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Hawks Notes: Howard, Koonin, Reserves

November 10th, 2016 at 5:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The addition of center Dwight Howard and a change in coach Mike Budenholzer’s approach has dramatically improved the Hawks’ offensive rebounding, KL Chouinard of the team’s website relays. The Hawks ranked at the bottom in the NBA in that category last season but sit No. 3 in the early going. Howard leads the league with a 4.9 offensive rebounding average, as the Hawks’ bigs have been given greater freedom to pursue those caroms, Chouinard adds. “I would call it a slight tweak or an emphasis, but not at the expense of transition defense,” Budenholzer told Chouinard. “[It’s] an emphasis of ‘Can we be better on the offensive boards? Can we take advantage of who we have and be more committed there?’ I think the guys have done a nice job of doing that and they have been rewarded.”

In other news regarding the Hawks:
  • CEO Steve Koonin signed a new three-year contract with the team this summer, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Koonin signed a contract with the previous ownership group in April 2014. Principal owner Tony Ressler, who purchased the team in June 2015, decided to keep Koonin on board. He oversees the team’s business, financial and strategic operations, Vivlamore adds.
  • The Hawks didn’t spend heavily on their reserves but that unit is paying big dividends, Vivlamore writes in a separate story. Swingman Thabo Sefolosha ($3.85MM salary this season) ranks second in the league in steals (2.6 per game), sixth in field goal percentage (60.0) and sixth in plus/minus rating (plus-78) despite averaging 25 minutes per game. Big man Mike Muscala ($1MM) leads the league in field goal percentage at 66%, while guards Malcolm Delaney ($2.5MM) and Tim Hardaway Jr. rank among the top 20 in plus/minus rating. “Everyone on this team can play, a guy in the starting five, a guy from the bench, everybody can contribute big time,” Sefolosha told Vivlamore. “Different night, different guy steps up.”
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Southeast Notes: Mahinmi, Hibbert, Hawks

October 14th, 2016 at 1:40pm CST by Luke Adams

After having started just 21 of his 367 career NBA games before last season, Ian Mahinmi was elevated to a more significant role by the Pacers, and started all 71 of the games he played for the team in 2015/16. Mahinmi parlayed his solid year in Indiana into one of the more impressive free agent contracts of the summer — Timofey Mozgov‘s four-year, $64MM deal with the Lakers drew plenty of headlines and criticism while Mahinmi’s identical contract with the Wizards flew under the radar, by comparison.

As Candace Buckner of The Washington Post details, Mahinmi’s lucrative new contract means the Wizards are expecting big things from their new center, who says he’s still getting comfortable in Washington. “I feel like I’m back with my first year with the Pacers,” Mahinmi said. “I didn’t know [many people], but… I had to [take it] one day at time and show that you can rely on me, that I’m going to be there for them on and off the court. This is how I feel right now. It’s not the easiest thing to deal with, but I’ve done it before, so I’m going to be all right.”

Here’s more from around the NBA’s Southeast division:

  • The Wizards made some major changes to their roster this summer, but ultimately they’ll still go as far as John Wall can take them, writes Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders.
  • The Hornets signed Roy Hibbert this offseason primarily for his defense and his ability to protect the rim, but the team has been pleasantly surprised by other areas of his game, says Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. “He can really pass, which I didn’t realize,” head coach Steve Clifford said. “He’s got a feel for the game. He knows how to play. And you see it more around here every day.”
  • Malcolm Delaney, who signed a two-year, $5MM deal with the Hawks in the offseason, isn’t a typical rookie, writes Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Delaney, who is 27 years old and spent the last five seasons playing overseas, tells Vivlamore that he feels like he belongs in the NBA.
  • In a separate AJC piece, Vivlamore notes that no roster cuts appear imminent for the Hawks, who aren’t in any rush to reduce their roster to 15 players.
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Southeast Notes: Wall, Beal, Hibbert, Magic

September 27th, 2016 at 10:21pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During the Wizards‘ media day on Monday, John Wall walked back his comments from August when he told reporters that he and teammate Bradley Beal “have a tendency to dislike each other on the court,” Candace Buckner of The Washington Post writes. “Whenever you have your two best players and they both want the game-winning shot and they want those types of plays, you’re going to have disagreements on the court. But other than that, we’re fine,” Wall told the media. “We talk. We’ve talked about it. We’re both two grown men. Everybody wants us to dislike each other. No, we don’t dislike each other. It’s just at times any team that has two great players [or] players who want to be great, we’re going to have disagreements from time to time.”

For his part, Beal said he never took offense at Wall’s comments, likening their relationship to that of brothers, Buckner notes. “Sometimes you don’t always get along with your bigger brother or your little brother but you love them at the end of the day. They’re family. That’s how John and I are,” Beal said. “We don’t always agree on the court. You’re not always going to agree with Coach [Scott] Brooks and something that he says but at the end of the day, we’re backcourt mates, we’re teammates, we’re the two leaders of the team. We’re going to help win us games.”

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

  • The Magic are hunting for a location for their new D-League affiliate to call home, with the two finalists being Kissimmee’s Silver Spurs Arena and The Lakeland Center, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel reports. The team expects to finalize its decision within the next month, Robbins adds. “We’re still in final discussions with both, and both have been asked to address some specific issues that we need answers for and direction on,” CEO Alex Martins said. “I believe that within the next 30 days we’ll have a decision made.”
  • Center Roy Hibbert is trying to salvage his career after signing a one-year, $5MM with the Hornets this offseason. Assistant coach Patrick Ewing has taken the big man under his wing, believing that much of Hibbert’s decline stems from him buying into the talk that the changes to the game have made him obsolete, Scott Fowler of The Charlotte Observer writes. “I think it’s probably mostly mental,” Ewing said of Hibbert. “I know everybody is talking about how the game has changed. I think he’s kind of bought into that.”
  • Hawks coach/executive Mike Budenholzer weighed in with his early impressions of rookies Malcolm Delaney, Taurean Prince and DeAndre Bembry, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays.
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Hawks Sign Malcolm Delaney

July 15th, 2016 at 4:07pm CST by Will Joseph

JULY 15: The Hawks have formally signed Delaney, the club announced today in a press release. Delaney’s salary has been reported as $2.5MM, though it’s unclear if that figure represents the total value of his contract, or his per-year salary.

JULY 3: The Hawks and combo guard Malcolm Delaney have agreed to a guaranteed two-year deal, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets.

The former Virginia Tech guard played overseas for the last several years and turned down a two-year, $5MM offer from Barcelona in the hopes of landing with an NBA team this year last month, reports Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.net. The Nets and Rockets were reportedly interested in Delaney in May, but neither team pulled the trigger on a deal.

Delaney went undrafted in 2011, and the closest he has come to NBA action was a summer league stint with the Pistons in 2012, though he was involved in discussions with the Rockets in 2014, but ended up heading overseas to play in Germany instead. In 58 combined games this past season, Delaney averaged 14.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 30.9 minutes per outing. His shooting line on the season was .409/.361/.871.

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Contract Details: Plumlee, Rodriguez, Vasquez

July 12th, 2016 at 10:36pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Here’s the latest contract details and notes from around the league:

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And-Ones: Dunn, Zubac, Delaney, Offseason

June 20th, 2016 at 2:58pm CST by Luke Adams

While Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram are the consensus top two prospects in this year’s draft class, in some order, ESPN’s Chad Ford is surprised by how much teams’ boards vary from Nos. 3 through 8. According to Ford, every player out of the second-tier group that includes Kris Dunn, Jamal Murray, Dragan Bender, Marquese Chriss, Jaylen Brown, and Buddy Hield ranks as high as No. 3 on at least one club’s board and as low as No. 8 on another board. Of those six players though, Dunn appears third on the most boards, per Ford.

Let’s round up a few more odds and ends from across the NBA…

  • The sports agency formerly known as Relativity Sports is being relaunched as Independent Sports and Entertainment, with billionaire Ron Burkle tabbing former Madison Square Garden CEO Hank Ratner to lead the company, reports Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg Sports. The group has retained several top agents and over 300 MLB, NFL, and NBA clients.
  • Croatian big man Ivica Zubac, who worked out for the Pistons today, has also gotten a look from the Grizzlies and Celtics, and has a workout on tap with the Raptors, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. According to Langlois, Zubac chose those four teams because they had shown the most interest in him.
  • Former Virginia Tech guard Malcolm Delaney, who has played overseas for the last several years, turned down a two-year, $5MM offer from Barcelona in the hopes of landing with an NBA team this year, reports Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.net. If Delaney can’t find the right NBA situation, he may end up in China, where he has a “huge offer” on the table, per Varlas.
  • In a piece for The Vertical, former Nets executive Bobby Marks examines how teams prepare for the draft, from setting a draft board to medical reviews to trade talks.
  • ESPN’s Kevin Pelton identifies five key offseason storylines to watch in the coming days and weeks.
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Nets, Rockets Interested In Malcolm Delaney

May 14th, 2016 at 10:50am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Nets and Rockets have both expressed interest in signing Euroleague combo guard Malcolm Delaney this offseason, Nikos Varlas of Eurohoops.com reports. Brooklyn is currently the more interested and aggressive suitor of the two, Varlas notes. Despite having multiple overseas offers on the table, Delaney’s preference is to join the NBA, as he told Varlas in a recent interview.

“It’s true that I’ve already had good offers from European clubs. Regarding Olympiacos and Panathinaikos that you mention, I know that it’s very likely they want to sign me. The NBA is the big priority and I’m not going to respond to any of the offers until the NBA matter clears up. If something happens and this prospect doesn’t work, then I’ll look at all the options and make a decision. I want to be closer to my family and enjoy basketball even more,” Delaney said.

“Last summer I was very close to signing with an NBA team. At the last second, something happened with the team’s salary cap and the deal wasn’t finalized,” the guard continued. “This year, I think my prospects are better… I’m going to wait for the NBA even if I have to risk losing offers from Europe. There is also China, a market that I view seriously, because it gives me the option to play a few months with a very good contract and then be available either for the Euroleague or the NBA.”

Delaney went undrafted out of Virginia Tech in 2011, and the closest he has come to NBA action was a summer league stint with the Pistons in 2012, though he was involved in discussions with the Rockets in 2014, but ended up heading overseas to play in Germany instead. In 58 combined games this past season, Delaney averaged 14.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 30.9 minutes per outing. His shooting line on the season was .409/.361/.871.

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New York Notes: Conley, Rambis, McCullough

May 8th, 2016 at 1:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Nets will be shopping for a point guard this summer and may have a better shot at landing Mike Conley now that coach Dave Joerger has been fired in Memphis, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Conley, who averaged 15.3 points and 6.1 assists this season and led the NBA in assists-to-turnovers ratio, has said he wants to see how the Grizzlies’ offseason plays out before deciding to re-sign.

Lewis foresees a point guard shakeup in Brooklyn even if the Nets can’t lure Conley. He expects Jarrett Jack, who started 32 games before tearing his ACL, to be released, allowing the Nets to save all but $500K of his $6.3MM salary. Shane Larkin has a June 29th deadline to decide whether to exercise a $1.5MM option for next season. New coach Kenny Atkinson has a reputation for developing point guards and worked closely with Jeremy Lin when both were with the Knicks. Lin could be an option if he opts out of a deal with Charlotte that would pay him only slightly more than $2.2MM. Lewis writes that Rajon Rondo, Brandon Jennings, Ty Lawson, Seth Curry and Jordan Clarkson could be other targets, along with overseas players such as Milos Teodosic, Nando De Colo, Malcolm Delaney and Sergio Rodriguez.

There’s more out of New York:

  • The Knicks also have interest in Conley and might see their chances improving because of the events in Memphis, relays Marc Berman of The New York Post. That’s especially true if GM Chris Wallace, a huge supporter of Conley, leaves the Grizzlies as well, Berman writes.
  • Knicks president Phil Jackson may be repaying Kurt Rambis after costing him the head coaching job with the Lakers 17 years ago, Berman writes in a separate story. Rambis took over on the Lakers’ bench after Del Harris was fired in 1999 and expected to be named head coach after the season ended. However, late owner Jerry Buss hired Jackson, and Rambis’ coaching career was put on hold. Now the interim coach with the Knicks, Rambis is believed to be Jackson’s choice to lead the team next season.
  • Nets rookie Chris McCullough showed a lot of promise late in the season, but he will probably be brought along slowly next year, according to NetsDaily. McCullough, the 29th pick in last year’s draft, missed most of the season while recovering from an ACL tear he suffered at Syracuse. A 6’11” power forward with an impressive vertical leap and 3-point range, McCullough gives Brooklyn hope for the future, but the author speculates that Atkinson will phase him in gradually and may even send the 21-year-old to the team’s new D-League team for occasional seasoning.
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And-Ones: Carr, Jackson, Lakers, Sixers

April 20th, 2014 at 9:06pm CST by Zachary Links

Former high school standout Aquille Carr has officially declared for the 2014 draft, his agent tells Adam Zagoria of SNY (on Twitter).  Agent Joshua Wildes of Hazan Sports Management told Hoops Rumors via email that “Aquille is excited about this next chapter in his career and looks forward to fulfilling his dream.”  The 5’6″ guard, who turned down a scholarship offer from Seton Hall to pursue overseas opportunities, is not featured on DraftExpress’ 2014 mock. Here’s tonight’s look around the Association..

  • According to an NBA source, new president Phil Jackson has talked recently about his disappointment in some of the Knicks’ conditioning — or lack thereof — this year, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.  It’s unclear which players Jackson was talking about, though J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert were coming off of offseason surgery and coach Mike Woodson mentioned that Shumpert was dealing with minor injuries throughout camp, which may have hindered him early on.
  • With the salary cap expected to rise to $63.2MM in 2014/15, Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times looks at the decisions facing the Lakers this offseason.  Waiving and stretching Steve Nash‘s salary would spread his salary over the next three seasons, reducing the Lakers spending power for 2015/16, when players like Kevin Love, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Rajon Rondo may be available, and 2016/17, when Kevin Durant could be a free agent.
  • The Sixers managed to have a remarkably bad season in 2013/14, but now comes the tricky part for GM Sam Hinkie, writes Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Philly figures to have two top ten picks in this year’s draft and it’ll be up to Hinkie & Co. to choose wisely.
  • Sam Amico of FOX Sports (on Twitter) agreed with a follower who says that the Bobcats never should have taken Michael Kidd-Gilchrist at No. 2 last year since he’s a perimeter player in today’s NBA who can’t shoot.   However, he can’t fault them too much (link) since several teams were trying to trade up to get him.
  • Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype spoke with Euroleague standout Malcolm Delaney about his opportunity to sign with the Rockets earlier this year.  Houston wanted to sign Delaney but FC Bayern, who was about to begin a playoff run, declined to let him out of his contract.  The 25-year-old says he’s not bitter towards the German club and hopes to get another NBA opportunity this summer.
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Western Notes: Adelman, Barnes, Rockets

April 5th, 2014 at 7:40pm CST by Cray Allred

Wolves coach Rick Adelman spoke to reporters including Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune on Minnesota’s future, but didn’t include himself as part of the ongoing decision-making (Twitter link). “For the most part we’re still a pretty young team and the success of this franchise going forward is who else can they add,” said Adelman, who many believe will not be back to coach next year. Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer and Zgoda tweeted back and forth, speculating that Adelman’s quote was a tacit admission that he wouldn’t be a part of the Wolves future (Twitter links). Here’s more from out West:

  • Bob Finnan of The News-Herald says there is growing sentiment that the Warriors will look to trade away Harrison Barnes this offseason.
  • Marc Stein of ESPN.com says that the Rockets reached out to point guard Malcolm Delaney to see if bringing him in from overseas this late in the season was feasible. Stein first reported that the Rockets had interest in Delaney, but the news that Patrick Beverley should return for the playoffs has Houston brass leaning against a play for Delaney.
  • Stein says the Rockets believe in Sergio Llull as an NBA rotation piece, but that there are major barriers to bringing him in from overseas anytime soon, including Llull’s apparent disinterest in joining the NBA, where the Rockets own his rights.
  • Erik Murphy‘s former Bulls teammates are very happy he was claimed by the Jazz, per a tweet from K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. “He works too hard,” said Taj Gibson, who had positive things to say about Murphy at the time of his release as well.
  • Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey shared what he saw in Murphy to Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). “Big guys who can step out and shoot can be complementary to our group. And Erik is a super shooter,” said Lindsey.
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