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Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard Targeting January 4 Return

December 27th, 2024 at 6:48pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers and Kawhi Leonard are targeting next Saturday, January 4, for the star forward’s return from the knee issue that has sidelined him for the entire 2024/25 season so far, reports Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Leonard dealt with inflammation in his right knee at the end of last season and battled the issue again during the summer, necessitating his removal from the U.S. Olympic team. He underwent a procedure on the troublesome knee during the offseason and continued to work his way back to full strength this fall, delaying his season debut.

As we relayed earlier today, Leonard isn’t traveling with the Clippers on their three-game road trip, which begins on Monday in New Orleans and runs through next Thursday in Oklahoma City.

However, he participated in a 5-on-5 scrimmage on Thursday and the plan is for him to practice with the San Diego Clippers in the G League while the NBA squad is on the road.

The January 4 game vs. the Hawks is the Clippers’ first contest back at home following their road trip. Murray cautions (via Twitter) that there are still a number of boxes for Leonard to check within the next week, but if all goes well, it sounds as if the plan is for him to suit up vs. Atlanta.

Despite losing star forward Paul George during the offseason and missing Leonard for their first 30 games this season, the Clippers have remained highly competitive. They currently hold a 17-13 record, which technically makes them the No. 7 seed in the West, though they trail the No. 6 Lakers (17-13) in the standings by only a tiebreaker and the No. 5 Nuggets (16-12) by just percentage points.

Leonard’s return should make the Clippers an even greater threat in the Western Conference playoff race, assuming he can stay on the court. The two-time Finals MVP has missed 191 of 420 regular season games and 15 of 43 postseason contests since signing with L.A. in 2019.

When healthy, Leonard has continued to consistently play at an All-Star level. Last season, he averaged 23.7 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.6 steals per game with a .525/.417/.885 shooting line in 68 outings, earning a spot on the All-NBA Second Team.

Doug Christie Will Be Kings’ Interim Head Coach

December 27th, 2024 at 4:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Kings assistant Doug Christie will be elevated to take Mike Brown‘s spot on the bench following Brown’s dismissal, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that Christie is Sacramento’s new interim head coach.

Christie, a former NBA shooting guard, spent five of his 15 seasons as a player in Sacramento. That five-year stretch from 2000-05 was the most successful run of his career, as he started all 355 games he played and earned Defensive Player of the Year votes for a Kings team that won at least one playoff series in four straight years.

After retiring as a player, Christie spent some time as a color commentator for Kings game before being hired by the franchise as an assistant during the 2021 offseason.

Christie was hired under Luke Walton, remaining in his role as an assistant when the club parted ways with Walton and promoted Alvin Gentry to replace him during the 2021/22 season, and again when the Kings hired Brown in 2022.

Although Christie has never formally held a head coaching position, he has gained some experience on the job, having stepped in for Gentry in December 2021 when the Kings’ interim coach missed time with COVID-19. Christie also coached Sacramento’s Summer League team in 2024.

It’s unclear when the Kings plan to launch their search for a permanent head coach and whether Christie will receive serious consideration for the full-time role.

Jimmy Butler Out At Least Two More Games

December 27th, 2024 at 4:37pm CST by Luke Adams

Star forward Jimmy Butler remains in Miami and won’t rejoin the Heat until after they return from their current road trip, the team announced today (via Twitter).

That means Butler, who is being listed as out due to return-to-competition reconditioning following an illness, will miss games in Atlanta on Saturday and in Houston on Sunday before rejoining the Heat ahead of Wednesday’s game vs. the Pelicans in Miami. This weekend’s contests will be the fourth and fifth in a row that Butler has missed.

According to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, the original expectation had been that Butler would travel to Orlando to meet up with the club following Thursday’s game vs. the Magic and would be on the team flight to Atlanta on Friday.

The timing of Butler’s absence is notable, given that ESPN reported on Wednesday he prefers to be traded out of Miami and team president Pat Riley announced on Thursday that the 35-year-old isn’t going anywhere. While there’s no doubt Butler was legitimately sick, it’ll raise some eyebrows that he’ll end up missing three games due to “return-to-competition conditioning” after missing just two due to that illness.

Still, there has been no confirmation from the team or from reporters that Butler’s extended recovery period is connected to those recent trade rumors or Riley’s statement.

We’ll see what the six-time All-Star has to say about the situation during his first media availability after the Heat return home early next week. Until then, it remains possible that things could escalate instead of quieting down, though multiple reports indicated earlier this week that Butler is fine with the idea of finishing out the season in Miami and intends to remain professional.

As Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald tweets, the Heat announced on Thursday that they don’t intend to move Butler for a few reasons: They’re comfortable with their options for Butler next summer, even if he opts out of his contract; they want to win as many games as possible this season and believe Butler helps them do that; and there had been no indication that they were going to receive a trade offer they loved.

Luka Doncic Out At Least One Month; All-NBA Streak To End

December 27th, 2024 at 8:30am CST by Rory Maher

Mavericks guard Luka Doncic will be sidelined for at least one month after suffering a left calf strain in the second quarter of Wednesday’s loss to Minnesota, according to Shams Charania and Tim MacMahon of ESPN.

Multiple other reporters, including Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News, Dallas-based NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter links), and Lauren Merola and Christian Clark of The Athletic, have confirmed the news.

As Charania and MacMahon detail, Doncic underwent an MRI on Thursday and consulted with multiple medical professionals to establish a return timeline. ESPN’s duo reported on Wednesday that the Mavs were anticipating Doncic would miss an “extended period of time” with the injury, which caused him to leave the arena on crutches.

Doncic appeared to suffer the injury when he drove into the lane while being defended by Jaden McDaniels (Twitter video links). There was no contact to his left leg on the play.

According to ESPN, this is third time Doncic has strained his left calf in the past few years. He also missed all of preseason action with a left calf contusion and recently returned from a left heel contusion.

Doncic, who has made the All-NBA First Team each of the past five seasons, will see that streak come to an end in 2024/25. He has already missed eight games this season, and Dallas plays 16 games between now and January 25, which is around the time he’ll be reevaluated. That would put him on pace to miss at least 24 games, making him ineligible for major end-of-season awards, including MVP, due to the 65-game rule.

The 25-year-old superstar has averaged 28.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.8 assists and a career-high 2.0 steals in 22 games this season (35.7 minutes per contest). His shooting line is .464/.354/.767.

With Doncic out, star backcourt mate Kyrie Irving will take on additional scoring and play-making responsibilities. Quentin Grimes will likely start in Doncic’s stead, with Spencer Dinwiddie another candidate for more touches and minutes.

The Mavericks have had success without Doncic in ’24/25, going 6-2 to this point. But the reigning Western Conference champions will be tested over the next several weeks without their best player.

Grizzlies Interested In Nets Forward Finney-Smith

December 26th, 2024 at 9:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies are a “team to watch” as the Nets look to move forward Dorian Finney-Smith, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack article.

The two teams could be a match because the Nets have interest in the Grizzlies guard John Konchar, league sources tell Stein, who says the Magic and Heat are also looking at Konchar as a potential trade target.

It’s no secret Brooklyn is open for business regarding its veteran players as it tries to stockpile assets. Long noted for his defensive prowess, Finney-Smith is averaging 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this season. He’s also shooting a career-best 45.2% on 3-point attempts.

Finney-Smith has missed the last three games with a left calf contusion. He’s pulling in $14.9MM this season and has a player option on his contract for 2025/26 worth $15.4MM.

Finney-Smith could provide depth at the power forward spot for the Grizzlies behind Jaren Jackson Jr. and offer an alternative to rookie Jaylen Wells at small forward.

Konchar has seen his playing time plummet this season. He started 46 games over the previous two seasons but has come off the bench this season and appeared in just 15 contests.

Konchar is in the first season of a three-year, $18.5MM contract. Luke Kennard‘s $9.25MM expiring deal would a logical contract to package with Konchar in a deal for Finney-Smith but there’s a big catch. As Stein notes, Kennard would lose his Bird rights if he’s traded, since he re-signed with Memphis on a one-year contract. That means he would have to approve any trade involving him, and it’s hard to see him agreeing to go to a rebuilding team like the Nets.

Pat Riley Announces Heat Aren’t Trading Jimmy Butler

December 26th, 2024 at 12:51pm CST by Rory Maher

In an unusual move, Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley has made a public statement saying Miami isn’t trading Jimmy Butler (Twitter link).

“We usually don’t comment on rumors, but all this speculation has become a distraction to the team and is not fair to the players and coaches. Therefore, we will make it clear – We are not trading Jimmy Butler,” Riley said.

Riley’s statement comes on the heels of ESPN’s Shams Charania reporting on Wednesday that Butler preferred a trade out of Miami, though he has not formally requested to be dealt, which was confirmed by multiple local reporters.

Neither Butler nor the Heat have denied that the star forward is unhappy with his contract situation, however, and Riley did not address that in his statement. That may be a moot point, since there’s no indication Butler has caused any friction behind the scenes, and he still has at least this season left on his contract, with a $52.4MM player option for 2025/26. But Butler did force his way out of Minnesota six years ago.

Barry Jackson and Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald followed up on Charania’s report by adding additional details, including that Butler would play out the season with Miami if that’s what the team decides, but would be fine with a change of scenery as well. Time will tell if Butler changes his mind on that stance.

Responding to the rumors prior to Riley’s announcement, head coach Erik Spoelstra made it clear the Heat want to keep Butler around.

“We want Jimmy here. There’s no ifs, ands or buts about it,” Spoelstra said as part of a larger quote. “And it’s just unfortunate that you have to control or deal with a lot of the noise on the outside.”

Reporting in the wake of Miami’s elimination from the 2024 playoffs indicated that Butler would be seeking a maximum-salary extension during the offseason. Asked about that possibility during his end-of-season press conference in the spring, Riley expressed reluctance to make that sort of financial investment in a player “unless you have someone who is going to be available every night,” a reference to Butler’s injury issues in recent seasons.

Butler subsequently decided to remain with the Heat without an extension rather than pushing for an offseason trade. However, he has been unhappy about not being extended, according to The Miami Herald, which reported that Butler’s relationship with the Heat has become “somewhat strained.”

Marc Stein and others have reported that the Heat believe they’d be in a good position with Butler next summer, since the rebuilding Nets are the only team projected to have maximum-salary cap room. Jackson reiterated that point yesterday and again this morning, suggesting that Miami would be perfectly fine with — and even prefers — parting with Butler in a possible sign-and-trade in the offseason, even if it doesn’t return much value (Twitter links). That would only be possible if Butler declines his player option, which he still intends to do, according to Jackson.

Butler led the Heat to the NBA Finals in two of his first five seasons in Miami, and was a missed three-pointer away from making a third trip. The Heat lost on each occasion (to the Lakers and Nuggets, respectively).

A five-time All-NBA and five-time All-Defensive team member, Butler has been a highly effective two-way star for Miami when healthy. However, he will be 36 before the start of next season, and he has dealt with injuries throughout his 14-year career, only twice exceeding 70 games played in a regular season.

Of course, it’s always possible that the Heat could be trying to put a public rest to the recent drama while still listening to offers for Butler ahead of the February 6 trade deadline. We’ll see what happens over the next six weeks.

Heat Promote Keshad Johnson To Standard Roster

December 26th, 2024 at 9:35am CST by Luke Adams

DECEMBER 26: Johnson’s promotion is official, the Heat announced in a press release.

DECEMBER 24, 3:20pm: Johnson’s salary for the rest of the 2024/25 season will be fully guaranteed, according to Chiang, who reports (via Twitter) that the signing is expected to become official on Thursday. Stevens is expected to fill the newly opened two-way slot, Chiang confirms.

Assuming Johnson signs a minimum-salary contract, he’ll earn a rest-of-season salary of $724,883, which will also be Miami’s cap hit. However, because Johnson joined the team as a free agent, for the purposes of tax and apron calculations, the deal would count for $1,307,699 (the same as a veteran minimum contract).

DECEMBER 24, 2:57pm: The Heat intend to promote Keshad Johnson to their standard 15-man roster, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).

Johnson, who is currently on a two-way contract, will be converted to a two-year standard deal, according to Charania. The second year will be a team option, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.

Johnson signed a two-way contract with Miami after going undrafted out of Arizona this summer. He has only logged 14 total minutes across three appearances for the Heat, but has been a standout for the team’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

In 13 games with the Skyforce, the 6’7″ forward has averaged 21.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in 34.9 minutes per contest, with an excellent shooting line of .549/.396/.795.

The Heat dropped to 13 players on standard contracts when they traded Thomas Bryant to the Pacers on December 15. Since teams are only permitted to carry fewer than 14 players on standard deals for up to two weeks at a time, the club needs to re-add a 14th man by Dec. 29.

The expectation had been that another two-way player, Dru Smith, would fill that spot, but he suffered a season-ending Achilles tear on Monday, scuttling that plan. Another two-way player will get the promotion instead.

The fact that Johnson is getting a two-year contract suggests the team likely isn’t adding him to the roster as a placeholder, but it’s worth noting that the Heat could give him a non-guaranteed deal and then waive him before the league-wide guarantee date of January 7 if they want to take advantage of their full-season allotment of 28 days below 14 players for financial reasons. Miami’s team salary is currently about $3.7MM below the second tax apron.

While I’d expect Johnson to get a minimum-salary contract, Miami could use the taxpayer mid-level exception to give him more than the rookie minimum. If it’s a prorated minimum contract, his cap hit will depend on when the deal is officially completed.

Johnson’s promotion will open up a two-way slot for the Heat. G League standout Isaiah Stevens is among the top candidates for that opening, tweets Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.

Jimmy Butler Prefers Trade Out Of Miami

December 25th, 2024 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

Heat forward Jimmy Butler would prefer to be traded ahead of the February 6 deadline rather than sticking with Miami for the full season, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.

Charania clarifies that Butler has not formally asked the Heat to trade him, but he’s “believed to be ready for his exit” from the franchise.

Butler has been the subject of trade rumors in recent weeks, with Charania first reporting on December 10 that the Heat were open to listening to offers on the six-time All-Star.

Charania stated at the time that the Mavericks, Rockets, and Warriors were a few of the teams that would appeal to Butler in the event of a trade, then added the Suns to that list the following day. Phoenix and Golden State are believed to be his top choices from among that group, Charania said today on NBA Countdown (Twitter video link).

Multiple teams have been in touch with the Heat within the past couple weeks to express interest in Butler, but Miami isn’t showing urgency in those discussions, sources tell ESPN.

Reporting in the wake of Miami’s elimination from the 2024 playoffs indicated that Butler would be seeking a maximum-salary extension during the offseason. Asked about that possibility during his end-of-season press conference in the spring, president of basketball operations Pat Riley expressed reluctance to make that sort of financial investment in a player “unless you have someone who is going to be available every night,” a reference to Butler’s injury issues in recent seasons.

Butler subsequently decided to remain with the Heat without an extension rather than pushing for an offseason trade. However, he has been unhappy about not being extended, according to Anthony Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Following the publication of today’s ESPN report, reporters in Miami – including Chiang and Jackson – have cited sources who confirm Butler hasn’t demanded a trade. According to The Herald, Butler would play out the season with Miami if that’s what the team decides, but would be fine with a change of scenery as well.

The 35-year-old is earning $48.8MM this season and holds a $52.4MM player option for the 2025/26 season. Multiple reports have indicated he intends to turn down that option to become a free agent, whether or not he’s traded this season. Butler doesn’t have to make a decision on that option until late June though, so it’s possible he’ll use that stance for leverage purposes and opt in or sign an extension later in the season if he ends up in a situation he likes.

Marc Stein and others have reported that the Heat believe they’d be in a good position with Butler next summer, since the rebuilding Nets are the only team projected to have maximum-salary cap room. Chiang and Jackson reiterated that point today, writing that Miami is “not at all concerned” about losing the former Marquette standout for nothing in free agency. Still, Charania says both the Heat and Butler seem willing to move on from one another.

Butler’s relationship with the Heat has become “somewhat strained,” per Chiang and Jackson, who hear from a source that the 14-year veteran was disappointed the team didn’t publicly deny Charania’s Dec. 10 report that Miami was open to moving him. Butler was also the only Heat player not to attend a Christmas party at Riley’s house, though he has missed the party in the past, so that’s not necessarily meaningful, according to Chiang and Jackson (Twitter link).

The Herald duo hears from a source that Butler was “caught off guard” when Riley scolded him at his spring press conference for Butler’s claim that the Celtics and Knicks would “be at home” if he had been able to play in the postseason.

“If you’re not on the court playing against Boston or on the court playing against the New York Knicks, you should keep your mouth shut on the criticism of those teams,” Riley said at the time.

While the relationship between player and team isn’t as strong as it once was, Butler hasn’t been disruptive at all this season like he was in 2018 when he requested a trade out of Minnesota, according to The Herald.

Butler is averaging 18.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 4.9 assists in 31.4 minutes per game across 20 outings so far this season, with a .552/.357/.782 shooting line. His season-long averages have been hurt to some extent by the fact that he was only able to play seven minutes in a pair of games that he left due to injuries.

Butler’s $48.8MM salary will complicate some teams’ ability to acquire him via trade. The Mavericks and Suns fall into that group and appear not to have enough assets to entice Miami, per Chiang and Jackson. The Rockets, meanwhile, have told people they’re not interested in pursuing Butler, a source tells The Herald.

Knicks Re-Sign Matt Ryan To Two-Way Contract

December 24th, 2024 at 7:19pm CST by Luke Adams

7:19pm: The Knicks have officially signed Ryan and waived Buie, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter links).

3:17pm: The Knicks intend to re-sign Matt Ryan to a two-way contract after he clears waivers, sources tell Fred Katz and James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). Ryan was cut from the standard roster on Sunday, so he’ll officially become a free agent at 5:00 pm ET today.

New York will waive two-way player Boo Buie in order to create a spot for Ryan, according to Katz and Edwards.

Ryan, 27, signed a non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract with the Knicks in November when they needed to add two players to their roster to get to the required minimum of 14. Ariel Hukporti, who had been on a two-way deal, was promoted to the standard roster at the same time Ryan was signed to get New York back to 14 players.

Known as a sharpshooter, Ryan has played for the Celtics, Lakers, Timberwolves, and Pelicans since making his NBA debut in April 2022, but has struggled to earn regular playing time. That was the case again this fall with the Knicks, as he appeared in just nine games, scoring 15 total points in 45 minutes. While the sample size was small, he was unable to get his three-point shot going in those outings, making just 3-of-14 (21.4%).

Still, Ryan – who is in his fourth NBA season – is the type of plug-and-play veteran capable of contributing in a pinch, so after cutting him to make room on the standard roster for Landry Shamet, the Knicks will bring him back at the expense of a developmental rookie in Buie.

An undrafted first-year pro out of Northwestern, Buie has yet to make his regular season NBA debut, having only played for the Westchester Knicks in the G League so far this season.

Assuming Ryan returns to the Knicks ahead of Wednesday’s Christmas Day game, he’ll be eligible to appear in up to a maximum of 32 more NBA games this season (a prorated portion of the usual 50-game limit).

Suns Looking To Move Jusuf Nurkic

December 24th, 2024 at 4:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns are shopping starting center Jusuf Nurkic, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports.

Phoenix’s front office is seeking another big man in return, with the Wizards‘ Jonas Valanciunas and Bulls‘ Nikola Vucevic among the players mentioned in trade talks.

There still are conversations about a deal with the Heat involving Jimmy Butler, Rankin adds, confirming a Marc Stein report. Bradley Beal would be a natural fit salary-wise in a Butler deal but he’d have to waive a no-trade clause — and the Heat would have to be willing to take on his multiyear, maximum-salary contract.

The Suns, with three star players in their lineup, are floundering at the .500 mark. Their desire to move Nurkic indicates they’re looking for ways to shake things up, though second apron restrictions limit what they can do.

Nurkic is averaging 9.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 24.5 minutes per game during his second season with the Suns. Nurkic played just 15 minutes against Denver on Monday. He averaged 10.9 PPG, 11.0 RPG and 4.0 APG last season.

Phoenix acquired him in the three-team blockbuster in which Damian Lillard was dealt to Milwaukee and former Suns center Deandre Ayton was sent to the Trail Blazers.

Nurkic is signed through next season. He’s making $18.125MM this season and will bring in $19.375MM next season.

Valanciunas is making $9.9MM this season, so there would need to be additional players in a transaction involving the Wizards. Vucevic, also signed through next season, is pulling in $20MM this season.

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