Hoops Links: Lowry, Embiid, Antetokounmpo, Porzingis, Nicholson
On Sundays, we link to some of the very best work from around the basketball blogosphere. Do you have a link to a great basketball blog post – either your own or someone else’s – that you want to see featured on Hoops Rumors? Send it to us at HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here’s this week’s rundown:
- Brian Boake of Raptors Rapture wonders if Toronto GM Masai Ujiri will retain Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka at the end of the season.
- John Jarosik of The Hardwood Nation argues that despite their 19-39 record, this season should not be viewed as a disappointment for the Lakers.
- Kwame Fisher-Jones of The 76er Files states the case against Bryan Colangelo offering Joel Embiid a max extension, citing the big man’s injury history.
- Mark Suleymanov of Inquisitir Sports conducted a one-on-one with Metta World Peace.
- Kaiser Linderman of Deep(ish) Thoughts took an analytical look at T.J. McConnell‘s success.
- Adam Paris of Brew Hoop answered the question we’ve all been asking: can Giannis Antetokounmpo fly?
- Kristaps Porzingis gave Knicks fans a reason to cheer, Mike Cortez of Hardwood and Hollywood writes.
- Francis Adu of Ridiculous Upside detailed Alfonzo McKinnie’s ascension toward becoming an elite D-Leaguer.
- Bradley Beal was more deserving of Kevin Love‘s All-Star spot than Carmelo Anthony, Christopher Church of The Baltimore Wire argued.
- Fim Oshin of Bullets Forever outlined four ways the Wizards may be able to move Andrew Nicholson at the trade deadline.
Raptors Rumors: Ibaka, Gallinari, Gibson, Ross
The Raptors’ hold on a top-four seed in the Eastern Conference is tenuous, as the team has won just four of its lost 14 games to slip to 32-23, fourth in the East. While injuries have played a part in Toronto’s slump, the club could use some roster reinforcements, particularly at the power forward spot, where the Raptors have been on the lookout for a long-term solution in recent years.
Here’s the latest on the reigning Atlantic division champs:
- The Raptors have been “actively involved” in discussions for at least three power forwards, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News, who identifies Serge Ibaka, Danilo Gallinari, and Taj Gibson as potential targets. Ibaka and Gallinari have been linked to Toronto recently, but Gibson hasn’t been mentioned in many trade rumors this season. Back in July, a report indicated that the Raptors had been close to acquiring Gibson before Dwyane Wade agreed to join the Bulls.
- The Raptors are “playing hardball” in trade talks, per The Sporting News. A source tells Deveney that the club has resisted the idea of giving up Terrence Ross, and Deveney says Toronto also wants to keep Bruno Caboclo, who is a “project the team wants to complete itself.”
- According to Deveney, the Raptors are reluctant to give up substantial packages for players like Ibaka, Gallinari, and Gibson, who are all eligible for unrestricted free agency in the summer.
- Following the Raptors’ Sunday loss to the Pistons, Kyle Lowry aired his frustrations during a conversation with reporters. The star point guard suggested that things need to change in Toronto, and his comments were interpreted by many as a veiled criticism of head coach Dwane Casey. However, Lowry said today that he wasn’t directing his comments at anyone in particular, and Casey stressed that the club is sticking together through its rough patch (Twitter links via Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun and Josh Lewenberg of TSN).
Atlantic Notes: Lowry, Okafor, Knicks, Simmons
Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry expressed a desire for unspecified changes after the club squandered a double-digit, fourth-quarter lead to the Pistons on Sunday night, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. Lowry told Lewenberg that “Something gotta give, something gotta change” following the 102-101 home loss, adding that “I have an idea” what should change but wouldn’t disclose it publicly. Lowry, who can opt out and become a free agent this summer, added that “I’m starting to get worried” because “it’s not going the way we’re supposed to be going.” (Twitter links). Lowry’s comments reflect the feelings of backourt partner DeMar DeRozan, who said he would welcome some help for the stretch drive. The Raptors have been spinning their wheels lately, going 4-10 over the last 14 games while dropping to fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings. Their two best players are now putting the onus on the front office to make a bold move before the trade deadline. Lewenberg also tweets that it’s the first time this season that he’s sensed the locker room beginning to splinter.
In other developments around the Atlantic Division:
- Sixers forward Jahlil Okafor was not on the team plane during its flight to Charlotte, N.C., on Sunday, an indication that a trade could be imminent, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. A source told Pompey that a potential trade could not be finalized until Monday, when the league’s legal staff can review paperwork. The Pelicans, Bulls and Trail Blazers are apparently the potential trade partners for Okafor. The Nuggets and Sixers reportedly halted talks after Denver reached a trade agreement with the Blazers to acquire big man Mason Plumlee.
- The controversies swirling around the Knicks will make it more difficult for them to attract impact free agents, Al Iannazzone of Newsday argues. New York already struck out in its attempts to land top free agents in past summers and the circus-like atmosphere will only hinder its future efforts, especially since owner James Dolan seems committed to have team president Phil Jackson finish out his contract, Iannazzone continues. Rather than focusing on trying to trade Carmelo Anthony, Jackson should look to move pending free agents Derrick Rose and Brandon Jennings, as well as expendable big man Kyle O’Quinn, before the trade deadline, Iannazzone adds.
- Evaluating the pairing of Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid remains a goal for the Sixers this season, Jonathan Tannenwald of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays. GM Bryan Colangelo indicated in a radio interview that it would aid the front office in deciding which moves to make this offseason, Tannenwald adds. “If it does play out where they both play together, and we have a good sample size, a body of work to base some further decisions on, it certainly will help us as we move into the draft and into free agency this summer,” Colangelo told 97.5 The Fanatic.
Blazers Duo, Embiid Fail To Make All-Star Cut
Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley, the Blazers backcourt duo Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum and Jazz center Rudy Gobert were among the prominent players who failed to make the cut on the Western Conference All-Star reserve unit, which was unveiled on Thursday and relayed on the NBA’s Twitter feed. Joel Embiid, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony were some of the notable names who didn’t make the cut on the Eastern Conference squad. (Twitter links).
Russell Westbrook, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, DeMarcus Cousins, Marc Gasol, DeAndre Jordan and Gordon Hayward received the most votes by the conference’s coaches, who pick the reserves. Westbrook, of course, was the biggest snub among the All-Star starters as the fan voting, which counted for 50% toward the overall balloting, put him behind Stephen Curry and James Harden.
Paul George, Kevin Love, Kyle Lowry, Paul Millsap, Isaiah Thomas, Kemba Walker and John Wall were named the Eastern Conference’s All-Star reserves.
Did the coaches get it right or was there an obvious mistake on their part? Go to the comments section and weigh in.
And-Ones: All-Star Snubs, BIG3, Team USA
The starters for this year’s NBA All-Star Game were announced this week and, as always, people were quick to disagree with the players selected. Unique this year is the fact that fans don’t shoulder all of the blame. This year the fans accounted for just 50% of the vote, while the media accounted for 25% and players accounted for 25%.
There were plenty of hot takes about what should have happened, but none more memorable than Clippers head coach Doc Rivers‘ regarding the snub of Russell Westbrook. To ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, Rivers said: “Fake news. I am just shocked that fans don’t see the same things we see.”
Also among Westbrook supporters were Sam Amick of USA Today and Kevin Garnett.
“This might be the league’s all-time history snub right here,” Garnett said on his TV show Area 21. “Seriously. He has to be on the team, bruh.”
Another guard left out of the starting lineup was Kyle Lowry and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today made a case for him over either Kyrie Irving or DeMar DeRozan.
Lang Whitaker of NBA.com discussed the official list of starters.
There are more general headlines from around the league:
- Count Ricky Davis and Al Harrington among the retired players expected to sign on with the BIG3, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.
- With the trade deadline a month away, Keith Smith of RealGM explored the most tradeable contracts in the NBA. Draymond Green, for example, looks to be a bargain given the under-market deal he signed in 2015.
- A report at NBA.com implies that LeBron James could play for Team USA in the 2020 Olympics. The fact that Gregg Popovich will lead the program has had a significant impact. “It factors a lot,” James said. “I’ve said that before. He’s just a great mastermind of the game of basketball.”
Atlantic Notes: Okafor, Lowry, Lopez
Much has changed over the course of the first two and a half months of the season, writes John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Sixers are now faced with different circumstances than what they began the year with. Part-way through January, it appears as though Jahlil Okafor — and not Nerlens Noel — is the most likely to be traded.
Okafor, Smallwood writes, is an impressive big man and goes on to cite the 21-year-old’s All-Rookie team performance last year as one of the reasons why. Even in some recent performances, the center has shown that he’s a solid young player, perhaps capable of averaging 20 and 10 eventually. The emergence of Embiid as a reliable option at the five for the Sixers, has rendered Okafor’s services less necessary than they would be otherwise.
In order to take advantage of Okafor’s value, the Sixers should look to trade the big man in order to reconfigure the balance of their roster and Smallwood gives several examples of players that could theoretically come back to Philadelphia in a trade. Smallwood offers Jaylen Brown, Jordan Clarkson and Doug McDermott as three perimeters threats that could potentially be had in exchange for Okafor.
There’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- It’s too early to think about free agency, Kyle Lowry tells ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk, but for whatever it’s worth, the guard considers Toronto “home”. Currently under contract for $12MM with a player option for $12MM in 2017/18, Lowry could net a significant pay raise over the summer if he opts out. “When the time comes, then I will worry about [free agency],” says Lowry. “[The Raptors] will definitely will be an option.“
- The Nets have a decision on Brook Lopez to make prior to the trade deadline, but an injury to Jeremy Lin has made things more complicated, writes Seth Berkman of the New York Times. The franchise would ideally like to see how Lopez and Lin fare together before making a significant change but the tandem has been limited to just a handful of games healthy at the same time.
- Desperate for a positive development, the Knicks have considered playing Kristaps Porzingis at the five, writes Ian Begley of ESPN. “Sometimes it’s a chance you have to take, but we continue to look over that,” head coach Jeff Hornacek said. “We just need to mix it up maybe a little more.” Moving Porzingis to the center position would push Joakim Noah to the bench.
- We discussed the meeting between Phil Jackson and Carmelo Anthony earlier, but it’s worth adding here that Jackson specifically told the veteran forward he did not subscribe to the criticisms in the now infamous Charley Rosen article, says Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.
Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Lin, Sixers, Anthony
The Raptors have two very difficult decisions looming in their pursuit of the top spot in the Eastern Conference, Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post opines. They must decide whether to go all-in this season in their quest to knock off the Cavs, which would mean trading off some young pieces for another impact player, preferable a power forward, Bontemps continues. The Magic’s Serge Ibaka and Hawks’ Paul Millsap — forwards that the Raptors have pursued in the past and will become free agents this summer — would be logical targets, in Bontemps’ view. This summer, they’ll have to decide whether to offer point guard and impending free agent Kyle Lowry a max five-year deal worth over $200MM or risk seeing him walk. Lowry will attract numerous suitors but his age — he turns 31 this spring — could make a long-term commitment a risky investment, Bontemps adds.
In other news around the Atlantic Division:
- The Nets are taking a committee approach with point guard Jeremy Lin sidelined again by a hamstring injury, Brian Lewis of the New York Post reports. Coach Kenny Atkinson is rotating Randy Foye, rookie Isaiah Whitehead and Spencer Dinwiddie in Lin’s absence, while shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick is also taking a bigger role in the playmaking duties, Lewis continues. “I think it was ensemble,” Atkinson told Lewis and other media members. “That’s how we’re going to do it.”
- The Sixers’ frontcourt pairing of Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor has been a colossal failure defensively thus far, as Derek Bodner of Phillymag.com details. In six games since coach Brett Brown paired the two big men in the starting lineup, the Sixers have given up an average of 122.3 points per 100 possessions when they’re on the court. What’s more troubling, as Bodner notes, is that the poor defensive performances have come against sub-par offensive teams.
- Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek doesn’t believe Carmelo Anthony should have been ejected on Tuesday for swinging his forearm at the head of Hawks swingman Thabo Sefolosha, Marc Berman of the New York Post reports. Hornacek asserted that Sefolosha grabbed Anthony around the neck before the forearm swing, though Berman notes that was not apparent on replays while labeling Hornacek’s stance as bizarre. “I don’t blame [Anthony] for what happened, honestly,” Hornacek told Berman. “Watch the replay, watch the action. The guy had his arms wrapped around his neck. … What are you going to do? Just stand there or you going to get the guy off you? It’s a natural reaction.”
Atlantic Notes: Lowry, Nogueira, Anthony
Zach Lowe thinks that the Sixers will absolutely make a run at pending free agent Kyle Lowry this summer. The ESPN journalist spoke on his The Lowe Post podcast with Brian Windhorst Thursday, citing several reasons why the franchise could pursue the veteran Raptors point guard.
Lowry is from Philadelphia, Lowe mentions, and has played under ex-Raptors executive Bryan Colangelo previously. On top of that, the Sixers will have an exorbitant amount of cap space and could benefit from the services of a point guard should they ultimately decide to utilize Ben Simmons in ways other than as a traditional playmaker.
Worth noting is that Windhorst believes Cory Joseph to be a suitable replacement for the 30-year-old point guard while Lowe believes that such a drop off would be too much for the Raptors.
Also in the Atlantic Division:
- Raptors head coach Dwane Casey isn’t opposed to playing big men Jonas Valanciunas and Lucas Nogueira together, says Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun. Typically Nogueira has played the five but has turned heads with his energetic production this season. Casey believes Nogueira is capable of stretching out to the four.
- Former teammates are rallying around Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony this week, says Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders. The veteran was taken to task by former George Karl in an excerpt from his upcoming book. Former Nuggets players Kenyon Martin and J.R. Smith, who played with Anthony and under Karl in Denver, are among those vocal.
NBA D-League Assignments/Recalls: 12/19/16
Here are Monday’s D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
9:51pm:
- The Warriors have recalled Damian Jones from their D-League affiliate, says the team in a press release. The center posted 17 points and nine rebounds in his lone game with the Santa Cruz Warriors Sunday night.
3:20pm:
- The Raptors have sent Bruno Caboclo and Fred VanVleet back the D-League, the team announced today (via Twitter). Neither player has seen much action this season for Toronto, but with Cory Joseph and Delon Wright on the shelf, VanVleet was Kyle Lowry‘s backup on Sunday and played a career-high 23 minutes.
- The Jazz have recalled rookie forward Joel Bolomboy from the Salt Lake City Stars, according to a team release. During his most recent game with Utah’s D-League affiliate over the weekend, Bolomboy helped lead the team to a win with 28 points and 19 rebounds.
- The Magic have recalled C.J. Wilcox and Stephen Zimmerman from their D-League affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Both players were sent down on December 15.
Atlantic Notes: Bennett, Lowry, Bradley
Anthony Bennett is hoping to salvage his NBA career with the Nets this season. In an interview with Oliver Maroney of Basketball Insiders, Bennett addressed his individual goals for the season, telling the scribe, “I just want to come in and become a part of the Nets family. My work ethic is something that I want to speak for itself. I want to show my ability to lead by example, a skill I got through playing with Team Canada. This year, one of my goals is to have fun with the game again. And I want to represent the city of Brooklyn and the Brooklyn Nets the best I can on and off the court.”
In response to a question about why he believed Brooklyn would be a good fit for him, Bennett told Maroney, “Our mix of youth and experience is something that makes us unique. We have good chemistry, everybody seems to be unselfish and is playing the game the right way. I just want to fit in the best I can with the team, starting with my defense and rebounding. My offensive game will be an extension of those things.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony was reportedly never a fan of Jeremy Lin‘s when the two were teammates. When asked about Lin potentially becoming the face of the Nets franchise, ‘Melo may have taken a veiled shot at the point guard, Ian Begley of ESPN.com writes. “What do I think about it? … He is the face of that franchise, believe it or not. He came up, they paid him and now the ball is in his hands,” Anthony said. “So now he’s one of the franchise players over there. What do you want me to say about that? I’m happy for him, excited for him to see how it’s going to work out, turn out over there.” The wording in question is the “believe it or not” portion of the statement, Begley adds. It should be noted that during the same interview, Anthony said that he’d love to have Line back with the Knicks.
- Given the current economics around the NBA, it should come as no surprise that Kyle Lowry intends to opt out of his deal with the Raptors at season’s end, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. The scribe also classifies the point guard as a “young 30-years-old,” given that he was a reserve for a large portion of his career.
- Avery Bradley has made his name in the NBA as a tenacious defender, but the Celtics guard wants to change the perception that he’s limited offensively, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com relays. “I want people to see me as a two-way player,” said Bradley. “A defensive player and an offensive player. It’s fun, man. That’s what the game is supposed to be about: always wanting to get better, be the best you can be. I hold myself to that every single summer, every single year. I’m just trying to improve. I love the game of basketball so much. I have a lot of goals for myself. I want to make sure I compete every single day.“