Lottery Fodder: Jazz, Kings, Hornets, Magic
With the order set for June’s NBA Draft, it’s only natural that we see an influx of mock drafts in the coming days. But Tuesday’s lottery tells us only the assets that most teams will start their draft process with, as plenty can happen between now and draft night on June 26th. After all, eight teams possess multiple first round picks with the Suns leading the way with three. The Sixers, meanwhile, have two picks in round one and five in round two, giving them plenty of ammo to pursue moves.
There’s a lot of draft fodder to come over the next five weeks, but let’s take a look at what is being said by the league’s decision-makers fresh off of Tuesday night’s lottery results:
- Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey, who owns picks five, 23 and 35, said that Utah may try to package those assets in a deal to move up, tweets Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune writes that it’s hard not to look at Tuesday night as a letdown, adding that the Utah front office extolled the depth of this year’s draft class.
- Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee spoke to Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro, whose team landed the eighth selection in the draft. D’Alessandro indicated that the Kings would be open to dealing the pick if a “game-changing” talent doesn’t fall to them. They could also trade up, Jones says, or looks to acquire a second round pick in what is a deep draft. (Twitter links)
- Citing the franchise’s history of executing draft-related trades, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer predicts the Hornets will attempt to turn picks nine, 24 and 45, along with $17MM in cap space, into something bigger. Now that they have a centerpiece in Al Jefferson and assets to deal, Bonnell speculates the team could kick the tires on Kevin Love or restricted free agents Greg Monroe and Gordon Hayward.
- The Magic will pick in the dreaded fourth position come June, presumably unable to land Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker or Joel Embiid unless something drastic changes by draft night. While there was plenty of disappointment in Orlando, Magic GM Rob Hennigan remained upbeat, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. “Certainly we would have liked to have seen the highest number possible for us. I think all the teams would. But we like where we’re sitting. We feel like we can get a good player, and we feel like we’ve got our work cut out for us here the next couple of weeks to figure out exactly who that is.”
Western Notes: Suns, Lawson, Jazz
Despite the presence of Eric Bledsoe and Goran Dragic, the Suns might consider drafting a point guard this year, writes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Coro cites the uncertainty regarding the team re-signing Bledsoe, as well as Dragic being able to opt out of his contract next summer as the reasons the team could consider selecting another point guard. The team is seriously looking at Dante Exum and Marcus Smart, notes Coro.
More from out west:
- In a season filled with injuries, Ty Lawson was the Nuggets best player. Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post takes a look back at Lawson’s season, as well as where the player goes from here.
- The Timberwolves coaching search won’t really begin until after Tuesday night’s NBA Draft lottery, writes Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune. Once the team knows where it is selecting, it will have a better idea of what kind of roster the team will have as well as a better idea if they intend to keep Kevin Love or if the Wolves will attempt to trade him this summer, opines Zgoda.
- Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey is open to trading the team’s first-round draft pick, reports Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link). Lindsey said, “I don’t think with where we’re at anything is sacred. You have to listen to everything.“
- Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis, and Tony Bizjak of The Sacramento Bee examine the risks and rewards of the Kings arena deal which is set to be voted on by the city this Tuesday.
Pacific Rumors: Rivers, Sterling, Kerr, Hoiberg
Doc Rivers hadn’t ruled out leaving the Clippers in the weeks after questioning whether he’d be back with the team next season amid the Sterling maelstrom, but he finally shut the door on that possibility Thursday. Rivers said he has no plans to go anywhere, pointing to his contract, which runs two more seasons, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports tweets.
- Donald Sterling’s threat that he won’t pay his $2.5MM fine is immaterial, since the NBA would simply take it out of the television rights money the league distributes to teams, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com points out (on Twitter).
- Some Warriors players are withholding welcomes for new coach Steve Kerr out of support for the ousted Mark Jackson, and one Warriors player suggests race played a factor in the coaching change, as he tells Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher.
- The Warriors had talks with Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg before hiring Kerr, but there was no formal interview or offer from the team, reports Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group. Kerr and Stan Van Gundy were the top two candidates, with Hoiberg and Lionel Hollins waiting on the next tier, Kawakami believes (All Twitter links).
- Kerr’s base salary is $22MM, with incentives that could take the pay on his five-year deal up to the $25MM figure that’s been previously reported, a source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- The Kings will attempt to trade for a second-round pick, tweets Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.
- A Kings representative who spoke with Jones mentioned Zach LaVine as a draft prospect he liked, though the team official cautioned that the lottery could change the landscape (Twitter link).
Draft Combine Updates: Friday
We gathered a slew of reports connecting draft prospects with teams yesterday on the first full day of the Chicago draft combine, and we’ll do the same today with this post. The latest updates will be on top as we follow the action throughout.
- Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders adds the Pistons, Kings and Suns to the list of teams interviewing Noah Vonleh (Twitter link).
- The Pistons met with Rodney Hood, Ellis tweets, and the Thunder also met with him, Holmes notes (on Twitter).
- Thanasis Antetokounmpo sat down with the Nets, Knicks, Pacers, Cavs, Wizards and Pelicans, according to Woelfel (Twitter link).
2:00pm updates:
- The Pistons have met with Smart and Zach LaVine, according to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press and Keith Langlois of Pistons.com, respectively (Twitter links).
- Smart is also among the players interviewing with the Celtics tonight, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, and the C’s spoke with Aaron Gordon, too, fellow Globe scribe Baxter Holmes notes (Twitter links).
- Gordon also met with the Magic, who are set to meet with James Michael McAdoo, as well, according to Robbins (Twitter links).
- Tyler Ennis is meeting with the Bucks today after interviewing with the Bulls on Thursday, as Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times and Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com report (Twitter links).
- Jarnell Stokes already worked out for the Raptors, according to Wolstat (on Twitter).
12:02pm updates:
- Dante Exum‘s interview with the Magic went well, he said, adding that the team would like to bring him to Central Florida for a workout, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Robbins, in a full piece, added Marcus Smart to the list of top prospects who’ve interviewed with the Magic.
- Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge expressed a fondness for Smart today in an interview with ESPN’s Andy Katz on the network’s coverage of the combine, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv notes (on Twitter).
- Gary Harris told Katz he met with the Raptors, Nuggets, Grizzlies and Pistons, as Zagoria once more passes along via Twitter.
- The Raptors will interview Jordan Adams today, according to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, who says the team also spoke with James Young (Twitter links).
- Zagoria adds the Sixers, Spurs, Clippers, Mavs, Nuggets, Warriors and Bulls to the list of teams that Kyle Anderson either met or is slated to meet (Twitter link).
- Markel Brown said he’ll talk with the Celtics today, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (Twitter link).
Draft Combine Updates: Thursday
The Chicago draft combine is underway, and teams can meet with up to 18 players. With 30 teams, that means there could be as many as 540 interviews this week. We’ll try to keep track of as many as possible here, and we’ll update this post throughout the day as news filters in. Here’s the latest:
- Ennis will meet with the Bobcats and at least four other teams in addition to the organizations listed below, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer reports.
- Vonleh interviewed with the Wolves, Bucks, Lakers, and Blazers, tweets Robbins, who adds that the big man is scheduled to meet with the Sixers.
Earlier updates:
- LaVine shot very well, and Seth Davis of SI.com hears that he may have helped his stock more than any other prospect today (Twitter link; H/T Wolstat).
- In Exum’s extended quotes transcribed by Sean Deveney of The Sporting News regarding the point guard’s willingness to pressure certain teams not to draft him, Exum said he doesn’t see any of his potential destinations as a bad fit, and is willing to play behind an established point guard.
- LaQuinton Ross will work out for the Cavs on Monday, tweets Jason Lloyd of Akron Beacon Journal.
- The Raptors plan to meet with K.J. McDaniels, McDermott, Payton, Anderson, McDaniels, and possibly Hood, reports Wolstat (via Twitter).
- Hood will meet with the Bulls on Friday, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.
- Randle interviewed with the Cavs and will do so with the Bucks, too, as the Plain Dealer and Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel note (Twitter links).
- Patric Young spoke with the Pelicans and has a sit-down with the Grizzlies scheduled, according to Robbins (Twitter links).
- Blakely adds Hood and Noah Vonleh to the Celtics interview list, while Randle and T.J. Warren are talking to Boston, too, according to Holmes (All Twitter links).
- Vonleh says he also has an interview scheduled with the Magic, Robbins notes, adding that Orlando wanted to interview Stauskas, but his meeting schedule is too full (Twitter links). The Magic sat down with Randle on Wednesday, Robbins adds (on Twitter).
- Aaron Gordon met with the Sixers on Wednesday, Pompey tweets.
- Exum will also interview with the Kings, according to Howard-Cooper (on Twitter).
- Julius Randle is meeting with the Sixers today, reports Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
- Doug McDermott said he met Wednesday with the Bulls, Hawks and Timberwolves, Robbins observes, and McDermott added that he’s looking forward to a meeting with the Cavs, as Robbins and the Plain Dealer observe (Twitter links).
- Rodney Hood is set to interview with the Wolves tonight, Zgoda tweets. Hood interviewed with the Bobcats on Wednesday, as Bonnell details (Twitter links).
- Kyle Anderson met with the Celtics and he’ll also see the Wolves tonight, Washburn and Zgoda note (Twitter links).
- The Pistons met with Glenn Robinson III on Wednesday, as he tells Langlois (Twitter link).
- Add the Celtics and the Bucks to Exum’s interview agenda, as Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe and Matt Velazquez of the Journal Sentinel report (Twitter links). Exum thinks he’ll sit down with the Cavs, too, the Plain Dealer notes (on Twitter).
- The Wolves will interview Lavine on Friday after having spoken with James Young on Wednesday, Zgoda tweets.
- The Bobcats have expressed interest in P.J. Hairston, as he tells Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).
- Dante Exum‘s wingspan measured out at nearly 6’10”, and he’ll draw consideration for the No. 1 overall pick from some teams, ESPN’s Chad Ford said on the network’s combine coverage today, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv notes (Twitter link). He denied that he’s angling for the Lakers in the draft, but he wouldn’t rule out pressuring some teams not to take him, tweets Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. Exum met with the Sixers, Pistons and Suns on Wednesday, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The Celtics, Lakers, Magic and Jazz will also speak with him, report Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel and Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune (All four Twitter links).
- Marcus Smart has interviewed with the Rockets, Raptors, Lakers, Suns and Nuggets, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. The Cavs, Jazz and Bucks are also on his agenda, as the Plain Dealer, Falk and Gery Woelfel of the Journal Times report (All Twitter links). The Timberwolves won’t interview Smart in Chicago, but Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities hears the team is hoping to get him to come to Minnesota for a workout (Twitter link).
- Ontario native Tyler Ennis is excited about the idea of playing for the Raptors and has interviewed with them, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. He’s also met with the Bobcats, Kings, Suns, Thunder and Nuggets, according to Kennedy (on Twitter).
- Nik Stauskas has met with or will meet with the Kings, Pistons and Raptors, according to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com and Doug Smith of the Toronto Star (All Twitter links).
- The Nuggets, Spurs, Warriors and Nets have met with Shabazz Napier, Kennedy tweets.
- The Hawks, Spurs, Thunder, Raptors, Magic, Cavs and Timberwolves met Elfrid Payton, Kennedy reports (Twitter link).
- Zach LaVine interviewed with the Celtics, among others, Wednesday, he tells Blakely (Twitter link).
- Russ Smith sat down with the Suns, Celtics and Blazers, according to Kennedy (via Twitter).
Pacific Notes: Sterlings, Kings, Young
The Kings finalized a 35-year lease agreement to build a new arena in Sacramento, according to a report from Dale Kasler, Tony Bizjak and Ryan Lillis of The Sacramento Bee. The agreement still has to be voted on by city council, but there are no signs at this point that the measure would fail. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The NBA is not worried about Shelly Sterling’s long term involvement with the Clippers, sources with knowledge of the league’s legal strategy tell Michael McCann of SI.com. There is no danger of Shelly becoming a controlling owner of the team by default, and the only way she could be named a controlling owner would be with league approval.
- McCann has also learned that Sterling is likely to lose her share along with Donald Sterling if the league is successful in their push to oust him. California property law views the team as a single property shared by the Sterlings, not two distinct 50/50 pieces that the league could strip in part.
- League officials are not worried about a “slippery slope” precedent being set with the ouster, per McCann. Private comments made by other owners in the past or future will not be subject to these measures, except for egregious cases that create exceptional outrage like Sterling’s comments did.
- In anticipating the likelihood of a Sterling lawsuit, the SI.com scribe shares that the league is more concerned with the legal process becoming dragged out and embarrassing than it is with the strength of its case, which it expects to hold up in court.
- Mike Trudell of Lakers.com takes a look at Nick Young‘s season with the Lakers, asking the pending free agent about his future with the team. “Hopefully I could be back but we’ll see what [the Lakers] plans are after the draft and settle in to what they want to do,” said Young. “I appreciate everything they said to me and being able to do what I do here.” The Lakers are rumored to be interested in bringing the shooting guard back next year.
Pacific Rumors: Kings, Thompson, Lakers
The Kings are canvassing their fans for input on this year’s draft, and GM Pete D’Alessandro will meet with those who submit the best ideas for player evaluation and invite a few of them into the team’s war room on draft night, as he explained in a Reddit chat today. Whether he’ll actually listen or if it’s just a publicity stunt remains to be seen, but it’s another example of the experimental approach the new Kings brass has been taking. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The Kings will favor the best player available over positional needs in the draft, D’Alessandro also said on Reddit.
- Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group suggests that Klay Thompson will wind up with $12MM annual salaries in an extension from the Warriors this summer (Twitter link). Co-owner Joe Lacob has vowed to strike a deal with the shooting guard.
- Kobe Bryant, in an appearance Thursday on Jimmy Kimmel Live, said he wants the Lakers to consult him on their next coach and claimed they didn’t do so when they hired Mike Brown and Mike D’Antoni, but that’s revisionist history, writes Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding. Bryant is on record as having said he spoke with co-owner Jim Buss about D’Antoni during the team’s 2012 coaching search, Ding points out.
- Bryant also said on Kimmel’s show that he “didn’t care” whether the Lakers retained D’Antoni, who resigned last week. Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com rounds up more from Bryant’s turn on late-night TV.
Western Notes: Draft, Clippers, Warriors
With the 2014 NBA Draft approaching, college coaches and player agents are relieved that Clippers owner Donald Sterling received a lifetime ban, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. A number of coaches Zagoria spoke to said there wouldn’t be an issue for any players the Clippers draft now that Sterling is gone.
More from the west:
- The Jazz announced that they will hold pre-draft workouts tomorrow for Joe Jackson, Justin Cobbs, Fuquan Edwin, Cameron Clark, Travis Bader, and Josh Huestis (Twitter links).
- Bryce Cotton is going to work out for the Jazz and the Kings this week, per a tweet from PL Sports Management. The point guard is currently ranked 62nd on Chad Ford of ESPN.com‘s Big Board.
- The Warriors are intrigued by both Lionel Hollins and Mike D’Antoni for their vacant head coaching position, reports Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link).
- Golden State hasn’t reached out to either Steve Kerr or Jeff Van Gundy yet for their coaching position, reports Zagoria (Twitter link).
- On the possibility of re-signing with the Grizzlies, Mike Miller said, “as long as everything is done fairly, I’m definitely going to be back here,” tweets Rob Fischer of Sports 56 WHBQ. Miller is an unrestricted free agent.
Pacific Rumors: Sterling, Jackson, Kings
Shelly Sterling, wife of banned Clippers owner Donald Sterling, caught the NBA by surprise Tuesday, issuing a statement through a law firm, as Mike Bresnahan, Broderick Turner and David Wharton of the Los Angeles Times detail. The statement asserts that she’s working with the league in its search for a new Clippers CEO and refers to Shelly Sterling as co-owner of the Clippers. Sources have told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com that she’s informed the league that she wants to keep the team, as fellow ESPN.com scribe Darren Rovell writes. For now, Doc Rivers and other team department heads are jointly in charge of the team, while the NBA’s Advisory/Finance Committee continues to search for a Clippers CEO and work toward Donald Sterling’s ouster, the league announced. Here’s more from a tumultuous Pacific Division:
- Former Warriors coach Mark Jackson made the media rounds today, appearing on SiriusXM NBA Radio, 95.7 The Game in the Bay Area, and The Dan Patrick Show. Jackson said co-owner Joe Lacob’s expectation of a top-four finish in the Western Conference was unrealistic, notes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group, and the coach is upset about media reports that he believes the team leaked during their meeting on Tuesday (Twitter links).
- Jackson also rejected the notion that his religion was an issue, suggesting the Warriors used the idea to gin up positive PR for the team, as Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN.com observes. “I think it’s unfortunate because if it was true, you don’t encourage media to come do a piece on my church, on my ministry, the work on my faith,” Jackson said. “Don’t do it when it’s convenient and you’re searching for something. I never went around beating people in the head with a Bible.”
- Jackson also said that living in Southern California instead of the Bay Area didn’t get in the way of his job and denied that he had a falling out with assistant GM Kirk Lacob, Strauss notes in the same piece.
- Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro Identified shooting and playmaking as offseason needs and expressed openness to the idea of moving DeMarcus Cousins to power forward. D’Alessandro made his comments in a Reddit AMA chat with fans Tuesday, and Kings.com provides a partial transcription.
More Fallout From Mark Jackson’s Firing
Mark Jackson said in a radio appearance this morning on The Dan Patrick Show that if the Warriors hadn’t fired him, he would have resigned or demanded changes, as Sports Xchange notes. Here’s more on the reaction to Jackson’s ouster in Golden State:
- Former assistant coach Darren Erman was worried that Jackson was speaking ill of him behind his back, Grantland’s Zach Lowe writes, which suggests that was the reason that Erman reportedly taped the conversations of other coaches. The Warriors are investigating allegations that another assistant coach was also recording conversations within the organization, Lowe reports.
- Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob doesn’t think that the decision to fire Jackson will cause Stephen Curry to sour on the organization, and Lacob says he took the star point guard’s support for the coach under consideration. Lacob made those comments and more to Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group, Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle and Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com, and Kawakami provides a transcription.
- Lacob also told the reporters that GM Bob Myers made the decision to fire Jackson, though he admits that he had the power to overrule him. Myers said he didn’t consult with Curry before he pulled the plug on Jackson, reports Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group.
- Criticism that the team should have given Jackson an extension last summer is “unfair,” in Lacob’s eyes. Still, it appears the dissolution of extension talks proved pivotal to Jackson’s future with the Warriors, Kawakami tweets.
- Lacob told the reporters that he didn’t require Jackson, who commuted to his job from Southern California, to move to the Bay Area, but he thinks that he’ll insist that his next coach live close to work. On-court expectations will be high for the next coach of the team, Lacob asserts.
- Lacob suggests that while Jackson succeeded in connecting with his players, the coach could do a better job of “managing up and sideways,” seemingly pointing to Jackson’s tension with management and much of the Warriors organization. Still, he insists his relationship with Jackson was generally friendly.
- Jackson and Kings coach Michael Malone, Jackson’s former assistant, used to share the same agent, who negotiated the title of Warriors associate head coach for Malone behind Jackson’s back, according to Kawakami. When Jackson found out, he took the title away and changed agents. That begat the tension between Jackson and Malone, Kawakami says (All Twitter links).