- Bucks guard Jrue Holiday was declared inactive on Monday due to the league’s health and safety protocols, Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets.
FEBRUARY 8: The deal is official, the Knicks announced (via Twitter).
FEBRUARY 7, 2:50pm: The two teams are in agreement, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). The Knicks are acquiring Rose from the Pistons in exchange for Smith and Charlotte’s 2021 second-rounder.
12:11pm: Derrick Rose is set to be reunited with the Knicks and with his former Bulls and Timberwolves head coach Tom Thibodeau. New York is nearing an agreement to acquire Rose from the Pistons in exchange for Dennis Smith Jr. and future draft equity, per James Edwards III and Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Steve Popper of Newsday tweets that the draft pick being sent to the Pistons in the Rose deal will not be the Pistons’ own 2021 second-round pick that the Knicks possess, but could be the 2021 second-round pick that the Hornets owe the Knicks.
News on the exact terms of the trade have yet to be announced. How adding Rose, a savvy veteran scoring point guard with a defined ceiling, will impact the still-developing Knicks’ rotation will be interesting to see. Fan favorite rookie Immanuel Quickley and off-guard Austin Rivers may be especially liable to feel the squeeze, but whether Thibodeau opts to start Rose in place of the more defensively-oriented Elfrid Payton is unclear.
The upstart Knicks are currently the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference with an 11-13 record. Offloading future draft picks for a 32-year-old veteran in a move to improve the current on-court product is a curious decision for a club that had very much been prioritizing young players this season. Even All-Star hopeful Julius Randle is only 26.
The Knicks were not the only team in the market for Rose’s services this season. The Clippers, Heat, Bucks, and Nets were apparently all interested in dealing for Rose, per Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
Charania adds (via Twitter) that Rose and the Pistons mutually agreed a trade was in both sides’ best interests. The Knicks had been floated as Rose’s “preferred destination” due to his familiarity with Thibodeau and his tenure with the team in 2016/17, his last season as a full-time starter.
Rose is in the final season of a two-year, $15MM contract he inked with Detroit in the summer of 2019. Across 22.8 MPG, Rose has been averaging 14.2 PPG, 4.2 APG, and 1.9 RPG in 15 games for the 5-18 Pistons, the worst team in the Eastern Conference.
Smith, meanwhile, has dropped out of the Knicks’ rotation. He has appeared in just three games for the Knicks this season, but could be counted on to play a bigger role for the Pistons. With 2020 No. 7 lottery pick Killian Hayes injured for the immediate future, Delon Wright has assumed Detroit’s starting point guard duties. In the absence of Hayes, two-way rookie Saben Lee had emerged as the the third pure point guard option behind Rose.
Both Rose and Smith will be free agents at season’s end — Smith is eligible for restricted free agency, though it would require a $7MM qualifying offer from Detroit. The Pistons will have his full Bird rights, while the Knicks will have Rose’s Early Bird rights.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Billy Donovan isn’t ready to change his starting point guard, but the Bulls coach expects more playing time for Tomas Satoransky now that he has returned from his second COVID-19 experience, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Satoransky was sidelined earlier in the season due to contact tracing, then tested positive for the virus later. Saturday marked his fifth game back, and his playing time has been gradually increasing.
“I think he’s getting his legs back under him, he’s trying to find himself, but each game I think he’s out there playing I think he’ll be more and more comfortable,’’ Donovan said.
There might be temptation to move Satoransky into the starting lineup in place of Coby White, who’s shooting 40% from the field and struggling as a lead guard, but Donovan remains committed to developing White as the long-term answer at point guard.
“Is it a situation where maybe you bring Sato in a little bit earlier? You stagger those guys? But I’m not at a point where I just say, ‘Hey, listen we’re done with him.’ I wouldn’t do that. I think he’s too important to our team,” Donovan said. “He does compete, I trust him in that area. I just think he’s a guy that’s 20 years old, and there’s going to be some of these moments where he’s going to be up and down.’’
There’s more from the Central Division:
- The Bulls drafted Patrick Williams for his defensive prowess, but injuries may force them to rely on him for more scoring, notes Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic. Williams is one of seven rookies in a regular starting role, but he’s only ninth on the team at 29.7 touches per game. “They just say whatever I do, be confident in it 100%,” Williams said. “They have confidence in me in whatever I decide to do, whether it’s drive or shoot. Just whatever I do, be 100% confident and don’t be in the middle.”
- Bobby Portis is excelling with the Bucks’ second unit, writes Spencer Davies of Basketball News. Portis, who signed as a free agent during the offseason, enjoys changing the atmosphere of a game. “I think the last three, four years of my career, I’ve kinda found the niche of coming in and bringing energy off the bench,” he said. “Just knowing if the game’s up and down or if our team needs energy, being that sparkplug that the team needs.”
- Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, who has been limited to two games this season because of a calf injury, went through a pre-game workout Saturday for the first time in more than a month, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. No date has been set for him to return.
The Bucks have assigned 2020 draftees Jordan Nwora and Sam Merrill to the G League bubble and transferred two-way player Mamadi Diakite there as well, the team announced today in a press release.
Because the Wisconsin Herd are inactive this season, the three Bucks rookies will be split up, with Nwora joining the Salt Lake City Stars, Merrill reporting to the Memphis Hustle, and Diakite heading to the Lakeland Magic. While any of the three could be recalled to the NBA roster in the coming weeks, we don’t expect to see a ton of the usual back-and-forth this season, given the coronavirus-related complications.
- The Bucks have submitted a plan to the City of Milwaukee in the hopes of receiving approval to fill Fiserv Forum to 25% capacity for games starting later this month (Twitter link via Eric Nehm of The Athletic). So far this season, there have been no fans permitted at Bucks home games.
Throughout the season, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents this off-season. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Central Division:
Wayne Ellington, Pistons, 33, SG (Up) – Signed to a one-year, $2.56MM deal in 2020
What has gotten into Ellington? Signed to add some depth at the shooting guard spot, Ellington has emerged as a starter and is on the hottest 3-point roll of his career. He’s knocked down at least four long balls and scored at least 16 points in each of the last seven games. Overall, he’s averaging a career-best 13.4 PPG in 24.2 MPG while making 53.2% of his 3-point attempts. Obviously, he’s not going to sustain this pace but at the least, Ellington has shown he can still help a team with his perimeter shooting.
Andre Drummond, Cavaliers, 27, C (Up) – Signed to a five-year, $127.2MM deal in 2016
Sometimes people tend to dwell on a player’s shortcomings and forget about the positives. The Pistons basically gave away Drummond to a division rival last February to clear cap space. Yes, he can’t shoot from outside and he’s brutal at the foul line but what’s so bad about having the best rebounder on the planet on your side? Drummond is averaging a career-high 18.9 PPG with the aid of two young guards breaking down defenses. With the addition of Jarrett Allen, he’s probably not in the Cavs’ long-term plans. He’s not a max player but Drummond is still one of the league’s top big men and he’ll get a strong multi-year contract despite his flaws.
Tomas Satoransky, Bulls, 29, PG/SG (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $30MM deal in 2019
Chicago has an interesting dilemma with Satoransky following the season if it’s unable to move him in a trade. His $10MM salary for next season is 50% guaranteed. The Bulls would have to eat $5MM in dead money to cut him loose but Satoransky’s status with the organization has fallen. He was once viewed as its potential solution at point guard. Right now, he’s struggling just to stay in the rotation. If he winds up in the free agent market, Satornasky won’t be viewed as more than a second-unit option.
Bobby Portis, Bucks, 25, PF (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $7.4MM deal in 2020
Portis has a $3.8MM player option on his contract for next season. The way he’s playing, he’ll certainly decline it and take his chances on the free agent market. Portis has been a solid addition for a title contender, establishing himself as the team’s sixth man. He’s averaging 10.9 PPG and is second on the team in rebounding (7.7 RPG), while his PER ranks third on the team. Portis’ offensive production has dipped some in the last two weeks but he still had a 21-point outing against Atlanta on Sunday.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
The NBA and NBPA have reached a stalemate in their negotiations for the possible addition of an 18th roster spot for teams in 2020/21, reports Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).
Word broke nearly two weeks ago that the league and the players’ union were discussing the possibility of adding a third two-way contract slot. Currently, clubs are permitted to carry up to 15 players on standard contracts and two on two-way deals, for a total of 17.
The idea, which was previously said to be gaining some momentum, was broached at a time when a series of games were being postponed because teams didn’t have the required minimum of eight players available.
According to Stein (Twitter link), the league has maintained that if an 18th roster spot is added, it should be a third two-way slot only open to players with fewer than four years of NBA experience, as the other two-way slots are. The players’ union wants that 18th spot to be open to all veteran free agents.
Stein adds (via Twitter) that there’s some concern that adding an 18th roster spot open to any veteran free agent would give a competitive advantage to hard-capped teams (such as the Lakers, Clippers, and Bucks), allowing them to add another quality player despite their current financial constraints.
A player on a two-way contract this season is earning a $449K salary (half of the rookie minimum) and doesn’t count against his team’s salary cap.
- Despite slightly changing their approach, the Bucks are still one of the league’s top offensive teams — even as Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s numbers have dipped a little, Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes. Milwaukee currently leads the NBA in offensive efficiency with 117.9 points per 100 possessions. “It’s weird, it’s weird, but as I said, I’m figuring it out,” Antetokounmpo said. “I’d love to come out and have 30, 35 and it be easy. Easy layups and dunks and all that. But having somebody in ‘the dunker’ might make it a little bit harder. But at the end of the day, you gotta do other things to impact the game. Find your teammates. Set better screens. Go for handoffs. Roll when you set screens. You just gotta find ways.”
The game between the Wizards and Bucks that was scheduled to be played on Friday in Milwaukee has been postponed, the NBA announced tonight (Twitter link).
It’s the sixth consecutive postponement for the Wizards, who haven’t played since January 11. The team was cleared to return to the court to practice on Wednesday, but remains significantly shorthanded.
Deni Avdija, Davis Bertans, Troy Brown, Rui Hachimura, Ish Smith, and Moritz Wagner are out due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, while Thomas Bryant (ACL) and Russell Westbrook (quad) are sidelined due to injuries, leaving just eight available players on the roster (Twitter link).
According to the NBA’s announcement, the game is being postponed due to the number of unavailable players for the Wizards, contact tracing affecting players on the roster, and the club’s lengthy layoff from practicing.
As Fred Katz of The Athletic wrote earlier tonight, Bradley Beal and the Wizards had been planning to lobby for a postponement of Friday’s game, since they felt that potentially playing with the league-mandated minimum of eight players after not practicing for the last week would result in a high risk of injury for the active players.
The next game on Washington’s schedule is Sunday in San Antonio. The hope is that the Wizards will have enough available players – and enough practice time between now and then – to be ready to play that game.
The NBA has now postponed 17 contests this season. The full list is here.
After the NBA’s transactions wire remained relatively quiet for the first few weeks of the 2020/21 season, teams have begun making moves with a little more frequency as of late.
While one recent transaction – the four-team trade that sent James Harden to Brooklyn – was clearly a higher-impact move than the rest, a number of clubs have made smaller changes to their rosters by waiving players this week. The Raptors and Wizards cut big men Alex Len and Anzejs Pasecniks from their 15-man rosters, while the Sixers opened up a two-way slot by releasing Dakota Mathias.
As a result, there are now 12 teams across the NBA that have at least one open 15-man roster spot. One of those teams – the Trail Blazers – also has an open two-way contract slot, as do two others, leaving just 16 clubs who are carrying the maximum of 17 players.
With so many clubs facing roster shortages recently and the NBA and NBPA discussing the possibility of adding a third two-way slot to rosters for the rest of the season, it’s a little surprising that more teams aren’t making use of all 17 available spots, but it will likely just be a matter of time before those many of those openings get filled.
Here’s the current breakdown of teams with open roster spots:
Teams with an open 15-man roster spot:
- Brooklyn Nets
- Note: The Nets have three open roster spots and will need to fill at least two of them within two weeks of completing the Harden trade.
- Charlotte Hornets
- Los Angeles Clippers *
- Los Angeles Lakers *
- Milwaukee Bucks *
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Portland Trail Blazers
- San Antonio Spurs
- Toronto Raptors
- Utah Jazz
- Washington Wizards
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes that the team can’t currently sign a 15th man due to the hard cap.
Teams with an open two-way slot:
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Phoenix Suns
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Reigning two-time Bucks MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo has developed a strong on-court rapport with new reserve guard Bryn Forbes, highlighted by a flashy inverted pick-and-roll action, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “It’s a play that works,” Antetokounmpo said. “If you don’t stay in front of me, I’m going to try to go downhill and if somebody else comes, the corner is wide-open.”