Central Notes: Cavs, Garland, Vucevic, Giannis, Bucks, Johnson
With a 31-4 mark, the Cavaliers are tied for the fifth-best start in league history through 35 games. However, they’re not chasing regular season records. Guard Darius Garland told Joe Vardon of The Athletic that his main focus is how well they do in the postseason.
“I really don’t think it will (ever) become important (to chase regular season history),” Garland said. “We all know what it’s like to win regular games. Our next step is to go to the Eastern Conference finals, go to the finals. I mean, the regular season is super cool, it’s like a ramp-up for what we’re trying to get to. If we’re on that pace, keep trying to win games, there’s nothing you take for granted. We’ll take it for sure, we love it, but our next step is to win playoff games.”
We have more from the Central Division:
- Bulls center Nikola Vucevic is considered one of the most likely players to be dealt before next month’s deadline. He told Julia Poe of the Chicago Tribune that he tries to ignore all the chatter. “This time of year, it’s part of it,” Vucevic said. “You can’t get caught up into that stuff. I’ve heard rumors ever since I was in Orlando. Everybody knows it and that’s just how it goes. Everybody online is going to have their opinions.”
- Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo battled an illness recently and he says he’s still trying to regain his strength, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “Think about it like a savings account. Now I’m in the minus,” he said. ” So, I’ve gotta keep building. I’ve gotta build my body, gotta get some weights, gotta get some food in me, gotta get some cardio in me to go back to the positive and be able to compete, because I’m digging myself into a hole right now.”
- The Bucks have dropped six games to sub-.500 teams and they’re growing weary of their mediocre play, Nehm writes in the same story. “What’s not happening is we’re getting off to bad starts,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We’re not moving the ball. We’re not playing right. We’ve gotta play right. We’ve done that. We’ve gotta get back to doing it.”
- Pacers 37-year-old big man James Johnson signed a one-year, $3.3MM veteran’s minimum contract in July that had a $750K guarantee. Johnson has only appeared in five games and Indiana would have to waive him by Tuesday to prevent the contract from being fully guaranteed. However, that’s not going to happen, according to coach Rick Carlisle. “He’s not going anywhere. We need him,” Carlisle said, per Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).
Central Notes: Mitchell, Pistons, Pacers, Bulls
Donovan Mitchell‘s points per game (23.7), assists per game (4.6), shot attempts per game (18.3), and usage rate (30.1%) are all down from where they were last year, but the Cavaliers certainly haven’t missed that production from the star guard, winning 29 of their first 33 games this season.
As Brian Windhorst of ESPN details, Mitchell’s willingness to take a step back and defer to teammates has paid off in a major way — his three-point percentage is a career-best 41.5% and Cleveland has the NBA’s No. 1 offense (121.3 offensive rating).
“He was an All-NBA (caliber) player last year because of how much he did for them and having to play a lot at point guard,” an advance scout told Windhorst. “This year, he’s probably going to make All-NBA because he’s pulling back and encouraging his teammates to have bigger roles. … I’ll tell you what, they were a lot easier to defend last year when he was a one-man show.”
One reason for Mitchell’s dip in production is the fact that he’s averaging a career-low 31.5 minutes per game. As Windhorst explains, new head coach Kenny Atkinson helped develop a plan coming into the season to keep the five-time All-Star fresher and reduce the stress on his knee, which was an issue at times last season. It has paid off so far, as Mitchell has missed just one game and several of his teammates – including All-Star candidates Darius Garland and Evan Mobley – are enjoying career years.
“Donovan is so selfless and he empowers people. (Stephen Curry) is like this, too. They’re so positive, they know how to uplift others around them,” said Atkinson, a former Warriors assistant. “That’s the ultimate leader, right?”
Here’s more from around the Central:
- Hunter Patterson of The Athletic explores how Jaden Ivey‘s extended absence due to a leg injury will affect the Pistons‘ rotation, while Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (subscriber link) posits that not having Ivey available will give the team an opportunity to experiment with lineups. Ausar Thompson and Malik Beasley are among the candidates to be promoted to the starting five, while Marcus Sasser and Wendell Moore could see increased roles.
- The Pacers are hovering around .500 after making the Eastern Conference Finals last season and project to be a taxpayer next season if they bring back starting center Myles Turner, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic, who considers what the next move is for Indiana. A consolidation trade that moves out a couple of their higher-paid bench players may be in the Pacers’ best interests, Katz suggests.
- After a week in which the Bulls needed overtime to beat the lowly Hornets and then were defeated by the lowlier Wizards, Joe Cowley calls out the front office in a column for The Chicago Sun-Times, arguing for roster changes sooner rather than later to ensure the team keeps its top-10 protected pick in the 2025 draft and adds a much-needed building block.
Daigneault, Atkinson Claim Coach Of The Month Awards
The head coaches of the teams with the best records in the NBA have claimed the Coach of the Month awards for their respective conferences, the league announced today in a press release (Twitter link).
Mark Daigneault, who guided the Thunder to a 12-1 record in December, won the award for the Western Conference. Oklahoma City is currently 27-5, the second-best mark in the NBA and the top seed in the West.
Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson won the East’s award for the second consecutive time. Cleveland also went 12-1 last month and is currently 29-4, the best record in the league.
If the season ended today, Atkinson and Daigneault would almost certainly be two of the frontrunners for Coach of the Year. Of course, we’re only about 40% through the 2024/25 regular season, and a lot could change between now and April.
Chris Finch (Timberwolves), Taylor Jenkins (Grizzlies) and Tyronn Lue (Clippers) were the other nominees in the West, while Jamahl Mosley (Magic), Nick Nurse (Sixers), Quin Snyder (Hawks) and Tom Thibodeau (Knicks) were nominated in the East (Twitter link).
Jaren Jackson Jr., Evan Mobley Named Defensive Players Of The Month
Grizzlies forward/center Jaren Jackson Jr. has been named the Western Conference’s Defensive Player of the Month for games played in December, while Cavaliers forward/center Evan Mobley has claimed the award in the East, according to the NBA (Twitter link).
The 2023 Defensive Player of the Year, Jackson averaged 22.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.6 blocks in 28.7 minutes per game over 14 appearances last month. He posted a shooting line of .464/.384/.780.
Jackson was the only player in the NBA to have 20-plus steals and 20-plus blocks last month, per the league, with Memphis ranking third in the West in defensive rating over that stretch.
Mobley, who made the All-Defensive First Team alongside Jackson in 2023, averaged 18.8 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.0 SPG and 1.3 BPG on .589/.524/.696 shooting 12 December games (28.9 MPG). The Cavs led the East in defensive rating last month. Mobley was tied for second in the East in contested shots per game in December (10.0).
The Cavaliers, who have won eight straight and hold the best record in the league (29-4), have the NBA’s top offense and eighth-best defense. Memphis, which has the second-best record in the West at 23-11, ranks fifth and fourth in those categories, respectively.
Jackson beat out Toumani Camara, Anthony Davis, Kris Dunn, Walker Kessler and Victor Wembanyama in the West. The other nominees in the East were Bam Adebayo, OG Anunoby, Dyson Daniels and Jalen Suggs (Twitter link).
Wembanyama and Daniels won the awards for games played in October and November. This is the first season in which the monthly defensive honors have been given.
Central Notes: Allen, Cavs, Giannis, Buzelis
As he watches he role with the Cavaliers change this season, center Jarrett Allen remains a key part of the best team in the league by record in 2024/25, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
Allen has ceded some touches and minutes to rising forward Evan Mobley this season, in an effort to help the All-Defensive Teamer take the next step in his own game. Fedor notes that Allen has occasionally even been on the bench late in games so Mobley can play center.
“Evan has been amazing this year,” Allen said. “I have always wanted to push him forward no matter what. Whether it’s taking the toughest assignment on defense so he can shine and have more energy on offense or just being in the dunker spot so he can have more room. Whatever I have to do to make him the best player, so he can unlock this offense and unlock this team, I’m willing to do it.”
Allen has seen his own numbers decline a little this season. After averaging a career-high 16.5 points per game last season, the 6’11” big man is averaging 13.7 PPG on an efficient 69.5% shooting from the floor, along with 10.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.9 blocks per night.
“He is just willing to do what it takes to win, whatever that ask is and it could be different every night,” head coach Kenny Atkinson said. “He’s a huge cog. He is invaluable. When he plays at a top level, we are really hard to beat.”
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- The Cavaliers’ 122-110 victory over the Lakers on Tuesday extended their win streak to eight games, observes Fedor in another Cleveland.com story. Each of those wins was by a double-digit margin. Cleveland is now 29-4 on the year, good for a 72-win pace. “We know it’s about playoff performance,” Atkinson said. “That’s what it comes down to. You don’t want to be that team that everyone says, ‘Oh, they’re a good regular season team.’” Lakers head coach JJ Redick had high praise for Cleveland after the loss dropped his team to an 18-14 record. According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN (via Twitter), Redick believes clubs need to play “close to perfect basketball” to defeat the Cavaliers.
- All-NBA forward Giannis Antetokounmpo gave the Bucks an instant spark upon returning to the team from a four-game absence, writes Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The two-time MVP helped his team rally out of a 19-point third quarter hole against Indiana, eventually resulting in a 27-point swing and a surprise 120-112 win. “We’re still a work in progress is what it says,” head coach Doc Rivers said of the comeback. “What [it] also says is having Giannis and Dame [All-Star point guard (Damian Lillard) on the floor allows you to close a lot better and that’s why we closed tonight.”
- Though Bulls rookie forward Matas Buzelis was selected with the No. 11 pick in this past summer’s draft, he has been played sparingly by head coach Billy Donovan for much of his first pro season. Donovan recently reiterated that he is prioritizing more veteran players over Buzelis with an eye towards winning, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “The balance between (Buzelis) and also the responsibility to try and make decisions that I feel are the best to put the team in position to win,” Donovan said. “This is not to be critical of Matas, but when there are things going on out there that he is not doing a good enough job on, I can’t just keep on keeping him out there. He’s got to have a level of responsibility.”
Central Notes: Ivey, Cunningham, Mobley, Lillard
As his Pistons continue to improve into a frisky play-in-caliber team this season, guard Jaden Ivey has grown increasingly more comfortable in clutch moments, observes Hunter Patterson of The Athletic.
Patterson writes that the Pistons have gone 8-4 when Ivey scores 19 or more points. A confident Ivey scored six of his 19 points — including his second game-winning bucket of the year — during the last 15 seconds of Detroit’s 114-113 upset win over the Kings on Thursday.
“He knows how much work he puts in,” new Detroit head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “His teammates knew and trusted in him. We could have taken a tougher, contested (three-pointer), but we saw him in the corner and we made the play to him. He went ahead and knocked it down and then had the confidence to knock down the free throw and help us win the game.”
At 14-18 on the year, Detroit currently occupies the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference. The team has also already matched its total win tally from 2023/24 and it’s still December.
There’s more out of the Central Division:
- Ivey isn’t the only young Pistons guard on the rise this year. His backcourt mate Cade Cunningham has also taken major strides, writes Patterson in a separate story. Cunningham is currently enjoying his best season for a suddenly scrappy Detroit squad, averaging a career highs of 24.0 points, 9.7 assists, 6.7 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks per game. The former No. 1 overall draft pick has logged six triple-doubles, third-most in the league this year. “I’ve made some plays this year that I haven’t seen from myself in a long time,” Cunningham said. “I’ll watch a full game, and I’m like, ‘I was really hooping that game.’ I think it’s just the steady growth for me. I don’t really put a cap on myself as far as what I’m able to be. I just want to continue to get better.”
- Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley has taken a significant leap as a jump shooter, which has paid dividends thus far this season, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. “Coaches and teammates, they’ve been really on me,” Mobley told Fedor. “Every time I turn down the shot, they tell me to shoot it again and again. Having coaches and teammates like that just helps your confidence. I’m gonna keep letting ‘em fly.” Mobley is making 43.7% of 2.4 three-point attempts per contest, a career-best mark.
- Bucks All-Star point guard Damian Lillard recently sat out a pair of games with a right calf injury and two more due to an illness. He made his return in a narrow 116-112 defeat to Chicago on Saturday. Afterward, the 6’2″ vet acknowledged that he felt physically okay, but was still dealing with lingering effects from his illness, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “I felt physically fine like moving around, but as the game went on, you just feel a little weak and I haven’t played,” Lillard said. “Still a little bit sick, feeling it in my chest and coughing a little bit, but I expected it to be like that coming into the game because I haven’t played.” Lillard contributed a 29-point, 12-assist double-double, though he didn’t score at all in the game’s final 5:07.
Eastern Notes: Merrill, Bulls, Butler, Heat
Fifth-year guard Sam Merrill snapped out of his season-long shooting slump on Monday as the Cavaliers defeated Utah, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required).
Merrill, who grew up a Jazz fan in Bountiful, Utah, near Salt Lake City, notched a season-high 20 points in the 11-point victory, going 6-of-11 from three-point range while also chipping in four assists and three steals in 24 minutes.
A former second-round pick (No. 60 overall in 2020), Merrill has been a rotation mainstay in 2024/25 despite the slump, averaging a career-high 19.9 minutes per contest through 26 games. The 28-year-old has improved defensively and still draws attention with his outside shooting — he’s at 38.4% for his career from beyond the arc, though he has only made 34.0% this season.
Merrill will be an unrestricted free agent next summer if he doesn’t sign a veteran extension, which he’s eligible for through June 30.
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- The Bulls have been prominently mentioned in trade rumors this season, but have yet to make a deal. Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times takes stock of where things currently stand for veterans Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic and Lonzo Ball, writing that the Bulls would prefer to make moves “sooner rather than later” with the trade deadline set for Feb. 6.
- Star forward Jimmy Butler, who prefers a trade out of Miami but hasn’t formally requested to be dealt, is doubtful for Thursday’s contest in Orlando with what the Heat are calling “return to competition; reconditioning,” tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. A person with knowledge of the situation insisted to Jackson that Butler has been “genuinely sick” of late, causing him to miss most of the past three games, and that his absences have nothing to do with a potential trade. According to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link), Butler didn’t travel with the Heat to Orlando, but there’s still a chance he could make the short flight north if he’s feeling better.
- Although Shams Charania of ESPN reported that multiple teams have been in touch with the Heat to express interest in Butler, it’s unclear if Miami has actually received a formal trade offer, according to Jackson and Chiang. Neither the Heat nor Butler’s camp have denied that he’s unhappy, but he’s also not “simmering with rage” about the situation, as Jackson puts it (Twitter link).
Central Notes: Giddey, Mitchell, Cunningham, Beasley
Should the Bulls give Josh Giddey a long-term contract? Giddey, currently sidelined by an ankle sprain, will be a restricted free agent after the season. Head coach Billy Donovan believes the fourth-year guard can be a foundation piece for the franchise.
“I think like any player, coach, we all need to get better, so I’ll just start there,” Donovan told Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “But I really felt like there was a learning curve with him with our team because one of his greatest strengths is his passing. The defensive part for him, I think he’s gotten better as time has gone on. I think the thing for him the last five or six games before he got hurt, I thought he was really impacting our team in a positive way as he started to figure things out, so I definitely think without question that he can be an important piece to us.”
The front office reportedly didn’t hold serious discussions on a rookie scale extension with Giddey prior to the October deadline.
We have more from the Central Division:
- Donovan Mitchell has settled in with the Cavaliers after previously dealing with trade rumors and concerns about his long-term future, Tony Jones of The Athletic reports. “For years, everyone has talked about if I like Rudy (Gobert), or talked about me going to the New York Knicks or the Miami Heat,” he said. “So, it’s great to finally have that sense of peace.” Mitchell signed a three-year extension with Cleveland over the summer. “It’s hard to win championships. It’s hard to win in this league. Despite public opinion, I love being in Cleveland and I want to win a title with this group,” he added.
- Accolades from the league’s superstars keep piling up for Pistons guard Cade Cunningham. After Kevin Durant offered high praise for Cunningham over the weekend, LeBron James also complimented him following Detroit’s win over the Lakers on Monday. “He’s just too big,” James said, per Hunter Patterson of The Athletic. “He’s got wide shoulders, big legs and he knows exactly what he’s doing. And he gets to it. Solid player. Very, very solid. He’s gotten better and better, and the best thing I think this year is that he’s been healthy. He was the No. 1 pick, right? That’s for a reason. They got a great one.”
- After signing a one-year deal with the Pistons, Malik Beasley is proving to be one of the league’s best free agent pickups during the offseason. He’s averaging 16.6 points per game for the much-improved club and told Mark Medina of Sportskeeda that he’s made himself an elite shooter. “A lot of people don’t work. A lot of people don’t come in and do extra work,” he said. “As much as I do it, you’d be surprised on how many guys don’t do it. How many guys don’t come in to work before shootaround? It’s not mandatory. But that’s what separates those guys. What separates me as an elite shooter? I’m not a Hall-of-Fame player. But I’m a Hall-of-Fame shooter. So you just keep pushing.”
Injury Notes: Doncic, R. Williams, Leonard, Jones, Heat, Wade
After missing the past two games with a left heel contusion, Luka Doncic was upgraded to available for Monday’s contest vs. Portland, the Mavericks announced (via Twitter). The perennial All-NBA guard had previously been listed as questionable.
For the same game, big man Robert Williams was ruled out due to a left ankle sprain, per the Trail Blazers (Twitter link). Williams was questionable this afternoon, so his latest injury doesn’t appear to be anything significant.
Here are some more injury notes from around the NBA:
- A Clippers source tells Law Murray of The Athletic that Kawhi Leonard (right knee) will not suit up for Friday’s contest vs. Golden State (Twitter link). Murray predicted last week that Leonard, who has been going through contact practices and recently traveled on a three-game road trip, would play on Friday, but his season debut will be delayed by at least one more game.
- Although they won’t have Leonard back yet, the Clippers did receive some good injury news last week, as Derrick Jones returned early from a right hamstring strain, Murray writes for The Athletic. The 27-year-old forward made an immediate impact against his former team, helping Los Angeles defeat Dallas on Thursday. “Derrick was a big part of our success last year,” Mavs head coach Jason Kidd said. “He was the last to sign with us … he made us a little bit more athletic. He could guard one through five. He shot the three well for us. And he’s a pro. He comes to work every day to do his job. We’re happy for his new contract. Unfortunately, he’s on the other side. But the Clippers got a pro.”
- The Heat were shorthanded on Monday vs. Brooklyn, with Jimmy Butler (stomach illness) missing his second straight game and Josh Richardson (right heel inflammation) missing his fifth, as Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald relays. Terry Rozier was a late addition to Monday’s injury report after experiencing left knee inflammation, his first absence with that injury, Chiang adds.
- Forward Dean Wade experienced some soreness after taking knee-to-knee contact in Saturday’s contest vs. Philadelphia and the Cavaliers decided to be cautious and keep him out of Monday’s contest against Utah, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Wade is expected to return for Friday’s contest vs. Denver, Cleveland’s next game, sources tell Fedor. Sam Merrill started in place of Wade, who himself was an injury replacement for Isaac Okoro (shoulder sprain).
Central Notes: Bulls, Nnaji, Strus, Wade, Middleton
Although the Bulls have reportedly talked to the Nuggets about a possible swap centered around Zach LaVine and Michael Porter Jr., they have shown no interest in taking Zeke Nnaji‘s contract back in a deal with Denver, reports K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network (Twitter link).
Porter is making $35.9MM this season and LaVine’s cap hit is about $43MM. The Nuggets wouldn’t be permitted to take back more salary than they send out in any trade, so adding Nnaji ($8.9MM) would make perfect sense for Denver. However, the forward/center, who is in the first season of a four-year contract and isn’t playing consistent rotation minutes, has negative trade value.
The Bulls’ position on Nnaji doesn’t necessarily mean the two sides can’t get a deal done. The Nuggets could try to offer additional sweeteners to convince Chicago to take him or find a third team willing to absorb Nnaji’s contract along with some sort of draft compensation. The two teams could also make a deal without including Nnaji — it would mean attaching Dario Saric and one more low-salary player (anyone except for Jalen Pickett or Hunter Tyson) to Porter in order to exceed LaVine’s incoming cap hit.
Here’s more from around the Central:
- It was a successful season debut on Friday for Cavaliers wing Max Strus, who made a trio of three-pointers and was a +20 in 19 minutes of action in a blowout win over Milwaukee, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). Strus, who was sidelined for the first 27 games of the season while recovering from an ankle injury, was on a minutes limit on Friday and then sat out on Saturday during the second game of a back-to-back set for injury management purposes, notes Fedor (Twitter link).
- With Isaac Okoro out and Strus just returning, Dean Wade started at small forward for the Cavaliers on both Friday and Saturday and was a +34 in 46 total minutes, registering 21 total points on 7-of-9 shooting in a pair of resounding victories. As Fedor writes in another Cleveland.com story, Wade’s performance is a reminder that the Cavs will have 11 players worthy of rotation minutes once everyone is healthy. Head coach Kenny Atkinson would ideally like to find playing time for all of them, sources tell Fedor. “Everyone can easily (say), ‘I deserve my minutes. We’re the best record in the league. Why shouldn’t I keep playing my minutes?'” Atkinson said. “But with Max back, we’re going to have those conversations individually and as a team.”
- After missing the first 21 games of the season while recovering from offseason surgeries on both ankles, Bucks forward Khris Middleton is still rounding into form. He took a big step forward on Saturday in a win over Washington, playing in his first back-to-back and setting personal season highs with 18 points, eight assists, six rebounds, four three-pointers, and 24 minutes played. “Still got a little bit to go, but tonight definitely felt like the best night I’ve had thus far,” Middleton said after the game (Twitter link via Eric Nehm of The Athletic). “Always great to get a couple threes going, mid-range going.”