Atlantic Notes: Sixers’ Acquisitions, Nets, Clowney, Knicks
The Sixers made moves at the deadline to get younger and more athletic, bringing in Quentin Grimes and Jared Butler before signing Lonnie Walker IV. Having lost Joel Embiid for the season, Philadelphia hasn’t become a better team as a result of its pivot to youth, but it has shown a vision for the younger players to become members of the rotation next season.
As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes, Grimes in particular has been a standout addition. He’s shown to be capable in either a starting or reserve role and is averaging 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 52.4% shooting from the floor in his 11 games (eight starts) with Philadelphia. He’s scored at least 30 points three times, including 44 in a win over the red-hot Warriors last weekend.
Grimes will be a restricted free agent this summer, giving the Sixers the right to match any outside offers.
As for Butler, the Sixers were excited to acquire the former two-way guard from Washington, promoting him to a standard deal quickly upon his arrival. According to Pompey, the Sixers were interested in Butler during the 2021 draft and wanted to get a closer look at him, giving up a first-round pick in the process (and getting four seconds in return).
Pompey writes Butler has shown flashes but that Jeff Dowtin, currently on a two-way deal, has taken his spot in the rotation. Butler has a team option worth $2.35MM for next season that the Sixers will decide on this summer.
Walker has also gotten a chance to play a rotation role, averaging 16.7 minutes in his first six games. Pompey writes that Walker is still getting adjusted back to the NBA after playing overseas for the first half of the season. Like Butler, Walker has a team option for next season.
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Nets have an open roster spot after not immediately extending Killian Hayes another 10-day contract. Net Income of NetsDaily notes that Brooklyn has a cushion of $1.08MM under the luxury tax, but Cameron Johnson is likely to hit an incentive that will cut that number in half. Still, there’s value in signing a player into that approximately half-million in anticipated space. Since rest-of-season salaries are prorated, the Nets won’t have a problem adding someone on a minimum deal. Tosan Evbuomwan is one candidate for a standard deal, since he’s been a part of the rotation, but Net Income notes that Evbuomwan’s two-way deal covers two years, so there’s no real rush to promote him. The Nets could circle back to Hayes later on or sign another player from a G League team.
- Nets second-year big Noah Clowney hasn’t played since Jan. 27, but it sounds as though he’s inching toward a return. According to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis (Twitter link), Clowney had his first five-on-five scrimmage on Thursday. Clowney is averaging 9.4 points and 3.9 rebounds this season.
- The Knicks are 0-7 this season against the top three teams in the league: the Thunder, Celtics and Cavaliers. On paper, New York has a contending roster, filled with versatile defenders on the wings and stars in Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson. So what’s causing the slide against the league’s best? According to ESPN’s Chris Herring, simple factors are at play. For one, while the Knicks’ offense ranks fourth in rating, they rank 28th in three-point attempt rate. “At the root of it all, it’s math,” an Eastern Conference scout said, per Herring. “They’re really efficient, and will win a ton of games. But the [three-point] volume isn’t enough to beat the Clevelands and the Bostons. Especially when you also factor in that the Knicks are [offensive] rebounding and getting to the line a lot less than last year’s team did.” Additionally, the Knicks’ defense ranks 19th in the league.
Timberwolves May Revisit Kevin Durant Trade Talks This Summer
Coming on the heels of reports that the Suns might work with Kevin Durant to find a trade this summer, it’s worth keeping tabs on the Timberwolves as a potential partner.
The Wolves reportedly explored making a move for Durant at the trade deadline this year, going so far as to call potential partners about ways to shed salary to get under the second apron so that they aggregate money to go and get the 15-time All-Star.
Appearing on ESPN’s Get Up, NBA insider Brian Windhorst suggested that the Timberwolves could revisit those talks for Durant this summer (hat tip to RealGM).
As Windhorst observes, Minnesota star Anthony Edwards and Durant have a good relationship stemming from last year’s Olympics. The Wolves, like most teams across the league, will have more flexibility and roster spots to pursue a potential move this summer.
Durant’s future with the Suns remains up in the air. The Warriors reportedly tried to acquire the star forward this deadline as the Suns looked to land Jimmy Butler in a move that would have forced Phoenix to trade either Durant or Devin Booker due to their second-apron status and inability to move Bradley Beal. With limited future assets, it makes sense that the Suns will look to retool a roster that’s currently on the outside looking in for a play-in spot.
Despite the ongoing trade chatter, Durant continues to be focused on getting the Suns back into playoff contention, showing passion and speaking up for his coach and teammates.
Pelicans’ Trey Murphy Discusses Breakout Season, Zion, More
It has largely been a season to forget for the Pelicans, who hold the fourth-worst record in the NBA in part due to a crushing — and seemingly never-ending — wave of injuries. However, one silver lining has been the standout play of Trey Murphy.
The 24-year-old is posting career highs in virtually every major statistic in 2024/25, including points (21.7), rebounds (5.2), assists (3.8), steals (1.2), blocks (0.7), and minutes (35.6) per game through 46 appearances.
Murphy, who signed a four-year, $112MM rookie scale extension in October (it begins in ’25/26), recently discussed a number of topics in an interview with Mark Medina of Sportskeeda. Here are a few highlights.
On his breakout season:
“I’m just trying to get better. I’m understanding that I’m still young and have a long career ahead of me. I just want to build good habits and develop my game. That’s been the biggest thing this season, especially with all the injuries and stuff like that. Those are things we can’t control. The biggest things we can control now is just developing my game and finding ways to get better. … When guys go down, people feel like they have to elevate their roles. So they have to shoot more. I feel like, especially the last three weeks, that my assist numbers have been going up. We’re seeing different coverages. My threat to score has been the biggest thing for me.”
On his nine-figure contract extension:
“It means a lot. Being able to secure generational wealth is great as well as being able to take care of my family. It shows that they believe in me. It means a lot. So it makes me want to continue to work hard and prove them right on their investment.”
On being encouraged by how Zion Williamson responded following a one-game suspension for reportedly missing a team flight and being late for multiple practices:
“He’s been really good. He’s been really good. I’ve seen a big step from him, maturity-wise. It’s been great to see. … Overall, the biggest thing is that he’s been leading by example. He’s been stepping up defensively and talking. He’s sharing the ball offensively. He’s been a complete player.”
On learning from CJ McCollum:
“CJ is probably the person that I look up to the most when it comes to basketball-related things. When I’m his age, I want to be in the position that he’s in with still being super-efficient and still a pro’s pro and is about his business. He has really shown me a lot about the business on and off the court. I’m very appreciative of him. … With how he carries himself, he’s very about taking care of business and making sure to keep the main thing the main thing.”
Murphy’s interview with Medina also touches on how he and the team have dealt with injuries, his close relationship with Brandon Ingram, and how he’s developing into a vocal leader, among other topics. It’s worth reading in full if you’re a fan of the Pelicans and/or Murphy.
Celtics Notes: Sixers Game, Pritchard, White, Walsh
Tonight’s nationally televised game between Boston and Philadelphia will be lacking in star power. The Celtics (Twitter links) have ruled out Jaylen Brown (right knee posterior impingement), Al Horford (left big toe sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness), while Jrue Holiday remains sidelined with a broken finger on his right hand (mallet finger).
Both Jayson Tatum (right shoulder impingement) and Sam Hauser (right ankle sprain) are questionable to suit up, per the team.
The banged-up Sixers, who have already lost Joel Embiid, Jared McCain and Eric Gordon for the season, will be without Paul George this evening due to left groin soreness, Shams Charania of ESPN reports (via Twitter). George, who has battled a variety of injuries in 2024/25, was previously listed as questionable.
Tyrese Maxey (lower back sprain) and Kyle Lowry (right hip injury management) are also out for the 76ers, while Justin Edwards is questionable with a left ankle sprain, according to the league’s latest injury report.
Thursday is the second end of a back-to-back for Boston; Philadelphia last played on Tuesday.
Here’s more on the Celtics:
- Guards Payton Pritchard and Derrick White made history in Wednesday’s 10-point victory over Portland, writes Kyle Hightower of The Associated Press. In addition to becoming the first Celtics duo to score 40-plus points in the same game, they also became the first tandem in NBA history to each make at least nine three-pointers in the same contest. Both players set career highs in points and threes made, with Pritchard (43 and 10) slightly edging White (41 and nine). They were both extremely efficient — Pritchard shot 14-of-20 and chipped in 10 rebounds and five assists in 43 minutes, while White was 14-of-26 and also had three rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block. Remarkably, they only combined for one turnover.
- Second-year forward Jordan Walsh was a surprise contributor in yesterday’s win, notes Brian Robb of MassLive. The 21-year-old has only averaged 8.0 minutes per game in 41 appearances this season, but he matched a season high by playing 21 minutes against the Blazers. As Robb writes, Walsh hadn’t played at all in three of the five games leading up to Wednesday’s contest, in part due to the signing of veteran Torrey Craig. However, Walsh was ahead of Craig on the depth chart yesterday and got an opportunity for playing time with Tatum, Porzingis and Holiday out.
- After the game, head coach Joe Mazzulla explained Walsh’s increased workload. He finished with three points and six rebounds. “Just with guys out, opportunity is there,” Mazzulla said, per Robb. “His ability to defend in individual defense, these guys do a great job of breaking guys down, and he’s really gotten better at that, and we needed someone who offensive rebounds. I think he got two big ones in the first half, I think he ended up with one more there, so just continuing to get better. It’s an opportunity to get him out there and make sure he continues to grow defensively and rebounding.”
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 3/6/2025
Hoops Rumors hosted a live chat today at 2:00 pm Central time (3:00 pm Eastern).
Raptors Provide Injury Updates On Ingram, Several Others
Former All-Star forward Brandon Ingram has yet to make his Raptors debut after being acquired in a trade with New Orleans ahead of last month’s deadline. He has been sidelined since December 7, when he suffered a “significant” left ankle sprain.
While Ingram has been able to increase his on-court activity in recent days, he’s still limited to solo work, with no timeline for his return to games or practices, the team announced today (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca). The next update on Ingram, who signed a three-year, $120MM extension with Toronto shortly after the trade, will come in two weeks.
As Lewenberg relays (via Twitter), the Raptors also provided injury updates on several other players on Thursday afternoon. Third-year wing Ochai Agbaji, who sprained his left ankle last week vs. Chicago, is no longer in a walking boot and will ramp up his activity, but he has yet to resume practicing. Agbaji will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason.
Rookie big man Jonathan Mogbo sustained a nasal fracture on Tuesday against Orlando and will miss at least one week. The former San Francisco star will wear a mask for the remainder of the 2024/25 season, tweets Lindsay Dunn of CityNews Toronto. As we noted a couple days ago, second-year guard Gradey Dick will be out at least two weeks due to a right knee injury.
On a more positive note, rookie sharpshooter Jamison Battle will be active going forward after missing the past five games with a broken nose. Veteran wing Garrett Temple is also back with the Raptors after being away from the team due to personal reasons.
Mavs’ Alex Jensen To Become Univ. Of Utah’s Head Coach
Veteran NBA assistant coach Alex Jensen, who is currently employed by the Mavericks, has agreed to a contract to become the new men’s head coach at the University of Utah, sources tell Jeff Borzello and Pete Thamel of ESPN.
Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports reported a couple days ago that Jensen had emerged as one of the top candidates for the school’s head coaching vacancy. He will replace Craig Smith, who was fired last month after nearly four seasons at the helm.
Jensen, 46, is a Utah native who starred in college for the Utes, having been named the Mountain West Conference Player of the Year back in 1999/2000. He was a starter for the team that advanced to the final of the 1998 NCAA Tournament, ultimately losing to Kentucky.
Jensen got his first coaching job under his former head coach, Rick Majerus, at the University of Saint Louis. After four seasons with the Billikens, Jensen transitioned to the NBA, spending 10 years as an assistant with the Jazz. He has been with the Mavericks since 2023.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link), Jensen is “well-liked” by the Mavericks and will likely have an opportunity to finish out the ’24/25 season in Dallas. Either way, Jensen will be joining the Utes at some point in the near future.
Wizards Notes: Smart, Sarr, Poole, Holmes, Middleton
Marcus Smart finds himself on one of the league’s worst teams. The veteran guard was dealt by Memphis to the Wizards last month and is attempting to make the best of it, he told Candace Buckner of the Washington Post.
“Controlling what I can control is my motto now as I’ve gotten older and I think that helps a lot because we are put to the test,” he said. “When you’re such a competitor and you’re so passionate, [then] to come to a team that’s young, rebuilding in a sense, you know, trying to figure it out. You know, it is frustrating, but the older you get, that experience, I went through it. So now I can see, sit down and understand by looking from 2017 till now, what can I do differently? And that is the way I respond.”
Smart, who is signed through next season, is trying to give his new teammates some tough love.
“They know I’m not here to hold your hand. I’m here to help you get better,” he said. “This group is very young but they have some talented guys who can be defensive players of the year, or all-star candidates, all-NBA candidates with some work. A little bit of experience, a little bit of guidance, and that’s what I’m here for.”
Here’s more on the Wizards:
- Alex Sarr has struggled to score at the rim in his rookie season but he was an inside force against Utah on Wednesday, racking up 21 points and making all but one of his seven attempts in the lane. “Definitely just trying to be aggressive. Get some easy ones around the rim before spacing out,” he said, per Varun Shankar of the Washington Post.
- Jordan Poole missed his third straight game with a right elbow hyperextension, Shankar notes. Coach Brian Keefe indicated that Poole did some on-court work, including shooting, on Wednesday. Big man Richaun Holmes missed his first game since late January with a left knee contusion, Shankar adds.
- While Smart and Khris Middleton, another trade-deadline acquisition, are playing key roles as mentors for the younger players, it’s quite possible – or perhaps likely – the Wizards will attempt to trade them after this season or before the 2026 trade deadline, Josh Robbins of The Athletic writes in his latest mailbag. Robbins also fields questions on the draft and the organization’s player development program.
Raptors Sign Colin Castleton To 10-Day Contract
March 6: The signing is official, according to the NBA transactions log.
March 5: The Raptors intend to sign center Colin Castleton to a 10-day contract, according to NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link).
Castleton, who went undrafted out of Florida in 2023, spent his rookie year on a two-way contract with the Lakers and was on a two-way deal with the Grizzlies for most of the first half of this season. The 6’10” big man appeared in 26 combined games for the two NBA clubs, compiling 38 points and 21 rebounds in 105 total minutes.
Although Castleton’s playing time at the NBA level has been limited, he has performed well for the Lakers’, Grizzlies’, and Magic’s G League affiliates since going pro.
The 24-year-old, who has been playing for the Osceola Magic since being waived by the Grizzlies in January, has made 26 total G League appearances this season, averaging 17.3 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.3 blocks in 30.2 minutes per game for Osceola and the Memphis Hustle.
Even after promoting center Orlando Robinson to a standard contract on Tuesday, Toronto has an open spot on its 15-man roster, so no corresponding move will be necessary to make room for Castleton. His 10-day contract will pay him $107,027 and will carry an identical cap hit on the Raptors’ books.
The Raptors don’t play again until Friday, so it’s unclear when exactly Castleton will sign his contract. The 10-day deal will run through at least Toronto’s next five games and could cover as many as six if it’s not officially completed until Friday.
Southeast Notes: Hornets, Kokoskov, Heat, Adebayo, Banchero
Have the Hornets already gone into tank mode? It might seem that way, considering they’ve lost 17 of their 19 games. Head coach Charles Lee denies that’s the case.
“I think it would be very easy to sometimes lay down when you are in the position that you are, but we are obsessed with daily improvement,” Lee told Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer. “Part of daily improvement is going into every game and facing a different type of opponent, different strategy, different coverages, different matchups, and adjusting and adapting. And they’ve done a really good job of doing that.”
Miles Bridges says the players aren’t giving up, even as the losses pile up.
“We’ve got to play with pride — we’re in the NBA,” Bridges said. “We are blessed to be in the NBA. That’s my mindset coming into a game. I’m blessed to be here in the NBA, so I want to go out and give 100% and I try to give that to the other guys. Just going out and playing with pride. Being on a losing streak sucks for everybody. If we can get a win next game against the best team in the league (Cleveland on Friday), that will probably turn us up.”
We have more from the Southeast Division:
- Igor Kokoskov became an NBA head coach again — at least for one night. The Hawks assistant filled in on Tuesday for Quin Snyder, who was battling an illness. Atlanta lost to Milwaukee, 127-121. Kokoskov was Phoenix’s head coach during the 2018/19 season. “None of us knew until right before tipoff,” point guard Trae Young told Charles Odum of the Associated Press. “He was here early. It kind of surprised us but we still had a game to go play. It sucks we couldn’t get him the win.”
- As things stand, the Heat could wind up with two first-round picks in this year’s rich draft. The Heat will keep its own pick if it misses the opening round of the playoffs, most likely by losing in the play-in tournament. The Heat will receive the Warriors first-round pick if it falls between 11-30, which is becoming an increasing likely outcome. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald takes a look at some of the players who might be available in the middle of the first round, including UConn’s Liam McNeeley, Duke’s Kon Knueppel and Oklahoma’s Jeremiah Fears.
- Bam Adebayo‘s offensive production has increased since rookie Heat center Kel’el Ware was inserted into the starting lineup. That’s no coincidence, he told Jackson. “It gave me more energy to play offense,” he said. “I’m not in every pick-and-roll. Obviously, he’s guarding the five [the center]. A lot of four men [power forwards] don’t and do the things that fives do. For me, it definitely let a load off me where I definitely could focus more on scoring.” Adebayo averaged 15.7 PPG in the first 40 games and 21.3 PPG in the past 19 games, including 17 with Ware starting.
- The Magic anticipated they’d be on the upswing once Paolo Banchero started producing at his usual levels again. It hasn’t worked out that way. Banchero, who was sidelined for two-and-a-half months with an abdominal injury, has averaged 29.6 points on 47.8% shooting, 6.3 rebounds, 4.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 34.7 minutes over the past seven games. However, Orlando has lost four straight, including twice to the Raptors. “We’ve got to do some soul-searching,” Banchero told Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel. “The good thing about a time like this is that, really, the only way you can go is up.”