Draft Notes: Robinson III, Gordon, Williams
The 2014 NBA Draft is less than a month away. Here are the latest notes:
- The Timberwolves will be holding pre-draft workouts for Keith Appling, Nedim Buza, Jabari Brown, Jerami Grant, Dwight Powell and Scottie Wilbekin, the team tweeted.
- Aaron Gordon tweeted that he’d be returning to Boston in a “couple of weeks” for a pre-draft workout with the Celtics. The forward out of Arizona is a projected lottery pick and Boston holds the sixth and 17th overall picks in June’s draft.
- Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders runs down the worst first-overall draft choices in NBA history.
- Kendall Williams participated in a pre-draft workout for the Suns today, reports Zac Walberer of NBA.com. The point guard out of New Mexico is projected as a possible late second round draft pick.
- Glenn Robinson III has workouts scheduled for next week with the Rockets and Suns, reports Mark Snyder of The Detroit Free Press. Robinson is projected as a late first round selection.
- HoopsHype released their latest Mock Draft.
- Noah Vonleh, Elfrid Payton, Tyler Ennis and Marcus Smart are scheduled to work out for the Kings next week, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter links).
- Ronald Roberts worked out for the Sixers today, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. The power forward out of St. Joe’s is a projected second rounder in this year’s draft.
- Chaz Williams is scheduled to work out for the Raptors next Wednesday, reports Josh Newman of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
Draft Links: Hancock, Jazz, Vonleh
The 76ers worked out Luke Hancock, who’s also set to audition for the Pistons, Bucks, Jazz and Rockets, agent Pedro Power of You First Sports tells Hoops Rumors.
You can find more of tonight’s draft links worth passing along below:
- In addition to Hancock, Utah will bring in Semaj Christon, DeAndre Kane, Travis Wear, and Jamil Wilson for workouts tomorrow, according to Jody Genessy of the Deseret News (via Twitter).
- Noah Vonleh has drawn serious praise after his Wednesday workout in New York, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN. Though Vonleh’s shot may have been off, one NBA executive told Ford that Vonleh was impressive in every other category. “Vonleh was good. Didn’t shoot it well but everything else was very good to ridiculously good.” Another executive feels that Vonleh has the requisite athleticism to rival those at the top of his draft class. “(He’s) got elite physical tools and is very skilled. He should be in the same group with Wiggins, Embiid, Parker & Exum” (All Twitter links).
- The Raptors reportedly like both Nik Stauskas and Tyler Ennis, but they also know that neither will realistically be available by the time the team selects at No. 20 on draft night. The team could possibly attempt to trade for a higher selection, but Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun says that it’s highly unlikely (Twitter link).
- Wolstat adds (via Twitter) that Melvin Ejim has a workout with the Raptors on June 4. Ennis has upcoming workouts with the Kings, Lakers, and Magic.
- Ejim will also join Thanasis Antetokounmpo, DeAndre Daniels, and Cleanthony Early in a workout for the Hornets, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
- Former Iona guard Sean Armand will work out for the Bulls, a source tells SNY.tv’s Adam Zagoria (Twitter link).
Draft Updates: Saric, Celtics, Lakers, Raptors
It’s unclear whether early entrant Dario Saric wants to play in the NBA next season or remain in Europe, but if either the Celtics or Lakers draft him, he plans to come stateside, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Most projections have him going a little lower than Boston’s No. 6 pick or L.A.’s No. 7 pick, but perhaps the knowledge of his immediate willingness to play will prompt one of those teams to bite. Here’s the latest from a busy draft workout scene:
- Raptors GM Masai Ujiri is open to trading up in the draft and praised Toronto native Tyler Ennis, whom the team had in for a workout today, notes Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (on Twitter). The free agency of Kyle Lowry and Greivis Vasquez won’t play into Ujiri’s decision about drafting a point guard, the GM added.
- The Raptors released their workout list for today on their website, and they’re auditioning Jake Odum, Jordan Dykstra, Norvel Pelle, Jordan Bachynski and Chadrack Lufile in addition to names that have already been reported.
- Casey Prather is the new name among those working out for the Heat today, as Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets.
- Goodman adds DeAndre Kane and David Wear to the list of players auditioning for the Suns (Twitter link).
- Billy Baron has shown off for the Bulls and Hawks and will do so for the Jazz, Bucks and Knicks next week, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
- Kendall Williams is among the players working out for Hawks today, Goodman tweets.
- Victor Rudd and Jakarr Sampson are the new names on the list of players working out for the Bucks today that the team announced on its website.
Draft Notes: Sanchez, McRea, Williams
Here’s the latest information regarding the rapidly approaching NBA Draft:
- Javon McRea has scheduled workouts with the Bulls, Sixers, Grizzlies, Raptors, and Magic, reports Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link). McRea is projected as a second round pick.
- Chaz Williams is scheduled to work out for Celtics on Monday, tweets Josh Newman of SNY.tv.
- Jerrelle Benimon will work out on Friday for the Sixers, and has workouts scheduled next week with the Knicks and Bulls, and the following week with the Hawks, Hornets, and Mavericks, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- Jason Smith of The Commercial Appeal looks at the draft prospects and workout schedule of former University of Memphis guard Joe Jackson. Smith adds the Knicks, Rockets and Mavs to the list of teams auditioning Jackson. Jackson’s college teammate Tarik Black will work out for the Grizzlies, and Geron Johnson, another ex-Tiger, will show off for the Knicks and Rockets.
- Jordan Bachynski tweeted that he worked out for the Bulls today. The 7’2″ center is projected as a possible late second-round pick.
- Former Nevada point guard Deonte Burton will work out for the Bucks on Thursday, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link).
- Former St. John’s forward Orlando Sanchez is scheduled to work out with the Sixers on Friday, tweets Zagoria. Sanchez averaged 7.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, and 1.4 APG last season.
- Daniel Leroux of RealGM breaks down the best and worst fits for each projected lottery pick in this year’s draft.
Draft Rumors: Exum, Warren, Young
The allure of Dante Exum is prompting the Sixers to think about trading Michael Carter-Williams, and it appears as though Exum will indeed be available when Philadelphia picks third overall next month. Exum isn’t in the mix for the Cavs at No. 1 overall, and while the Bucks are high on him, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com writes in an Insider-only piece, the uncertain future of GM John Hammond and his staff makes it less likely the point guard ends up in Milwaukee. Here’s more draft-related news:
- Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds the Hawks and Suns to the list of teams that have workouts scheduled with T.J. Warren (Twitter link).
- Patric Young is performing for the Suns today and will work out for the Spurs on Friday, Goodman tweets.
- Dwight Powell is auditioning for the Thunder today and will do so for the Suns and Wolves later this week, Goodman reports (on Twitter).
- The Hawks worked out Jahii Carson, as the Arizona State sophomore revealed on Twitter (hat tip to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). He’s auditioning for the Suns today, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. He’ll join Isaiah Austin, whom the Suns are also working out today, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
- Khem Birch worked out for the Sixers on Monday and will do so for the Heat next week, according to Goodman (Twitter link).
- Ronald Roberts Jr. will show off for the Raptors, Sixers and Pistons this week, reports Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Daily News.
- Javon McCrea is working out with the Bulls today and the Sixers and Raptors next week, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv has learned (Twitter link).
Draft Rumors: Embiid, Parker, Wiggins, Ennis
Several around the league believe Joel Embiid will only work out for the Cavs and Bucks as confidence grows that he won’t slip to the Sixers at No. 3, according to Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe (Twitter link). Jabari Parker and Andrew Wiggins will likely audition only for the teams with the top three picks, a source tells Holmes, though that’s much less noteworthy than the Embiid news, which signals that concerns about the health of his back are abating. Still, it appears as though Nuggets GM Tim Connelly would prefer Parker to Embiid and Wiggins if he somehow managed to have a choice, observes Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post (on Twitter). Here’s more from a busy afternoon of draft-related news:
- Toronto native Tyler Ennis will work out for the Raptors on Thursday, the team announced.
- Glenn Robinson III is auditioning for the Hawks today and the Hornets later this week, and he expects to do so for the Spurs, Bulls and Bucks sometime soon, as he tells MLive’s Brendan F. Quinn (hat tip to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution).
- Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds T.J. Warren, Cleanthony Early and K.J. McDaniels to the players working out on June 3rd for the Celtics (Twitter link).
- The Bulls will play host to workouts for Jordan McRae, Devyn Marble and C.J. Fair on Wednesday, Goodman tweets, adding their names to Rodney Hood‘s, which Goodman reported Monday.
- Marble pulled out of his workout with the Bucks today, but the two sides will reschedule, according to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (on Twitter).
- The Suns are auditioning Keith Appling, Alec Brown, Deonte Burton, Artem Klimenko, Jakarr Sampson and Jamil Wilson today, tweets Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Appling will also show off this week for the Pistons, Raptors and Wolves, agent Michael Silverman tells Matt Charboneau of The Detroit News.
- The Knicks will work out Ian Chiles, a source tells Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.
- Xavier Thames auditioned for the Heat today, and he’s set to do so with the Bucks, Bulls, Celtics, Hornets, Knicks, Jazz, Mavericks and Pacers, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
Offseason Outlook: Toronto Raptors
Guaranteed Contracts
- DeMar DeRozan ($9,500,000)
- Landry Fields ($6,250,000)
- Chuck Hayes ($5,958,750)
- Steve Novak ($3,445,947)
- Jonas Valanciunas ($3,678,360)
- Terrence Ross ($2,793,960)
- (Marcus Camby $646,609)*
Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Contracts
- John Salmons ($7,000,000; guaranteed for $1,000,000)**
- Amir Johnson ($7,000,000; guaranteed for $5,000,000)
- Tyler Hansbrough ($3,326,235; guaranteed for $1,000,000)***
- Julyan Stone ($948,163)****
- Dwight Buycks ($816,482)*****
Free Agents / Cap Holds
- Kyle Lowry ($9,315,000)
- Patrick Patterson ($7,763,253)******
- Greivis Vasquez ($5,375,470)*******
- Nando De Colo ($1,901,900)********
- No. 20 pick ($1,215,300)
- (Sebastian Telfair $2,037,750)
- (Mickael Pietrus $915,243)
Draft Picks
- 1st Round (20th overall)
- 2nd Round (37th overall)
- 2nd Round (59th overall)
Cap Outlook
- Guaranteed Salary: $39,273,626
- Options: $0
- Non-Guaranteed Salary: $12,090,880
- Cap Holds: $28,523,916
- Total: $79,888,422
We all spent last summer talking about the Nets and Knicks. In retrospect, we should have paid some attention to the Raptors. Yes, Brooklyn bested the Raptors in a hard-fought seven game series, but the Raptors were the best team in the Atlantic Division from wire-to-wire, playing their way to a 48 win season when few had them pegged as a playoff team.
The single biggest reason for Toronto’s success in 2013/14 was the outstanding play of Kyle Lowry. The veteran was never heralded as one of the top point guards in basketball, but this past season put him squarely in the conversation. After averaging a career-high 17.9 PPG and 7.4 APG (and a career-high 20.1 PER), Lowry is set to hit the open market and figures to see a significant pay raise on a multi-year deal. Raptors CEO Tim Leiweke has made no secret of his desire to keep the 28-year-old in Toronto.
“There’s a really special bond between [GM] Masai [Ujiri] and Kyle,” Leiweke said in April. “This town should be in love with this guy. What a great story. He’s vented that anger and energy that he had last year, and it was sometimes aimed at the refs, sometimes aimed at other people. He’s figured out how to vent that and put that into the team, and this team truly loves each other.”
While it’s true that Toronto historically hasn’t been a prime free agent destination, Lowry has found a home in more ways than one with the Raptors. The Raptors hold Lowry’s bird rights and they have just ~$39MM in commitments on the books for 2014/15. There will be plenty of suitors desperate for a solid veteran PG like Lowry, but it would be a surprise to see him go elsewhere.
Earlier this month, the Raptors took care of their second-biggest free agent: head coach Dwane Casey. After guiding Toronto to a record that pretty much no one saw coming, the veteran coach was rewarded with a three-year deal that will pay him roughly $4MM per season. With a number of openings this summer, Casey was likely to get major offers elsewhere, so it was very prudent of Raptors management to wrap him up early in the offseason.
With some financial flexibility in their favor, the Raptors could do something that was unthinkable just a few years ago: bring back Vince Carter. The Mavericks veteran is coming off of a three-year, $9.3MM deal in Dallas and Mark Cuban may not have enough wiggle room to keep him. Carter is still going strong at 37 and would be a solid addition to the Raptors, as well as a feel-good story, though he says he would welcome a new deal with the Mavericks. We’re not so sure that Air Canada wouldn’t fly back home if the money was right.
Lowry is the most important free agent on the roster but he’s not the only one. The well-traveled Patrick Patterson is a restricted free agent. He showed promise at times and averaged 9.1 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 23 minutes per contest for the Raps. Patterson is an adept three-point shooter who nailed 41.1% of his shots from downtown for Toronto and may seek out an opportunity with more playing time. He’s not in line for a massive deal but a better opportunity to showcase himself could set him up for a bigger contract in the future.
The Raptors finished the season with two of their summer league invites on the roster. Dwight Buycks and Julyan Stone found their respective niches on the bench and it’s a safe bet that their inexpensive team options, $816K and $948K ($100K guaranteed) respectively, will be exercised. Still, one has to imagine that they’ll push for new deals and the Raptors may choose to lock them up on mulii-year pacts before they can increase their value further next season.
In addition to having a bit of cap room, the Raptors also have an opportunity to improve through the draft. Toronto has three picks: their first round pick selection (20th overall) and two second round picks, the No. 37 (via the Kings) and No. 59 (via the Thunder). While the Raptors are still somewhat future-minded, they got a taste of winning this season and they presumably want to position themselves for a deep playoff run in 2014/15. It wouldn’t be a shock to see the Raptors move one or both of their second round picks and take calls on their No. 20 overall pick. The Raptors also have 2012 second-round pick Tomislav Zubcic stashed overseas, so they’ve already got a young prospect in the pipeline.
If the Raptors move those picks, they’ll likely target a backup center to support Jonas Valanciunas. They could also go for a veteran athletic wing player if they can’t rope VC back to his original club. John Salmons and Landry Fields were charged with this role last season and neither made a tremendous impact. Salmons gave the Raptors some solid D when he came over this season but averaged just 5 PPG and 2.0 RPG in ~21 minutes per game. Fields, who has yet to justify his three-year, $20MM contract, lost most of the season to injury. If they turn to free agency, affordable bigs on the open market could include Drew Gooden and Malcolm Thomas (non-guaranteed deal). There are also intriguing free agent veteran wings such as Danny Granger and Marvin Williams available. If the Raptors want to make a major addition instead, they could put themselves in the mix for Cavs free agent small forward Luol Deng. Many reports have indicated that Deng is unhappy in Cleveland and it stands to reason that he could make a bee line to a winning club.
The Raptors will look to re-load this summer, but improvements from within are probably more central to their success next season. If Valanciunas and Terrence Ross can take another step forward and DeMar DeRozan progresses the way we expect him to, the Raptors should find themselves at or near the top of the Atlantic with a chance to make some noise in the postseason.
Cap footnotes
* — The Raptors waived Camby in July 2013. Guaranteed money remained on the contract, even though Camby agreed to give up $2MM in a buyout arrangement.
** — Salmons’ salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before June 30th.
*** — Hansbrough’s salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before June 29th.
**** — Stone’s salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before July 7th.
***** — Buycks’ salary becomes fully guaranteed if he’s not waived on or before July 22nd.
****** — Patterson’s qualifying offer would be $4,268,609.
******* — Vasquez’s qualifying offer would be $4,677,708.
******** — De Colo’s qualifying offer would be $1,828,750.
ShamSports and Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ were used in the creation of this post.
Draft Rumors: Hood, Stokes, Fair, Hairston
The draft takes place one month from tonight, and teams are beginning to ramp up their schedule of workouts with prospects. Busy draft hopefuls include Rodney Hood, who’ll audition for eight lottery teams, and Jarnell Stokes, who’s working out for 11 teams drafting in the back half of the first round, as Zach Links of Hoops Rumors has learned (Twitter links). One of those teams is the Magic, as we passed along Sunday, and Hood will also work out for the Sixers and Bulls, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. The Wolves are on Hood’s schedule, too, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). Stokes will show off for the Heat and Sixers, Goodman also tweets. Here’s more on an evolving draft landscape:
- Stokes will also audition for the Hawks and Bulls in addition to Miami and Philadelphia, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv tweets.
- The Bucks will audition Washington’s C.J. Wilcox, Iowa’s Devyn Marble, Pittsburgh’s Lamar Patterson, Virginia’s Joe Harris, and Missouri’s Jabari Brown on Tuesday, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Journal-Times.
- C.J. Fair will work out for the Bulls on Wednesday, the Bucks on Thursday, and the Hornets on Friday, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
- P.J. Hairston, DeAndre Kane and Markel Brown are also among those auditioning for Minnesota, Wolfson reports in the same tweet in which he passed along the Hood news. Nick Johnson will join that group, and the Wolves are eyeing Melvin Ejim and Chane Behanan for workouts, too, Wolfson adds (on Twitter).
- Behanan will audition for the Sixers and Wolves, as well, Goodman reports via Twitter, seconding his earlier dispatch about Behanan’s workout with the Mavs. Russ Smith, Behanan’s former Louisville teammate, is slated to work out for the Heat, Thunder and Suns, Goodman tweets.
- Johnson will also work out for the Magic, Goodman notes (via Twitter). He’ll join Smart and Hood in Orlando, as previously reported.
- The Lakers are set to work out Marcus Smart and Noah Vonleh, while Vonleh will also audition for the Celtics and Kings, according to Goodman (Twitter links).
- Goodman adds the Raptors to the teams working out Kyle Anderson (Twitter link).
- The ESPN.com scribe also reports additional workouts for DeAndre Daniels, who’s set to get a look-see from the Hornets and Hawks (Twitter link).
- The Bulls, Suns and Grizzlies are on the workout agenda of Scottie Wilbekin, Goodman reports (on Twitter). The Suns, along with the Bucks and Lakers, are also among the trio of teams auditioning Joe Harris, Goodman tweets.
- Johnny O’Bryant III will work out for the Hawks, Raptors, Suns and Spurs, according to Goodman (Twitter link).
Eastern Rumors: Fizdale, Nogueira, Ross
Paul George has been cleared to play in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, days after being diagnosed with a concussion suffered in Game 2. The Pacers have fared well on the road this postseason, and will hope to regain home court advantage by snagging a win in Miami. Here’s a roundup of Eastern Conference news:
- Heat assistant David Fizdale hasn’t been contacted by any teams with head coaching vacancies, but does have Erik Spoelstra’s blessing to pursue a job, he tells Ira Winderman of Sun Sentinel. “There have been no [contacts], no conversations, nothing like that,” Fizdale said. “Quite honestly, [Spoelstra] gets very annoyed with me, because he’s like, ‘Why don’t you care about being a head coach?’ And I’m like, ‘Cause we’re in the playoffs.'” Fizdale has been linked with the Cavs vacancy, but downplays having any ties to Cleveland’s front office.
- Hawks 2013 first-round pick Lucas Nogueira has decided to leave his Spanish league team and either play for Atlanta or another European team next season, reports Javier Maestro of Encestando (translation via Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype). Nogueira still has a year left on his contract with Asefa Estudiantes of Spain, but his NBA buyout is $600K, which is precisely the maximum amount NBA teams are allowed to pay next season to cover a buyout from an international club without any money counting toward the cap.
- In an answer to a mailbag question, Doug Smith of The Toronto Star suggests that Terrence Ross is a trading chip the Raptors should gauge interest in this summer.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Atlantic Notes: Dunleavy, Felton, Nurse
There aren’t any teams from the Atlantic Division remaining in the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening along the east coast. Let’s take a quick look at the latest from around the division:
- Mike Dunleavy met with Phil Jackson to discuss the Knicks head coaching job, sources confirmed to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com. Dunleavy isn’t the leading candidate, Broussard says, but he remains a possible hire nonetheless.
- Reports have surfaced that Jackson notified Raymond Felton that the Knicks intend to trade him this summer, and Keith Schlosser of Knicks Journal examines whether or not that would be a good move for the team.
- Former Celtics shooting guard Von Wafer has signed a contract to play in China, reports Enea Trapani of Sportando. Wafer hasn’t played in NBA game since 2011/12, when he appeared in 33 contests for the Magic.
- There are rumors suggesting that Raptors assistant coach Nick Nurse might be heading to Golden State next season to join Steve Kerr‘s staff, but Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun reveals that Nurse is still under contract with Toronto for next season (Twitter link). Still, as Wolstat points out in another tweet, coaches are generally let out of their contracts if they’re offered a better position elsewhere.
Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.