2014 NBA Draft Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Rubio, Hairston, Jazz

June 8th, 2014 at 3:45pm CST by Zachary Links

Former D-Leaguers P.J. Hairston and Thanasis Antetokounmpo are among the most intriguing players in this year’s class and Jazz VP of Player Personnel Walt Perrin expects to see more of that in the future, writes Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. “I would guess if the league raises the age limit that there will be more players that will go that route,” Perrin said. “Everybody’s not made to go to school. Some of them are just players. A lot of them now, with the one-and-done, can get through one year. But I don’t know if they can get through two.” Here’s more out of the Northwest Division..

At the Adidas Eurocamp, Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio spoke with Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (video link) about the rumors surrounding Kevin Love and new head coach Flip Saunders.
Hairston was unable to participate in today’s workout with the Jazz due to back spasms, tweets Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune. Utah will try to bring Hairston in for another workout but that may not be possible with his busy schedule (link).
Michigan’s Glenn Robinson III was among the remaining five players who did work out for the Jazz today and he said that his agent has given him a draft range of 17-25, tweets Jones. Robinson also said he’d like to reunite with former Wolverines teammate Trey Burke (link).

Western Notes: Love, Parsons, Suns, Payne

June 8th, 2014 at 12:43pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The trade speculation around the Timberwolves‘ Kevin Love is heating up. Bill Ingram of Basketball Insiders examines the different teams involved, what they have to offer in a trade, and which franchise would be the best fit for Love. In the same article, Ingram also looks at Chandler Parsons‘ option situation with the Rockets, and why they might be willing to let him test the free agent market.

And-Ones: Williams, McDermott, Draft

June 8th, 2014 at 10:44am CST by Eddie Scarito

Chaz Williams wants to be part of the new trend of undersized guards becoming successful in the NBA, writes Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. The 5’9″ Williams has been in contact with Kings guard Isaiah Thomas for advice, notes Murphy. Of his conversation with Thomas, Williams said, “It’s great to know another small guy out there is successful, and is a fan of mine as well. He gave me a lot of encouraging words, and told me what to look for in these workouts. He told me to be myself and go out there and play hard. We spoke via text and communicated for a little while on Twitter. We’re with the same agency. I approached him. I’m a fan of his, and I wanted to pick his brain and learn. I’m a student of the game and can learn more every day. If I can learn more in a situation where people say I can’t, then that will help me a lot.”

And-Ones: Draft, Lakers, Free Agency

June 7th, 2014 at 10:21pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The full list of available free agents won’t be complete until the end of June when players and teams decide whether or not to exercise their respective contract options, writes Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders. Pincus breaks down all the players with options and gives his predictions for who will end up on the free agent market come July.

More news from around the league:

Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal released his first mock draft of the year.
The staff at Basketball Insiders debate which draft prospect will have the biggest impact next season.
Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders looks at the free agent options the Lakers will have this summer. Davis notes that the team should have a particular interest in Trevor Ariza, Kyle Lowry, and Greivis Vasquez.

Atlantic Notes: Cartwright, Walton, Sixers

June 7th, 2014 at 8:41pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Bill Cartwright is waiting to hear from either Phil Jackson or Steve Kerr about an assistant coaching position, writes Mitch Abramson of The New York Daily News. According to the article, Cartwright had met with Jackson back in April about joining the Knicks bench if Kerr was hired as coach. On his lack of recent contact with Jackson, Cartwright said, “We’re waiting for them to make a decision, obviously about the head coach and there’s nothing going on.” On possibly working as an assistant under Derek Fisher, Cartwright said, “That’s a Phil question, not my question. I’m looking to coach. There’s really nothing more to say, outside of that. I’m looking to coach.”

Draft Notes: Jazz, Suns, Payne, Stauskas

June 7th, 2014 at 4:58pm CST by Charlie Adams

Earlier this afternoon, we passed along that the Jazz would be working out P.J. Hairston. Jody Genessy of the Deseret News hears that Cleanthony Early, Glenn Robinson III, Xavier Thames, Kendrick Perry, and C.J. Wilcox will be joining Hairston tomorrow to put their skills on display for Utah (Twitter link). Let’s round up the latest on the draft:

The Jazz are quite interested in Adreian Payne, notes Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune (on Twitter). Payne’s size and ability to stretch the floor put him in line to be a mid-to-late first-round pick.
Scott Bordow and Jay Dieffenbach of AZ Central Sports discuss the group that worked out for the Suns yesterday (video link). Like Utah, Phoenix expressed interest in Payne. GM Ryan McDonough told Bordow that he would be open to drafting another stretch four because of how well they fit into the team’s system.
Michigan shooting guard Nik Stauskas will work out for the Hornets on Wednesday and the Celtics on Friday, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
C.J. Fair tells Raul Barrigon of HoopsHype that he’s worked out for 14 teams, including the Spurs. Fair is confident that he’ll be a first-round pick, although his name is completely omitted from the latest mock draft by DraftExpress’ Jonathan Givony.

Jazz Notes: Gordon, Hairston, Tomic, Snyder

June 7th, 2014 at 3:31pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Jazz worked out Arizona big man Aaron Gordon today, and the team was quite impressed with his performance, relays Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune (on Twitter). In addition to the ability he demonstrated during workouts, Gordon gave a better media interview than any other prospect that Utah has brought in so far, according to Jones (Twitter link). Here’s more on the Jazz:

P.J. Hairston will work out for Utah on Sunday, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. Hairston is projected to be a late first-round selection, according to the latest mock draft from Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.
Jazz vice president of player personnel Walt Perrin told Jody Genessy of the Deseret News that Utah will have conversations about bringing Ante Tomic in from overseas (Twitter link). Tomic, one of Euroleague’s dominating centers, was a second round pick for the Jazz in 2008.
Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune recaps how newly-hired Jazz coach Quin Snyder ended up in Utah. Falk opines that bringing in Synder is perhaps the biggest move that the organization has made during the tenure of team CEO Greg Miller.

Cray Allred contributed to this post.

Draft Notes: Hood, Stokes, Jackson, Anderson

June 6th, 2014 at 9:42pm CST by Zachary Links

This morning, Hoops Rumors learned (Twitter link) that Duke sharpshooter Rodney Hood will audition for the Celtics, Kings, Hawks, and Hornets in the next few weeks. As previously reported, his future workout schedule will also include the Sixers and he has already worked out for the Bulls, Magic, Nuggets, and Suns. Back in May, Hood told Hoops Rumors that he could go as high as No. 6-12 and it sounds increasingly plausible as he has worked out for most of the top half teams. Here’s the latest draft news..

Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders explains why he thinks Noah Vonleh would have limited upside as a lottery pick. Duncan thinks Vonleh’s leaping ability has become overrated, and cites poor instincts on both ends of the floor as reason to temper expectations.
Robby Kalland of Hawks.com checked in with Brian Schroeder of Hardwood Paroxysm to get the goods on first round draft prospect Jusuf Nurkic. Schroeder raves about his size, relative mobility, rebounding, and scoring touch. Currently, the big man is slated to go No. 11 to the Nuggets in DraftExpress‘ mock draft.
Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders runs down some common mistakes teams make in the draft, highlighting players from this year’s pool that could produce similar letdowns.

Earlier updates:

Jabari Parker would have no issue with being drafted by the Bucks, his father Sonny and Duke teammate Hood tell Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.
The Suns were expected to work out Adreian Payne, Jordan Adams, Markel Brown, Sean Kilpatrick, Daniel Miller, and C.J. Wilcox today, reports azcentral sports.
Shawn Glover worked out for the Jazz today, reports Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune, and both Payne and David Stockton will work out for Utah tomorrow, Falk tweets. Payne is projected near Utah’s No. 23 overall pick, but neither Glover or Stockton (son of Jazz legend John Stockton) are projected as either first or second round picks.
A source tells Hoops Rumors (Twitter link) that Clemson small forward K.J. McDaniels will work out for the Thunder tomorrow. McDaniels is projected as a mid-to-late first-round pick and while he figures to be in range, he could be gone by the time OKC picks at No. 21.
Hoops Rumors has also learned (via Twitter) that Stanford forward Josh Huestis auditioned for the Knicks this week and will be playing in front of the Magic today. The source adds that there aren’t enough days before the draft for Huestis to work out for every team that wants to see him (link).
In continuing their trend of working out point guards, the Magic will work out Tyler Ennis and Elfrid Payton over the next few days, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders.
Hoops Rumors has also learned (via Twitter) that former Tennessee Volunteers big man Jarnell Stokes is one of the 12 players working out for the Jazz today. Stokes is projected to be a first round pick thanks to his tenacious rebounding and high motor.
A source tells Hoops Rumors (via Twitter) that Cincinnati forward Justin Jackson has worked out for the Bulls with the Mavs, Pacers, Hawks, Hornets, and Suns still on the docket. To learn more about Jackson, a second-round prospect, check out the interview we conducted with him last month as a part of our Prospect Profile series.
Former UCLA point guard Kyle Anderson will work out for the Thunder tomorrow and the Sixers on Monday, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.

Walter Tavares Working On Euro Contract Buyout

June 6th, 2014 at 1:52pm CST by Zachary Links

European big man Walter Tavares is working on a contract buyout with his team in the Spanish ACB League and will travel soon to the United States to work out for several NBA teams, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Several execs believe that the 7’3″ center has a strong change to land in the first round of the draft.

Wojnarowski hears that several teams in the 20s plan to bring Tavares in for a closer look. The 22-year-old doesn’t have a formal agreement on a buyout with Gran Canaria of the Spanish ACB, but there is momentum toward that happening. Tavares is a relative basketball neophyte who never played basketball before his 17th birthday. There’s no question that Tavares is green, but he has tons of upside and has intrigued many scouts.

Tavares put his toe in the water for last year’s draft but ultimately decided to withdraw just weeks before. The big man is currently ranked No. 34 on DraftExpress’ top 100 list and slated to go No. 32 to the Sixers in their mock. Tavares is being represented by agent Andy Miller.

Jazz Notes: Jones, Vonleh, Favors, Kanter

June 6th, 2014 at 11:12am CST by Zachary Links

Jazz assistant Brad Jones is indeed a candidate for the head coaching position, but he could also be in line for an assistant job on the team’s new staff if they go with Alvin Gentry, Quin Snyder, or Adrian Griffin as the hire, tweets Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. After having spent the 2012-13 season in charge of player development, Utah promoted Jones to a full fledged assistant in July of last year. Being appointed as head coach would mark a very rapid climb up the organizational ladder for Jones. The latest out of Utah..

A source tells Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link) that the Jazz saw Indiana big man Noah Vonleh workout privately last week in New York.
After attending Utah’s pre-draft workout yesterday, Jones learned (link) that the organization sees Derrick Favors as a center, not as a power forward. Because of that, the Utah front office is confident that Vonleh can come in and play alongside Favors without any trouble (link). Meanwhile, if the Jazz see Favors as a five, that raises some questions about how they view Enes Kanter (link).
Utah State big man Jarred Shaw and Weber State guard/forward Davion Berry are among the 12 players working out for the Jazz this morning, tweets Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. Neither player is featured on DraftExpress’ Top 100.