Marc Loving

Central Notes: Gilbert, Turner, McMillan, M. Williams

Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert won’t be involved with the team’s draft preparations as he continues to recover from a stroke, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Gilbert is still in a Detroit-area hospital, and Quicken Loans CEO Jay Farner issued a statement today suggesting that the recovery might be lengthy.

“Dan’s recovery is a process that will take time — but we are all confident that he will meet this challenge head on as he always does,” Farner wrote.

Sources tell Fedor that Gilbert has already approved an aggressive spending plan if GM Koby Altman believes it’s necessary to improve the team. That includes taking back a sizable contract to get rid of J.R. Smith, who was exiled from the team after playing just 11 games this season. Cleveland owns picks No. 5 and 26 in the draft and will reportedly try to buy into the second round.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • Competing for a spot on Team USA for the FIBA World Cup tournament will give Pacers center Myles Turner another shot to gain recognition after being left off the All-Defensive team, notes Scott Agness of The Athletic. Turner led the league in total blocked shots with 199 and blocks per game at 2.7, but didn’t receive first- or second-team honors. Two of Turner’s teammates, Lithuanian center Domantas Sabonis and Canadian guard Cory Joseph, will be in China for the tournament.
  • Pacers coach Nate McMillan was slated to be an assistant to Gregg Popovich on Team USA, but he withdrew after Indiana was scheduled for a trip to India in early October, Agness adds in the same piece. The World Cup title game is September 15, and McMillan wants to focus on his NBA responsibilities. “My first priority is the Pacers,” he said. “I committed to USA Basketball before I got the schedule next season for us.”
  • Former Heat guard Matt Williams was invited to a free agent mini-camp with the Pistons, tweets Nicola Lupo of Sportando. Williams appeared in three games as a two-way player for Miami during the 2017/18 season before playing this year in Finland and Greece. Forward Marc Loving, formerly of Ohio State, also received an invitation (Twitter link). He played in the G League this season.

Sixers Waive Andrews, Loving, Webb

The Sixers have waived Andrew Andrews, Marc Loving and James Webb III, the team announced in a tweet. All three players were signed earlier today and are expected to join the team’s G League affiliate in Delaware once they clear waivers.

Andrews, a 24-year-old guard, played in Turkey last year after being waived by the Hornets before the start of the season. He went undrafted out of Washington in 2016.

Loving, a 6’7″ power forward, played for Ohio State last year, averaging 12.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.

Webb, a 24-year-old forward, spent last season with the Sixers’ G League team in Delaware after Philadelphia waived him out of training camp.

Philadelphia is now down to the limit with 17 players on its roster, including two-way contracts for James Michael McAdoo and Jacob Pullen.

Sixers Sign Three Players, Retain Jacob Pullen On Two-Way Deal

11:10am: The Sixers have officially confirmed that they’ve converted Pullen’s NBA deal into a two-way contract. The team also announced in a press release that it has signed Andrew Andrews, James Webb III, and Loving. All three players will likely be waived soon and land with the Delaware 87ers in the G League.

9:47am: The Sixers will sign former Ohio State forward Marc Loving, according to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). With the regular season around the corner, Loving seems unlikely to spend much time on Philadelphia’s roster — he’ll likely be waived and then join the Sixers’ G League team as an affiliate player.

Loving, a 6’7″ forward, averaged 12.3 PPG and 4.7 RPG for the Buckeyes last season, adding 1.8 three-pointers per game at a 38.2% success rate.

In a separate roster move, the Sixers intend to convert Jacob Pullen‘s NBA contract into a two-way deal, a source tells Derek Bodner of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Bodner, the guard’s original contract with Philadelphia included an Exhibit 10 clause, allowing the team to turn it into a two-way contract before the regular season begins.

Pullen will join former Warriors forward James McAdoo as the two-way players under contract with the Sixers.

Assuming the Sixers waive Loving shortly after signing him and formally convert Pullen’s contract to a two-way deal, the team should be set for the regular season, having reportedly waived three other players as well.

Pre-Draft Workouts: Hart, Smith Jr., Kennard, Adebayo

It’s that time of the summer, days until the NBA draft, when your favorite team is doing its due diligence and working out every prospect and his brother. Here is the latest in pre-draft workout news:

Southeast Notes: Millsap, White, Vasquez, NBA Draft

The Hawks are planning on using their 19th overall pick in the NBA Draft on the best player available and Paul Millsap‘s contract situation will not change that, per Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (links via Twitter).

Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk told Vivlamore for a separate story that Millsap “might get better offers than we can make him.” Despite Atlanta’s desire to retain the four-time All-Star, the team is focused on assembling the best roster possible and worry about Millsap — or replacing him — afterward.

“You draft the best talent available regardless who is on your roster. … I think that’s when you get in trouble, when you draft off need not off talent,” Schlenk said. “Especially the way the league is going where guys are interchangeable and guys are multi-positional, you just take the best player.”

The Hawks went 43-39 last season, making the postseason as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference. However, last year’s prized offseason acquisition Dwight Howard struggled in the postseason and expressed his issues with his lack of playing time; the team is also facing several potential departures in unrestricted free agency, such as Ersan Ilyasova, Kris Humphries and Mike Muscala. While those decisions will shape the 2017/18 Hawks, the club will look to attain the strongest asset in the NBA draft before worrying about anything else.

Below are notes from around the Southeast Division: