Patrick Beverley Returns To NBA Campus
Another Clippers player has returned to the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that veteran guard Patrick Beverley is back in Orlando after leaving for an emergency personal matter on Tuesday.
As of Friday, Beverley, Lou Williams, and Montrezl Harrell were all away the Disney campus for personal matters, while Ivica Zubac and Landry Shamet still hadn’t reported. However, Zubac and Shamet were said to be arriving this weekend, and Williams returned on Saturday as well. Once Harrell gets back to Disney and everyone clears quarantine, the Clippers should be at full strength.
Williams will be subject to a 10-day quarantine period after the NBA reviewed his activities while away from the campus. However, there’s no indication at this point that Beverley will have to remain quarantined for longer than the four-day minimum required for any player who leaves Orlando. We’ll provide an update if that changes.
It remains to be seen whether Beverley will be available for the Clippers’ first seeding game on Thursday night against the Lakers. Even if he clears quarantine before that game tips off, it will be well over a week since he has practiced, so the club may play it safe with one of its key backcourt contributors.
Joel Embiid Day To Day With Calf Issue
Sixers center Joel Embiid will be held out of today’s scrimmage due to discomfort in his right calf, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Embiid experienced discomfort in the calf area during Friday’s game with the Grizzlies, and his status is considered day-to-day (Twitter link). He will be re-evaluated tomorrow, according to Derek Bodner of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Al Horford will take Embiid’s spot in the starting lineup, adds Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link). The Sixers had been hoping to use the scrimmages to adjust to their new starting lineup, with Horford in a reserve role.
“I feel that it’s an opportunity — truly, not coach speak, not political speak, truly — to play Al more, to put him with some different groups,” coach Brett Brown said (video link from Pompey). “I think if this had happened three, four games into what we’re calling the regular season, there’s always frustration, and I know frustration at times for Joel, but initially we’re just trying to be smart with everything and move on.”
Embiid has a long injury history and had just returned from a shoulder sprain when the hiatus began. He has appeared in 44 of the Sixers’ 65 games this season and is averaging 23.4 points and 11.8 rebounds per night.
Lou Williams Must Quarantine For 10 Days
Lou Williams will be required to go through a 10-day quarantine after visiting a strip club during his absence from the Walt Disney World campus, according to Sam Amick, Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic. He will miss the Clippers‘ first two seeding games against the Lakers on Thursday and the Pelicans on Saturday.
More details have emerged about Williams’ trip to Magic City in Atlanta during an excused absence to attend a funeral. Sources tell the authors that Williams was part of a group, including rapper Jack Harlow, that went to the club for dinner Thursday after the funeral viewing. They didn’t stay long, sources add, and were there mainly for the food.
“Ask any of my teammates what’s my favorite restaurant in Atlanta,” Williams tweeted Saturday night. “Ain’t nobody partying. Chill out lol #Maskon #inandout.” He later added, “Magic City is my favorite restaurant in the world.”
The funeral for Williams’ friend took place Friday and he returned to the WDW campus Saturday.
Williams’ situation is one of many for the short-handed Clippers, who are just four days away from their opening game. Ivica Zubac is in quarantine after joining the team Friday, and Landry Shamet is reportedly headed to Orlando after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month. Patrick Beverley and Montrezl Harrell are both away from the team on excused absences.
Asked Saturday about whether he expected a full roster for Thursday’s game, coach Doc Rivers responded, “My guess is I would doubt it.”
NBA Investigating Why Lou Williams Left Orlando
The NBA is investigating what Clippers guard Lou Williams did during his absence from Orlando to determine how long he will be required to quarantine, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.
ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne tweets that pictures emerged of Williams at an Atlanta gentleman’s club Thursday night alongside rapper Jack Harlow, who later deleted the post from Instagram. Harlow claimed Friday that Williams wasn’t at the club, tweeting, “That was an old pic of me and Lou. I was just reminiscing cuz I miss him.”
Sources tell Shelburne that NBA security interviewed Williams, who admitted briefly being at the Magic City gentleman’s club on Thursday (Twitter link).
Williams received permission to leave Walt Disney World this week, making him the third Clipper in the past few days to exit the campus environment to attend to personal matters. Coach Doc Rivers confirmed that Williams returned today, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link).
Williams will be required to quarantine for four days if he maintained negative test results over each of the past seven days. However, a longer quarantine could be imposed, depending on the results of the league investigation. The Clippers will begin their seeding games Thursday against the Lakers.
“I can’t share much with his journey (since leaving Orlando), I wasn’t on that journey with him,” Rivers told reporters (Twitter link). “But he’s back here, I can tell you that much. Those (pictures) got out and that’s something that we obviously didn’t enjoy seeing or like.”
If Williams’ quarantine is extended to 10 days, he will miss two seeding games and would forfeit up to $150K in salary, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).
Rockets’ Austin Rivers Returns To Campus
Rockets guard Austin Rivers is back on the Walt Disney World campus, two days after leaving for an “urgent family matter,” writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Rivers posted the news today on his Instagram account.
Players are permitted to leave the campus, but they must quarantine for four to 10 days once they return. Feigen notes that the four-day wait takes effect only if players test negative for the coronavirus for seven straight days before returning. Those tests can include the ones taken at the WDW complex if they’re away for fewer than seven days.
Rivers wasn’t present for last night’s scrimmage and will sit out Sunday’s contest with the Grizzlies, Feigen adds. His status for the final scrimmage on Tuesday and Houston’s first seeding game on Friday has yet to be determined.
Rivers was a valuable contributor off the bench in his first full season with the Rockets, averaging 8.5 points in 60 games while playing 23.4 minutes per night. He has a $2.4MM player option for 2020/21.
Knicks To Hire Tom Thibodeau As Head Coach
The Knicks and Tom Thibodeau are finalizing a five-year contract to make him their head coach, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Thibodeau has been considered the favorite to land the job for months. However, Lakers assistant Jason Kidd reportedly emerged as a frontrunner after negotiations with Thibodeau appeared to hit a snag. Those differences have obviously been ironed out.
Thibodeau has strong ties to the new front office regime, as team president Leon Rose is his former agent. Thibodeau has a .589 winning percentage (352-246) as a head coach with the Bulls and Timberwolves, though his tenure with Minnesota ended midway through the 2018/19 season when the team was floundering below .500 at 19-21.
The Knicks conducted an extensive search for the position. Ex-Nets coach Kenny Atkinson, interim Knicks coach Mike Miller, former NBA coaches Mike Brown and Mike Woodson, and a handful of current assistants from around the NBA were considered for the job. Thibodeau was interviewed twice, including a three-hour session in his second interview. Overall, Rose and his front office team met with 11 candidates.
The team that Thibodeau inherits is in flux. The Knicks have a number of veteran players on non-guaranteed contracts for next season after striking out in their quest for a superstar player last offseason. They’re expected to be one of a handful of teams with significant salary-cap space this offseason and also have some interesting young pieces, including center Mitchell Robinson and last year’s lottery pick, RJ Barrett.
The Knicks are counting on Thibodeau to develop those young players and instill a winning culture. New York was 21-45 this season and missed the playoffs for the sixth straight season.
Thibodeau has long-standing ties to the organization as an assistant under Jeff Van Gundy from 1996-2004.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Zion Back On Campus, Could Play On Thursday
JULY 25, 10:06am: Williamson’s Orlando quarantine that began Friday night will last four days, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. If he’s cleared, he will be eligible to play in the team’s seeding opener on Thursday.
JULY 24th, 7:25pm: Pelicans superstar rookie forward Zion Williamson returned to the Orlando campus on Friday, the team’s PR department tweets.
Williamson was tested daily for COVID-19 while away from the team and produced negative results each time. He is required to quarantine immediately, per NBA protocol.
The team is awaiting word on the number of days he’ll be required to quarantine, according to Andrew Lopez of ESPN. However, even if the league clears him, it’s not a slam dunk that New Orleans will play him in its first seeding game on Thursday. The team will be cautious with its prized rookie since he’s been away for more than a week and will have to sit idle for a few more days, Lopez adds (Twitter link).
Williamson left Orlando on July 16 for what was described as an “urgent family matter.” He expressed his gratitude to well-wishers in a statement issued on Friday, Lopez relays in another tweet.
“My family and I appreciate the love and respect that everyone showed us while we dealt with a private family matter,” Williamson said. “I’m excited to rejoin my team in Orlando and look forward to getting back on the court with my teammates after quarantine.”
NBA Nears Agreement On Workouts For Teams Not In Orlando
The NBA is close to finalizing plans for the eight teams not in Orlando to hold practices and group workouts, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer reports.
Under the proposal, those teams would be allowed a week of practice at their home facilities, beginning the second week of August. They might also conduct two weeks of group workouts and scrimmages at two of those sites.
The plan would have to be approved by the National Basketball Players Association but talks have progressed to point where an announcement could be made next week, according to Bonnell. If those teams do agree to the two-week workout and scrimmage sessions, they would be subject to the same safety protocols as the players at the Orlando campus.
The teams not currently in Orlando are the Hornets, Pistons, Knicks, Bulls, Timberwolves, Hawks, Cavaliers and Warriors.
Many of those teams have been pushing for some sort of organized activities, feeling they’re at a competitive disadvantage compared to the teams on the Orlando campus. However, the Knicks were reportedly reluctant to hold scrimmages against other clubs since they have numerous free agents on their roster.
Currently, players on those teams are only allowed to work on individual skills development, Bonnell notes.
Domantas Sabonis Leaves Campus To Seek Treatment For Foot Injury
6:17pm: Sabonis is seeking treatment for plantar fasciitis in his left foot, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets. The team did not indicate if and when he would return to Orlando, Mannix adds.
4:47pm: Sabonis hopes to eventually rejoin the Pacers in Orlando, but could miss the rest of the season, Wojnarowski writes in his full report at ESPN.com.
4:06pm: Pacers big man Domantas Sabonis is dealing with a significant foot injury and is leaving the NBA’s Walt Disney World campus in order to seek treatment from a specialist, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
Sabonis, who missed Indiana’s first inter-squad scrimmage on Thursday, has been diagnosed with plantar fasciitis and hasn’t practiced for about a week. Although Sabonis could eventually return to the Disney campus and rejoin the Pacers, Woj’s classification of the injury as “significant” suggests the 24-year-old is unlikely to suit up anytime soon.
If Sabonis is unable to play for the Pacers during the restart, it will be a major blow to the team’s chances of advancing beyond the first round in the postseason. The 24-year-old had a breakout season in 2019/20, averaging a career-best 18.5 PPG, 12.4 RPG, and 5.0 APG in 62 games (34.8 MPG), en route to his first All-Star nod. He also established more chemistry in the frontcourt with Myles Turner as the season progressed.
Speaking of Turner, he missed a couple practices and has been limited recently due to a calf ailment, per Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports and J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter links). Malcolm Brogdon is also coming off a case of COVID-19, while Victor Oladipo has yet to decide whether or not he’ll play this summer.
Oladipo did participate in Indiana’s first scrimmage on Thursday, but said after the game that he remains unsure whether he’ll play in the seeding games and the postseason. If Sabonis is ruled out, it will be interesting to see if that influences Oladipo’s decision.
Given Sabonis’ situation, it’s worth noting that the NBA recently tweaked its re-entry rules for players who are approved to leave the league’s campus for medical treatment. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), those players won’t necessarily have to quarantine for four or more days if and when they return. In fact, they may not have to quarantine at all if certain conditions are met, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link).
Arron Afflalo Involved In Group Bidding On Timberwolves
A prospective ownership group putting together an offer for the Timberwolves includes former NBA guard Arron Afflalo, two people with knowledge of the bid tell Pat Graham and Dave Campbell of The Associated Press.
According to the AP duo, venture capitalist Brock Berglund would be “spearheading the financing,” though the group would consist of two to five people with a combined net worth exceeding $10 billion. Afflalo would be the face of the group, which plans to submit its bid no later than this weekend, per Graham and Campbell.
The Associated Press’ report also notes that Afflalo’s group is a diverse one that is “seeking to place minorities in positions of power and uplift the community in the wake of the death of George Floyd.”
Previous reports indicated that former Timberwolves star Kevin Garnett is part of a group preparing a bid for the Timberwolves, now that team owner Glen Taylor is increasingly open to a sale. It doesn’t sound as if Garnett and Afflalo are part of the same group.
While Garnett’s connection to the franchise is obvious, Afflalo’s involvement in the bidding process is a little more surprising. The 34-year-old’s career earnings, per Basketball-Reference, totaled about $59MM, a fraction of Garnett’s $343MM. Additionally, Afflalo, who made his NBA debut in 2007 and spent 11 seasons in the league, suited up for six different teams, but the Wolves weren’t one of them.
Nonetheless, sources tell The Associated Press that the team wouldn’t be relocated if it’s sold to Afflalo’s group. Keeping the franchise in Minnesota has been a top priority for Taylor as he weighs his options.
It’s not clear what other bidders besides Afflalo’s and Garnett’s groups may be in the mix. The Wilf family – which owns the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings – was said to be interested, but despite some initial discussions, the Wilfs reportedly aren’t engaged in any active talks about purchasing the Wolves. Still,
Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic says (via Twitter) that there has been a “flood of interest” since word broke that Taylor is exploring a sale. Krawczynski notes that there were six of seven groups “already at the table” earlier in the week.