks.

Zach Links: What workouts do you have scheduled?

Wesley Saunders: When all is said and done I’ll have worked out for the 76ers, Hawks, Mavericks, Clippers, Bulls, Magic, Bucks, and Knicks.

ZL: Do you think it’ll be tough bouncing around from city to city so quickly and giving 100% for each of these?

WS: I don’t necessarily think it’s too much pressure, really. In the Ivy League we used to play games back-to-back on the weekends, so I have a bit of an advantage over some of the other guys from different conferences because I’m used to it. I’m used to going out there one night and giving my all on the court and doing it all over again the next night.

ZL: How did the 76ers workout go?

WS: It went well. It was my first one so I was a little bit nervous. I didn’t know what to expect going in but I think that those guys have a really great workout plan laid out. It was fast-paced, quick, and efficient. I did a lot of shooting drills, some 1-on-1, some 3-on-3. This is fun for me, we’ve been working out and getting ready for these workouts so I’m well prepared.

ZL: Where are you working out of? Are you working out with other players?

WS: I’ve been in the Los Angeles area, mostly at USC and Westchester High School. I’ve mostly been doing it solo but I’ve also worked out a bit with Dwayne Polee since we’re in the same agency.

ZL: If you had to compare yourself to an NBA player, who would it be?

WS: I’d say Wesley Matthews. I think that coming out of college we have some similar skill sets. We’re around 6’5″ and 220 pounds. A lot of people say we’re not super athletic, but we’re certainly athletic enough. [Matthews] was by no means a lights-out shooter like he is now. He developed that later on and I think I can develop in the same way that he did. He created a great career for himself and he’s one of the best shooting guards in the league right now.

ZL: What do you think makes you stand out over other point guards in this class?

WS: I think it’s my versatility. I have the ability to make plays for myself or for others and I have a high basketball IQ. I’m good at playing out of the pick-and-roll and that’s like 80 or 90% of the game in the NBA right now. I can defend against 1s, 2s, or 3s on defense and I just think that I have that jack-of-all-trades quality. I can fit into a lot of different roles.

ZL: What do you want to work on?

WS: I definitely want to work on my shooting consistency from three-point range. I shot about 42% from outside this year, but that’s the college three. The NBA three is a whole different animal. I also want to improve my lateral quickness and my explosiveness so that I can really stay in front of those quick 1s.

ZL: In the last three years your Harvard teams have wound up on the national stage in the NCAA tournament. What was your anxiety level like going into each tourney?

WS: I was the most nervous for the first one against New Mexico. I think that was because we had never been there before, so everything was kind of brand new. We were playing against a really good team and people said they were a possible FInal Four team. They were a really popular tournament pick. We were an underdog. Nobody really knew about us. We just got into a rhythm and we were able to pull out the win.

The next year against Cincinnati was a little bit different. Going into it we were really confident. We felt like with the type of team they were, we could definitely have some success against them. We went in, we executed our game plan and came out with a victory.

This year against North Carolina, that was another one where we had a lot of nerves. That’s obviously a program with a storied history and so many great players have come through there. Obviously we were all familiar with Roy Williams and all the great players they had; at the same time, we’ve been there before. We’ve been the underdogs, so we knew we could get it done. Unfortunately, we couldn’t pull it out, but we gave them a good battle.

ZL: I imagine that the academic pressures of playing at Harvard can be pretty overwhelming for some guys.

WS: Honestly, it really wasn’t for me because I went to a great high school and that prepared me for the academic load at Harvard. It all just came down to time management.

ZL: Was that a concern for you before you committed to Harvard?

WS: I don’t think I had any hesitations about Harvard from that standpoint. The real hesitation for me was from a basketball standpoint: Was Harvard good enough athletically for me to really achieve my dream in the NBA? But, after talking to Coach [Tommy] Amaker and getting a feel for his vision of the program and where I would fit in, I felt comfortable that if I worked hard and believed in his system that I would be able to achieve my dream.

ZL: What led you to choose Tandem Sports and Entertainment to represent you?

WS: I just felt like I really fell in line with the players that they have already in their agency. They have some really high character guys and I really felt like they do things the right way.

Everybody in the agency is honest and trustworthy and they’re people that really want to help me with my career going forward. I think they’re very professional and, at the same time, they really have a vested interest in my success. They’re helping me to have not only a great basketball career, but a great life just moving forward, so I definitely felt comfortable with them.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pacific Notes: Payne, Kings, Turkoglu, Watson

June 3rd, 2015 at 12:11pm CST by Chuck Myron

Point guard Cameron Payne‘s draft stock is on the rise and he’ll have a solo workout next week with the Kings, who pick sixth, as Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star hears (Twitter link). Payne, who reportedly has a promise from a team, recently spoke with Zach Links of Hoops Rumors about his experience at mid-major Murray State and his plans for the NBA. Centers Satnam Singh from IMG Academy and Stefan Nastic from Stanford and Cal power forward David Kravish will also work out for the Kings, the team announced. Their auditions will be Thursday. There’s more from Sacramento amid the latest on the Pacific Division:

Kings vice president of basketball and franchise operations Vlade Divac believes that free agency will be more useful for the team than trades, the draft or the development of existing players will be, as Divac said Tuesday, according to Bill Herenda of CSN California (Twitter link).
Hedo Turkoglu wouldn’t rule out signing a new NBA contract, retirement or playing for Turkey’s Fenerbahce as he spoke about his plans for next season with the Turkish media outlet TRT Spor, as Ajans Basketbol transcribes and as Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia translates. Turkoglu’s deal with the Clippers expires this summer.
The Suns will hire Earl Watson as an assistant coach, according to Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group (Twitter link). Watson spent this past season as a D-League assistant for the Spurs.
The Clippers have worked out Gonzaga point guard Byron Wesley, tweets Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times.
Cal State Fullerton guard Alex Harris was to have worked out for the Lakers but didn’t because of an illness, Pincus also relays via Twitter.

Q&A With Michigan St. Forward Branden Dawson

June 3rd, 2015 at 8:57am CST by Zachary Links

Throughout the spring and summer, Hoops Rumors will be talking with some of the most intriguing prospects in the 2015 NBA Draft. Today, the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Q&A series continues with Michigan State forward Branden Dawson, whom Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress ranks No. 87 in this year’s class (Chad Ford of ESPN.com does not have him ranked in his top 100 list).

No. 7 seed Michigan State upset a number of teams this spring on its way to a Final Four appearance thanks in large part to the play of forward Branden Dawson. Throughout his career at Michigan State, Dawson has been a key cog on the team, ascending from a ~20 minute per night player to a starring role. Now, after earning his degree, Dawson is turning his attention to the NBA. Dawson spoke with Hoops Rumors last week about his collegiate career and how his skill set will translate at the next level.

Zach Links: At 6’7″ with a 6’11” wingspan, you have size that could translate to either playing small forward or something of an undersized power forward. What position do you think suits you best in the NBA?

Courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Branden Dawson: I would say the small forward position is my best position. I can play either the 3 or the 4, but I think I do better at the 3. I played small forward for the first three years at Michigan State and I find that I can use my strength and my size as an advantage there. Still, if you put me at the 4, I’m going to be faster than most other power forwards.

ZL: Between your athleticism and your wingspan, do you feel like you’re equipped to guard multiple positions at the next level?

BD: Yeah. I have the length and the mobility to do that. I can be strong and physical but also speedy enough to stay in front of smaller guys. I feel like I’m pretty versatile in that regard.

ZL: With serious leaping ability and speed, do you feel like you can out-rebound taller opponents pretty regularly?

BD: That’s something I was able to do in college a lot, but that’s not how it’s going to be in the NBA because you’re going against other elite athletes. I’m not going to be able to rebound how I did in college every single night, but I can definitely do quality work on the glass.

ZL: This year you helped lead Michigan State, a seven seed, all the way to the Final Four. What was it like to go out on such a high note?

BD: It meant a lot to me. Just to make it to a Final Four, it meant so much. Last year we had Adreian [Payne] leading the way and we still came up short of the Final Four, so we wanted to accomplish that. At the same time, a lot of people questioned whether we’d even make it to the tournament. There was a lot of pressure on us and a lot of adversity and to do it the way we did was amazing.

ZL: Back in April, Magic Johnson tweeted out that he’s looking forward to seeing you in the NBA. What did it mean to get that kind of endorsement and support from one of the game’s all-time legends?

BD: It was huge. He’s just a great guy. Magic always comes around when we’re in the tournament and he comes back and talks to us. It gives me a lot of confidence and really motivates me to succeed. If he sees great potential in me then other people will see it, too.

ZL: How often do you speak with him?

BD: Every so often, usually around tournament time. This year he checked in on us before the Sweet 16 and [again before] the Final Four. He gave us some great Dodgers hats and gear. … Just him coming back and showing his support, that means a lot to us.

ZL: How has playing under Tom Izzo prepared you for the challenges of the NBA?

BD: It has prepared me very well, I think. He’s the type of guy that just wants to see you succeed. We have a million plays and we run an NBA-type offense, so i think that’ll help my transition. When I went to the NBA combine and had my first workout with the Suns, we ran a lot of plays and drills that were exactly like what we do at Michigan State. I was like, “This is not new to me,” and I think that helped me out a ton.

ZL: How long did it take for your to rehab from your freshman year left ACL tear?

BD: It was about six months from when I tore it to when I got back on the court. I came back faster than I thought I would. Everyone was calling me Superman and the doctor said that I healed really fast, I had a quick recovery.

ZL: Did you ever consider declaring for the draft as an underclassman?

BD: No, I don’t think I ever seriously considered that. In my junior season I asked around about what I should do, but I always told my mom I’d get my degree. I’m the first in my family to graduate college and that was important to me. No one around me ever pressured me to go pro early.

ZL: Any individual team workouts coming up?

BD: I have about seven more to go. I [worked out] for the Celtics on June 1st and I have the Timberwolves coming up.

ZL: What teams have shown interest in you so far?

BD: My agent mentioned that the Lakers really like me. The Pelicans and the Clippers like me, too. I interviewed with a lot of different teams at the combine, so we’re gonna see what happens.

ZL: What led you to choose Jim Tanner and the folks at Tandem to represent you?

BD: Just the kind of people that they are. They’re great people and my mom liked them and it just made sense for me. I had that same feeling as when I committed to Michigan State. … I met with other agencies too, but they stood out to me the most. I think I made the right decision.

ZL: Defense is what you’re known for but it looked like your jump shot improved in your senior season. Was that the case? What changes did you make to improve your shot?

BD: Over the summer I was putting in more reps. People have been surprised by my progress. It all comes from repetition and building confidence, I think.

ZL: You mentioned wanting to play the small forward position and to do that, you have to have a bit of range. Are you working to develop an outside shot?

BD: If I’m gonna play the small forward position, it’s something I’m going to have to do. I see a guy like Tony Allen; he’s the type of guy who is not the best shooter, but he works hard and does everything else for his team. He goes around and just gets it done on both ends. I look at guys like him and they motivate me a lot.

ZL: In the DraftExpress recap of the combine, they noted that you displayed some ball-handling ability, which we didn’t see much of at Michigan State. Do you feel like you’re a better ball handler than most people realize?

BD: Yeah, definitely. At Michigan State our offense didn’t call for me to handle the ball a whole lot. Now I get to show that off a little bit and I think that’ll be important in the NBA.

Pacific Notes: Curry, Clippers, Draft

June 2nd, 2015 at 9:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

While Stephen Curry won’t be worrying about how he will afford to put food on his table anytime soon, his contract with the Warriors is one of the biggest values in the NBA, and the MVP can be considered one of the most underpaid athletes in all of professional sports, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes. There were a total of 50 NBA players who earned more than the $10,629,213 that Curry did last season, including 11 point guards, Kennedy notes. On his way to winning the MVP award the 27-year-old appeared in 80 contests, averaging 23.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 7.7 assists in 32.7 minutes per game.

Here’s more out of the Pacific Division:

The Clippers need to make changes to their existing roster but won’t be able to add any big ticket free agents this offseason thanks to their difficult salary cap situation. Arash Markazi and Ben Alamar of ESPN.com run down some hypothetical blockbuster trades that Los Angeles could potentially make if it wished to shake up its roster this summer.
University of Illinois shooting guard Rayvonte Rice has a workout scheduled with the Suns, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
The Lakers held workouts today for Alan Williams (UC Santa Barbara), Norman Powell (UCLA), Cliff Alexander (Kansas), Mitch McCarron (Metropolitan State College), Byron Wesley (Gonzaga), Matt Stainbrook (Xavier), and Josh Smith (Georgetown), the team announced (on Twitter).
Kings forward Carl Landry underwent surgery today to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist, the team announced. Landry will begin rehabilitation immediately and is expected to be out of action for approximately four to five months.

And-Ones: Okafor, Towns, Carmelo, Coaches

June 2nd, 2015 at 4:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Timberwolves coach/executive Flip Saunders likes Jahlil Okafor better than Karl-Anthony Towns, but most of the rest of the team’s staff prefers Towns, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears for his latest Insider-only mock draft. Ford believes those those pro-Towns staffers will ultimately win Saunders over and lists Towns atop his mock, also passing along word from sources that the Magic are zeroing in on Kristaps Porzingis at No. 5. There’s plenty more on the draft and other NBA issues amid the latest from around the league:

Zach Links of Hoops Rumors adds the Hawks, Clippers, Bulls, Magic, Bucks and Knicks to the list of teams working out Harvard point guard Wesley Saunders (Twitter link).
The Mavericks were willing to bring Chris Smith, the brother of J.R. Smith, onto their summer league team as part of their effort to woo Carmelo Anthony, a former teammate of the brothers, this past summer, a source told Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling. Anthony instead re-signed with the Knicks and Chris didn’t end up with the summer Mavs, but Chris is aiming for a return to the league after a period in which he was hospitalized with anxiety attacks. Those episodes stemmed in part from his exasperation with the notion that the Knicks signed him only because his brother was on the team, and the criticism he endured because of it, as Zwerling explains.
College coaches who jumped directly into NBA head coaching jobs haven’t had much success in the NBA of late, aside from Brad Stevens, but NBA GMs are open to them, and with Billy Donovan and Fred Hoiberg on winning teams, there’s ground for a new trend, as Dana O’Neil of ESPN.com examines. Still, that depends on how well Donovan’s Thunder and Hoiberg’s Bulls fare, O’Neil cautions.
Longtime NBA front office executive Joel Litvin is stepping down from his post as the NBA’s president of league operations and will assume a role as a consultant, effective September 1st, as the league announced and as a source originally told Grantland’s Zach Lowe (Twitter link). Litvin, whose wide-ranging duties included work on the collective bargaining agreement, was an innovative force in his 27 years with the NBA, Lowe tweets.

And-Ones: Booker, Clippers, Sanders

June 1st, 2015 at 10:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kentucky shooting guard Devin Booker will work out for the Thunder on Tuesday, Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman tweets. Oklahoma City owns the No. 14 overall pick. The Suns, who have the No. 13 pick, brought in Booker for a workout on Monday. according to a tweet from Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.com. Dez Wells, Josh Richardson, Derek Cooke, Vince Hunter and Jarvis Summers also participated in Phoenix’s workout, according to Scotto.

In other news around the league:

The Clippers, who don’t have a pick in the draft, nonetheless brought in several prospects for workouts on Monday, including Chris Walker, Dwayne Polee, Ralston Turner, Keifer Sykes, Shannon Scott and Richaun Holmes, Dan Woike of the Orange County Register reports.
Trevor Lacey, Dakari Johnson, Rayvonte Rice, Corey Hawkins, Kenneth Smith and Alpha Kaba worked out for the Lakers on Monday, according to the Lakers’ Twitter feed.
Jerian Grant and Delon Wright participated in the Wizards’ first pre-draft workout, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.
Larry Sanders has no regrets walking away from the Bucks and the NBA, he tells Gus Turner of Complex.com in a lengthy feature article. Sanders left approximately $27MM but has found peace and happiness outside of basketball, Turner adds. “I couldn’t function outside of the gym and my studio,” he told Turner. “I couldn’t be around my family; I couldn’t be around anybody else. I was creating from a place of anxiety and fear, suffering. I wasn’t creating from a place of joy or happiness or freedom. Everything I did was pure avoidance.”
Alvin Gentry’s four-year deal to coach the Pelicans is worth a total of $13.75MM, and that includes a team option of $4MM for the final season, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.

Clippers Interested In Paul Pierce

June 1st, 2015 at 5:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

JUNE 1ST, 5:26pm: The Clippers indeed have interest in pursuing Pierce again this summer, a league source tells Robert Morales of the Long Beach Press-Telegram.

MAY 25TH, 12:22pm: Many around the league believe that Paul Pierce will opt out of his deal with the Wizards and join the Clippers for the home stretch of his career, as TNT’s David Aldridge writes within his Morning Tip column for NBA.com. That would run counter to Wizards coach Randy Wittman‘s apparent confidence that Pierce will pick up his nearly $5.544MM option and return to Washington. Pierce, who’ll turn 38 in October, left it open-ended in the wake of Washington’s playoff elimination about whether he would even play next season, echoing comments he made in January.

The link between the Clippers and Pierce dates back to last year, as Pierce told Aldridge this past fall that he saw the Clippers as his favored alternative to re-signing with the Nets before sign-and-trade talks between the Clips and Brooklyn broke down. Clippers coach and president of basketball operations Doc Rivers was Pierce’s coach for nine seasons with the Celtics, and Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell played a major role in luring Pierce to the Wizards this past summer before he joined the Clippers staff. Still, the Clippers, if they succeed in their efforts to re-sign DeAndre Jordan, almost certainly won’t have the capacity to give Pierce as much for next season as he would make if he picked up his option, as I explained earlier when I looked at the offseason ahead in Los Angeles. The Clippers would have a tough time exceeding the $3.376MM taxpayer’s mid-level exception for any outside free agent if Jordan comes back.

Pierce has said he feels a connection with the younger players on the Wizards and with the city of Washington. The forward assumed a larger role for the team in the postseason than he had during the regular season, no doubt in part because of his sizzling 52.4% shooting on 63 attempts from behind the arc in the playoffs.

The 10-time All-Star will probably speak with Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge and co-owner Wyc Grousbeck this summer about a role with the Boston organization for after he’s done playing, as Pierce told Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald in December. Still, Pierce didn’t follow up at that point on his assertion from March of 2014 that he was open to rejoining the Celtics as a player. Pierce and the Rockets had a degree of mutual interest last summer, but a deal didn’t appear likely.