Markelle Fultz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Russell, Fultz, Chriss

June 16th, 2017 at 9:03pm CST by Austin Kent

Eleven-time NBA champion Bill Russell will be honored with the NBA’s first ever Lifetime Achievement Award, an Associated Press report states. The Hall of Fame center will be presented with the award during the NBA’s award show on June 26.

With five NBA MVPs to his name, the Celtics Hall of Famer is a living legend with an endless resume of historic achievements. Not only has Russell remained a visible representative of the Boston franchise and league in general’s sustained success, he lays claim to the title of being the first player to win an NBA title, an NCAA crown and an Olympic gold medal.

Per the Associated Press, Russell was also the first African American to coach a team in one of the major professional sports leagues.

Across 13 NBA seasons as a player, Russell averaged 15.1 points, 22.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.

There’s more from around the NBA:

Quickly swept up in the excitement of a possible trade between the Sixers and Celtics is the fact that Markelle Fultz signed a multiyear shoe deal with Nike. Fultz announced the deal over Twitter.
Both Suns forward Marquese Chriss and Nuggets guard Will Barton will sign with Aaron Goodwin of Goodwin Sports, Chris Haynes of ESPN tweets.
Although he had a meeting with Maccabi Tel Aviv, former Cavaliers head coach David Blatt will remain with his current Turkish League team Darussafka Dogus next season, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia writes.
Former Knicks guard Pablo Prigioni will be the new head coach of Liga ACB club Saski Baskonia, Dario Destri of Sportando relays. Prigioni had recently been linked to an assistant coaching position with New York.
The Clippers have hosted 2012 second-round pick Tornike Shengelia for a three-day workout, international basketball reporter David Pick tweets. Shengelia last saw action with the Nets and Bulls as a 23-year-old during the 2013/14 campaign. He currently plays for Saski Baskonia in Spain.

Sixers, Celtics In ‘Serious Talks’ About No. 1 Pick

June 16th, 2017 at 4:26pm CST by Austin Kent

4:26pm: The discussions between Philadelphia and Boston are so serious that expected first-overall pick Markelle Fultz could be on his way to meet with the Sixers as early as Saturday, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets.

Both ESPN’s Marc Stein and Wojnarowski (below) have now said explicitly that the deal being negotiated would include a package of Philly draft picks including the No. 3 pick this year.

Such a trade would make Fultz a realistic option for the Sixers, while potentially putting Josh Jackson in line to fall to Boston. Just yesterday we wrote about a connection between the Kansas prospect and the C’s.

4:15pm: The Sixers and Celtics have had serious talks involving the No. 1 pick, Marc Stein of ESPN tweets. Per Zach Lowe of ESPN – who Stein cites in the original tweet – Boston would receive several picks but no players from Philly, leaving Lowe to infer that the No. 3 pick would be involved in the package.

The story is corroborated by Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who adds that the Sixers are currently awaiting medical information on Fultz. Wojnarowski then goes on to tweet that a source tells him Boston would acquire the No. 3 pick in a package that would also include a future first from Philadelphia.

Trading down from No. 1 to No. 3 would free up $1.4MM worth of cap space for the Celtics, says Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders, no small consideration given their expected free agency pursuits of Blake Griffin and Gordon Hayward.

Draft Notes: Josh Jackson, Fultz, Smith Jr., Heat

June 14th, 2017 at 10:38pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kansas forward Josh Jackson paid a visit to Kings today, but didn’t go through a workout, tweets Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. Jackson is expected to be one of the first players selected next week and probably won’t be around for Sacramento’s pick at No. 5. There have been rumors that the Kings would like to move up, but a report today said they aren’t willing to give the Sixers the fifth and 10th picks to get No. 3.

There’s more from a full day of draft workouts:

Washington’s Markelle Fultz, projected as the top pick, has decided not to visit the Kings, according to Voisin (Twitter link).
Paolo Uggetti of The Ringer examines which top three team might have given Jackson a guarantee. A report Monday by John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 suggested that either the Celtics, Lakers or Sixers has promised to take Jackson if he’s still on the board when their pick comes up. Jackson canceled a workout this week with Boston and agreed to a second session in L.A.
Along with a second workout for Lonzo Ball, the Lakers will audition six other players on Friday, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Their names have not been released.
North Carolina State’s Dennis Smith Jr. may be in danger of slipping on draft night, tweets Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. However, some members of Philadelphia’s front office are intrigued by Smith and the team may trade down to get him, posts Ian Begley on ESPN Now.
UCLA’s T.J. Leaf will visit Miami on Thursday to work out for the Heat, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. The Heat see him as a stretch four who can hit 3-pointers and rebound and will give him serious consideration with their No. 14 pick, Jackson adds.
Duke’s Harry Giles canceled a workout with the Heat that was scheduled for Thursday, Jackson relays in the same story.
Kentucky’s Bam Adebayo will be part of a group workout for the Nuggets on Friday, tweets Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders.
The Nuggets will host six players Thursday, the team announced in an email. Participating will be Florida’s Canyon Barry, Air Force’s Hayden Graham, Miami’s Kamari Murphy, Baylor’s Johnathan Motley, Arizona’s Kobi Simmons and Gonzaga’s Nigel Williams-Goss.
Wisconsin’s Bronson Koenig, who has upcoming sessions with the Lakers and Warriors, is impressing teams with his shooting, Scotto relays (Twitter link).
Creighton’s Cole Huff has workouts set for the Celtics on Thursday and the Lakers on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.
North Carolina’s Justin Jackson has workouts lined up with the Knicks, Hornets, Bucks and Trail Blazers, according to Begley.
Jackson will be part of a Pacers workout Thursday, along with Clemson’s Jaron Blossomgame, Houston’s Damyean Dotson, Marquette’s Luke Fischer, Vanderbilt’s Luke Kornet and Louisville’s Donovan Mitchell, the team announced on its website.
Northeastern’s T.J. Williams has an upcoming workout with the Knicks and has already auditioned for the Jazz, Lakers, Clippers, Timberwolves and Raptors, Begley writes in a separate piece.
Iowa’s Peter Jok, IUPUI’s Darell Combs, Syracuse’s Andrew White III, Connecticut’s Amida Brimah, Siena’s Marquis Wright and Lehigh’s Tim Kempton Jr. will work out Thursday for the Wizards, the team announced on its official blog.
The Hawks hosted six players for a workout earlier today, according to the team. Participants were Kempton, California’s Jabari Bird, Loyola-Chicago’s Milton Doyle, Gonzaga’s Przemek Karnowski, Middle Tennessee State’s Reggie Upshaw and Colorado’s Derrick White.
Six players worked out today for the Jazz, the team tweeted. On hand were Indiana’s James Blackmon, Dayton’s Charles Cooke, Weber State’s Jeremy Senglin, Eastern Washington’s Jake Wiley, Alabama’s Jimmie Taylor and Texas A&M CC’s Rashawn Thomas.

Draft Notes: Early Entrants, Fultz, Ferguson

June 13th, 2017 at 12:15pm CST by Luke Adams

The deadline for early entrants to withdraw from the NBA draft came and went on Monday evening, with several more international prospects pulling their names out of the 2017 draft pool. The NCAA’s deadline to withdraw from the draft and retain college eligibility passed in May, so NCAA underclassmen generally weren’t affected by this week’s deadline, but it was a key date for international early entrants.

As agent Misko Raznatovic tweets, a handful of his clients withdrew from the draft on Monday — Ege Arar and Aleksa Ilic will now be draft-eligible in 2018, while Borisa Simanic and Kostja Mushidi will have the option of declaring again next year. Israeli forward Leo Cizmic has also withdrawn from the draft, according to agent Gerard Darnes (Twitter link).

As we wait for official word from the NBA on this year’s list of early entrants, let’s round up a few more draft-related items…

Probable No. 1 overall pick Markelle Fultz has hired an agent, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that Raymond Brothers will represent the former Washington point guard. The new client of IAM Sports & Entertainment is expected to meet with the Lakers this week.
Speaking to Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer, first-round prospect Terrance Ferguson explained why he circumvented the usual path to the NBA, criticizing the NCAA system. “At college, the only people making money off you are the coaches,” said Ferguson, who claims he’s more prepared for the NBA after playing international pro ball out of high school. “You’re not making anything off your jersey sales, ticket sales. Not anything. So go overseas, the way I did, and get your money’s worth. Get paid for what you’re doing.”
Pittsburgh’s Jamel Artis will work out this week for the Hornets on Wednesday and the Nets on Thursday, a source tells Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
South Carolina prospect P.J. Dozier, who worked out for the Hornets today, will audition for the Pelicans and Hawks next, tweets Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Rod Beard of The Detroit News (Twitter link) adds the Pistons, Jazz and Clippers to the list of teams that Michigan’s Derrick Walton has worked out for.

Markelle Fultz To Meet With Lakers

June 12th, 2017 at 6:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Projected top pick Markelle Fultz is expected to meet this week with the Lakers, who hold the No. 2 pick, a source told Adam Zagoria of The 4 Quarters Podcast (Twitter link).

Fultz spent two days with the Celtics earlier this month and it’s generally assumed the University of Washington point guard will be Boston’s choice on draft day. The fact that Fultz is willing to meet with the team holding the next pick at this stage suggests that the Celtics may not be completely sold on Fultz, or at least haven’t made any promises that he’ll be their pick. It’s noteworthy that Fultz is only scheduled to meet with the Lakers and not work out for them, though that obviously could change.

The Fultz meeting the Lakers could also be a hedge by his representatives in case Boston decides to swap the pick in a blockbuster deal.

The Lakers did meet with Fultz at the scouting combine in Chicago last month. While most projections have Los Angeles taking UCLA passing wizard Lonzo Ball, the Lakers are covering all their bases. Some members of their front office are supposedly bullish on Kansas small forward Josh Jackson, and they will hold a closed workout for Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox on Tuesday morning, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News tweets.

East Notes: Hornets, Fultz, Jones, Celtics

June 11th, 2017 at 6:21pm CST by Austin Kent

The Hornets will audition a pair of potential lottery picks on Monday, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer reports, bringing Donovan Mitchell and Terrence Ferguson in for workouts with a batch of four other players.

Mitchell, a Louisville product pegged at No. 16 in NBADraft.net‘s latest mock draft, is a particularly intriguing combo guard with a 6’10” wingspan. Ferguson, a more traditional swingman, played professionally in Australia last season in lieu of a stint in the NCAA.

Joining Mitchell and Ferguson will be Bryce Alford, Cameron Oliver, Devin Robinson and Tai Webster. The Hornets pick 11th in this month’s draft.

There’s more from the Eastern Conference this evening:

Don’t expect the Celtics to hold Markelle Fultz‘s lack of team success at Washington against him ahead of the 2017 NBA Draft, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald writes. “We had determined who they were long before they got to their college situations,” general manager Danny Ainge said of Fultz [and also Jaylen Brown].
Having nearly equaled his annual income in technical foul fines this postseason, Dahntay Jones is the unlikely benefactor of some generosity from fans. Per Alysha Tsuji of USA Today, a GoFundMe campaign has been launched to help the Cavaliers veteran cover his costly habit.
The Celtics just aren’t a good fit for Lonzo Ball, LaVar Ball tells A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England. The eldest Ball envisions his son stepping up as a leader for the Lakers while the Celtics are already more established.

Markelle Fultz Will Not Work Out For Kings

June 9th, 2017 at 7:06pm CST by Luke Adams

7:06pm: Although he may swing by Sacramento for a meeting prior to the draft, Fultz is not expected to work out with the Kings after all, James Ham of NBC Sports California reports.

1:09pm: Voilin has followed up her initial report, tweeting that Fultz’s workout with the Kings is still likely to happen, but appears to have been pushed back closer to the draft.

11:46am: Multiple sources tell Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link) that Fultz won’t visit the Kings on Sunday after all, shooting down The Bee’s earlier report. According to Jones, a visit is possible, but it’s not scheduled for this weekend.

10:08am: Despite rumblings that Markelle Fultz may only work out for the Celtics, the odds-on favorite for the No. 1 pick has reportedly lined up a meeting with another team for this weekend. According to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link), Fultz is scheduled to participate in a workout with the Kings on Sunday.

The fact that Fultz is on track to work out for the Kings is somewhat unexpected. The general belief was that if the former Washington point guard were to audition for teams besides the Celtics, his logical next stops would be Los Angeles and Philadelphia, since the Lakers and Sixers hold the second and third overall picks, respectively. Sacramento has the fifth and 10th overall selections, and there’s virtually no chance that Fultz drops that far.

The Kings have allegedly had internal discussions about the possibility of packaging their two top-10 picks to move up in the draft, though their target in that scenario was believed to be Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox. Celtics GM Danny Ainge confirmed last week that multiple teams have contacted him to ask about the No. 1 pick, so it’s possible the Kings are one of those teams, and are doing their due diligence on Fultz in case a deal materializes. Still, a trade of that magnitude would be a surprise.

Even if the Kings don’t ultimately have a chance to draft Fultz, the fact that he’s willing to meet with the club is a great sign for a front office that has had a hard time attracting top prospects for workouts in recent years.

Lakers Notes: Ball, Fultz, Smith

June 9th, 2017 at 6:04pm CST by Austin Kent

The Lakers aren’t sold on Lonzo Ball and remain intrigued with Markelle Fultz and Josh Jackson, Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report writes. The UCLA product recently met with the franchise and worked out in a one-on-none scenario.

Although Ding notes that Ball’s biggest skill set – his ability to lead an offense and move the ball – isn’t exactly applicable in that sort of isolated practice situation, the guard didn’t separate himself from the rest of the potential top picks in the upcoming draft.

Over his two days with the team, Ding notes, Ball established himself as quiet and reserved, a far cry from his famously boisterous father. The other options that will likely be available when the Lakers pick, however, boast compelling characteristics of their own.

The Lakers are hopeful that they’ll be able to work out Fultz despite his apparent plan to only work out for the Celtics and have already traveled to Sacramento to scout Jackson. De’Aaron Fox, another potential player on their list, will be in Los Angeles to work out on Tuesday.

There’s more from the Lakers:

The Lakers will work out Dennis Smith Jr., Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog tweets. Smith Jr. is currently projected to go No. 7, according to NBADraft.net.
The Lakers are hopeful that they’ll be able to meet with Markelle Fultz next week, Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. He adds that it’s unclear whether this would be for a meeting or a work out.
The Lakers worked out a batch of players on Friday, including Damyean Dotson and P.J. Dozier, the team announced on its official website.
Although it can likely be taken with a grain of salt, Lavar Ball believes that all three of his sons will end up with the Lakers eventually, Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype relays.

Atlantic Notes: Smith, Fultz, Monk

June 6th, 2017 at 10:10pm CST by marksuleymanov

The Knicks are reportedly targeting wings and guards in the NBA Draft and North Carolina State product Dennis Smith Jr. will work out for the team tomorrow, ESPN’s Ian Begley reports.

With the eighth overall selection in New York’s possession, the team feels that Smith will likely still be on the board once their pick rolls around. The 19-year-old averaged 18.1 PPG, 6.2 APG, and 4.6 RPG in 32 games as a member of the Wolfpack.

Marc Berman of the New York Post reports that the Knicks feel Smith’s defensive deficiencies and torn ACL from two years ago will knock him down in the draft. Berman adds that Smith is also scheduled to workout for the Lakers, Celtics and Sixers — the top three teams in this year’s draft.

Begley’s report mentions Malik Monk and Frank Ntilikina are also targets of interests for the Knicks.

Here are additional notes around the Atlantic division:

Washington’s Markelle Fultz, who is expected to be drafted by the Celtics first overall, will only work out for Boston before the draft, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter). While taking a tour of TD Garden on Tuesday, Fultz told ESPN’s Jeff Goodman, “It almost feels like I belong here.” With draft night later this month, the Fultz/Celtics union is looking more and more likely, though ESPN’s report suggests he hasn’t totally ruled out the idea of working out for teams besides Boston.
While many feel that Monk would be a safe pick for the Sixers, David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer feels the team would be making a mistake by drafting the 6’3″ point guard. With an evolving NBA centered on versatility, Murphy opines that Monk would not be as great a fit as he’s advertised, faced with difficulties against top tier talents and teams in the league.

Atlantic Notes: Fultz, Horford, Celtics, 76ers

June 6th, 2017 at 6:18pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Celtics GM Danny Ainge was impressed by Markelle Fultz after the point guard spent two days in Boston, reports Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Boston owns the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft and is strongly considering using the pick on Fultz.

“It went well. I had dinner with him last night. He had a physical yesterday and he had a workout this morning with Brad [Stevens]. Everything went well. He’s very talented,” Ainge told Himmelsbach by phone Tuesday.

But that is not all going on in the Atlantic division:

Fresh off the first season of his sizable contract with the Celtics, Al Horford opens up about the high expectations and immense pressures he faces in an article from Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. Horford explains how he copes: “My biggest thing, and I learned this at an early stage in my career, was to not read any of that information or see anything, good or bad…One day people love you, the next they hate you, it’s really up and down, and my focus was making sure the team kept getting better as a group, and not worry about anything outside. One thing that helped me was not paying attention to a lot of things.”
76ers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo is not speeding up the team’s rebuild and instead appears to be patiently and strategically building a contender a la Sam Hinkie‘s “The Process,” writes Bob Cooney of Philly.com.
The 76ers will hold a pre-draft workout on Wednesday, reports Keith Pompey of Philly.com (link via Twitter). The scheduled participants are Jordan Bell (Oregon), Thomas Bryant (Indiana), Tyler Dorsey (Oregon), Elie Okobo (Élan Béarnais Pau-Orthez), L.J. Peak (Georgetown), and Steve Vasturia (Notre Dame).