Wizards To Hire Travis Schlenk In Front Office Role
President Michael Winger plans to make his first addition to the Wizards‘ new-look front office, hiring former Hawks president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk as senior vice president of player personnel, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Josh Robbins of The Athletic confirms the news (via Twitter) through his own league sources.
While Schlenk is certainly a notable executive, Winger is still searching for a general manager to directly oversee the Wizards and their G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, Wojnarowski adds. The new GM would report directly to Winger.
Formerly an assistant GM in Golden State, Schlenk was hired as Atlanta’s general manager in 2017 and was promoted to president of basketball ops in 2019. He had been the ninth longest-tenured head of basketball operations in the NBA before he moved into an advisory role in December.
Schlenk launched a rebuild when he initially joined the Hawks and oversaw three losing seasons before the team turned things around in 2020/21, making a run to the Eastern Conference Finals. They have been ousted from the first round of the playoffs each of the past two seasons.
During his tenure atop the team’s front office, Schlenk swung two major draft trades to land Trae Young (for Luka Doncic and a future pick) and De’Andre Hunter; drafted John Collins, Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, and Onyeka Okongwu; and acquired Dejounte Murray from San Antonio in a blockbuster deal this past summer.
Although the Hawks publicly announced Schlenk was transitioning to advisory role, subsequent reporting from Sam Amick of The Athletic indicated that he was no longer part of the operation in Atlanta and was free to leave for another team if he desired to. About five months later, he’s landing in D.C.
According to Amick, Schlenk expressed reservations about the price to acquire Murray (three first-round picks, including two unprotected, and a pick swap), and that played a factor in his exit from the franchise. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution also reported that Schlenk’s relationship with Young had deteriorated after the point guard chartered a private flight home from Miami without telling anyone from the team during last year’s playoffs. Young was later fined.
NBA Announces 108 Withdrawals From Early Entrant List
A total of 108 players have notified the NBA that they wish to be removed from the list of early entrants eligible for the 2023 NBA draft, the league announced (via Twitter).
The NCAA’s early entry withdrawal deadline passed Wednesday night at 10:59 pm CT, so players wishing to retain their college eligibility had to remove their names from the draft pool by that point.
The league’s own withdrawal deadline is 4:00 pm CT on June 12, so more players will be taking their names out of consideration in the coming days. That deadline will feature international prospects as well as domestic players who didn’t compete in college.
You can check out our updated list of all early entrants who have withdrawn, as well as those who plan to remain in the draft, right here.
Several reporters were on top of players withdrawing, but a handful of prospects either slipped through the cracks or we simply missed them. They are as follows:
- Jacksun Hamilton, F, Wisconsin-Parkside (sophomore)
- Ithiel Horton, G, UCF (senior)
- Paul Mulcahy, G, Rutgers (senior)
- Jordan Phillips, G/F, Detroit Mercy (senior)
- Cameron Tyson, G, Seattle (senior)
- Connor Vanover, C, Oral Roberts (senior)
- Damjan Vukcevic, F, Los Angeles Trade Tech (freshman)
Tyler Herro Could Return For Game 2 On Sunday
Tyler Herro could return to action as soon as Game 2 of the Finals on Sunday, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (video link).
The Heat guard has been sidelined since Game 1 of the first-round series against Milwaukee, when he broke his hand. He underwent surgery on April 21 and was expected to miss a minimum of six weeks.
Game 2 “looms as a possibility,” according to Wojnarowski, who added, “Can that hand take contact? When players come back from an injury like that, you’re going to have to be able to absorb contact.”
Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT reported after Miami eliminated Boston in the conference finals that Herro could be back by Game 3, which will take place on Wednesday. Herro didn’t provide a timetable earlier this week but said, “I’m going to be working out every day, twice, two, three times a day from here until the day I hopefully come back.”
Wojnarowski said if Herro doesn’t play in Game 2 that “barring a setback, there’s confidence Tyler Herro will be ready to return (in Game 3).”
Herro was the team’s third-leading scorer during the regular season at 20.1 points per game. He also averaged 5.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 34.9 minutes per game. He’s a career 38.3% 3-point shooter and 87.5% free throw shooter.
Herro signed a four-year, $120MM extension prior to this season that will kick in next season.
Nuggets Notes: Jackson, Nurkic, Jokic, Altitude, Malone
Nuggets guard Reggie Jackson got a taste of the NBA Finals as a rookie in 2012 with the Thunder, who lost to the Heat. Jackson finds himself facing the Heat again 11 years later after passing through several organizations.
Jackson never realized how hard it would be to get back to the Finals, he told Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times.
“I just thought it was going to be championship after championship after championship,” Jackson said. “So being here, taking 11 years, the ups and downs of the business, injuries, changing franchises, yeah, I don’t take it for granted. I think the 11-year run has made me realize how much luck you really have to have.”
We have more on the Nuggets as they head into the Finals:
- Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic remains close friends with Nikola Jokic. Nurkic asked for a trade after it became clear Jokic was Denver’s center of the future and he was dealt to Portland during the 2016/17 season. Jokic actually offered to the coaching staff to give Nurkic his starting job back prior to the deal, according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. “We still talk about what could have been,” Nurkic said. “But everything happens for a reason. I’m happy with my career. And I’m happy for him too … His story is really amazing.”
- Coach Michael Malone hopes Denver’s altitude will mess with the Heat‘s heads and lungs, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk writes. “When we can establish that pace of play, that makes it really hard for visiting teams to kind of sustain and stay with that initially,” Malone said. “Most teams will wind up getting their second wind and be able to work themselves into that. But yeah, the altitude is here, man. Might as well use it to our advantage.”
- The smartest thing owner Stan Kroenke did was remain patient with Malone, Sean Keeler of the Denver Post opines. His core players believe in him and that’s why the Nuggets are in the Finals for the first time. Malone is grateful for the ownership group’s trust in him. “I feel really fortunate and blessed to be working in an organization run by Stan and Josh Kroenke,” Malone said. “They gave me a chance eight years ago to lead this team, and the most important part of this last eight years is their ability to be patient and have a big-picture approach and let this thing grow into what it is today.”
Pacific Notes: Williams, Lakers Free Agency, Clippers Draft, Vezenkov
Many owners around the league may not be happy about Monty Williams’ record-breaking contract to coach the Pistons, but Suns owner Mat Ishbia should be pleased. Since there was an offset provision in Williams’ contract, the Suns no longer owe him any money, John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM Phoenix tweets.
The Suns owed Williams approximately $21MM for the remaining three years on his deal but the Pistons are paying him far more than that, having reportedly agreed on a six-year, $78.5MM contract.
We have more from the Pacific Division:
- Bruce Brown, Torrey Craig, Donte DiVincenzo, Josh Okogie, Max Strus and Yuta Watanabe are some of the wing options the Lakers might explore with their non-taxpayer mid-level exception, Jovan Buha of The Athletic opines in his latest mailbag. Buha delves into a number of topics, including the possibility of LeBron James choosing to retire.
- If the Clippers retain their draft picks (No. 30 overall in the first round, No. 48 in the second round), they’ll likely use one of them on a power forward that they can develop, according to Law Murray of The Athletic. The organization hasn’t drafted a true power forward in the first round since 2016.
- EuroLeague Most Valuable Player Sasha Vezenkov, whose NBA rights are held by the Kings, says he’s ready for new challenges, as Sportando relays. In a Bulgarian TV interview, Vezenkov said, “Nobody knows what will happen in a few years, so I will decide how to proceed when the time comes. We agreed that it would be best to finish the season and then talk. We’ll see if they have a specific offer and what I will decide. I’m ready for new challenges, but as I’ve said before, Athens and Olympiacos are my home and I feel great.” Vezenkov has buyout language in his Olympiacos contract if he wants to sign with Sacramento.
Sixers Hire Nick Nurse As Head Coach
JUNE 1: The Sixers have officially hired Nurse as their head coach, the team announced in a press release.
“It’s been a fun challenge coaching against this group over the last five years. Now, I look forward to coaching the Sixers and doing my part to deliver for this tremendous fanbase,” Nurse said in a statement.
Majority owner and managing partner Josh Harris and president of basketball operations Daryl Morey also commented on hiring the former Raptors coach.
“Nick has solidified himself as one of the NBA’s best coaches and I’m excited to welcome him to Philadelphia,” Harris said. “Throughout his career, he has won at multiple levels, including on the biggest stage when he led Toronto to the 2019 NBA title. He is a smart, innovative and determined coach who really stood out in this process. No matter the hurdles we’ve faced, our goal remains to bring a championship to Philadelphia and Nick is the right coach to lead us forward.”
“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Nick Nurse as the new head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers,” Morey added. “His championship pedigree and diversity of experience mixed with his uniquely creative approach made him our top priority. We are confident that his leadership and expertise will help us unlock the full potential of our talented roster and bring an exciting new era of championship basketball to Philadelphia.”
MAY 29: The Sixers are hiring Nick Nurse to be their new head coach, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Nurse, who won a championship with the Raptors in 2018/19, his debut season as an NBA head coach, was dismissed after his fifth season at the helm. Toronto went 41-41 this past season and was eliminated in the play-in tournament.
The 55-year-old holds a career regular season record of 227-163 (.582 winning percentage), as well as 25-16 (.610) in the postseason. The Raptors made the playoffs in three of his five seasons.
Marc Stein first reported that there was growing buzz linking Nurse to Philadelphia. Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer has confirmed Wojnarowski’s report (via Twitter).
Nurse was also a finalist for the head coaching vacancies in Milwaukee and Phoenix, but he reportedly withdrew from consideration for the Bucks job. Milwaukee is hiring his former assistant, Adrian Griffin.
There was speculation that Nurse may have secured an offer — or multiple offers — after withdrawing from Milwaukee’s search. He ultimately chose the Sixers, who had an opening after firing Doc Rivers following another second-round playoff exit.
Nurse is entering the fray as James Harden is expected to decline his player option in search of a long-term deal. Multiple reports have linked Harden to Houston.
Joe Mazzulla To Remain Celtics’ Head Coach
Joe Mazzulla will return as the Celtics’ head coach, president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said in a press conference on Thursday, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe tweets.
Mazzulla was thrust into the head coaching job just as the season was set to begin when Ime Udoka was suspended by the team for the season. Mazzulla eventually had the interim tag removed and received an extension in mid-season.
Questions about Mazzulla’s status arose as the Celtics fell behind 3-0 in the best-of-seven series to underdog Miami in the conference finals. Boston rallied to tie the series but played poorly in Game 7 after Jayson Tatum suffered a first-quarter injury and got eliminated on its home floor.
Stevens believes that Mazzulla will benefit from having been thrown into the fire this past season, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets.
“Joe’s experience now, you could probably measure in dog years, right? Because he’s now been in three Eastern Conference finals and a Finals,” said Stevens, referring to Mazzulla’s stint as an assistant as well as this season. “Now he’s been the head coach throughout one of those runs, I mean that’s an experience in and of itself.”
Stevens believes Mazzulla has the leadership qualities to be a head coach for many seasons, Jared Weiss of The Athletic tweets.
“He’s a terrific leader,” he said. “He’ll only get better at anything that he can learn from this year cause he’s constantly trying to learn and he’s accountable. Those leadership qualities are hard to find.”
Mazzulla will have some different voices on the staff, according to Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated (Twitter link). The staff is expected to be overhauled, with former Rockets coach Stephen Silas a leading candidate to be one of those additions.
Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Maxey, Ujiri, Mazzulla
With general manager Scott Perry set to leave the Knicks later this summer, his replacement will likely come from within the organization if the position is filled at all, writes Steve Popper of Newsday. Popper states that the team already has the structure in place to handle Perry’s job duties, and his role has been diminishing for more than a year.
Senior basketball consultant Gersson Rosas could be named the new GM if ownership wants to appoint someone, Popper adds. Rosas spent 16 years in the Rockets’ front office, followed by shorter stays as general manager of the Mavericks and president of basketball operations for the Timberwolves. He served as the primary contact as the Knicks negotiated a Donovan Mitchell trade with the Jazz last summer, according to Popper.
Perry’s contract is believed to run through August, but sources tell Popper that he’s already being left out of pre-draft workouts. Perry’s duties are being handled by assistant GMs Frank Zanin, who’s in charge of pro scouting, and Walt Perrin, who handles college scouting. Rosas is performing most of the GM work, so Popper believes giving him the title would just be “a formality.”
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Knicks are in position to benefit from not paying a premium price to acquire Mitchell, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst states on his Hoop Collective podcast (video link). Windhorst notes that New York has the trade assets to pursue any star who becomes available this offseason, with a parcel of future draft picks and Evan Fournier‘s contract for salary-matching purposes.
- Reaching an extension with Tyrese Maxey should be a priority for the Sixers this summer, contends Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He notes that Maxey has been a bargain after being selected with the 21st pick and states that the Sixers shouldn’t gamble by letting him reach restricted free agency in 2024. Maxey is eligible for a five-year deal worth up to a projected $213MM.
- Grizzlies assistant Darko Rajakovic is still in the mix to be the Raptors‘ next head coach, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Rajakovic has been an assistant since 2014 and spent time with the Thunder and Suns as well.
- Raptors executive Masai Ujiri remains passionate about winning 10 years after joining the organization, per Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Smith also looks at Ujiri’s five best and worst moves over the past decade.
- Joe Mazzulla appears likely to return for another season as the Celtics‘ head coach, tweets Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe.
Pre-Draft Workouts: Whitmore, Pacers, Hornets, Lakers, More
The Pacers will host Cam Whitmore for an individual workout on Thursday, according to Wheat Hotchkiss of NBA.com. The Villanova forward is part of a group of prospects that are expected to come off the board shortly after the top three of Victor Wembanyama, Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson. Indiana holds the No. 7 pick in this year’s draft.
The Pacers welcomed Johnell Davis of Florida Atlantic, Adam Flagler of Baylor, Armaan Franklin of Virginia, Nate Laszewski of Notre Dame, Leonard Miller of G League Ignite and Isaiah Wong of Miami to a pre-draft workout on Wednesday, tweets Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Davis has since decided to pull out of the draft and return to school.
We have a few more updates on draft workouts:
- The Hornets had two six-player sessions already this week. On Tuesday, Charlotte hosted Wake Forest’s Tyree Appleby, Alabama’s Charles Bediako, Furman’s Mike Bothwell, Kentucky’s Chris Livingston, San Diego State’s Nathan Mensah and Arizona’s Courtney Ramey (Twitter link). On Wednesday, the team brought in Arizona State’s Marcus Bagley, Creighton’s Arthur Kaluma, Memphis’ Elijah McCadden, Iowa’s Filip Rebraca, UCLA’s David Singleton and Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe (Twitter link). Kaluma opted on Wednesday to remove his name from the draft pool.
- The Lakers hosted a workout Tuesday with Marcus Carr of Texas, Djordjije Jovanovic of the Ontario Clippers, Justyn Mutts of Virginia Tech, Tyger Campbell of UCLA, Anton Watson of Gonzaga and Kevin Obanor of Texas Tech, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link).
- Michigan’s Jett Howard worked out for the Rockets this week, tweets Kelly Iko of The Athletic. Howard could be on the board when Houston picks at No. 20.
- DePaul forward Javan Johnson had a session with the Nets on Wednesday, his agent told Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link).
- The Warriors brought in UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez for a workout on Tuesday, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
Poll: Which Team Will Win 2023 NBA Finals?
The 2023 NBA Finals, which tip off on Thursday night, will pit the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference against the No. 8 seed in the East, but the matchup may not be as lopsided as their places in the standings suggest.
Despite finishing the regular season as the West’s top team, the Nuggets weren’t considered a powerhouse entering the playoffs. They lost 10 of 17 games down the stretch in March and April and had only the sixth-best net rating in the NBA (+3.3) during the season. They also didn’t have a recent history of deep playoff runs, coming off a first-round elimination in 2022 and having made it beyond the second round just once in the Nikola Jokic era.
Denver has been the most dominant team of the postseason though, winning 12 of 15 games and posting a playoff-best +8.0 net rating during a run that saw them eliminate stars like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Anthony Edwards.
The Heat, meanwhile, battled injuries and inconsistency all season long, winning just 44 games and losing their first play-in game (to Atlanta) before completing a comeback victory over Chicago to claim the East’s final postseason berth. An early playoff exit appeared likely at that point, especially after sharpshooter Tyler Herro broke his hand in Game 1 of round one.
Instead, the Heat knocked off the title-favorite Bucks in five games, dispatched the Knicks in six games, and held off the No. 2 Celtics in a seven-game Eastern Conference Finals. Miami, whose +4.6 postseason net rating is second among all playoff clubs, has looked more like the team that came within one basket of making the NBA Finals in 2022 than the one that endured an up-and-down regular season.
The Heat may be a No. 8 seed – only the second in NBA history to make the Finals – but this is a battle-tested group that has significantly outperformed its regular season record and has plenty of playoff experience.
The Nuggets, who haven’t lost in Denver during the postseason and have looked like the NBA’s best team since the regular season ended, will have home-court advantage and enter the Finals as major favorites — BetOnline.ag has their odds to win the series at -405, with Miami listed as a +325 underdog.
Denver is also the popular pick among experts. John Hollinger of The Athletic laid out his reasoning for taking the Nuggets in six games, while a scout, a coach, and an executive who spoke anonymously to Sam Amick, Darnell Mayberry, and Josh Robbins of The Athletic all picked Denver in six too.
Over at ESPN, the Heat got a little more support, but 12 of 16 NBA reporters and analysts still chose the Nuggets to win the series, with only four – Bobby Marks, Israel Gutierrez, Nick DePaula, and Jorge Sedano – taking Miami.
The fact that the Nuggets are widely expected to come out on top will mean little to the Heat, who were considered even longer shots to beat Milwaukee or Boston. The Bucks were a -1200 betting favorite over Miami at the start of their series, while the Celtics were at -550.
With Game 1 set to tip off in a matter of hours, we want to get your predictions for this year’s NBA Finals. Will the Heat complete their improbable run and become the first No. 8 seed in league history to win a championship, or will Jokic lead the Nuggets to their first ever title?
Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!
Who will win the 2023 NBA Finals?
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Denver Nuggets in 6-7 games 42% (388)
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Denver Nuggets in 4-5 games 40% (368)
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Miami Heat in 6-7 games 16% (151)
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Miami Heat in 4-5 games 2% (22)
Total votes: 929