Is Pursuing A RFA Worth The Risk For Sixers?
The Sixers have said that their primary plan this summer is to re-sign both Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris. But, it’s been reported that both players are open to looking at other options (the Clippers, Knicks, Lakers, and Nets come to mind).
If Butler or Harris end up signing elsewhere, Bucks guard Malcolm Brogdon, Nets guard D’Angelo Russell, or Celtics guard Terry Rozier could be other options for Philadelphia. But, as Derek Bodner of The Athletic writes, pursuing a restricted free agent complicates matters.
In order to submit an offer sheet to Brogdon, Russell, or Rozier, the Sixers would first need to create the requisite cap space necessary to sign one of them. The cap holds of Butler and Harris combined with the 2019/20 salaries of Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons eat up just under $88.5MM of a projected $109MM cap, leaving a little more than $20.5MM in cap space. Adding in the $1MM in guaranteed salary owed to Jonathan Simmons, the salaries for Zhaire Smith and Jonah Bolden, and six incomplete roster holds equates to about $99.6MM.
Therefore, even if the Sixers renounced all of their free agents besides Butler and Harris (which seems unlikely given they would ideally like to re-sign J.J. Redick as well), renounced all their exceptions, and traded the No. 24 overall pick, they’d still only have about $9.4MM in cap space, which is likely not enough to offer Brogdon, Russell, or Rozier a contract commensurate with their value.
As such, the Sixers would ultimately need to also renounce their rights to Harris or Butler in order to pursue one of the aforementioned guards. They won’t do this with Butler, so it would have to be Harris. But here’s the risk: even if the Sixers negotiate a deal with Brogdon, Russell, or Rozier right at 6:00pm on June 30, the Bucks, Nets, or Celtics (all Eastern Conference rivals to the Sixers) would have until 12:00pm on July 8 – two days after the July moratorium ends – to decide whether to match the Sixers’ offer for Brogdon.
In other words, the two-day deadline to match an offer sheet does not commence until the moratorium is over, and you can be sure Milwaukee, Boston, or Brooklyn would take all of their allotted time. During the time period between the Sixers’ agreement with Brogdon, Russell, or Rozier and the opposing team’s ultimate decision – 7 days and 18 hours – the Sixers’ cap space would be completely tied up. It’s entirely possible that both Harris and Redick sign elsewhere during this time, as deals often get done at a breakneck speed during the first week of free agency.
If the Bucks, Nets, or Celtics decline to match, no harm done. But what if they match the offer sheet? The Sixers are left with a relatively significant amount of cap space with no free agents left to sign. And even if Harris and Redick are still available, they may be frustrated/resentful by the Sixers’ decision to go after Brogdon, Russell, or Rozier at their expense.
Ultimately, a decision like this comes down to how much the Sixers like the player for whom they’re incurring the risk. If the Sixers think Brogdon, Russell, Rozier, or any other restricted free agent can put them over the top, the risk may be worthwhile. If the player being pursued is just another piece, however, the risk is probably too much to bear.
Pau Gasol Wants To Continue Career, Possibly With Bucks
- Reiterating his stance from last fall, Pau Gasol told Jesus Perez Ramos of MundoDeportivo.com that he intends to continue his playing career in 2019/20, even after suffering a stress fracture in his foot. Gasol, who will be an unrestricted free agent, will see what happens in free agency, but expressed interest in sticking with the Bucks, a team he believes has championship potential (hat tip to Travis Durkee of Sporting News).
Bucks Meet With Louis King
- Oregon forward Louis King, ESPN’s No. 50 overall prospect, has met/interviewed with the Bucks again, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. King previously interviewed with Milwaukee brass at the pre-draft camp in Chicago.
Draft Updates: Green Room, Culver, Samanic, More
The NBA continues to invite potential first-round picks to the Green Room for next Thursday’s draft, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, who tweets that Nassir Little (UNC), Romeo Langford (Indiana), and Tyler Herro (Kentucky) were the next invitees after the initial nine-player group.
According to Givony (Twitter links), Rui Hachimura (Gonzaga), Brandon Clarke (Gonzaga), PJ Washington (Kentucky) also received Green Room invites, as did international prospect Sekou Doumbouya. That brings us to 16 prospects who are expected to be in the Green Room on draft night, with four others still expected to be invited, per Givony.
Here are a few more draft-related updates:
- Within his latest mock draft, Jeremy Woo of SI.com cites league sources who say that both the Suns and Hawks are high on Texas Tech swingman Jarrett Culver. However, it’s possible that neither team will have a shot at him without trading up — Woo has Culver coming off the board at No. 5 to the Cavaliers in his mock.
- Croatian forward Luka Samanic has a busy workout schedule, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link), who adds the Warriors and Spurs to the list of teams Samanic has auditioned for. He also has workouts lined up with the Hawks and Bucks.
- UCF guard Aubrey Dawkins has worked out for the Celtics, Pelicans, Knicks, and Raptors, and still has the Mavericks, Rockets, and Hornets on his workout schedule, tweets Josh Robbins of The Athletic.
- Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com (Twitter links) provides a pair of updates on pre-draft workouts for prospects, reporting that Chris Silva (South Carolina) is working out for the Heat and Spurs, while Shamorie Ponds (St. John’s) worked out for the Cavaliers and Mavericks and has the Sixers and Rockets on tap.
Grizzlies Hire Taylor Jenkins As Head Coach
2:21pm: The Grizzlies have officially confirmed that they’ve hired Jenkins as their new head coach.
“We are excited to welcome Taylor Jenkins to the Grizzlies organization,” Kleiman said in a statement. “Taylor has an excellent coaching pedigree and we are confident he will lay the groundwork of developing the young players on our roster while having the elite basketball acumen and forward-thinking positive vision to be a high-level NBA head coach.”
10:48am: The Grizzlies‘ lengthy coaching search has come to an end, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports that the club is hiring Bucks assistant Taylor Jenkins as its new head coach. Memphis had been the last NBA team with a head coaching vacancy.
Jenkins spent several seasons with the Spurs beginning in 2007, eventually being promoted to the head coach of the franchise’s G League team in Austin. Following his time in San Antonio, he joined Mike Budenholzer‘s staff in Atlanta, serving as a Hawks assistant beginning in 2013. A year ago, he made the move to Milwaukee, once again working under Budenholzer as an assistant for the Bucks.
As Wojnarowski points out, Jenkins will become the third NBA head coach to be hired directly off Budenholzer’s staff. Quin Snyder (Jazz) and Kenny Atkinson (Nets) were assistants in Atlanta before joining their current teams.
Jenkins, who met with the Grizzlies three times during their search process, per Wojnarowski, was one of several reported candidates to interview the position. Alex Jensen, Jarron Collins, Igor Kokoskov, Nate Tibbetts, and Adrian Griffin were among the others who spoke to Memphis about the job, while Sarunas Jasikevicius was said to have received consideration as well.
Word of J.B. Bickerstaff‘s dismissal broke on April 11, so the Grizzlies spent two months searching for his replacement. It’s the first major decision made by the new management group led by team president Jason Wexler and executive VP of basketball operations Zach Kleiman.
Jenkins will assume control of a Grizzlies team that appears headed for a rebuild around 2018’s No. 4 overall pick Jaren Jackson Jr. and 2019’s probable No. 2 overall pick Ja Morant. Franchise point guard Mike Conley remains under contract for two years, but he’s expected to be a trade candidate this summer if Memphis looks to reboot around its young cornerstones.
Lakers, Knicks Top Anthony Davis’ Wish List
Anthony Davis is focused on joining either the Lakers or Knicks as his long-term destination, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports.
Davis, who can become a free agent next summer, has not formally told Pelicans executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin that he has narrowed his list. Davis submitted a four-team list to the Pelicans in February that also included the Clippers and Bucks.
Griffin met with Davis and his agent, Rich Paul, late last month in an effort to convince Davis to remain with the Pelicans. However, Davis’ desire to be dealt remained unchanged and Griffin has accelerated trade talks.
Several teams have expressed an interest in trading for Davis, according to Charania, including the Lakers, Clippers, Knicks, Nets and Celtics. An ESPN report surfaced earlier on Monday that Griffin is willing to involve third parties in trade discussions in order to maximize the package New Orleans would receive.
Charania’s report suggests that Paul is attempting to steer those discussions toward the Lakers and Knicks. If those franchises know that Davis is willing to commit to them long-term, they obviously have more incentive to do everything they can to acquire the superstar big man.
Even so, other suitors — including the Celtics — are aggressively pursuing Davis despite not being one of his preferred teams. The Celtics are apparently willing to deal for Davis regardless of where Kyrie Irving ends up in free agency, Charania continues.
Griffin could hold onto Davis into next month with the hope of getting a desperate team that missed on its free agent targets to up the ante, Charania adds.
Team USA Announces 20-Player Camp Roster For World Cup
USA Basketball has officially announced the group of 20 players that will participate in training camp this summer in advance of the 2019 FIBA World Cup. The camp will take place from August 5-9, and will be used to select the 12-man roster for this year’s World Cup in China.
The 20-man training camp roster is as follows:
- Harrison Barnes (Kings)
- Bradley Beal (Wizards)
- Anthony Davis (Pelicans)
- Andre Drummond (Pistons)
- Eric Gordon (Rockets)
- James Harden (Rockets)
- Tobias Harris (Sixers / FA)
- Kyle Kuzma (Lakers)
- Damian Lillard (Trail Blazers)
- Brook Lopez (Bucks / FA)
- Kevin Love (Cavaliers)
- Kyle Lowry (Raptors)
- CJ McCollum (Trail Blazers)
- Khris Middleton (Bucks)
- Paul Millsap (Nuggets)
- Donovan Mitchell (Jazz)
- Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
- Myles Turner (Pacers)
- P.J. Tucker (Rockets)
- Kemba Walker (Hornets / FA)
“I am excited about getting to training camp in August and working with all of the players that have been selected to attend the USA National Team training camp in Las Vegas,” Team USA head coach Gregg Popovich said in a statement. “We’ve got an excellent cross-section of veteran USA Basketball and NBA players, as well as some exciting younger players who possess amazing versatility.
“I’m appreciative of commitment that our National Team players continue to make, and the eagerness of the new players to become involved,” Popovich continued. “Selecting a 12-man team will be extremely difficult.”
It will be an eventful summer for many of the players on the 20-man Team USA training camp roster. Besides Harris, Lopez, and Walker, who are all headed for unrestricted free agency and could be on new teams by August, players like Barnes, Middleton, and Millsap could reach the open market if their player or team options are declined. Others – including Davis, Gordon, Kuzma, Tatum, and Tucker – have been mentioned in trade rumors.
Kuzma and Mitchell are the only players on the roster who haven’t played internationally for Team USA in the past. Five player on the roster (Barnes, Davis, Harden, Love, and Lowry) have won gold medals for USA Basketball at the 2012 or 2016 Olympics, while two others (Drummond and Gordon) have taken home gold at previous World Cups.
Previous reports indicated that Zion Williamson, John Collins, and Marvin Bagley are expected to be among the players named to a 10-man select team that will scrimmage with Team USA’s 20-man roster at the training camp in August.
Warriors Notes: Durant, Thompson, Gay, Lopez
Kevin Durant‘s return appears to be the only thing that can save the Warriors in the NBA Finals, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Golden State’s hopes for a three-peat are fragile as they head to Toronto with a 3-1 deficit. Injuries have hampered the Warriors throughout the playoffs, but the Raptors are the first team to fully take advantage.
There’s no guarantee Durant will return in time to make a difference and there’s not much evidence his condition has improved significantly since he suffered what was called a “mild” calf strain in the conference semifinals. Coach Steve Kerr told reporters last night that he will no longer provide daily updates on Durant’s condition.
“We’re hoping he can play Game 5 or 6,” Kerr said. “And everything in between I’ve decided I’m not sharing because it’s just gone haywire. There’s so much going on, and so it doesn’t make sense to continue to talk about it. He’s either going to play or he’s not.”
There’s more news on the two-time defending champs:
- Since the injury occurred, the Warriors haven’t put a timeline on Durant’s return other than to say they’re optimistic he will be back, notes Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News. Kerr is leaving all decisions to the medical staff, which has determined that Durant isn’t in condition to play. Medina observes that a mild calf strain would be considered Grade 1, which have a seven- to 10-day recovery time. It’s more likely Durant has a Grade 2 condition, which would sideline him for four to six weeks. He suffered the injury exactly a month ago.
- Medina identifies Rudy Gay and Brook Lopez as upcoming free agents who might be willing to take the Warriors’ $5.3MM taxpayer mid-level exception for next season. He adds that Golden State will re-sign Klay Thompson “for sure” and will take advantage of Kevon Looney‘s Bird Rights to keep him.
- Problems at center are among the reasons for the 3-1 deficit, contends Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports. He calls DeMarcus Cousins “a disaster” in Game 4, unable to keep up with the Raptors after returning from a first-round quad injury. Looney, playing with a costal cartilage fracture, didn’t contribute much after halftime, leaving 34-year-old Andrew Bogut as the best choice in the middle.
Matur Maker To Visit Bucks
- Matur Maker, the younger brother of Thon Maker, has a visit on tap with Thon’s former team, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington, who tweets that Matur will work out for the Bucks.
Draft Notes: Culver, Fall, Edwards, Clarke
Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver made his case to be drafted third overall during a workout today with the Knicks, relays Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Calling himself “an elite two-way player,” Culver told reporters his defensive abilities separate him from other top prospects.
“Nowadays, it’s hard to find people who take pride in defense. But I’m one of them,” he said. “I take pride in defense. Being at Texas Tech taught me a lot, so I feel like on the defensive side I’m elite.”
Most mock drafts have Duke’s R.J. Barrett headed to New York, following Duke’s Zion Williamson and Murray State’s Ja Morant off the board. Culver said he’s confident in what he has to offer and doesn’t compare himself to Barrett.
“I feel like we’re great players, both of us,” Culver said. “He has a lot of talent, I have a lot of talent. And at the end of the day it’s not our choice where we go, it’s for everybody else to choose. So we just put in the work. I know he’s working hard, I’m working hard. So it is what it is.”
Culver already had a workout with the Lakers, who hold the No. 4 selection, and he has sessions scheduled with the next three teams in the draft, the Cavaliers, Suns and Bulls.
There’s more draft news tonight:
- Central Florida’s Tacko Fall wasn’t able to participate in shooting drills with the Pacers today after rolling his ankle earlier in the workout, writes Wheat Hotchkiss of NBA.com. The injury doesn’t sound serious and the 7’7″ center made an impression by towering over his workout partners. “Whenever people see me, it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, he’s tall, but can he play?,'” Fall said. “It’s something that I had to work on. I have worked really hard. I have great people around me that have helped me become the player I am today. I just have to keep working.” Others at the session included Indiana’s Juwan Morgan, Florida State’s Mfiondu Kabengele and Clemson’s Elijah Thomas.
- Purdue’s Carsen Edwards, who worked out for the Sixers today, has also been through sessions with the Pacers, Jazz and Nets, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He has upcoming workouts set with the Bucks, Celtics and Thunder.
- Gonzaga’s Brandon Clarke has worked out for several teams already and has sessions scheduled with the Celtics, Nets, Bulls, Pistons and Timberwolves, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).