Matt Tellem

Pacific Notes: Looney, Suns, Tellem, Gregory, Warriors

June 11th, 2024 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

After Tim Kawakami of The Athletic suggested on a recent episode of the Warriors Plus Minus podcast that he thinks Kevon Looney could be cut this offseason to save the Warriors some money (hat tip to Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports), the veteran center appeared on The Draymond Green Show (YouTube link) and addressed his uncertain future in Golden State.

Looney is under contract for one more season, but he’s coming off a down year and his $8MM salary for 2024/25 is only partially guaranteed for $3MM. If the Warriors cut him, they could try to bring him back on a minimum-salary deal or he could end up signing with a new team after spending his entire nine-year NBA career in Golden State.

“The ball isn’t in my court,” Looney said (story via Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area). “I don’t have full control over my destiny, so I kind of have to play the waiting game, control what I can control. I’ve been here my whole career. I don’t know nothing else. You always want to finish what you started and be somewhere for your whole career, but I’ve been in this business long enough to know that’s not realistic. I’m preparing myself for whatever. My family’s out here, the Bay’s been great to me. They treat me like family, I grew up here.

“I haven’t really thought about it too far. I’m trying to see what they’re going to do first before I push the envelope and see what I want to do. … I’ve been a Warrior for life. Even whatever happens, I’m always going to be a Warrior for life.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Looney ranks atop the list compiled by Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports of 15 potential minimum-salary centers the Suns could target this offseason in free agency. Goga Bitadze, Andre Drummond, Daniel Theis, and Luke Kornet round out Bourguet’s top five, though it’s very possible that some of those players will get more than the veteran’s minimum from another team, putting them out of reach for a Phoenix team that can’t offer more than that to outside free agents.
The Suns officially announced in a press release on Monday that they’ve hired Matt Tellem as an assistant general manager and Brian Gregory as vice president of player programming. The team’s deal with Tellem, a Brooklyn executive, was reported last month, but we hadn’t previously heard about the hiring of Gregory, who has been in the college basketball coaching ranks for several decades, most recently with South Florida. Phoenix is adding another longtime college coach – Mike Hopkins – to Mike Budenholzer‘s staff, as we relayed earlier today.
Anthony Slater and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic examine some potential targets at No. 52 in this year’s draft for the Warriors, who are looking to replicate the success of last year’s 57th overall pick (Trayce Jackson-Davis). Slater also shares a long list of prospects who have visited Golden State for pre-draft workouts in recent weeks, including Dillon Jones (No. 48 on ESPN’s big board), Keshad Johnson (No. 50), Jalen Bridges (No. 53), Isaac Jones (No. 57), and Antonio Reeves (No. 58), among others.
In case you missed it, we rounded up several notes on the Lakers, with a focus on their head coaching search, earlier this afternoon.

Suns Notes: Budenholzer, Tellem, Big Three

May 17th, 2024 at 6:30pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Mike Budenholzer spoke for the first time since taking over as head coach of the Suns on Friday in his intro presser. According to ESPN, Budenholzer was emotional when talking about his childhood in Arizona.

“It’s mind-boggling to me, like mind-blowing, to think that I’m going to be the head coach of the Phoenix Suns,” Budenholzer said.

A former NBA champion as coach of the Bucks, Budenholzer is tasked with leading a franchise with three super-max players in Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and Devin Booker. That group went 49-33 last season and was swept in the playoffs under former head coach Frank Vogel.

“I’m excited about working with this roster and these players,” Budenholzer said. “We have great players. And with great players come great expectations. I think we embrace that.”

Budenholzer didn’t coach last year after being dismissed by the Bucks. He has a 484-317 record over a 10-season coaching career.

“This year, for me, was really healthy,” Budenholzer said. “I kind of had a list of priorities, diving into my kids and my family, super important. We’ve been through a lot. So really, the time with my kids was just amazing. My son’s a senior in high school — going to every one of his games — driving home you’re like, ‘Wow, I got a gift.”

We have more from the Suns:

With the Suns maintaining a “championship or bust” mentality, Budenholzer isn’t necessarily safe for the long run despite the hefty five-year, $50MM contract he signed, Duane Rankin of Arizona Republic writes. Rankin lists eight conversations Budenholzer needs to have with Phoenix brass, including why he needs to have more say in the team’s roster construction than his predecessors.
The Suns are closing in on hiring Nets executive Matt Tellem to the team’s front office, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon (Twitter link). Tellem began as a basketball information coordinator in 2011 and was promoted to vice president of strategy for Brooklyn in 2023. He also served as general manager of the Long Island Nets from 2019-23.
Appearing on The Burns & Gambo Show, Suns general manager James Jones said there is no scenario in which Beal, Durant or Booker are traded this summer (Twitter video link). “Those guys aren’t going anywhere. Those guys are part of the solution,” Jones said. With Phoenix lacking flexibility and draft assets to make major upgrades to a roster that was swept out of the first round of the playoffs, there has been some speculation about the futures of Phoenix’s star players. However, Jones’ comments this week echo a recent report from ESPN suggesting that the big three aren’t going anywhere.

Eastern Notes: Hornets, Peterson, Clifford, Bridges, Pistons, Murray, Raptors

March 2nd, 2024 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

By all accounts, the Hornets made a strong choice in reportedly deciding on Nets executive Jeff Peterson to run their front office, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer.

One source who has spent plenty of time around Peterson called it a “great, great get” for the Hornets, while a high-ranking executive who previously worked with Peterson referred to him as “incredibly intelligent and super genuine,” Boone reports.

Peterson will have many items on his to-do list in the coming weeks and months once he’s officially hired, according to Boone, who points to head coach Steve Clifford‘s future as one major decision awaiting the new head of basketball operations. The Hornets don’t owe Clifford any additional guaranteed money, Boone writes, so if they decide not to retain him beyond the season, they could simply turn down his team option for 2024/25.

Peterson will also face an important free agency decision this summer on Miles Bridges, who has picked up where he left off on the court this season but has been the subject of multiple domestic violence accusations in the past two years. His most recent legal case was dismissed last month. Multiple league sources tell Boone that Charlotte could face competition from the Pistons for the former Michigan State forward.

In the shorter term, Peterson may look to start filling out his new front office. According to Boone, one candidate for a possible assistant general manager role is Matt Tellem, Brooklyn’s director of strategic planning and an assistant GM for the G League’s Long Island Nets. Tellem is considered a salary cap expert, says Boone.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Although the Pistons envision trade-deadline acquisitions Quentin Grimes and Simone Fontecchio as key pieces of next season’s team, they plan to bring both wings off the bench for now and take a look at five of their recent first-round picks as starters, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (subscription required). Healthy and back from his three-game suspension, Isaiah Stewart will continue to be part of Detroit’s starting five alongside Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, and Jalen Duren for the foreseeable future, barring injuries. The hope is that Stewart’s defense will make up for the first unit having less spacing, Sankofa explains.
Hawks guard Dejounte Murray has locked in a $500K bonus on top of his base salary this season after making his 125th three-pointer of the season on Saturday, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The bonus had been deemed likely and already counted against Murray’s $18.2MM cap hit because he earning that incentive last season by making 133 threes.
Raptors star Scottie Barnes is out indefinitely after fracturing his hand on Friday and may have played his last game of the 2023/24 season. However, Warriors forward Draymond Green believes Barnes is capable of great things next year and beyond, as Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca relays. “Scottie is an incredible player,” Green said on Friday. “… Me playing the point forward position, I’m not going to sit up here and act like I was the first one to ever do it, but I think I’ve done it a little differently than most. And he’ll take that to another level. … I think Scottie will do way more than I ever did.”
Barnes’ injury was unfortunately timed, given that the new-look Raptors were beginning to show some promise, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca, who explores what the All-Star’s absence means for the team going forward.