Quentin Grimes Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Stein/Fischer’s Latest: Kings, White, Grimes, Mavs

March 31st, 2025 at 1:29pm CST by Luke Adams

A number of people around the NBA view Wes Wilcox‘s decision to leave his position as the assistant general manager in Sacramento for a college job with the Utah Utes as a sign that the Kings‘ front office is on shaky ground entering the 2025 offseason, according to Marc Stein and Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).

Whether or not the Kings make major changes to their basketball operations department could depend in part on how the rest of the season plays out, Stein and Fischer note — a number of scenarios remain in play in Sacramento, ranging from the team claiming a playoff spot to missing the play-in tournament altogether.

However, there’s “considerable angst in the air” in Sacramento, given how the team’s season has played out, Stein and Fischer write. Interim head coach Doug Christie is a favorite of team owner Vivek Ranadive, but after winning 10 of his first 12 games on the job, he’s just 13-18 since then.

At the very least, Stein and Fischer say, the Kings’ front office will likely operate much differently without Wilcox in the picture, since he frequently communicated with agents, as well as with rival teams during trade talks. His personality and his experience as a front office executive were among the reasons why Sacramento initially wanted him to pair him with McNair, Stein and Fischer add.

Here’s more from The Stein Line:

Coby White generated a significant amount of trade interest prior to last month’s deadline, according to Stein and Fischer, who say that the Bulls “swatted away” that interest. That decision has paid major dividends, as White has been on a tear in recent weeks, averaging 29.1 points per game on .496/.377/.875 shooting in 14 March outings. He’ll be extension-eligible this offseason, but without cap room available, Chicago may not be in position to make him a competitive offer prior to free agency due to restrictions on veteran extensions.
Quentin Grimes didn’t explicitly request a trade out of Dallas last month, despite some rumors to the contrary, Stein and Fischer report. But the move from the Mavericks to the Sixers has certainly worked out for Grimes, who was among March’s standouts along with White, averaging 26.6 PPG on .504/.403/.738 shooting for the month. Despite the team’s high projected payroll, Philadelphia is hoping to re-sign Grimes this summer as a restricted free agent, per Stein and Fischer.
Unsurprisingly, Stein and Fischer say the Mavericks would “love” to promote two-way players Kessler Edwards and Brandon Williams to their standard roster immediately if they had the ability to do so. Both Edwards and Williams have reached their two-way limit of 50 active games and Dallas doesn’t have enough room below its hard cap to elevate either player and reactivate them at this point.

Checking In On Starter Criteria, Traded Draft Picks, Mavs’ Two-Ways, More

March 31st, 2025 at 12:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The months on the calendar between the NBA's in-season trade deadline and the start of the offseason represent the only time of year in which teams aren't permitted to make trades.

Still, while the possibility of Shams Charania dropping shocking trade news in the middle of the night is off the table during this final stretch of the regular season, there's plenty going on around the league that will impact future roster decisions and trade talks.

We're checking in on a few of those subplots today. Let's dive right in...

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Nick Nurse Reflects On Difficult Season After Sixers Officially Eliminated

March 29th, 2025 at 11:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

Head coach Nick Nurse discussed the frustrations of a lost year after the Sixers were officially eliminated from postseason contention with Saturday’s loss to Miami (Twitter video link from PHLY Sixers).

“Obviously it’s not anywhere near where we had hoped it would be when we set out this summer and this fall, that’s for sure” Nurse said. “That’s the only thing you can say, it was a super struggle. You know, most of the way I think there was only a couple times of some momentum. Right? December, and there was another I think four- or five-game winning streak in there, too, where you were always holding out hope that the team was playing better and getting some wins and hopefully get some players back.”

That turnaround never came, as the Sixers were plagued by injuries to stars and role players throughout the season. Franchise cornerstone Joel Embiid was limited to 19 games before being declared out for the season in late February. Top free agent addition Paul George appeared in 41 games before he was ruled out for the season in mid-March. Tyrese Maxey was active for 52 games, but he hasn’t played since March 3 due to a sprained finger and probably won’t return this season.

Injury issues affected virtually the entire roster, as Philadelphia got just 40 games out of Andre Drummond, 39 from Eric Gordon and 33 from Kyle Lowry. Rookie guard Jared McCain was lost after 23 games due to a meniscus tear following a promising start.

Tonight marked the Sixers’ 50th different starting lineup in 74 games, notes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter link), with Justin Edwards, Guerschon Yabusele, Adem Bona, Quentin Grimes and Jared Butler opening the game.

“It just didn’t seem like the injury bug would ever leave us,” Nurse said. “It just seemed like every time we’d have a good game it would cost us a player or two for the next one. We never could build any momentum.”

The good news for the Sixers is that tonight’s defeat, combined with Brooklyn’s win, drops them a half-game behind the Nets and gives them the fifth-worst record in the league. Philadelphia’s first-round pick in this year’s draft is top-six protected and will convey to Oklahoma City if it falls outside that range.

The 23-51 Sixers have now dropped seven straight and 24 of their last 28. Five of their final eight games are against teams under .500, starting with Sunday’s home contest against Toronto.

Bontemps/Windhorst’s Latest: Cap Room, Nets, Wolves FAs, Connelly

March 29th, 2025 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Given the lack of cap room available around the NBA this season, it’s not a great time to be entering the market as a restricted free agents, Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes in an Insider-only story.

“There’s only one team that has a lot of cap space and they may want to do a slower rebuild and aren’t looking to spend it all now,” a veteran agent told ESPN. “I’ve never seen a free agency where only one team has real cap space in my career. These free agents are f—ed.”

That “one team that has a lot of cap space” is Brooklyn — the Nets are expected to operate with between $45-60MM in room, according to Windhorst, and could open up additional space beyond that if they let certain players go. However, there’s an expectation around the league that the Nets won’t necessarily be looking to make win-now moves in free agency this summer.

“They’ve sent the message that if they do anything major with their space, it’s likely going to be through trade, not signings,” one rival executive told Windhorst. “Even if that trade doesn’t happen this summer, they’ll want to keep their options open.”

Nets general manager Sean Marks has shown in the past that he’s willing to pursue restricted free agents and give them aggressive offer sheets. During the team’s initial rebuild, Marks and his front office took that route with Allen Crabbe, Tyler Johnson, Donatas Motiejunas, and Otto Porter Jr. in a span of two years (2016-17). But there’s no indication at this point that Brooklyn plans to pursue an RFA such as Jonathan Kuminga, Josh Giddey, Quentin Grimes, or Santi Aldama in the same way, which means those players may have limited leverage.

“Actually it’s no leverage,” another agent told ESPN. “I’ve prepared my clients for a free agent recession this summer. Next year will be different, the cap will be going up and teams will clean up their books as they deal with the new spending rules. So you may have to wait and try again.”

Here’s more from Windhorst and his ESPN colleague Tim Bontemps:

Examining the Timberwolves‘ upcoming free agent decisions, Bontemps says multiple scouts and executives believe that guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker could command a deal in the range of the full mid-level exception, since he has been a reliable three-and-D role players and is entering his prime years. As our projections show, a full four-year mid-level contract in 2025/26 is expected to be worth in excess of $60MM.
Sources around the NBA believes that both Julius Randle and Naz Reid will return to the Timberwolves next season, according to Bontemps. Both power forwards hold player options for 2025/26, with Randle’s worth $29.5MM (plus incentives) and Reid’s worth $15MM. Even if both players remain in Minnesota, it’s unclear what form that would take — opting out to sign a new deal would be one path, as would opting in, with or without a new extension.
The Timberwolves have another important free agent in their front office, having pushed back Tim Connelly‘s opt-out clause from 2024 to 2025. Team sources tell Windhorst that prospective owner Marc Lore has “made it a priority” to sign the president of basketball operations to an extension if and when he and Alex Rodriguez gain full control of the franchise.
In case you missed it, we also passed along reporting from Windhorst and Bontemps on the Pacers and starting center Myles Turner. That story can be found here.

And-Ones: Award Races, Summer Flight Risks, BRI, RFAs

March 27th, 2025 at 7:28am CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed on Wednesday, Warriors forward Draymond Green took over this week as the new betting favorite for Defensive Player of the Year honors, surpassing Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley.

Mobley’s teammates and head coach disagree that Green should be considered the frontrunner and Zach Harper of The Athletic sides with the Cavs’ contingent, placing Mobley ahead of Green (and Hawks guard Dyson Daniels) on his hypothetical ballot in his latest look at this season’s award races.

With just over two weeks left in the 2024/25 season, Harper currently has Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ahead of Nikola Jokic in the MVP race, Stephon Castle ahead of Jaylen Wells for Rookie of the Year, Payton Pritchard ahead of Malik Beasley for Sixth Man of the Year, Kenny Atkinson over J.B. Bickerstaff for Coach of the Year, and Cade Cunningham over Mobley for Most Improved Player.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report runs through all 30 NBA teams and predicts their most likely flight risk in 2025 free agency. In some cases – like Seth Curry in Charlotte or Dalano Banton in Portland – the player in question has a relatively modest role, but others – such as Ty Jerome in Cleveland or Russell Westbrook in Denver – have been important contributors. Of course, a handful of clubs have stars or high-level starters to worry about, including Indiana with Myles Turner and the Clippers with James Harden.
In a free article for his Substack, Pincus shares some highlights from the NBA’s recent memo to teams, including the fact that players – who have 10% of their salaries put into escrow each season – are only on track to get a very small percentage of that money back in order to balance the basketball-related income split between players and teams. In other words, Pincus writes, a player with a $10MM cap hit for 2024/25, is only projected to actually earn about $9.1MM.
What sort of contracts will this season’s restricted free agents sign? Keith Smith of Spotrac digs into that question, making predictions ranging from nine-figure deals for Bulls guard Josh Giddey, Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga, and Sixers wing Quentin Grimes to minimum-salary contracts (and no qualifying offers) for players like Pacers center Isaiah Jackson and Nets wing Ziaire Williams.

And-Ones: Rebuilding Teams, Free Agency, Flagg, NBL

March 21st, 2025 at 9:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Among 11 NBA teams in various stages of their respective rebuilds, the Spurs are best positioned for the long run, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Insider link). San Antonio’s place atop the rankings has a lot to do with the presence of Victor Wembanyama on the roster, but Bontemps points to Stephon Castle, Devin Vassell, and recently acquired point guard De’Aaron Fox as other likely core pieces for the Spurs, who could end up with two more lottery picks this spring.

Interestingly, Bontemps places the Hornets and Wizards at No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, on his rebuild rankings, praising Charlotte in particular for its promising collection of young talent. The Trail Blazers and Bulls come in at 10th and 11th on Bontemps’ list, largely because there are questions about whether either team has a franchise player to build around and whether they’ll be in position to land one in the draft anytime soon.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

John Hollinger of The Athletic highlights several of the challenging situations that teams will face in free agency this summer, including the Cavaliers with Ty Jerome, the Nuggets with Russell Westbrook, the Kings with Jake LaRavia, and the Sixers with Quentin Grimes and Guerschon Yabusele. Many of those clubs will be limited in what they can offer their free agents, either due to a lack of full Bird rights or tax/apron concerns.
Meanwhile, Yossi Gozlan of The Third Apron (Substack link) looks ahead to 2026 and explains why next year’s star-studded free agent class will likely be something of a mirage, given all the contract extensions likely to be signed between now and then.
ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo (Insider link) spoke to 10 NBA executives about projected No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg, surveying those execs on the Duke freshman’s strengths and weaknesses, his odds of winning a title with the Blue Devils, and whether there’s any chance he decides to stay in school for another year. “I can’t remember a No. 1 pick deciding to go back to school,” one Eastern Conference scout told ESPN.
Ahead of the NBA playing its first games in Australia this fall, a battle over the ownership of the country’s National Basketball League appears to be brewing. Olgun Uluc of ESPN Australia has the story.

Sixers Notes: Grimes, Yabusele, Butler, Nurse, Injury Report

March 18th, 2025 at 5:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Quentin Grimes, a trade deadline acquisition, continues to shine for the Sixers. The combo guard — a restricted free agent after this season — erupted for a career-high 46 points against the Rockets in an overtime loss on Monday. Grimes, who also finished with a career-best 13 rebounds, has scored 30 or more points in five separate games since coming to Philadelphia.

“It’s cool,” Grimes told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “But I had a costly turnover that cost us the game late in the fourth. I have to be better in those situations, probably on the ball, try to get fouled. It’s cool and all, but we probably should have just ended the game, ended it with a win.”

We have more on the Sixers:

While they have been decimated by injuries, big man Guerschon Yabusele has continued to play despite battling knee soreness. Yabusele sat out Monday’s game, but he’s appeared in 62 of 68 games and has served as a few of the few constants in Philadelphia this season. “That’s just who I am,” he told Pompey. “I always try to keep playing no matter what. You know that’s just me. I just want to compete. I want to be out there and help the guys. I hate just being on the bench and looking at the guys over there, struggling or losing. It’s something I don’t like to be a part of.” Yabusele has some extra incentive to stay on the court — he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
The Sixers had only nine players available on Monday, yet nearly knocked off one of the better teams in the Western Conference. “I think it’s just outside of our nature to go out there and try to lose,” guard Jared Butler said, per Pompey. ”I can’t see myself playing like that in any kind of way.”
While some fans might be unhappy with head coach Nick Nurse, he shouldn’t be the scapegoat for the team’s dismal season, Pompey argues. Nurse has been forced to juggle the rotation throughout the season due to the rash of injuries, using 44 different starting lineups, Pompey points out.
Kelly Oubre Jr. is doubtful for Wednesday’s game against the Thunder due to a sprained right knee, Pompey tweets. Yabusele is questionable, while Tyrese Maxey, Andre Drummond, Adem Bona, Kyle Lowry and Lonnie Walker remain out.
In case you missed it, Paul George has been ruled out for the season. Get the details here.

Eastern Notes: Bridges, Thibs, Robinson, Grimes, Mann, Bradley

March 14th, 2025 at 5:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau met with forward Mikal Bridges prior to Wednesday’s victory over Portland to clear the air over their recent public comments about the starters’ minutes, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv, who says sources described the meeting as “productive.” Mike Breen of MSG Network first stated on Wednesday’s broadcast that the two men had talked before the game.

Bridges said on Wednesday that he felt like the Knicks’ reserves should play a little more to help reduce the starters’ workloads. The 28-year-old suggested that he had spoken to Thibodeau about the subject, but the veteran coach later denied having that conversation and defended his minutes distribution.

As Stefan Bondy of The New York Post writes, the minor off-court drama hasn’t impacted Bridges’ play on the court. In three games since Jalen Brunson went down with an ankle sprain, Bridges has averaged 23.3 points per game on 62.8% shooting, including 33 points on 13-of-21 shooting in Wednesday’s overtime win.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson is still on a minutes restriction after returning from ankle surgery two weeks ago, but the big man dropped some weight during his recovery process and is pleased with how his leaner physique has aided his mobility on the court, Bondy writes in a subscriber-only New York Post story. “I got to be honest, though. For me to come back from an ankle injury, I kind of move really well,” Robinson said. “Coming back from an ankle injury after 10 months? I move pretty damn good.”
Sixers guard Quentin Grimes spoke to Grant Afseth of Sportskeeda about his experience playing alongside Luka Doncic in Dallas, what it was like being traded last month, and why he’s “really happy” in Philadelphia even though the team has won just two of 15 games since the trade deadline. Grimes will miss Friday’s game vs. Indiana due to an illness, according to the latest injury report.
Hawks guard Terance Mann will face his former team on Friday for the first time since being traded last month, but he tells Law Murray of The Athletic that he hasn’t had a chance to reflect on the five-and-a-half years he spent with the Clippers. “I haven’t yet, no, I haven’t yet,” Mann said. “I’ll probably do that after the season. You know, just sit back, hang out with the guys, reflect. Hang out with Zu (Ivica Zubac), Amir (Coffey), James (Harden), Kawhi (Leonard), all those dudes. Talk and just reflect.” Mann added that his agent informed him before last month’s deal about the possibility that he’d be sent to Atlanta and he felt “great” about the opportunity. “They’re expecting a lot more from me,” Mann said. “They’re expecting me to shoot the ball off the dribble, catch and shoot, make plays when I get to the paint. Get to the paint. They just want me to be who I am. And I really appreciate Coach Q (Quin Snyder) for that.”
After Tony Bradley signed a second 10-day contract with the Pacers on Thursday, head coach Rick Carlisle told reporters, including Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files, that the big man is an “ideal” third center for the team right now. “In practices and in simulated stuff in the gym, he’s been terrific,” Carlisle said. “Smart, great hands, defensively has a really good feel for what we’re doing here.”

Atlantic Notes: Grimes, Celtics, Thomas, Martin

March 8th, 2025 at 10:48am CST by Earnest Marshall

Quentin Grimes has been traded three times since February 2024, but he’s not letting that impact his play, as Jared Weiss of The Athletic details. As we wrote on Thursday, Grimes is looking like a keeper for the Sixers, having averaged 16.8 points per game in his first 12 appearances with the team.

“It’s tough. As soon as you get comfortable, you get traded,” Grimes said. “But you gotta keep a level head. You got to go out there and produce.”

While Grimes had productive moments in New York and Dallas, he’s getting a chance to have the ball in his hands far more than before, initiating offense as opposed to simply spotting up.

“He’s been able to still kind of find his way, even with the extra pressure, extra bodies,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “He’s doing a good job of just getting into his shots and getting to places that he wants to go and getting the shots off. Obviously, he’s on a bit of a hot streak.”

According to Weiss, Grimes was shocked to be traded from Dallas this season. He had been productive there, averaging 10.2 points while shooting 39.8% from three in 47 games (12 starts).

“It’s crazy what’s going on, so it’s a blessing in disguise that I got moved,” Grimes said. “But I feel for them for sure. We had a tight-knit group over there this season. We had a good chance of winning it all. But that’s the NBA and dudes get moved all the time.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Celtics blew out the Sixers on Thursday, winning by nearly 20 points despite being down five rotation players. None of Jrue Holiday, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis or Sam Hauser were able to suit up, allowing for Boston’s bench players to step up. According to MassLive’s Brian Robb, Baylor Scheierman, Torrey Craig and Jordan Walsh were among the standouts. Scheierman scored a career-high 15 points, Craig accounted for 12 and Walsh had several good moments. Neemias Queta and two-way player Drew Peterson also both started for Boston. Queta recorded eight points, nine rebounds and four assists.
Nets guard Cam Thomas is looking to finish the season strong after injuries disrupted a promising year, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. Thomas will hit restricted free agency after the season. “I mean, that’s just the name of it. I just want to finish strong just to finish strong,” Thomas said. “I’m not really worried about [my] contract year or anything. I mean, I think all of that will take care of itself.”
In his last six games, Nets forward Tyrese Martin is averaging 12.0 points per contest, including a 23-point outburst against Detroit on March 1 and a 17-point outing in a close loss to Golden State on Thursday. As the New York Post’s Bridget Reilly writes, Martin is becoming an indispensable bench piece for Brooklyn. “Yeah, consistency. He’s a true pro. I play him off the ball, he plays well. I play him at point guard, he does his best and he’s getting better, like [Thursday],” coach Jordi Fernández said. “Defensively, he’s on point. He knows coverages, he knows everything. He shows up and works every day with a good attitude and he’s a great teammate. That’s what we want from everybody, but it’s not that easy to do it. He’s doing it consistently and that’s why he deserves all these good things that are coming to him, that he’s doing, that are coming his way.” Martin was recently converted from a two-way contract to a standard deal and has a team option for next season.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers’ Acquisitions, Nets, Clowney, Knicks

March 6th, 2025 at 6:43pm CST by Earnest Marshall

The Sixers made moves at the deadline to get younger and more athletic, bringing in Quentin Grimes and Jared Butler before signing Lonnie Walker IV. Having lost Joel Embiid for the season, Philadelphia hasn’t become a better team as a result of its pivot to youth, but it has shown a vision for the younger players to become members of the rotation next season.

As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes, Grimes in particular has been a standout addition. He’s shown to be capable in either a starting or reserve role and is averaging 17.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists on 52.4% shooting from the floor in his 11 games (eight starts) with Philadelphia. He’s scored at least 30 points three times, including 44 in a win over the red-hot Warriors last weekend.

Grimes will be a restricted free agent this summer, giving the Sixers the right to match any outside offers.

As for Butler, the Sixers were excited to acquire the former two-way guard from Washington, promoting him to a standard deal quickly upon his arrival. According to Pompey, the Sixers were interested in Butler during the 2021 draft and wanted to get a closer look at him, giving up a first-round pick in the process (and getting four seconds in return).

Pompey writes Butler has shown flashes but that Jeff Dowtin, currently on a two-way deal, has taken his spot in the rotation. Butler has a team option worth $2.35MM for next season that the Sixers will decide on this summer.

Walker has also gotten a chance to play a rotation role, averaging 16.7 minutes in his first six games. Pompey writes that Walker is still getting adjusted back to the NBA after playing overseas for the first half of the season. Like Butler, Walker has a team option for next season.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Nets have an open roster spot after not immediately extending Killian Hayes another 10-day contract. Net Income of NetsDaily notes that Brooklyn has a cushion of $1.08MM under the luxury tax, but Cameron Johnson is likely to hit an incentive that will cut that number in half. Still, there’s value in signing a player into that approximately half-million in anticipated space. Since rest-of-season salaries are prorated, the Nets won’t have a problem adding someone on a minimum deal. Tosan Evbuomwan is one candidate for a standard deal, since he’s been a part of the rotation, but Net Income notes that Evbuomwan’s two-way deal covers two years, so there’s no real rush to promote him. The Nets could circle back to Hayes later on or sign another player from a G League team.
Nets second-year big Noah Clowney hasn’t played since Jan. 27, but it sounds as though he’s inching toward a return. According to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis (Twitter link), Clowney had his first five-on-five scrimmage on Thursday. Clowney is averaging 9.4 points and 3.9 rebounds this season.
The Knicks are 0-7 this season against the top three teams in the league: the Thunder, Celtics and Cavaliers. On paper, New York has a contending roster, filled with versatile defenders on the wings and stars in Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson. So what’s causing the slide against the league’s best? According to ESPN’s Chris Herring, simple factors are at play. For one, while the Knicks’ offense ranks fourth in rating, they rank 28th in three-point attempt rate. “At the root of it all, it’s math,” an Eastern Conference scout said, per Herring. “They’re really efficient, and will win a ton of games. But the [three-point] volume isn’t enough to beat the Clevelands and the Bostons. Especially when you also factor in that the Knicks are [offensive] rebounding and getting to the line a lot less than last year’s team did.” Additionally, the Knicks’ defense ranks 19th in the league.