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Central Notes: Wiseman, Nwora, Hill, Crowder

February 10th, 2023 at 5:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons general manager Troy Weaver said newly acquired center James Wiseman will get plenty of playing time, even though the team seemingly has an overload of bigs, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets.

“He needs to play,” the Pistons’ top executive said. “With your talent, if you don’t use it, you lose it. We need him to get back out there to use his talent and be confident as a player.”

Weaver also indicated the Pistons needed another quality big man to combat the top teams in the Eastern Conference, who have regularly pushed them around, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press tweets. “You don’t have a chance (without size). Point blank period. We need some men and some size,” he said. “We haven’t beaten those teams yet. If you look at those games, we’ve usually struggled on the glass.”

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Jordan Nwora, acquired from the Bucks on Thursday, will get an expanded look with Indiana, according to Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star (Twitter links). “He got limited opportunities because of their veterans and guys who were in front of him just didn’t get injured that much. … This will be a great opportunity for him here,” Carlisle said. Nwora, who is expected to make his Pacers debut on Monday, is a player Indiana has coveted for a while. “Nwora is a guy we’ve had interest in the last couple of years. … We were somewhere close to acquiring him but could never quite get there,” Carlisle said.
  • George Hill, who was also part of the giant four-team swap that sent Kevin Durant to Phoenix, doesn’t want to be waived by the Pacers, Dopirak adds in another tweet. President of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard gave Hill the option of being on the 15-man roster or being waived and the veteran guard chose to stay with his hometown team.
  • Forward Jae Crowder wound up with the Bucks after the Suns-Nets blockbuster was expanded to include Milwaukee and Indiana. The Bucks have been trying to acquire him for months and GM Jon Horst called the trade talks challenging, The Athletic’s Eric Nehm writes. “It was something we’ve been working on for a long time,” he said. “It was one of the most incredible, kind of challenging, pursuits of a player I’ve ever been a part of, to be honest with you. Different iterations and different things that happened. The Phoenix situation, and then all of a sudden he goes to a different team, and then it’s kind of back to the market.” Next, Milwaukee will have to figure out how to incorporate Crowder into the rotation. “We feel like we made a great add,” coach Mike Budenholzer said. “We’ll have to figure out how it all fits together.”
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Kevin Durant Trade Officially Completed As Four-Team Deal

February 9th, 2023 at 5:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Kevin Durant has officially been traded from Brooklyn to Phoenix, according to press releases from the Suns and Nets.

The blockbuster trade has been combined with the three-team trade agreement involving the Bucks, Nets, and Pacers that sends Jae Crowder to Milwaukee, turning the two deals into a single four-team transaction.

It breaks down as follows:

  • Suns acquire Durant and T.J. Warren.
  • Nets acquire Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, the Suns’ 2023 first-round pick (unprotected), the Suns’ 2025 first-round pick (unprotected), the Suns’ 2027 first-round pick (unprotected), the Suns’ 2029 first-round pick (unprotected), the right to swap first-round picks with the Suns in 2028, the Bucks’ 2028 second-round pick, the Bucks’ 2029 second-round pick, and the draft rights to Juan Pablo Vaulet (from Pacers).
  • Bucks acquire Crowder.
  • Pacers acquire Jordan Nwora, George Hill, Serge Ibaka, either the Bucks’ 2023 second-round pick or the least favorable of the Cavaliers’ and Warriors’ 2023 second-round picks (whichever is most favorable), the Bucks’ 2024 second-round pick, their own 2025 second-round pick (from Bucks; it was traded away in a prior deal), and cash (from Nets).

“Today is a transformative day for this organization,” new Suns owner Mat Ishbia said in a statement. “We are thrilled to welcome Kevin and T.J. to the Valley as we build a championship culture both on and off the court.

“Not only is Kevin one of the greatest and most accomplished players in the history of the sport, but his character also embodies the world class commitment to excellence we are instilling across every facet of this organization. T.J. is a natural leader whose work ethic and commitment to getting better every day make him an important addition to the team as he returns to the Valley. Phoenix will be one of the best organizations in all of sports and we are so excited to start our journey with this incredibly dynamic team.”

Nets general manager Sean Marks offered a statement of his own in Brooklyn’s press release:

“After thorough evaluation of the best path forward, we believe making this trade now positions the franchise for long-term success. Mikal and Cam are elite, ascending, versatile wings, plus the draft capital provides us additional avenues to continue to acquire talent. We remain steadfast in our commitment to building the team Brooklyn deserves. We are excited to welcome Mikal, Cam and their families to Brooklyn and thank Kevin for the moments and memories he delivered our fanbase.”

As expected, the Pacers waived Goga Bitadze and Terry Taylor to accommodate their new additions. The team also waived veteran forward James Johnson, per a press release. All three players will become unrestricted free agents if they clear waivers this weekend. Indiana will also cut Ibaka, as we previously relayed.

Because they no longer have to take on Crowder’s salary, the Nets will create a trade exception worth $18MM+ for Durant instead of $8MM, notes Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

For more details on the trade, be sure to read our previous stories breaking down the Durant and Crowder trades.

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Bucks Acquire Jae Crowder In Three-Team Deal

February 9th, 2023 at 4:24pm CST by Rory Maher

[UPDATE: This trade was folded into the Durant blockbuster and turned into a four-team deal. It’s now official.]

4:24pm: Eric Nehm of The Athletic has the details on the second-round picks the Bucks are trading in the three-team deal. They are as follows:

To the Pacers:

  • Either the Bucks’ own 2023 second-round pick or the least favorable of the Cavaliers’ and Warriors’ 2023 second-round pick.
    • Note: If the season ended today, the Bucks would get the Cavaliers’ second-round pick (which is less favorable than the Warriors’ pick) and then would send the Cavs’ pick to Indiana, since it’s more favorable than Milwaukee’s second-rounder.
  • The Bucks’ own 2024 second-round pick.
  • The Pacers’ 2025 second-round pick (which was traded to Milwaukee in a prior deal).

To the Nets:

  • The Bucks’ 2028 second-round pick.
  • The Bucks’ 2029 second-round pick.

As we relayed in a separate story, Terry Taylor is also being waived by the Pacers to help accommodate the incoming players.

11:05am: Veteran forward Jae Crowder is being traded to the Bucks, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who reports that the Nets have agreed to a trade that will send Crowder to Milwaukee, with the Bucks giving up a total of five second-round picks.

Sources tell Charania (via Twitter) that it will be a three-team trade, with Bucks forward Jordan Nwora and two second-round picks (via the Bucks) heading to the Pacers. Indiana is waiving reserve center Goga Bitadze to make room for Nwora, Charania adds (Twitter link).

In addition, the Pacers will receive guard George Hill, an Indianapolis native who had a previous five-year stint with Indiana, and a third second-round pick, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter). Center Serge Ibaka will also be heading to the Pacers, per Charania (Twitter link). Both players were previously on the Bucks.

Here’s the deal as we know it so far, with bits and pieces coming in over time:

  • Bucks receive Crowder ($10.18MM)
  • Nets receive two second-round picks via Milwaukee (not confirmed), save a ton of money toward the luxury tax
  • Pacers receive Nwora ($3MM), Hill ($4MM), Ibaka ($2.9MM salary, $1.8MM cap hit) and three second-rounders (not confirmed) via Milwaukee; will waive Bitadze.

The Pacers are one of only two NBA teams with cap space available — the Spurs are the other — so they can take on money without having to worry about matching salaries. As the deal stands, Indiana will have to waive two more players and its cap space is down to $1.9MM, tweets Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. Only Nwora is under contract beyond this season — Hill and Ibaka are on expiring deals.

Crowder, 32, has sat out the entire 2022/23 season while awaiting a trade. He was sent to the Nets as part of the blockbuster trade that will send Kevin Durant to Phoenix, and now will be rerouted to Milwaukee.

The Bucks had been linked to Crowder for months in trade rumors — they were recently granted permission to speak with him, and now they are finally acquiring him.

In 67 games (28.1 MPG) with Phoenix in ’21/22, Crowder averaged 9.3 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.9 APG and 1.4 SPG on .399/.348/.789 shooting. He makes $10.18MM in the final year of his contract.

According to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (Twitter link), Suns head coach Monty Williams spoke to Crowder over the summer to inform him that Cameron Johnson (who was also sent to the Nets in the Durant deal) would be the starting power forward in ’22/23.

Crowder responded by saying he would prefer a contract extension or a trade. Evidently Williams found the 3-and-D specialist “too difficult to manage” and preferred to have him away from the team, per Gambadoro.

Bitadze is earning $4.77MM in the final season of his rookie scale contract. The former 18th overall pick has only appeared in 21 games for an average of 9.6 minutes per contest this season. He will become an unrestricted free agent if he clears waivers.

Nwora, meanwhile, was the 45th overall pick of the 2020 draft. He re-signed with the Bucks on a two-year, $6.2MM contract in the offseason, but hasn’t played much, appearing in 38 games with averages of 6.0 PPG and 3.1 RPG in 15.7 MPG.

The 24-year-old has some offensive upside — he has converted 37.6% of his career three-pointers, including 39.2% this season. However, he’s a subpar defender and obviously wasn’t in the Bucks’ long-term plans. The Pacers will be taking a flyer on him in addition to adding a trio of second-rounders.

Ibaka seems likely to be bought out or waived by the Pacers and headed elsewhere as a free agent. Hill is less certain — as previously mentioned, he likely he has fans in the organization due to his previous run with the team.

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Suns Grant Bucks Permission To Meet With Jae Crowder

January 30th, 2023 at 8:30am CST by Arthur Hill

The Bucks, who have been among the most active teams trying to acquire Jae Crowder, have received permission from the Suns to meet with the veteran forward, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Sources tell Charania that Milwaukee is believed to be the only team that has been singled out for a one-on-one meeting.

The teams have involved in serious trade talks regarding Crowder for several months, Charania adds, with current proposals involving Jordan Nwora, George Hill, Serge Ibaka and second-round draft picks. They’ve been trying to find a third team willing to give the Suns a forward capable of playing rotation minutes, but have been unsuccessful so far.

Crowder hasn’t played at all this season after deciding not to report to training camp due to unhappiness about his projected role with Phoenix. He’s making $10.2MM in the final year of his contract and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Several other teams remain interested in acquiring Crowder before the February 9 trade deadline, Charania adds, naming the Heat and Hawks among the possible suitors. He notes that Atlanta has won six of its last nine games, and new head of basketball operations Landry Fields is being patient in regard to trade negotiations.

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21 More NBA Players Become Trade-Eligible

January 15th, 2023 at 8:23am CST by Luke Adams

Today is Sunday, January 15, which means that nearly two dozen players who signed free agent contracts meeting specific criteria this past offseason are now eligible to be traded.

Most offseason signees became trade-eligible on December 15, but players who met the following criteria were ineligible to be moved for an extra month:

  1. The player re-signed with his previous team.
  2. He got a raise of at least 20%.
  3. His salary is worth more than the minimum.
  4. His team was over the cap and used Bird or Early Bird rights to sign him.

The following players met that criteria and are eligible to be traded as of Sunday:

(* Players marked with an asterisk have the ability to veto trades.)

Most of the players on NBA rosters are now eligible to be moved, though a small handful still can’t be dealt. That group includes Thunder guard Isaiah Joe, who becomes trade-eligible on Monday, Bucks swingman Pat Connaughton (trade-eligible on Wednesday), and Thunder forward Kenrich Williams (trade-eligible on Friday).

There are also several players who won’t become trade-eligible before this season’s February 9 deadline, including Lakers star LeBron James. Players on 10-day contracts are also ineligible to be dealt.

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Central Notes: McConnell, Theis, Bogdanovic, Bucks

January 10th, 2023 at 7:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pacers guard T.J. McConnell took a hit to his right shoulder on Sunday but an MRI showed the shoulder was “stable” and he was able to practice on Tuesday, Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star reports.

“I think it was one of those weird plays where I just got hit in a bad spot,” McConnell said. “I was a little worried at the beginning and it was really painful, but our training staff is awesome, they worked on it. They said it was stable and the MRI showed that there was nothing seriously wrong. So it’s just about playing through the pain right now knowing it’s good, it’s stable. I said that I missed enough games last year, I can play through a little bit of pain.”

McConnell is in the second season of a four-year, $33.6MM contract.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Daniel Theis is showing progress from his latest knee surgery in November and he could make his Pacers debut in the coming weeks, Dopirak notes in the same story. Theis was acquired from the Celtics in July as part of the package Boston gave up for point guard Malcolm Brogdon. “I don’t know that there’s any real set, hard timetable on Theis’ availability to play in a game but he’s weeks, not months away,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “That’s good news.”
  • As if the Pistons didn’t have enough injury issues, leading scorer Bojan Bogdanovic missed Tuesday’s game against Philadelphia due to left calf soreness, Mike Curtis of the Detroit News tweets. Rookie center Jalen Duren missed his second straight game due to right ankle soreness and Isaiah Stewart (shoulder) was a late scratch.
  • The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Jim Owczarski breaks downs the Bucks’ cap situation, key dates and luxury tax implications of any moves they might make before the trade deadline. He notes that Jordan Nwora and Bobby Portis will be eligible to be traded as of Jan. 15, while Pat Connaughton becomes eligible to be moved on Jan. 18.
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Central Notes: Love, Mitchell, Bulls, Ingles

December 10th, 2022 at 1:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Don’t expect Kevin Love to be on the move before this season’s trade deadline, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in a subscriber-only mailbag. While the Cavaliers will likely peruse the trade market in search of a small forward upgrade, Love’s cap hit of nearly $29MM makes him unlikely to be dealt, according to Fedor, who points to Cedi Osman and Caris LeVert as more logical trade candidates for the team.

The Cavaliers and Love actually have mutual interest in extending their relationship beyond 2022/23, sources tell Fedor. Love will be an unrestricted free agent next summer, and Fedor wouldn’t be surprised if the veteran power forward ends up re-signing with Cleveland at that point on a “more reasonable number that works for both sides.”

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • The Cavaliers will be without Donovan Mitchell for a second consecutive night on Saturday due to right lower leg soreness, per Kelsey Russo of The Athletic (Twitter link). Love, who is battling low back soreness, will also miss his second straight game.
  • The Bulls have no interest in acquiring Russell Westbrook from the Lakers, even if it means adding multiple draft picks, a source tells Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. While Cowley doesn’t explicitly say so, this report appears to be a response to the rumor about the Lakers internally discussing whether Chicago might become open to the idea of moving DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic for Westbrook and draft assets. Cowley acknowledges that the Bulls’ thinking could change before the February trade deadline, but says the focus for now is getting Lonzo Ball back and pushing for a playoff spot.
  • Bucks forward Joe Ingles, who continues to work his way back from an ACL tear, has been assigned to the Wisconsin Herd for a second time for practice reps, tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Jordan Nwora and rookie MarJon Beauchamp were also sent to the Herd, Nehm notes.
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Central Notes: Cavs, Connaughton, Nwora, Turner

November 17th, 2022 at 10:58am CST by Luke Adams

It has been an unusual season so far for the Cavaliers, who won eight straight games after dropping their opener, but have since lost five in a row. According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff spoke at length to his team in the locker room after Wednesday’s loss to Milwaukee and told reporters that his message was about avoiding complacency and adjusting mentally to being a playoff-caliber team.

“We’ve got kind of a fat cat mentality,” Bickerstaff said. “We went out and won eight games in a row. Everyone was giving us love and praising us. We got really comfortable. We are the team that won those eight games though. We are a really good basketball team. This is about maturation and growth from a team as a whole.

“Not one guy is going to do it. Not two guys are going to do it. Just understanding the difference between being the guy who is chasing and the guy who is being chased and how hard it is to win in the NBA. You have to show up every single night. We’re still learning that unfortunately. It’s all the same mentality, the mentality of the fat cat who is comfortable and complacent. You cannot succeed in this league playing this way.”

The Cavaliers will have a good opportunity to snap their losing streak on Friday when they host the banged-up Hornets.

Here are a few more notes from around the Central:

  • After being upgraded from questionable to probable for Wednesday’s game vs. Cleveland, Bucks wing Pat Connaughton was ultimately ruled out, as Eric Nehm of The Athletic tweets. However, head coach Mike Budenholzer insisted that Connaughton didn’t suffer a setback, telling reporters that the team was just playing it safe, per Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Twitter link). Connaughton has yet to play this season due to a calf strain, but appears to be on the verge of returning.
  • Bucks swingman Jordan Nwora scored a season-high 21 points in Wednesday’s win, making 5-of-9 three-pointers. Bobby Portis was among those thrilled by the success of his teammate, who re-signed with Milwaukee as a restricted free agent in September. “We’re always hard on him about just being a complete basketball player and not just being a scorer, sharing the basketball and things like that and I finally think just the light bulb is turning on for him a little bit,” Portis said, according to Nehm.
  • Myles Turner is averaging a career-high 17.9 PPG and 8.7 RPG through his first seven games this season, exhibiting more consistency than he has in the past. As Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star writes, Turner’s improved play raises questions about how he fits into the Pacers‘ plans going forward. The veteran center is in a contract year and has long been considered a trade candidate, but might also be an ideal candidate for a renegotiation-and-extension if he wants to stay in Indiana, as we outlined on Wednesday.
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Central Notes: White, P. Williams, Mobley, Bucks, More

October 18th, 2022 at 3:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Bulls guard Coby White, the seventh overall pick in the 2019 draft, was eligible for a rookie scale extension up until Monday’s deadline, but he never really thought he’d sign a new deal this year, according to Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago.

“No, no. I didn’t,” White said on Tuesday. “I wasn’t really focused on that. Just play this year out. I put in a lot of work this summer, so let my work show, and take it from there.”

White also dismissed the idea that entering a contract year and playing for his next contract will provide any extra motivation this season: “Nah, I love playing basketball. That’s all the motivation I need. I love playing, I love hooping. I’ve had motivation my whole life. I ain’t gonna change nothing now.”

In other Bulls news, the team’s 2020 lottery pick, Patrick Williams, will open the season as the starting power forward, head coach Billy Donovan confirmed today (Twitter link via Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic). Williams came off the bench in multiple preseason games as Javonte Green shone, but Green will be part of the second unit to open the season.

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • The Cavaliers feel as if Evan Mobley has Hall of Fame potential and believe his development is the key to whether the team can become a legitimate championship contender, Chris Fedor writes in an excellent article for Cleveland.com. “Evan needs to be in a position where people look at us and say, ‘Evan is their best player,'” assistant coach Greg Buckner said. “It can’t be, ‘Donovan (Mitchell) is their best player, Darius (Garland) is their best player or J.A. (Jarrett Allen) is their best player.’ It has to be Evan.” That view is shared by head coach J.B. Bickerstaff, according to assistant coach Luke Walton. “J.B. talks about it all the time with us: We need Evan to be one of the best players in this league, if not the best player in this league, if we’re gonna win championships,” Walton said. “That’s our mission coming from J.B. — help him get to that level.”
  • Hoops Rumors has confirmed that Didi Louzada is eligible to become an affiliate player for the Cleveland Charge after signing a two-way contract (rather than an Exhibit 10 deal) with the Cavaliers on Monday and being waived shortly thereafter. Michael Scotto of HoopsHype first reported the Cavs’ plan to secure Louzada’s G League rights.
  • With Khris Middleton and Joe Ingles already ruled out for the start of the season, the Bucks will also be without Pat Connaughton for a few weeks, prompting Eric Nehm of The Athletic to explore how the team will deal with all its injury absences. As Nehm details, George Hill, Jevon Carter, and Wesley Matthews all figure to play increased roles, with young wings Jordan Nwora and MarJon Beauchamp potentially seeing action too.
  • Pacers forward James Johnson was happy to earn the team’s final roster spot, beating out Langston Galloway and Deividas Sirvydis. However, as Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files relays, Johnson knows that he can’t get comfortable yet, since his contract still isn’t fully guaranteed for the season. “It’s an honor for this spot, but at the end of the day I’m still vulnerable,” he said.
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Central Notes: Middleton, Lopez, Stewart, Bagley, Bey

October 1st, 2022 at 9:33am CST by Dana Gauruder

Khris Middleton won’t be ready to play by opening night as he recovers from wrist surgery. Joe Ingles is still rehabbing from a major knee injury.

So who will step up in their place? Eric Nehm of The Athletic examines potential lineup combinations the Bucks may use in their absence. Pat Connaughton will likely start until Middleton returns, though Jordan Nwora and MarJon Beauchamp will have opportunities to establish themselves as rotation pieces. Wesley Matthews and Grayson Allen will fight for minutes at shooting guard.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Middleton has a $40.4MM option on his contract for the 2023/24 season, while center Brook Lopez will be an unrestricted free agent unless he signs an extension. However, there hasn’t been any buzz about it at Bucks camp, Jim Owczarski of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. In fact, Lopez claims that “I wasn’t exactly aware this was a contract year” until the subject was brought up.
  • Isaiah Stewart and Marvin Bagley may be more suited to playing center but they’ll both see action at times at power forward this season, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. That will allow Nerlens Noel and rookie Jalen Duren to get some minutes off the bench. “It’s tough,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “What’s going to have to manifest itself is – it’s not natural right now – for Isaiah to kind of slide to the four just to open some spots for everybody.”
  • While most of the attention regarding the Pistons is focused on their young backcourt of Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey, third-year forward Saddiq Bey has served notice that he could be an offensive force this season, according to James Edwards III of The Athletic. “He’s putting the ball on the floor a lot better, finding guys a lot better,” reserve guard Cory Joseph said. “We know how he can score and the attention he’s going to get. He’s making the game better for himself and everyone around him right now. He’s playing really well.”
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