Zion Williamson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Injury Updates: Zion, Anderson, Embiid, Kuzma

March 6th, 2019 at 8:51am CST by Luke Adams

Duke star Zion Williamson appears unlikely to play in Saturday’s showdown vs. North Carolina, but fans hoping to watch Williamson during March Madness shouldn’t be worried. In fact, head coach Mike Krzyzewski believes Williamson could return before the NCAA Tournament, dismissing speculation that the forward might shut it down for the season after his recent knee injury.

“He’s getting more confidence, and we just have to get him in shape,” Krzyzewski said, per David M. Hale of ESPN.com. “I don’t think he’ll be ready for [UNC] … but I would be surprised if he wasn’t ready by the ACC tournament.”

As we wait to get another look at the player who will be selected first overall in 2019’s draft, here are a few more injury updates on guys who are already in the NBA:

Grizzlies forward Kyle Anderson will receive an anesthetic injection in the hopes of alleviating soreness in his right shoulder, the team announced in a press release. Anderson, who hasn’t played since January 30, will be re-evaluated in about two weeks.
Joel Embiid still isn’t quite ready to return to action for the Sixers. As Martin Frank of The Delaware News Journal relays, head coach Brett Brown is still hoping that Embiid will play this week, but the star center didn’t travel to Chicago for Wednesday’s game. “I believe there’s a chance that he may meet us in Houston (where the Sixers play on Friday),” Brown said of Embiid.
A precautionary MRI for Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma confirmed that he’s dealing with a minor ankle sprain, according to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com, who tweets that Kuzma could be sidelined for up to a week.

Central Notes: Bledsoe, Pachulia, Love, Bucks

March 4th, 2019 at 6:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The final year of Eric Bledsoe’s $70MM contract extension with the Bucks has a $3.9MM partial guarantee in the final season, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. The extension became official on Monday.

Bledsoe’s $19.375MM salary that season would be fully guaranteed if he’s on the roster beyond June 30, 2022, Charania adds. The cap hits for the first three years of the extension are $15.62MM, $16.87MM and $18.12MM, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets.

Bledsoe, who is not eligible to be traded until September 4, will rank 13th in salary next season among point guards around the league, and that doesn’t include impending free agents Kemba Walker, Kyrie Irving and D’Angelo Russell, Marks adds.

We have more news from around the Central Division:

Pistons reserve center Zaza Pachulia has been fined $25K by the league for confronting and verbally abusing a game official and failing to leave the court in a timely manner upon being ejected, according to an NBA press release. Pachulia was tossed against Toronto in the second quarter on Sunday after arguing a no-call and getting assessed two technicals.
Kevin Love has no regrets about signing an extension with the Cavaliers this summer but he wishes he could have been a bigger part of their season, as he explained to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. Love missed a chunk of the season after undergoing foot surgery and the Cavaliers soon went in rebuild mode. “There have been some bright spots in terms of younger guys getting better,” he said. “But it’s been tough, especially stepping into a leadership role and then you’re not out there for three months.” Love also weighed in on the Zion Williamson situation, saying the Duke star and likely No. 1 overall pick shouldn’t return this season from his knee sprain, “If I were him, I’d probably say, especially after a scare like this, I’d heavily consider telling the NCAA to pay us or else shutting it down and doing what’s best for his family,” Love said. “That kid is really an exceptional talent … I would lean toward not coming back.”
Bucks GM Jon Horst deserves more credit for the team’s success, Matt John of Basketball Insiders argues. Trades and free agent signings that brought in Bledsoe, Ersan Ilyasova, Brook Lopez and Nikola Mirotic greased the skids for Milwaukee’s rise to the top of the Eastern Conference. Horst also made other moves that improve the team’s salary-cap flexibility going forward, John adds.

Zion Williamson Day-To-Day With Grade 1 Knee Sprain

February 21st, 2019 at 5:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

FEBRUARY 21, 5:06pm: Williamson sustained a Grade 1 right knee sprain and will be listed as day-to-day moving forward, the school announced. The injury news comes as a sigh of relief for Williamson, who exited the game shortly after suffering the injury on Wednesday.

FEBRUARY 20, 10:30pm: Duke — along with several NBA teams — received a scare when star forward Zion Williamson left tonight’s game with an injury in the opening minute. However, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said the consensus No. 1 pick has been diagnosed with only a mild knee sprain, tweets AP basketball writer Tim Reynolds. He added that doctors found the knee to be stable, and more news is expected Thursday.

“We’re very concerned about Zion,” Krzyzewski said in a tweet sent out by the university. “It’s a mild knee sprain. We will know about length of time tomorrow. It’s stable. Obviously it has an impact. You lose the (National Player of the Year) on the first play.”

Williamson was hurt 36 seconds into a marquee matchup with North Carolina when his left shoe tore open, causing him to lose his balance. He left the court under his own power, but remained in the locker room for the rest of the game.

Several NBA players posted messages of support for Williamson on social media, relays ESPN. LeBron James and Spencer Dinwiddie both said they hoped Williamson would be OK, while Donovan Mitchell made a case that college athletes should be paid in a tweet that was supported by Trae Young.

Puma posted a message blaming the injury on Williamson’s Nike shoes, but later took it down (Twitter link from The Sporting News).

Latest Notes On Zion Williamson

February 21st, 2019 at 2:45pm CST by Luke Adams

As we wait for word on how long Zion Williamson‘s knee injury – described last night as a “mild” sprain – might sideline him, players around the NBA have been wishing him well and weighing in with their thoughts on the situation.

Of those players, DeMarcus Cousins had some of the strongest views, telling reporters, including Anthony Slater of The Athletic (video link), that he’d advise Williamson to shut it down for the season and turn his attention to the NBA.

“Knowing what I know, college basketball is bulls–t,” Cousins said. “My advice to him is do what’s best for you and your family. Obviously, college does nothing for you at this point. You’ve proven you’re the No. 1 pick, you’ve proven your talent. You’re ready for the next level.”

Here are several more Zion-related links in the wake of Wednesday night’s injury scare:

According to Darren Rovell of Action Network (Twitter link), Williamson has an $8MM loss-of-value insurance policy to protect himself against a major injury. However, he’d have to slip out of the top 16 in the draft to start collecting, per Rovell. It’s hard to imagine that even a more significant injury would result in that precipitous a drop in his stock.
After Williamson’s injury occurred in a game that cost thousands of dollars for many fans to attend, critics of the college basketball model have taken the opportunity to slam the NCAA for not paying its players. Dan Wolken of USA Today pushes back on that narrative to some extent, arguing that playing for the Blue Devils has benefited Williamson tremendously, since he wasn’t considered the consensus top prospect in the draft before this season. While that’s true, it’s hard to make a case that the relationship hasn’t more significantly benefited Duke.
Before Wednesday’s game, Williamson told Andy Katz (video link) that he would have wanted to play college basketball even if the NBA’s one-and-done rule didn’t exist, as Adam Zagoria of Forbes.com relays. “I always knew I would go to college,” Williamson said. “Even if they would’ve had the NBA rule, I still would’ve came to college. You’re never going to get this experience again. Once you go to the league it’s grown men, kids, families, it’s not just teenagers having fun. It’s business then.”
While scouts didn’t get a real look at Williamson during Wednesday’s ACC showdown, ESPN’s Mike Schmitz (Insider link) takes a look at how several of the other top NBA prospects involved in the game fared.

Zion Williamson

And-Ones: Iguodala, Gupta, Vesely, Williamson

February 18th, 2019 at 8:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors swingman Andre Iguodala was elected First Vice President of the National Basketball Players Association, according to an NBPA press release. Iguodala has been on the Executive Committee since February 2013. He replaces LeBron James, whose four-year term has expired.

The Bucks‘ Malcolm Brogdon, the Celtics‘ Jaylen Brown and the Hornets‘ Bismack Biyombo were elected to serve as VPs on the Executive Committee. They replace Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry and Iguodala.

Chris Paul remains President of the committee with Anthony Tolliver, Pau Gasol, C.J. McCollum and Garrett Temple also serving on it.

We have more news from around the basketball world:

Pistons assistant GM Sachin Gupta never knew ESPN’s Trade Machine would become so popular when he created it in 2006, Rod Beard of the Detroit News reports. Gupta called it a “fun project” and took about a month to write the code for the Trade Machine when he worked for the network, Beard adds. “It’s not meant to replace common sense. It’s not meant to replace any GM’s job,” Gupta said. “It’s simply based on the rules and whether it works or not.”
Former NBA player Jan Vesely has signed an extension with Fenerbahce that keep him under contract until 2022, the Turkish team tweets. The 7-foot power forward was drafted by the Wizards with the sixth overall pick of the 2011 draft but only lasted three NBA seasons.
Stephen Curry is a fan of Duke’s Zion Williamson, considered the top prospect in this year’s draft, he said in an interview with The Undefeated and relayed by E. Jay Zarett of the Sporting News. “He’s unreal. We were talking about him the other day in our team room,” Curry said, via Justin Tinsley of the Undefeated. “He has a lot of hype around him and he’s unbelievably talented, but you can’t teach his passion and the way that … he plays. He plays hard every possession, and that’s an underrated skill that kids can kind of emulate.”

And-Ones: Keene, LeBron, Zion, Africa League, Tampering

February 17th, 2019 at 2:28pm CST by JD Shaw

The Memphis Hustle have bought out the contract of Marcus Keene, allowing Keene to sign overseas in South Korea with the Jeonju KCC Egis, a source told Hoops Rumors.

Keene traveled to South Korea on Sunday to join the team, a source said.

Keene, a former Central Michigan standout, averaged 8.2 points, 2.8 assists and 2.3 rebounds per game in 25 contests with the Hustle this season. He went undrafted in 2017 despite being the NCAA Division l scoring leader with Central Michigan, tallying an impressive 30 points per game.

The Jeonju KCC Egis play in the Korean Basketball League, which holds its regular season from October to April. It consists of 10 different teams that play 53 games each.

Here are some other odds and ends from around the basketball world:

LeBron James lauded the overall game of Duke prospect Zion Williamson, praising him for his insane athleticism and quickness at his size, as relayed by Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. “What strikes me? His agility and his quickness,” James said. “For his size, how strong he is, to be able to move like the way he moves, he’s very impressive. I mean, everybody can see the athleticism. That’s obviously, that’s ridiculous. But the speed and the quickness that he moves [with] at that size is very impressive.” James traveled to see Williamson play against the University of Virginia last week, insisting to the media that the trip wasn’t for recruiting.
The NBA and FIBA have announced plans to bring a new professional basketball league to Africa. The Basketball Africa League, which is set to have 12 unnamed teams in the competition, is expected to begin play in January of 2020. “As we’ve been talking about this concept over the last several months, there’s been a tremendous reception from several of our NBA team owners,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said. “Several of our partners have also expressed an interest to work with us in Africa.” Former President Barack Obama is also expected to have a hands-on role with the league, though the specifics of his job have yet to be determined. This will mark the first time the NBA has ever been involved with a professional basketball league outside of North America.
NBA tampering and agent behavior are two deeply intertwined problems today, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes. The representative for Anthony Davis, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, publicly announced that his client requested a trade from the Pelicans last month, causing a stir for some within the organization. Adam Silver has labeled the importance of tampering being held to a strict control, though Davis’ public trade request resulted in a tampering fine for Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry and prompted some observers to question whether the Lakers were tampering with Davis’ group.

Knicks Notes: Jordan, Matthews, Zion, Davis

February 3rd, 2019 at 10:59am CST by Arthur Hill

DeAndre Jordan and Wesley Matthews may not be with the Knicks very long, but coach David Fizdale is preparing to use them, tweets Ian Begley of ESPN. Acquired in the trade that sent Kristaps Porzingis to Dallas, both players are veterans with expiring contracts who will be buyout candidates if they aren’t traded by Thursday’s deadline.

“What I want to try to do with them is get them minutes where they can start helping our guys understand defense,” Fizdale said. “DeAndre is going to be a guy that really helps Mitchell (Robinson) and I think having him be able to do it with demonstration and not just words, I think, is going to be important.

“Because DeAndre, he’s a veteran version of what Mitchell is hoping to become. And the same with Wesley. I think Wes is really going to be able to help Dot (Damyean Dotson) and Zo (Allonzo Trier), especially when it comes to defending. So I want to be able to find him some minutes out there so that he can demonstrate it while he’s doing it.”

There’s more from New York City:

Knicks fans aren’t the only ones dreaming about the possibility of having Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and Zion Williamson in their lineup next season. The expected No. 1 pick told Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv he has considered it as well. “It would be dope to play with KD and Kyrie, but like I said I’m enjoying college and whichever team drafts me I’m going to be ready to play hard and work,” Williamson said Saturday after Duke defeated St. John’s. The Knicks hold the top spot in our latest Reverse Standings.
The prospect of bringing two elite free agents to New York suddenly seems feasible now that the Knicks project to have about $70MM in cap space, writes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. Fans welcomed Irving to Madison Square Garden Friday night with a rousing ovation, followed by chants of “We want Kyrie.” However, if the Knicks don’t get their top targets, Vorkunov wonders if they will be content with another year of rebuilding or if they’ll throw that money at players such as Tobias Harris and Kemba Walker.
The Knicks may have a path to team up Durant, Irving and Anthony Davis, tweets salary cap expert Albert Nahmad. He explains that New York could agree to a deal with the Pelicans before the draft involving its lottery pick, young players and future selections. The Knicks would then take whomever New Orleans wants, add Durant and Irving with cap space and finalize the Davis trade 30 days after the draftee signs his contract (Twitter link).

New York Notes: Dolan, Durant, Russell, Nets

January 8th, 2019 at 3:16pm CST by Luke Adams

With Kristaps Porzingis sidelined due to his ACL tear, the Knicks have lacked star power this season, something owner James Dolan observed this week, as Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News details. Drawing a line between the Knicks and the other team he owns – the NHL’s New York Rangers – Dolan suggested that his NBA club would “probably be competing for a playoff spot” if it featured a star player like Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

Instead, the 10-30 Knicks are just two games away from having the NBA’s worst record. Although New York has been focusing on developing its young players at the expense of some veterans’ playing time, Dolan dismissed the idea that he’s in favor of tanking, per Bondy.

“You have responsibility to the fans,” Dolan said. “Fans pay for tickets and they deserve (the) best game you can give them. That’s probably No. 1. But when you go in and tell a team, even if you’re just telling the coach, to lose the game, you’re dispiriting your team. That hurts more than getting a better draft pick helps. It’s hard to reignite the spirit of the team.”

While Dolan publicly disavowed the idea of tanking, he did acknowledge that he hears from plenty of Knicks fans who want the team to lose in order to have a chance to draft “this kid out of Duke.” NBA executives generally aren’t permitted to publicly comment on college underclassmen, but the league isn’t expected to take action against Dolan for his oblique reference to top prospect Zion Williamson, tweets Bondy.

Let’s round up a few more items on the NBA’s two New York clubs…

Kevin Durant didn’t offer up any juicy comments today when he was grilled by New York reporters about the idea of joining the Knicks in free agency later this year, but he also didn’t seem to mind the back-and-forth, Bondy writes in a separate Daily News story. “I wish it was the other way where it was totally about the game, but I get it,” Durant said. “Our league has grown so much in popularity. The sexy thing is what happens in the summer moreso than what happens in the season – playoffs and free agency is the big thing now. I get it.”
After starting his 41st game of the season on Monday, Nets guard D’Angelo Russell has officially met the “starter criteria” for restricted free agents, as Bobby Marks of ESPN.com observes (via Twitter). That means that Russell’s projected qualifying offer ($9.16MM) and cap hold ($21.06MM) for this summer will remain unchanged — both would have been reduced if he hadn’t started at least 41 games or played 2,000 minutes this season.
Hamstrung for years by their infamous trade with the Celtics, the Nets aren’t in the same class as the C’s, who comfortably beat them on Monday, but Brooklyn’s future looks much brighter than it once did, says Tim Bontemps of ESPN.com.

And-Ones: Brown, Davis, Paul, Williamson

November 26th, 2018 at 8:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Longtime NBA coach Larry Brown is having a rough time coaching the Euroleague’s Fiat Torino in Italy. The team has lost 10 straight and Brown is on the hot seat, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando tweets. Brown was hired over the summer, his first head coaching job since leaving his position at Southern Methodist two years ago.

We have more from around the basketball world:

Former NBA big man Glen Davis has drawn interest from multiple teams in Asia and Israel, according to a Sportando report. Davis briefly played for a Croatian team this season. His last taste of the NBA came in 2014/15, when he played 74 games with the Clippers.
Brandon Paul is in serious talks with Greece’s Olympiacos, according to another Sportando report. Paul was waived by the Spurs in late July and failed to hook on to another NBA club. The shooting guard made his league debut last season and appeared in 64 games, averaging 2.3 PPG and 1.1 RPG in just 9.0 MPG.
Duke forward Zion Williamson has emerged as the favorite to be the top pick in next year’s draft, according to ESPN’s Mike Schmitz. He’s passed freshmen teammates RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish because of his unique skill set and it’s hard to imagine a rebuilding team choosing anyone else, Schmitz adds.
NBA prospect Akok Akok has withdrawn from Putnam Science Academy in Connecticut and will enroll in college in January, he told Adam Zagoria of 247Sports.com. Akok, a 6’10” power forward, has graduated high school and is eligible for the draft. He is considering Connecticut, Georgetown, Providence, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.

And-Ones: Wizards, 2019 Draft, Williamson, NBAGL

November 5th, 2018 at 3:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards recently became the 28th NBA team to reach a jersey patch agreement with a corporate sponsor, teaming with GEICO on a multiyear deal, as the club announced in a press release. GEICO’s logo will now appear on the uniforms of multiple D.C.-area organizations, with the Wizards, the Washington Mystics (WNBA), and the Capital City Go-Go (G League) all getting the advertisement patch.

The Pacers and Thunder are now the only two NBA teams without ads on their uniforms, as we outline here. The NBA’s jersey sponsorship pilot program is set to run through the 2019/20 season, but the league seems likely to extend it beyond that, given its success so far.

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

ESPN’s draft gurus, including Jonathan Givony, recently revealed their complete prospect rankings for the 2019 draft, with Duke players nabbing three of the top four spots. R.J. Barrett leads the way, followed by Zion Williamson at No. 3 and Cameron Reddish at No. 4. The Blue Devils’ trio sandwiches North Carolina small forward Nassir Little at No. 2.
Speaking of Williamson, Chris Stone of The Sporting News took an in-depth look at the 285-pound youngster, writing that the Duke forward represents a “truly one-of-a-kind prospect.”
The NBA G League has reached a multiyear deal with ESPN that will allow ESPN+ subscribers to watch more than 200 games per season, the league announced today in a press release. This season’s broadcast schedule begins with three games on Tuesday.
The Timberwolves could still end up trading Jimmy Butler for valuable long-term pieces, and Lauri Markkanen and Zach LaVine could become long-term core pieces for the Bulls. However, in the view of Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports, the 2017 trade between Minnesota and Chicago is at risk of becoming the sort of blockbuster deal that doesn’t turn out perfectly for either side.