Headlines

Jaden Henley

Western Notes: Kings, Warriors, DiVincenzo, Sorber

By | at May 28, 2026 9:29 pm

UConn forward Alex Karaban headlines a group of six prospects set to work out for the Kings on Friday, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Karaban, a senior who was automatically eligible for the draft, goes 31st overall in the latest mock draft from ESPN’s Jeremy Woo and comes in at No. 30 on ESPN’s big board.

The other five draft prospects are Ryan Conwell (Louisville), Otega Oweh (Kentucky), Toibu Lawal (Virginia Tech), Tyler Nickel (Vanderbilt), and Mark Mitchell (Missouri). All are in ESPN’s top 100, with Conwell (No. 36) the only other player aside from Karaban in the top 50.

Sacramento controls the seventh, 34th and 45th picks in next month’s draft, Anderson notes.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

  • The Warriors hosted six prospects — Trey Campbell (Northern Iowa) Oscar Cluff (Purdue), Carson Cooper (Michigan State), Jaden Henley (Grand Canyon), Elias Ralph (Pacific), and Jalen Warley (Gonzaga) — for a pre-draft workout on Thursday, per an announcement from the team (Twitter link). Boilermakers center Cluff (No. 63) is the top-ranked player in that group, according to ESPN, with Henley (No. 72) also in the top 100.
  • Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said Donte DiVincenzo was the “heart and soul of so many things we do” after the veteran guard tore his right Achilles tendon in the first round of the playoffs, as Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes. It was a brutal blow for the 29-year-old, who brought a consistent toughness and competitiveness to Minnesota. Now he faces an uncertain future, as he’s likely to miss most — if not all — of next season as he enters the final year of his contract, which will pay him $12.5MM in 2026/27. “He’s trying to get back as soon as possible, and I think he’s going to have a great recovery, the way he’s treating it and the attitude he has about it, getting right, getting better, it’s just great to see,” Jaden McDaniels said. “I mean, we all love Donte. Hopefully he’s going to have a speedy recovery.”
  • Thomas Sorber has missed his entire rookie season due to a torn ACL, but the Thunder big man is still getting his NBA education on the sidelines and hopes to play in Summer League in July, per Dan Woike of The Athletic. “I’m still reading the scouting report. I’m still seeing who’s a hot shooter, who to worry about, who not to worry about,” Sorber said. “Just trying to get the game plan in my head so when I am ready next year to play, then I’ll be able to, you know, already have it under my belt.” The 20-year-old center was the 15th overall pick in last year’s draft.
12 comments 2026 NBA Draft Golden State Warriors Minnesota Timberwolves Oklahoma City Thunder Sacramento Kings

Pacific Notes: Pelinka, Kings Workouts, Suns Workouts, Butler

By | at May 23, 2026 11:00 pm

The playoff sweep by Oklahoma City convinced the Lakers that they need to add more talent and depth to their roster, Benjamin Royer of The Orange County Register writes in a subscriber-only piece. General manager Rob Pelinka was especially struck by the development of Ajay Mitchell, a second-round pick in 2024 who started his career on a two-way contract and averaged 22.5 PPG in the series against L.A.

“There’s ways to add to your roster if you commit to doing the hard work and commit to the process of adding the right pieces,” Pelinka said at his end-of-season press conference last week. “We’ll be doing that through the draft and free agency and through trades. We’ve got to find a way to have a roster that will compete with any team in the NBA.”

Pelinka added that the Lakers, who hold the 25th pick this year, plan to bring in more than 20 players for pre-draft workouts with an emphasis on finding more depth, athleticism and youth. He stated that competitiveness and basketball IQ will also be prioritized, noting that player development has become more important than ever with the current salary structure.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

7 comments Golden State Warriors Los Angeles Lakers Phoenix Suns Sacramento Kings

Pacific Notes: Williams, Kings, Draymond, Clippers

By | at May 22, 2026 12:16 pm

Will the Suns re-sign Mark Williams as a restricted free agent this summer? Gerald Bourguet of Sports360AZ.com tackles that question in depth, writing that he can envision a scenario in which Phoenix’s starting center departs this offseason, especially if another team is willing to pay him in the range of $20-25MM annually.

However, if there’s not much of a market for Williams, it’s more likely he’ll either work out a new multiyear deal with the Suns or accept his one-year, $9.6MM qualifying offer and try his luck in unrestricted free agency in 2027.

[RELATED: 2026 NBA Offseason Preview: Phoenix Suns]

As Bourguet writes, the fact that 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach projects to be the Suns’ center of the future figures to factor into the front office’s decision on Williams. While Maluach may not be ready to start on opening night in 2026/27, one source told Bourguet they believe last year’s No. 10 overall pick could overtake Williams for that role by the end of next season. If the Suns feel the same way, they may only view Williams as a “temporary stopgap,” Bourguet notes.

We have more from around the Pacific:

  • Houston guard Emanuel Sharp, Louisville guard Isaac McKneely, Grand Canyon forward Jaden Henley, Auburn forward Keyshawn Hall, Xavier forward Tre Carroll, and Duke center Maliq Brown are taking part in a pre-draft workout with the Kings on Friday, according to James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter link). None of those prospects shows up within the top 70 players on ESPN’s big board.
  • Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area takes a closer look at what the offseason might hold for Draymond Green, whose value around the NBA appears to be on the decline as he weighs a decision on a player option worth $27.7MM. Green seems more likely than not to stick with the Warriors, Poole writes, though it remains to be seen whether that means opting in or negotiating a new contract with the team.
  • Keith Smith of Spotrac takes a look at some of the key decisions facing the Clippers this summer, including whether to trade or potentially extend star forward Kawhi Leonard and whether or not to re-sign potential restricted free agent Bennedict Mathurin. Smith views $50MM over three years as a reasonable deal for Mathurin.
13 comments Golden State Warriors Los Angeles Clippers Phoenix Suns Sacramento Kings

Five Prospects Called Up To Draft Combine

By | at May 10, 2026 9:16 pm

Tennessee State guard/forward Aaron Nkrumah has been called up to this week’s NBA draft combine after impressing at the G League combine in Chicago over the weekend, a source tells Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link).

Nkrumah, who won the Ohio Valley Conference’s Player of the Year award as a senior in 2025/26, was a last-minute addition to the G League combine after not receiving an invitation to the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, Givony notes.

A 6’6″ wing, Nkrumah averaged 17.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.8 steals on .438/.351/.789 shooting in 33 games for the Tigers last season. Tennessee State advanced to the NCAA tournament as a 15-seed in March, losing in the first round to two-seed Iowa State after winning its conference tournament.

USC forward Jacob Cofie, Purdue big man Trey Kaufman-Renn, and George Washington forward/center Rafael Castro have been called up from the G League combine to the draft combine as well, Givony reports for DraftExpress (All Twitter links). Kaufman-Renn and Castro are both seniors who competed at the P.I.T., while Cofie is a sophomore early entrant.

Bryce Hopkins of St. John’s, whom Givony previously highlighted as a standout (via Twitter), has also been called up, the NBAGL announced (Twitter link). Only Nkrumah, Cofie, Kaufman-Renn, Castro and Hopkins received call-up invitations to the main combine.

Keba Keita (BYU), Noam Yaacov (Israel/Oostende) and Jaden Henley (Grand Canyon) are among the other prospects who performed well during G League combine scrimmages, according to Givony and his colleague Jon Chepkevich (All Twitter links here).

0 comments 2026 NBA Draft

44 Prospects Invited To 2026 G League Combine

By | at May 1, 2026 3:26 pm

Earlier today, the NBA revealed the 73 prospects that have been invited to the draft combine in Chicago later this month. That group of players will be joined by a small group of standouts from the G League combine, which takes place from May 8-10 in the days leading up to the main event.

While the league typically doesn’t formally announce which prospect receive invites to the G League combine, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link) has the details, reporting that the following 44 players make up the list of invitees:

  1. Michael Ajayi, F, Butler (senior)
  2. Alijah Arenas, G, USC (freshman)
  3. Donovan Atwell, G/F, Texas Tech (senior)
  4. Nathan Bittle, C, Oregon (senior)
  5. Elliot Cadeau, G, Michigan (junior)
  6. Rafael Castro, F/C, George Washington (senior)
  7. Zach Cleveland, F, Liberty (senior)
  8. Jacob Cofie, F, USC (sophomore)
  9. MJ Collins, G, Utah State (senior)
  10. Quadir Copeland, G, North Carolina State (senior)
  11. Melvin Council, G, Kansas (senior)
  12. Tucker DeVries, G/F, Indiana (senior)
  13. Tre Donaldson, G, Miami (senior)
  14. Reynan Dos Santos, G, Mexico City Capitanes (born 2004)
  15. Malique Ewin, F/C, Arkansas (senior)
  16. Jamal Fuller, G/F, Long Island (senior)
  17. Isiah Harwell, G, Houston (freshman)
  18. Jaden Henley, G/F, Grand Canyon (senior)
  19. Bryce Hopkins, G/F, St. John’s (senior)
  20. Graham Ike, F, Gonzaga (senior)
  21. Kasen Jennings, G, Appalachian State (senior)
  22. Trey Kaufman-Renn, F, Purdue (senior)
  23. Keba Keita, C, BYU (senior)
  24. Kobe Knox, G/F, South Carolina (senior)
  25. Xaivian Lee, G, Florida (senior)
  26. Malique Lewis, F, Australia (born 2004)
  27. Tamin Lipsey, G, Iowa State (senior)
  28. Fletcher Loyer, G, Purdue (senior)
  29. Aidan Mahaney, G, Santa Barbara (senior)
  30. Robert McCray, G, Florida State (senior)
  31. Kevin (Boopie) Miller, G, SMU (senior)
  32. Mark Mitchell, F, Missouri (senior)
  33. Paulius Murauskas, F, Saint Mary’s (junior)
  34. Jaron Pierre, G, SMU (senior)
  35. Kowacie Reeves, G/F, Georgia Tech (senior)
  36. Jaylin Sellers, G, Providence (senior)
  37. Markhi Strickland, G, North Dakota State (senior)
  38. Aiden Tobiason, G, Temple (sophomore)
  39. Seth Trimble, G, North Carolina (senior)
  40. Cade Tyson, F, Minnesota (senior)
  41. Ernest Udeh, C, Miami (senior)
  42. Lamar Wilkerson, G, Indiana (senior)
  43. Darrion Williams, F, North Carolina State (senior)
  44. Noam Yaacov, G, Belgium (born 2004)

While the players invited to the G League combine generally aren’t regarded as highly as NBA prospects as those selected for the primary combine, there are always at least a handful who end up in the league on two-way or standard contracts. Last year, for instance, Yanic Konan Niederhauser, Dylan Cardwell, Ryan Nembhard, Amari Williams, Will Richard, and Jahmai Mashack were among the invitees.

The G League combine will give some players who declared for the draft as early entrants an opportunity to see where they stand ahead of the draft withdrawal deadline on May 27. Not all of the players who participate in this event will remain in the draft pool.

Arenas, for instance, is the highest-rated prospect on ESPN’s board among the G League combine invitees, coming in at No. 52, but Ryan Kartje of The Los Angeles Times reported this week that he’s expected to withdraw and return to USC. As Givony notes (Twitter link), the list above is subject to change — if Arenas or other players end up declining invitations because they don’t plan to stay in the draft, they could be replaced before the event begins next Friday.

1 comment Uncategorized

Portsmouth Invitational Tournament Announces 2026 Rosters

By | at April 13, 2026 11:47 pm

The 2026 Portsmouth Invitational Tournament will take place this week from April 15-18 in Portsmouth, VA. The event features college seniors working to boost their stock ahead of the NBA draft, with invitations to the combine a possibility for some standouts.

Several P.I.T. alumni have gone on to become solid NBA players in recent years, including Toumani Camara, Craig Porter Jr., Daniss Jenkins and Kobe Sanders, among others. Camara (2023) and Sanders (2025) were both second-round picks.

This year’s tournament features eight different teams with eight players apiece, for a total of 64 participants. Here’s the full list, per the P.I.T.:

Champaign native Boswell, who helped lead the Illini to the Final Four, appears to be one of the top prospects among the group. The 6’2″ guard came in at No. 66 on ESPN’s latest big board, with Volunteers center Okpara (No. 86) and Boilermakers big man Kaufman-Renn (No. 88) among the other prospects on the top-100 list.

5 comments 2026 NBA Draft
Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors