Draft Notes: Cavs, Parker, Wiggins, Embiid
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert wants the team to draft Andrew Wiggins first overall, but the front office prefers Jabari Parker, report Jeff Goodman and Chad Ford of ESPN.com. That’s somewhat surprising, considering that Parker is seemingly the better of the two for Gilbert’s desire to win now. It’s unclear if Gilbert will let GM David Griffin and company take Parker, but after letting his executives make the call on Anthony Bennett at No. 1 last year, Gilbert will at least have a “stronger voice” this time around, Ford tweets. Here’s more on the eve of the draft:
- Andrew Wiggins wants to play for the Sixers, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
- The Sixers would take Wiggins at No. 1 if they were to move up, but the Bucks, Magic, Jazz, and Celtics would all select Jabari Parker if they wound up at the top of the draft, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN.com.
- Multiple teams are trying to buy copies of Joel Embiid‘s medical records, a source tells Jake Fischer of The Boston Globe. Other sources tell Fischer that the buying of draftees’ medical records is common practice. (Twitter links)
- James Young says his workout with the Sixers went well, and gets the sense that he could be selected by Philadelphia with the No. 10 pick, tweets Pompey.
- Julius Randle passed on a second workout with the Celtics, tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe.
- Marcus Smart did perform a second workout with the Celtics, and also worked out for the Magic a second time, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders,
- Zach LaVine tells Andrew Perna of RealGM he has worked out for every team holding picks six through 17 (Twitter link). The Sixers, Magic, and Bulls are teams in that range that had not been linked to a workout with LaVine previously.
- Thanasis Antetokounmpo worked out for the Knicks, tweets Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Knicks acquired two second round picks earlier today.
- Bogdan Bogdanovic has come stateside to work out for the Spurs and Clippers, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress tweets that the Serbian wing is gaining steam as a potential pick late in the first round.
- Alec Brown has worked out for the Bulls, Cavs, Mavs, Clippers, Knicks, Sixers, and Raptors, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
- Tim Bontemps of The New York Post thinks it’s likely that the Nets can pick up a second round pick, and opines that they could even make their way into the late first round, where multiple teams would like to trade out of.
Earlier updates
- Dan Gilbert tweeted out his insistence that he and the Cavs front office are not split (hat tip to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel).
- An opposing GM told Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio that the Cavs are entertaining “everything,” because they are in the driver’s seat (Twitter link).
- It’s still unknown if Dante Exum will work out for the Cavs at their request, but Andy Katz of ESPN.com reports that the guard is unlikely to cooperate without an assurance that there is a deal in place for Cleveland to move down and select him.
- The Hornets have shown sporadic interest in dealing away their No. 24 pick, but those talks have cooled recently, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com.
- The Celtics face tough odds of moving up in the draft because “lots” of other teams with better players to offer are trying to do the same, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com.
- One such team could be the Kings, who sources tell Ken Berger of CSBSports.com are trying to move up from No. 8 to have a chance at landing Joel Embiid.
- Rival GMs believe that Nuggets GM Tim Connelly is in “deal-making mode” with Denver’s No. 11 pick, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Nuggets have been reportedly shopping the pick for some time now.
- Noah Vonleh is expected to be selected first of the power forward grouping including Vonleh, Aaron Gordon, and Julius Randle, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
- Gordon is not expected to drop any lower than the eighth selection, per Spears’ source.
- Nets GM Billy King told Rod Boone of Newsday that the asking price to acquire a first round draft pick is likely too high for Brooklyn, and that a second round pick seems more possible (Twitter link).
- Jusuf Nurkic has a buyout to leave his international club and join the NBA this season, tweets Wojnarowski. There was some confusion as to Nurkic’s willingness and ability to join an NBA team immediately before this revelation, tweets Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.
- Joel Embiid is in “strong consideration” for the Sixers at No. 3, and it’s highly unlikely he slides past the Lakers at No. 7, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link). The Sixers have obtained Embiid’s medical information, as Dei Lynam of CSNPhilly.com reports.
- The NBA buyout in the extension that Walter Tavares signed with his Spanish team is $600K, agent Andy Miller tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv, and that’s precisely the amount NBA teams can pay without it counting against the cap. There were representatives from 11 NBA teams at a private workout Tavares held on Tuesday, and Raptors GM Masai Ujiri and executives from the Knicks and Nets were among them, Zagoria reports. Zagoria also adds the Spurs to the list of teams that have brought the 22-year-old center in for an audition.
- Fellow European prospect Vasilije Micic prefers to stay overseas regardless of whether he’s drafted on Thursday, as he told Rigas Dardalis of Eurohoops.net.
- The Hawks were the last of a dozen teams to work out Zach LaVine, observes Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (Twitter link).
- Andre Dawkins auditioned for the Kings, as Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report notes within his broader look at the draft. Dawkins tells Zwerling that the Cavs, Pistons and Wizards have expressed interest in him.
- Jordan Adams wasn’t able to get to Memphis in time as the Grizzlies scrambled to put together a last-minute audition, so Michael Dixon is taking his place in the four-man workout group, tweets Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal.
Rudy Gay To Opt In With Kings
WEDNESDAY, 7:56pm: Gay has opted in as expected, the team announced.
SUNDAY, 1:35pm: Kings forward Rudy Gay will exercise his $19.3MM contract option for the 2014-15 season, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Meanwhile, Gay will table extension talks until later this summer.
The Kings want to re-sign Gay to a new, long-term deal and they’re expected to sit down with agent Alex Saratsis of Octagon in the near future to get that going. Gay has waffled on his desire to remain in Sacramento but sources tell Wojnarowski that he has been impressed with the commitment of new owner Vivek Ranadive to build a contending team.
By re-upping his deal, Gay will give himself a hefty guaranteed payday while also getting a chance to see how the Kings’ proposed rebuild looks over the course of the next year. If things pan out to Gay’s liking, he can extend his contract with the club through the 2017/18 season, providing he signs the extension after the calendar flips to July. If Gay isn’t confident in the team’s direction, he can pack his bags and go elsewhere in the summer of 2015.
Gay enjoyed something of a mini-resurgence during his time with the Kings last season. In 55 games, the forward averaged 20.1 PPG off of 48.2% shooting from the floor. He also put up a career-high PER of 19.6 after years of criticism from the stats-conscious community over his lack of efficiency.
Kings Extend Qualifying Offer To Isaiah Thomas
The Kings have extended a qualifying offer to Isaiah Thomas, meaning he’ll enter next month as a restricted free agent, the team announced. The offer is for one year at $2,875,131, as I explained this spring, but it will likely serve only as a placeholder for Thomas, who can command a long-term deal for significantly more money on the market.
The news is no surprise, as GM Pete D’Alessandro told reporters this spring that he planned on extending the QO. It’ll allow Sacramento to match offers for the 25-year-old. D’Alessandro has publicly praised Thomas, but the team would like to bring aboard a pass-first point guard this summer, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee notes via Twitter.
An Eastern Conference executive in March pegged the market value of the ASM Sports client at $4-5MM per year. That would fit within the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, though the Kings, in addition to having the right of first refusal, have full Bird rights on Thomas.
Draft Notes: Payton, Embiid, Knicks
In Jeff Goodman’s latest mock draft for ESPN (Insiders only), Elfrid Payton gets selected by the Timberwolves at No. 13. In response to that projection, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN said that Minnesota doesn’t have any interest in drafting the former Louisiana Lafayette guard with that pick. It probably won’t matter anyway, as Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe hears that Payton has been greatly impressive in workouts and won’t slip past the top 10 on draft night (Twitter links).
With that aside, we’ll keep tabs on this evening’s draft-related news here:
- Add Sweden’s Viktor Gaddefors to the list of players that Memphis is bringing in for a second workout on Wednesday, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal.
- The Hornets appear primed to add at least one big man with either the 24th or 45th pick in this year’s draft, and Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer lists Mitch McGary and Johnny O’Bryant as potential targets.
- Former Florida big man Patric Young is on Phil Jackson’s draft wish list, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman also points out that the Knicks worked out Jahii Carson recently.
- Following up Andy Katz’s earlier ESPN report that the Kings have three deals in place regarding their No. 8 pick, ESPN’s Marc Stein identified the Celtics, Suns, and 76ers as the potential trading partners.
Earlier updates:
- The Pelicans are making a concerted effort to acquire a first-round pick, tweets NBA.com’s David Aldridge.
- According to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, Joel Embiid is strongly in play for the 76ers at No. 3 and the Magic at No. 4; the worst-case scenario is that Embiid won’t fall past the Kings at No. 8 (Twitter link).
- The Knicks remain confident that they’ll land a first-round pick and/or a second-round pick in Thursday’s draft, tweets Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.
- The Pistons are without a first-round pick this year, but team president/head coach Stan Van Gundy says that one team picking between No. 26 and No. 30 is open to shedding their pick for the best offer. “There’s one team that’s saying “give us your best deal for (our) pick” (Twitter link via Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News).
- The Bucks made an unsuccessful attempt to bring in Cleanthony Early for a workout, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.
- In another piece, Woelfel notes that the Spurs, Pacers, and Pistons are among the list of teams that brought second-round hopeful Jamil Wilson in for a workout.
- The Grizzlies are trying to put together a last minute workout for Glenn Robinson III, Jordan Adams, Joe Harris, and Geron Johnson tomorrow, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN.
- Former Duke swingman Rodney Hood participated in a second workout for the Suns, notes Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
Mannix’s Latest: Bradley, Cavs, Magic
Avery Bradley arguably had the most impressive NBA season of his career to date, averaging 14.9 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 1.1 SPG, and 39.5% from three-point range. With this in mind, rival executives tell Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated that the 23-year-old guard could land a contract this summer that pays in the range of $7MM-$9MM annually, which could influence the Celtics to consider drafting some insurance for their backcourt this upcoming Thursday.
Below, you can find more interesting tidbits that Mannix passes along in his latest mock draft:
- League sources say that the Cavaliers are weighing three options: Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, and Dante Exum. Mannix notes that Exum is a wild card; if Cleveland ultimately walked away with Exum on draft night, I think it’d be plausible to imagine that they’d trade down to select him.
- Magic GM Rob Hennigan will not be inclined to draft someone who isn’t ready to play right away, which suggests that Joel Embiid may be out of the question with their No. 4 pick.
- Two rival executives say that the Kings have been actively shopping their No. 8 pick.
- The Bulls continue to shop their two first round picks – No. 16 and 19, respectively – hoping to land either future first rounders or the chance to move up in this year’s draft. Trading those picks for future selections would aid in Chicago’s attempt to clear cap space to make a run at Carmelo Anthony in free agency this summer.
- The Rockets have fielded offers for their No. 25 pick. With their sights set on keeping enough salary cap space clear for a run at Carmelo or LeBron James, Mannix thinks that drafting and keeping an international player overseas next season would make sense if Houston decided to retain their selection.
Pistons End Josh Smith Talks With Kings
4:19pm: The talks are “dead,” a source tells Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, who hears the Pistons put an end to them this morning (Twitter link).
2:29pm: The Pistons and Kings have spoken about a trade that would ship Josh Smith to Sacramento, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. One version would involve Derrick Williams and Jason Thompson heading to Detroit, while Jason Terry is a part of other scenarios, Stein adds (Twitter links). No deal is imminent, but Stein suggests that Sacramento has Rajon Rondo in mind as it pursues a deal for Smith, who’s friends with the Celtics point guard (Twitter link).
Pistons president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy expressed confidence this afternoon in the team’s direction regarding soon-to-be restricted free agent Greg Monroe, and a trade of Smith would help resolve the Pistons’ shooting deficiencies if Monroe remains. The new deal at or near the max that Monroe and agent David Falk are likely to command this summer would mean Monroe would join Smith on lucrative long-term contracts that would make it difficult for the Pistons to make changes along the front line without parting with Andre Drummond.
The Kings under GM Pete D’Alessandro have been perhaps the most aggressive team on the trade market, and a deal involving either Williams or Terry would represent a quick flip of players he acquired via trades just this past season. Thompson was frequently in trade rumors toward the deadline, but talks involving the Cavs never came to fruition.
Sacramento appears focused for now on proposals for the No. 8 pick, according to Stein (on Twitter), who echoes an earlier report that the team is more likely to trade it than keep it. The Kings apparently have three deals in the works involving that selection, and the Bulls and Hawks have been linked to the pick.
Draft Rumors: Cavs, Wolves, Afflalo, Jazz, Sixers
The Cavs had been favoring Jabari Parker, but his poor performance in a workout for the team coupled with a stirring audition from Andrew Wiggins has left Cleveland torn with just two days to go before the draft, according to Jeff Goodman and Chad Ford of ESPN.com. The time left before Thursday night’s draft figures to be full of back-and-forth, with uncertainty seemingly surrounding all 60 picks. Here’s the latest:
- The Wolves are willing to give up J.J. Barea, Corey Brewer, Alexey Shved and the No. 13 pick in an effort to either land a higher draft pick or a veteran, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders writes in his NBA AM piece. The Bulls have their eyes on the 13th pick, according to Kyler.
- The Hornets, who have a longstanding interest in Arron Afflalo, are on board with surrendering the No. 9 pick and a player for the Magic shooting guard, Kyler writes in the same piece.
- The Jazz are targeting Wiggins as they attempt to move up rather than Parker, and they’re actively shopping pick No. 23, according to Kyler.
- The Sixers‘ reason for seeking a third top-10 pick is so they would still be able to emerge with two top-10 picks from the draft if they package the third and 10th selections to move up, sources tell Kyler.
- The Kings have three deals in the works involving the No. 8 pick, according to Andy Katz of ESPN.com.
- The Bucks are not actively shopping John Henson, in spite of heavy interest from other teams, but they are open to the idea of trading him for a lottery pick, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
- Milwaukee is listening to offers for the No. 2 overall pick, though Bucks GM John Hammond said today that “it would take something very special,” to prompt him to give it up, tweets Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- It’s “highly unlikely” that the Blazers, who are without a pick in either round on Thursday, end up trading for one, as Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com hears (Twitter link).
And-Ones: Frye, Thomas, Love, Lue
There’s mutual respect between Channing Frye and Warriors coach Steve Kerr, as TNT’s David Aldridge notes in his latest Morning Tip column for NBA.com. The Warriors are reportedly eyeing the sharpshooting big man who’ll almost certainly opt out of his deal with the Suns.
- It would “mean a lot” to Kings restricted free agent Isaiah Thomas to receive an offer sheet from the Lakers, writes Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The guard grew up as a diehard Lakers fan and has idolized Kobe Bryant since he was a child, but he still spoke highly of the Kings and would like to return.
- There have been mixed reports on this aspect of the Kevin Love talks, but Sam Amick of USA Today hears that the Warriors are very wary about taking on Kevin Martin‘s contract as a part of a deal. Meanwhile, despite the hangups in talks and the buzz that a deal with the Warriors is dead, Amick believes that things could pick up again between Golden State and the Wolves.
- Sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue has agreed to become the associate head coach of the Cavaliers. Lue was considered a head coaching candidate for Cleveland but the Cavs opted to hire David Blatt instead.
- Marquette forward Jamil Wilson worked out for the Mavericks today, according to Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times (on Twitter). Wilson has auditioned for about a dozen teams in total.
- The Cavs will bring in Oregon’s Mike Moser and Iowa State’s Melvin Ejim for a workout on Tuesday, tweets Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops.
- The Suns worked out center Walter Tavares earlier today, Scotto tweets. The 7’3″ center is rising up draft boards around the league. DraftExpress currently has Tavares going to the Bucks with the No. 31 pick in their mock draft.
- The Pistons will bring in DeAndre Daniels and Mike Moser for a workout on Wednesday, tweets Scotto.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Draft Notes: Bucks, Wiggins, Payton, Hood
Bad news for Joel Embiid and Dante Exum. Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry says that it would be “hard to take Embiid” given his foot injury and indicated that it’ll come down to either Jabari Parker or Andrew Wiggins, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. Here’s the latest draft news from around the league..
- League sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that the Kings are seriously considering Louisiana-Lafayette product Elfrid Payton Jr. at No. 8 and few expect him to slip past the Magic at No. 12.
- Duke sharpshooter Rodney Hood is back with the Hornets for a second attempt at a workout tomorrow, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter). Hoops Rumors chatted with Hood back in May about the draft process and his NBA goals.
- K.J. McDaniels will also receive a second audition for the Hornets and he’ll be joined by UCLA’s Jordan Adams, Missouri’s Jabari Brown, Jarell Eddie of Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh’s Lamar Patterson (Twitter links).
- Former North Carolina wing P.J. Hairston is working out today for the Bulls, who may end up trading one or both of their first-round picks, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY. Chicago is currently slated to pick at Nos. 16 and 19.
- Former Syracuse forward C.J. Fair will audition for the Thunder today, the Pistons tomorrow, and the Nets on Wednesday, Zagoria tweets.
- The Bulls have Michigan State’s Adreian Payne matching up against Chad Posthumus of Morehead State in a workout today, according to Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (via Twitter).
- The Wizards will look to take the best player available when they’re called at the podium but J. Michael of CSNWashington.com hears that they’re favoring size.
Bulls, Kings Discuss No. 8 Pick
The Bulls have spoken with the Kings about a deal that would send the No. 8 pick in Thursday’s draft to Chicago, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. The target for the Bulls is Doug McDermott, according to Deveney, who seconds an earlier report that Chicago has interest in Gary Harris and Nik Stauskas, too.
Chicago has been active in attempts to move up in the draft order, reportedly engaging in serious talks about the No. 11 pick with the Nuggets. The No. 12 pick is also part of multiple conversations the team has had with the Magic as Chicago pursues Arron Afflalo, according to Deveney. A top-flight shooter appears to be Chicago’s aim, and McDermott would fit that bill, having nailed 44.9% of his three-pointers last season.
Sacramento is actively attempting to move the No. 8 pick and is more likely to trade it than to use it to select a player on Thursday, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com reported last week. The Hawks have also reportedly been linked to talks for the eighth pick.