Derrick Rose Staying Positive Despite Diminished Role
Derrick Rose isn’t upset about losing his rotation spot with the Knicks and is content to serve whatever role coach Tom Thibodeau asks of him, he told Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Rose has only played a total of 17 minutes this month, as Thibodeau has chosen to play younger guards. Rose feels the situation could change down the road and he’s fine with mentoring his teammates as New York pushes for a postseason berth.
“For one, I’m very appreciative to understand my role. I’m not here for entitlement, I’m not here feeling like I need minutes or anything like that,” Rose said. “I’m just here to win and try to help the young guys out. I never thought I’d be in this position. I never thought I’d be playing this many years. I’m waiting for my chance, for sure, but I can’t complain. Being in this position. I’m taking advantage of it. I’m looking at it where I’m saving my body, and you never know in the playoffs when I could be used.”
Rose addressed a number of other topics during his interview with Charania:
- He feels appreciated by coaches and teammates and maintains a positive outlook: “I’m not in the locker room trying to (screw) up the vibe of the team by having a messed up attitude like that.”
- He’s giving all the guidance he can to starter Jalen Brunson: “He listens, so that’s half the battle when you’re dealing with someone like that. He’s a hell of a player, a winner too. He won in college, won in high school, and he’s trying to win on the next level now. So it’s up to me to guide him, and not be forceful, but try to give him as much info, knowledge and wisdom as I can.”
- He maintains a strong relationship with Thibodeau and remains prepared to contribute if he regains a rotation spot: “Thibs (and I) always talk about it — he always says this is the bottom of the mountain, we got a whole mountain to climb. I just got to make sure that I’m always prepared. That’s the biggest challenge. Being in the new position, being in a new situation every year, this year is the first time I went through this. So learning, adjusting, trying to keep my body ready if you do need me, all that is going to take time. But it should be good.”
- He isn’t sure about coaching after his playing career, but he’d like to own a piece of a franchise: “I’m into ownership. I feel like I saved up enough. It’s not like I need a loan, I’m good. So I’m waiting. I’m waiting for my time.”
Eastern Notes: Williams, Sims, Hartenstein, Nets, Bey, Bagley III
Celtics forward Grant Williams will be a restricted free agent in the summer and Shams Charania said on FanDuel TV (video link) that he’ll attract strong interest. Charania anticipates Williams will receive something in the range of $15-17MM annually on his next deal. If he doesn’t reach an agreement with Boston, the club would have to decide whether to match an offer sheet.
“When you look at the cap space teams in the summer, the Orlandos, the OKCs, the Indianas, those are teams that you can plug a Grant Williams on a team that’s not competitive right now, he can help you with leadership and obviously, on the court as well,” Charania said of the Celtics forward.
We have more from the Eastern Conference:
- With Obi Toppin sidelined by a leg injury, the Knicks have been using the power combination of Isaiah Hartenstein and Jericho Sims on the second unit. Coach Tom Thibodeau likes what he’s seen from that duo, Fred Katz of The Athletic writes. “I think it gives you rebounding. It gives you size,” Thibodeau said. “It gives you physicality.”
- The Nets overcame an early 18-point deficit against Toronto and a 19-point deficit at Detroit. That’s not a recipe for long-term success against tougher competition, forward Royce O’Neale told Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “It’s a big challenge for us. So I think we’ve got to raise our level of play,” he said. “The way we’ve been playing sometimes, you know, can’t come out with lack of energy or [focus]. We’ve got to set the tone from the jump and then we’ve just got to execute and control the whole game.”
- Saddiq Bey and Marvin Bagley III have been moved to the Pistons’ second unit by coach Dwane Casey. It has led to better bench production, though the team has lost six of its last seven after falling to Utah on Tuesday, Mike Curtis of the Detroit News writes. “It’s no disrespect to Saddiq, no disrespect to Marvin at all being in the second unit,” Casey said. “We need that. I love the way our second unit is coming in and changing the game and kind of having an identity, defensively, offensively, some go-to actions that they can click with.”
Western Notes: Clippers, Gilgeous-Alexander, Lillard, Green
The Clippers were able to practice at full strength on Tuesday, a rarity for a team that has dealt with numerous injuries, Andrew Grief of the Los Angeles Times notes. That includes Paul George, Norman Powell, Ivica Zubac and Reggie Jackson, who have missed games this month due a variety of ailments.
“It’s exciting to finally actually have our whole team almost complete, be ready to play and just try to get rotations down and see what guys plays good with who,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “And so we’re starting all over again, but it’s a good feeling to have your whole team back.”
We have more from around the Western Conference:
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a game-winning shot for the Thunder in a two-point victory over the Trail Blazers on Monday. Gilgeous-Alexander says he’s “super comfortable” in those situations, according to The Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto. His teammates concur. “The ball had to end up in our best player’s hand,” guard Luguenz Dort said.
- Damian Lillard became the Trail Blazers’ all-time leading scorer on Monday, surpassing Clyde Drexler. Center Jusuf Nurkic already considered his teammate the franchise’s greatest player, Jason Quick of The Athletic writes. “No disrespect to Clyde — he’s one of the all-time greats — but even if Dame didn’t pass him, I feel like Dame is still the greatest Blazer ever,” he said. “When you put everything together — the way he plays the game, what he does off the court, everything — he’s a one of a kind player. Hopefully he retires here.”
- Warriors forward JaMychal Green has entered the league’s health and safety protocols, Kendra Andrews of ESPN tweets. Green, who missed Wednesday’s game against the Knicks, had one of his best outings for Golden State on Sunday. He contributed 15 points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes during a victory over Toronto.
Heat Notes: Rotation, Dedmon, Butler, Injuries, Herro
The Heat have been unable to play their full roster this season due to injuries. What could happen if the Heat get at or near full strength?
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel explores that question. Gabe Vincent, who has seen some playing time as the backup point guard, could be pushed further down the bench. Coach Erik Spoelstra would have to choose between Max Strus and Duncan Robinson as the backup wing and Haywood Highsmith could also be on the rotation bubble.
The Heat could look to deal backup center Dewayne Dedmon and his expiring contract, along with another player, for some immediate help. In that scenario, Orlando Robinson could be a stopgap as the main reserve until Omer Yurtseven is able to return from ankle surgery.
We have more on the Heat:
- Speaking of absences, Jimmy Butler was scratched from the team’s game against Chicago on Tuesday due to a gastrointestinal illness, the team tweets. It was the 12th game that Butler missed this season.
- A trio of other players — Kyle Lowry (left knee soreness), Caleb Martin (left ankle sprain) and Vincent (left knee effusion) — were also sidelined. Two-way player Jamal Cain was recalled from the G League to provide depth.
- Entering the team’s road trip, Tyler Herro was averaging 15.6 points in the nine wins in which he played and 24.2 points in the 10 losses he played. Herro then averaged a team-high 26.3 points during the Heat’s 4-0 road swing. He debunks the notion that the team tends to do better when he scores less, according to Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “I think it’s a pointless stat. Because the games we’ve won, I’ve shot the same amount of shots and I just ended up missing them,” he said. “So when shots go in, I’ll have above 20. If I miss, I have below 20. It’s make or miss at the end of the day and I don’t think that stat is credible.”
Sarver Reaches Agreement For Sale Of Suns, Mercury
6:15pm: Sarver has issued a statement, confirming that an agreement has been reached between him and brothers Mat and Justin Ishbia regarding the purchase of the majority stake in the Suns and WNBA’s Mercury, Charania tweets. The agreement values the Suns and Mercury at $4 billion.
The deal involves more than 50% ownership of the team, including all of Sarver’s interest, and a portion of the interest of minority partners. Mat Ishbia will serve as governor, while Justin Ishbia will serve as alternate governor, pending league approval.
12;05pm: Mat Ishbia, a billionaire mortgage lender, is finalizing a deal to buy the Suns, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Ishbia will pay about $4 billion, according to Wojnarowski, which would be a record price for an NBA team. The WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury will also be part of the deal, Woj adds.
Ishbia is chairman and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, which is based in Michigan, and he has a net worth of $5.1 billion, per Forbes. He played college basketball at Michigan State from 1999 to 2002 and won a national championship in 2000. He was part of a group that tried to buy the NFL’s Denver Broncos earlier this year, according to Mike Florio of NBC Sports.
Mat’s brother, Justin Ishiba, will be “a significant investor” as well and will serve as an alternate governor for the team, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Current Suns owner Robert Sarver decided to sell the team in September following a lengthy investigation into workplace conditions. The NBA suspended Sarver for a year and fined him $10MM for behavior that “clearly violated common workplace standards.”
The law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, which conducted the investigation, determined that Sarver had used racially insensitive language in the workplace, made inappropriate comments about female employees and treated workers in general in a “demeaning and harsh” manner.
In a statement issued when he decided to sell the Suns, Sarver said he “deeply” regrets the comments he made to employees and vowed to “work on becoming a better person.” He also expressed disappointment at not being able to return to running the team and “make amends” for his behavior.
Sarver purchased the Suns in 2004 for $401MM, so he will realize a huge profit from the sale. The current record price for an NBA team is $2.35 billion, which Joe Tsai paid for the Nets in 2019. As Wojnarowski notes, the Lakers sold a minority share based on a $5 billion valuation, but that deal only involved a small portion of the team’s ownership changing hands.
Although Sarver only owned about one-third of the Suns’ shares, he has the authority to sell the team in full as its managing partner, sources tell ESPN. Mat Ishbia will have to undergo a background check and his purchase of the franchise will be subject to a vote by the NBA’s Board of Governors, but that’s expected to be a formality, per Wojnarowski.
Luke Adams contributed to this story.
New York Notes: Anunoby, Knicks Front Office, Robinson, Claxton
Prior to the team’s hot streak, someone within the Knicks organization reached out to the Raptors to inquire about a potential deal for OG Anunoby, Ian Begley of SNY TV reports. That would have signaled a major roster shakeup. Anunoby is averaging 18.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game. The Knicks would have needed to surrender serious assets to acquire Anunoby, who has two years left on his four-year, $72MM contract.
We have more from the New York teams:
- In the same piece, Begley reports that the Knicks were a few defeats away from a major shakeup after getting blown out by Dallas on Dec. 3. Even before that loss, a top Eastern Conference executive tried to convey through back channels that he would be an ideal candidate for team president if Leon Rose lost his job.
- Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau hasn’t always seemed particularly enamored with center Mitchell Robinson. But Thibodeau feels Robinson has been a major catalyst during the seven-game winning streak. “Every game, it’s protecting the rim, making good decisions, guarding the pick and roll and then offensively, his offensive rebounding, then putting pressure on the rim,” the coach said. Robinson is in the first year of a four-year, $60MM contract.
- Nets center Nic Claxton recently declared he should be a prime candidate for the Defensive Player of the Year award. His coach and teammates certainly value his rebounding and defense, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “He guards multiple positions for us … coming over to the weak side, blocking shots, putting pressure on the rim, rebounding,” coach Jacque Vaughn said. “The games he doesn’t play, we miss him; it puts an extreme amount of pressure on other guys — there’s not another guy on our team that can do the things Nic does.”
Injury Notes: Towns, Finney-Smith, N. Powell, Nets
Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns isn’t close to returning to action, according to head coach Chris Finch, who said today on a KFAN radio appearance that he expects Towns to remain sidelined for a “multitude of weeks,” according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).
It has been three weeks since reports indicated Towns would be sidelined for at least four-to-six weeks due to a calf strain, so it comes as no surprise that his return isn’t imminent. Krawczynski notes that the big man is due for a reevaluation fairly soon, so we may get a clearer sense at that time about when Towns might be back.
Here are a few more injury-related updates from around the NBA:
- After he left Monday’s game in the third quarter due to a right adductor strain, Mavericks forward Dorian Finney-Smith admitted that he first sustained the injury on Saturday and tried to play through it, writes Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News. “Feel like I probably made it worse,” Finney-Smith said. “It takes a lot for me to get out of there.” It’s unclear how much time Finney-Smith will miss, but he has already been ruled out for Wednesday’s contest. Players who suffer adductor strains generally remain out for at least a week or two.
- The Clippers are hopeful that wing Norman Powell, who has been on the shelf since November 29 due to a left groin strain, will be able to play at some point on the team’s upcoming road trip, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. That five-game trip will begin in Philadelphia on Friday and will wrap up on December 31.
- The Nets aren’t listing any injuries on their report for Wednesday’s game against Golden State, which is the first time that has happened since Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving signed with the team in the summer of 2019, according to Alec Sturm of NetsDaily (Twitter link).
Bulls Rumors: LaVine, DeRozan, Donovan, More
The Bulls have lost four straight games and are just 6-14 since opening the season with a 5-4 record. Amid the prolonged slump, concerns have arisen within the locker room about whether stars Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan “can click together at a high level on the court this season and beyond,” according to Shams Charania and Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic.
Charania and Mayberry report that the Bulls have held multiple team meetings to attempt to work through their issues, including one-on-one sessions between LaVine and DeRozan. However, those efforts haven’t led to on-court results — according to The Athletic’s duo, an “on-court, stylistic tension” has festered throughout the season.
Asked about the situation in Chicago, LaVine said that the team’s win-loss record has magnified any issues the team may be experiencing.
“I think everybody goes through ups and downs, just like every team does,” LaVine told The Athletic on Tuesday. “Obviously if we’re not winning games, not everybody’s going to be happy. It’s not going to look as good as it was before. It’s all glitter and show when you’re winning games. But when you’re losing games and you’re trying to do the same things, it’s turmoil. Everybody has their right to their own opinion. For me, I keep my head down. I work on my game and try to help my team. I help try to lead the team. That’s where I stand. I just try to take it day by day and evaluate how we’re doing.”
Citing multiple league sources and people close to the situation, Charania and Mayberry also report that LaVine and the Bulls haven’t been seeing eye-to-eye this season. Specifically, they say there has been “a palpable feeling across various parts of the franchise of a disconnect over LaVine’s situation in Chicago.”
The Athletic’s report is lacking in specific details and the wording is somewhat vague, so it’s difficult to tell exactly what the issues in Chicago are or how seriously we should take them. At the very least, it sounds like the team’s slump is creating frustration and tension that might not exist if the Bulls had won a few games. Whether the club will be able to work through those problems and rebound without major personnel changes remains to be seen.
Here’s more on the Bulls:
- There has been “increased skepticism” within the Bulls’ locker room about head coach Billy Donovan and his staff, per The Athletic’s duo. However, Donovan signed a preseason extension and his job is safe, according to Charania and Mayberry, who say the veteran coach is focused on optimizing LaVine and DeRozan through “a balance of execution, accountability and cooperation.”
- LaVine dismissed the idea that he has been negatively impacted by the increased expectations that came along with his new five-year, $215MM+ contract. “It hasn’t weighed (on) anything for me. I don’t understand how that gets put into context,” he said. “Just because you sign a deal, it’s supposed to be added weight to it? I think there’s added weight each time you step on the court if you don’t perform or you don’t play the right way. But everybody’s open to their own opinion.”
- After Sunday’s 150-126 loss to Minnesota, veteran guard Goran Dragic said the Bulls’ problem is that they’re “not playing for each other.” Donovan also suggested that the team is playing too individualistically: “We’ve got to get out of the mindset of worrying about scoring and how’s it going offensively and realize the ball scores. And if the ball’s moved and passed whoever scores, scores.”
- ESPN’s Brian Windhorst explores whether it makes more sense to stay the course or to pivot and become a seller. As Windhorst notes, the Bulls owe their 2023 first-round pick to Orlando with top-four protection, so even bottoming out and finishing with the league’s worst record wouldn’t give them more than about a 50/50 chance to keep that pick. On the other hand, with so few sellers on the trade market, Chicago could potentially get a good return by trading certain veterans.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Northwest Division
For the rest of the regular season and postseason, Hoops Rumors is taking a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents during the 2023 offseason. We consider whether their stock is rising or falling due to their performance and other factors. Today, we’re focusing on a handful of Northwest players.
Jerami Grant, F, Trail Blazers
- 2022/23: $20,955,000
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Up
Grant has proven to be a nice fit in Portland, providing efficient frontcourt scoring (.613 true shooting percentage) for the team’s seventh-ranked offense. He can score in a variety of ways and is one of the team’s better defenders, though the Blazers have fallen off considerably on that end – they’re down to 23rd in defensive rating with a net rating barely above water (+0.4).
Grant will turn 29 in March and is in line for a big payday on his next contract. For what it’s worth, Portland would be limited during the season to offering a four-year, $112.65MM extension, so if he thinks he can get more than that, he’ll have to wait until free agency.
Bruce Brown, G/F, Nuggets
2022/23: $6,479,000- 2023/24: $6,802,950 player option
- Stock: Up
I was surprised Brown’s free agency foray last offseason wasn’t more lucrative after a strong postseason showing with the Nets – he ended up signing a two-year deal with Denver for the taxpayer mid-level exception. It was rumored that he had higher offers and liked the fit with the Nuggets.
Either way, he has been a valuable and consistent role player alongside reigning back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic. The versatile Brown is averaging 11.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 4.3 APG and 1.0 SPG on a rock-solid .492/.413/.800 (.584 TS%) shooting line through 29 games (30.2 MPG).
In addition to being head coach Michael Malone’s go-to replacement starter across multiple positions (he’s up to 17 starts), Brown is attempting – and converting – more three-pointers than ever before, up to 1.3 makes and 3.2 attempts per game, from previous career highs of 0.6 and 1.7, respectively. He has been a relative bargain thus far, but the problem for the Nuggets is if he opts out, they’ll only have his Non-Bird rights, so they’ll be limited to offering him 120% of his current contract – a deal would start at $7.8MM in 2023/24, only a $1MM raise on his player option.
If he opts out, I think Brown could at least land a deal for the non-taxpayer mid-level in free agency, which is projected to be worth $48.9MM over four years. If Denver is where he really wants to be, another option would be picking up his option and then re-signing once the Nuggets have his Early Bird rights after ’23/24 – Nicolas Batum and Bobby Portis took that route in recent years with the Clippers and Bucks, respectively.
Bryn Forbes, G, Timberwolves
- 2022/23: Minimum salary
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Down
In five consecutive seasons from 2017-22, Forbes knocked down at least 38.8% of his three-point attempts, and he owns a career rate of 41.3%. However, he has struggled this season in his rare opportunities to play, converting just 25.8% of his looks beyond the arc in 17 games (10.6 MPG).
That’s a major problem for the undersized shooting guard, because his value is almost entirely tied to his ability to make shots — he’s limited in every other area, particularly defensively. The Wolves need shooting – they’re 22nd in 3PT% – so the fact that he hasn’t been playing obviously means head coach Chris Finch doesn’t trust him over other options. For players on minimum deals, one down season could mean they’re on the last legs of their NBA careers.
Justise Winslow, F, Trail Blazers
- 2022/23: $4,097,561
- 2023/24: UFA
- Stock: Neutral
After dealing with several significant injuries in his eight-year career, Winslow has been relatively healthy thus far for Portland, appearing in 28 of 31 games. You would think that alone would help his stock, but he hasn’t really shown anything different than he’s done in prior seasons from a production standpoint.
Winslow is energetic, strong, a solid rebounder, an above-average play-maker and a solid defender across multiple positions, all desirable traits. He can grab a rebound and start a fast break, or initiate the offense in a half-court setting, acting as a point forward of sorts.
However, he’s very limited as a scorer – his .415/.310/.714 (.470 TS%) shooting line is very close to his career mark – so it’s hard to envision his market being robust, despite his positive attributes.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker, G/F, Jazz
- 2022/23: $5,009,633
- 2023/24: RFA
- Stock: Up
The No. 17 overall pick of the 2019 draft, Alexander-Walker had a very inconsistent first three seasons. He was traded twice right before last season’s deadline, going from New Orleans to Portland to Utah, and rarely saw the court with the Jazz.
His spot in the rotation is still tenuous – he has appeared in 22 of 33 games for an average of 15.3 minutes per night. Virtually all of his counting stats are similar to his career averages. So why is his stock up?
The answer is simple: he’s posting a .491/.433/.727 (.623 TS%) shooting line and has played key defense at the end of multiple close games. Less simple is the question of whether the Jazz will be inclined give him a $7,073,602 qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent – it’s too early to make that call, but if I had to guess, I’d bet they wouldn’t right now.
Still, if he keeps shooting anything close to what he has early on, he’ll likely find a multiyear contract for more than the minimum, which definitely wasn’t a lock entering ‘22/23.
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 12/20/2022
Hoops Rumors hosted a live chat today at 12:00 pm Central time.
Click here to read the transcript, and join on Thursday at 11:00 am CT for our next live chat, hosted by Dana Gauruder.