Pacific Notes: Bogdanovic, Looney, Majerle
With the continued struggles of the Lakers, there is a danger that the losing may have a negative long-term impact on the team’s younger players, something the coaching staff will try to stave off, Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes. “I think the challenge for our young guys is to stay the course,” said coach Byron Scott. “Continue to think positive. Continue to work their butts off and good things will happen. But if we can’t figure it out from a mental standpoint at times too, then we’re going to continue to struggle. And I think we’ve all talked about the lack of experience being a factor, and sometimes the game is a little too fast for some of our guys; and they’ve just got to step that part up, and it’s going to take time.”
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The cap hold for Suns 2014 first-rounder Bogdan Bogdanovic will impact the team’s salary cap in July, notes Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports in his trade deadline primer for the team. Phoenix can clear the hold, worth $963K by officially notifying the league that it doesn’t intend to sign Bogdanovic, but if the Suns did so, he would be ineligible to ink a deal with the team during the 2016/17 season, Marks notes.
- Former Suns player Dan Majerle, who was an assistant coach with the franchise during Alvin Gentry‘s tenure, doesn’t expect to be under consideration for the team’s vacant coaching position, Richard Obert of The Arizona Republic relays. Majerle, who is the head coach at Grand Canyon University, when asked if he had a shot at the Suns’ post, said, “We’ll cross that bridge when it comes to it. I doubt that we will. But if it happens, I’ll have to sit down and think about what’s best for me. I’m extremely happy being at GCU. I’ve got no reservations or no thoughts about leaving here.“
- The Warriors have recalled Kevon Looney from their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release. Looney has appeared in seven games with Santa Cruz this season, notching averages of 9.4 points and 8.3 rebounds in 18.9 minutes per contest.
Central Notes: Meeks, Love, Christmas
The Pistons have been linked to soon-to-be free agents Ryan Anderson and Al Horford as well as trade candidate Markieff Morris, but they’re satisfied with incumbent power forwards Ersan Ilyasova and Anthony Tolliver, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. That doesn’t mean they won’t seek an upgrade in the offseason, when Tolliver’s contract expires, but GM Jeff Bower made it clear to Ellis why the team is in no rush to make a deal now.
“That upheaval creates upheaval throughout the locker room,” Bower said. “When you do make changes like that, you’d like to think you’re doing it for more than just minor, insignificant shuffling. Sometimes you need a major shakeup, but usually when those scenarios exist, you have a group you don’t think is functioning well and you don’t see a long-term lifespan with them.”
See more on the Pistons amid the latest from around the Central Division:
- Jodie Meeks will face limitations for the rest of this month after encountering a setback in his recovery from the broken foot he suffered at the start of the season, and he’s unlikely to play much this season, Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy told reporters, including Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter links). “For practical matters, it’s really hard to see him being able to get back and make much of a contribution this year,” Van Gundy said.
- David Blatt didn’t prioritize making Kevin Love comfortable in the Cavaliers offense, but in Tyronn Lue‘s brief time as Blatt’s replacement, Love already looks more comfortable than he’s ever been since joining Cleveland before last season, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
- The Pacers have assigned Rakeem Christmas to the D-League, the team announced. The 36th overall pick from the 2015 draft has spent the vast majority of the season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants and he’s still yet to play in an NBA regular season game.
D-League Notes: Dunleavy, Dinwiddie, Harrison
The Bulls have assigned veteran small forward Mike Dunleavy to the D-League’s Santa Cruz Warriors as he continues to rehab from a back injury that has kept him out all season, the club announced on Monday. Dunleavy will practice there during the Bulls’ West Coast swing but will not appear in a game, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports tweets. The most prominent player to appear in a D-League game this season was Pistons point guard Brandon Jennings, who played one game with the team’s affiliate in Grand Rapids in December while rehabbing from an Achilles tendon injury.
In more news involving the D-League:
- Pistons point guard Spencer Dinwiddie has averaged 16.7 points and 6.1 assists in 10 games since he was assigned to Grand Rapids on January 7th. But coach Stan Van Gundy has no plans to bring him back to Detroit in the near future. “Right now, with three healthy point guards, there’s not much reason to bring him back here and sit in street clothes out there,” Van Gundy told the assembled media over the weekend, including Hoops Rumors. “I think it’s better for his development that he gets a chance to play and practice every day.”
- The Hornets reassigned rookie point guard Aaron Harrison to the D-League’s Oklahoma City Blue on Monday, the NBA club announced on its website. Harrison, who played one game with the Blue in January, has appeared in 13 games for Charlotte. The Hornets do not have their own D-League affiliate.
- Hawks center Edy Tavares has returned from his D-League stint with the Austin Spurs, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Tavares was assigned to Austin on January 27th.
- The Spurs recalled point guard Ray McCallum from Austin, the team tweets. McCallum has appeared in 20 games with San Antonio this season and seven with its D-League affiliate.
- The Timberwolves recalled power forward Adreian Payne from the D-League’s Erie BayHawks, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune (Twitter link). The team’s PR department later confirmed the move. Payne has appeared in 30 games with the Timberwolves and three with the BayHawks this season.
Western Notes: Pierce, Martin, Bass, Batum
The Clippers signed Paul Pierce to a three-year deal in the offseason, but the 38-year-old has shown the ravages of age this season, and coach/executive Doc Rivers admits the team’s maintenance plan for him isn’t foolproof, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register examines. Pierce hasn’t ruled out retirement after the season.
“It has to be [hard for him],” Rivers said. “You could see he didn’t have great rhythm tonight and he didn’t practice and he takes the days off. Again, it’s an imperfect science. I think at the end of the year it will be great for him because now the rhythm will start and he’ll start playing, but I really don’t know. I’m just trying to do the best with him so we can preserve him.”
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Some teams with interest in trading with the Timberwolves for Kevin Martin would prefer that he picks up his player option worth nearly $7.378MM for next season, but a larger and more seriously intrigued bunch of teams wants him to turn down the option, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders hears. The same is true among suitors for Lakers power forward Brandon Bass, who has a $3.135MM player option, Kyler adds.
- Soon-to-be free agent Nicolas Batum said after Friday’s game that he “loved” playing for the Trail Blazers, but Portland’s victory over the Hornets, in which Batum struggled, was in large measure about the Blazers moving past Batum and the other players the team didn’t bring back from last season, as The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman details. The Charlotte swingman was the last of the four former Blazers starters to play a game with his new team in Portland.
- The Rockets have recalled Donatas Motiejunas and K.J. McDaniels from the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). Motiejunas, set for restricted free agency at season’s end, gave his consent to the D-League trip as a rehab assignment, and he said he’ll again join Houston’s affiliate later in the week, notes Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (on Twitter). Motiejunas has three previous years of experience, so the Rockets need his permission as well as the union’s to send him to the D-League.
Western Notes: Conley, Mavs, Suns
Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace gave a strong indication that Memphis intends to re-sign Mike Conley this summer when the point guard becomes a free agent, Matt Moore of CBSSports.com reports. Conley will be eligible for a projected maximum starting salary of $24.9MM for 2016/17. The Grizzlies are also not interested in trading Conley prior to the deadline, according to Moore. This jibes with earlier reports that stated the top priority in free agency this summer for Memphis is re-signing Conley, who has already said how much he would like to remain with the Grizzlies.
“If you look back at the five years since the tide has turned for this franchise, we have re-signed every core player for the Memphis Grizzlies,” Wallace told Moore.
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Mavs owner Mark Cuban said “nothing is really tempting” as the trade deadline nears, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com tweets. Cuban added that he likes how the Mavs are currently constructed. Dallas is 27-22.
- The Suns project to have a crowded backcourt next season when Eric Bledsoe returns, so Eric Saar of Basketball Insiders suggests Phoenix could make a trade to make room for Devin Booker, who has shown an ability to make plays consistently and run the offense.
- The Lakers have recalled Tarik Black from the D-League, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News (on Twitter).
- The Clippers have recalled Branden Dawson from the D-League, the team announced, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register relays (via Twitter).
And-Ones: Hield, Pelicans, Drummond
The rapid improvement of Buddy Hield‘s 3-point shot leaves Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com skeptical that Hield will bring his record setting accuracy to the NBA level, as Pelton writes in a collaborative piece with ESPN.com’s Chad Ford. The Oklahoma shooting guard is taking 8.3 shots from behind the arc and converting 52.4% of them. The senior hasn’t made more than 39% of his 3-pointers in any other season for the Sooners. Still, both scribes project Hield to be a lottery pick in the upcoming draft.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Hield would be a good fit for the Pelicans and he is a realistic target for the team in the upcoming draft, Jeff Duncan of The Time-Picayune opines. The Pelicans are 18-28 on the season, owning the seventh worst record in the league, as our Reverse Standings page shows.
- The Hawks are expected to recall center Edy Tavares from the Austin Spurs of the D-League as soon as today, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
- Andre Drummond, who will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, was the first Piston to be selected to the All-Star game since Allen Iverson, who was voted in by the fans in 2009, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press writes. Ellis notes that Drummond’s accomplishment represents a sign that the team is taking the right steps forward. The last time the Pistons had an All-Star was also the last time they made the postseason.
L.A. Rumors: Griffin, Russell, Gasol, Black
The NBA’s investigation of Blake Griffin‘s fight with an assistant equipment manager is complete, according Chris Broussard of ESPN.com. An announcement is expected next week, and the Clippers have been talking to league officials about disciplinary action. Griffin is expected to be sidelined for about two months after breaking his right hand in a January 23rd altercation with Matias Testi at a Toronto restaurant. “He feels awful about it, and he’s let everyone know that,” coach Doc Rivers said of Griffin. “That’s all you can do. You have to forgive people at some point. I believe that.” A source tells Broussard that Testi won’t be fired and will probably rejoin the team next week.
There’s more tonight out of Los Angeles:
- Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan are both more valuable to the Clippers than Griffin, contends Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group, who thinks the team should pursue a trade. The columnist cites Griffin’s defensive failings, his tendency to dominate the ball and L.A’s record (now 14-3) without him.
- Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell has heard plenty of criticism this season, but he tells Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times that he tries to be hard on himself as well. Russell is averaging 3.4 assists and 2.4 turnovers per game in an up-and-down rookie year, but he thinks he understands the prescription for improving his game. “Don’t take plays off on the defensive end, and on the offensive end don’t be nonchalant.” Russell said. “No player in this league — they might be really, really good and they look like they’re playing nonchalant, but they’re not. Me, at this point, I tend to be nonchalant at times — just getting it out of my system.”
- Pau Gasol had mixed emotions about leaving the Lakers for the Bulls in free agency in 2014, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Gasol talked about a discussion he had with Kobe Bryant before deciding to move on. “Whatever we talked about, which was probably a year-and-a-half ago in free agency, stays there,” Gasol said. “I did tell him that I wanted to play if I could with him forever. But I was ready to move on and put myself in a situation where I thought I was going to be a lot happier and play the way I’ve been playing.”
- The Lakers have assigned center Tarik Black to the D-League, tweets the team’s affiliate, the D-Fenders.
D-League Notes: McCallum, Christmas, McDaniels
The NBA’s relationship with the D-League continues to grow, and this season a total of 19 NBA teams possess one-to-one affiliations with D-League clubs. Those 11 NBA teams without their own D-League squads this season have to assign players to D-League clubs affiliated with other NBA franchises. We at Hoops Rumors track all the NBA D-League assignments made during the course of the season and you can view the complete tracker, which is updated regularly, here.
Here are the latest NBA D-League assignments and recalls:
- The Pacers recalled Rakeem Christmas from their D-League affiliate and assigned Shayne Whittington to the Mad Ants, the team announced. This concludes Christmas’ second stint in Fort Wayne on the season and commences Whittington’s fourth.
- The Spurs have reassigned point guard Ray McCallum to their D-League affiliate in Austin, the team announced. McCallum will be joining the junior Spurs for the sixth time this season and he is averaging 17.1 points, 4.9 assists and 3.7 rebounds in 37.7 minutes in seven total appearances.
- The Rockets have recalled Montrezl Harrell and K.J. McDaniels from their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This concludes Harrell’s third stint with Rio Grande Valley and McDaniels’ fifth.
Keith Bogans Joins Knicks D-League Team
JANUARY 29TH, 11:30am: The Knicks affiliate has added Bogans, the team announced (Twitter link). Bogans signed with the club after he went unclaimed via D-League waivers, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
JANUARY 27TH, 4:35pm: Bogans has signed with the D-League and is now subject to its waiver process, Reichert tweets.
JANUARY 14TH, 5:02pm: Veteran shooting guard Keith Bogans intends to sign with the NBA D-League in the near future, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor relays (on Twitter). Bogans, once he officially signs, will be subject to the league’s waiver process to determine which team he will play for.
The 35-year-old last appeared in an NBA regular season game during the 2013/14 campaign when he made six appearances for the Celtics, averaging 2.0 points in 9.2 minutes of action per contest. Bogans’ career numbers through 11 NBA campaigns are 6.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists to accompany a slash line of .394/.353/.716.
Bogans was on the Blazers’ summer league roster this past offseason, though he failed to impress, averaging just 0.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists while shooting an abysmal 11.1% from the field, which likely explains why he didn’t secure a training camp invite. Joining the D-League is likely the best course for the veteran if he hopes to land a 10-day contract in the NBA this season, though he will certainly need to perform better than he did over the summer if he hopes to garner any NBA interest.
And-Ones: Snyder, Wiggins, Parsons
Jazz coach Quin Snyder isn’t focused on trade talk regarding his team and is instead concentrating on winning games, Jody Genessy of The Deseret Times relays (Twitter links). “I really like our group so much, so it’s easy for me to stay focused on the present,” Snyder told Genessy. The coach also noted that he’s “not in that world” where trade talk occurs, Genessy adds. “I’m more concerned about the guys we have,” the coach relayed. Utah has been “poking around” the trade market for a point guard recently, according to a recent report by Zach Lowe of ESPN.com.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Wolves camp cut Nick Wiggins, who is the older brother of Andrew Wiggins, has signed with the Canterbury Rams of Australia’s National Basketball League for the remainder of the season, the team has announced (h/t to Sportando). Wiggins had been playing for the Raptors‘ D-League affiliate and averaged 4.0 points and 1.7 rebounds in 10 appearances before the team waived him about a month ago.
- Mavericks small forward Chandler Parsons can opt out of his current deal at the end of the season and become an unrestricted free agent, a move that Parsons is likely to make. Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com (Twitter link) predicts that Parsons will end up re-signing with Dallas on a four-year, approximately $80MM deal. The value of Parsons’ player option for 2016/17 is $16.023MM.
- Joe Johnson has looked like a rejuvenated player under Nets interim coach Tony Brown, Brian Lewis of The New York Post notes. “I enjoy the game of basketball, period,” Johnson said. “In the heat of the battle, in the game, we have our frustrations in the moment; but I enjoy playing. I love the game. I hate to lose, but unfortunately we’re in a tough situation. We’ve got to play, and make do with what we’ve got. If we put it all out there on the line, we can live with the results.’’