Thunder Trade Serge Ibaka To Magic
Oklahoma City has traded power forward Serge Ibaka to Orlando, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The Thunder received Victor Oladipo, Ersan Ilyasova and the rights to Domantas Sabonis, the 11th overall pick, in return (Twitter link). Both teams have formally confirmed the deal.
Ibaka had spent his entire seven-year career with OKC after being drafted 24th in 2008. The 26-year-old has one season left on his contract at $12.25MM. He appeared in 78 games for Oklahoma City this season, averaging 12.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.9 blocks. The Thunder reportedly have been gauging the trade market for Ibaka in advance of the draft.
Oladipo, 24, will be eligible for a contract extension next month for the first time in his NBA career. He is scheduled to make about $6.55MM next season in the final year of his rookie deal. The combo guard averaged 16.0 points and 4.8 rebounds for the Magic in 2015/16 while shooting .438 from the field.
Ilyasova, 29, has an $8.4MM contract for next season, but only $400K of that is guaranteed. He split this season between the Pistons and Magic, averaging 10.4 points and 5.4 rebounds in 74 games.
Earlier in the evening, the Raptors offered their No. 9 pick to the Thunder for Ibaka, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com, but Oklahoma City turned down the deal. Toronto is searching for a replacement for 35-year-old Luis Scola, who started 76 games this season. Scola will be a free agent after earning $3MM during 2015/16. Toronto wound up keeping the ninth pick and taking center Jakob Poetl out of Utah.
Thunder Deal For 56th Pick, Draft Daniel Hamilton
The Nuggets sent pick No. 56 to Oklahoma City, which selected Daniel Hamilton, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. Denver received cash in return, adds The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The 56th pick originally belonged to the Thunder before they traded it to the Nuggets.
The 6’8″ sophomore out of Connecticut projects as a shooting guard in the NBA. He averaged 12.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists this season with the Huskies. He is a productive scorer and playmaker, but tends to be a streaky shooter and struggles on defense.
Hamilton was considered questionable to be drafted, with ESPN’s Chad Ford ranking him 72nd overall and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress listing him 79th.
Cavs Acquire No. 54 From Hawks, Draft Kay Felder
The Cavaliers, who entered the night without a draft pick, have moved into the second round, buying the No. 54 overall selection from the Hawks, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link), who reports that Cleveland is using the pick to draft Oakland point guard Kay Felder.
According to Sam Amico of AmicoHoops.net (via Twitter), the Cavaliers made an effort to buy the Pistons’ pick at No. 49 in an effort to land Felder there. Cleveland ultimately landed the No. 54 pick for $2.4MM, per Amico.
Charania adds (via Twitter) that LeBron James was a major proponent of the move to get into the draft to select Felder.
Blazers Acquire 47th Pick, Select Jake Layman
The Trail Blazers acquired pick No. 47 from the Magic and drafted Maryland’s Jake Layman, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. In return, Orlando will receive $1.2MM and a second-rounder in 2019 (Twitter link).
The 6’9 senior projects as an NBA small forward. He shot 60% from the field, 40% from 3-point range and 85% from the line this season while averaging 11.7 points per game.
Layman ranked 49th in the list of top 100 prospects compiled by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and was 48th on ESPN’s Chad Ford’s top 100.
Suns Acquire No. 8 Pick From Kings, Draft Chriss
10:40pm: The Kings have officially announced the swap (via Twitter).
7:24pm: The Suns and Kings have agreed to a trade that will send the No. 8 pick to Phoenix, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter). According to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link), the pick will be Washington power forward Marquese Chriss.
In return, Sacramento will receive Bogdan Bogdanovic and the Suns’ pick at No. 13, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter link). Phoenix’s pick at No. 28 will also be included, along with a second-rounder in 2020, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. That second-round pick originally belonged to the Pistons (Twitter link).
Earlier today, Bogdanovic decided to remain in Turkey for another season before joining the NBA. That decision gives him the freedom to negotiate a salary in 2017, rather than being bound by a rookie contract, which would have happened if he had signed during this offseason.
Nets Acquire 42nd Pick, Draft Isaiah Whitehead
The Nets have acquired another draft pick, as the Jazz agreed to trade the 42nd choice to Brooklyn in exchange for pick No. 55 and cash, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The Nets used that pick to take Seton Hall shooting guard Isaiah Whitehead.
The 6’5″ freshman turned into a dangerous 3-point weapon for the Pirates, connecting on 37% from long distance while averaging 18.2 points and 5.1 assists per game. He led Seton Hall to an upset of national champion Villanova in the Big East title game.
Whitehead was ranked as the 52nd best prospect in this year’s draft by ESPN’s Chad Ford and 57th by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.
Warriors Acquire No. 38 Pick From Bucks
After selecting Malcolm Brogdon with the 36th overall pick, the Bucks have sent No. 38 to the Warriors, reports Shams Charania of The Vertical (Twitter links). According to Charania, Golden State is using the pick to nab UNLV shooting guard Patrick McCaw.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com reports (via Twitter) that the 38th overall pick has been on sale for several weeks now, so it sounds like the Warriors are simply buying it from the Bucks. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets that Golden State is sending $2.4MM to Milwaukee as part of the deal.
Per Givony, Brooklyn was rumored to have a deal lined up for No. 38 before the Nets acquired the No. 20 pick instead.
Pelicans Acquire No. 33, Select Cheick Diallo
The Pelicans have moved up six spots in the draft, sending the Nos. 39 and 40 selections to the Clippers in exchange for the No. 33 pick, reports Dan Woike of The Orange County Register (via Twitter). With the newly acquired pick, New Orleans selected Kansas big man Cheick Diallo.
Diallo, a 6’9″ freshman out of Senegal, was projected as a late first-rounder. He was ranked 24th by ESPN’s Chad Ford and DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony on their lists of the top 100 prospects.
Diallo averaged just 7.5 minutes of playing time at Kansas, scoring 2.5 points per night and grabbing 1.9 rebounds. He is known as an excellent defender and rebounder, but needs to develop an offensive game.
Celtics To Trade Deyonta Davis To Grizzlies
The Celtics will trade Deyonta Davis, the first pick of the second round, to the Grizzlies, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. Boston sent picks No. 31 and 35 to Memphis in exchange for the Clippers’ 2019 first-rounder that the Grizzlies owned, according to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman (Twitter link).
The 6’11” freshman from Michigan State had been projected as a mid first-rounder. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress had Davis ranked 11th in his most recent list of top 100 prospects, and ESPN’s Chad Ford put Davis 16th in his top 100.
The 19-year-old Davis averaged 7.5 points and 5,5 rebounds during his lone season with the Spartans. He has NBA size, but scouts say he needs to get stronger and become a better finisher in the lane.
Sixers Draft Ben Simmons With No. 1 Pick
As expected, the Sixers opened this year’s draft by taking LSU’s Ben Simmons. The 6’10” Australian native, who has been the consensus No. 1 choice since the beginning of the college season, averaged 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists during his lone season with the Tigers.
After landing the top pick in last month’s lottery, Philadelphia was reportedly deciding between Simmons and Duke forward Brandon Ingram. On Tuesday, the Sixers informed Simmons that he would be their choice.
Simmons is the latest in a string of big men drafted early by the Sixers. He joins a crowded frontcourt that includes Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embiid and maybe Croatian star Dario Saric. Philadelphia is reportedly trying to package Noel and its selections at Nos. 24 and 26 to obtain a top-eight pick.
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