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And-Ones: Embiid, Okafor, D-League

November 6th, 2016 at 11:00am CST by ChrisCrouse

The Sixers will re-evaluate Joel Embiid‘s minutes restriction in approximately six weeks, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com relays. “As I understand it, [the medical staff] will not escalate [the restrictions] until Christmas and then it will only be judged,” Brown said before Saturday’s game against the Cavs. “It may stay the same then too.”

The team’s medical staff currently mandates that Embiid won’t play more than 24 minutes in a given game, and the Cameroon native isn’t thrilled about the restrictions. “I can only play 20 minutes,” Embiid lamented. “I felt like I could play more but you have to trust the process you have to trust those guys.”

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Conditioning remains an issue for both Embiid and Jahlil Okafor, McMenamin passes along in the same piece. “I think at times going beyond 4-5 minute segments is not good for them,” Sixers coach Brett Brown said. “I feel like fatigue sets in and given the amount of time that they’ve been able to play, practice, et cetera.” Okafor also has a mandated 24-minute restriction while he recovers from a knee injury.
  • The Santa Cruz Warriors, Golden State’s D-League affiliate, have waived Maurice Creek, Damontre Harris and Rasean Simpson, according to D-League Digest (Twitter link).
  • The Greensboro Swarm, the affiliate of the Hornets, have waived Ky Howard, Keala King, Ron Mvouika and Jamie Skeen, D-League Digest reports (Twitter link).
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Sixers Notes: Ilyasova, Embiid, Okafor, Brown

November 2nd, 2016 at 10:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

After being traded four times since June of 2015, Ersan Ilyasova believes he might finally be with the right organization, relays Brian Seltzer of NBA.com. The Turkish power forward had just left the practice court in Oklahoma City on Tuesday when he was informed that he had been dealt to Philadelphia in exchange for Jerami Grant. He got a late flight to meet his new team in Charlotte and was in uniform for tonight’s game against the Hornets. “As soon as I start kind of thinking about it, I think it’s a really good situation,” Ilyasova said. “This team is building, they’ve got a lot of pieces, obviously, and being part of it is a huge thing.”

There’s more news tonight out of Philadelphia:

  • Sixers coach Brett Brown has been limited in the amount of time he can play big men Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor together because both are on minute restrictions, notes ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk. Embiid is playing his first NBA games after missing two seasons with a twice-broken foot, and Okafor is being brought along slowly after knee surgery in March. Brown realizes the situation is temporary, but said it can be complicated to get Embiid and Okafor on the floor together. “You just feel like it is cookie-cutter stuff,” he said. “It is a very rigid road map and that is OK. Nobody is crying about it. It is a challenge.”
  • Embiid made a quick impression on Hall of Fame center Patrick Ewing, who serves as an assistant with the Hornets, posts Tom Haberstroh on ESPN Now. After watching Embiid on film, Ewing exlaimed to head coach Steve Clifford, “Woah. This guy? He might be the most talented center in the game.”
  • Despite their wealth of young talent, the Sixers are still making familiar mistakes that cost them games, writes Bob Cooney of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The latest example came Tuesday when Philadelphia let a big lead slip away in a loss to Orlando. “Every time you lose a close game, you wonder what you would do differently,” Brown said. “… I understand that we’re all looking at how do you close that game out, and I think that, even with a healthy group, the difference probably is that you have Ben Simmons with the ball, and I’m sure that Joel Embiid is right in that mix.”
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Atlantic Notes: Okafor, Embiid, Lopez, Lin

October 29th, 2016 at 7:46pm CST by Arthur Hill

Minutes restrictions have made it difficult for the Sixers to get Jahlil Okafor and Joel Embiid on the court at the same time, but Okafor tells Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly that he sees a bright future for the pairing. The two young centers teamed up for the first time in today’s games with the Hawks, but only for about two minutes in the second quarter. “I think once we figure it out, we can really dominate together,” Okafor said. There have been rumors for months that the Sixers are interested in making a trade to clear up their logjam in the middle with Okafor, Embiid and Nerlens Noel.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • It’s only the third game of the season, but the Nets are already giving center Brook Lopez a day off, notes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn, in the middle of a stretch of four games in six nights, plans to be careful about Lopez’s minutes all season. The ninth-year center, who has been through three foot surgeries, compares it to being on a pitch count. “What we’re trying to do with Brook is take the long-term approach, just build him up as the season goes on and increase his minutes. We have a plan in place,’’ said new Nets coach Kenny Atkinson. “It’s learning the system, it’s looking at a long-term approach to how we’re going to build him up in terms of minutes as the season goes on. He’s got some miles on him.”
  • Atkinson is ready for a new chapter with Jeremy Lin after contributing heavily to “Linsanity” in New York, writes Howard Beck of Bleacher Report. Atkinson was an assistant with the Knicks at the time and did a lot of individual work with Lin. “He knows I came here to take on this challenge with him,” Lin said. “And deep down inside, I know that when he got this job, the first thing he wanted to do was come and get me. We’re in this together. And we’re deeply embedded in this challenge.”
  • New Raptors GM Jeff Weltman doesn’t mind working in anonymity, relays Steve Simmons of The Toronto Sun. Team president Masai Ujiri gets credit for building last year’s Eastern Conference finalist, but Weltman, who was promoted to his new position last month, is happy to be part of the team. “It’s easier [to be unknown],” said Weltman. “I truly think the only way we’re going to win is if we don’t have egos. That’s Masai’s belief also. It’s what we try and instill in all our players. … I was brought up to believe that and Masai’s known that for a long time. There’s no one here trying to pat themselves on the back or get noticed. We just want to win. All the rewards will come from that.”
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Atlantic Rumors: Lopez, Knicks, Sixers, Siakam

October 27th, 2016 at 9:28pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nets center Brook Lopez doesn’t seem to fit into new coach Kenny Atkinson’s motion offense, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Lopez played just 21 minutes, fewer than eight of his teammates, in Brooklyn’s opener on Wednesday against the Celtics. He scored only one basket, an odd sight for a player who averaged 20.6 PPG last season. Lopez is making $21.16MM this season and $22.6MM in the final year of his contract in 2017/18. “It’s a learning process. It’s both of us: It’s him learning a totally new system and us integrating him into a new system,’’ Atkinson told Lewis. “But I have complete confidence that as the season goes on, you’re going to see a better Brook. He’s going to understand it more.”

 In other news around the Atlantic Division:
  • Developing Kristaps Porzingis should be Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek’s top priority this season but it will difficult with two ball-dominant players like Derrick Rose and Carmelo Anthony in the lineup, Chris Mannix of The Vertical opines. Hornacek is intent on improving Porzingis’ post moves in order to punish teams using smaller defenders on him, Mannix notes. But rival coaches are skeptical that Hornacek’s hybrid triangle offense will allow him to take advantage of mismatches, Mannix continues. Those coaches also believe Porzingis is better suited at center but the signing of Joakim Noah limits that possibility, Mannix adds.
  • Hornacek isn’t surprised that Rose struggled to run the offense in the season-opening loss to the Cavaliers, Barbara Barker of Newsday reports. Rose had just one assist in the Knicks’ opening-night loss to the Cavaliers and later expressed frustration over the offensive scheme. Hornacek said it was a product of Rose missing a good portion of the preseason because of his sexual assault civil trial in Los Angeles, Barker continues. “If we expected anything different, we’d be crazy,” Hornacek told Barker and other beat reporters. “He hasn’t seen a lot of this stuff.”
  • Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor didn’t play together in the Sixers’ opening-night loss to the Thunder because both were on minutes limits, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays. Coach Brett Brown wants to play them together in certain situations but Embiid is being brought along slowly after missing two seasons with foot issues, while Okafor just returned from knee soreness, Pompey adds. “It’s not intelligent to play them together now when you only have X amount of minutes with both of them,” Brown said to Pompey.
  • Rookie Pascal Siakam started ahead of Patrick Patterson at power forward for the Raptors in their opener to keep Patterson in his normal role, according to Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. Siakam grabbed nine rebounds in 22 minutes.
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Sixers Exercise Options On Embiid, Okafor, Stauskas

October 26th, 2016 at 1:45pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers have exercised their 2017/18 team options on the rookie contracts of Joel Embiid, Jahlil Okafor, and Nik Stauskas, according to the RealGM.com transactions log. For Embiid and Stauskas, that means having their fourth-year options picked up. It’s a third-year option for Okafor.

While Embiid has missed his first two NBA seasons due to injuries, he’s set to finally make his regular-season debut, and the Sixers remain very excited about his long-term potential. The cost of his 2017/18 option is $6.1MM. He’ll be extension-eligible in 2017 and eligible for restricted free agency in 2018.

Okafor, meanwhile, is coming off a rookie season in which he averaged 17.5 PPG and 7.0 RPG in 53 contests. While Okafor’s offensive production was solid, he missed some time with injuries, didn’t mesh particularly well with Nerlens Noel, and needs to improve on the defensive end. Still, his $4.995MM salary for 2017/18 is extremely affordable.

As for Stauskas, his hold on a roster spot for 2016/17 appeared tenuous over the last few weeks, but now that he’s made the team, he’ll also have his $3.807MM salary for 2017/18 guaranteed. Given his struggles during his first two NBA seasons, that decision comes as a bit of a surprise. However, Philadelphia is well below the salary floor this year and only had about $20MM in guaranteed salary on its books for ’17/18 entering today, so it’s not as if the Sixers can’t afford to eat Stauskas’ salary if they decide to waive him.

The full breakdown of the 2016 decisions on 2017/18 team options can be found right here.

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Sixers Notes: Embiid, Okafor, Noel, Henderson

October 20th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Luke Adams

The Sixers’ logjam at center has been the story surrounding the team for most of the offseason, but with the regular season just a few days away, the team hasn’t made a move to address its crowded frontcourt depth chart. With Joel Embiid looking good in preseason action and finally prepared to make his NBA debut, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer revisits the situation. As Pompey notes, in the short term, there should be enough minutes to go around, since Embiid’s playing time will be limited and Nerlens Noel‘s groin strain continues to keep him sidelined. When Noel returns, however, it’s expected to be an issue.

If the Sixers don’t make a trade anytime soon, there’s a good chance we’ll see two of Embiid, Noel, and Jahlil Okafor on the court at the same time, and one league executive suggests to Pompey that a pairing of Embiid and Okafor isn’t ideal. Noel and Okafor weren’t particularly effective playing together last year either, so the executive says the most effective duo would likely be Noel and Embiid: “Nerlens can guard the fours and keep Embiid around the rim. And on the offensive end, Embiid can step out more and Nerlens can be more around the basket. … It would be an athletic and great defensive combination.”

As the Sixers figure out how to manage their rotation up front, here’s more from out of Philadelphia:

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Sixers Notes: Okafor, Noel, McConnell, Rodriguez

October 15th, 2016 at 5:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

Sixers coach Brett Brown expects second-year center Jahlil Okafor to be ready by opening night, tweets Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly. Okafor is still experiencing soreness in his right knee related to the operation he had in March. Brown said his progress is encouraging, but he will probably begin the season with a minutes restriction (Twitter link). The team is less optimistic about Nerlens Noel, who was scratched from a game last week with a strained groin and may not be able to play in the October 26th opener.

There’s more news out of Philadelphia:

  • Brown is still working out roles for backup point guards T.J. McConnell and Sergio Rodriguez, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Jerryd Bayless, who signed a three-year, $27MM deal this summer, is still projected as the starter, although he will be sidelined for a while with a wrist injury. McConnell has been announced as the starting point guard for opening night, but Rodriguez will get the start in tonight’s preseason game with the Pistons. The coach warned fans not to read anything into the decisions. “There’s no sort of madness from a discipline standpoint, from a performance standout,” Brown said. “It’s just that we’ve got a few [preseason] games left. I want to see Sergio more at the start of a game with that group we have been looking at, bring T.J. off the bench and really let him be bothersome defensively as he is. That’s the only motive behind that.”
  • The Sixers are still planning to take it easy with Joel Embiid, but they haven’t ruled out playing him in back-to-back games, Pompey tweets. Philadelphia plans to keep Embiid on a minutes restriction to reduce the risk of problems with the foot injury that cost him his first two NBA seasons.
  • Former Sixers guard Pierre Jackson will play in Croatia this season, tweets international basketball writer David Pick. Jackson signed with Cedevita Zagreb, the defending champions in Croatia. Philadelphia waived the 25-year-old point guard before the start of the past two seasons.
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Sixers Notes: Covington, Rodriguez, Saric

October 10th, 2016 at 8:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Small forward Robert Covington should get plenty of scoring opportunities with the presence of center Joel Embiid this season, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Embiid’s ability to draw double teams in the post could often leave Covington open beyond the 3-point arc, where he’s made 40% of his attempts this preseason. He’s also intent upon gaining a reputation as a strong defender, Pompey adds. “I’m going to keep growing as a defender, becoming a two-way player,” Covington told Pompey.

In other preseason news involving the Sixers:

  • In the same article, Pompey notes that point guard T.J. McConnell has been looking more for his shot, McConnell is averaging 10 points and 4.6 assists while shooting 50% during the first three preseason games.
  • Veteran point guard Sergio Rodriguez, who is playing in the NBA for the first time since 2010, has already endeared himself to the team’s big men, Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The longtime Euro star had 15 points, eight assists and no turnovers in 27 minutes against the Cavaliers on Saturday. “He’s really helpful,” Embiid told Cooney. “When we play, he always talks to me and tells me where I need to be and how to get position.” Rodriguez, who has an $8MM contract this season, is currently backing up McConnell with Jerryd Bayless sidelined by a wrist injury.
  • Coach Brett Brown plans to limit forward Dario Saric‘s minutes during the preseason, Brian Seltzer of Sixers.com relays. Saric has gotten very little time off since last October, when he played in Europe. Saric was also a key member of Croatia’s Olympic team in Rio this summer. Saric played well in the team’s first two preseason games before shooting 1-for-7 from the field against the Cavaliers. Brown is planning to sit him for the team’s next game on Tuesday. “I sense sometimes that he is sore, and I just want to be mindful of that,” Brown told Seltzer.
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Sixers Notes: Thompson, Embiid, Holmes, Okafor

October 9th, 2016 at 12:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hollis Thompson has been with the Sixers through three of the worst seasons in franchise history and he hopes to remain with the team as it starts to improve, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Thompson and Nerlens Noel are the only players who have been part of Philadelphia’s roster since 2013/14, and despite his seniority the 6’8″ swingman isn’t guaranteed a spot this season. Thompson averaged 9.8 points per night in 77 games last year, but he finds himself in a familiar position — facing a preseason battle just to make the team. Even if he is on the roster when the season starts, Thompson knows his fate won’t be fully determined until all contracts become guaranteed on January 10th. “In the beginning in the first year, it was stressful,” Thompson said. “But I think at this point, literally, my entire career, I could have been gone anytime before January, and I got paid. At this point, I’m used to it.”

There’s more news out of Philadelphia:

  • Joel Embiid had his best game of the preseason Saturday, giving the Sixers another reason to believe he can overcome the foot problems that cost him his first two NBA seasons, Pompey notes in a separate piece. Embiid put up 12 points, four rebounds and a block in a little more than 13 minutes of action against a Cavaliers team that he still holds a grudge against for passing on him in the 2014 draft. “I felt more comfortable tonight,” Embiid said. “I’m still thinking that I should have been the number one pick. They didn’t pick me. So that had something to do with it.”
  • Richaun Holmes is having a productive preseason, but will have a tough time getting minutes in a crowded frontcourt, Pompey writes in another story. Holmes scored 10 points in 12 minutes in the Sixers’ first preseason game, then followed that up with a 20-point, 12-rebound performance on Thursday. Pompey suggests that Holmes may have to settle for playing time in the D-League.
  • Coach Brett Brown is optimistic about Jahlil Okafor‘s progress despite lingering pain in his right knee, according to Brian Seltzer of NBA.com. “We haven’t seen much of him in practice,” Brown said. “People shouldn’t get nervous about that. It’s part of bringing him back in the mix. Our anticipation is that he’s not that far away, and I do look forward to getting him playing again. I really look forward to getting him playing again.”
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Atlantic Rumors: Raptors, Crowder, Embiid

September 29th, 2016 at 3:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Raptors coach Dwane Casey admits he will not be able to replace Bismack Biyombo with just one player, Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun reports. Biyombo signed a four-year, $72MM contract with the Magic, leaving the Raptors without an obvious backup to center Jonas Valanciunas. Potential candidates include Jakob Poeltl, Pascal Siakam and Lucas Nogueira. Jared Sullinger could also see time there, Ganter adds. “Somebody in that group is going to step up and protect the paint,” Casey told Ganter. “It’s going to be not just on the bigs, but on the guards and wings to make sure they contain the ball and do a better job of not letting the ball get to the paint, so we don’t put as much pressure on our rim protection and our rim defense.”

In other news around the Atlantic Division:

  • Celtics small forward Jae Crowder believes the high right ankle sprain he suffered in March caused his shooting numbers to take a tumble late last season, Taylor C. Snow of Celtics.com reports. Crowder shots 45.3% from the field and 35.4& from 3-point range during the first 65 games and 32.9% and 24.0%, respectively, following his injury. “My ankle was more fatigued than I really realized,” Crowder told Snow. “The way the season ended really gave me a chip on my shoulder to get better and to get in the lab and work and get better at the things I needed to work on.”
  • Sixers coach Brett Brown is practically giddy over the play of oft-injured Joel Embiid in training camp, Brian Seltzer of Sixers.com writes. Embiid has missed the last two seasons with right foot injuries but the center has shown great desire to get out on the court even while battling flu-like symptoms, Seltzer adds. “You just continually see how much he loves basketball,” Brown said to Seltzer. “He really loves playing basketball. He doesn’t like being pulled out. He wants to play.”
  • Veteran power forward Luis Scola, who signed a one-year, $5.5MM contract with the Nets this offseason, has taken a leadership role during training camp, Brian Lewis of the New York Post reports. New coach Kenny Atkinson offered high praise of Scola’s early impact. “I don’t think you can overstate it, everything he brings to the table, how he’s shown our young guys how to work, how to be professional, how to play the game, intelligence, composure,” Atkinson said. “I know it’s early, but he’s been everything, as advertised.”
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