Kevin Durant

Warriors Rumors: Durant, Curry, McGee, Jones

November 12th, 2016 at 1:27pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Retaining both Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant beyond this season could prove difficult for the Warriors under the next CBA agreement, Dan Feldman of NBCSports.com examines in great detail. While the provisions in the new labor deal are unclear, Durant might have to leave money on the table to re-sign with Golden State, or opt in and take the $27.7MM salary in the final year of his two-year contract, in order to keep the Super Team together. As a non-Bird free agent if he opts out, Durant would likely have to take less than the max to stay put because of cap-space constraints, Feldman continues. The amount of cap space available will depend in part on the cap hold for Curry, who will become an unrestricted free agent next summer, and the hold could be significantly greater in the new CBA, Feldman explains. Max salary tiers could also rise, complicating the process even further, Feldman adds.

In other news regarding the Warriors:

Coach Steve Kerr wants to give reserve center JaVale McGee increased playing time, Anthony Slater of the San Jose Mercury News reports. McGee sparked the team in his first chance to play rotation minutes against the Nuggets on Thursday, contributing 10 points, three rebounds and two blocks in 15 minutes. “We’re looking at the first part of the season as somewhat experimental,” Kerr told Slater and other reporters. “We haven’t really given him a chance yet. You could see he gives us a dimension that we don’t have, throwing it up to the rim for a lob, which provides you extra spacing.” McGee was signed to a one-year, non-guaranteed contract in September. His $1.4MM salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s still on the roster January 10th.
Rookie center Damian Jones is expected to join the Warriors’ D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz on November 20th and make his season debut there five days later, according to Connor Letorneau of the San Francisco Chronicle. The late first-round pick underwent surgery in June for a torn right pectoral muscle, which he suffered during a weight-lifting session. He is one of four centers on the NBA roster, along with McGee, Zaza Pachulia and Anderson Varejao, but Jones could spend much of the season in Santa Cruz. “He’s a kid, he’s a rookie, and it takes a while to get to know this league and understand how to be productive,” Kerr told Letorneau .“We’re not being overly hopeful for him to step in and play right away.”

Dwyane Wade Explains Why He Left Miami

November 8th, 2016 at 5:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Dwyane Wade and the Heat had different priorities in free agency, which is what led to a messy breakup of their 13-year relationship, writes Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago. When Wade announced in early July that he was accepting a two-year, $47MM offer from the Bulls, it marked the end of a long process in which he felt he didn’t get the respect he had earned for his accomplishments in Miami. Or as Wade puts it, “I found out very quickly that this is a business.”

The Heat set two priorities in free agency — re-signing Hassan Whiteside and reaching out to Kevin Durant. They needed to be able to offer max deals to both players, which limited the amount that was left to offer Wade. “At the end of the day,” Wade said, “I talked to those guys and I told them, ‘It’s free agency. I understand y’all have a job to do, and I have a job to do as well.’ I let it be known I was going to be a free agent and I wasn’t waiting by the phone for them to call me.”

The Heat were able to re-sign Whiteside on the first day of free agency and were one of five finalists for Durant. When he chose the Warriors, many assumed it was a formality to bring back Wade, but too many bridges had already been burned. Privately, the Heat front office was concerned about giving a max deal to a 34-year-old player, even one with Wade’s history. And Wade felt disrespected by being third in line.

“I did my homework because I understand Hassan was a priority, which he should’ve been,” Wade explained. “I understood that they were trying to go out and get KD, because that’s something they wanted to do. But I had to look out for myself and put myself in a situation that I wanted to be in if things didn’t work out the way I wanted them to work out, and they didn’t.”

Wade’s return to Miami in a visiting uniform will take place Thursday night. He insists that he still has a good relationship with the Heat organization and has talked with everyone except team president Pat Riley. But whatever emotions may accompany his homecoming, Wade made it clear that he has already moved on with his basketball life.

“I don’t know how many more years I have left to play this game,” he said. “It’s about doing what I want to do at this moment. Not saying I didn’t do what I wanted, I always did what I wanted, but it’s continuing to have the ability to do that. And I did. I put myself first for once. I didn’t say, hey, I waited on Miami to come to me. At the end of the day, I could’ve come back to Miami and made great money. The contract they offered me was good. By the time it got to me, my heart was somewhere else.”

Northwest Notes: Hayward, Harris, Napier, Thunder

November 6th, 2016 at 7:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

Gordon Hayward put up 28 points today in his first game of the season after breaking a finger in early October, writes Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. Hayward, who wore a splint on his left ring finger, shot just 6 of 17 from the field as the Jazz won at New York. He was relieved to be back on the court. “I think naturally you lose a little bit. It’s what happens when you can’t play for a month,” Hayward said. “You can do all of the drills you want, all of the working out you want, but there’s nothing like five-on-five. There’s nothing like game atmosphere. … That’s why I did so much work, so I’d try not to lose so much of it.”

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

Nuggets coach Michael Malone is relieved to have Gary Harris back in the lineup, relays Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. The third-year guard, who started 76 games last season, returned to the court Saturday. He had been out of action with a groin strain he suffered in Denver’s first preseason game. “If we can have Gary Harris out there for 15 or 20 minutes I think that helps us,” Malone said of easing him back into the linup. “Whether he starts or comes off the bench, it doesn’t really matter because of his ability to play both ends of the floor.”
Trail Blazers reserve guard Shabazz Napier got his first meaningful playing time of the season in Friday’s win over the Mavericks, writes Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. Napier, who was acquired from the Magic in a summer trade, saw nearly nine minutes of action, with three points, two assists and two rebounds. Napier had an impressive preseason, but is stuck behind the backcourt trio of Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum and Evan Turner. “It was one of those games, similar to last year, when you play a guard-oriented team,” said Portland coach Terry Stotts. “It was a [good] matchup for him.”
The Thunder should be happy that they got their first game against Kevin Durant out of the way early, writes Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. With the Durant distraction in the past, Tramel says the players can now focus on playing their style of basketball, which emphasizes defense to make up for an ineffective offense. Even with Russell Westbrook‘s individual brilliance, Oklahoma City ranked 28th in the league in points per possession through its first five games, yet had a 4-1 record.

Pacific Notes: Walton, Randle, Durant, Kings

November 5th, 2016 at 10:06am CST by Arthur Hill

New coach Luke Walton has the Lakers loving basketball, and it was enough to get the better of his former team Friday night, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com. L.A. adopted “I love basketball” as its new slogan after Metta World Peace said it in during a game this week. It sums up the youthful enthusiasm that Walton has promoted since the Lakers hired him away from the Warriors this summer. “They’re in there laughing, having fun, and that’s the way you should feel like when you put that much effort into something,” Walton said. “That’s why it’s so much fun at the end of the day, because it wasn’t easy and guys are dead tired in there.”

There’s more news from the Pacific Division:

Walton has been showing clips of Golden State All-Star Draymond Green to Julius Randle, according to Mark Medina of The Orange County Register. Walton sees similarities in their games because of Randle’s playmaking abilities, athleticism and strength. The new coach calls Randle a “monster,” and the third-year forward has responded with 13.8 points and 8.3 rebounds through the season’s first six games while shooting 59.3% from the field. “He brings a lot of energy and talks a lot. It brings energy for the guys,” Brandon Ingram said of Randle. “He’s a competitor and is not scared of anyone on the court. When he gets in between the lines, it’s us against everyone else.”
Kevin Durant acknowledges “the ghost of your past” that was hanging over his first meeting with the Thunder, but tells Michael Lee of The Vertical that disappeared quickly once Thursday’s game began. Durant posted a season-high 39 points in the blowout of his former team. There were few confrontations, other than some obvious trash talking with backup center Enes Kanter, who took some shots at Durant on Twitter after he signed with Golden State. Durant and OKC star Russell Westbrook barely had any interaction. “It’s something I’m never going to forget. Something that’s never going to go away,” Durant said of his time in Oklahoma City. “I’m just trying to move forward, look forward, but also realize how important the past was and that formed me into who I am today. I’m not throwing that part of my life in the trash. But now I’m on to something new, trying to keep growing in this situation, trying to keep getting better overall, as a basketball player, man, everything. Just keep moving forward, that’s the most important thing in my life.”
The Kings added a group of veteran free agents over the offseason, but they’re still losing games because of rookie-type errors, writes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. “The [mistakes] that are self-inflicted are the worst ones,” said new coach Dave Joerger. “What I told them is we’re not a young, young team. We should know better. Veterans or guys that are mid-veterans, we should make some smarter plays.”

Thunder Notes: Grant, Westbrook, Durant, Oladipo

November 2nd, 2016 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jerami Grant may be the new guy in the Thunder locker room, but he has a lot of connections already, writes Erik Horne of The Oklahoman. Grant has been friends with guard Victor Oladipo since middle school, and he played for Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan for two years on the Under-19 USA Basketball team. Grant, who was traded from Philadelphia to OKC on Tuesday, is familiar with the area because his father, Harvey, played college ball at Oklahoma. “I love the state. I love the city,” Jerami Grant said. “I definitely have a good feel for the area.”

There’s more out of Oklahoma City:

The strong personalities of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook were destined to doom their relationship, Horne contends in a separate piece. The former teammates will meet for the first time Thursday night when the Thunder travel to Golden State to face Durant’s new team. Many observers felt it was a slight when Durant sent a text to Westbrook to inform him that he was signing with the Warriors, and they haven’t discussed the situation since Durant announced his decision. “We’ve been together eight years,” Westbrook said. “You don’t throw that away. Obviously, he’s now with a new team. But we definitely will talk. Eventually. But, obviously, now we haven’t.”
There was little opportunity cost to giving extensions to Steven Adams and Oladipo, writes Michael Pina of Real GM. The deals cost OKC about $184MM, but the Thunder weren’t in position to get two better players at that price. The team needs to stay competitive to keep Westbrook from leaving in free agency in two years, so it made sense to spend the money to keep two important players in place. The only downside is that Oklahoma City can’t chase elite free agents next summer.
Giving $84MM to a player like Oladipo is the kind of deal that can backfire, warns Real GM’s Colin McGowan. Oladipo is a shooting guard without a dependable 3-point shot, McGowan writes, and he could create salary cap problems in Oklahoma City if he can’t blend his game with Westbrook’s.

Kevin Durant On Relationship With Russell Westbrook

November 1st, 2016 at 6:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kevin Durant and the Warriors are set to square off against Russell Westbrook and the Thunder on Thursday night, which will mark the first time the former teammates will face one another since Durant signed with Golden State during the offseason. The two players have exchanged verbal barbs during the preseason, though some of these comments may have been taken out of context. The Slim Reaper sat down with Sam Amick of USA Today and Anthony Slater of The Mercury News to try and clear the air and separate fact from fiction. Both articles are certainly worth a look, but here are some of the highlights:

On if it bothers him that all he and Westbrook accomplished together is forgotten while the focus is squarely on the pair’s perceived “beef” with one another:

“It just shows the way of the world right now. Like, a beef? Bro, I don’t beef with nobody. I’ve seen beefs go the wrong way. We’ve all seen it. The wrong way – real life wrong way, so you can’t say beef around me. I’m not into no basketball beef. Where me or Russ comes from [Seat Pleasant, Md. and Los Angeles, respectively], beef – you don’t just throw that word around like that. We have a miscommunication going on between a lot of people, a lot of assumptions – you can say that. But a beef? Nah, there ain’t no beef man. I’m living my life. He’s living his. He’s doing his job. I’m doing mine. It’s unnecessary that you have a poll about what they’re going to say when they see each other. That’s what little kids do at the lunch table at elementary school. Like, c’mon man. Everybody’s going to say I’m ranting or I need to shut up, but you’re asking me these questions so obviously I’m going to answer them as well as I can … I ain’t got no beef with nobody.”

On the complaints that all he did was text Westbrook, rather than talk to him about his decision to leave:

“Yeah, you know, I understand that. I understand that. That’s something me and him will talk about. I’m not saying I’m right. I’m not saying I did it the right way. I’m owning up to that. We’re not going to go through this in the media though. I’m not going to say I should’ve did this, should’ve did that. We’ll figure our differences out as men 1-on-1. He’s doing his job right now and he’s doing a helluva job. And I’m doing my job. Of course we’re not going to talk every day. But like I said, I don’t care what y’all say, fans in OKC, media, whoever. We’re going through a tough time right now in our relationship. But we’re brothers at the end of the day. When I say that, where I come from, I mean it. You know what I’m saying? Every time I got into it with the media [during my Thunder days] or whoever, it was never over me. It was always over someone I was riding with, my teammates or my coach. So that should tell you enough.”

On Kendrick Perkins‘ comments that he and Westbrook didn’t value each other enough during their time together:

“That’s bull****, too. I love Perk. I respect Perk. But that’s his opinion. He wasn’t there the last two years, or the last year-and-a-half. We valued each other. I went out of my way during games, ‘Throw it down there to Russ, get a basket!’ He went out of his way to toss it back to me for dunks. We valued each other. I chose a different path. I chose to go somewhere else and that has nothing to do with Russell or how we were on the court. Nah. I just chose to go a different way.”

On if he expects to be friends with Westbrook in the future:

“This basketball [expletive] is fake, man. It’s not real life. I love it. I go to work every day. I work hard every day. But when you’re talking about off the court stuff, that [expletive] is not real. What would I look like being mad at somebody for 20 years? Or having a feud with anyone for 20 years? Hell yeah, if I’m getting married, he’s getting an invite. If I go to the Hall of Fame, he’s getting an invite. Even if he don’t accept it. Basketball beef, I’m not on that. Where I come from, we don’t play around with that. So I’m not into that basketball beef. When we’re on the court, of course we’re going to compete. He’s going to come at us, I’m going to come at them. Their whole team going to come at us and vice versa. But nothing more. And I don’t expect nothing less. But outside the court, all this other stuff, c’mon man. What we talking about? Don’t come to me trying to have us feuding, or any NBA player for that matter. Between the lines, I’m going to do me and they’re going to do them. Off the court, I don’t have that much energy to be wasting beefing with anybody. If you don’t like me, you got an opinion on what I did, I respect you. I got love for you. Because I know the grind, I know how hard it is to get here.”

On if Thursday night’s game will be emotional for him:

“Hell yeah it will be. Yeah, it’s going to be emotional, seeing people on the sideline that I haven’t seen in a while. Yeah, it’s definitely going to be emotional, but I’ve got a job to do. I’ve got to go out there and be me in between the lines. I’d be a fraud if I go out there and say, ‘No, it’s not going to mean nothing. It’s just another game.’ It’s not. It’s not another game.”

On if he has watched any Thunder games this season and his thoughts on Westbrook’s play thus far:

“Yeah, he’s controlling the game. Rebounding, scoring, assisting. First off, I’m so happy for Steven Adams and Victor Oladipo to have that opportunity. That type of money is going to last for generations, so I’m super happy for them. It’s great that they’re fulfilling a lifelong dream, first to play in the NBA but also financially being stable. First off, I’m happy for them. But I’m definitely watching. The stuff that I’ve been through with that team and that organization, that stuff doesn’t just go away. I said that in July when I made this decision. It don’t just go away, so I’ve got nothing but love for everybody there. Everybody. No matter how they feel about me, everybody on Oklahoma City, on that team, of course I watch them. I support them. I want them to do well.”

Pacific Notes: Price, Warren, Speights, Lakers

October 29th, 2016 at 9:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns have offered veteran guard Ronnie Price an assistant coaching position, tweets Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. Price was waived Monday by the Thunder even though he had a fully guaranteed two-year, $5MM contract. The 33-year-old played 62 games for Phoenix last season, starting 18 times. Suns coach Earl Watson confirmed the offer, but said Price isn’t ready to end his playing career.

There’s more news from the Pacific Division:

After two injury-filled half seasons, Suns small forward T.J. Warren is off to a strong start to 2016/17, writes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Warren scored 30 points Friday night in an overtime loss to the Thunder, going 8 for 8 on a variety of mid-range shots. “He gets buckets; ‘Tony Buckets’ is his name,” said teammate Eric Bledsoe. “He played not only great offense, but great defense too. He carried us.” The Suns exercised their 2017/18 option on Warren on Monday.
The Clippers are counting on big man Marreese Speights to boost their bench scoring and maybe even change the balance of power in the West, relays Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. The former Warrior signed a two-year, minimum-salary deal with L.A. over the summer. “(He’s) just another scorer,” said coach/executive Doc Rivers. “I don’t think anyone has a guy like that on their bench, for that matter. Golden State had one last year, and now he’s on our team. But there’s not a lot of fives that can do what Mo does as far as offensively shoot the three. There are some, but Mo also has a post game as well.” Speights has a player option on the second year of his new deal, so he could be in line for a raise if he has a productive season.
The Lakers hope to be more appealing to free agents by the time California natives Russell Westbrook and Paul George become available in two years, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Over the summer, L.A. was turned down for meetings by Kevin Durant, Mike Conley and Hassan Whiteside.

Greg Oden Admits Basketball Career Is Over

October 29th, 2016 at 4:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

With his basketball career behind him, former No. 1 pick Greg Oden is trying to move on to the next chapter of his life, writes Dana Hunsinger Benbow of The Indianapolis Star.

Oden has re-enrolled at Ohio State, where he dominated the Big 10 a decade ago. Now 28, he is a sophomore sports industry major and speaks about his basketball career in the past tense.

“I wish,” he said when asked about playing again. “It’s over.”

It’s a difficult end for the can’t-miss prospect whom the Trail Blazers drafted ahead of Kevin Durant in 2007. Oden was a 7-foot freshman who led the Buckeyes to the national championship game and was expected to quickly become one of the NBA’s top centers. Instead, he suffered through a series of injuries that limited him to 82 games in two seasons in Portland and 23 in a season with Miami.

Oden got a four-year, $22MM contract from the Blazers, but had to sit out his rookie season after undergoing microfracture surgery on his right knee. A foot injury took away the early part of the next season, which was later cut short by another knee injury.

After 21 games in 2009/10, Oden suffered a patella injury that required another microfracture surgery. A setback in rehab was followed by two more surgeries.

“Honestly, it was definitely unbelievable,” Oden saids. “With the third injury in a row, I was like, ‘Are you kidding me right now?'”

Oden tried to revive his basketball career last season in China, but he was cut in January. He made headlines for a domestic violence incident in 2014, but has mostly been out of the spotlight since leaving Miami. He became a father for the first time five weeks ago and is looking to move on from basketball.

“I wouldn’t say I regret anything,” Oden said. “I would say I just wish I did things better.”

Bogut Explains Decision To Join Mavs Over Rockets

October 28th, 2016 at 2:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Andrew Bogut wasn’t a free agent this summer, but he did have some agency when it came to deciding his new team. Multiple reports throughout the offseason indicated that the Warriors could have sent Bogut to a number of different teams in a salary-shedding trade to clear cap room for Kevin Durant. Golden State reportedly allowed the former first overall pick to pick his destination from a list of clubs that included the Mavericks, Rockets, and the Sixers, and Bogut chose Dallas.

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com, Bogut viewed the Mavericks as the best fit for him, and wanted to land with a team he could potentially re-sign with in 2017. The veteran center cited culture, coaching, and his agent’s familiarity with the Mavs as reasons why Dallas made more sense than Houston, per MacMahon.

“I’m not saying Houston has a bad culture by any means, but my agent (David Bauman) has a familiarity here,” Bogut said. “I’ve known a lot of players that have been pretty happy here when they were here. Richard Jefferson was one of them. And then the city — I like the city, so it all made sense.

“Rick Carlisle is also one of the best coaches in the league,” Bogut continued. “He knows how to get the best out of his players. He’s very, very smart and makes great adjustments. He’s a guy you want to play for. Obviously, [Mike] D’Antoni is a pretty good coach, too, but probably not suited for my style of play. I would have probably had to drop about 20 pounds to play in his system. They play a tough system, get up and down the court.”

Bogut, who is in a contract year, said back in September that he would have asked for a buyout if he ended up with a team besides the Mavs. However, he clarified those comments today, walking them back slightly by saying a buyout would have been “an option” and not necessarily something he would have forced. As MacMahon details, Bogut also said he was referring to “a different team, not Houston,” when he talked about that option. The Sixers were likely the club in question.

Pacific Notes: Jenkins, Suns, D. Green, Durant

October 21st, 2016 at 11:50am CST by Luke Adams

Suns guard John Jenkins is drawing some interest from Euroleague club Baskonia, per Spanish website Encestando (translation via Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype). Jenkins, who is battling an abdominal strain, is currently on a non-guaranteed contract, but it will become fully guaranteed if he remains on Phoenix’s roster beyond October 23, so potential international suitors – like Baskonia – could be preparing to pounce. According to Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic, Jenkins remains focused on the NBA for now, saying he hasn’t “thought about anything overseas.”

Here’s more from out of the Pacific:

A handful of interesting pieces and quotes have come out of Golden State recently, including a Draymond Green rant about the criticism Kevin Durant has received for deciding to sign with the Warriors. As Anthony Slater of The Bay Area News Group details (via Twitter), Green compared it to an Apple employee joining Google, suggesting that he doesn’t understand why athletes are criticized for prioritizing their happiness and making “business” decisions.
Meanwhile, Green was the subject of a fascinating feature from Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN.com, who explores the impact the volatile Warriors All-Star big man has on the locker room. While Green’s passion and emotion can be a positive in Golden State, it also has the potential to disrupt the team’s chemistry, as former Warriors center Marreese Speights reportedly told Strauss.
Finally, Paul Solotaroff of Rolling Stone has a feature story on Durant, who provides a handful of interesting quotes throughout the piece. Notably, the former Oklahoma City star expressed disappointment that the Thunder could never add that final veteran piece to get over the hump and win a title. “Where other teams went out and got that veteran guy, we kept getting younger,” Durant said. The former MVP also touched on his relationship with Russell Westbrook and the difficult phone call he made to Thunder GM Sam Presti and owner Clay Bennett to let them know he had chosen the Warriors.
As we noted earlier today, the Lakers reportedly have interest in retaining Metta World Peace as an assistant coach if he doesn’t make the team’s 15-man roster as a player.

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