Cavs Promote Nae’Qwan Tomlin To Standard Roster
February 11: Tomlin has officially been promoted to the Cavs’ 15-man roster, the team announced today in a press release.
February 10: Forward Nae’Qwan Tomlin is being promoted from his two-way contract to the Cavaliers‘ standard 15-man roster, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). Agent Aaron Turner tells Charania that his client is signing a two-year, minimum-salary contract that will be guaranteed through next season.
Tomlin, who played college ball for four different schools from 2019-24, went undrafted out of Memphis and spent last season in the Cavaliers’ organization — he was a member of the Cleveland Charge in the G League before signing a 10-day deal with the Cavs in February and then receiving a two-year, two-way contract in March.
Tomlin appeared in just five NBA games last season, but he has emerged as a regular part of the team’s rotation in 2025/26, averaging 6.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.0 assist in 17.1 minutes per contest through 43 appearances.
While Tomlin has only seen the court in 43 games, he was also active for seven more, which means he reached the limit of 50 active games for a two-way player on Monday. In order to keep using him, the Cavs will have to promote him to their 15-man roster and they’ll do just that, as Charania confirms.
Because they’re operating over the second tax apron, the Cavs can’t give Tomlin more than his minimum salary or more than two years, so they’re essentially making him their best possible offer by fully guaranteeing that two-year minimum deal. If he’s officially promoted on Wednesday ahead of Cleveland’s matchup with Washington, the 25-year-old would make $718,150 for the rest of this season and $2,411,090 in 2026/27.
The Cavs, who will add to their projected tax bill by promoting Tomlin, won’t need to make a corresponding move, since they have an open spot on their 15-man roster.
Isaiah Stewart (Seven Games) Among Four Players Suspended By NBA
Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart has been suspended seven games by the NBA for leaving his team’s bench area, “aggressively” entering an on-court altercation, and fighting, the NBA announced on Wednesday in a press release (Twitter link).
The league also confirmed three more suspensions that stemmed from the fight between the Pistons and Hornets during Monday’s game. Hornets forward Miles Bridges and center Moussa Diabate have been suspended for four games apiece, while Pistons center Jalen Duren will be required to sit out for two games.
According to the NBA, Stewart received the most significant penalty in part because of his “repeated history of unsportsmanlike acts.” He was also the only one of the four suspended players who wasn’t already on the court and came from the bench to get involved in the melee.
Stewart was previously suspended two games for aggressively trying to confront LeBron James during a Nov. 2021 game; three games after punching Drew Eubanks prior to a game in Feb. 2024; and two games for his involvement in an altercation between the Pistons and Timberwolves last March. He also received an automatic one-game suspension last January after racking up six flagrant foul points.
The league stated that Bridges and Diabate each received four-game bans for “fighting and escalating the altercation,” while Duren was given a two-game suspension for “initiating the altercation and fighting.”
The incident occurred with just over seven minutes remaining in the third quarter of Monday’s matchup in Charlotte. Tensions between the two opposing centers came to a head after Duren received the inbound pass, drove into the lane, and was fouled hard by Diabate. The two players butted heads, then Duren pushed Diabate in the face, igniting a fight that lasted more than 30 seconds (YouTube link).
Bridges shoved Duren with two hands, while a furious Diabate rushed after and attempted to punch Duren. His punch didn’t connect as he was held by back Tobias Harris, but Diabate continued to pursue Duren, who slowly walked away along the baseline as the Hornets center was stopped by several coaches.
The incident seemed like it could have ended at that point, but then Bridges and Duren appeared to exchange words, and Bridges approached Duren and threw a left-handed punch. Duren responded with a right that didn’t connect as Stewart rushed onto the court to confront Bridges, who threw another punch. A brief and chaotic tussle ensued, with Stewart appearing to have Bridges in a headlock at one point, before the players were separated.
Duren will begin serving his suspension on Wednesday when the Pistons visit Toronto and will also miss the first game after the All-Star break, in New York. However, he’ll still be allowed to take part in his first All-Star game on Sunday, tweets NBA insider Chris Haynes.
Stewart, meanwhile, will miss the Raptors and Knicks games, then five more beyond that. He’d be eligible to return on March 3 in Cleveland. Paul Reed figures to take on a more prominent role in Detroit’s frontcourt with Duren and Stewart out.
Bridges and Diabate, meanwhile, will miss Wednesday’s Hornets game vs. Atlanta, as well as post-All-Star matchups with Houston (Feb. 19), Cleveland (Feb. 20), and Washington (Feb. 22).
The suspensions will cost each player 1/145th of his 2025/26 salary per game. That works out to $724,138 for Stewart, $689,655 for Bridges, $89,423 for Duren, and $62,641 for Diabate.
Doncic-Backed Group To Buy Italian Team With Eye On NBA Europe
An investor group that features Lakers star Luka Doncic and is headed by former Mavericks general manager Donnie Nelson has a preliminary agreement in place to buy the Italian basketball team Vanoli Basket Cremona, Joe Vardon, Sam Amick, and Mike Vorkunov confirm in a report for The Athletic.
While the club currently plays in Cremona, which is in northern Italy, the long-term plan is to move it to Rome and to have it become one of the license holders in the NBA’s new European league, according to The Athletic.
As Vardon, Amick, and Vorkunov explain, any team that joins NBA Europe must also play in a domestic league, and Vanoli Basket is a license holder in Italy’s top league, Liga Basket Seria A. There’s currently no top-division team based in Rome, but the NBA has its eye on the city as one of the permanent homes for NBA Europe.
Besides Rome, commissioner Adam Silver also views Milan (Italy), London and Manchester (UK), Paris and Lyon (France), Madrid and Barcelona (Spain), Berlin and Munich (Germany), Athens (Greece), and Istanbul (Turkey) as potential homes for the 12 licensed teams in NBA Europe. The goal is to launch the league in the fall of 2027.
It’s unclear what percentage of Vanoli Basket Doncic would hold once the sale is finalized. While the NBA’s most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement set limits for the stake that an NBA player can hold in a WNBA franchise, no such limits are currently in place for teams in NBA Europe, which remains a work in progress.
According to The Athletic, Doncic won’t be the only current NBA player who is an investor in a team likely to join the European league. Rockets star Kevin Durant holds a minority stake in the soccer club Paris Saint-German, which is expected to create a basketball team for NBA Europe. Former NBA guard Tony Parker, meanwhile, owns ASVEL Basket, which is based near Lyon and will likely become part of the NBA’s European venture.
While investing guidelines for NBA players may still need to be established, NBA Europe team owners won’t be permitted to hold a share of an NBA franchise greater than 5%, per Vardon, Amick, and Vorkunov. The reasoning is that NBA team owners will already be stakeholders in the European league, so if they were to control NBA Europe teams as well, there would be potential conflicts of interest and concerns related to “double-dipping.”
La Gazzetta Dello Sport, an Italian news outlet, reported that former Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki was also part of Nelson’s group alongside Doncic, but a spokesperson for Nowitzki told NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link) that’s inaccurate.
LeBron James Ruled Out Tuesday, Will Be Ineligible For Awards
Facing the Spurs on Tuesday on the second night of a back-to-back set, the Lakers will find themselves lacking star power.
In addition to being without Luka Doncic (left hamstring strain), Los Angeles also won’t have LeBron James (left foot arthritis), Austin Reaves (left calf injury management), or Marcus Smart (right ankle soreness) available, the team announced (Twitter link via Khobi Price of the California Post). Starting center Deandre Ayton is considered questionable to play due to right knee soreness.
James’ absence is the most notable of the bunch, since it will be the 18th game he has missed this season. That means he won’t reach the 65-game threshold this season, which is the minimum required for a player to be eligible for end-of-season awards.
James’ numbers this season – 21.8 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game on 50.2% shooting – are a step down from the ones he has put up in recent years, but they were still enough to earn him an All-Star berth and could’ve potentially gotten him into the All-NBA conversation if he had stayed healthy and helped lead the Lakers to a playoff spot.
However, as a result of his various injury absences, including a bout with sciatica that cost him the first 14 games of the year, we know now that James’ record-setting streak of All-NBA nods will come to an end after 21 consecutive seasons.
The shorthanded Lakers will be looking to bounce back after losing at home on Monday by a score of 119-110 to a Thunder team missing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. According to Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times, James suggested in his post-game media session that the outcome showed how far away Los Angeles is from being a legitimate title contender.
“That’s a championship team right there, we’re not,” James said. “We can’t sustain energy and effort for 48 minutes and they can. That’s why they won a championship.”
Brandon Ingram Replacing Stephen Curry In All-Star Game
Six years after earning his first All-Star nod as a member of the Pelicans, Raptors forward Brandon Ingram has been named to his second All-Star game, the NBA announced today (via Twitter).
Commissioner Adam Silver tabbed Ingram as an injury replacement for Warriors guard Stephen Curry, who will be unavailable to play on Sunday due to a nagging knee injury. Ingram will take Curry’s spot on the USA Stripes roster alongside veteran stars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Kawhi Leonard.
[RELATED: Team Rosters For All-Star Game Revealed]
Ingram, 28, was traded from New Orleans to Toronto at last year’s deadline but sat out for the rest of the 2024/25 season due to an ankle injury and didn’t make his Raptors debut until this past fall. The 10th-year forward has fit right in with his new team, averaging 22.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 34.0 minutes per game across 52 outings (all starts), with a shooting line of .472/.364/.835.
Scottie Barnes has arguably been the more valuable Raptor and was the first All-Star recognized from a Toronto team that has exceeded expectations this season and holds the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference at 32-22. However, Ingram leads the Raptors in scoring and has elevated an offense that struggled to score in half-court situations last season.
This year’s All-Star game will be a three-team event that pits Ingram’s USA Stripes squad against Barnes’ USA Stars and Team World, which is made up international stars.
Four Players Ejected From Pistons-Hornets Game After Fight
Moussa Diabate and Miles Bridges of the Hornets and Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart of the Pistons were ejected after a fight broke out in the third quarter of Monday’s game in Charlotte, writes Steve Reed of The Associated Press.
Diabate and Duren appeared to be jawing at each other before the ball was inbounded with 7:13 remaining in the period (YouTube link via ESPN). After a little extracurricular activity between the two big men, Duren received the inbound pass, drove into the lane, and was fouled hard by Diabate. The two players appeared to butt heads, then Duren pushed Diabate in the face, igniting a fight that lasted more than 30 seconds.
Bridges shoved Duren with two hands, and Diabate was furious, rushing after and attempting to punch Duren. His punch didn’t connect as he was held by back Tobias Harris, but Diabate continued to pursue Duren, who slowly walked away along the baseline.
The incident seemed like it could have ended at that point, but then Bridges and Duren appeared to exchange words, and Bridges approached Duren and threw a left-handed punch. Duren responded with a right that didn’t connect.
Stewart, who was on the bench at the time, rushed onto the court to confront Bridges, who threw another punch. A brief and chaotic tussle ensued, with Stewart appearing to have Bridges in a headlock at one point, before the players were separated.
The incident marred a highly anticipated matchup between the Pistons, the top seed in the East, and the Hornets, who entered the game as the league’s hottest team, having won nine straight. Detroit wound up winning by six points.
Stewart left the bench, which typically results in an automatic suspension, and he has also been suspended multiple other times for fighting. ESPN’s Bobby Marks expects Detroit’s backup big man to receive a harsh penalty for his actions on Monday (Twitter link).
“Duren and Stew consider themselves to be brothers,” Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said after the game (Twitter video link via Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press). “If you run two guys at one guy and you’ve already crossed the line, human instinct tells him to protect his little brother.”
Investor Group Wants To Join Cuban In Attempt To Buy Back Mavericks
An unidentified Dallas investor group is interested in partnering with former owner Mark Cuban in attempt to buy back the Mavericks, Marc Stein reports at The Stein Line (Substack link).
As Stein writes, Cuban was the majority owner of the Mavericks for 23-and-a-half seasons until he sold the team to the Dumont and Adelson families in 2023. Cuban still holds a 27% stake in the Mavericks, but the Dumont and Adelson families have the option to buy another 20% of Cuban’s shares within the next year if they so choose, according to Stein.
It’s unclear if the two families have any interest in selling the team so soon after they purchased it. A source close to team governor Patrick Dumont told The Stein Line that “the family remains excited about the future of the franchise and the Cooper Flagg era.”
Cuban, who has been acting as an unofficial adviser to Dumont since former president of basketball operations Nico Harrison was fired in November, declined to comment when reached by Stein.
Cuban claimed at the time he sold the team that he would remain the top decision-maker in the basketball operations department, Stein notes. However, that turned out to be inaccurate, and Cuban was reportedly pushed out of the team’s inner circle by Harrison.
Harrison’s stunning and incredibly unpopular decision last year to trade franchise player Luka Doncic to the Lakers for Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick eventually resulted in his ouster. Matt Riccardi and Michael Finley have been operating as the team’s co-general managers, and orchestrated last week’s deadline deal which sent Davis to Washington.
Although Harrison often drew the brunt of fans’ ire, his dismissal hasn’t entirely quelled the unrest in Dallas, Stein adds. Dumont recently received mild boos when he was sitting courtside during Mark Aguirre‘s jersey retirement on January 29 (YouTube link).
Jimmy Butler Undergoes Successful ACL Reconstruction Surgery
Warriors forward Jimmy Butler underwent successful right knee surgery in Los Angeles on Monday, the team announced in a press release (Twitter link).
The 36-year-old tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee in a January 19 game against Miami. The surgery was a reconstruction of the ACL.
Butler, who will miss the remainder of 2025/26, is expected to make a full recovery, per the Warriors. The next update on his status will come “early next season.”
Butler suffered the injury when he landed awkwardly on his right knee after being bumped in the air while catching a pass from Brandin Podziemski (Twitter video link via NBC Sports Bay Area). Butler was fouled on the play by Davion Mitchell, who attempted to disrupt the pass.
A five-time All-NBA member, Butler led the Heat to the NBA Finals in 2020 and 2023 and a trip to the Eastern Conference finals in 2022. In 38 games (31.1 minutes per contest) with the Warriors this season, he averaged 20.0 points, 5.6 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.4 steals on .519/.376/.864 shooting.
Butler is on a maximum-salary contract which runs through next season. He will earn $56.8MM in ’26/27.
Jayson Tatum Practicing With Maine Celtics On Monday
Star forward Jayson Tatum has been assigned to the G League to go through portions of Monday’s practice with the Maine Celtics, the NBA club announced (Twitter link).
Tatum, who has been doing controlled 5-on-5 work with coaches, will be immediately recalled after practice, per the Celtics. Rookies Hugo Gonzalez and Amari Williams will also practice with Maine today.
It’s the latest sign that Tatum is progressing well in his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon. He sustained the injury in May during Boston’s second-round playoff loss to New York.
Tatum, 27, made his fourth consecutive first-team All-NBA appearance in 2024/25 and finished fourth in MVP voting. The 27-year-old combo forward averaged 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.1 steals on .452/.343/.814 shooting in 72 games (36.4 minutes per contest).
President of basketball operations Brad Stevens discussed Tatum’s recovery on Friday, per Brian Robb of MassLive.com.
“He’s hit a lot of the thresholds,” Stevens said. “He’s doing more and more and will continue to do more and more. He’s still got a ways to go.”
Stevens also said Tatum wouldn’t return to action until he has been fully cleared by the relevant parties. For his part, Tatum said at the end of last month that he was uncertain about whether or not he would play this season.
Suns Expected To Waive Cole Anthony
The Suns are expected to waive Cole Anthony, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link).
Phoenix acquired the sixth-year guard in a three-team trade last week. It was a salary-dump move for the the Suns, who have several guards on their roster.
Anthony has yet to report to the team and may not end up doing so; head coach Jordan Ott said on Saturday that the two sides were still working through the situation.
“I think they’re still determining that. Working through that as we speak,” Ott said.
The 15th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Anthony spent his first five NBA seasons with Orlando, averaging 12.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists on .419/.345/.847 shooting in 320 games (24.8 minutes per contest). However, his minutes have declined over the past few years and he was traded to Memphis in the offseason as part of the Desmond Bane blockbuster.
Anthony reached a buyout agreement with the Grizzlies and signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Bucks. He averaged 6.7 PPG, 2.5 RPG and 3.5 APG on .424/.306/.615 shooting in a career-low 15.1 minutes per game in 35 appearances with Milwaukee this season.
Anthony is still just 25 years old and has been productive in the past, though he’s never been the most efficient scorer (his true shooting percentage is a career-low 48.3% in 2025/26). Teams looking for backup ball-handling help might give him a look if and when he officially parts ways with Phoenix.