LaMelo Ball Undergoing Procedures On Ankle, Wrist
4:26 pm: The Hornets have confirmed Charania’s reporting, officially announcing in a press release that Ball will undergo arthroscopic surgery to address a right ankle impingement and will also have a minor procedure on his right wrist. He’s expected to return to full basketball activities within four-to-six weeks, according to the club.
4:01 pm: Hornets guard LaMelo Ball will undergo a pair of minor procedures to address issues in his right ankle and right wrist, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, who reports that Ball will miss the remainder of the 2024/25 season.
As Charania details, Ball played through both injuries in recent weeks, but after consultation with team doctors and outside specialists, the decision was made to shut him down and address those ailments sooner rather than later. The hope is that undergoing those two procedures now will allow the 23-year-old to have a “full, productive offseason,” Charania writes.
Ball, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, has been plagued by health problems since entering the NBA five years ago. The Hornets star has played more than 51 games in a season just once and has appeared in just 105 of 246 possible contests over the past three years, including 47 this season. That’s his highest total since 2021/22.
He previously underwent surgery on his right ankle in March 2023 and on his right wrist in March 2021.
When he was healthy and available this season, Ball continued to be an effective scorer and play-maker for Charlotte, averaging a career-high 25.2 points to go along with 7.4 assists and 4.9 rebounds in 32.0 minutes per game. His shooting efficiency dropped off this season, however — his 40.5% field goal percentage and 33.9% mark on three-pointers were both career lows.
Ball will be entering the second season of a five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension in 2025/26. That deal will pay him $168.7MM over the next four years.
While rival executives are monitoring Ball as a possible trade candidate, the Hornets have maintained that they have no interest in moving him.
Adam Silver Talks Expansion, Wolves Sale, Tanking, RSNs
Asked at his Thursday press conference whether the NBA has looked any more at adding an expansion team or two, commissioner Adam Silver said the league is “still in the process of digesting the Celtics (sale)” and expects to explore expansion in a “more serious way” once that transaction is finalized, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN.
As Bontemps notes, ESPN has previously reported that the Celtics sale was viewed as a possible precursor to expansion, since it would provide a point of reference for how much the expansion fees for new teams could potentially be worth.
“I wish I could be more conclusive today and say, ‘Here it is, here’s the timeline,'” Silver said, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “There are events that are clearly outside of my control. Part of it, as I said, is trying to assess value in a way that’s both fair, even to a potential owner, and fair to the existing owners in terms of what it means to add additional partners, different cities, divide up our current media pie with the 31st or 32nd share.
“And also, we want to make sure we put teams in a position, particularly as we’re setting the price, to be in a position to be competitive, economically successful and just as important for the other teams, successful on the floor.”
According to Bontemps, the widespread belief is that if the NBA expands, it would do so by two teams instead of one, with Seattle and Las Vegas considered the strong frontrunners for new teams.
We previously relayed Silver’s comments on Thursday about a new European league and the NBA’s All-Star format, but he also addressed several other topics during his New York presser. Here are some highlights:
- Addressing the Timberwolves‘ ownership situation, Silver said longtime owner Glen Taylor is still considering whether to appeal an arbitration ruling in favor of prospective owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez and that Taylor continues to communicate directly with Lore and Rodriguez, Bontemps writes. Silver referred to the situation as “on hold” while Taylor weighs his options.
- Silver believes that the variety of tweaks made by the NBA in recent years – including new draft lottery odds, the introduction of the play-in tournament, and the implementation of the 65-game rule and player participation policy – have helped limit the impact of tanking, but admits that the league is still mulling ways to further address the issue. “It comes down to incentives,” Silver said, per Bontemps. “There’s no doubt that incentives change at the end of a season, especially when you have a draft that’s perceived not just with the top pick, but the top maybe few picks is an incredibly strong draft. That’s a way, a legitimate way of rebuilding in this league. So I’m not sitting here saying, ‘All right, here’s the new calibration to the draft lottery and that will solve it.’ We don’t have a new plan at the moment. I don’t have an answer sitting here today as to what we’re going to do other than to say that we recognize it’s an issue and it’s an issue for our fans. And so we’re paying attention to it.”
- While Silver acknowledges the regional sports network landscape has become murky in recent years, he’s optimistic that the NBA will be able to “derive value from the situation,” Bontemps writes. “We think there’s tremendous opportunity there,” the commissioner said. “You have bankruptcies of RSNs, other RSNs that have shut down, and I think that’s created, for lack of a better term, a lot of transactional friction of people who would otherwise be interested. At the same time, well-known streaming services that only a year ago were saying they have no interest in live sports are now aggressively bidding on live sports. So we see no reason why the extent there’s that interest on a national basis or even a global basis there wouldn’t also be on a local basis.”
Kings’ LaRavia Out At Least 7-10 Days With Thumb Injury
Kings forward Jake LaRavia underwent imaging on his injured left thumb and has been diagnosed with a bone contusion, the team announced today (Twitter link via James Ham of The Kings Beat). LaRavia’s injury occurred in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s loss to Oklahoma City when he took a hard fall under the basket (Twitter video link via Sean Cunningham of FOX 40 Sacramento).
According to the Kings, LaRavia will be sidelined for the time being and will be reevaluated in approximately seven-to-10 days. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be ready to return at that time — just that he’ll be reassessed.
LaRavia, who was traded from Memphis to Sacramento at last month’s trade deadline, has played a regular rotation role off the bench for his new team. In 19 appearances since joining the Kings, he has averaged 6.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 19.3 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .438/.385/.579.
The timeline for LaRavia indicates he’ll at least miss the team’s next three games – on Saturday in Orlando, Monday in Indiana, and Wednesday in Washington – and could remain out for more beyond that. Saturday’s contest is the first of a six-game road trip that runs through April 7 before Sacramento returns home for its final three games of the regular season.
With LaRavia unavailable, forwards Trey Lyles, Isaac Jones, and Doug McDermott are among the candidates to pick up additional minutes in the Kings’ frontcourt.
Latest On Ja Morant, Cade Cunningham Injuries
Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant missed a sixth consecutive game on Thursday vs. Oklahoma City due to a left hamstring strain. As Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes, head coach Taylor Jenkins told reporters on Thursday – before being fired by the team on Friday – that Morant is in the “day-to-day phase” of his recovery and is aiming to return soon.
“He’s been progressing in his on-court workouts,” Jenkins said. “It’s a matter of hitting top-end speeds to make sure that hamstring is in a good place when he’s comfortable enough to return. … He’s working his tail off to get back out there. We’re excited to get him back out there. He is, too.”
Morant has battled injuries, including a series of shoulder issues, all year long and has appeared in only 43 of Memphis’ 73 games this season. The club has a 28-15 record in those contests and has gone just 16-14 when its star point guard is unavailable.
Having Morant as much as possible down the stretch would be big for the Grizzlies, who are in the midst of a competitive race for a playoff spot in the Western Conference. At 44-29, they’re tied with the Lakers for the fourth-best record in the conference and have a 2.5-game cushion on the Clippers and Warriors, who are both 41-31.
Meanwhile, over in the East, another star point guard is on the shelf for a team battling for a top-four spot in the playoffs. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham will miss a third consecutive game on Friday vs. Cleveland due to a left calf injury.
According to a press release from the team (Twitter link), Cunningham underwent an MRI on his affected calf, which confirmed that he’s dealing with a contusion, an injury he suffered last Friday vs. Dallas. Like Morant, Cunningham is considered day-to-day in his recovery, per the Pistons.
The Pistons have a 41-32 record, which puts them fifth in the East, two games behind the No. 4 Pacers and a half-game ahead of the No. 6 Bucks. There’s a significant gap between Milwaukee and No. 7 Atlanta, so Detroit is in no danger of falling out of the top six in the conference, but the team could secure a more favorable seed (and first-round matchup) with a strong finish.
Cunningham has appeared in 66 games so far this season, so he has met the minimum requirement to qualify for award consideration and looks like a good bet to make an All-NBA team. If he achieves that feat, his maximum-salary rookie scale extension would start at 30% (instead of 25%) of the 2025/26 cap.
Wizards Notes: Record Loss, Sarr, Champagnie, Middleton
Losing games is beneficial for the Wizards as they try to maximize their lottery odds, but there was nothing to be gained from Thursday night’s performance, writes Josh Robbins of The Athletic. Washington set franchise records by giving up 162 points to Indiana and losing by 53 points. The Pacers overwhelmed the Wizards’ defense, shooting 64.1% from the field and 57.4% from three-point range.
“You should be upset,” coach Brian Keefe said. “You shouldn’t be happy. But it’s always about what you do going forward. Unfortunately, losses like this happen. You don’t want them to. No one’s happy about it, most of all our organization, me and the players especially. We’ve got competitive guys in our locker room. But it’s how you go forward. It’s always how you respond.”
At 16-57, Washington remains a half-game “behind” the 16-58 Jazz in the race for the league’s worst record. Robbins points out that the Wizards have been playing better lately, putting together a 6-4 run from February 24 to March 15 that included wins at Detroit and Denver. They also won at Philadelphia on Wednesday, so there were no warning signs that they were about to break this 54-year-old record.
“We’re competitors, so we definitely don’t want to be on the bad side of games like that,” Jordan Poole said. “I think we know that the longer you play, the more games you play, there will be nights like this, especially coming off of a back-to-back. I think we in the locker room know that’s not acceptable, especially for the standard that we’re trying to set, in how we played. But we’ve got to find ways to just learn from it, get better and then bounce back in a couple of days.”
There’s more from Washington:
- Rookie big man Alex Sarr scored 22 points Thursday night and led the Wizards in shots for the seventh time in the last eight games, according to Varun Shankar of The Washington Post. The No. 2 overall pick is enjoying his best month of the season, averaging 17.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in March, and may be making a late bid for Rookie of the Year honors. “I think it’s a nice accomplishment. But at the same time I think there’s way more than just getting (an) individual award,” Sarr said. “… I’m going to be part of this team hopefully for a lot of years to come. And what we’re building right now is more important than (individual awards).”
- In an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Justin Champagnie admits he considered giving up his NBA dream as he fought to earn a roster spot over the last three years. The 23-year-old small forward’s efforts were rewarded this season when he signed a four-year, $10MM deal with the Wizards that includes $1.8MM in guaranteed money. “To be honest with you, I probably thought about quitting three or four times,” Champagnie said. “I always told myself no matter what happens, stay grounded, remember where you came from, keep doing what you’re doing, and let it be what it’s going to be.”
- Khris Middleton, who was traded to Washington at the deadline after a long career in Milwaukee, believes the Wizards have a bright future and could challenge for the playoffs soon, Scotto adds. “I think if you give us a full offseason and give us a full season together,” he said, “with the improvement of the young core, which is going to be huge, I think they can take a big step because of the way they work, how talented they are, and how smart they are.”
Grizzlies Fire Taylor Jenkins
The Grizzlies have announced the firing of head coach Taylor Jenkins. It’s a surprising late-season move for a team that’s solidly in the playoff picture and fighting for home court in a first-round series.
“I’m genuinely appreciative of Taylor’s contributions to this team and this city over the past six seasons,” general manager Zach Kleiman said in a statement. “This was a difficult decision given the consistent and tangible development of our players and overall success under Taylor’s leadership. I wish Taylor the very best going forward.”
Jenkins was fired in person this morning when he arrived at the team’s office, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link), who expects him to be among the league’s top free agent coaches when the offseason begins.
Although they’re tied for fourth in the Western Conference playoff race at 44-29, the Grizzlies have been on a downslide lately, losing five of their last seven games and 12 of their last 20. Even so, Jenkins has done an admirable job of keeping the team competitive with star guard Ja Morant limited to 43 games.
There’s no immediate word on who will replace Jenkins for the rest of the season. Memphis has a huge game set for Saturday night, hosting the Lakers, who are also 44-29.
Jenkins, 40, has put together a 250-214 record since being hired as head coach in 2019, making him the winningest coach in franchise history. However, the Grizzlies have only won a single playoff series in his tenure, advancing to the second round in 2022.
Jenkins, who won a G League title with the Austin Toros in 2012, was hired as an assistant coach by Atlanta in 2013. He spent five seasons with the Hawks and one with the Bucks before taking over the Grizzlies.
Hawks Notes: Young, LeVert, Daniels, Capela
A year ago, there was trade speculation regarding Trae Young, but the Hawks now seem committed to him as the veteran leader of an inexperienced roster. Young, who’s in his seventh year with Atlanta, talked about his situation in an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, saying it’s “not new territory.”
“People probably know that this isn’t the first time I’ve been a part of a team with young guys and where they wanted me to lead,” he said. “I think this is really what they wanted me to do this year. Not focus on the wins and losses. It’s more about how I can bring the young guys along and build them up and build their confidence up as much as possible.”
The Hawks appear to have a bright future after remaking their roster over the past 12 months. The most significant moves were trading for Dyson Daniels and drafting Zaccharie Risacher with the No. 1 pick. They form a promising young core along with Jalen Johnson, who was in the midst of his best NBA season before it was ended in January by a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
Young will become eligible for an extension this summer, but he sidestepped a question from Scotto about whether he expects to sign a new deal.
“I’m still stuck in the moment right now and not really focusing on that right now,” he said. “I know it’s going to come. People will be asking questions here. I’m just focusing on this team, building these young guys, and giving them confidence. At the end of the year, everything else will be discussed.”
There’s more on the Hawks, all from Scotto:
- Caris LeVert, who was acquired from Cleveland at the trade deadline, tells Scotto that he’s interested in staying with Atlanta when he becomes a free agent this summer. LeVert adds that he was “playing a certain role” with the Cavaliers and he “can play more like myself” in the Hawks’ system. “I love this situation that I’m in right now. I love this team,” LeVert said. “The staff has welcomed me with open arms. I didn’t really know (head coach) Quin (Snyder) previously before coming here. Obviously, I’ve admired his style from afar for a long time. Antonio (Lang), Ekpe Udoh and Ron Nored on the staff I’ve had relationships with, so I feel pretty comfortable here. Like I always tell them, I’d love to re-sign here. My focus right now is the rest of the season and making the playoffs. It’s definitely something I’d want.”
- Daniels is among the favorites for Defensive Player of the Year honors, but he tells Scotto it feels like “a big man’s award.” Daniels, who leads the league in steals by a wide margin, adds that he gained more confidence in his game since coming to Atlanta. “Coach Quin has instilled confidence in me to play freely and be myself,” Daniels said. “My teammates have given me confidence as well. It’s just that my mindset has changed. I’ve come in wanting to be more aggressive and play more freely without any restrictions. I think it’s been more that my mindset has changed rather than anything between the two organizations.”
- Clint Capela is expected to leave the Hawks in free agency this summer, sources tell Scotto. The veteran center is currently sidelined with a ligament injury in his left hand and may not return if Atlanta doesn’t reach at least the first round of the playoffs.
Drew Timme Signs Two-Year Deal With Nets
MARCH 28: Timme’s new contract is official, the Nets announced (via Twitter).
MARCH 27: The Nets are signing free agent forward Drew Timme to a two-year contract, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). The second year will be a team option.
Timme went undrafted in 2023 after a highly decorated collegiate career at Gonzaga. He has spent the past two seasons in the NBA G League.
A 6’10” power forward, Timme signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Bucks in August 2023 and was waived before the 2023/24 season began. He spent his rookie campaign with Milwaukee’s NBAGL affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd.
Timme didn’t make the same impact in his first professional season as he did during his time with the Zags, but he found another NBA opportunity last fall, inking a training camp deal with Sacramento. He opened ’24/25 with the Stockton Kings during the Tip-Off Tournament, averaging 11.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists while shooting 52.3% from the field in 14 appearances, though he only played 19.0 minutes per contest.
Timme switched teams for the G League’s regular season this winter, landing with Nets’ affiliate in Long Island. As Scotto notes, Timme was recently named NBA G League Player of the Week after averaging 35.7 points and 12.7 rebounds over a three-game span, including a career-best 50-point performance.
The 24-year-old has put up big numbers for Long Island, averaging 23.9 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.1 assists on .574/.384/.731 shooting in 29 regular season games (35.6 minutes per contest). Now he’ll be getting his first standard NBA contract with the Nets.
As our tracker shows, the Nets currently only have 14 players on their standard roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to sign Timme.
Lakers Notes: Playoff Picture, Goodwin, Koloko, Jemison, Bronny
“Devastation” is how coach J.J. Redick described the feeling after the Lakers let a lead slip away on Thursday and lost in Chicago on Josh Giddey‘s half-court shot at the buzzer (Twitter video link), writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. L.A. led by 18 points in the fourth quarter and was up by five with 12.6 seconds left, but couldn’t close out the game.
Patrick Williams hit a corner three-pointer for the Bulls with 9.8 seconds remaining, then Giddey stole a LeBron James inbounds pass that James called a “horrible turnover.” Coby White nailed a three to put Chicago in front, but Austin Reaves responded with a layup with 3.3 seconds left, setting the stage for Giddey’s heroics.
“It sucks,” Reaves said. “We probably had a high-percentage chance of winning after my layup went in. There’s not many half-court buzzer-beaters to lose a game. And it’s just, it’s frustrating.”
It’s a loss that could have huge playoff implications for the Lakers as the season winds down. L.A. dropped into a tie with the Grizzlies for fourth place at 44-29 ahead of a trip to Memphis on Saturday. Both teams are two losses ahead of the Clippers and Warriors and three losses ahead of the Timberwolves as the race for the six automatic playoff spots in the West becomes tighter.
“There’s another game in two days, less than two days, that’s how you do it,” James said. “That’s the NBA. You can’t go into a game on Saturday thinking about what happened on Thursday.”
There’s more on the Lakers:
- Jordan Goodwin had eight points, a steal and two blocks in his first game since being promoted to the 15-man roster. Speaking to reporters before Thursday’s contest, Redick cited “competitive spirit” and “toughness” as the main things Goodwin brings to the team, per Khobi Price of The Orange County Register (Twitter link). “I joked with him this morning, he can’t get soft on us now,” Redick said. “He’s been a banshee for us since he’s been with us on the two-way and has provided not just the attitude, the toughness on the court, but he’s played some really good basketball for us. We’re very confident in him.”
- Two-way players Christian Koloko and Trey Jemison could be battling for another promotion before the season ends, Jovan Buha of The Athletic states in his latest podcast (hat tip to BasketNews). Buha notes that Koloko is more of a rim protector, while Jemison contributes on both ends of the court. He expects both players to be given minutes over the final nine games to help the coaching staff determine who would be more valuable in a playoff series.
- Bronny James turned in his best G League performance this week with a 39-point outing for the South Bay Lakers, per Chuck Schilken of The Los Angeles Times. James admits being motivated by those who doubt that he can succeed at the highest level. “Just that I belong out there,” he said. “That’s all I’m trying to prove. A lot of people say I don’t, but I just come out, work every day, try to get better every day and prove myself every day. … All the criticism that’s thrown my way, it’s just amazing to shut all that down and keep going.”
NBA Searching For New All-Star Format For 2026
The NBA will scrap its mini-tournament format for the All-Star Game and go back to the drawing board in a search for new ideas, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
At a press conference Thursday in New York, commissioner Adam Silver admitted that this year’s experimental format was “a miss.” It involved a four-team tournament featuring the 24 NBA All-Stars divided up into three teams, along with another squad consisting of rookies and second-year players who won the Rising Stars event. Instead of being timed, all the games were played to a 40-point target score.
“We’re not there in terms of creating an All-Star experience that we can be proud of and our players can be proud of,” Silver admitted.
Finding a workable solution to the All-Star Game has been a problem for the league for roughly the last decade. The traditional East vs. West matchup grew stale, as there was nothing to motivate players or inspire them to put forth much effort on defense. The NBA had captains pick their teams for a few years, and the Elam ending was a brief success, but most often the quality of play has been low.
This year’s changes were instituted after the 2024 game resulted in a 211-186 final score that drew intense criticism from league insiders and media members.
One drawback to this year’s competition was a nearly 20-minute break during the championship game that was used to recognize TNT’s broadcast team, which was airing the game for the last time.
“It was well-intentioned,” Silver said. “But I think the long stoppage in play in that final game didn’t work for anyone.”
NBC will televise the game next year as part of its new broadcast deal, and Silver said the league is talking to network officials about potential changes. Reynolds notes that the game will take place during the Winter Olympics, which could lead to a U.S. vs. the World format that has been proposed for some time.
The 2026 game, which will be hosted by the Clippers at their new Inuit Dome, will have an earlier starting time, Reynolds adds. It will be played in the afternoon, leading up to Olympics coverage at night.