Giannis Antetokounmpo, Montrezl Harrell Involved In Postgame Altercation
Having made just 4-of-15 free throw attempts in an eight-point loss in Philadelphia on Friday night, Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo came back out onto the Wells Fargo Center court after the game, hoping to make 10 shots in a row from the foul line before calling it a night.
However, as detailed in reports from Tim Bontemps of ESPN, Joe Vardon of The Athletic, and Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, after Antetokounmpo had made seven consecutive free throws, Sixers big man Montrezl Harrell came and took the ball away on Giannis’ eighth attempt. Harrell and Sixers player development coach Jason Love refused to give the ball back to Antetokounmpo, who wanted to finish his shooting routine and reportedly told Harrell that there was room for both players to shoot.
“This isn’t f—ing Milwaukee,” Harrell shouted at Antetokounmpo, according to The Athletic. “Get that s–t out of there.”
Unable to get the ball back from Harrell and Love, Antetokounmpo left the court and returned with two new balls to continue shooting free throws. By that point, however, Sixers arena workers had positioned a large ladder in front of the basket Giannis had been using. When the staffers refused to move the ladder out of the way, Antetokounmpo tried to shove it aside and ended up knocking it over, as captured in a Twitter video.
Antetokounmpo ultimately did finish his foul shooting while Harrell worked out at the other end of the court and continued to shout at him. Once Giannis left the court for good, his brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo came out and spoke to Harrell, according to Vardon, who says Harrell told Thanasis, “I’ll beat your a–“ and “You better send that s–t back to the locker room.”
Harrell, believed to be upset that Giannis was preventing him from doing his own on-court postgame work on the 76ers’ home court, left without speaking to reporters. Giannis – described by both Vardon and Owczarski as “agitated” – discussed the incident at length.
“Obviously I had a very bad night from the free throw line,” Antetokounmpo said, per Owczarksi. “Now, I take pride in getting better every single day. After the game I decided to go try and make some free throws. My goal, every time I step on the line is to make 10 in a row and I was shooting free throws. I was at seven, I think. A player, I don’t want to mention names, and a coach, basically told me to leave the court, while behind me there was another space to do their routine.
“I respect every player. I know some players don’t play now, they want to get some extra work, want to work on their skills and stuff, and I said, obviously we can shoot together. They told me no, this is their court, I should leave. I was like, ‘I have three more free throws, I was at seven, I want to try to make 10 in a row.’ I shot my eighth one. Came and took the ball away from me and I was very surprised. I feel like it’s very unprofessional. I would never take the ball away from a professional athlete when he’s trying to do his job.”
Harrell did post a tweet late on Friday night, briefly explaining his side of the interaction: “Aye make sure you get the complete story I ask the man can he get off the court so I can workout they had to change the court over he ignore me so hey that’s what you get! Respect is respect! GOODNIGHT!”
As for the video that showed him pushing down the ladder that arena staffers had put in front of the basket, Giannis said he wasn’t trying to disrespect anyone.
“Did I meant to push the ladder all the way down? I totally did not. I think I pushed it and it got caught and fell,” Antetokounmpo said. “But people are going to make it look the way they want it to look. I know what happened.
“I don’t know if I should apologize because I don’t feel like I did anything wrong, except the ladder just fell. I feel like it’s my right for me to work on my skills after a horrible night from the free throw line. I think anybody in my position that had a night like me would go out and work on his free throws. And if they didn’t, they don’t really care about their game.”
It’s unclear at this point whether or not any of the players involved in the postgame incident will be fined by the NBA.
Grizzlies’ Morant, Pacers’ Haliburton Suffer Ankle Injuries
NOVEMBER 19: There’s some hope that neither Morant’s ankle injury nor Haliburton’s is a significant one.
As Mark Giannotto of The Memphis Commercial Appeal relays, Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke expressed optimism about whether he’d seen Morant in the locker room after the game: “He was walking. I don’t know how serious it is … It doesn’t sound super serious.”
In Houston, Haliburton told reporters – including Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star – that he isn’t overly concerned about his own ankle injury: “It feels all right right now. It’s the same ankle that I hurt against Toronto (last Saturday). I think it’s more precautionary than anything. We’ll see how it feels in the morning.”
It seems likely that Morant will miss some time, and Haliburton might too, but hopefully neither injury is one that will require a star point guard to be sidelined for a big chunk of the season.
NOVEMBER 18: A pair of rising guards suffered injuries late in the fourth quarter of victories and had to be helped off the court on Friday night.
Grizzlies star Ja Morant turned his left ankle in Friday’s win over the Thunder, per Mark Giannotto of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. According to Lang Whitaker of Grind City Media (Twitter link), head coach Taylor Jenkins said Morant “tweaked” the ankle and there will be an update on his status Saturday.
As Tim MacMahon of ESPN notes (via Twitter), Morant missed Sunday’s game against the Wizards after injuring the same ankle last week. Through 13 games, he’s averaging 29.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.2 steals for the Grizzlies.
Point guard Tyrese Haliburton also suffered a lower leg injury with less than a minute left in the Pacers‘ victory over Houston, tweets Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. It appeared as though Rockets big man Usman Garuba may have landed on Haliburton’s foot or ankle after contesting his layup.
Through 13 games in his first full season in Indiana, Haliburton is averaging 20.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, a league-leading 10.4 assists and 1.9 steals. The Pacers have been a pleasant surprise early on in the 2022/23 season, currently holding an 8-6 record.
Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot Signs With Olimpia Milano
NOVEMBER 19: Olimpia Milano has officially announced its agreement with Luwawu-Cabarrot, confirming the deal in a press release.
“I’m very happy to return to Europe to be part of this organization in Milan,” Luwawu-Cabarrot said in a statement. “I’m extremely excited to have the opportunity to help the team try to reach the goals they for the season. Which is to win as much as possible. Can’t wait to meet all the fans and start.”
NOVEMBER 18: Free agent wing Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot is expected to sign with Italian team Olimpia Milano, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
A first-round pick in the 2016 draft, Luwawu-Cabarrot has spent six seasons in the NBA, playing for the Sixers, Thunder, Bulls, Nets, and Hawks since entering the league. In 2021/22, the 27-year-old appeared in 52 games for Atlanta, averaging 4.4 PPG and 1.6 RPG on .398/.361/.854 shooting in 13.2 minutes per contest. For his career, he has averaged of 5.9 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 328 regular season games.
Luwawu-Cabarrot became an unrestricted free agent in July when his contract with the Hawks expired and signed a training camp deal with the Suns in September. However, he didn’t earn a spot on Phoenix’s regular season roster and was waived last month at the end of the preseason, returning to the free agent market.
Prior to entering the NBA, Luwawu-Cabarrot spent multiple seasons with the Antibes Sharks in his home country of France, then played for Mega Basket in Serbia for a year, so if he finalizes a deal with Olimpia Milano, this won’t be his first stint in Europe.
Milano has a 5-1 record this season in the Lega Basket A, Italy’s top basketball league, but is off to a slower start in EuroLeague play, having gone 3-4 so far.
Tyrese Maxey To Undergo MRI After Injuring Left Foot
9:37pm: Head coach Doc Rivers said Maxey was in a walking boot after the victory over Milwaukee, and while he anticipates Maxey will miss some time, he won’t know for sure until tomorrow’s MRI (Twitter link via ESPN’s Tim Bontemps).
8:08pm: Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey will undergo an MRI on his left foot Saturday after injuring it in Friday’s game against the Bucks, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Initial X-rays on his foot were negative, sources tell Wojnarowski (via Twitter).
Maxey was having an excellent first half prior to the injury, recording 24 points (9-of-12 shooting), four rebounds and five assists in 21 minutes. He was ruled out for the second half.
Evidently the injury occurred when Maxey was fouled, as he was clearly limping, frustrated and in a lot of pain. He went straight to the locker room after shooting his free throws, per Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com (Twitter link).
Fellow guard James Harden remains sidelined with his own foot injury, so a potential extended absence for Maxey would obviously be difficult for the Sixers to overcome. However, there’s no reason to believe that’s the case yet, since he won’t have the MRI until tomorrow.
The 22-year-old is averaging 22.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.1 steals on .448/.408/.750 shooting through 14 games (37.5 minutes) for Philadelphia. As a former first-round pick in his third season, Maxey will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.
Southeast Notes: Hornets, Bridges, Wizards, Mitchell, Magic
Amid a series of injuries to key players and off-court issues, the Hornets have started the 2022/23 season with a 4-12 record, which has led to speculation that they’ll be among the teams looking to trade veterans and retool the roster in order to land a top pick in next year’s draft. However, a rival GM is skeptical Charlotte will hold any sort of fire sale this season.
“The hurdle is getting the owner to go along with it,” the GM told Sean Deveney of Heavy Sports. “It is Michael Jordan. He has never OK’d something like that and it is not clear he would, even if it gets bad this year, even if it puts them in a good spot in the draft for Victor (Wembanyama). He has been pretty strong against tanking. Hard to see another way forward for them now, though.”
Here’s more from the Southeast:
- Miles Bridges‘ status for this season is in limbo after he pleaded no contest in his felony domestic violence case. The NBA is investigating the incident, and Bridges is still a restricted free agent with the Hornets, but Shams Charania of The Athletic hears the Lakers and Pistons are among the teams monitoring his situation, he said on The Rally (Twitter video link).
- The Wizards are still waiting for Will Barton to find his form this season, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The veteran wing was acquired in a trade with the Nuggets over the summer and his averages have dropped across the board in ’22/23. “I’m just really trying to figure out what my role is and figure out how I’m going to play in my minutes. But I can’t worry about that. I’ve just gotta go out there and try to be as effective as possible whenever I’m on the court. I think I’m figuring that out,” he said. Barton will be an unrestricted free agent in 2023.
- Wizards two-way guard Jordan Goodwin underwent testing after injuring his left knee on Wednesday, and while there was some initial concern that it might be severe, head coach Wes Unseld Jr. said Goodwin is “day-to-day” going forward (Twitter links via Josh Robbins of The Athletic). He was ruled out for Friday’s victory over the injury-depleted Heat.
- Within his latest 10 things column for ESPN (subscriber link), Zach Lowe wonders if the Magic will eventually go all-in for a lead guard. Lowe says he liked the Magic as a “stealth” Donovan Mitchell suitor this summer, but hears from sources that Orlando didn’t appear to have “dived deeply” into pursuing the former Jazz star.
Hawks Talking John Collins Trades; Suns, Jazz Interested?
7:00pm: The Jazz have also shown recent interest in Collins, Charania said in an appearance on The Rally (Twitter video link).
3:06pm: John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 disputes Charania’s claim that the Suns are a potential suitor for Collins, tweeting that Phoenix doesn’t have interest in the veteran forward.
Gambadoro adds (via Twitter) that the Suns and Kings had a discussion about Barnes over the summer, but with Sacramento playing well and Mike Brown a fan of the veteran forward, the Kings don’t intend to move Barnes.
10:09am: Hawks big man John Collins, who has been the subject of trade rumors multiple times in recent years, is considered available once again this season, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.
According to Charania, the Hawks have opened “preliminary” trade talks involving Collins, with the Suns among the teams showing interest in the 25-year-old. Sources tell The Athletic that a Collins trade doesn’t appear imminent, and Charania cites executives who believe it could take weeks or months for the Hawks to find a deal they like — if they move him at all.
Collins was considered a trade candidate during the year leading up to his restricted free agency in 2021, but signed a five-year, $125MM contract to remain in Atlanta. That deal did little to quiet the trade rumors surrounding him though — those rumors popped up again at the 2022 trade deadline and during this past offseason, prompting Hawks general manager Landry Fields to tell reporters on Media Day in September that Collins was “still here for a reason.”
In 15 games so far this season, Collins has struggled to produce consistently. His average of 12.6 points per game is his lowest since his rookie year, and his .493 FG% is a career-worst mark, as is his .227 3PT%. Still, given his track record, the power forward should bounce back and will be an intriguing trade target for any team looking to acquire an impact frontcourt player.
As Charania notes, the Hawks have been one of the primary suitors for Suns forward Jae Crowder and have been engaged with Phoenix in trade talks in recent weeks, so it’s plausible the two teams could come together for a bigger deal involving both Crowder and Collins.
In order to match Collins’ salary, Phoenix would have to include at least one more mid-level type contract besides Crowder’s expiring deal. Dario Saric ($9.24MM expiring contract) and Landry Shamet ($9.5MM in 2022/23, plus $21.25MM across two more guaranteed years) would be the top candidates.
However, the Suns may be averse to the idea of taking on Collins’ long-term contract, according to Charania. He’s owed $23.5MM in 2022/23 and nearly $52MM in the following two seasons, with a $26.6MM player option for ’25/26. With the Suns facing a possible ownership change, it’s unclear how comfortable they are adding more big long-term financial commitments to their books.
In addition to Collins, the Suns have expressed interests in forwards such as Harrison Barnes of the Kings, Kyle Kuzma of the Wizards, and Kenyon Martin Jr. of the Rockets, sources tell Charania. Phoenix has also reportedly engaged in Crowder-related trade talks with the Bucks, with one report suggesting Milwaukee is the frontrunner to land the veteran forward.
Lamar Stevens Replacing Caris LeVert In Cavs’ Starting Lineup
Lamar Stevens is replacing Caris LeVert as the Cavaliers‘ starting small forward on Friday against the Hornets, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, who hears from sources that the Cavs plan to use Stevens as a starter “for the foreseeable future.”
Stevens’ $1.8MM contract for 2022/23 is non-guaranteed and the Cavs hold a $1.9MM team option on the 25-year-old for ’23/24, while LeVert will be a free agent next summer.
Fedor writes that the move is being made in an effort to rediscover the team’s “lost defensive identity” amid a five-game losing streak. Stevens is a strong, tough and versatile defender, though he has offensive limitations — he has only made 25.3% of his career three-point attempts on low volume.
According to Fedor, forward Dean Wade would have been in contention for the starting small forward job, but he’s currently sidelined with right knee soreness. Friday marks his fourth straight missed game.
Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said prior to Friday’s game that Wade’s knee was infected and he’s currently taking antibiotics to treat it, per Kelsey Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link).
“Just kind of have to wait and let them set in and do their thing. He is progressing, but it’s not something you can control,” Bickerstaff said.
As Fedor notes, Stevens had only appeared in three of the Cavs’ first 12 games for a total of 23 minutes prior to starting in place of the injured Jarrett Allen the past couple games, but clearly Bickerstaff liked the energy Stevens brought. Allen will be back Friday, Fedor adds.
LeVert has mostly struggled since scoring a season-high 41 points against Boston on October 28, averaging just 10.3 points on .389/.281/.733 shooting over his past nine games (32.3 minutes), though he has chipped in 5.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists per night over that span. Moving him to the bench will allow him more on-ball opportunities and let him play his more natural position of shooting guard, Fedor notes.
Cleveland holds an 8-6 record entering Friday’s home game versus Charlotte.
Sixers Gauging Interest In Tobias Harris, Matisse Thybulle
The Sixers have begun preliminary check-ins with rival teams to discuss who may or may not be available in trades, and Tobias Harris is among the players who have been discussed, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic.
Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com provides more context on Charania’s minor rumor involving Harris, writing that there have been a lot more trade talks than normal prior to December 15, when most free agents signed in the offseason become trade-eligible, and “Harris’ name has been has been discussed quite a bit already.”
Neubeck also hears that Matisse Thybulle is drawing interest from opposing teams, and expects the fourth-year swingman to be a fixture in trade rumors leading up to the February deadline.
Harris’ name has popped up multiple times in the rumor mill over the past couple years, but as Neubeck notes, his salary — which pays him $37.6MM this season and $39.3MM in 2023/24, the final year of his contract — makes him difficult to move. Harris is a solid player, but just isn’t valued at what he currently makes, and replacing his production while likely not getting equal value in return doesn’t make much sense for a contending club like the Sixers, Neubeck adds.
Harris will miss Friday’s home game against Milwaukee with left hip soreness, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
As for Thybulle, he is one of the most unique players in the NBA because he’s an elite defender — he earned All-Defensive nods each of the past two seasons — but a major negative on offense. That makes his value difficult to gauge, because he was a liability in last season’s playoffs and has struggled mightily to start ’22/23, averaging just 1.5 points on .296/.188/.333 shooting (small sample size) in 13.1 minutes per night across 13 games.
Thybulle will be a restricted free agent next summer after failing to reach a rookie scale extension with Philadelphia. The former 20th overall pick will earn $4.4MM in the final season of his rookie contract.
Jimmy Butler Out At Least Three Games With Knee Soreness
After being ruled out of Friday’s game at Washington with knee soreness, Heat star Jimmy Butler is expected to return to Miami on Saturday and miss upcoming road games at Cleveland on Sunday and at Minnesota on Monday as well, Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports (via Twitter).
The Heat are absolutely decimated by injuries at the moment. Victor Oladipo (knee tendinosis) and Omer Yurtseven (ankle surgery) have yet to play this season; Udonis Haslem is away from the team for personal reasons; Tyler Herro (ankle) and Dewayne Dedmon (non-COVID illness) are both out Friday; Gabe Vincent was initially not on the injury report but experienced swelling in his knee after today’s shootaround and has subsequently been ruled out; Duncan Robinson caught his hand in a jersey during shootaround and will miss his first career game due to injury; and finally, Bam Adebayo is out Friday after previously being listed as questionable (All Twitter links via Winderman).
That leaves just Kyle Lowry, Max Strus, Caleb Martin, Haywood Highsmith and Nikola Jovic available out of the 14-man standard roster, plus two-way rookies Jamal Cain and Orlando Robinson for a total of seven healthy players. According to Winderman (Twitter link), the Heat plan to list Vincent as active despite being ruled out to meet the minimum requirement of eight players in uniform.
On a positive note, there’s a chance Herro could return Sunday against the Cavs, Winderman tweets. Friday will market his sixth straight absence due to a left ankle sprain.
The Heat are currently 7-8, the No. 10 seed in the East.
And-Ones: Trade Market, Spain, Coaches, Overtime Elite
Even though we’re only a month into the 2022/23 NBA season, some front offices are “beginning to get itchy trading fingers,” writes Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com, citing league sources. While the in-season trade market often doesn’t heat up until December 15, when most offseason signees become trade-eligible, some clubs may already be looking to make changes, according to executives who spoke to Bulpett.
“Everyone comes into the year having talked themselves into their roster,” one general manager said. “But then we start playing the games and soon enough reality sets in. Some teams shouldn’t read too much into it, because it takes time for guys to get on the same page if you’ve made some changes. But even though it’s crazy, some guys look at the standings and think, ‘Oh, s–t, I better do something.’ … And some of them are going to be under pressure to do something. It’s going to be really interesting to see what happens after December 15.”
Bulpett’s story features some speculation from executives about what struggling or inconsistent teams like the Lakers and Nets might do on the trade market, as well as a suggestion from one exec that clubs’ financial situations will be worth monitoring as the trade deadline nears.
“There could be some interesting players out there as we get deeper into the season, because I think teams are going to be looking to dump salary once it’s clear they’re not in the playoff mix — or maybe in the mix but with no chance to do anything if they get there,” the executive said. “Teams are going to start looking at that luxury tax bill and their record, and the two just aren’t going to mesh.
“Where it could get interesting is if some guys get the idea they need to make a splash to keep their jobs. But I think you’re going to see some owners step in and look at the bottom line. What’s funny is that they may end up saving their GMs from themselves — you know, keep them from doing something stupid.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Spain has leapfrogged the United States as the No. 1 national team in FIBA’s men’s basketball rankings, according to a press release. The U.S. had held the top spot in FIBA’s rankings since 2010 and has won the last four Olympic gold medals, but finished seventh in the 2019 World Cup (which Spain won) and third in this year’s AmeriCup.
- Zach Harper of The Athletic divides the NBA’s 30 coaches into “hot seat” tiers, starting with the ones who definitely aren’t going anywhere – such as Gregg Popovich and Erik Spoelstra – and working his way down to the coaches who might want to keep their LinkedIn profiles up to date — Tom Thibodeau of the Knicks and Doc Rivers of the Sixers are in that final tier.
- A panel of NBA.com writers weighs in on the biggest surprises of the NBA season to date. Besides obvious choices like the Warriors‘ struggles and the Jazz‘s unexpected early success, the panel singled out the Pacers for their solid start and noted that offensive production has been off the charts in the early going.
- Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic checks in on where Overtime Elite stands heading into its second year, highlighting some of the tweaks the league has made. Among those tweaks? Offering recruits a choice of a scholarship or a salary, allowing them to leave the door open to eventually playing college ball by retaining their amateur status, if they so choose. “The scholarship option (for high-school aged recruits) has been big for us, if not bigger than NIL,” OTE general manager Damien Wilkins said. “Because now we can go out and recruit without restrictions. There’s no real downside.”