Christian Wood Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Heat Notes: Wood, Lillard, Shooters, Robinson

August 10th, 2023 at 6:45pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Christian Wood is one of the most prominent names left on the free agent market. Wood’s stats last year, 16.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, would typically lead to an offer in the opening days of free agency. But nearly a month and a half into the 2023/24 league year, Wood remains on the market, with little more than minimum contract offers available. However, according to Heavy’s Sean Deveney, Wood has options.

While Wood could accept a veteran’s minimum offer (worth approximately $2.7MM for a player with seven years of experience) from the Heat or the Lakers, it would be significantly less than what he made last year: $14.3MM. According to Deveney, Wood has hope that a higher offer than $2.7MM will emerge but, at the very least, he has that minimum contract to fall back on if that doesn’t pan out.

“There is no reason for him to hurry, the roster spots are there and unless there is a chance the Lakers make a move to sign someone else, why not wait to see if something better becomes available?” a league executive told Heavy. “What if Miami makes the [Damian Lillard] trade and winds up with a little more [luxury-tax] space? They could make a better offer. Not a ton more, but it is not the minimum. That’s the wild card for [Wood].”

According to Deveney, the Lakers are viewed around the league as the favorite to land Wood but there are multiple routes for Miami to create more cap flexibility in a potential Lillard move. If the Heat wind up sending out all of their trade-chip major salaries, Kyle Lowry, Duncan Robinson and Tyler Herro, they could create more space under the $182.5MM second tax apron to sign Wood at a salary slightly above the minimum.

Even if not all of those pieces are moved, there are ways for the Heat to create space to sign Wood to a deal around $5MM annually, according to Deveney. Deveney says that if a trade involving Herro, Robinson, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Nikola Jovic occurs, the Heat could look to sign Wood to the aforementioned $5MM.

Wood’s summer seems to have two potential endings, as of now, according to Deveney. If a Lillard trade occurs and the Heat wish to sign Wood, he’s likely Miami-bound. If a Lillard trade doesn’t happen or the Heat wish to fill out the roster with only minimum contracts, Wood would likely head to the Lakers.

We have more from Miami:

While Miami is Lillard’s only reported preferred destination, it doesn’t automatically mean that he’s going to be sent there. Lillard could stay in place to open the season or he could be sent elsewhere entirely. Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscription required) makes the case for the other 28 teams in the league to make a trade for Lillard. Winderman breaks the other 28 teams in the league into categories. He lists 16 teams as already having their point guard of the future, three as being on different timelines than Lillard and four lacking necessary trade assets, leaving five other realistic potential suitors. Winderman lists the Celtics, Nets, Pelicans, Sixers and Jazz as the teams who could realistically make a move for Lillard. However, I wouldn’t count out the Raptors from making a move for the seven-time All-Star.
Winderman, writing in a recent mailbag, argues that the Heat need to have three-point shooting insurance in the event that Robinson and Herro are moved. In that scenario, the Heat would have lost Herro, Gabe Vincent, and three-point specialists Robinson and Max Strus, in the same offseason. Cole Swider and Drew Peterson have the potential to turn into that, but both have currently just verbally agreed to training camp contracts. Winderman argues that keeping Robinson could be a priority, so that the Heat maintain some consistency with their shooters.
In another recent mailbag, Winderman explored reader questions about potential obstacles that would cause the Heat to not make a trade for Lillard. A possible fine or other punishment from the league following their recent memo can’t be ruled out. Additionally, the Heat could be wary of sending out all of their young assets, such as both Jaquez and Jovic. However, Winderman doesn’t view either of those as legitimate roadblocks.

Stein’s Latest: USA Basketball, Wood, B. Griffin

August 7th, 2023 at 1:59pm CST by Rory Maher

Multiple reporters have confirmed the news — originally reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski — that Pistons guard Cade Cunningham was offered a spot on Team USA’s World Cup roster. Cunningham said last week that he declined the invitation to manage his workload for the upcoming 2023/24 season after being to 12 games in ’22/23 following shin surgery.

According to Marc Stein at Substack, USA Basketball had a longstanding interest in Cunningham joining the senior men’s team, but the organization also recognized that it was an “extreme long shot” to land him.

As Stein explains, Cunningham would have needed to commit to the full six-week time frame, which includes several exhibition games and lengthy international travel. Given how long he was sidelined, it makes sense that the 2021 No. 1 overall pick decided to be cautious; Detroit wasn’t exactly enthusiastic about the idea either, according to Stein.

Here’s more from Stein:

Why was USA Basketball so interested in Cunningham? As Stein observes, he fits the mold of a physical guard that was a priority for the roster, which includes Jalen Brunson, Anthony Edwards, Austin Reaves and Josh Hart (though Hart is more of a wing than a traditional ball-handling guard).
The lack of physicality may explain why Hawks guard Trae Young isn’t on the World Cup roster, despite USAB managing director Grant Hill being a part owner of Atlanta, Stein writes. Young was disappointed to not make the team and recently said he’d welcome the opportunity to represent Team USA at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Stein adds.
Former ESPN analyst Jeff Van Gundy will serve as Team USA’s scouting director for the World Cup, Stein reports. Van Gundy has been associated with USAB for several years, including serving as head coach from 2017-19 when the team was comprised of non-NBA players during qualifying rounds, Stein notes.
The Lakers remain interested in free agent big man Christian Wood, sources tell Stein. However, they used most of their non-taxpayer mid-level exception on Gabe Vincent and their bi-annual exception on Taurean Prince, so they can basically only offer Wood the veteran’s minimum. While the Mavericks are open to a Wood sign-and-trade, neither the Lakers nor the Heat are believed to be viable partners in that scenario, according to Stein.
The Celtics are interested in re-signing free agent big man Blake Griffin, league sources tell Stein, but it’s unclear if that interest is mutual. Griffin appeared in 41 regular season games with Boston in ’22/23, averaging career lows of 4.1 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 13.9 MPG. He also only played one game for six total minutes in the playoffs, despite the Celtics having 20 postseason contests.

Eastern Notes: Livers, Bridges, C. Johnson, Brunson, Celtics

August 6th, 2023 at 10:06pm CST by Rory Maher

After being limited to 19 games in 2021/22 — his rookie season — due to a right foot stress fracture he sustained in college, Pistons forward Isaiah Livers now realizes he may have done more harm than good with his strenuous workout regimen last offseason. He appeared in just 52 games during his sophomore campaign in ’22/23, having dealt with multiple injuries.

As Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes, Livers has taken a different, more measured approach this summer in an effort to prepare his body for an 82-game schedule.

“I’ve built a new friendship with the weight room,” Livers told Sankofa. “I feel a lot more explosive, bouncier, and I feel more in control of my body. It’s no secret, the No. 1 thing about me is just avoiding injuries. It’s been some small injuries. I tweaked my workout plan to the point where I won’t have those wear-and-tears, those nagging injuries. I’ve been put on a smart plan where I’m not overworking myself. This is the season. I’m excited and we have big things to look forward to.”

A relentless worker, Livers admits it hasn’t been easy to take a step back, but he knows ’23/24 will be a key season for his future. As Sankofa notes, the former second-round pick will be headed to restricted free agency next summer after Detroit exercised its team option on his contract at the end of June.

Livers also spoke to Sankofa about the return of Cade Cunningham and new head coach Monty Williams, among other topics. It’s an interesting, thoughtful interview and worth checking out for Pistons fans.

Here’s more from the East:

Both Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson are thrilled to be able to represent Team USA in international competition, and the Nets are fully supportive of their choices, Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes in a subscriber-only piece. “It seems so much fun,” Johnson said. “You know, I’ve talked to people that have played, I’ve talked to people that have been a part of it. They said it’s such a valuable experience for your career, and you can learn a lot from it. And then you just get the experience to see high level basketball across the world in a different type of environment. So I’m really looking forward to it.”
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson believes playing for Team USA in the World Cup this summer will be beneficial for him entering the 2023/24 season, according to Ethan Sears of The New York Post. “I think it’s another way to get ready for training camp,” Brunson said. “You gotta look at it and see the positives that come out of this, going towards the NBA season. I know I’ll be ready for that. I think for me, my mindset is focused on this and not really worrying about what’s going on ahead right now.”
Brian Robb of MassLive.com covers a number of Celtics topics in a mailbag article. Most of the questions are centered around how the team should fill out the end of the roster. Robb would take a patient approach and thinks free agent big man Christian Wood is an unlikely target for a variety of reasons.

Lakers Notes: Reaves, 14th Man, Wood, Davis

August 4th, 2023 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

Lakers guard Austin Reaves, who previously identified the Spurs and Rockets as teams that had some interest in him this offseason, said at this week’s Team USA training camp that his goal when he reached restricted free agency was always, “Get back to L.A.,” as Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes.

Signing an offer sheet with another team could have put Reaves in position to earn more than the $54MM over four years he’ll get from the Lakers, who were unable to offer him a higher salary (but could have matched a bigger offer sheet). However, when the two Texas-based teams decided not to seriously pursue him, Reaves was happy to simply re-sign with Los Angeles.

“I had a stressful probably 10 hours, but after that, when it was done, couldn’t be more excited with the situation, with the team that we got, going back to L.A.,” he said. “… We played out every scenario. My agents, we talked probably literally like 10, 11 hours straight that night about what we wanted in the contract, years, whatever. But like I said, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

The Lakers may prefer to fill their 14th roster spot sooner rather than later, according to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times, who believes Christian Wood is probably still be the team’s top choice for that opening if he’s willing to sign for the veteran’s minimum. As Woike observes, L.A. could point to examples like Malik Monk and Dennis Schröder to sell Wood on the idea that he’d have the opportunity to thrive with the Lakers for a year on a minimum-salary deal and parlay that performance into a bigger payday.
Although the Lakers generally deploy Anthony Davis at center in their most important games and minutes, they continue to speak publicly about using lineups that pair him with another big man. Jovan Buha of The Athletic digs into that subject, expressing skepticism that the Lakers will use Davis at power forward alongside a center very often, given the make-up of their roster and the success they’ve had with AD at the five.
In case you missed it, the big news today in Laker Land is Davis’ three-year, maximum-salary contract extension. We have the full story on that agreement right here.

Heat Notes: Lillard, Cain, Audige, Free Agents, Roster

July 28th, 2023 at 6:41pm CST by Rory Maher

As of Friday afternoon, nothing appeared to be imminent regarding a possible Damian Lillard trade, reports Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

According to Jackson, the Trail Blazers‘ front office is currently on vacation and has shown no inclination to comply with Lillard’s trade request to the Heat. That said, Lillard remains focused on landing in Miami and doesn’t plan expand his list to include additional teams, a person with knowledge of the situation tells Jackson.

Jackson believes the Blazers may have spurred the league to investigate Lillard’s request and the comments made by his agent (Aaron Goodwin) in order to drum up trade interest, hence the NBA’s memo on Friday. Since Lillard and Goodwin told the league the star guard would fulfill his contract and play for any team that trades for him, the Heat will have to hope rival teams don’t decide to make “legitimate trade offers” for the 33-year-old, Jackson observes (Twitter links).

If Portland decides to wait until midseason to move Lillard, that could work against the Heat, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. As Winderman notes, the Nets received far more in return for Kevin Durant at the February trade deadline than the rumored offers they were receiving last summer for the superstar forward.

Here’s more out of Miami:

The Heat are interested in bringing back Jamal Cain on a two-way contract, which is why they gave him a qualifying offer, but the young forward hopes to land a standard deal and continues to discuss that possibility with other teams, Jackson writes. Miami could match a potential offer sheet for Cain since he’s a restricted free agent.
Miami is interested in signing former Northwestern guard Chase Audige, who played for the Heat’s Summer League team, to a training camp contract, but his agent declined to say whether or not Audige would accept the offer, Jackson adds. As a senior for the Wildcats in 2022/23, the 6’4″ Audige averaged 14.1 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.9 APG and 2.4 SPG in 34 games (34.4 MPG), though he struggled with scoring efficiency (.368/.325/.832 shooting line).
The Heat have had discussions with Goran Dragic‘s representatives about a possible reunion, but a potential deal likely wouldn’t come to fruition until later this summer, according to Jackson. The veteran free agent guard made his lone All-Star appearance with the Heat, but he’s 37 years old and dealt with a knee problem last season that required surgery. The Heat can only offer the veteran’s minimum, which may take them out of the running for free agents like Christian Wood and Kelly Oubre, who are looking for more money, per Jackson.
In a mailbag for The Miami Herald, Anthony Chiang answers questions about the Heat’s roster and how the new second apron might affect the team going forward.

Latest On Christian Wood

July 19th, 2023 at 11:53am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Lakers are in the market to add another big man to their roster and, on paper, free agent forward Christian Wood makes the most sense, according to Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times.

However, Woike writes that factors outside of the Lakers’ control could determine Wood’s landing spot. According to Woike, the Bulls are viewed as a “potential threat” to sign Wood to a contract after being granted a $10.23MM disabled player exception due to point guard Lonzo Ball‘s season-ending knee injury.

Woike adds that the Lakers are only able to offer the veteran’s minimum – worth $2.7MM for a player with seven years of service time – which is significantly less than what Chicago can offer.

Wood is Hoops Rumors’ highest-ranked remaining unrestricted free agent who has yet to agree to a deal. Despite averaging 16.6 points in 67 games (17 starts) last season for the Mavericks and at least 13.0 points per game every year since 2019, Wood is still unsigned nearly three weeks after free agency began.

We have more on Wood:

While the Lakers are looking for additional frontcourt depth, they are being picky about what kinds of bigs they’re targeting. “We don’t want to sign someone who replicates the skills that Jaxson Hayes has,” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said. “So if we can diversify the big position and have different looks, that would be good.” Woike adds that Wood fits that bill and has a skill set that could complement Anthony Davis and LeBron James. In the last three seasons, Wood averaged 18.1 points and shot 38.1% from three. Other floor-spacing big men are available, Woike writes, but there aren’t many with as much upside as Wood. While Bismack Biyombo has previously been mentioned as a Lakers option, the team may ultimately view his skillset as too similar to Hayes’. Other unrestricted free agent bigs who could be in line for minimum deals include JaMychal Green, Blake Griffin and Markieff Morris.
The Lakers have done “significant background work” on Wood, according to Woike. Head coach Darvin Ham and Wood overlapped in the 2018/19 season when Wood played with the Bucks for 13 games. Anthony Davis played with Wood in New Orleans at the end of the ’18/19 season and Lakers assistant JD DuBois was with Wood in Detroit in 2019/20.
The Heat could be suitors for Wood’s services, according to Woike. Miami is still in a holding pattern with remaining free agents while it pieces together a potential Damian Lillard trade offer, but if the Heat land Lillard, Wood makes sense as an impact free agent signing who could play big minutes. The Heat were rumored to be in on floor-spacing big Dario Saric before he signed with the Warriors.
While teams love Wood’s offensive play, there are reasons he is still available, potentially on a veteran’s minimum. According to Woike, sources around the league point to Wood’s subpar defensive contributions, despite his impressive 1.1 blocked shots per game last season. There also may be a disconnect between what Wood thinks his value is and what teams think his value is, Woike writes, along with concerns related to his professionalism. Even though their roster could use a floor-spacing big man, the Mavericks didn’t attempt to bring back Wood after trading a first-round pick for him last summer.

Southwest Notes: Collins, Wembanyama, Green, Wood, Williamson

July 16th, 2023 at 5:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Spurs big man Zach Collins believes the team’s league-worst defense will instantly improve next season with the addition of Victor Wembanyama, he told Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. “If he was just that tall and he wasn’t good at basketball, we would be better defensively,” Collins said. “But the fact that he is obviously very smart on defense and uses his length really well, it’s going to be so much better for us.”

Wembanyama had eight blocks in the first two Spurs’ Summer League games. “I think it will give our guards so much more confidence to get up and pressure guys knowing we have him back there,” Collins said.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

The Mavericks are expected to engage in rookie scale contract extension talks with Josh Green, according to Marc Stein in a Substack article. The two sides had an agreement that they would begin talks later in free agency. Green will be a restricted free agent next summer if an extension is not reached.
In the same piece, Stein reports the Mavericks would have some interest in doing a sign-and-trade deal involving Christian Wood but only if they get a player they really want in return. They are already hard-capped and would be in some danger of surpassing the luxury tax threshold if they bring in another non-minimum player, which would give them pause regarding a Wood sign-and-trade.
Pelicans VP of basketball operations David Griffin claims his team never discussed a Zion Williamson trade this offseason. “We never had a single (trade) conversation that Zion was part of,” Griffin said on a SiriusXM NBA Radio interview (hat tip to RealGM). Griffin also said there’s no disconnect between Williamson and the franchise. “I would say that it’s as good as it’s ever been,” Griffin said of Williamson’s relationship with the team.

Cavaliers Continue To Eye Free Agent Market

July 16th, 2023 at 9:41am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers remain interested in adding at least one more free agent to their roster before training camp, sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). According to Fedor, the team isn’t targeting any specific position and is simply focused on “playable depth.”

As Fedor outlines, the Cavaliers currently have 12 players on guaranteed contracts, plus Sam Merrill on a non-guaranteed deal. The club has about $3MM in breathing room below the luxury tax line and has no interest in becoming a taxpayer, so the 15th roster spot will probably remain open to start the season. In all likelihood, the Cavs would add one more player on a minimum-salary contract (or two, if Merrill is cut) in order to set the regular season roster.

Sources tell Fedor that Cleveland has registered interest in some of the top unrestricted free agents still available on the open market, including forward Kelly Oubre and center Christian Wood. Oubre was viewed as the Cavs’ Plan B if they hadn’t been able to land Max Strus via sign-and-trade, Fedor adds.

Fedor also mentions restricted free agent P.J. Washington, noting that the Cavs might have enough expendable salary (starting with Ricky Rubio and Dean Wade) to build a sign-and-trade package for the Hornets forward. However, I don’t see a scenario in which Cleveland could put together an offer that appeals to Charlotte, pays Washington the sort of money he’s seeking, and keeps the Cavs out of the tax.

Cleveland’s next signing will probably be a “minor” one, Fedor acknowledges, with the team looking to land a “cheaper-than-expected” rotation player at the veteran’s minimum like Golden State did with Dario Saric.

L.A. Notes: Plumlee, Brown, LeBron, Wood

July 15th, 2023 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mason Plumlee might have landed more money or a starting spot with another team, but he was willing to accept a one-year, $5MM contract because he wanted to stay with the Clippers, writes Janis Carr of The Orange County Register. The 33-year-old center settled into a reserve role behind Ivica Zubac after being acquired from the Hornets in February. He made just four starts in 23 games while averaging 7.5 points and 6.9 rebounds in about 20 minutes per night.

“I was very comfortable,” Plumlee said. “It’s an easy system to get comfortable with and they (front office) were just very clear and what they were looking for so that made (my decision) smooth.”

Plumlee also admitted it’s hard to leave an organization that has a chance to be a title contender. He believes the Clippers will be back in the race for the top after losing in the first round of the playoffs last season.

“That was the biggest thing, to be honest with you,” Plumlee said of the Clippers’ title aspirations. “You know, I think a lot of teams talk about it, but there are a few teams that believe it, and this is one of those teams. So that was a major factor.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

Clippers rookie Kobe Brown thought he should have been taken higher than 30th in the draft, and he’s been showing why at Summer League, per Steve Reed of The Associated Press. Brown sank seven three-pointers on his way to a 35-point night in Friday’s win over the Sixers.
Lakers star LeBron James will change his number from 6 back to 23 next season in deference to the late Bill Russell, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “It’s LeBron’s decision,” said James’ agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group. “He chose to out of respect for Bill Russell.”
Financial constraints may be keeping the Lakers from reaching out to free agent big man Christian Wood, Marc Stein suggests in a Substack chat. L.A. only has 13 players with guaranteed contracts and reportedly wants to add more size, but the team doesn’t have the available funds to make a competitive offer to Wood, who earned $14.3MM with the Mavericks last season.

Lakers Considering Christian Wood, Bismack Biyombo In Search For Backup Big Man

July 10th, 2023 at 7:56am CST by Arthur Hill

Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said the team hopes to add another big man this summer, and sources tell Jovan Buha of The Athletic that Christian Wood and Bismack Biyombo are among the names under consideration.

L.A. also had interest in Dario Saric before he signed with the Warriors over the weekend, Buha adds.

The Lakers already picked up former Pelicans center Jaxson Hayes on a two-year deal. During a session with reporters on Sunday, Pelinka indicated that the team plans to use more two-big lineups, which were effective during its championship run in 2020.

“I think adding Jaxson Hayes was key to that,” Pelinka said. “I think Jaxson, much like maybe Dwight Howard in that stretch for us: big body, rim protector, active roller. … But we are looking to add an additional center as well.”

Hayes received a minimum-salary contract with a player option for the second season. Whoever else the Lakers add will probably get the same type of deal, although Buha notes that L.A. has some flexibility because it didn’t use its full non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Gabe Vincent.

Vincent’s salary for next season is projected at $10.5MM, about $1.9MM below the MLE, allowing the Lakers to use the remaining money for another roster addition, either during the summer or later on. At this point, $1.9MM is below the minimum salary for a veteran player, but that won’t be the case later in the season when minimum deals are prorated.

“With the new CBA, eventually, you’re able to use the mid-level tool even for trades,” Pelinka said. “Not quite yet. But we were intentional about keeping some space and using that. It could come in handy. For instance, in the buyout market.”

In addition to Hayes and Vincent, the Lakers signed Taurean Prince and Cam Reddish this offseason and drafted Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis. That leaves the team with 13 players, and the plan is to carry 14 when the season begins.

Wood, an offensive-minded big man, averaged 16.6 points and 7.3 rebounds for the Mavericks last season. Biyombo, who spent the past two years as a backup with the Suns, is more of a rim protector and rebounder with a limited offensive game.