Warriors, Klay Thompson Target January Return
The Warriors and sharpshooter Klay Thompson are circling January home games for an ideal return date, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Woj specifically mentions two dates as possibilities: Jan. 9 against Cleveland and Jan. 18 versus Detroit. He says a third date, Jan. 3 against Miami, is unlikely, but possible.
This aligns with a report yesterday that stated Thompson would return after Christmas. Thompson is currently in the process of ramping up his conditioning, so his return timeline remains somewhat in flux.
After missing the past two-plus seasons, Warriors don’t want to put any pressure on Thompson to return before he’s 100% ready, and there’s certainly no rush to get him back in the lineup — the Dubs have an NBA-best 23-5 record and can afford to be patient.
Thompson’s last official contest was Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 13, 2019. He was in the midst of an outstanding game, scoring 30 points in 31 minutes on just 12 field goal attempts, but suffered a torn ACL late in the third quarter, which caused him to miss the entire 2019/20 season. After recovering from the ACL injury, he tore his Achilles tendon in the 2020 offseason, which sidelined him all of last season and has pushed back his debut this season.
In 615 career games (33.1 MPG), the five-time All-Star and three-time NBA champion holds averages of 19.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG, and 2.3 APG on a stellar .459/.419/.848 shooting line.
Nets To Allow Kyrie Irving To Return As Part-Time Player
6:08 PM: Nets GM Sean Marks has released a statement regarding Irving’s return:
“After discussions with our coaches, players and staff, the organization has decided to have Kyrie Irving re-join the team for games and practices in which he is eligible to participate. We arrived at this decision with the full support of our players and after careful consideration of our current circumstances, including players missing games due to injuries and health and safety protocols.
“We believe that the addition of Kyrie will not only make us a better team but allow us to more optimally balance the physical demand on the entire roster. We look forward to Kyrie’s return to the lineup, as well as getting our entire roster back together on the court.”
4:10 PM: The Nets have reconsidered their stance to hold Kyrie Irving out of action indefinitely and have begun the process of reintegrating him as a part-time player, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links).
As Wojnarowski explains, the Nets have been hit hard by injuries and COVID-19 cases and find themselves leaning heavily on their stars, including Kevin Durant, who is averaging 37.0 minutes per game, his highest minutes average in eight seasons. As a result, Brooklyn has decided to allow Irving to play in road games to help ease the burden on the rest of the roster.
The Nets had initially made the decision during the preseason to have Irving remain away from the team, since he was unvaccinated and was ineligible to practice or play games in New York due to the city’s vaccine mandate. Management and ownership deemed it untenable to have Kyrie only active on the road. Two months later, the team is reversing that stance.
Irving is still unvaccinated, so he remains ineligible to play in games in New York, including the Nets’ home games and away games vs. the Knicks. He also won’t be able to travel to Canada to face the Raptors. However, he will be eligible to play in Brooklyn’s other games on the road.
According to Woj (via Twitter), Irving’s return isn’t imminent. He’ll have to pass a series of COVID-19 tests before he’s cleared to return to team workouts, then he may require a little time to get back into game shape.
Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links) first reported that Irving is beginning the ramp-up process toward making his season debut, adding that he’s expected to practice with the Nets in the coming days. Nets owner Joe Tsai, GM Sean Marks, head coach Steve Nash, and key players on the team all support the decision, tweets Wojnarowski.
It remains to be seen what the long-term plan for Irving is. While having him available for about half the Nets’ games should help provide a boost in the short term, it’s hard to imagine the team will be happy only having him available on the road once the playoffs arrive. That’s still a few months away though, so the two sides have some time to figure things out.
Lakers Sign Isaiah Thomas To 10-Day Deal
December 17: Thomas has signed his 10-day deal with the Lakers, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
December 16: Isaiah Thomas is getting an opportunity at the NBA level, according to Marc Stein, who reports (via Twitter) that the veteran guard is signing with the Lakers.
The Lakers have two injured players (Trevor Ariza and Kendrick Nunn) and three more in the health and safety protocols (Dwight Howard, Malik Monk, and Talen Horton-Tucker), so they’re eligible to temporarily add up to two free agents due to the NBA’s hardship provision. Thomas will sign via hardship and will get a 10-day contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic confirms (Twitter link).
Thomas, who had been unable to secure an NBA opportunity through the season’s first two months, signed a G League contract and joined the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s affiliate. He made his debut on Wednesday and had a massive game, putting up 42 points, eight assists, and six rebounds in 42 minutes. That performance likely helped convince the Lakers to give him a shot.
Thomas has appeared in just 55 total NBA games since the start of the 2018/19 season for the Nuggets, Wizards, and Pelicans, averaging 11.1 PPG and 3.2 APG on .393/.381/.771 shooting in 21.0 minutes per contest during that time. The 32-year-old was bothered for years by hip problems, but has said he’s fully healthy now and recently represented Team USA in a pair of qualifying games for the 2023 World Cup.
NBA can receive permission to carry extra players if they have four or more players affected by the health and safety protocols and/or by longer-term injuries. The Lakers will have to either let Thomas go or create room on the 15-man roster for him once a couple of their unavailable players are ready to return.
Thomas’ 10-day contract will pay him $151,821 and will carry a $95,930 cap hit. The overall cost of the signing will be a little higher for the Lakers, since it’ll also increase their tax bill.
Magic Sign Four Players To 10-Day Contracts
The Magic have called up four players from their G League affiliate, signing swingman B.J. Johnson, guard Hassani Gravett, and forwards Admiral Schofield and Aleem Ford to 10-day contracts, the team announced today in a press release. All four Lakeland Magic players were signed using hardship exceptions.
As we detailed earlier today, the Magic found themselves shorthanded after Ignas Brazdeikis, Terrence Ross, Moritz Wagner, and R.J. Hampton entered the health and safety protocols. Orlando is also missing Jalen Suggs, Markelle Fultz, Jonathan Isaac, Michael Carter-Williams, and E’Twaun Moore due to long-term injuries, raising questions about whether the team would have the minimum required eight players available for Friday’s game vs. Miami.
Since then, Mohamed Bamba has also entered the health and safety protocols, according to the Magic (Twitter link). However, with four G League call-ups joining the seven remaining players on the NBA squad, Orlando should be able to move forward with its schedule for the time being.
Of Orlando’s four newly-added players, two – Johnson and Schofield – have NBA experience. Johnson has also been Lakeland’s leading scorer so far this season, putting up 24.7 PPG on .462/.344/.821 shooting in his first 10 games (34.5 MPG).
Schofield has averaged 14.4 PPG and 7.3 RPG in 12 G League games (33.0 MPG), while Gravett has recorded 13.6 PPG, 5.8 APG, and 5.2 RPG in 12 games (34.5 MPG) and Ford has posted 9.6 PPG and 4.4 RPG in 12 games (28.1 MPG).
The hardship provision allows teams with several players unavailable due to injuries or the health and safety protocols to add extra players on a temporary basis.
Russell Westbrook, DeMar DeRozan Exit Protocols
Lakers guard Russell Westbrook has cleared the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols and will be available for Friday’s game vs. Minnesota, tweets Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
Westbrook just entered the protocols on Thursday, so his quick exit is great news for the Lakers. It sounds as if Westbrook may have registered a false positive and been cleared when he subsequently recorded multiple consecutive negative tests. The Lakers do still have a handful of players in the protocols, Talen Horton-Tucker, Dwight Howard, Avery Bradley, and Kendrick Nunn.
Meanwhile, Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan has also exited the health and safety protocols, according to the team (Twitter link via Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago).
DeRozan was initially placed in the protocols back on December 6, so it seems safe to assume he actually contracted COVID-19. He may require a short ramp-up period for conditioning purposes before he clears his cardiac tests and is given the go-ahead to return to game action.
The Bulls, who had two games postponed this week, are scheduled to resume play on Sunday in Chicago vs. the Lakers. They still have seven players in the protocols for the time being.
Jerami Grant Undergoes Thumb Surgery
Pistons forward Jerami Grant underwent a successful surgical procedure on Thursday to repair the UCL ligament in his right thumb, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Pistons, Grant will be reevaluated in six weeks.
That six-week timeline was reported over the weekend when Grant was first diagnosed with a ligament tear in his thumb. There’s no guarantee the 27-year-old will be cleared to return to action at that time, but it sounds like the earliest we could see him back on the court would be at the end of January.
Grant’s return date is worth keeping an eye on, since he has been cited recently as a possible in-season trade candidate. Marc Stein was the latest to confirm the rumor, writing today on Substack that there’s a “rising belief” Detroit is open to moving Grant, who is increasingly viewed by rival teams as one of the NBA’s top trade candidates. The trade deadline lands on February 10 this season, so Grant’s potential suitors will have to feel comfortable about his health before offering up major assets for him.
In 78 games (33.7 MPG) across two seasons with the Pistons, Grant has averaged 21.6 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 2.7 APG, and 1.1 BPG on .425/.344/.847 shooting. His averages this season are 20.1 PPG and 4.8 RPG with a .414/.331/.849 shooting line in 24 contests (33.2 MPG).
Wolves’ Edwards, Prince Placed In Health And Safety Protocols
Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards has entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The Wolves have confirmed Wojnarowski’s report and added that Taurean Prince has also been placed in the protocols (Twitter link).
Edwards played nearly 34 minutes for the Wolves in Denver on Wednesday night, scoring 38 points on 14-of-21 shooting. Prince hasn’t played in either of Minnesota’s last two games.
If Edwards and Prince tested positive for COVID-19, they’ll be out for the next 10 days or until they record two consecutive negative tests at least 24 hours apart. The team figures to test the rest of its roster now, so it’s possible more players could enter the protocols in the coming days.
Half of the league’s 30 teams now have at least one player in the health and safety protocols. The Wolves are the ninth team with multiple players in the protocols.
Three More Magic Players Enter COVID-19 Protocols
After placing forward Ignas Brazdeikis in the health and safety protocols on Thursday evening, the Magic canceled their morning shootaround and have had three more players enter the protocols today, per Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter links). A source tells Price that Terrence Ross, Moritz Wagner, and R.J. Hampton have joined Brazdeikis in the protocols and will be out on Friday vs. Miami.
Since vaccinated players haven’t been required to undergo daily testing for COVID-19 this season, those players have only been tested when they show symptoms of the virus or when they’ve been in close contact with someone who has tested positive. If Brazdeikis tested positive on Thursday, it likely prompted a round of testing for the entire roster.
Assuming Brazdeikis, Ross, Wagner, and Hampton have tested positive for the coronavirus, they’ll be out for the next 10 days or until they register two consecutive negative tests at least 24 hours apart.
Orlando becomes the seventh team to have at least four players currently in the health and safety protocols, joining the Nets, Bulls, Lakers, Bucks, Knicks, and Kings. Orlando is also missing several players due to longer-term injuries, including Jalen Suggs, Markelle Fultz, Jonathan Isaac, Michael Carter-Williams, and E’Twaun Moore, raising questions about whether tonight’s game vs. the Heat may need to be postponed.
It’s possible the Magic will have the minimum number of players available, but their current group of eight players includes Cole Anthony, Mohamed Bamba, and Gary Harris, all of whom are listed as questionable due to various ailments. Although the team is eligible to sign multiple free agents via the hardship exception, there may not be time before tip-off on Friday night to incorporate any new players.
Meanwhile, over in the Western Conference, Nuggets forward Bol Bol has reentered the health and safety protocols, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link). Bol spent several days in the protocols earlier this month.
Warriors’ Poole, Two Celtics Enter Health And Safety Protocols
Warriors guard Jordan Poole is among the latest players to enter the NBA’s health and safety protocols, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Jared Weiss of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that Celtics forward Grant Williams and one other Boston player have also been placed in the protocols. Shams Charania of The Athletic says (via Twitter) the second Celtic is Al Horford.
If Poole, Williams, and Horford have tested positive for COVID-19, they’ll be sidelined for at least 10 days or until they return two consecutive negative tests at least 24 hours apart.
The Warriors hadn’t had any players in the health and safety protocols prior to today’s update on Poole, but they faced the Knicks on Tuesday. New York has been experiencing a minor COVID-19 outbreak and placed Kevin Knox in the protocols on Thursday after he logged 20 minutes vs. Golden State.
The Celtics, meanwhile, put Jabari Parker in the protocols on Thursday, so they now have three players affected.
The Warriors and Celtics are scheduled to play on Friday night in Boston, so they’ll likely test and retest all their players today to make sure there are no more positives before they tip off.
Eric Gordon On Knicks’ Radar
Rockets shooting guard Eric Gordon is among the players the Knicks have discussed internally as potential trade targets, a source tells Marc Berman of The New York Post.
Berman cautions that the Knicks’ list is a long one, so there’s certainly no guarantee that the club will actually pursue Gordon, who turns 33 on Christmas Day.
However, Berman contends that the Knicks could use more three-point shooting and notes that point guard Derrick Rose has tried to recruit Gordon to New York in the past — the two veterans have a long history, having played AAU ball together.
Gordon has played well for Houston this season, averaging 14.7 PPG and 3.1 APG on .477/.434/.712 shooting through 24 games (29.9 MPG). He probably doesn’t have a long-term future with the Rockets though, since he’s a holdover from the pre-rebuild version of the squad and his timeline doesn’t fit with the organization’s new young core.
Still, it’s hard to envision the Knicks making a serious play for Gordon, who has a guaranteed $19.6MM cap hit in 2022/23 and a non-guaranteed $20.9MM salary in ’23/24. Pairing Gordon with Evan Fournier, another shooting guard in the same salary range, doesn’t seem like the best use of the club’s resources, and the Rockets almost certainly wouldn’t have any interest in Fournier, whose contract doesn’t expire until 2025 (guaranteed through ’24).