Malik Beasley Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Notes: Harris, Jackson, Beasley

May 13th, 2016 at 7:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons executive/coach Stan Van Gundy said he considers the team’s trade deadline acquisition of combo forward Tobias Harris from the Magic better than signing a big name free agent this summer, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com relays. “The question for us was: He’s 23 years old with a contract that is descending over the next couple years, and can we do better than that in free agency? And for us, the answer was, ‘Not even close.’” Van Gundy told Lowe. “It’s a bird in the hand. We’re not desperate to get a player, and we don’t have to overpay to just meet the [salary floor]. We got a good, young player locked in for the next three years. A lot of people want shorter contracts. For us, young players on longer contracts is a good way to go.”

Here’s more from out of the NBA’s Central Division:

The Bucks have interviewed Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Malik Beasley (Florida State) and Deyonta Davis (Michigan State) at the NBA Draft combine this week, Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times relays (via Twitter).
Jackson is also scheduled to sit down with representatives from the Bulls this weekend, with the player adding that he believes Chicago will look to select a guard in the first round this June, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago tweets.
The Pistons interviewed Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV) and Caris LeVert (Michigan), Keith Langlois of NBA.com notes (Twitter links). LeVert is expected to remain in a walking boot for another month as he recovers from a lower left leg injury and won’t be able to work out for teams leading up to the draft, Rod Beard of The Detroit News tweets.
Other players interviewed this week by the Pistons include: Beasley, Josh Hart (Villanova), Malik Newman (Mississippi State), Jake Layman (Maryland), Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt) and Tyler Ulis (Kentucky), David Mayo of MLive tweets.
Maryland sophomore point guard Melo Trimble has workouts scheduled for next week with the Bucks, Pacers and Sixers, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays (on Twitter).

Central Notes: Bird, Swanigan, Whitehead, Dunn

May 12th, 2016 at 6:39pm CST by Arthur Hill

Larry Bird hasn’t started his search to replace fired head coach Frank Vogel, relays Candace Buckner of The Indianapolis Star. The Pacers‘ president of basketball operations, who spent several hours watching watching five-on-five competitions today at the draft combine, said he has not talked to agents for any prospective coaches. “I got a list of guys and I’m just putting it together,” Bird said. Vogel, who was fired last week, has talked to the Rockets about their open head coaching spot, but no formal interview has been scheduled. The Pacers, who hold the No. 20 pick in next month’s draft, have conducted interviews with several players and will start workouts next week.

There’s more news from the Central Division:

One of those players the Pacers interviewed is Purdue freshman power forward Caleb Swanigan, according to a tweet from Buckner. Swanigan says he will hold a predraft workout with Indiana.
Seton Hall sophomore point guard Isaiah Whitehead has interviewed with the Bulls and Pacers, tweets Zach Braziller of The New York Post.
The Pacers also talked to Indiana junior small forward Troy Williams, according to Nathan Baird of The Lafayette Journal & Courier (Twitter link).
The Bulls interviewed Providence sophomore point guard Kris Dunn, according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link). Unless they get really lucky in the lottery, the Bulls would have to make a deal to rise into Dunn’s expected draft range. Chicago currently sits at pick No. 14.
Kentucky sophomore point guard Tyler Ulis told Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that he talked to the Pistons among nine team interviews (Twitter link).
Notre Dame junior point guard Demetrius Jackson also met with the Pistons today, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News.
The Pistons interviewed Florida State freshman shooting guard Malik Beasley, Beard tweets. Coach/executive Stan Van Gundy talked about toughness and what role Beasley might have in Detroit.
The Pistons also talked to Vanderbilt sophomore point guard Wade Baldwin, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com (Twitter link). Baldwin had an interview with the Bucks as well, tweets Matt Velazquez of The Journal Sentinel.
Michigan State freshman big man Deyonta Davis also met with the Bucks, according to Beard (Twitter link).
Virginia senior shooting guard Malcolm Brogdon interviewed with the Bucks, tweets Charles F. Garnder of The Journal-Sentinel. “I’m 23; I’m one of the oldest guys in the draft,” Brogdon said. “So I hope I come off as mature and experienced.” (Twitter link).
The Bucks also met with Washington freshman power forward Marquese Chriss, Velazquez tweets. Coach Jason Kidd was in the meeting as the team asked Chriss to write down his “personal pillars.”

Atlantic Notes: Dunn, Ulis, Jackson

May 12th, 2016 at 5:13pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite the reports that interim coach Kurt Rambis is team president Phil Jackson‘s choice to lead the Knicks next season, league sources have informed Ken Berger of CBSSports.com that the competition for the post is still wide open. It’s also notable that Rambis is in attendance at the scouting combine this week but Jackson is not in Chicago for the event, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays. “When Larry Bird took over for the Pacers, he was the first guy in the gym in Chicago,” a league executive told Zagoria. “Jerry West was always in the gym. Those guys are not on ranches in Montana. Phil obviously doesn’t worry or care about that.” While the Knicks don’t currently own a pick in this year’s NBA Draft, the team could look to acquire one from another team.

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The Celtics interviewed Duke freshman forward Brandon Ingram today, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com relays. Boston also interviewed Syracuse freshman swingman Malachi Richardson, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (via Twitter).
The Sixers interviewed Florida State freshman shooting guard Malik Beasley, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer relays (via Twitter). The swingman noted that Philadelphia intends to bring him in for a workout, Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com adds (Twitter links). The team has an interview scheduled for Friday with Michigan State freshman big man Deyonta Davis, Camerato also reports.
The Sixers met with Clemson junior small forward Jaron Blossomgame on Wednesday and have a workout scheduled with him on May 20th, Camerato tweets. Philly also met with former Weber State power forward Joel Bolomboy today, Camerato notes. Also sitting down with team personnel today were Providence junior point guard Kris Dunn and Notre Dame’s Demetrius Jackson, Camerato adds (Twitter links).
North Carolina State point guard Cat Barber has a workout scheduled with the Sixers on Monday, Pompey relays (on Twitter).
Sixers GM Bryan Colangelo indicated that the team is open to trading away some of its draft picks this year in exchange for veteran players, Jake Fischer of Liberty Ballers tweets. “You can only have so many developing players,” Colangelo told Andy Katz of ESPN. “We may be in play with some of those picks.“
The Sixers met with Kentucky sophomore point guard Tyler Ulis today and intend to bring him in for a workout in the near future, Camerato tweets.
Vanderbilt sophomore point guard Wade Baldwin interviewed with the Celtics today, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe tweets, Baldwin also met with the Sixers, Camerato notes (on Twitter).
Former Syracuse swingman Michael Gbinije will interview with the Sixers on Friday or Saturday, Pompey relays (via Twitter). Gbinije is also scheduled to meet with the Knicks, Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal tweets.

And-Ones: Seattle, Cavs, Whiteside, Draft

May 3rd, 2016 at 3:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Seattle City Council dealt a major blow to hopes that the city will be the home of an NBA team any time soon, voting 5-4 against a measure that would have given developer Chris Hansen control of an alley on the spot where he’s seeking to build an arena, reports Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times. The chances of a revival for the SuperSonics within the near future have seemed remote anyway, though we invited your discussion on the idea of expansion in Monday’s Community Shootaround. See more from around the NBA:

Trade acquisition Channing Frye has given the Cavaliers a “breath of fresh air,” GM David Griffin told Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal amid an interview last week in which he disputes the idea of chemistry problems in the locker room. Frye has seen sharply limited playing time in the postseason but had his best game of the playoffs Monday, scoring eight points in nine minutes of action. “He’s been a huge, huge plus,” Griffin said. “We needed someone who was truly joyful to be part of the process to remind everybody how blessed we are to be together.”
Griffin also lauded soon-to-be free agent James Jones for his leadership, calling him a special player, Ridenour notes.
Hassan Whiteside doesn’t harbor ill feelings toward the Raptors for declining to bring him to training camp after he played for Toronto’s summer league team in 2014, believing the July stint, which was his first brush with the NBA in two years, led to other opportunities that helped revive his career months later, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. The Heat center is No. 10 in our latest 2016 Free Agent Power Rankings.
Draft prospects Brice Johnson, Malik Beasley, A.J. Hammons, Fred VanVleet, Kaleb Tarczewski and Rasheed Sulaimon have all signed with Andy Miller’s ASM Sports agency, as Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com relays (Twitter link).
Spanish small forward Santiago Yusta is officially eligible for this year’s draft despite his absence from the list of early entrants the NBA sent out last week, the league announced. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress pegs the 6’7″ 18-year-old as the 32nd-best overseas prospect among those born in 1997.

Malik Beasley To Enter Draft

March 30th, 2016 at 7:52pm CST by Arthur Hill

MARCH 30th, 7:52pm: Beasley has hired ASM Sports to represent him, which would eliminate the opportunity for him to return to Florida State, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets.

MARCH 21st, 8:15pm: Florida State has announced that freshman Malik Beasley will enter the NBA draft, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. Goodman doesn’t believe Beasley is simply taking advantage of new regulations that allow players to work out for NBA teams without losing their eligibility, suggesting his ultimate decision may match up with that of fellow FSU freshman Dwayne Bacon Jr. (Twitter link).

A 6’4″ shooting guard, Beasley averaged 15.6 points and 5.3 rebounds per game for the Seminoles, whose season ended last week with a loss to Valparaiso in the NIT. ESPN draft specialist Chad Ford puts him “firmly on the first-round bubble” (Twitter link). Ford has Beasley listed 45th overall and eighth among shooting guards in his latest mock draft. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress puts Beasley 32nd on his list of the top 100 prospects.

Beasley would have been “foolish” not to enter the draft this year, tweets Mike Schmitz of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. In his evaluation of the 19-year-old, Schmitz says Beasley offers athleticism, shooting and slashing ability and is particularly dangerous in the open court. Question marks include his abilities as a shot creator, playmaker and defender.

And-Ones: Morris, Lawson, Wade, Beasley

March 22nd, 2016 at 4:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

It’s an awkward situation for the Morris twins these days, as Markieff Morris tries to lift the Wizards to a playoff spot while Marcus Morris makes the same effort for the Pistons, one of the teams standing in Washington’s path. Still, both agree that the Suns wronged them, as they tell Michael Lee of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Markieff Morris told Lee he never would have put pen to paper on the extension he signed in 2014 if he knew they would trade his brother, while Marcus Morris continued his criticism of the Suns for their failure to provide advance warning of the offseason swap. “Personally, I think he did a lot for Phoenix. He took a lot of sacrifices for Phoenix. For them to do such a thing, I feel like they backstabbed him,” Marcus Morris said about his brother. “I think if they had just reached out to him, reached out to both of us and said, ‘Listen, this is our direction. We don’t think this is going to work.’ We would understand, that’s what has to happen but by the fact that they didn’t do that, it made it worse. … He just didn’t want to be there. He didn’t feel the vibe.”

Phoenix traded Markieff Morris to Washington at the trade deadline, months after he demanded to be traded. See more from around the NBA:

Ty Lawson received one year of probation stemming from a guilty plea he submitted to charges related to his drunken driving arrest in January 2015, reports Tom McGhee of The Denver Post. It’s separate from the case involving a second DUI arrest that took place in July 2015. The NBA suspended Lawson, now with the Pacers, for a total of five games for both arrests earlier this season.
Dwyane Wade walked back the suggestion Pat Riley made that he might play until he’s 40, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, but it’s clear that the relationship between the Heat and the 34-year-old star is strong, and seemingly in much better shape than when Wade reportedly considered leaving Miami last summer. Wade instead signed a one-year, $20MM contract that will make him a free agent against this coming offseason. “It’s just at this point I’m not thinking about playing until 40, no way, no how, at this point,” Wade said. “But I’m 34, so I’m just thinking about each year, each year, and keeping going from there.
A number of NBA executives project Malik Beasley as a mid-first round pick in this year’s draft, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders tweets. The assessments of the executives Kennedy spoke with differ from a number of current predraft rankings, with ESPN’s Chad Ford listing Beasley at 45th overall in his latest mock draft and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress slotting Beasley 32nd on his list of the top 100 prospects.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.