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And-Ones: Award Races, Summer Flight Risks, BRI, RFAs

March 27th, 2025 at 7:28am CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed on Wednesday, Warriors forward Draymond Green took over this week as the new betting favorite for Defensive Player of the Year honors, surpassing Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley.

Mobley’s teammates and head coach disagree that Green should be considered the frontrunner and Zach Harper of The Athletic sides with the Cavs’ contingent, placing Mobley ahead of Green (and Hawks guard Dyson Daniels) on his hypothetical ballot in his latest look at this season’s award races.

With just over two weeks left in the 2024/25 season, Harper currently has Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ahead of Nikola Jokic in the MVP race, Stephon Castle ahead of Jaylen Wells for Rookie of the Year, Payton Pritchard ahead of Malik Beasley for Sixth Man of the Year, Kenny Atkinson over J.B. Bickerstaff for Coach of the Year, and Cade Cunningham over Mobley for Most Improved Player.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report runs through all 30 NBA teams and predicts their most likely flight risk in 2025 free agency. In some cases – like Seth Curry in Charlotte or Dalano Banton in Portland – the player in question has a relatively modest role, but others – such as Ty Jerome in Cleveland or Russell Westbrook in Denver – have been important contributors. Of course, a handful of clubs have stars or high-level starters to worry about, including Indiana with Myles Turner and the Clippers with James Harden.
  • In a free article for his Substack, Pincus shares some highlights from the NBA’s recent memo to teams, including the fact that players – who have 10% of their salaries put into escrow each season – are only on track to get a very small percentage of that money back in order to balance the basketball-related income split between players and teams. In other words, Pincus writes, a player with a $10MM cap hit for 2024/25, is only projected to actually earn about $9.1MM.
  • What sort of contracts will this season’s restricted free agents sign? Keith Smith of Spotrac digs into that question, making predictions ranging from nine-figure deals for Bulls guard Josh Giddey, Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga, and Sixers wing Quentin Grimes to minimum-salary contracts (and no qualifying offers) for players like Pacers center Isaiah Jackson and Nets wing Ziaire Williams.
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Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Embiid, Dowtin, Chisholm

March 26th, 2025 at 9:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After facing a lot of high-level competition and working through a tough schedule early into the 2024/25 season, the Raptors have seen their slate during the year’s home stretch get significantly easier — just as they’ve been looking to stack up losses.

Toronto is hoping to cement its bid for the best possible lottery odds in this summer’s draft, but playing fellow rebuilding squads could complicate that plan, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

To wit, Grange notes that the Raptors are still scheduled to play Charlotte and Brooklyn twice each, and have one more game against seemingly lottery-bound clubs in Philadelphia, San Antonio, Portland, Chicago and Dallas as the season winds down.

As of this writing, the 25-47 Raptors have the seventh-worst record in the league. They could conceivably overtake the 23-49 Nets and Sixers – and maybe even the 20-53 Pelicans – in the lottery order if they play their cards “right.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

  • Sixers coach Nick Nurse said today that injured former MVP center Joel Embiid has finished consulting various specialists about his lingering knee inflammation, and Philadelphia intends to make a decision on next steps “soon-ish,” per Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (Twitter link).
  • Sixers guard Jeff Dowtin is rapidly approaching the 50-contest active game limit for two-way players. According to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (subscriber link), the Rhode Island alum has just two games left before Philadelphia faces a decision on his fate. If the Sixers want to give the 27-year-old any more run in 2024/25 beyond those two games, the front office will need to promote Dowtin to its standard roster. Through 38 games this year (he has been a DNP-CD in 10), the 6’3″ guard boasts averages of 6.4 PPG, 1.8 APG, 1.6 RPG and 0.5 SPG in 14.1 minutes per night.
  • Incoming Celtics owner Bill Chisholm spoke with All-Star forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown and team president Brad Stevens ahead of the club’s recent tilt in Sacramento, writes Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (subscriber link). “It’s the most incredible feeling to think that maybe I can just play a tiny little part in the future,” Chisholm said, “and now I’ll just let these guys do what they’re doing, let Brad do his thing. If I can help in any way, that’s amazing to think about.”
  • Stevens himself spoke about the Celtics‘ impending new ownership situation too, per Souichi Terada of MassLive. “My only thing is just asking to be kept in the loop on everything I need to know from the standpoint of making decisions here and now and moving forward,” Stevens said. “As we get to spend more time with Bill, with [current team governor Wyc Grousbeck] and Bill, then we’ll have more clarity on how we are going to do things.
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Sixers Sign Phillip Wheeler To 10-Day Deal

March 26th, 2025 at 2:07pm CST by Luke Adams

2:07 pm: Wheeler’s 10-day deal with the Sixers is now official, the club announced in a press release.

1:58 pm: The Sixers intend to sign G League forward Phillip Wheeler to a 10-day contract, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Wheeler, who went undrafted in 2022, has spent the last few years playing in the G League and the Puerto Rican league. He has appeared in a total of 38 NBAGL games this season for the Texas Legends and Maine Celtics, averaging 15.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.0 steal in 28.2 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .495/.365/.612.

Wheeler should have a good opportunity to make his NBA debut for a banged-up Sixers team that has awarded rotation roles to several young prospects, two-way players, and 10-day signees in recent weeks.

Chuma Okeke, who averaged 24.4 minutes per game across seven outings with Philadelphia, had his second 10-day contract with the team come to an end on Tuesday night, which will create a roster slot for Wheeler.

Technically, the 76ers have a full 15-man standard roster, but due to all their injured players, they’ve qualified for multiple hardship exceptions as of late and figure to use another one to bring Wheeler aboard. Forward Marcus Bagley is also currently on a 10-day hardship deal with Philadelphia.

Wheeler will earn $66,503 over the course of his 10-day contract and will be eligible for the Sixers’ next five games if the signing is officially completed on Wednesday.

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Sixers Sign Marcus Bagley To 10-Day Contract

March 24th, 2025 at 3:54pm CST by Rory Maher

The Sixers have signed free agent forward Marcus Bagley to a 10-day contract, the team announced in a press release.

Bagley, 23, went undrafted in 2023 after three injury-riddled seasons with Arizona State. He has been a member of Philadelphia’s organization ever since, initially playing for the 76ers’ Summer League squad that year and spending the past two seasons with the team’s G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats.

Bagley struggled to make an impact during his first professional season in 2023/24 and got off to a relatively slow start this past fall during the Tip-Off Tournament. However, he has been more productive since the NBAGL regular season got underway in the winter, averaging 11.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 18 games (29.3 minutes per contest). His shooting line over that span is .436/.320/.759.

The 76ers currently have a full 15-man roster, but they are permitted to carry extra players via the hardship exception due to injuries. It’s likely they qualify for a second hardship exception, as Chuma Okeke is currently on his second 10-day contract with the club — his deal expires March 25.

While it’s also possible Philadelphia decided to end Okeke’s contract a day early, there’s no mention of Okeke in the press release. Either way, Bagley will be getting his first standard NBA contract.

Bagley will earn $66,503 over the course of his 10 days with the team and Philadelphia will carry an identical cap hit on its books. Bagley, whose older brother is Grizzlies big man Marvin Bagley III, will be eligible to appear in five games for the Sixers.

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Injury Notes: Sabonis, Davis, Maxey, Walker, Harden

March 24th, 2025 at 11:07am CST by Luke Adams

The Kings announced on March 18 that center Domantas Sabonis, who was diagnosed with a moderate right ankle sprain, would be reevaluated in 10 days. However, just six days later, Sacramento has listed Sabonis as questionable to play on Monday vs. Boston.

As Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee writes, the Kings announced that Sabonis has made significant progress in his recovery from the ankle sprain and fully participated in Sunday’s practice. It seems possible that an injury initially expected to sideline the big man for at least six games might only cost him three. Teammate Malik Monk predicted that outcome on the night Sabonis injured his ankle last Monday.

“It looked pretty bad,” Monk told reporters at the time. “But Domas (is) strong. He’ll probably be back sooner than we think.”

If Sabonis is able to return sooner rather than later, it would bode well for his potential end-of-season award eligibility — he needs to play at least 20 minutes in seven of the Kings’ remaining 12 contests to meet the requirements for the NBA’s 65-game rule. Sacramento also remains in the midst of a battle for a play-in spot. At 35-35, the team is ninth in the Western Conference standings, 1.5 games ahead of the Suns and Mavericks, who have matching 34-37 records.

Here are a few more injury notes from around the NBA:

  • The Mavericks have upgraded big man Anthony Davis from doubtful to questionable for Monday’s game in Brooklyn, tweets Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal. NBA insider Marc Stein previously reported that Davis was targeting Tuesday’s game in New York for his return from an adductor strain. I wouldn’t expect the Mavs star to play both ends of the back-to-back set, but it certainly sounds as if he could be back in action either today or tomorrow.
  • There had been a belief that Tyrese Maxey (lower back sprain/finger sprain) might return on the Sixers‘ current road trip, but it doesn’t appear that will happen after all. The trip will wrap up in New Orleans on Monday and head coach Nick Nurse said on Sunday that he wasn’t expecting to have Maxey back for that game, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “I do expect him back (before the end of the season),” Nurse said. “But I don’t think he’s going to make it for today or tomorrow, I’ve been told.”
  • Sixers guard Lonnie Walker, who missed four games while in the concussion protocol, had to depart his first game back on Friday due to a headache. He sat out Sunday and the expectation is that he’ll miss Monday’s game too. “He just didn’t feel great,” Nurse said on Sunday, per Pompey. “And they just wanted to, with an abundance of caution, pull him back out of there. So they are going to take a look at him. He’ll be out tonight and tomorrow for sure. Then we will see where we go from there.”
  • After injuring his foot in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to Oklahoma City, James Harden was able to finish the game, but the ailment seemed to be affecting him down the stretch and in the locker room afterward, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. Harden was playing some of his best basketball of the season as of late, having averaged 29.2 points per game with a .396 3PT% in the Clippers‘ last nine outings (including eight wins) entering Sunday, so the team will be holding its breath as it evaluates his foot, Murray notes.
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And-Ones: Rebuilding Teams, Free Agency, Flagg, NBL

March 21st, 2025 at 9:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Among 11 NBA teams in various stages of their respective rebuilds, the Spurs are best positioned for the long run, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Insider link). San Antonio’s place atop the rankings has a lot to do with the presence of Victor Wembanyama on the roster, but Bontemps points to Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, and recently acquired point guard De’Aaron Fox as other likely core pieces for the Spurs, who could end up with two more lottery picks this spring.

Interestingly, Bontemps places the Hornets and Wizards at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, on his rebuild rankings, praising Charlotte in particular for its promising collection of young talent. The Trail Blazers and Bulls come in at 10th and 11th on Bontemps’ list, largely because there are questions about whether either team has a franchise player to build around and whether they’ll be in position to land one in the draft anytime soon.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

  • John Hollinger of The Athletic highlights several of the challenging situations that teams will face in free agency this summer, including the Cavaliers with Ty Jerome, the Nuggets with Russell Westbrook, the Kings with Jake LaRavia, and the Sixers with Quentin Grimes and Guerschon Yabusele. Many of those clubs will be limited in what they can offer their free agents, either due to a lack of full Bird rights or tax/apron concerns.
  • Meanwhile, Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) looks ahead to 2026 and explains why next year’s star-studded free agent class will likely be something of a mirage, given all the contract extensions likely to be signed between now and then.
  • ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo (Insider link) spoke to 10 NBA executives about projected No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg, surveying those execs on the Duke freshman’s strengths and weaknesses, his odds of winning a title with the Blue Devils, and whether there’s any chance he decides to stay in school for another year. “I can’t remember a No. 1 pick deciding to go back to school,” one Eastern Conference scout told ESPN.
  • Ahead of the NBA playing its first games in Australia this fall, a battle over the ownership of the country’s National Basketball League appears to be brewing. Olgun Uluc of ESPN Australia has the story.
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Kings’ Isaac Jones Reaches Active Game Limit

March 21st, 2025 at 2:20pm CST by Rory Maher

Rookie big man Isaac Jones, who is on a two-way contract with the Kings, has been active for the maximum of 50 NBA games this season and is no longer eligible to play for Sacramento in 2024/25, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN.

Jones reached the 50-game limit in Wednesday’s victory over Cleveland when he played four minutes. He has appeared in 31 games this season and been active for 19 more, averaging 3.7 points and 1.5 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per contest.

Although he ultimately wasn’t selected, Jones was among the players who boosted their stocks with strong performances in last year’s pre-draft process. The former Washington State standout quickly reached an agreement on a two-way deal with the Kings shortly after going undrafted.

As Marks notes (via Twitter), Jones can continue to practice with the Kings, but he won’t be able to play again unless his two-way contract is converted to a standard deal. A report back in January suggested that Jones was a candidate to be promoted if the Kings still had openings on their standard roster after the trade deadline, and they do — they’re tentatively carrying 14 players, with Terry Taylor on a 10-day contract that runs through March 27.

Jones, who was named to the NBA G League’s Up Next event at All-Star weekend, has also appeared in 15 total games this season with the Stockton Kings. His role has been more significant at the G League level, averaging 21.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 block on .567/.300/.745 shooting in 32.3 minutes per contest.

Several other players on two-way contracts are also nearing their active game limits, according to Marks. Kessler Edwards (one) and Brandon Williams (five) of the Mavericks, Hornets wing Wendell Moore (five) and Sixers guard Jeff Dowtin (five) will soon be ineligible to appear in NBA games. All three of the Lakers’ two-way players — Jordan Goodwin (three), Trey Jemison (eight) and Christian Koloko (nine) — are close to their limits as well, as we noted on Thursday.

Players on two-way contracts are ineligible for the postseason, including the play-in tournament.

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Atlantic Notes: Scheierman, Brunson, Knicks, Walker

March 20th, 2025 at 10:55pm CST by Earnest Marshall

Celtics rookie Baylor Scheierman scored a career-high 20 points against the Nets on Tuesday, giving the Celtics their 50th win. As Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe notes, 17 of Scheierman’s 20 came in the second half and he only missed one garbage-time shot.

“Obviously it’s a lot of fun when [the game] slows down and it feels like you’re just out there playing free, playing loose,” Scheierman said. “Coach [Joe Mazzulla] has got a lot of confidence in you, players have got a lot of confidence in you. That’s what the game is all about, and that’s how I enjoy playing.”

Scheierman hasn’t played much at the NBA level this year, but he’s contributed to a pair of wins in the past couple weeks. The 2024 No. 30 overall pick is getting more comfortable by the day.

“Confidence is kind of an overused term,” Mazzulla said. “I think in reality, it’s like, this kid just got here. He’s been here for three months. Like, what do you expect him to look like 10 games in playing sporadically? He’s always had that confidence. I think a lot of it is a matter of timing. A lot of it’s a matter of opportunity. And a lot of it is the moments that you get, you’ve got to deliver and you’ve got to impact winning.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said Jalen Brunson was out of his walking boot and has progressed to doing “light shooting,” according to Newsday’s Steve Popper (Twitter link). New York is hoping to get him into some game action before the playoffs begin. He hasn’t played since March 6 due to an ankle injury.
  • New York wing Josh Hart ripped the Knicks after they lost to the 18-win Hornets on Thursday, according to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. “The way we’re losing games is embarrassing,” Hart said, “… It’s extra effort, and we’re not doing that, and that’s what’s embarrassing, especially for this team, especially for a Thibs-coached team, a New York-based team. That’s not what we should be doing. That’s not what we’re supposed to be built on.” New York is 3-4 without Brunson during this stretch.
  • Sixers guard Lonnie Walker IV hasn’t played since March 12 after suffering a concussion. He’s probable for Friday’s game against the Spurs, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. Walker is averaging 8.2 points and 3.3 rebounds this season.
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And-Ones: Morris, Morey, NCAA Tourney, 2025 Draft

March 19th, 2025 at 2:14pm CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on the latest episode of The Kevin O’Connor Show podcast, veteran forward Marcus Morris, who is currently a free agent, was asked by Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports about Daryl Morey‘s recent comments about using AI in Sixers decisions. The question prompted some pointed comments from Morris about the longtime NBA executive.

“I don’t trust Daryl Morey. I just don’t trust him,” Morris said (Twitter video link). “I think he’s thinking too far ahead of the way basketball needs to be played. He’s trying to do a whole new team. He’s trying to bring guys in, flipping them in and out, in and out, in and out. Does he even understand the dynamic of being in Philadelphia (and) what guys you need to play in Philadelphia?”

“… You tell my guy (James Harden) that you’re gonna do something for him, a guy that you brought from all these teams, and then you don’t. Like, did AI tell him not to pay James Harden this amount of money? Does the AI tell him to go get Paul George, hire Nick Nurse?

“Does AI tell you to get the guy from Miami, Caleb Martin, because he played well in the Boston series? He can’t shoot the ball. You got three dominant guys that need the ball in their hands. Why is that the first guy that you go get? How did you come up with picking a team? Why do you want to start a brand-new team and try to win a championship? I haven’t seen any team that has 10 new guys be really good the following year. I don’t even know if any team has ever done that.

“I’m just not a fan of how he goes about choosing players and flipping players in and out. It’s kind of like he’s trying to outsmart the game too much.”

Morris, a Philadelphia native, has played under Morey multiple times over the course of his 13-year NBA career and acknowledged that those experiences influence his views on the former Rockets and current Sixers president. Morris said Morey sent him to the G League during his rookie season “for no reason” and then traded him off the 76ers last season for a “bag of chips,” even though he was playing well for his hometown team.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

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Sixers Notes: Grimes, Yabusele, Butler, Nurse, Injury Report

March 18th, 2025 at 5:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Quentin Grimes, a trade deadline acquisition, continues to shine for the Sixers. The combo guard — a restricted free agent after this season — erupted for a career-high 46 points against the Rockets in an overtime loss on Monday. Grimes, who also finished with a career-best 13 rebounds, has scored 30 or more points in five separate games since coming to Philadelphia.

“It’s cool,” Grimes told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “But I had a costly turnover that cost us the game late in the fourth. I have to be better in those situations, probably on the ball, try to get fouled. It’s cool and all, but we probably should have just ended the game, ended it with a win.”

We have more on the Sixers:

  • While they have been decimated by injuries, big man Guerschon Yabusele has continued to play despite battling knee soreness. Yabusele sat out Monday’s game, but he’s appeared in 62 of 68 games and has served as a few of the few constants in Philadelphia this season. “That’s just who I am,” he told Pompey. “I always try to keep playing no matter what. You know that’s just me. I just want to compete. I want to be out there and help the guys. I hate just being on the bench and looking at the guys over there, struggling or losing. It’s something I don’t like to be a part of.” Yabusele has some extra incentive to stay on the court — he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
  • The Sixers had only nine players available on Monday, yet nearly knocked off one of the better teams in the Western Conference. “I think it’s just outside of our nature to go out there and try to lose,” guard Jared Butler said, per Pompey. ”I can’t see myself playing like that in any kind of way.”
  • While some fans might be unhappy with head coach Nick Nurse, he shouldn’t be the scapegoat for the team’s dismal season, Pompey argues. Nurse has been forced to juggle the rotation throughout the season due to the rash of injuries, using 44 different starting lineups, Pompey points out.
  • Kelly Oubre Jr. is doubtful for Wednesday’s game against the Thunder due to a sprained right knee, Pompey tweets. Yabusele is questionable, while Tyrese Maxey, Andre Drummond, Adem Bona, Kyle Lowry and Lonnie Walker remain out.
  • In case you missed it, Paul George has been ruled out for the season. Get the details here.
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