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New York Notes: Rose, Holiday, Hornacek, Nets

January 1st, 2017 at 1:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

As the Knicks ponder their decision on whether to re-sign Derrick Rose, ESPN’s Ian Begley notes that Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday could be part of the equation. Holiday will also be entering free agency this summer, and team president Phil Jackson has reportedly expressed interest in acquiring him before. New York needs just a few small roster moves this summer to create enough cap room for a max contract. Holiday 26, has played 20 games after missing the start of the season to care for his ailing wife. He is averaging 14.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per night. The 28-year-old Rose is in his first year with the Knicks after being acquired in an offseason deal with Chicago. He is averaging 17.7 points and 4.4 assists in 29 games.

There’s more news out of New York:

Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek is asking for maximum effort from his team and hints that rotation changes could be on the way, relays Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. His comments came after the team lost in Houston Saturday night to slip back under .500. “Some of the young guys can really give effort in there. We’ll have to take a look at maybe getting them in the games more, maybe giving our older guys a little bit more rest,” Hornacek said. “So that they have shorter minutes so they can put the full effort out there. We’ll take a look at everything.”
The Knicks should be happy to see a miserable 2016 come to an end, Bondy writes in a separate story. The year started with a coaching change involving Derek Fisher, followed by a 13th-place finish in the Eastern Conference, a surprise hire in Hornacek, a draft night with no picks, a possibly disastrous free-agent signing in Joakim Noah, several ill-considered comments by Jackson and the end of his engagement to Lakers executive Jeanie Buss.
Tensions boiled over for the Nets on the court and in the locker room after Friday’s loss to Washington, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn has dropped seven of its last eight games and is tied with Philadelphia for the league’s worst record. “It was emotional and a frustrating game, and guys were just venting,” said center Brook Lopez. “I don’t know what was necessarily correct or who said what, but the important thing is it happened. It’s not something we’ve had to repeatedly deal with this season. It’s something that happens with every team over the course of the year. We addressed it. It’s an emotional game; obviously emotions were running high. We talked about it as a team. We addressed it as players.”

New York Notes: Galloway, LeVert, Porzingis

December 31st, 2016 at 9:14pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Knicks made an effort to re-sign Langston Galloway over the summer, but the lure of returning to his home-state propelled the combo guard to join the Pelicans, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. “I didn’t think I would leave [New York],’’ Galloway said. “But I had an opportunity to go home. That definitely was big, important for me and my family and wife. It’s definitely been great playing back home, loving the atmosphere New Orleans has.’’

Here’s more from the Big Apple:

Caris LeVert has only played 12 games this season because of a foot injury, but Nets coach Kenny Atkinson likes what he’s seeing from the rookie, Brian Lewis of the New York Post relays. “[LeVert’s play has been] Super positive. I just said that to our coaches, his energy, how hard he plays, how fast he is, his athleticism, how aggressive he is,” Atkinson said. “So that’s the positive we take out of [it], that he’s really starting to grow in front of our eyes. That’s good to see.”
Randy Foye is taking advantage of his playing opportunity this season and he credits his experience playing alongside diverse play-makers for his ability to help the Nets run an effective offense, Lewis writes in a separate piece. “I played with [Blake Griffin in the past], last year being with [Russell Westbrook] and [Kevin Durant], and seeing the double team and just knowing you’ve got to have the right spacing,” Foye said. The shooting guard signed a one-year deal with Brooklyn during the offseason.
Kristaps Porzingis said Anthony Davis‘ game has greatly influenced his own, Berman passes along in a separate piece. “Before I got to the NBA, I was watching him a lot — skinny guy coming out of college, how he was able to adjust to the NBA, at this level,” Porzingis said of Davis. “Obviously, I learned from him — even seeing defensively, able to hold guys in the post. His skill set is his, pretty all-around. He can do everything, but it was more seeing how he can adjust with his physicality.”

Central Notes: Pistons, Bullock, Jackson, George

December 30th, 2016 at 3:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy is promising another change in the starting lineup tonight, relays Rod Beard of The Detroit News. Van Gundy made the announcement after this morning’s shootaround, although he refused to say what the change will be. He shook up the rotation a week ago by making Jon Leuer a starter, and Leuer has joined Reggie Jackson, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Marcus Morris and Andre Drummond in the starting five during Detroit’s past three games.

There’s more from the Central Division:

Reggie Bullock is making progress from meniscus surgery and will start non-contact five-on-five drills Saturday, Beard tweets. Van Gundy said the small forward should be ready to return in about two weeks.
The Pistons didn’t get the boost they expected when point guard Reggie Jackson returned from a battle with knee tendinitis that sidelined him for six weeks, notes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. After going .500 without Jackson, the team has had difficulty adjusting to having him back on the court. “When I came back, I think I had one practice in general, so I didn’t have a lot of time to really get footing with my teammates and myself and know where I was at,” Jackson said. “So these games have been my practice and I’m just trying to get better daily.”
Pacers star Paul George calls this “one of the most frustrating seasons” that he has been through in a video posted on the team’s website. The Pacers were expected to be contenders after adding Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson during the offseason, but have stumbled to a 15-18 start and are 10th in the Eastern Conference. “Maybe I’m just living in the past of how good we used to be, the personnel, the guys I had around,” George said. “I’m still living in that moment, maybe. I gotta put myself into a different team and maybe I have to do more, maybe that’s just what it is, maybe I have to do more now. But whatever is, I’m going to figure it out.”
Since he was in college, Cavaliers guard Kay Felder has been getting advice from the Celtics’ Isaiah Thomas, relays Chris Fedor at cleveland.com. An All-Star despite his 5’9″ stature, Thomas has been an inspiration to other small guards. “Basically said be you,” Felder said of Thomas’ message. “Do what you do. Do what got you here. I’m a scorer and assist type of guy so don’t let anybody change my game.”

New York Notes: Motiejunas, LeVert, Knicks, Rose

December 25th, 2016 at 6:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

Donatas Motiejunas would have been a huge addition for the Nets if the Rockets hadn’t matched his offer sheet, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Having another 7-footer on the court would have helped a team that ranks last in points allowed and scoring margin. Motiejunas could also have provided a fourth scorer in the starting lineup. The Nets have given more than 800 combined front line minutes to Justin Hamilton and Luis Scola, neither of whom is having a productive season. After matching the four-year, $37MM offer sheet, Houston worked out a separate deal with Motiejunas, then waived him after his physical. That made him a restricted free agent, but he’s not permitted to sign with Brooklyn for a full year after the offer sheet was matched.

The Nets still have nearly $17.8MM in cap room and seem like obvious candidates to make some roster moves before the February 23rd trade deadline. “Will we be active? I think we’ll be strategic,’’ GM Sean Marks said. “We’re not just going to jump on something.”

There’s more news today out of New York:

Nets rookie Caris LeVert can expect to see his minutes expanded as the season wears on, according to NetsDaily. LeVert had nine points and seven rebounds in Friday’s loss to Cleveland and is making an impression on coach Kenny Atkinson. “I love how hard he plays. Good for him to see a few shots go down,” Atkinson said. “That’s a positive we get out of this game.”
The Knicks‘ winning record isn’t impressive because it was built against lower-level teams, charges Marc Berman of The New York Post. With today’s loss to the Celtics, New York is now 16-14, but just 3-10 against teams that are .500 or better. “That’s the jump we got to make,’’ shooting guard Courtney Lee said. “Just learn from it and put it all together so when we play those losing teams we’re supposed to take of, we do that, but then the plus-.500 teams we got to start taking care of that, too.”
Derrick Rose is hoping to remain healthy for the rest of the season after recovering from back spasms, Berman writes in a separate story. After appearing in 66 games with the Bulls last season, Rose has been able to play in 25 of the Knicks’ first 30 contests. “I feel good,” he said. “Not feeling my back anymore. My body is healthy — just trying to find a rhythm, just trying to play my game, either a floater or try to finish at the rim or me trying to dunk. I feel all three elements are my game.”

Western Notes: Cousins, Griffin, Gordon

December 20th, 2016 at 5:24pm CST by ChrisCrouse

DeMarcus Cousins was fined $50K by the Kings for his part of an incident with a local columnist and the 26-year-old said that he picked the wrong time to confront the reporter, adding that he let his emotions get the best of him, Sean Cunningham of ABC10 passes along (Twitter link). However, in his prepared statement, Cousins did not apologize to the reporter whom he intimidated..

“I understand my actions were inexcusable and I commit to upholding the professional standards of the Kings and the NBA. I apologize to my teammates, fans and the Kings organization for my behavior and the ensuing distraction and look forward to moving on and focusing on basketball,” Cousins said.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Blake Griffin underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee today, Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times relays (Twitter links). Griffin is expected to miss four-to-six weeks and will rehabilitate with the Clippers‘ medical staff.
Eric Gordon tells Michael Lee of The Vertical that his transition to the Rockets has been “smooth sailing.” Gordon has made the second most 3-pointers in the league this season (behind only Stephen Curry) and he credits coach Mike D’Antoni‘s system as part of the reason for his success. “It’s a little bit of everything,” Gordon said. “Style of play, and playing with a guy who can really pass the ball, and like I said, it’s a free-flowing system where everybody is able to get good shots and I’m just taking advantage and knocking down shots.”
Gordon believes the Pelicans‘ uncertain ownership situation and constant changes made it difficult to thrive as a player, Lee writes in the same piece. “I was just getting better year after year with the Clippers, and then you make a major change with New Orleans, ownership and everything, so you had to start all over,” Gordon added. “It was a rough time in New Orleans. Guys can tell you that are still there now. It was a difficult task.”
Gordon said he thought Phoenix had a better training staff and that was the reason why he signed there in 2012, as he tell Lee in the same piece. Gordon was a restricted free agent at the time and New Orleans exercised its right to match the Suns‘ offer.

Pacific Notes: Griffin, West, Clarkson

December 19th, 2016 at 4:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers confirmed Blake Griffin‘s knee surgery in a press release posted this afternoon on the team’s website. The operation to remove loose bodies from his right knee will be performed Tuesday, and he is expected to be out of action three to six weeks. Griffin is averaging 21.0 points, 8.9 rebounds and 4.6 assists through 26 games.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

L.A. is in better shape to withstand Griffin’s absence than it was a year ago, contends Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. When Griffin was sidelined with a broken hand and a quad injury after Christmas of 2015, Paul Pierce took his place in the starting lineup and DeAndre Jordan assumed a larger role in the offense, averaging 14.1 points and 14.3 rebounds in the games without Griffin. The Clippers signed free agents Brandon Bass and Marreese Speights during the offseason, either of whom could start at power forward. Also, Pierce is still around, Luc Mbah a Moute can guard bigger forwards and Austin Rivers could be moved into the starting lineup.
The operation may impact Griffin’s future earnings, suggests ESPN’s Kevin Pelton. Under the tentative CBA, Griffin needs to make an all-NBA team at the end of the season to qualify for the newly created designated veteran player exception. An absence of three to six weeks will certainly reduce his chances. Players who qualify can earn up to 35% of the cap if they remain with their current team. Griffin would be limited to 30% if he doesn’t qualify, which translates to about $30MM over a five-year contract.
The Warriors’ David West will be out for a while with a hip pointer, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. The veteran forward underwent an MRI on Friday after suffering the injury in a game last week. Golden State had been concerned that the injury was something more serious.
Jordan Clarkson didn’t complain about moving to the bench after signing a four-year, $50MM contract with the Lakers, but he hasn’t thrived in his new role, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. Clarkson, whose starting job was taken by Nick Young, has shot just 39.8% over his last 10 games. “Coach wants me to be aggressive,” Clarkson said. “That’s what I try to do every night when I’m out there on the floor. But at the same time, I have to figure out what’s a good shot and a bad shot.”

Northwest Notes: Payne, Westbrook, Arthur, Wolves

December 18th, 2016 at 11:39am CST by Arthur Hill

The Thunder are nearly ready to bring back Cameron Payne from a fractured foot, tweets Chris Haynes of ESPN. Haynes mentions December 29th in Memphis as a possible season debut for the second-year point guard. Payne suffered the injury to the fifth metatarsal on his right foot early in training camp. He had Jones fracture surgery on the foot in July, but opted to let it heal on its own this time. Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan said there is still no set date for Payne to return. “Part of the reason I haven’t given a timetable is because they can’t give me a timetable,” Donovan said of the team’s medical staff. “And to be honest with you, I don’t really ask them a lot of that stuff. I trust what’s going on. They give me an update of how guys are progressing and where they’re at, what they’re doing. I try to be supportive of the player, try to spend time with the player.” Payne averaged 5.0 points and 1.9 assists in 57 games during his rookie season.

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

Russell Westbrook is ESPN’s Marc Stein’s choice as Most Valuable Player in the Western Conference. Westbrook has taken on an expanded role in the wake of Kevin Durant‘s departure for Golden State and is averaging a triple double per night through the first third of the season. He leads the league in scoring at 30.4 points per game to go along with 11.0 assists and 10.5 rebounds. Westbrook’s stellar play has helped the Thunder remain playoff contenders, just one game back of Utah in the Northwest standings.
With the Nuggets now fully healthy, coach Michael Malone wants to shorten his rotation, according to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Malone plans a limit of 10 players per game, and the first casualty of that decision is Darrell Arthur, who was informed this week that he will no longer receive regular playing time. “The word that Darrell used, and it hits the point, is sacrifice,” Malone said. “Can’t play 15 guys, and Darrell Arthur is a guy that’s proven to be a very good player in this league, but he sacrifices for his team and supports everybody that is playing. So you have to be selfless and support each other along the way.” The 28-year-old forward is in his eighth year in the league and his fourth in Denver. He is under contract for $7,464,912 next season and has a player option for the same amount in 2018/19.
Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor is preaching patience in the face of a disappointing start, relays Sid Hartman of The Star Tribune. Minnesota made a coaching change and overhauled its front office during the offseason, but has a 7-19 record after Saturday night’s collapse in the final minutes against Houston. “Well, let’s say that I was hopeful they would get off to a better start,” said Taylor. “Even in all the games they have played, you can see the exceptional talent that we have, and the ability to win. But for some reason or another, which I don’t have an answer for, we just have a terrible quarter in each game and get ourselves so far behind that it’s hard to pull it out. I’m hopeful that we’re getting it figured out.”

Central Notes: Mozgov, Pistons, Morris, Bulls

December 17th, 2016 at 11:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

His former Cavaliers teammates mobbed Lakers center Timofey Mozgov as he received his championship ring tonight in a visit to Cleveland, relays Dane Carbaugh of NBC Sports. Mozgov played 76 games with the Cavs last season before signing a four-year, $64MM deal with the Lakers in July.

Here’s more news out of the Central Division:

The Pistons held a team meeting after tonight’s home loss to the Pacers, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News. “We put a lot of stuff on the table,” said Marcus Morris, “and everybody cleared their mind of what they needed to say.” The 105-90 defeat was Detroit’s third in its past four games and it dropped the team back under .500 at 14-15. “I did a lot of the talking — we have to make a decision,” Morris added. “Everybody go home tonight and decide what you want to do.” (Twitter link.)
The Pistons are just 3-5 since Reggie Jackson‘s return and coach Stan Van Gundy suggests that changes may be coming to the starting lineup., according to Aaron McMann of MLive. Van Gundy’s assessment of the team right now is that it isn’t in a good place.
Lack of development and athleticism in their young core has been the Bulls‘ biggest issue this season, contends K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Chicago expected Nikola Mirotic to be a starter by now. but instead he is falling out of the rotation. Doug McDermott is an effective shooter, but not an athletic presence. The same is true of rookie Denzel Valentine, and Bobby Portis has been established as a below-the-rim player.

Sixers Notes: Okafor, Simmons, Noel

December 14th, 2016 at 9:05pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Jahlil Okafor could be the odd man out in Philadelphia, Mike Sielski of the Philadelphia Inquirer opines. Sielski notes that Okafor is not a fit next to either Nerlens Noel or Joel Embiid, and he’s the worst defender of the three players.

Noel had previously expressed concerns about the frontcourt logjam, but it appears he is now more open to playing alongside his teammates. Embiid, who is likely to get pushed to power forward for the time being, regardless of whether Noel or Okafor is traded, has no concerns over the logjam.

“I’ve always wanted to be a point guard,” Embiid exclaimed. “So that gives me a chance to get the ball, iso, play one-on-one from the three-point line, the pull-up jumpers. I’ll be more of a spacer, more of a stretch four.”

Here’s more from Philadelphia:

Ben Simmons took a major step forward in his recovery from a fractured right foot, Brian Seltzer of NBA.com writes. Simmons was able to shoot foul shots without a walking boot for the first time since suffering the Jones fracture.
Coach Brett Brown is pleased with Simmons’ understanding of the game, Selzer adds in the same piece. “From a non-medical standpoint and just his coach, the evolution that he and I have been able to have in a classroom and on a court, in talking things through over the past few months, is fantastic,” Brown said.
John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Inquirer examines how the Sixers have failed in previous drafts. The scribe breaks down the team’s last six drafts and finds the team missed out on top talent in nearly every one.
Earlier today, we learned that rival teams were discouraged with the results of their research on Noel and the Sixers may not be able to get much in return for him as a result.

Motiejunas’ Deal With Rockets In Limbo

December 13th, 2016 at 9:14am CST by Arthur Hill

It seems unlikely that the contract Donatas Motiejunas agreed to last week will stand, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Representatives of the league have been contacted in an effort to settle the latest dispute between the Rockets and the 26-year-old power forward.

Motiejunas appeared to have a new four-year, $37MM deal in place on Friday. However, he was sent home before Saturday’s game after taking a physical, and Rockets officials have offered few public comments to explain why.

“We’re in active discussions with Donatas’ representation, the league office and that’s pretty much it,” GM Daryl Morey said Monday night. “… We’re in active discussions with them and the league office. We’re in continuous discussions. I can’t really say more. All three parties matter.”

Morey wouldn’t confirm that Motiejunas failed his physical or say whether the team had changed its mind about wanting to finalize the agreement. He refused to answer any other questions.

It’s the latest twist in an odd saga for Motiejunas, who became a restricted free agent July 1st and went five months without receiving an offer sheet. He signed with the Nets on December 2nd, and the Rockets matched the offer three days later. But the team matched just the $31MM in guaranteed money, not an additional $6MM in incentives.

Motiejunas staged a mini-holdout before the standoff was apparently resolved Friday. The Rockets withdrew the contract that was tied to the offer sheet and submitted a new deal that included incentive money but allowed the team to opt out by July 15th of each year.

The Rockets have been concerned about making a long-term commitment to Motiejunas because of back problems that limited him to 37 games last season and caused a February trade to Detroit to be voided. However, he passed a physical before signing the offer sheet from Brooklyn.

Whatever happens with the Rockets, Motiejunas cannot wind up with the Nets this season, according to NetsDaily. A “first refusal exercise notice” kicked in when Houston matched the offer sheet, which prevents him from going to Brooklyn for a full year. If Motiejunas had failed the Rockets’ physical immediately after that, the Nets may have been able to sign him, but that’s not possible now because Houston came up with a different contract.

Motiejunas offered some insight into the contentious nature of the situation on his Twitter page, which no longer lists him as a member of the Rockets and now just says “basketball player.”