Soon-to-be free agent point guard Isaiah Thomas underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right hip in late March, an injury that bothered him since the playoffs last year. Thomas missed the first several months of the season due to the troublesome hip and his play was significantly impacted upon his return. Thomas, who was traded to the Lakers at the deadline, said in a tweet on Wednesday that he has made significant progress in his recovery.
“I haven’t been able to really workout & get better in over a year! Finally pain free,” Thomas wrote in the tweet. “This is going to be fun!!!”
Thomas, 29, was limited to 32 games between the Cavaliers and Lakers this season. He averaged 15.2 PPG and 4.8 APG this season, a far cry from his Eastern Conference-best 28.9 PPG for the Celtics last season when he finished fifth in the NBA Most Valuable Player award voting. As he enters free agency this summer, he will try to return to form and a healthy hip will help his cause.
Check out more Pacific Division notes:
- ESPN college basketball analyst Fran Fraschilla has watched University of Arizona’s Deandre Ayton extensively and believes the Suns should take him with the first overall pick, Scott Bordow of Arizona Central Sports writes. “He has breathtaking talent and athleticism,” Fraschilla said. “His motor runs high, he has a terrific offensive arsenal and, while there are some chinks in the armor defensively, I thought his effort on that end of the floor (against ASU) was very good as well. There are people who want him to be a better shot blocker but I think that can be polished up.”
- If the Suns do select Ayton as many expect, the Kings will consider options beyond Slovenian guard Luka Doncic. Jonathan Givony appeared on The Woj Pod and said that the Kings, who own the second overall pick, will consider bigs in addition to Doncic (via RealGM). “They have a real hole there in the frontcourt. I don’t think that they’re in love with Willie Cauley-Stein by any means. They started Zach Randolph at the four all year long,” Givony said. “What do they do there? Do they go with Marvin Bagley who is going to be a compelling prospect for them? Or do they go with Luka Doncic? His father is of Serbian descent. Their GM is Serbian. Their assistant GM is Serbian.”
- Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee also weighed in on the Kings’ big decision with the second overall pick. While Doncic is the popular name, Jones suggests the Kings aren’t sold on him.
Doncic is a horrible fit for the Kings.
Remember when the Clippers took a 4 or 5 every year except 1 in an 8 year span? That’s what the Kings are going to look like if they draft Bagley. If they had a 2019 pick, you know it’d be Bol Bol.
The Suns will draft Doncic, I got that feeling. He wants to be a point guard in the NBA not a off the ball player.
The Suns take Doncic there will be rioting in the streets. McDumma has ruined this team from the get go.
There will be FA centers available. If the Sacto FO does not take who they should take (Doncic), they will be exposed.
A player who might want to stay in Sacto is key. Doncic can tell friends he’s doing it in California and his bosses are from Serbia, next door to Slovenia in the former Yugoslavia.
Don’t blow it Divac!
Doncic can fit on any team that wants to win. When you pick #2, you have to being looking for a potential HOF player, and not just filling an immediate need. If they want to do the latter, then there’s a simple answer, trade down.
If they’re willing to go down to #9, then I would have no issue with the Knicks sending #9 and their top pick next year (maybe top 3 protected, for a year or two) or two future lottery protected picks to get #2.
Knicks trading for Doncic makes sense, but the Kings can’t afford to do it. They need someone, now.
Suns are picking Doncic. Kings should trade out of the their pick with the Magic or Bulls.
Where does IT land? He can score…his mouth detracts from his value….probably not a good teammate.
I think he fit perfectly as a bench scorer for the Lakers. Plenty of minutes to be had and plenty of shots for him. He’s gotta realize that at this point in his career he’s probably lost the chance to be an alpha on any real contender
DeMar DeRozan for Bogdan Bogdanovic, Temple, Shumpert, and Kings’ 2018 2nd round pick…Sacramento drafts Doncic or Porter, or trades down to get either one of the Bridges, still Porter, or maybe a Kevin Knox…Thoughts?