2013 NBA Draft Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Draft Notes: Zeller, Larkin, Bucks, Celtics

May 31st, 2013 at 1:22pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's a look at today's draft news as we close in on June 27th..

Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) runs down some of the best big men in the 2013 draft. The list starts with Indiana's Cody Zeller who has honed his jump shot and ballhandling skills to make the leap from center to forward. Scouts have been impressed with his ability to round out his offensive skillset, but Zeller says that it has always been a part of his game.
Miami's Shane Larkin is talking up what he could do for the Bucks, telling reporters (including Charles Gardner of the Journal Sentinel, via Twitter) that he could see himself as a fit. Milwaukee, of course, has an unsettled backcourt situation with the uncertain return of Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings.
Larkin worked out for the Celtics prior to auditioning for the Bucks, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY (on Twitter). Boston has the No. 16 pick while Milwaukee holds the No. 15 selection.

Celtics Rumors: Schroeder, KG, Millsap, Rivers

May 31st, 2013 at 9:40am CST by Luke Adams

A couple weeks ago, ESPN.com's Chad Ford reported (via Twitter) that international draft prospects Dennis Schroeder and Giannis Antetokounmpo had each received first-round guarantees from unknown teams. According to Aran Smith of NBADraft.net (Twitter link), it may be the Celtics that have made a promise to Schroeder at No. 16. There has also been some chatter linking Schroeder to the Jazz (No. 14) and Bucks (No. 15), so the German guard may not even last until 16th overall, but if he does, it appears the Celtics are interested.

Here's more out of Boston:

Mike Saver of CelticsLife.com passes along a few comments of note made by longtime Boston writer Jackie MacMullan of ESPNBoston.com on CSNNE. According to MacMullan, Kevin Garnett plans to come back for at least one more year, and MacMullan believes KG would play whether or not Paul Pierce remains a Celtic.
MacMullan also reports that the Celtics covet Paul Millsap, and that if there's a "Plan A" for the team, getting Millsap would be it. Given Boston's cap situation, the C's would likely have to sign-and-trade for the free agent big man, unless they could clear cap room by trading or waiving Pierce and making an additional move or two.
While most signs continue to point to Doc Rivers remaining the Celtics head coach going forward, some people "who have basketball business with the club" are concerned that Rivers has yet to publicly state his intentions, writes Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. Within his latest piece for the Herald, Bulpett delves into the relationship between Rivers and GM Danny Ainge.

Draft Rumors: Cavs, Cousins, Magic, Bledsoe

May 29th, 2013 at 11:21am CST by Luke Adams

After updating his big board yesterday, ESPN.com's Chad Ford returns today with a handful of the latest draft-related rumblings he's been hearing (Insider-only link). With less than a month until draft day, let's round up the highlights from Ford's piece….

Nerlens Noel remains atop the Cavaliers' draft board, making him the favorite to be drafted first overall, but Ford notes that Noel's ACL injury and the Cavs' desire to make the playoffs next season mean the Kentucky center is far from a lock at No. 1. If Cleveland can acquire a young small forward or big man using the top pick as trade bait, owner Dan Gilbert may push for a deal.
One name you shouldn't totally rule out when considering Cleveland's possible trade scenarios, according to Ford? DeMarcus Cousins. Ford reports that the Cavs, Bobcats, and the Mavericks are among the clubs who could call the Kings about Cousins in the hopes of trading draft picks and/or other assets for the young big man.
The Magic have Arron Afflalo at the two guard and a more glaring need at the point, but aren't sold on Trey Burke, according to Ford, who says the team is eyeing Ben McLemore and Victor Oladipo at No. 2. If the Magic were to draft a two guard, they'd be interested in trying to trade Afflalo to the Clippers for Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler's expiring contract, says Ford. It's not clear whether such a deal would interest the Clips.
Arizona State's Carrick Felix, USC's Dewayne Dedmon and Will Clyburn of Iowa State were among the standouts at this week's draft workouts in Minnesota, NBA GMs and scouts told Ford. On the other end of the spectrum, French big man Mouhammadou Jaiteh struggled and now projects as a late second-round pick.
In a separate piece for ESPN Insider, Bradford Doolittle examines a few hypothetical trade scenarios involving draft picks.

Draft Notes: Oladipo, Ledo, Johnson

May 28th, 2013 at 8:54pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, Chad Ford of ESPN.com released his latest mock draft and he somewhat surprisingly had Indiana's Victor Oladipo going No. 2 to the Magic. The forward has long been thought to be a top ten talent, but this is the highest that we've seen him projected on any of the major mock drafts. The reason? Oladipo is said to be wowing NBA execs in interviews and his maturity and attitude could be enough to vault him past the likes of Trey Burke, Ben McLemore, and Otto Porter. Here's the latest draft news..

Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld profiles the draft's mystery man, Ricky Ledo. The Providence product's draft stock has been on the rise recently, and he’s one of the most intriguing, and mysterious, players in this year's class. What makes his story so unusual is that Ledo has never played a second of college basketball after being ruled ineligible by the NCAA. However, the freshman stayed sharp by practicing with Providence last year. Ledo feels that he would have been a top pick this year if he had the opportunity to showcase himself, but even without having played competitively last year, he could still go in the first round.
Meanwhile, Karron Johnson out of Division II Shaw University is another player that teams may be willing to take a gamble on, writes Shams Charania of RealGM. The 6-foot-8 forward, who was originally slated to attend Oklahoma, has scheduled workouts with seven teams that have let him know they will consider him as a potential second round pick.

Odds & Ends: Ujiri, Oladipo, Dooling, Grizzlies

May 28th, 2013 at 4:48pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier in the day, we heard that a decision from Masai Ujiri on whether he'll be running the Raptors or Nuggets could come as early as today. But according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter links), Ujiri won't decide whether or not to accept the Raptors' offer until he meets with Denver ownership. That meeting could happen today or tomorrow, says Berger, so we may be waiting one more day to get closure on the Ujiri saga. In the meantime, let's round up a few odds and ends from across the NBA:

While Nerlens Noel remains atop the latest version of Chad Ford's big board at ESPN.com (Insider link), there's a new name at No. 2, with Victor Oladipo on the rise in a big way.
In an interesting piece for Grantland.com, Zach Lowe revisits the 2011 trade that sent George Hill to the Pacers and Kawhi Leonard to the Spurs, exploring how negotiations played out on draft night two years ago, and outlining how it's turned into a great deal for both teams.
Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic lauds Phoenix's hiring of Jeff Hornacek, writing that the former Suns guard has what it takes to become a very good head coach.
After announcing his retirement last year, Keyon Dooling returned to sign with the Grizzlies toward the end of the 2012/13 season, and he intends to play again next season, tweets Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com.
The Grizzlies are facing major decisions on a coach and a GM in addition to a handful of players, as Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld details.
No decisions have been made on Paul Pierce's future yet, Celtics GM Danny Ainge tells A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com, which echoes a report we passed along earlier.
Dave Deckard of Blazer's Edge examines the possibility of the Trail Blazers trading out of next month's draft.
As Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside writes, the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the D-League are hoping to enter a hybrid affiliation with a single NBA team.

Draft Links: White, Matthews, Celtics

May 25th, 2013 at 10:18pm CST by Spencer Lund

Terrico White was the 36th player chosen in the 2010 NBA Draft. After the Pistons snagged him from Ole Miss, he broke his right foot in his very first preseason game. He bounced around the NBA's D-League, even averaging better than 17 PPG for the Idaho Stampede during an excellent 7-game stretch in the 2011/12 season, before heading to Serbia this year.

After averaging 14.5 PPG, 4.9 RPG and 1.5 APG for Serbia's Radnicki Kragujevac, his contract is set to expire at just the right time, writes Ridiculous Upside's Gino Pilato. White will be looking to make an NBA roster this summer after his Serbian contract runs out in June.

There are plenty other college hopefuls looking to be drafted by an NBA team this summer..

Newsday's Roderick Boone discusses the NBA draft's biggest "wild card" big man hopeful in July: Farmingdale State's A.J. Matthews. The 6'11" center out of Division III Farmingdale State (academic issues kept him out of bigger basketball schools) was invited to the NBA's combine and the center with a wingspan measuring 7 feet, 3 1/2 inches impressed the Nets' director of player personnel Greg Polinsky.
We already mentioned all the players the Celtics have worked out the last couple days and ESPN.com's Chris Forsberg broke it all down for you, but here are the projected draft positions for all those players based off Chad Ford's rankings.
Darren Wolfson of ESPN1500 Twin Cities says Brandon Paul, Vander Blue and Derrick Nix are coming for the Wolves' NBA Draft workout. He also adds that Wisconsin's Mike Bruesewitz is hoping to get an invite (Twitter link)
Alex Kennedy at HoopsWorld has a profile of Dennis Schroeder of Germany. The son of a German father and a Gambian mother, Schroeder promised his dying father he'd make the NBA; he's projected as a mid-first-round pick next month.
The Jazz will pick 14th in next month's draft after failing to move up during last week's draft lottery. Jody Genessy of the Deseret News spoke by phone with Jazz president Randy Rigby and general manager Dennis Lindsey about their moves in a busy Jazz offseason.

Eastern Notes: Bulls, Knicks, Magic

May 25th, 2013 at 8:26pm CST by Spencer Lund

Following up on the NBA's review of the Dwyane Wade elbow to Lance Stephenson near the end of game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Heat and Pacers, we have a couple tweets with more info:

Ethan J. Skolnick the Sun-Sentinel says that just because nothing has happened tonight and may not, that doesn't mean the NBA won't take action tomorrow against Wade for the seemingly inadvertant elbow to Stephenson's head (Twitter link).
Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida says that because today is a travel day for the Pacers and Heat that might be the cause for the delay in announcements after the NBA's review of the play. (Twitter link).
Sports Illustrated columnist, Ian Thomsen, discusses the similarities between this season's Eastern Conference Final and last season's Eastern Conference Semifinal. Last year the Heat lost game 2 and home court advantage too, plus they lost game 3 in Indiana to go down 2-1 to the Pacers. They then rebounded to win three-straight to head to the Finals.

Here are some more notes from around the Eastern Conference..

The Bulls' winning percentage when Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng, Joakim Noah and Derrick Rose share the floor is 86% writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times. That's probably why the Bulls' general manager Gar Forman will keep Boozer and Deng this offseason.
Former Bulls coach, and man-about-town for open GM and coaching positions, Phil Jackson, discussed his new book and his future with the Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson.
The Magic are a young team looking to rebuild through the draft with smart moves by their young general manager Rob Hennigan. The Orlando Sentinel's Mike Bianchi writes that's why Magic fans should root for a Pacers–Spurs matchup in the Finals; their presence would prove that small market teams can be successful without "buying championships."
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com with part 1 of the Knicks' offseason notebook. Zwerling discusses who the Knicks might select with the 24th pick in July's draft and which players they may target in free agency, or through the draft, who could fulfill their need for a fast and explosive backup point guard for Raymond Felton.
Chris Forsberg at ESPNBoston.com already mentioned the dozen players the Celtics welcomed over the last two days as they continue to decide where they're headed in an uncertain offseason. A. Sherrod Blakely at CSN New England talks with two of those invites: guard, Shane Larkin of Miami, and Pittsburgh's center, Steven Adams.

Draft Links: Bennett, Cavs, Schroeder, Crabbe

May 25th, 2013 at 4:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The NBA draft takes place one month from Monday, and that means teams and prospects will soon be entering the home stretch. We'll be hearing plenty about the draft in the coming weeks as clubs bring in players for workouts and discuss possible trades. Here's the latest:

The Plain Dealer's Mary Schmitt Boyer takes a close look at UNLV power forward Anthony Bennett, whose left rotator cuff surgery this month doesn't appear to be hurting his draft stock. Bennett sits atop her rankings of the top power forwards available.
Boyer answers plenty of draft-related questions about the Cavaliers in her latest mailbag column. She theorizes that if the Cavs draft Nerlens Noel, that means they'll end their pursuit of Greg Oden.
HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy chronicles German point guard Dennis Schroeder's unconventional path to becoming a first-round prospect. Schroeder's long arms and wide hands have led him to be compared to Rajon Rondo.
Shooting guard Allen Crabbe was surprised when he found out the Wizards wanted to meet with him, as he tells J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. The Wizards would likely have to trade into the late first round to take the Cal junior.
Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com has more on the dozen prospects the Celtics have brought in for workouts the past two days.

Draft Notes: Wolves, Oladipo, Muhammad, Nets

May 24th, 2013 at 4:14pm CST by Zachary Links

With the NBA Lottery in the rear view mirror, we're roughly one month away from the 2013 Draft. Here's the latest..

Wolves president Flip Saunders is a big fan of Indiana's Victor Oladipo, league sources tell Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN, and the only way to nab him is to trade up from the No. 9 pick. Meanwhile, if Minnesota winds up keeping their pick, one league source predicts they will take UCLA's Shabazz Muhammad. Word has it that the Wolves like him but so do the Pistons, and they pick at No. 8.
The Nets, who have the 22nd pick in the draft, are looking for a solid role player, writes Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. Despite the fact that this year’s draft class has been labeled as weak by many observers, the Nets believe they'll have a chance to draft a player who can help them off the bench. They'll likely be targeting players that can help them immediately since they have no cap room and their mini mid-level exception will be used on Bojan Bogdanovic.
Kansas big man Jeff Withey worked out today for the Celtics, a source tells Adam Zagoria of SNY (on Twitter). Withey is ranked No. 3 amongst NCAA seniors by DraftExpress and is slated to go No. 22 in their latest mock draft. The Celtics could likely grab him with their No. 16 selection in the first round.

Broussard On Coaching Searches, Wolves, Lottery

May 24th, 2013 at 10:03am CST by Luke Adams

We briefly touched on the latest Insider-only offering from ESPN.com's Chris Broussard last night, but let's take a more in-depth look at Brousard's newest tidbits today:

NBA executives are curious to see who the Pistons hire as a head coach, since it may indicate whether advisor Phil Jackson or GM Joe Dumars has more sway in Detroit. Dumars is believed to favor Nate McMillan or Maurice Cheeks, while Jackson's pick would likely be Brian Shaw.
Had Chris Hansen's purchase of the Kings gone through, Jackson would have run the team's front office in Seattle, and intended to hire Shaw as head coach, says Broussard.
The Nets have yet to approach any coaching candidates besides Jackson, who told the team he wasn't interested in coaching. Brooklyn is currently conducting "rigorous checks" on potential candidates, and is seeking someone tough and firm who is able to get the most out of the talent on the roster.
The Clippers are high on McMillan, according to Broussard.
Sources tell Broussard that Bobcats GM Rich Cho is interested in hiring Quin Snyder to replace Mike Dunlap.
"Many league insiders" believe Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer is the favorite to land the Hawks' job, says Broussard.
While Celtics GM Danny Ainge has privately told teams he won't grant them permission to speak to Doc Rivers, Broussard says if Rivers really wanted a change of scenery, Ainge would probably allow him to explore other options. There's no indication that's the case though.
Although Flip Saunders will run the Timberwolves' basketball operations, he's looking to hire a general manager, and is currently performing background checks on possible candidates. A hire likely won't happen until after the draft, according to Broussard.
Rival lottery teams aren't necessarily jealous that the Cavaliers landed the first overall pick. Said one GM: "I'd rather be two, three or four in this draft than one."
Another executive from a lottery team on the process: "We didn't want to win this year's lottery. Next year's the one to win. Then after that, you want to be out of the lottery."