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Mavs Notes: Curry, Noel, Hammons, Harris, Cuban

April 14th, 2017 at 4:36pm CST by Milo Taibi

On the heels of a 33-49 season, the Mavericks will focus on improving their roster via free agency and the draft. Eddie Sefko of Dallas Morning News suggested two veteran FAs to provide an immediate boost: Serge Ibaka and J.J. Redick. Sefko explains that Ibaka is a “big-time rebounder” who is still relatively young, while Redick would help shore up the team’s mediocre shooting.

Sefko cautions against hoping for a point guard improvement through the draft. Unless the Mavs “get lucky” and secure one of the top two picks, they’re unlikely to obtain a top-shelf guard. In the event Dallas winds up with the 8, 9, or 10 pick, Sefko cites Jonathan Isaac, Miles Bridges, and Lauri Markkanen as potential fits.

More from Dallas…

  • Seth Curry, who missed the season’s final seven games due to a left shoulder injury, hopes to avoid undergoing surgery over the offseason. “It’s still a possibility, but I don’t think it’s necessary at this point,” Curry told Tim MacMahon of ESPN.
  • Former Purdue Boilermaker A.J. Hammons got his feet wet in the NBA this past season, scoring 43 points with 36 rebounds over 22 games. While Hammons’ contract is guaranteed over the next two seasons, Eddie Sefko of Dallas Morning News is skeptical of his role on the team in 2017/18. “I like the big guy, but I haven’t seen a passion for wanting to improve,” Sefko writes. “He loves to sit out there and launch jump shots. But I think his calling in this league has to be as a strong rebounder and rim protector. My bottom line: doubtful that he is here next season.”
  • While he appears set to enter the market as a restricted free agent, Nerlens Noel‘s recent remarks to Brad Townsend of Dallas Morning News imply he’d like another season in Dallas. “I love Dallas,” Noel said. “In my short time here, I’ve really enjoyed it. With the pieces that we have, and the opportunities we’ll be seeing in the near-future, I think there’s a lot to be excited for.” 
  • While Devin Harris isn’t a lock to start next season with Dallas, one thing is certain: the 34-year-old isn’t retiring. “Definitely not retiring,” Harris told Adam Grosbard of Dallas Morning News. The Mavs are unsure whether they will exercise Harris’ $4.4MM option for 2017/18. Harris averaged 16/7 minutes in 2016/17; the lowest total since his rookie season. “Ball’s in their court. I just let the chips fall where they may and try to make the best decision possible with the information that I have.”
  • In a 109-91 loss to the Nuggets- the Mavs’ penultimate game of the season- coach Rick Carlisle gave six players 25-years-old or younger significant playing time. Mark Cuban spoke to Adam Grosbard of Dallas Morning News, explaining the strategy of giving younger players minutes down the stretch. “When we were playing for it, we obviously had some bad games but it’s obvious our young guys are getting better. And that’s all you can ask for,” Cuban said. Dirk Nowtizki seconded Cuban’s remarks, adding “It’s been fun to watch these kids.”
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Lauri Markkanen To Enter 2017 NBA Draft

March 30th, 2017 at 12:07pm CST by Luke Adams

Arizona power forward Lauri Markkanen will announce today that he has decided to leave school after his freshman year and enter the 2017 NBA draft, tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress. Evan Daniels of Scout.com confirms that Markkanen intends to stay in the draft pool and will hire an agent.

Markkanen, a native of Finland, is viewed as a probable lottery pick. The seven-footer comes in at No. 8 overall on the big boards at both DraftExpress and ESPN.com, and could be the first power forward to be selected in June. According to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, a late-season shooting slump negatively impacted Markkanen’s draft stock, but only slightly — he’s still a “near-lock” to be a top-10 pick.

In his first and only season as a Wildcat, Markkanen averaged 15.6 PPG and 7.2 RPG in 30.8 minutes per contest. He was also very efficient from the field, finishing the season with a .492/.423/.835 shooting line.

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Draft Notes: Williams, Kuzma, Wilder, Ball

March 21st, 2017 at 9:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Texas A&M freshman forward Robert Williams decided to remain in college because he wants to be the top pick, a source told Evan Daniels of Fox Sports and Scout.com (Twitter link). Williams also believes he’s not mature enough yet to enter the league, the tweet adds. Williams averaged 11.9 PPG, 8.2 RPG and 2.5 BPG during his freshman season for the Aggies. The 6’9” Williams was considered a late lottery pick, ranked as the 10th-best overall prospect by DraftExpress and 13th in Chad Ford’s top 100 at ESPN.com.

In other news involving the draft:

  • Utah forward Kyle Kuzma will enter the draft but won’t hire an agent, Kyle Goon of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Kuzma is ranked No. 73 among the top 100 prospects by DraftExpress and doesn’t make Ford’s top 100 list. The 6’9” Kuzma averaged 16.4 PPG and 9.3 RPG for the Utes in his junior season.
  • Western Michigan’s Thomas Wilder will also test the draft waters, Jeff Goodman of ESPN tweets. The 6’3” guard averaged 19.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG and 3.8 APG in his junior season. He is not rated among the top 100 by either DraftExpress or Ford.
  • Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado and Khadeen Carrington will also enter the draft without hiring agents, Jon Rothstein of FanRagSports.com reports. Delgado, a 6’10” junior forward, averaged 15.2 PPG and 13.1 RPG this past season while Carrington, a 6’4” junior guard, averaged 17.1 PPG. Neither is considered a top 100 prospect.
  • Former Virginia and Memphis forward Austin Nichols has declared for the draft and hired an agent, according to Evan Daniels of Scout.com. The 6’9” Nichols played two seasons at Memphis, sat out a year, then played one game for the Cavaliers before he was dismissed from the team.
  • UCLA freshman point guard Lonzo Ball and Kansas freshman small forward Josh Jackson have solidified their status as two of the three top prospects with their performances in the NCAA tournament, Ford writes in a stock watch column. Arizona freshman forward Lauri Markkanen and Michigan State freshman forward Miles Bridges are among the players who have improved their draft stock during the first two rounds of the tournament, according to Ford. Villanova senior guard Josh Hart and Duke sophomore guard Luke Kennard are among the players that Ford believes hurt their draft status with subpar tournament outings.
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