Lance Stephenson Among NBA Vets Eligible For G League Draft
As previously reported, the NBA G League’s 2020/21 draft will take place on Monday, January 11. And according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter links), there will be some interesting names on the list of players eligible to be selected in that draft.
Veteran swingman Lance Stephenson, former No. 2 overall pick Emeka Okafor, and other recent NBA players like Justin Patton, Jacob Evans, Dzanan Musa, and Admiral Schofield will be part of the draft pool, per Givony. Former first-round picks Terrence Jones and Shabazz Muhammad will be draft-eligible as well.
According to Givony, the following players who have been on NBA rosters in the past are also among the G League’s other draft-eligible veterans: Kenny Wooten, Antonio Blakeney, Tyler Ulis, Quincy Pondexter, Diamond Stone, Hollis Thompson, Cat Barber, Isaiah Briscoe, Phil Booth, Dusty Hannahs, Jemerrio Jones, Cory Jefferson, and Freddie Gillespie.
These, presumably, are players who have signed G League contracts but whose rights aren’t currently held by any teams. A player whose returning rights are controlled by a club participating in the G League’s bubble season wouldn’t be eligible to be drafted.
For instance, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that LiAngelo Ball has signed a contract to play in the bubble. Since the Oklahoma City Blue hold his returning rights and are playing in the bubble, Ball shouldn’t be in the general draft pool.
The Blue are one of 18 teams set to participate in the shortened bubble season, which is expected to take place at Walt Disney World. That list of teams can be found right here.
Givony previously reported that the G League is adjusting its roster rules for this season to make it easier for NBA teams to recruit and sign veterans with five or more years of NBA experience. Each NBAGL team will be able to designate an “NBA Vet Selection” who fits that bill and can sign that player directly without navigating the league’s complicated waiver process. My understanding is that those designated won’t be in the draft pool.
Markelle Fultz Tears ACL, Done For Season
Recently-extended Magic starting point guard Markelle Fultz is set to miss the rest of the 2020/21 season after tearing the ACL in his left knee, Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. Fultz suffered the injury during the first quarter of tonight’s 105-96 defeat of the Cavaliers. Fultz’s three-year, $50MM contract extension will kick in during the 2021/22 season.
This is quite a blow for the Magic. Fultz will join the club’s fellow injured 2017 lottery draftee Jonathan Isaac on the sidelines for the duration of the 2020/21 season. Isaac received an $80MM extension of his own ahead of the season, all of which he is set to miss as a result of his own torn left ACL, which he incurred during the 2020 NBA playoffs this past August.
Fultz was selected with the No. 1 pick by the Sixers in the 2017 NBA draft. After various shoulder injuries limited the 6’3″ guard to just 33 games across his first two seasons, Philadelphia traded a still-injured Fultz to the Magic ahead of the 2019 deadline.
Fultz was available for 72 of Orlando’s 73 games during the subsequent 2019/20 season, and developed into a reliable, athletic starter for the playoff-bound Orlando.
In 27.7 MPG, he averaged 12.1 PPG (on 46.5% shooting from the field), 5.1 APG, 3.3 RPG and 1.3 SPG. This season, Fultz was averaging 14.3 PPG, 6.1 APG, 3.6 RPG, and 1.0 SPG during the Magic’s first seven games.
With Fultz sidelined, Michael Carter-Williams and rookie Cole Anthony figure to see more minutes at the point this season. Both of Orlando’s two-way players – Jordan Bone and Karim Mane – are point guards as well.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Pistons’ Killian Hayes Suffers Labral Tear In Hip
11:31am: The Pistons are sending Hayes to a specialist to determine next steps, reports Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports.
If Hayes can avoid surgery, he may miss about four-to-six weeks, says Goodwill. Sources tell Yahoo Sports that surgery is still an option, however — in that scenario, the rookie guard may not be able to return this season.
8:14am: Pistons rookie Killian Hayes has been diagnosed with a labral tear in his right hip, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Hayes suffered the injury in Monday night’s game against Milwaukee, leaving in the third quarter following a drive to the basket. The plan was to have him undergo an MRI on Tuesday, so presumably that MRI revealed the labral tear.
A timeline for Hayes’ return to the court has yet to be confirmed, tweets James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. It’s possible the Pistons and Hayes are still assessing whether or not the injury will require surgery — going under the knife would result in a longer-term absence for the No. 7 overall pick.
Hayes, one of the NBA’s youngest players, started each of Detroit’s first seven games and struggled to make an immediate impact in his first taste of NBA action. The 19-year-old averaged 4.6 PPG and 3.6 APG on .277/.250/.500 shooting in 21.1 minutes per contest.
With Hayes sidelined, the Pistons figure to lean more heavily on veteran point guards Derrick Rose and Delon Wright. Two-way players Saben Lee and Frank Jackson are also on the roster as depth options at the point, though neither one has seen any playing time yet this season.
Cavs’ Dante Exum To Miss 1-2 Months
Cavaliers guard Dante Exum is expected to miss 1-2 months with a strained right calf, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
Exum suffered the non-contact injury during the first quarter of the team’s game against Orlando on Monday. He was writhing in pain and eventually hobbled to the bench, unable to put weight on his leg.
It’s a blow to the Cavs, as coach J.B. Bickerstaff had plugged Exum in a defensive stopper role.
“I think (Dante) is a heck of a defender,” Bickerstaff said over the weekend. “He’s extremely intelligent. He’s got great length. And he’s committed to trying to go out and get the job done.”
The injury could impact Exum’s future earnings. Exum, who is making $9.6MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He’s dealt with a number of health problems over the years that sidetracked his career. He hasn’t played more than 42 games in the past three seasons.
Cleveland has been hit hard by injuries and other issues this season
Exum was inserted into the lineup when rookie Isaac Okoro sprained his foot and then was placed on the league’s COVID-19 list. Kevin Porter Jr. has been out for personal reasons and his return is unknown, while Kevin Love is expected to miss most of this month with a calf strain. Matthew Dellavedova has been sidelined after suffering a concussion during the preseason.
League Officials Have Floated Possible $2.5 Billion Expansion Fee
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in his preseason press conference last month that the league has become more open to the idea of expanding beyond its current 30 teams. While Silver cautioned that expansion isn’t “on the front burner,” a report on Tuesday from ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggests there have been some discussions about the concept in the league office.
According to Windhorst, officials have “floated” a price tag of $2.5 billion as a potential expansion fee for two new teams in the near future.
Expansion fees – which are paid by the incoming franchises – are split equally by the NBA’s current teams and aren’t shared with players. That means two new franchises paying $2.5 billion apiece could result in a $160MM+ windfall for each of the league’s 30 existing clubs, Windhorst notes.
It’s not clear whether that $2.5 billion projection is a realistic one, but the NBA “knows its business and its bidders,” according to Windhorst, who points out that multiple groups based in cities like Seattle and Las Vegas could have interest in establishing a new NBA franchise and could be motivated to meet the league’s asking price in an expansion scenario.
With a number of current teams accumulating debt during the coronavirus pandemic, interest in the idea of expansion has increased, Windhorst writes.
Still, team owners looking to make up for lost short-term revenue should be wary of pushing to do so via an expansion fee. As Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and others have pointed out, that expansion fee is essentially a loan that will be repaid over the years via revenue sharing if teams are receiving 1/32nd of the league-wide pie instead of 1/30th.
Latest On Potential Sale Of Timberwolves
It has been nearly six months since reports surfaced indicating that Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor was exploring a sale of the franchise. However, firm offers for the team have been “tepid,” sources tell Brian Windhorst of ESPN (Insider link).
In August, a report from The Athletic suggested that former Grizzlies minority owner Daniel Straus was closing in on a deal to buy the Timberwolves. According to Windhorst, Taylor and Straus got as far as a term sheet and continue to talk, but have been unable to finalize an agreement. Sources tell ESPN that Straus modified his offer once it became clear that fans wouldn’t fill arenas during the 2020/21 season.
Straus is still the favorite to become the team’s new owner, but Taylor’s history of exploring a sale and then pulling the team off the market creates some uncertainty, writes Windhorst. It also sounds as if valuations of the Wolves (which are in the $1.3-1.5 billion range, including debt, per ESPN) are lower than Taylor had hoped.
“I think Glen was hoping team values were still going up,” another team owner told ESPN. “I think we’re finding out they may not be right now.”
As we’ve noted in previous stories about a possible sale of the Wolves, Taylor’s insistence that the team remain in Minnesota is expected to put a ceiling on both the number of bidders and the sale price, since many potential suitors would be interested in relocating the club. Taylor has flatly rebuffed inquiries from those looking to relocate the Wolves, reports Windhorst.
A report last July indicated there were some preliminary discussions with the Wilf family – the owners of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings – but that they didn’t advance, which Windhorst confirms. Former Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett was also said to have interest in putting together a group to make a bid, but there has been no traction on that front either, per Windhorst.
While Straus reportedly remains a viable buyer for the Wolves, there doesn’t seem to be a clear Plan B if those talks stall. Taylor acknowledged in a recent interview that there’s a very real possibility he could still control the franchise a year from now.
Spurs Guard Derrick White Has Toe Fracture
Spurs guard Derrick White has a minor toe fracture in his left foot, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. White’s return will be based upon his response to rehab, Charania adds.
It’s the same digit — the second toe of his left foot — that was surgically repaired in August. White re-injured the toe during a loose ball scrum against the Lakers on New Year’s Day. White missed training camp, preseason and the team’s first four regular-season games while rehabbing from the surgery, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News notes.
White scored nine points in 23 minutes in his season debut before retreating to the bench.
“This is bad, bad luck for him and for our team,” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose team departed on a five-game road trip this week.
White signed a four-year rookie scale extension worth $73MM just prior to the start of the regular season. White averaged 11.3 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 3.5 APG in 24.7 MPG last season, his third year in the league. He started 20 of 68 games after starting 55 of 67 games in his second season.
Grizzlies Sign Tim Frazier
6:37pm: The signing is official, pursuant to the NBA’s hardship roster rules, according to a team press release. The Grizzlies took advantage of the league’s rule tweaks and made it a 10-day contract, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.
12:31pm: The Grizzlies are set to complete the first NBA transaction of the 2021 calendar year, with Shams Charania of The Athletic reporting (via Twitter) that the club has reached a deal to sign free agent point guard Tim Frazier.
While terms of the deal haven’t been reported, it will almost certainly be a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract.
Frazier, 30, has a total of 272 regular season NBA games for six teams under his belt. In 2019/20, he appeared in 27 games for the Pistons, averaging 3.6 PPG and 3.4 APG on .362/.333/.792 shooting in 13.1 minutes per contest. He was cut by Detroit last February to accommodate a deadline-day trade.
The Grizzlies don’t currently have an open roster spot available, but won’t have to waive a player to add Frazier, since they’ll sign him via the hardship provision, according to Charania.
The NBA can grant a team a hardship exception when that team has at least four players who have missed three or more games due to injury or illness and are expected to miss at least two more weeks. A hardship exception allows the club to add an extra player to its 15-man roster, increasing its roster limit to 16. When one of the four injured players is ready to return, the team must once again reduce its roster count to 15.
The Grizzlies have been without Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee), Justise Winslow (hip), and Jontay Porter (knee) all season so far, and recently lost Ja Morant for several weeks due to an ankle sprain. Morant missed his third consecutive game on Sunday, making Memphis eligible for a hardship exception.
NBA Tightens Health And Safety Protocols
The NBA has made some amendments its COVID-19 protocols, including a requirement that all active players who are dressed to play must wear a face mask until they enter the game, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
That rule will go into effect on Tuesday. Additionally, all players, coaches and staffers in Tiers 1 and 2 must wear a mask when outside the team setting and indoors.
After leaving the court, active players are strongly recommended to wear mask in the bench area. The requirement resets at halftime — players not in the game at the start of second half must don a mask until they enter. Inactive players remain required to wear mask for the entire game, Charania adds.
The tightening of restrictions comes at a time when multiple teams are dealing with coronavirus issues to either players or staffers. In-game protocols are particularly important, as the league is intent on preventing the possibility of having to postpone games due to multiple positive tests and contact tracing.
Kevin Durant To Miss Multiple Games Under COVID-19 Protocols
Nets star forward Kevin Durant is listed out Tuesday against the Jazz due to NBA’s coronavirus health and safety protocols, the team’s PR department tweets.
Durant’s faces a seven-day quarantine because of exposure to a positive COVID-19 case, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Malika Andrews report. That means Durant would also have to sit out three more games. He has continued to register antibodies and has tested negative in multiple recent tests, Wojnarowski adds.
No other player on the team was listed as out for the same reason.
Durant tested positive for the virus back in March, shortly after play was halted. He later stated to ESPN’s Marc Spears he didn’t experience symptoms.
“I didn’t have any symptoms so I am good,” he said this summer. “I couldn’t leave the house. … The unknown was definitely difficult to deal with. But other than that, I was great.”
The NBA is experiencing an uptick in cases without the protection of a bubble. The Bulls are dealing with the virus, as Tomas Satoransky and Chandler Hutchison have tested positive recently and two other Chicago players have simultaneously been held out of action.