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Southeast Notes: Satoransky, Toliver, Magic, Bacon

January 1st, 2019 at 8:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards restricted free agent Tomas Satoransky has been thrust into the spotlight with John Wall opting for season-ending heel surgery, Chase Hughes on NBC Sports Washington notes. Satoransky takes over the starting point guard spot with Wall sidelined, with Chasson Randle, Ron Baker and Troy Brown Jr. in reserve. Coach Scott Brooks believes Satoransky can handle the pressure. “He’s ready for this,” Brooks said. “Tomas is going to get a great opportunity. He’s going to be more comfortable as the games go by.” Washington will need to make Satoransky a qualifying offer of $3.9MM to prevent him from becoming an unrestricted free agent.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Wizards assistant coach Kristi Toliver is being paid like an intern due to NBA rules, Howard Megdal of the New York Times reports. Since Toliver plays with the Mystics, who are also owned by Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, the league determined that Toliver’s compensation must come out of the $50K allocated to each team to pay WNBA players for off-season work. Much of that had already been promised to Mystics and WNBA star Elena Delle Donne, so Toliver is only making $10K.
The Magic will aggressively pursue a point guard in free agency, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders tweets. Orlando has been using journeyman D.J. Augustin as its starter this season with Jerian Grant as the primary backup.
The Hornets will likely bring back Dwayne Bacon with Jeremy Lamb injured, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer tweets. Lamb suffered a right hamstring strain on Monday. Bacon was assigned the team’s G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, on Sunday. Bacon, a second-year swingman, has appeared in 17 games with the Hornets, averaging 5.5 PPG in 12.4 MPG.

John Wall Explains Motivation For Surgery

January 1st, 2019 at 12:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

John Wall opted for season-ending surgery because he was concerned he was risking a ruptured Achilles without it, relays Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. The operation on his left heel, which is planned for next week, will keep the Wizards guard out of action for six to eight months but should leave him completely healthy for the start of training camp in late September.

“If I don’t want to deal with the pain or make it any worse and have an opportunity to maybe rupture my whole Achilles later down the road, you get the surgery and take it out,” Wall said. “Some days it would be terrible where you couldn’t play or could barely walk. So it’s not really a hard decision for me to make. It was an easy decision. It was just also making sure that everybody on my team and everybody from the Wizards organization was on the same page.”

Wall has been diagnosed with “Haglund’s deformity,” which has created a bump in the heel beneath the Achilles tendon. Wall explained that he has experienced pain in that area for four or five years, but specialists recently told him it could result in degeneration of the tendon.

This will be the third surgery in less than three years for Wall, who played just 41 games last season after having an arthroscopic debridement procedure on his left knee 11 months ago. His final stats for this year are 20.7/3.6/8.7 in 32 games.

“This is something that’s been there for years,” Wall said of the bone spurs in his heel. “I’ve played through it, and now it’s to the point where you can’t play through it no more unless you want to tear your whole Achilles. That’s not what I’m trying to do. I’m taking the shorter process of taking six to eight months instead of taking 15 to 20 months.”

Wizards Notes: Wall, Beal, Morris, Satoransky

December 30th, 2018 at 10:20am CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards have three options now that John Wall has decided to undergo heel surgery that will sideline him for the rest of the season, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. The most drastic choice, a complete renovation that would include trading All-Star guard Bradley Beal, appears to be the least likely, according to Katz. He states that teams have already called about Beal, but the Wizards haven’t shown any interest in moving him. Otto Porter could be the biggest name the front office is willing to part with.

If Washington opts to tank this season, Katz says the team already has an example from what the Grizzlies did last year. Memphis got rid of some of its marginal talent, endured a losing season and wound up with the fourth pick in the draft. The Wizards are only about $5MM above the tax line and may want to add draft choices after trading away selections in the Jodie Meeks and Jason Smith deals. The Lakers may still be interested in Trevor Ariza, who has a $15MM expiring contract, and Markieff Morris‘ expiring $8.6MM deal could also be in play. Jeff Green, who is playing for the veterans minimum, could easily be moved into a trade exception.

The most likely direction, Katz adds, is to keep the current group of players together and see if they can make a run at the playoffs. Washington is 4.8 points per 100 possessions worse with Wall on the court this year and 11.4 points per 100 possessions worse over the past 25 games, so his absence may not be that difficult to overcome.

There’s more Wizards news to pass along:

Washington played well enough without Wall late last season to earn a playoff spot, but Ben Golliver of The Washington Post argues that tanking is the best long-term strategy. His advice is to reduce the workload for Beal, who is averaging 36.6 minutes per game, and unload as many veterans as possible.
Morris will see a specialist for a lingering neck injury, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Morris has been experiencing pain in his neck and upper back since being hit with an elbow in a December 16 game. Although he sat out two games this weekend, Morris remains optimistic about his prognosis. “It’s something where I think if it required surgery, they would have told me already,” he said. “I don’t think it’s that deep. I hope it’s not that deep.”
Wall’s absence will create more playing time for third-year guard Tomas Satoransky, who had 20 points in last night’s win over Charlotte. “Tomas is going to get a great opportunity,” coach Scott Brooks said in a tweet from the team. “He’s going to be more comfortable as the games go by. I think Tomas is going to excel in this. He’s ready for this. He had some moments last season that he saved our season.”

John Wall To Have Season-Ending Surgery

December 29th, 2018 at 7:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

Wizards star John Wall will undergo surgery on his left heel that will keep him out of action for six to eight months, the team announced on its website.

The Wizards describe the operation as “a debridement and repair of a Haglund’s deformity and a chronic Achilles tendon injury in his left heel.” An exact date for the procedure hasn’t been set, but it will take place sometime next week in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The operation was deemed necessary because of persistent pain and inflammation in Wall’s heel.

Wall missed his third game of the season tonight because of the heel. He has posted a 20.7/3.6/8.7 line, but the Wizards are off to a disappointing 13-23 start.

The team’s poor performance may have factored into Wall’s decision to have the operation done now rather than trying to play through the pain. The Wizards want to be sure Wall is fully healthy next season when his four-year, $170MM contract extension takes effect. A six- to eight-month timetable should have him ready to resume basketball activities sometime in the summer.

“Open Season” On Wizards’ Roster

December 29th, 2018 at 5:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

John Wall‘s likely decision to undergo season-ending ankle surgery has created a sense of urgency in Washington to shake up the roster, tweets Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports.

The Wizards have backed off the trade market in recent weeks as they inched closer to playoff contention, sitting four and a half games out of the eighth spot with a 13-23 record. However, the prospect of finishing the season without Wall seems to sink any hope for the postseason.

“They can’t move Wall now. Way too hard,” a rival executive tells Smith. “(Ian) Mahinmi? Why pay to move him either? (Bradley) Beal and (Otto) Porter? Sure, in the right deal. (Markieff) Morris, (Jeff) Green, maybe even flip (Trevor) Ariza again? Those guys are all easily moved. It’s open season on that roster now.”

Another unidentified front office member described Washington’s dire situation by saying, “They’ve got to move on from Beal or Porter now, just to clear up the cap some. Vultures are starting to circle.” (Twitter link)

Without at least one move to clear salary, the Wizards will add luxury tax payments to an extremely disappointing season. Washington projects to be about $5MM above the $123.733MM tax line and is in danger of being in the same spot next year.

Wall is currently third on the team in salary at about $19.17MM, but that number will balloon next season when his four-year, $170MM extension kicks in. His injury, on top of that contract, makes him virtually untradable.

Porter will earn $26MM this year, $27.25MM in 2019/20 and has a nearly $28.5MM player option for the following season that he seems certain to exercise. Porter’s production hasn’t matched his potential since being given a rookie scale extension, and the Wizards might have to attach another asset to get a team to accept his contract.

Beal, who is coming off an All-Star season and posting a career-high 23.8 PPG scoring average, would probably fetch the best return. But the Wizards have to decide whether they want to part with a core piece who is under contract for about $55.8MM over the next two years.

Another possibility is to trade away Ariza, who was acquired from the Suns earlier this month to boost Washington’s playoff chances. Ariza has an expiring $15MM contract, but he cannot be aggregated, meaning traded along with teammates in the same deal, which could limit the Wizards’ options.

Washington is eligible to apply for a Disabled Player Exception if Wall is lost for the year, Smith adds (Twitter link). If approved, the franchise would have $8.641MM to work with that could be used to sign, trade for or claim a player off waivers. The Wizards would have to apply by January 15 and use it by March 10, and any roster addition will count against the tax.

John Wall Leaning Towards Season-Ending Surgery

December 29th, 2018 at 2:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

DECEMBER 29, 2:35pm: Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN is now reporting that Wall is planning to undergo the season-ending surgery on his left heel, with doctors having recommended that he undergo the procedure soon.

DECEMBER 29, 2:27pm: Per Candace Buckner of The Washington Post, Wall is contemplating surgery on his injured left heel that would keep him out for six to eight months. Shams Charania of The Athletic adds that Wall has tried to battle through the pain, but it has become more significant, so he’s leaning toward having the surgery.

DECEMBER 28, 9:56pm: Wizards point guard John Wall will visit a specialist to examine bone spurs in his left heel, according to an Associated Press report.

Wall missed the Wizards’ 101-92 loss to Chicago on Friday. Dr. Robert Anderson, currently an associate team physician for the Green Bay Packers, will perform the examination, David Aldridge of The Athletic tweets. Anderson has performed operations on Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Cam Newton and Derek Jeter, Aldridge notes.

An extended Wall absence would likely extinguish any remaining playoff hopes for one of the league’s most disappointing teams. The long-term implications could be even more severe, since Wall’s four-year, $170MM super max extension kicks in next season.

Wall only played 41 regular-season games last season due to a knee injury. The heel injury has nagged Wall for several seasons, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Coach Scott Brooks said the heel has gotten worse recently. Wall played the first game after Christmas in Detroit and scored 21 points but was limited for four points after halftime.

“He has good days and bad days like a lot of guys through,” Brooks said. “He has been able to manage it. … It has been bothering him, so it’s time to see a specialist.”

Washington can only hope that Wall’s heel issues won’t linger. He will make a projected $38.1MM in the first year of his extension, nearly double his current salary. Based on current cap estimates, his salaries will escalate to $41.2MM and $44.25MM for the next two seasons, completed by a $47.3MM player option for the 2022/23 season.

In his absence, Tomas Satoransky steps in at point guard. Washington traded away a rotation guard, Austin Rivers, in the Trevor Ariza deal with Phoenix.

Wizards Notes: Ariza, Oubre, Rivers, Wall

December 16th, 2018 at 1:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Trading for Trevor Ariza is a short-sighted move that offers false hope to Wizards fans, writes Tom Ziller of SB Nation. Washington makes a similar move nearly every season, Ziller notes, adding veteran players who are supposed to be difference makers, but the team has won just three playoff series since John Wall arrived.

The addition of Ariza, in a deal expected to be completed tomorrow, seems almost certain to be a short-term move. His contract expires at the end of the season, Washington doesn’t acquire his Bird Rights because he’s on a one-year deal and the team already projects to be over the cap for 2019/20.

The Wizards wanted to unload Kelly Oubre, who is being shipped to Phoenix, before he hit restricted free agency next summer. But Ziller blasts that thought process as well, contending the team would have been better off taking its chances that Oubre wouldn’t get an offer that’s too expensive to match. As it stands, Washington will probably enter next season without Ariza, Oubre or anything else to show from this weekend’s trade.

There’s more from the nation’s capital:

Players were left in disbelief after the bizarre circumstances of Friday’s canceled trade, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Oubre and Austin Rivers learned they were being dealt Friday night, then found out the deal collapsed before it was revived in a different form Saturday morning. “It was kind of weird and kind of difficult,” Wall said. “[We] go into the locker room and we’re about to shower and stuff and we don’t understand who is about to get traded, who’s been traded. It was kind of a tough situation. I give those guys a lot of credit. They handled that stuff like professionals. A lot of guys could have reacted in different ways, which I have seen in the past.”
Wall understands the financial component of the deal and why the team wasn’t optimistic about keeping Oubre, Hughes adds in the same piece. Washington has the sixth-highest payroll in the league and is facing a significant luxury tax payment. The team has made three trades already this season and has saved money on each one. “We have three guys that are paid pretty high,” Wall said. “And then understanding what Kelly is going to receive or ask for this summer, I don’t think we have the money to match it. So, I think that’s the reason why we made that trade.”
The Wizards sent $500K to the Bucks in last week’s deal that brought in Sam Dekker for Jason Smith, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.

Wizards Notes: Wall, Smith, Dekker

December 9th, 2018 at 11:41am CST by Arthur Hill

John Wall is blaming an injury for his one-point performance in Saturday’s loss at Cleveland, according to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. Wall has been suffering from a bone spur in his left heel and was treated for the condition after the game.

“It’s just like a bone spur but today it got really hot,” Wall told Ben Standig of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). “Probably shouldn’t have played. That’s my fault. … I’ve had it for a while. It comes and goes from days where it’s hot and today it’s like I really couldn’t run.”

Wall had six assists, but missed all five of his shots from the field and was pulled from the game late in the third quarter. Cavaliers rookie Collin Sexton took advantage of the matchup to score a career-high 29 points. More concerning to the Wizards than Saturday’s loss is how the condition will affect Wall for the rest of the season.

“Some days it’s great. Some days it’s bad,” he said. “It come and go. You know what I mean? You just got to monitor when it’s good and when it’s bad, don’t try to force the issue and play with that one because it’s kind of hard. You can’t run. Today it just got real hot. It didn’t get no better.”

There’s more news out of Washington:

Concerns about effort and focus have haunted the Wizards throughout their 11-15 start and Cleveland center Tristan Thompson suggested that was an issue again Saturday night, relays Joe Vardon of The Athletic. “Obviously every team that comes in here is going to feel very relaxed and feel like they don’t have to put their best foot forward,” Thompson said of facing the six-win Cavaliers. “I know how teams come in and approach us because we used to be that team that would approach teams that are in a different stage or got a lot of younger players.”
The Wizards lowered their potential tax bill by shipping Jason Smith to the Bucks for Sam Dekker, but the move wasn’t popular in the locker room, Buckner writes in a separate story. Smith was only averaging about 11 minutes per night, but was was well liked by his teammates, who viewed him as a supportive and calming presence. “If you can go through things of ups and downs and sporadic seasons, playing or not playing and still be that happy of an individual and cheer people on and just continue to be an overall good dude, why can’t everybody be that?” Kelly Oubre asked. “He really taught me how to be a good human being, to be honest.”
Coach Scott Brooks promises that Dekker will get a chance to earn playing time. In an video clip tweeted by the team, Brooks says he likes Dekker’s “motor” and “athleticism” and calls him a “developing shooter.”

Knicks Notes: Ntilikina, Hezonja, Wall, Dotson

December 7th, 2018 at 3:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Before getting his third consecutive DNP-CD on Thursday night, Frank Ntilikina offered some terse answers when asked about his role, perhaps conveying a little frustration, as Marc Berman of The New York Post relays. Meanwhile, head coach David Fizdale made some ominous comments when asked about his lineup decisions involving Ntilikina and other Knicks.

“I got a front office that supports me in that,” Fizdale said. “We have to know who’s moving forward out of this group. And it won’t be every single player on this roster, unfortunately. That’s the nature of the business. We have to come out of this year knowing who those guys it’s going to be moving forward with us.”

After Thursday’s game, in which the Knicks surrendered 128 points, Fizdale acknowledged that maybe he should’ve given a strong defender like Ntilikina the opportunity to play, per Steve Popper of Newsday.

“I can always look at him,” Fizdale said. “It ain’t like he’s out, though. Again, it’s going to be a long season. Frank will be getting his opportunities again.”

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Fizdale said on Thursday that Mario Hezonja is still in New York’s starting lineup because of his effort on defense, as Popper notes. Berman of The New York Post passes along a tweet from former Knicks executive Clarence Gaines Jr. questioning Fizdale’s explanation, while sources also told Berman that Hezonja was happier during his Orlando days when he was in the starting five.
Following up on a pair of reports from earlier this week, Ian Begley of ESPN.com says (via Twitter) that the Knicks haven’t had any internal discussions about a possible trade for John Wall and haven’t heard from the Nets or Pistons about Damyean Dotson. Berman previously reported that people around the league believed the Knicks were gearing up to make a push for Wall and said that Detroit and Brooklyn had shown the most interest in Dotson.
Lance Thomas is getting close to returning to action, but – like Courtney Lee before him – may have a hard time carving out major minutes in a crowded rotation, Berman writes for The New York Post. Thomas and Lee look like potential trade candidates this season, so New York may make an effort to showcase both players.
Ten months after Kristaps Porzingis suffered his ACL tear, there’s still no set timetable for his return to the court, according to Berman.

Knicks Considering John Wall Trade?

December 4th, 2018 at 6:41pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Knicks‘ long-term answer at the point guard position may not be in the roster and some within the league believe the team is gearing up to make the Wizards an offer for John Wall, Marc Berman of the New York Post reports.

Berman writes that the Knicks are “stocking up” their young talent and could attempt to put together a package for the former All-Star should the Wizards make him available. The offer would involve Frank Ntilikina, Damyean Dotson and Courtney Lee as well as a 2020 first-rounder and a future second-rounder as part of a three-team deal, Berman suggests.

It was previously reported that there were no untouchables on Washington’s roster, though that was when the team was 6-12 and looking at a lost season. The Wizards have since gone 4-2, pulling themselves closer to their lofty playoff goals.

Wall has not played his best basketball this year. However, it would be hard to argue that he wouldn’t be an upgrade over New York’s current point guard situation.

Ntilikina has fallen out of the rotation and it’s unclear whether the team believes he can play the position long-term. Emmanuel Mudiay hasn’t proven to be consistent as the starter and Trey Burke was demoted to backup before suffering an MCL injury.

The upgrade to Wall would come with heavy financial and opportunity costs. The team expects to be a major player in free agency and Wall’s $37.8MM salary for the 2019/20 season would severely impact the franchise’s ability to make a splash.