Bulls Have Rebuffed Pacers’ Interest In Garrett Temple
The Pacers made an effort to trade for Bulls guard Garrett Temple, a source with knowledge of the negotiations tells J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (subscription required; hat tip to Blog A Bull). However, according to Michael, Chicago “showed no interest” in sending Temple to a division rival.
Temple has played a regular rotation role in Chicago this season, averaging 8.8 PPG, 3.2 RPG, and 2.1 APG in 33 contests (28.4 MPG). While those numbers don’t exactly pop off the page, Michael notes that Temple is capable of guarding a variety of guards and wings, can knock down 3-pointers (.347 career 3PT%), and would provide the sort of veteran experience and intangibles that Indiana seeks. He’s also on an affordable $4.8MM expiring contract.
The Bulls and Pacers are currently neck-and-neck in the Eastern Conference standings, with matching 16-18 records putting them in a tie for the No. 9 seed. So in addition to being a division rival, Indiana is one of Chicago’s prime competitors in the playoff race, making the Bulls’ reluctance to make a deal unsurprising.
According to Michael, the Pacers initially weren’t planning on making any major moves before the trade deadline, and still may not — if Caris LeVert and T.J. Warren are able to return at some point in the second half, that duo is capable of making a bigger impact than just about any other deadline acquisition. Michael says that LeVert could be back before the trade deadline, with Warren’s return coming later.
However, after starting the season with eight wins in 12 games, the Pacers are just 8-14 since, and could be in the market for a proven veteran to help stabilize the defense. Michael points to Thaddeus Young as a player who would be an ideal fit for Indiana, but acknowledges the Bulls are probably even less likely to move Young than Temple.
Kings’ Luke Walton Believes Job Is Safe
Two NBA head coaches – Ryan Saunders and Lloyd Pierce – have been let go since the 2020/21 season began, and there has been speculation that Kings head coach Luke Walton could be next, given his team’s recent struggles. After getting off to a 12-11 start, Sacramento has lost 10 of 12 and has slipped into a tie for 12th in the West.
Despite rumors that he might be on the hot seat, Walton believes his job is safe for the time being, sources with knowledge of the situation tell Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee.
Following a win over the LeBron James-less Lakers on Wednesday night, Walton spoke positively about his vision for the Kings’ future, telling reporters that “it’s exciting to see where this thing can go” if the team keeps building its culture and developing its young players. And while he didn’t say whether or not he has received any assurances from general manager Monte McNair, Walton feels he has the support of management, as Anderson relays.
“As far as pressure from the front office, no,” Walton said, when asked if he’s feeling mounting pressure to win games. “I feel very connected with them and very locked in as far as where we’re at and where we’re trying to go as a group, and they’ve been very supportive.”
As Anderson points out, firing Walton would be a costly move for a franchise that has felt the financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The Kings’ head coach still has two guaranteed years on his contract beyond 2020/21, so a change would mean paying two coaches for multiple seasons.
Additionally, while the recent slump has hurt Sacramento’s playoff chances, it’s worth noting that expectations for the team entering the season weren’t exactly sky-high — oddsmakers projected an over/under of 29.5 wins, and the Kings aren’t far off that pace, so it’s hard to argue the club is significantly underachieving.
While he claims he’s not feeling any additional pressure from the front office, Walton did say he feels pressure to win for his players, according to Anderson. And comments from certain Kings players suggest they’re also feeling some urgency to get back into the playoff hunt, recognizing that changes could be coming in the event of another finish near the bottom of the standings.
“Our backs are against the wall,” Buddy Hield said after Wednesday’s win. “At some point, you have to take this thing seriously. You know that people’s jobs are on the line. Everybody’s fighting for something.”
Jerami Grant, Nikola Vucevic Among Celtics’ Targets
Pistons forward Jerami Grant is among the Celtics‘ top trade targets, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic. According to Charania, the C’s and the Hornets are also among the teams interested in Magic center Nikola Vucevic.
It comes as no surprise that Grant and Vucevic would appeal to Boston. Grant has enjoyed a career year in Detroit so far, boosting his scoring average to 23.4 PPG in an expanded offensive role. Vucevic is playing the best basketball of his career too, averaging 24.6 PPG and 11.6 RPG on .483/.412/.851 shooting and earning his second All-Star berth for Orlando.
Both players also have salaries that would fit into the Celtics’ $28.5MM trade exception. Grant is earning $19MM, while Vucevic has a $26MM cap hit.
However, the odds of the Celtics actually acquiring either player before this year’s deadline seem slim, for multiple reasons. For one, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge has been averse to making major moves at the deadline over the years — since acquiring Isaiah Thomas at the 2015 deadline, his lone in-season trade has been a salary-dump of Jabari Bird in 2019.
Additionally, while the Pistons and Magic are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, Grant and Vucevic are under contract for multiple years and appear to be cornerstone pieces for their respective teams.
Grant, who joined the Pistons in part because he wanted to play for a Black head coach and a Black GM, was the team’s top target in the offseason. According to James Edwards III of The Athletic, Detroit appears to have no interest in moving the 26-year-old, despite receiving interest and trade offers from several teams. Grant “embodies everything Detroit wants its culture to be about,” according to Edwards, who says the forward seems likely to stick with the team for as long as he wants to.
As for Vucevic, Charania says that rival teams believe any trade involving the big man would have to feature a “massive” return for the Magic. Vucevic also told Charania that there’s “something special” about being with the same franchise for a long and building a legacy there, which suggests he has no plans to ask the Magic to move him anytime soon.
If the Celtics do attempt to push for either player, they could offer an appealing combination of draft picks, salary relief, and prospects with upside, though they don’t have an up-and-coming young player who would be the obvious headliner of such a package.
Cavaliers, Pistons Among Definite Deadline Sellers
Because there’s now a potential path to the postseason for the top 10 teams in each NBA conference (via the new play-in tournament), it’s taking longer this season for clear sellers to emerge on the trade market, writes Shams Charania of The Athletic.
“Most teams are still in the playoff chase, which makes everyone bunched together and the trade market less active,” a high-ranking team official told The Athletic.
However, as Charania reports, at least two teams at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings look like definite sellers, according to rival teams. The 13th-seeded Cavaliers and the 15th-seeded Pistons appear to be open for business.
Cleveland’s most obvious trade candidate is Andre Drummond, who has been pulled from the rotation as the team looks to find a taker for him. According to Charania, there have been some exploratory calls on Drummond, with the Bulls among the teams to express some interest, but there’s still skepticism that the Cavs will find an appealing deal for the big man, who has an unwieldy $28.75MM cap hit.
Drummond isn’t the only Cavalier on the trade block. The club has also been open to discussing JaVale McGee, Cedi Osman, and Taurean Prince, according to Charania, who hears that multiple teams have inquired on the Cavs’ wing players. Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Isaac Okoro are viewed as the club’s core pieces and are presumably off-limits.
Like the Cavs, the Pistons have an expensive big man who is sitting out as the team attempts to move him. However, Blake Griffin, who is making more than Drummond ($36.8MM) and has another guaranteed year left on his contract, will be even harder to trade. Sources tell Charania and James Edwards III of The Athletic that Detroit will likely work toward a buyout with Griffin.
Veteran shooting guard Wayne Ellington is expected to draw interest from contenders on the trade market and should be a far more valuable trade chip than Griffin, given his affordable minimum salary and his strong production in 2020/21 (10.6 PPG, .435 3PT%).
According to Edwards, combo guard Delon Wright and big man Mason Plumlee have also registered interest from rival teams, but both players are under contract beyond this season, so the Pistons won’t necessarily feel compelled to move them. As Edwards explains, while Detroit will be a deadline seller, the sense around the league is that GM Troy Weaver won’t be as aggressive this month as he was during his first offseason on the job, when he remade nearly the entire roster.
Jazz Stars Mitchell, Gobert Blast Officiating After Loss To Sixers
Following a tight 131-123 overtime loss to the Sixers in a battle of No. 1 seeds on Wednesday, Jazz stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert were among those critical of the officiating, suggesting the referees affected the outcome of the game, as relayed by Sarah Todd of The Deseret News and Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
“It’s tough to go out there and see how we fight and compete, and to have a game like that taken from us,” Mitchell said, after praising the Sixers for their performance. “Now, I’m never ever one to blame a ref, to blame an official – I can say I could have done more – but this is getting out of hand. There have been games like this that we’ve won; there have been games like this that we’ve lost. But this whole refereeing stuff. … We’re nice, we don’t complain, we don’t get frustrated, we fight through things, and the fact (is) that we continually get … screwed, in a way, by this.
“We won this game, in my personal opinion. You know?” Mitchell went on. “But like I said, I’m going to give them credit. They won. Whatever. Cool. But it’s been a consistent thing, and the question is, ‘Can we do it? Can we sustain it? Are we for real No. 1?’ And, yeah, the hell we are. And it’s getting f—ing ridiculous that this is what is happening.”
Mitchell was called for a pair of technical fouls in overtime — the second came after he yelled at the game’s officials for what he believed was a missed foul call. The 76ers, who shoot more free throws than any other team in the NBA, had way more opportunities from the foul line than the Jazz on Wednesday, going 27-for-35, compared to 14-of-19 for Utah.
“Our guys are not able to get calls everybody else in the f—ing league gets,” Gobert said. “We know we are the Utah Jazz, and maybe some people don’t want to see us go as far as we can go, but it’s disappointing. Three times in a row, Mike Conley is going to the rim, and they’re grabbing him right in front of the officials, and there’s no calls. And on the other end, there are calls that are invisible that are being made.”
Gobert went on to say that the way the Jazz are treated by officials is “disrespectful,” and that he hopes they feel “ashamed” if they rewatch the game. The All-Star center also pointed to Utah’s small market as one reason he believes the team isn’t getting a fair whistle.
“I don’t want to say that, but I really believe it” Gobert said. “… That’s why I told the guys: ‘When you’re a small market, you’ve got to be better than just better. You’ve got to be elite, and you’ve got to control what you can control.'”
The Jazz’s 27-9 record is the NBA’s best mark by a full three games, so if the team has been held back at all by the officiating in the first half, it hasn’t shown up in the standings.
While the NBA never suspends players for complaints about officiating, fines aren’t uncommon, so it’s probably safe to assume Mitchell and Gobert should prepare to write checks to the league.
David Nwaba To Undergo Wrist Surgery, Out 6 Weeks
Rockets wing David Nwaba is set to undergo wrist surgery and will miss a minimum of six weeks of game action, head coach Stephen Silas announced today (link via Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle).
Nwaba strained his wrist while dunking in a lopsided 133-84 loss to the Grizzlies this past Sunday.
The absence of Nwaba is yet another blow to the reeling Rockets, losers of a league-worst 12 games in a row. Nwaba will join starting center Christian Wood and reserve guard Dante Exum as the third Rockets player to be currently sidelined with a long-term injury.
In 28 games for the Rockets, Nwaba has proved a valuable role-playing contributor. The 28-year-old swingman, an athletic defender out of California Polytechnic State University, is averaging 9.4 PPG (a career high) and 3.7 RPG.
Seven New Positive COVID-19 Tests Among Players In Last Week
There are seven new positive coronavirus test results among the 456 league players tested since February 24, per an announcement from the NBPA. It’s the highest number of positives the NBA has had in a week since mid-January.
Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets that several of these positive results stemmed from the Raptors, who have had to postpone two games after an outbreak on their team.
Pascal Siakam will have missed at least four games as he continues to quarantine through the All-Star break. The Raptors forward returned an inconclusive result on a coronavirus test a few days ago — it’s unclear if he has subsequently tested positive. Several Raptors coaches tested positive as well, though they wouldn’t count toward the seven cases announced by the league today.
Sources are blaming the COVID-19 spread among the club on erratic face mask use by coaches, Charania adds. Toronto can finally field enough players to return to the court this evening against the Pistons.
The league is surely hoping that it will be able to curb these outbreak-prompted game postponements as it looks ahead to a packed post-All Star break home stretch. Thus far this season, 31 games have been postponed due to health and safety protocol-driven absences.
Bucks To Sign Myles Powell To Two-Way Contract
The Bucks intend to sign former Seton Hall guard Myles Powell to a two-way contract, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Powell, who went undrafted in 2020, joined the Westchester Knicks for the G League season and has played well at the Walt Disney World bubble, averaging 17.8 PPG, 3.8 APG, and 1.8 SPG with a .448/.446/.818 shooting line in 13 games (28.1 MPG).
The NBA is expected to loosen the rules for players on two-way contracts this season, removing the restrictions that limit them to 50 regular season games and make them ineligible for the playoffs. So once Powell officially signs with Milwaukee, he should be eligible to play in the rest of the team’s regular season and postseason games.
The Bucks currently don’t have a two-way slot open, so they’ll have to waive either Mamadi Diakite or Jaylen Adams to make room for Powell.
Adams has logged just 18 minutes for Milwaukee this season and Diakite has yet to make his NBA debut, but both players have impressed at the G League level — Adams put up 20.9 PPG and 5.2 APG with a .401 3PT% in 34 games for the Wisconsin Herd last season, while Diakite averaged a double-double (18.5 PPG, 10.4 RPG) with 2.1 BPG and a .580/.500/.750 shooting line in 12 games for the Lakeland Magic before being recalled today.
NBA Announces 2020/21 Rising Stars Rosters
Due to the coronavirus pandemic and the pared-down nature of the NBA’s 2021 All-Star weekend, a Rising Stars Game showcasing the league’s top rookies and sophomores won’t be played this year.
However, the league has still announced the rosters for the event, via NBA Top Shot, naming the 20 players who would have been selected to participate if the game was taking place. Here are those rosters:
U.S. Team:
- LaMelo Ball (Hornets)
- Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
- Tyrese Haliburton (Kings)
- Tyler Herro (Heat)
- De’Andre Hunter (Hawks)
- Keldon Johnson (Spurs)
- Ja Morant (Grizzlies)
- Michael Porter Jr. (Nuggets)
- Zion Williamson (Pelicans)
- James Wiseman (Warriors)
World Team:
- Precious Achiuwa (Heat) 🇳🇬
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Pelicans) 🇨🇦
- Deni Avdija (Wizards) 🇮🇱
- RJ Barrett (Knicks) 🇨🇦
- Facundo Campazzo (Nuggets) 🇦🇷
- Brandon Clarke (Grizzlies) 🇨🇦
- Luguentz Dort (Thunder) 🇨🇦
- Rui Hachimura (Wizards) 🇯🇵
- Theo Maledon (Thunder) 🇫🇷
- Mychal Mulder (Warriors) 🇨🇦
The 20-man group includes eight rookies and 11 sophomores. The 20th player, Porter, made the cut as a sophomore since he missed his entire rookie season in 2018/19 due to an injury — this is technically his third year of NBA service.
Mavericks, Nuggets Eyeing J.J. Redick?
A pair of Western Conference playoff contenders are potential suitors for J.J. Redick, according to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, who said in an episode of The Mismatch podcast that the Mavericks and Nuggets have “some level of interest” in the Pelicans‘ sharpshooter (hat tip to Sportando).
When Redick’s name first surfaced in trade rumors in January, a handful of Atlantic teams were identified as his most likely landing spots, with the Nets, Knicks, Celtics, and Sixers all named as possibilities. The thinking was that the 36-year-old would prefer to be closer to his family in Brooklyn.
While the Pelicans would like to do right by Redick, they presumably won’t just send him to an Atlantic team for nothing if a Western club like the Mavs or Nuggets makes a stronger offer. Redick and Eric Bledsoe were said earlier this week to still be very much available.
Redick, who has a $13MM expiring contract, got off to a very slow start this season, but has shot the ball well since falling out of the rotation for three games at the end of January. In his last 14 games, Redick has averaged 8.7 points in 16.3 MPG and has knocked down 49.0% of his 3-point attempts.
Dallas and Denver each have a handful of salaries in the range of Redick’s on their books, though some of those players wouldn’t be expendable. James Johnson‘s $16MM expiring contract would be the Mavs’ most logical outgoing piece, while the Nuggets may prefer to move Gary Harris, who is still owed a $20.9MM guaranteed salary in 2021/22.