Central Notes: Buzelis, Niang, Gunn, McCaffery
Bulls forward Matas Buzelis will make his debut with the Lithuanian national team this summer, according to BasketNews.
Lithuania has a pair of qualifying games for the 2027 FIBA World Cup in early July. The team will face Great Britain on July 2 and Italy on July 5.
While the 21-year-old said he’d like to play for Lithuania during the second qualifying window in August, his availability for those contests is up in the air.
“For now, I’m still not sure whether I will play in the second window,” Buzelis said, per BasketNews. “I like to finish what I start, but the Bulls will make the decision. We’ll see, but as I said, I like to finish what I start.”
Here’s more from around the Central Division:
- Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson was in Venice, Italy this week to watch draft-and-stash prospect Saliou Niang compete in the semifinals of the Lega Basket Serie A playoffs, writes Iacopo De Santis of PianetaBasket.com. Cleveland drafted Niang with the 58th overall pick in the 2025 draft. The 22-year-old forward has spent the 2025/26 season with Virtus Bologna, which is currently facing a 1-2 deficit its playoff series vs. Reyer Venizia. Niang averaged 7.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 0.9 steals in 21.7 minutes per game across 38 EuroLeague appearances this season.
- Indianapolis native CJ Gunn, who completed his senior season with DePaul in March, spoke to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files about working out for the Pacers on Wednesday and beginning his professional career. The 6’6″ wing spent a few weeks this spring playing for the Calgary Surge in the Canadian Elite Basketball League before taking part in the pre-draft process. Gunn told Agness he’s been leaning on veteran NBA guard Gary Harris, another local product, for advice. “Our families are real close-knit so he’s like my cousin,” said Gunn. “I go over to his house every weekend to work with him. After we get done working out and be able to sit down, have conversations about him or what coaches are looking for this whole process, his mindset when he was in it. And just him being a vet and being able to be in that moment and to pick his mind and to be a sponge. He’s definitely given me a lot of a lot of advice.”
- Connor McCaffery is rejoining the Pacers organization as a player development assistant with the Noblesville Boom, the team’s G League affiliate, Agness reports (via Twitter). A former Iowa Hawkeye, McCaffery spent the 2023/24 campaign in what he described as an “entry-level” job with the Pacers. He has spent the past two seasons in a coaching role at Butler, Agness notes.
Bulls Adding Alex Kaufman, Jarrett Sutton To Front Office
The Bulls plan to hire Alex Kaufman to be the new general manager of their G League affiliate, the Windy City Bulls, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (via Twitter).
Chicago also intends to make a second addition to its front office, according to Scotto, who hears Jarrett Sutton is joining the organization as a scout. Sutton himself confirmed the news via his Twitter page.
Kaufman spent the 2025/26 campaign as GM of the Pelicans‘ G League affiliate, which is now known as the Laketown Squadron. The New Orleans native was promoted at least three times during his tenure with the Pelicans, which spanned seven seasons.
A Kansas City native who played four years of college basketball at Missouri, Sutton is another longtime former Pelicans employee, most recently acting as a scout.
New Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Bryson Graham is familiar with both Kaufman and Sutton, Scotto notes, having worked with them for six years in New Orleans. Graham steadily worked his way up the ranks over the course of 15 seasons with the Pelicans prior to joining the Hawks’ front office in the 2025 offseason.
Pelicans’ G League Affiliate Hires Thomas Scott As GM
The Pelicans‘ G League affiliate, the Laketown Squadron, has named Thomas Scott as its new general manager, the team announced (via Twitter).
Scott has held a variety of positions in professional basketball over the years, per the statement, working in player development, basketball operations, coaching, and talent evaluation. He was most recently director of basketball operations for the BIG3 league and an assistant coach with the now-defunct G League Ignite.
Scott got his NBA start as an assistant video coordinator with the New Orleans Hornets and was also a player development coach with the Cavaliers and Lakers. He has extensive coaching experience at the NBAGL level, including stops with five different organizations.
The Laketown Squadron recently rebranded because the team is relocating from Birmingham, Alabama (over 300 miles from New Orleans) to Kenner, Louisiana (about 13 miles from New Orleans) ahead of the 2026/27 season. The Squadron released a Q&A with Scott, whose father is former NBA player and head coach Byron Scott.
“I’m incredibly excited and grateful for this opportunity. This is very sentimental to me because this is where my basketball journey began,” the younger Scott said. “I attended college here and started my NBA career working in the Hornets’ video room. My goal is to create something special for the fans of New Orleans, and it’s truly difficult to put into words how much this opportunity means to me.”
Pacers Notes: Zubac, First-Round Picks, Sharp, Taylor
The Pacers saw a big hole in their lineup after Myles Turner signed with Milwaukee. That’s why they acquired center Ivica Zubac from the Clippers in February, even though they wound up losing a lottery pick in this year’s draft.
“You look at these teams that are still playing (in the playoffs), they all have very, very good starting fives. You’ve gotta have five good starters to go deep into the playoffs,” Pacers general manager Chad Buchanan told The Ride With JMV (107.5 The Fan) as relayed by Tony East of Forbes.com. “We can’t go out there with maybe a hole at one of those positions and expect to compete for a championship.”
The fact that Zubac has a cap hit under $22MM to next two seasons and the Pacers didn’t have to give up any core players in the deal made the move more attractive to Indiana’s brass, according to Buchanan.
“This was all of us on board with this (trade). Like I said, we’re still excited about this group. Nothing’s changed,” he said. “Some of the other options moving forward, if (we’d) have waited until this summer, (were) going to require (us), because of where we’re at cap wise, to sacrifice some of (our) core players. And we just didn’t want to do that. With Tyrese (Haliburton) coming back and Pascal (Siakam) still in his prime, we didn’t want to keep the status quo going into next year,” he added. “We’re big fans of Zu. Still are. That’s why we made the trade.”
Here’s more on the Pacers:
- While Indiana lost its lottery pick, the team still has five first-rounders over the next six seasons to use as bargaining chips in a trade –they own first-rounders in 2027, 2028, 2030, 2031, and 2032, East points out. The Pacers cannot trade their 2027 first-round pick right now, but will be able to do so after this month’s draft is over. Also, once the draft ends, teams will be able to move their 2033 first-round picks. “We have some flexibility. We have five of our next six years [of first-round draft picks],” president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard said. “Some of those trades where it’s four and five and six picks, they’re out. They’re done. They’ve shoved their chips in and they’re done. And we’ve got a full slate, five out of six.”
- Speaking of this year’s draft, Houston Cougars guard Emanuel Sharp visited the Pacers for a workout last weekend, East tweets. The Pacers currently don’t own a pick, but that didn’t dissuade Sharp from working out for the club. “Everywhere you go, you’re being evaluated. That’s how I approach it. It’s not whether the team has a draft pick,” he said. Sharp is ranked No. 45 overall on ESPN’s Best Available list.
- The Pacers’ G League affiliate, the Noblesville Boom, announced Monday that assistant coach Bryce Taylor has been promoted to head coach, the Indianapolis Star’s Dustin Dopirak reports. He succeeds Tom Hankins, who has coached the team since 2021 when it was still the Fort Wayne Mad Ants. Taylor has been an assistant with the G League affiliate for the last three seasons.
Kings Name Saagar Sarin GM Of G League Affiliate
Saagar Sarin will be the new general manager of the Stockton Kings, Sacramento’s NBA G League affiliate announced in a press release.
Sarin is currently Sacramento’s senior director of pro personnel, an expansive scouting role, and he will continue in that job on top of being Stockton’s GM.
A California native, Sarin got his NBA start with Houston, spending three years with the Rockets (from 2016-19) prior to a two-year stint with Minnesota (2019-21). The 31-year-old has been with the Kings for the last five years.
Sarin, whose educational background is in business, statistics and analytics, will take over a G League club that has had a lot of success in recent years. Stockton won the NBAGL championship in 2025 and lost in the 2026 finals last month.
Lakers Relocating G League Team To Coachella Valley
The South Bay Lakers will become the Coachella Valley Lakers for the 2026/27 season, according to a press release from the team.
The Lakers‘ G League affiliate, which has played its games in recent years at the UCLA Health Training Center (also the NBA team’s practice facility) in El Segundo, will call the Greater Palm Springs region home beginning next season and will host games at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert.
“Moving the Lakers G League team to the Coachella Valley is an incredible opportunity for the organization,” Lakers president of business operations Lon Rosen said in a statement. “The Lakers have had a strong presence in the region for decades, from the Showtime Lakers holding training camp in the 1980s to more recent preseason games. We are looking forward to extending that experience and becoming a staple for Coachella Valley sports and entertainment. Acrisure Arena is the perfect modern venue that provides an incredible fan-first experience, while ensuring players have the premium facilities and space they need on game day.”
Generally, when an NBA team relocates its G League affiliate, the goal is to move it closer to where the NBA franchise operates, which makes it easier to shuttle players back and forth between the two squads and for G League players to have access to NBA staffers and amenities.
However, the South Bay Lakers’ home arena was one of the smallest buildings in the G League, with a reported seating capacity of 750, whereas the team’s new home in Palm Desert is a newer arena with a far greater capacity — it opened in December 2022 and can hold 11,000+ fans.
As Dan Woike of The Athletic points out (via Twitter), the Lakers’ NBA and G League teams still won’t be too far apart geographically, and it’s a good opportunity for the franchise to expand their market, engage with more fans, and add a new revenue stream.
In their last season as the South Bay Lakers, the squad posted a 26-10 regular season record and earned the top seed in the NBAGL’s Western Conference. However, South Bay was eliminated in the conference finals by the Stockton Kings.
Hornets’ Affiliate Wins G League Title, Evbuomwan Named Finals MVP
The Hornets‘ G League team, the Greensboro Swarm, denied Sacramento’s affiliate a second consecutive title on Friday, winning the second game of the best-of-three series over the Stockton Kings to win the 2026 NBAGL Finals in a sweep.
After winning Game 1 of the series on Wednesday by a score of 111-107, the Swarm registered a 119-104 victory on Friday in the final game of the G League’s 2025/26 season to earn the organization’s first NBAGL championship.
Hornets two-way player Tosan Evbuomwan was named the G League Finals Most Valuable Player after scoring a team-high 22 points on Friday to go along with seven rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals. In the first game, he contributed 15 points and was a plus-13.
A third-year forward who has previously appeared in NBA games for Memphis, Detroit, Brooklyn, and New York, Evbuomwan didn’t play at all for Charlotte after signing with the team on February 6, but his two-way deal covers two seasons, so the Hornets will have the option of keeping him on the roster to open the 2026/27 season.
Other key contributors for Charlotte’s affiliate in the G League Finals included 2024 lottery pick Tidjane Salaun, who had a double-double in both Game 1 (10 points, 10 rebounds) and Game 2 (19 points, 10 rebounds); 2025 first-rounder Liam McNeeley, who averaged 17.5 PPG in the series; and two-way player Antonio Reeves, who had five three-pointers in Friday’s deciding game.
Salaun has a guaranteed $8.2MM salary for 2026/27 and the Hornets will have to decide by the end of October whether or not to exercise his $10.4MM option for ’27/28. McNeeley’s rookie contract runs through ’28/29, with a decision on his $3MM option for ’26/27 also due on October 31. Reeves, meanwhile, will be a restricted free agent this summer if Charlotte decides to issue him a two-way qualifying offer.
Veteran wing DaQuan Jeffries (26.0 PPG) and shooting guard Dexter Dennis (24.0 PPG) were Stockton’s leading scorers in the two-game series. Neither player is currently under contract with Sacramento.
Westchester Knicks’ Dink Pate Commits To Providence
Former G League Ignite guard/forward Dink Pate, who played for the Westchester Knicks this season, has committed to Providence, agent Sam Permut tells Jeff Borzello of ESPN (Twitter link).
Kentucky, Alabama, NC State and Georgia had been recruiting Pate as well, tweets Jeff Goodman of Field of 68.
According to Borzello, Pate turned down 10-day and two-way contract opportunities from NBA teams with an eye on maintaining his college eligibility. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress reported in January that the 20-year-old had declined multiple two-way offers.
Pate, who suited up for the Mexico City Capitanes in 2024/25, averaged 16.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 0.9 steals in 50 total games (31.9 minutes per contest) for Westchester in ’25/26. His shooting slash line was .400/.346/.740, with most of his field goal attempts coming from three-point range.
As Givony wrote a few months ago, Pate graduated high school in 2023, which could put him in position to receive at least two seasons of NCAA eligibility, beginning next season. However, it’s unclear whether or not the 6’8″ swingman will be granted eligibility based on the NCAA’s current rules.
Like former second-round pick James Nnaji, who enrolled at Baylor this winter, Pate declared for – and kept his name in – an NBA draft (in 2025). However, unlike Nnaji, Pate has since signed an NBA contract, having completed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Knicks this past September.
NCAA president Charlie Baker said in December after Nnaji joined the Bears that any player who has signed an NBA deal, “including a two-way contract,” would not be permitted to play NCAA basketball. Baker’s comments in December didn’t clarify whether the NCAA views Exhibit 10 contracts as disqualifying. Exhibit 10 deals are non-guaranteed and only put a player in line for a modest bonus if he subsequently spends at least 60 days with his team’s G League affiliate.
And-Ones: NBA Awards Picks, G League Awards
Reigning Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander claims two awards on the unofficial ballot of Dan Devine of Yahoo Sports: MVP and Clutch Player of the Year.
To be clear, Devine does have an official vote for year-end awards, but those ballots aren’t sent out until the regular season concludes on April 12. Devine also notes that he may be forced to change some of his picks, depending on which players are eligible.
Victor Wembanyama, for example, needs to play at least 20 minutes in one of San Antonio’s remaining two games to be eligible for awards consideration. The French big man is Devine’s choice for Defensive Player of the Year and is his runner-up for MVP, ahead of Nikola Jokic.
Kon Knueppel (Rookie of the Year) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Most Improved Player) are a couple of Devine’s other awards picks.
Here are a few more awards-related stories and announcements:
- There’s quite a bit of overlap between Devine’s awards picks and the tentative selections of Zach Harper of The Athletic. Both writers have Joe Mazzulla, J.B. Bickerstaff and Mitch Johnson as the three finalists, in order of how they finish, for Coach of the Year, and Keldon Johnson, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Tim Hardaway Jr. as their top three picks for Sixth Man of the Year.
- Michael Pina of The Ringer lists his three All-NBA, two All-Defensive, and two All-Rookie teams. Pina’s first-team All-NBA picks are Kawhi Leonard, Jaylen Brown, Gilgeous-Alexander, Wembanyama and Jokic; his All-Defensive First Team selections are Wembanyama, Derrick White, Scottie Barnes, Ausar Thompson and Chet Holmgren; and his top-five rookies are Knueppel, Cooper Flagg, VJ Edgecombe, Dylan Harper and Derik Queen.
- The NBA G League has announced its All-Defensive and All-Rookie teams, which are each comprised of five players (Twitter links via the NBA). The All-Defensive selections are Jamarion Sharp (Texas Legends), Chris Manon (South Bay Lakers), Alijah Martin (Raptors 905), Andersson Garcia (Mexico City Capitanes) and Jalen Slawson (Noblesville Boom), while the All-Rookie team consists of Raptors 905 standout Martin, Norchad Omier and Sean Pedulla of the San Diego Clippers, Keshon Gilbert (College Park Skyhawks) and RJ Davis (South Bay Lakers). Martin, Manon, Slawson (Pacers), Omier and Pedulla are on two-way contracts with their respective NBA teams.
NBA G League Announces 2025/26 All-NBAGL Teams
Four days after being named the 2025/26 NBA G League Most Valuable Player, Bulls two-way guard Mac McClung has also earned a spot on the All-NBAGL first team, the league announced (all Twitter links).
McClung, who averaged 31.8 points, 7.9 assists, and 3.6 rebounds per game on .515/.381/.775 shooting in 29 regular season outings for Windy City, headlines that five-man group of G League standouts along with Rockets two-way player Tristen Newton and NBA veteran DaQuan Jeffries, who finished second and third, respectively, in MVP voting.
Newton, who made five appearances for the Iowa Wolves before joining the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for 30 more games, registered averages of 25.6 PPG, 5.2 RPG, and 4.5 APG with a .480/.376/.859 shooting line. Jeffries, who had a brief NBA stint this season on a 10-day contract with Sacramento, made 28 regular season appearances for the Stockton Kings and contributed 23.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG, and 2.4 APG with an excellent shooting line of .515/.436/.831.
Pistons two-way player Isaac Jones and veteran NBA guard Lester Quinones round out the All-G League first team.
The complete breakdown of the 2025/26 All-NBA G League teams is below. Players who are currently on standard NBA contracts are noted with an asterisk (*), while those on two-way contracts are noted with a caret (^).
All-NBAGL First Team
- DaQuan Jeffries (Stockton Kings)
- Isaac Jones (Motor City Cruise) ^
- Mac McClung (Windy City Bulls) ^
- Tristen Newton (Rio Grande Valley Vipers) ^
- Lester Quinones (Osceola Magic)
All-NBAGL Second Team
- Kobe Bufkin (South Bay Lakers) *
- Killian Hayes (Cleveland Charge) *
- Note: Hayes played for the Cavaliers’ G League affiliate but is on a standard contract with the Kings.
- A.J. Lawson (Raptors 905) ^
- Drew Timme (South Bay Lakers) ^
- Jahmir Young (Sioux Falls Skyforce) ^
All-NBAGL Third Team
- RayJ Dennis (College Park Skyhawks) ^
- PJ Hall (Greensboro Swarm) ^
- Ron Harper Jr. (Maine Celtics) *
- Alijah Martin (Raptors 905) ^
- Daishen Nix (Rio Grande Valley Vipers)