Pacific Notes: Karl, Cousins, Price, McAdoo
George Karl acknowledged that he and DeMarcus Cousins started their relationship under trying circumstances and that it will take a while for them to truly build camaraderie, asthe Kings coach detailed in an interview with TNT’s David Aldridge for his NBA.com Morning Tip column.
“I’ve had some really good, serious talks about him,” Karl said of Cousins. “I think it’s hard, because of the skepticism of his agent and all that. It’s a process right now. I’m not saying the trust is with capital letters yet. But I think it’s on the page. That’s all I can ask for. I hope he understands that the process is not going to work coming in the middle of the season, taking a team that was basically a possession, defensive-minded team, and turning it into a running team. I think we’re getting a good pace, but we’re not doing it that well.”
Karl arrived in Sacramento amid Cousins’ frustration with the team’s frequent coaching turnover, and a person familiar with Karl’s thinking apparently told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck that the Kings are open to trading Cousins this summer. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Ronnie Price was a revelation for the Lakers this season, becoming a starter after signing a non-guaranteed deal for the minimum salary in the offseason, and he’d like to come back to the team even if he’d only be a third-stringer, as he told Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Price, who seems doubtful to play again this season because of a bone spur in his right elbow, will be a free agent this summer.
- The Warriors have recalled James Michael McAdoo from the D-League, the team announced. The rookie scored 25 points in 29 minutes for Golden State’s affiliate Sunday the day after the Warriors sent him on assignment.
- Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob shared his thoughts on Draymond Green, David Lee and more with Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group, as we passed along earlier today.
Pacific Notes: Lakers, Brown, Bhullar
The Warriors could have traded Klay Thompson in a package for Kevin Love and GM Bob Myers deserves praise for the move he didn’t make. Myers is one of a few candidates that Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors mentions in his latest poll that asks who should win the Executive of the Year award.
Here’s more from the Pacific Conference:
- The Knicks have a leg up on the Lakers in the rebuilding process because Carmelo Anthony chose New York in free agency last summer, opines Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report. Ding adds that the Lakers have the edge in young talent because Los Angeles has Julius Randle and New York lacks a prospect with that level of talent.
- Jabari Brown has impressed the Lakers so far during his 10-day contract, which he signed on Tuesday, writes Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times. “Out of all our guys, I thought Jabari played the best,” said coach Byron Scott. “I thought he did a pretty good job, for being just kind of thrown in there for that many minutes.” Brown made three of four baskets during 18 minutes in his debut against the Knicks on Thursday.
- Sim Bhullar could be the next great big man in the league, opines Daniel O’Brien of Bleacher Report. The 360-pound center is averaging 7.84 rebounds and 3.62 blocks per game for the Reno Bighorns, the D-League affiliate of the Kings.
Hoops Rumors Weekly Mailbag 3/8/15-3/13/15
In addition to our weekly chat, which Chuck Myron facilitates every Wednesday, we have added a second opportunity for you to hit us up with your questions in this, our weekly mailbag feature. Have a question regarding player movement, the salary cap, or the NBA draft? Drop me a line at HoopsRumorsMailbag@Gmail.com or @EddieScarito on Twitter. Now for this week’s inquiries:
“Can you see the Knicks trading their lottery pick (after the draft) to Sacramento for DeMarcus Cousins since the Kings didn’t rule out trading him at the deadline?” — Rodney M.
I honestly don’t see the Kings parting ways with Cousins, who is one of the most talented big men in the league, unless a schism develops between him and coach George Karl that is deemed irreparable. But if given the chance, that’s a deal that Knicks president Phil Jackson should take immediately. Normally, I’m a big proponent of building teams through the draft, but the Knicks’ situation is a complicated one.
I wasn’t a fan of the Knicks re-signing Carmelo Anthony, and I still believe that New York would have been better served to work out a sign-and-trade for ‘Melo instead of tethering all its hopes to an aging, one-dimensional scorer. But the team is stuck with Anthony for the next few seasons, and to get the most out of team owner James Dolan’s investment in the forward, the Knicks need to acquire talent who can help them win immediately. There isn’t a player in this year’s draft, save for perhaps Willie Cauley-Stein of Kentucky, who could step in from day one and be a solid contributor. But he’s not top three pick material, which is where the Knicks will likely be selecting come June.
So if I’m the Knicks, I would explore all of my options with the pick, including trading it. Though the Kings are unlikely to bite and give up on Cousins without seeing what he can be under Karl’s tutelage. I certainly wouldn’t given his talent level.
“Where do you see JaVale McGee ending up?” — Quincy
The easy answer to this question is that he’ll go to the first team to offer him a player option for 2015/16. McGee doesn’t strike me as being picky at this point. He absolutely needs to catch on somewhere and rehabilitate his rep and value before the end of the season. His next contract hangs in the balance. There are a number of contenders who could absolutely use McGee’s skills on the court, but very few of those franchises likely want to deal with him off of the hardwood, where he has a reputation for being immature and difficult.
But not to cheat you on providing an answer, I would say that he’ll most likely end up in Texas with the Mavs or the Rockets. Both teams are willing to gamble on players with questionable maturity, and both could benefit from more depth in the middle.
“Do you see a chance that any player other than Jahlil Okafor becomes the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft?” — Stephen R.
Is there a chance? Absolutely. In fact, Okafor’s hold on the top pick is becoming more tenuous as the NCAA season wears on. It’s not because Okafor has disappointed, because he’s been exceptional for Duke this season. It’s more about potential. Okafor isn’t an elite athlete, nor a good defender for his size, which will limit his overall ceiling somewhat. He’ll be a fixture in the middle for years to come for the team that drafts him, but that doesn’t mean he’ll end up the best player in this draft. There are a growing number of scouts who believe that Karl-Anthony Towns will end up being the superior player in a few short years. Towns does possess the athleticism to evolve into someone quite special on the court. His offense is a work in progress, but he’s already a superior defender to Okafor. But the Duke big man gets the edge in maturity and overall polish over Towns.
The wildcard in this year’s draft will be the positional needs of the team that wins the NBA lottery. A team like the Sixers, who have Joel Embiid and Nerlens Noel in their frontcourt already, may find selecting Emmanuel Mudiay or D’Angelo Russell a more practical choice. Both guards have been mentioned at one time or another as being in contention to go No. 1 overall by various scouts. But barring an injury to Okafor between now and June, I still don’t foresee too many GMs taking a pass on adding Okafor to their roster if given the opportunity on draft night.
“Who do you think will be a sleeper pick in the NBA draft?” — Dustin
This is a funny sort of draft. Just about every player in the second-tier could be considered a sleeper depending on where they are selected. The crop this year is close in so many ways. But I’ll give you a few players who could end up surprising the league.
- R.J. Hunter (Georgia State) — Guard
- Jakob Poeltl (Utah) — Center
- Zhou Qi (China) — Forward
- Justin Anderson (Virginia) — Forward/Guard
- Robert Upshaw (Washington) — Center
Both Hunter and Poeltl could be mid-to-late first-rounders, though Poeltl may come back for his sophomore season at Utah. Poeltl has a wealth of potential, but needs quite a bit of polish. Coming back for one more season would be a good move, especially given the wealth of big men in this year’s draft.
Hunter is a player who I believe will make a better pro than college player. The kid is fearless and he can and will shoot from anywhere in the arena. He’s hitting under 40% of his field goal attempts this season, which obviously isn’t great. But he’s a player who could turn into a big time scorer off the bench.
Anderson should end up being a mid first round pick as well, and he’s a player with quite a bit of upside and athleticism. As with most college wings, his outside shot needs more consistency, and he needs to figure out how to create his own shot better if he wants to succeed at the next level.
The last two on this list, Upshaw and Qi, are likely second-rounders. Upshaw has first round talent, but with the glut of big men available in this year’s draft, he’ll probably slide a bit as a result. His defense should translate very well to the NBA, but he needs some serious development on offense. Upshaw also has some character concerns. He was dismissed from Fresno State for multiple rules violations before attending Washington. But his talent will make him worthy of a gamble.
Qi is a bit of a wild card. He’s a fantastic athlete with a high skillset. The Chinese big man would be a great draft-and-stash candidate for a patient team. The 19-year-old is scary thin, and would not survive an NBA season until he added some weight and muscle. But Qi just may be the third most talented international player in this year’s draft behind Mario Hezonja and Kristaps Porzingis.
That’s all the space I have for now. I’ll be back next week to answer more of your questions. So please keep filling up my inbox with them in the meantime. Feel free to add to the discussion in the comments section below.
Pacific Notes: Rivers, Granger, Divac
Doc Rivers and Flip Saunders hold the dual titles of coach and president of basketball operations for the Clippers and Timberwolves, respectively, but they’ve encountered vastly different jobs, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune explores.
“It’s not been hard, Flip’s had to do a lot more,” Rivers said. “They have a lot more work, far more assets than they have to try to get in and out. He has a ton of [financial] flexibility. When I came here, I looked at our roster and flexibility and there was not a lot we could do. We were more in the minimum contract and mid-level [exception] stuff. You’ve got to have assets and we do, but none that we want to trade. He has had a lot more work to do than I have. He’s trying to rebuild an entire team.”
Rivers signed a new deal worth more than $50MM over five years with the Clippers this past summer. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Danny Granger says he considered retirement after undergoing knee surgery when he was with the Pacers in 2013, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. He’s never been the same since missing all but five games of the 2012/13 season, but the Suns trainers have told him “it can be fixed,” as Coro details. The 31-year-old with a player option of more than $2.17MM for next season explored options to buy his way off the Suns and join a contender shortly after the deadline-day trade that sent him from Miami to Phoenix, but he decided against it, Coro writes.
- Granger added that he wants to get “extremely healthy” before playing again, and while Suns coach Jeff Hornacek wouldn’t rule out his return before season’s end, as Coro relays in the same piece, the chances don’t appear overwhelmingly strong. “As we go on, if we’re still in the race, yeah, why not get a veteran guy like that in there?” Hornacek said. “If somehow we’re out of it, then maybe it makes more sense to play the young guys. Our thoughts right now are we’re still in the playoff hunt and we’re still going to go after it. If he can give us something toward the end there, maybe that happens.”
- Vlade Divac turned down other opportunities to work in NBA front offices before he joined the Kings as vice president of basketball and franchise operations last week, as he tells USA Today’s Sam Amick.
Pacific Notes: Kobe, Cousins, Rondo, Whiteside
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak insists the team won’t make building a team to win in the short-term around Kobe Bryant a priority at the expense of the future, and Bryant is on board with that, as the Lakers star told Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
“It’s a balance of both,” Bryant said. “You always want to set the franchise up for the long term. Mitch and I are on the same page. What he said in the interview is not something that we haven’t talked about before. It’s nothing different. You don’t want to compromise the future of the franchise for one season. You try to balance that.”
There’s more on the Lakers amid the latest from around the Pacific Division:
- Teams around the league are making plans to try to trade for DeMarcus Cousins in case he and George Karl don’t get along, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com said on ESPN radio Sunday and as ESPN colleague Marc Stein notes within his weekly power rankings. Cousins and Karl have nonetheless been complimentary of one another since the Kings put them together last month. Still, a source familiar with Karl’s thinking recently told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck that Sacramento wouldn’t rule out trading Cousins.
- Lakers co-owner executive vice president of basketball operations Jim Buss is believed to be among those who like Rajon Rondo, as Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding writes as he argues that the Lakers and other teams shouldn’t pay a premium for the point guard.
- The Lakers chose to sign Wayne Ellington instead of Hassan Whiteside after the big man auditioned for the team this past summer, Whiteside said to TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip column for NBA.com.
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr has learned how better to navigate leadership boundaries since Mike D’Antoni‘s belief that Kerr wanted his job helped prompt D’Antoni to leave the Suns during Kerr’s tenure as GM in Phoenix, observes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
Southeast Notes: Magic, Dragic, Whiteside, Eddie
George Karl also had an interest in the Magic‘s coaching position, which is currently held by interim coach James Borrego, prior to accepting his post with Sacramento, John Denton of NBA.com writes. “I knew in October that I wanted to get back into the gym. I’ve never been a political coach from the standpoint of politicking for a specific job or a championship team job,’’ Karl said. “What I miss is the gym, so whether it was in Sacramento or Orlando or wherever. Yes, of course [he wanted a job], but I didn’t want them to make a play that was going to wasteful of their time or my time. I don’t know many people in this [Orlando] organization, so I don’t have any qualms. I just wanted to get back into the gym one way or the other, and I think we have a really good talent and I think [the Magic] have really good young talent.’’
There’s more news from the Southeast Division:
- When discussing his brother Zoran Dragic‘s recent assignment to the D-League, Goran Dragic lauded how the Heat organization utilizes its affiliate, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. “We have a couple of examples that they were playing there and the most important thing is they were ready,” Dragic said. Hassan Whiteside, Shabazz Napier, Tyler Johnson and Henry Walker have all made the trek to Sioux Falls this season for Miami.
- Whiteside has put up some eye-popping numbers in his short time with the Heat, but he was little more than a spectator late in Friday’s loss to the Wizards, according to Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. Whiteside started the third quarter, but left the game for good at the 7:35 mark. Whiteside has a two-year contract with Miami and won’t hit free agency until 2016.
- Jarell Eddie probably startled a few hotel guests after he agreed to a 10-day contract with the Hawks this week. Eddie told Chris Vivlamore of The Journal-Constitution that he couldn’t contain himself when he got the news. “I get back and got the call and I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “I really couldn’t believe it. I screamed in my hotel room for a little while and then I was in shock. It was beautiful. It’s a dream come true.”
Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.
And-Ones: Mudiay, Bhullar, Alexander
Emmanuel Mudiay has shown significant physical development during his injury shortened season in China, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. According to Knicks radio broadcaster Mike Crispino, who came away unimpressed when he checked out Mudiay at the beginning of the CBA season, said that Mudiay has developed more of an NBA body, Berman relays. “He looked totally different, he filled out, hit the weight room, he looked more like a grown man — if you can say that about a 19-year-old,’’ Crispino said. “He was more confident. But he’s still doing a lot of things that are just mistakes — that you wouldn’t do if you had experience under your belt. He’s still very inexperienced as a basketball player on the professional level.’’ Mudiay is one of the players who New York will consider selecting with its first round draft pick, Berman notes.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Sim Bhullar, the 7’5” center of the Reno Bighorns, the Kings’ D-League affiliate, who leads the D-league in field goal percentage and blocks per game, said he is surprised by his quick success in an exchange with the Indian media relayed by Jason Wise of NBA.com. The big man was in training camp with the Kings this season but failed to make Sacramento’s regular season roster.
- NBA draft prospect Lovro Mazalin has committed to a long-term deal with Cedevita Zagreb of the Euroleague, David Pick of Eurobasket.com reports (Twitter link). Mazalin,17, is a 6’6″ small forward from Croatia. It isn’t clear if Mazalin’s deal overseas includes any NBA out provisions.
- The Mavs have re-assigned Dwight Powell to the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, the team announced in a press release.Powell has appeared in 19 games for Dallas this season and is averaging 3.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 10.0 minutes per game.
- 2015 draft prospect Cliff Alexander will be sidelined indefinitely as the NCAA investigates the Kansas freshman for allegations that his family members received impermissible benefits from an NBA agent, Pat Forde of Yahoo! Sports reports. Alexander is the No. 25 prospect according to DraftExpress and ESPN.com ranks him 34th.
Will Joseph contributed to this post.
Southwest Notes: Rondo, Smith, White
The Rajon Rondo–Mavericks relationship isn’t working and the poor fit is responsible for tension, opines Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). Before acquiring Rondo, Dallas’ offense was scoring almost 114 points per 100 possessions, because it operated with plenty of ball and player movement where a system created shots for players, Elhassan added. Since January 1st, however, Dallas has allowed 102 points per 100 possessions defensively, while the offense has scored 103 points per 100 possessions, Elhassan notes. Dallas acquired Rondo on December 18th.
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Houston legend Hakeem OIajuwon was surprised to see Josh Smith get released by the Pistons, but he’s very glad to see him with the Rockets and he believes that Smith came to the right team, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 (via Twitter links).
- Former Rockets first-round pick Royce White took to Twitter recently to make it known that he is not through playing basketball. White has been out of the NBA since he went through a pair of 10-day deals with the Kings in 2013/14.
- The Grand Rapids Drive, the Pistons’ affiliate, has acquired the rights to Nate Wolters via the D-League’s waiver process, but the team may decide to trade him, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). Wolters makes his return to the D-League after the Pelicans declined to sign him for the remainder of the season after Wolters’ second 10-day contract ended.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Western Notes: Afflalo, Lee, Robinson
Arron Afflalo should fill a lot of the void for the Blazers that was created after soon-to-be unrestricted free agent Wesley Matthews‘s season ending injury, Joe Freeman of the Oregonian writes. Afflalo, who has a player option for next season worth $7.75MM, was acquired in a February deal. His skill-set and unselfishness make him a solid replacement for Matthews, Freeman wrote. “I’ll be me,” Afflalo said. “Even before Wes went down, the goal wasn’t for me to come in here and try to be somebody that I wasn’t. Obviously adjusting to a new role is difficult and takes time, but the way I lead, be it vocally or by example, I’ll continue to do that.”
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- The Clippers continue to show interest in free agent guard Nate Robinson, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter link). It was first reported back in January that the Clippers were Robinson’s preferred team, and Los Angeles possessed some level of interest in the diminutive guard.
- Celtics coach Brad Stevens says that the Spurs have thrived, in part, because of their roster continuity, according to Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com (Twitter links). “Obviously, there’s going to continue to be some change but I think a lot of these guys are going to be in Celtics uniforms for a while coming, and that’s encouraging,” the coach said.
- The Jazz had serious discussions with the Warriors at the trade deadline about acquiring David Lee, according to Spencer Checketts of 1280 The Zone (via Twitter). The Warriors were said to be willing to trade Lee, but they were looking to get assets of value in return.
- David Stockton, son of Hall of Famer John Stockton, in his return to the D-League’s Reno Bighorns, Sacramento’s affiliate, scored a season-high 44 points in what Erika Marmolejo of NBA.com called a “statement game.” The Kings previously decided against signing Stockton to another 10-day contract. Stockton was unable to find decent time behind starting guard Ray McCallum and newly acquired veteran Andre Miller, Marmolejo notes.
Zach Links and Eddie Scarito contributed to this post
Pacific Notes: Nash, Dragic, Suns, Divac
Steve Nash hasn’t made any formal pronouncements regarding the end of his career, but he’s under no illusions that he’ll be coming back to the NBA, as he made clear Tuesday on The Bro Jake Show on TSN Radio 1040 Vancouver, as TSN.ca transcribes. Nash’s contract with the Lakers expires at season’s end.
“I never worked as hard as I did the last 18 months, two years, twice a day almost every day to try to just give it that one last year,” Nash said. “And I finally just had to admit that it’s just not meant to be.”
Nash added that he accepts the situation because “I gave it everything I possibly could.” While we wait for the 41-year-old to finally close the book on his career, here’s more from around the Pacific Division:
- The Suns promised Goran Dragic before last summer’s sign-and-trade acquisition of Isaiah Thomas that they wouldn’t add to an already crowded backcourt, multiple league sources tell Bleacher Report’s Ethan Skolnick.
- A lack of leadership and dispassionate, inconsistent play from the Suns doesn’t exactly make the franchise attractive to marquee free agents who want a winning situation, opines Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic.
- Vlade Divac‘s new position as vice president of basketball and franchise operations for the Kings technically puts him on top of the team’s basketball staff, but the practical implications of that aren’t as clear-cut, according to Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. The team’s official announcement of Divac’s hiring, released after Voisin’s story, indicates that Divac will be advising the front office and coaching staff.