Here are Sunday’s D-League assignments and recalls from across the NBA:
Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes the loss of backup guard Matthew Dellavedova has been the biggest change in the defending champion Cavaliers, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Dellavedova was involved in a sign-and-trade deal with the Bucks this summer after agreeing to a four-year, $38MM contract with Milwaukee. Cleveland has yet to find a dependable reserve point guard to play behind Kyrie Irving. “Dellavedova’s absence jumps out,” Kerr said. “I think he’s been a big part of their team in the last couple years, so it’s a different look.”
There’s more from the Central Division:
Manu Ginobili is giving the Spurs more of “the old Manu” this season, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express News. At 39, the 15-year veteran was instrumental in wins this week over the Pelicans and Rockets. He continues to amaze teammates, who marvel at his work ethic and passion for the game. After considering retirement last summer, Ginobili signed a one-year deal worth $14MM. He hasn’t said whether this will be his final year in the NBA. “Manu is Manu,” said coach Gregg Popovich. “When he gets on the court, he is there ready to play and compete and he’s done it for his whole career. And he’ll do it until he stops playing. I don’t care what his age is.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
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:
With all of the injuries and lineup shuffling Jazz coach Quin Snyder has had to deal with this season, it is worth recognizing that Utah has a winning record despite the adversity, Randy Hollis of the Deseret News writes. George Hill, Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, Boris Diaw, Rodney Hood and Alec Burks have all missed time at some point this season, as Hollis points out. In the middle of all of that, however, has been Hayward’s stellar play this season, Hollis adds. Snyder also said the Jazz very much miss Hill’s on-court leadership and are eager for his return, Hollis passes along.
Here’s more out of Utah:
Not many in Sacramento seem to be surprised about the content in former Kings coach George Karl‘s forthcoming book “Furious George” nor to the reaction the book has received, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee writes. Out of all the team’s six coaches over the past seven-plus seasons, no one ignited as much frustration and negative feelings throughout the organization like Karl did, Jones explains. Karl’s relationship (or lack thereof) with DeMarcus Cousins is well-known, but Jones adds that it was Karl’s poor treatment of quieter players that rubbed many the wrong way on the Kings.
Here is more on the Kings:
Every Sunday, we link to some of the very best work from around the basketball blogosphere. Do you have a link to a great basketball blog post – either your own or someone else’s – that you want to see featured on Hoops Rumors? Then you should send it to us at HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here’s this week’s rundown …
Please send submissions for Hoops Links to Will at HoopsLinks@gmail.com.
Bulls vice president of basketball operations John Paxson says “athleticism” is the team’s most important roster issue, relays the Chicago Tribune. In a radio interview this morning on WSCR-AM 670, Paxson praised coach Fred Hoiberg and offseason addition Dwyane Wade, while asking for more out of Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic. Here are a few highlights:
On the need for more athletic players to keep up with the rest of the league:
“We’ve got some vets who know how to play and can score. But when you look around the league and the way the game is now, that’s an area we have to address. That is a part of the plan. We’ll try to do that obviously through the draft and free agency if we can. You always have the trade option. Right now, our roster is what it is.”
On Michael Carter-Williams, who has been sidelined by injuries since October 31st:
“You kind of forget that he’s even on the roster because we traded for him so late in camp and then three games in, he took a fall and hurt himself. The coaching staff was just getting acclimated to him and he was doing very well for us. We’re excited to get him back. I think he will help our depth and our rotation as well.”
On Mirotic, who is headed toward free agency but seems to have regressed during his third season, shooting just 38% from the field:
“Niko has a tendency to get down on himself to be honest with you. Sometimes as player, you have to say to yourself, ‘Enough is enough. I’m going to go out and compete and work on my game.’ A lot of this is on the individual. Niko is a great guy. He has the ability to get better.”
On the surprise addition of Wade, who left Miami to sign with the Bulls this summer:
“It’s rare when a guy like that becomes available. Dwyane was one of those players you would think would’ve been with Miami his entire career just the way it had gone. He had been through good times, He had been through rebuilding. He’s professional with his approach and his attitude. He knows how to prepare himself. At this stage of his career, he knows what he can and can’t do. We’re trying to watch him carefully to make sure he doesn’t break down. But he takes very good care of himself. He’s right around that 30-minute mark a game for us, which is what he had intended for him hoping to keep him fresh. I think he has taken some of the pressure off of Jimmy [Butler] just in terms of having to speak all the time and be the voice. They’ve formed a very nice bond together.”
On the roster overhaul that began with the trade of Derrick Rose to the Knicks:
“We rode out Derrick’s injury for a long time. We had our team built at that point. Derrick’s injury obviously was a huge blow to us. He never really got back to where he was for us. We had just paid him. We tried to plug holes. But in the meantime, you’re drafting kind of middle of the pack all the time. You’re good enough to make the playoffs but you’re picking anywhere between 14, 15 and 22. It’s difficult to get impact players unless you’re lucky like we were with Jimmy years ago. There aren’t any excuses from us. We can point back to we thought we had it going but Derrick blows out his knee and all of a sudden, that changed our fortune a little bit. Had he not gotten hurt, who knows what would’ve happened. But that’s not our reality. We have to continue to try to find a way to put better players and a better team out there on the floor. That’s what we’re trying to do. At some point this year, we may have to give our young guys opportunities that they may need to see if they can develop into players.”
Amid today’s Christmas festivities, it’s easy to overlook that there are about six months until the NBA’s next free agent frenzy begins. With a new labor deal in place and record revenues flowing in, teams are expected to once again do some serious shopping. We’re coming off a record-setting summer for free agent contracts, and there are reasons to believe it will be eclipsed in 2017.
We published our first list in September, but the events of the past three months have made an update necessary. Injuries to Blake Griffin and Nerlens Noel have affected their standing, while extensions for Giannis Antetokounmpo and Rudy Gobert have removed them from the list.
Remember that players who are ranked high aren’t necessarily expected to change teams when they hit the open market. Kevin Durant is No. 1, but he just signed with Golden State last summer and there’s no reason to think that he would break up one of the league’s power teams. However, Durant has a player option for 2017, so he could leave the Warriors and become the top free agents for a second consecutive summer, which is why he is on the list.
The rankings reflect each player’s expected value on the 2017 free agent market, rather than how we think they’ll perform on the court for the remainder of the 2016/17 season. Age and long-term value are important in their positions.
Here’s the second installment of our 2017 free agent power rankings:
The following 2017 free agents didn’t quite crack our list, earning honorable mention:
The Sixers‘ overstocked frontcourt has been drawing headlines this season, but what the team really needs is help at point guard, writes Bob Cooney of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia had planned to let rookie Ben Simmons run the offense with newly acquired Jerryd Bayless providing a veteran counterpart in the backcourt. However, Simmons’ fractured foot and Bayless’ wrist injury have forced the Sixers to turn over point guard duties to Sergio Rodriguez and T.J. McConnell.
“We started the season with Jerryd Bayless as our starting point guard and Ben Simmons was going to share some of that and be starting at a four. We lost them both for, so far, the season and we’re obviously reevaluating Ben,” said coach Brett Brown. “So you have what used to be your second point guard and your third point guard now lifted a shelf higher and the expectations of grabbing that position come with it. I think that under the circumstances they’ve been very good. Now you need a starting guard.”
There’s more this morning out of Philadelphia: