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Blazers Notes: Ownership, Nurkic, Hood, Kanter

May 30th, 2019 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

While there’s a perception in NBA circles that the Trail Blazers‘ ownership situation is unsettled in the wake of Paul Allen‘s death last fall, the team’s head of basketball operations, Neil Olshey, doesn’t subscribe to that notion, as Jason Quick of The Athletic relays.

“Nothing is unsettled. Jody is our owner,” Olshey said during the Blazers’ exit interviews, referring to Paul’s sister Jody Allen. “She has been fantastic in terms of engagement. She has addressed the team when we’ve asked her to. She was really emotional after the OKC series, that was the validation, knowing how much Paul believed in the core of this group and to see it come to fruition.

“Jody stepped up and spoke to the team in a way that resonated with everybody and struck a chord with the players and staff and everyone there that she has our back, she has a vision for the franchise, she believes in the group, she cares about the players, and the magnitude of what she has had to take on,” Olshey continued, per Quick. “At a time when we needed ownership to show solidarity with the front office, the coaching staff, the business division, she was there for us.”

Allen has exhibited that commitment to the franchise since Portland’s season ended earlier this month, having locked up Olshey and head coach Terry Stotts to contract extensions.

Here’s more on the Blazers:

  • According to Olshey (via Quick), injured Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic is making “great progress” from his broken left leg. While the team hasn’t offered a specific recovery timetable for Nurkic, Quick speculates that the big man could be ready to return to action sometime just before next season’s All-Star break. “Guys can’t believe where he is relative to what they saw only four weeks ago,” Olshey said of Nurkic. “He is a core piece to this roster, a foundational piece going forward, and we are going to drive him. But also knowing we are going to do what’s best for Nurk on a long-term basis in terms of his recovery and his timeline.”
  • The Blazers aren’t expecting to be able to retain Rodney Hood or Enes Kanter using the taxpayer mid-level exception (projected to be worth about $5.7MM), writes Quick. If the club can shed enough salary to gain access to the full mid-level exception – or Hood and Kanter don’t receive as much interest as anticipated – Hood would likely be the priority over Kanter, in Quick’s view.
  • Quick doesn’t expect the Blazers’ three big expiring contracts for Evan Turner, Meyers Leonard, and Maurice Harkless to garner a ton of interest on the trade market this offseason, contending that they could become more intriguing trade chips during the season.
  • Former St. John’s guard Shamorie Ponds is set to work out for the Trail Blazers on Friday, tweets Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. According to Quick, Portland will likely only hold “three or four” pre-draft workouts since the club has just one pick (No. 25) in this year’s draft.
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Bucks GM Jon Horst In Line For Extension, Raise?

May 30th, 2019 at 12:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Having been named the Bucks‘ new general manager in June 2017, Jon Horst now just has one year left on the three-year deal he received at that time, per Gery Woelfel of Woelfel’s Press Box. According to Woelfel, “word is circulating” around the league that Horst will seek a raise on a contract extension this offseason.

After building a roster that won 60 games and made the Eastern Conference Finals this season, Horst is certainly deserving of an extension, and sources tell Woelfel that Bucks ownership is amenable to working out a new agreement. However, it remains to be seen what Horst’s salary would look like on such an extension.

According to Woelfel, Horst has been the NBA’s lowest-paid GM over the last couple years, with several league officials suggesting that his annual salary is in the $500K range (that figure was also reported by ESPN shortly after Horst’s promotion). The NBA’s highest-paid executives earn salaries in the neighborhood of $8-10MM per year, Woelfel notes.

While Horst’s next deal should certainly be more lucrative than his current one, the Bucks’ ownership group is probably unlikely to make an offer that puts the young GM among the highest-paid execs in the league.

“If you asked me what would be a fair deal for him, I’d say around $3MM (per year),” one NBA executive told Woelfel. “That’s about the average salary for a GM and I think he’s regarded as an average GM. But knowing (the Bucks’ owners), I don’t think he’s going to get even that.”

While the Bucks’ owners may not have a reputation as huge spenders, co-owner Marc Lasry has stated the team intends to do everything it can to win and will attempt to keep all its core players this offseason. I expect the club will pay what it takes to get Horst locked up for the next few years.

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DeMarcus Cousins Will Be Active For Game 1

May 30th, 2019 at 11:35am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors won’t have Kevin Durant back in their lineup to start the NBA Finals, but another injured star appears set to return. Head coach Steve Kerr confirmed today to reporters, including Mark Medina of The Bay Area News Group (Twitter link), that DeMarcus Cousins will be active for Game 1.

Cousins, who missed more than half of the 2018/19 season while recovering from an Achilles tear, suffered a torn quad in Game 2 of the first round of the playoffs against the Clippers. While that injury seemed likely to finish his season, he worked hard to rehab the quad and get healthy enough to return to the court before the end of the playoffs.

When Cousins signed a one-year, $5.34MM deal with the Warriors last summer, this was the sort of opportunity he anticipated. Having never appeared in a playoff game before, the 28-year-old wanted a chance to compete for a title, and he’ll get that chance beginning on Thursday night.

It’s not clear what sort of role Cousins will play against the Raptors. According to Medina (via Twitter), Kerr said he has a sense of the workload the big man will get in Game 1, but declined to offer specifics.

Technically, the Warriors were a better team with Cousins off the court than with him on it during the regular season and during his brief playoff stint. Plus, his presence would reduce the likelihood of Golden State playing Raptors center Marc Gasol off the floor. Those factors, combined with Cousins still needing to get his conditioning back to where it was, point to a limited role for the former All-Star, but we’ll see what Kerr has in mind.

As for Durant, Kerr said today that the former Finals MVP probably won’t be able to practice before Game 2, making it unlikely he suits up until at least Game 3 (Twitter link via Marc Berman of The New York Post).

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Revisiting Hoops Rumors’ 2018/19 NBA Predictions

May 30th, 2019 at 10:55am CST by Luke Adams

Back in October, seven members of Hoops Rumors’ writing team made predictions for the 2018/19 season, attempting to name the top eight teams in each conference, the conference and championship winners, and the players and coaches who would take home this year’s major awards.

Revisiting preseason predictions several months later is always a humbling experience, as events that seemed inevitable in the fall never quite play out the way we expect during the season. But in the interest of full accountability, we’re taking a look back at those predictions today to see where we went wrong and which picks we got right (or at least close enough to claim a win).

Let’s dive in…

The Good:

  • We weren’t exactly going out on a limb, but six of us had the Warriors winning the NBA Finals, with two of us specifically identifying the Raptors as their opponent. That scenario is still in play.
  • Two of us predicted that Giannis Antetokounmpo would win the 2018/19 MVP award, and he currently appears to be the frontrunner among the three finalists.
  • All seven of us picked either Luka Doncic, Trae Young, and Deandre Ayton for Rookie of the Year, and they’re the three finalists for the award.
  • Elsewhere on the awards front, three of us had Rudy Gobert as our Defensive Player of the Year, and he remains in the running. Plus, three of us predicted Mike Budenholzer would win Coach of the Year — he’s one of the finalists.

The Bad:

  • Not one of us predicted the Bucks would place higher than third in the Eastern Conference (they finished first). We were also too low on the Nuggets, with no one expecting them to come in higher than fourth in the West (they finished second).
  • All seven of us expected the Heat and Wizards would make the playoffs in the East. Miami narrowly missed out, while Washington didn’t come close. We were also too high on the Pelicans in the West (five of us had them making the postseason).
  • Sixth Man of the Year is a tricky award to predict, since rotations and lineups can change over the course of the season, but the fact that none of us had Lou Williams as our winner still isn’t great. None of our picks – including J.J. Redick and Eric Gordon, who didn’t last long as bench players – became finalists. To make matters worse, two of our Sixth Man selections – Tyreke Evans and Carmelo Anthony – are no longer even in the NBA.

The Ugly:

  • The Celtics and Lakers made all of us look bad this year. All seven of us had Boston playing in the Eastern Conference Finals, with five of us putting Boston in the NBA Finals. As for the Lakers, we all predicted they’d make the playoffs, forecasting them to finish as high as third in the West. They finished 10th.
  • It’s possible we were way too bullish on the idea of LeBron James having a transcendent year. Five of us had him as our 2018/19 MVP. He missed over a month during the season and barely made an All-NBA team.
  • Apologies to Trail Blazers fans. Only three of us picked them to make the postseason, with no one putting them higher than seventh in the conference. They earned the No. 3 seed and made the Western Conference Finals.
  • Most Improved Player is another difficult award to predict, but a couple of us were way off the mark in choosing Markelle Fultz. The former No. 1 overall pick played just 19 games in a disappointing sophomore season.

With the NBA Finals set to get underway and the major awards set to be unveiled in a few weeks, which of your own predictions for the 2018/19 season were right on the money or way off the mark? Head to the comment section below to boast about your foresight and/or laugh about your missteps.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Checking In On Early Entrants For 2019 NBA Draft

May 30th, 2019 at 9:47am CST by Luke Adams

The NCAA’s deadline for early entrants in the 2019 NBA draft to withdraw and retain their college eligibility passed on Wednesday night at midnight. Although we relayed most of the draft decisions before that point, a few more trickled in late.

Most notably, Western Kentucky big man Charles Bassey, who appeared ready to go pro, had a last-minute change of heart and decided to withdraw from the draft, as Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports reports (via Twitter). Bassey, who had been a top-80 prospect on ESPN’s big board and was a candidate to be drafted, will instead head back to Western Kentucky for his sophomore season.

Meanwhile, a list of early entrant decisions from Jeff Goodman of Stadium includes two withdrawals that previously flew under the radar. According to Goodman’s list, Prairie View A&M forward Devonte Patterson and Redemption Christian Academy swingman Tony Goodwin II both pulled out of the draft before Wednesday’s deadline.

As our list of early entrants shows, that leaves almost an even split behind the college underclassmen who remain in the draft pool (88 players) and those who withdrew (89). However, the early entrant list hasn’t yet been finalized.

While the NCAA’s withdrawal deadline has now passed, the NBA’s withdrawal deadline doesn’t arrive until June 10, which means the league won’t formally issue a complete list of early entrants eligible for the 2019 draft until after that date.

In the weeks and days leading up to June 10, we can expect to hear plenty of updates on decisions being made by international early entrants, who weren’t subject to the NCAA’s deadline. A total of 59 international players showed up on the initial list of early entrants for 2019, but the majority of them will likely withdraw from the draft by June 10. At that point, we’ll have a complete picture of which players will be draft-eligible on June 20.

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Wolves Hire Gianluca Pascucci As Assistant GM

May 30th, 2019 at 9:14am CST by Luke Adams

MAY 30: The Timberwolves have issued a press release officially confirming the hiring of Pascucci, who will lead the team’s personnel efforts and be fully involved with all player personnel matters, according to the announcement.

“I’m excited to bring Gianluca Pascucci to the Timberwolves as our assistant general manager,” Rosas said in a statement. “I’ve seen firsthand his drive, passion and knowledge of the game. Gianluca offers a diverse perspective from his time as an executive overseas and his experience on multiple professional platforms.

“He will bring a global perspective on how we will build our team and his experience with developmental programs will be a big asset as we look to fully maximize the Iowa Wolves as a natural extension of the Timberwolves. He will be a phenomenal asset to our franchise and another great partner as we build a world-class organization.”

MAY 20: In addition to making the decision to retain Ryan Saunders as their permanent head coach, the Timberwolves have reached an agreement to hire Nets executive Gianluca Pascucci, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter). According to Wojnarowski, Pascucci will serve as an assistant GM under new head of basketball operations Gersson Rosas in Minnesota.

Pascucci, who held the position of director of global scouting in Brooklyn’s front office, had been viewed as a candidate for a promotion after the Nets lost assistant GM Trajan Langdon to the Pelicans. Instead, he’ll reunite with Rosas, with whom he worked in the Rockets’ front office before he joined the Nets in 2016.

While it looks like a solid hire for the Timberwolves, it’s another blow to the Nets’ front office. In addition to having lost Langdon and Pascucci, Brooklyn has also seen coaches Chris Fleming and Will Weaver leave the organization this spring, so the club will have plenty of holes to fill in both the front office and coaching staff.

Pascucci reportedly received consideration for a position with Italian and EuroLeague club Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano before agreeing to take a job with the Wolves.

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Zion Williamson To Be Represented By CAA

May 30th, 2019 at 8:11am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2019 NBA draft just three weeks away, the presumptive No. 1 pick has finally selected an agent. CAA Basketball issued a message today (via Twitter) welcoming Zion Williamson to the agency.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski adds more details, tweeting that CAA agent Austin Brown and co-head of client management Lisa Joseph-Metelus will represent the Duke star.

With Williamson locked into the No. 1 slot and rookie contracts for first-round picks predetermined by the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, Brown and Joseph-Metelus won’t have to do a ton of lobbying or negotiating on behalf of their new client at the start of his NBA career.

Based on a $109MM cap projection for 2019/20, Williamson’s first four-year contract with the Pelicans is expected to start at about $9.74MM in his rookie year and be worth more than $44MM in total.

CAA’s list of NBA clients also includes stars such as Devin Booker, Joel Embiid, Paul George, Donovan Mitchell, Chris Paul, D’Angelo Russell, and Karl-Anthony Towns.

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Draft Decisions: Coffey, Tucker, Dotson, Grimes, Nwora

May 29th, 2019 at 10:24pm CST by clarkcrum

There’s little time left before tonight’s 11:59 pm EST NCAA withdrawal deadline. Below are some of the latest decisions:

Staying in the draft:

Withdrawing from the draft:

As noted by Jonathan Givony of ESPN, Dotson, Nwora, and Grimes were ranked Nos. 59, 63, and 73 before their announcements.

Remember to check our early entrants list for a full list of all draft decisions.

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OG Anunoby Questionable For Game 1

May 29th, 2019 at 9:39pm CST by clarkcrum

Despite Raptors head coach Nick Nurse saying Monday that forward OG Anunoby was still about 10 days away from being able to play, the team is now surprisingly listing Anunoby as questionable for Game 1 of the NBA Finals tomorrow night, tweets Eric Koreen of The Athletic.

Anunoby, who has missed the entire 2018/19 postseason after undergoing an emergency appendectomy in early April, still didn’t have a timetable to return as recently as a week ago, when Nurse said as much. But now, it appears as though a timetable has appeared and shortened within the span on a few days, with Nurse’s 10-day prediction upgraded to a questionable designation for tomorrow evening.

Anunoby could provide some much needed depth for the Raptors against the Warriors after the team relied on an eight-man rotation against the Bucks. This is especially true if Kevin Durant returns from injury, as Anunoby would give teammate Kawhi Leonard some much needed breaks from defending the all-time great.

Given Nurse’s original estimate about Anunoby’s return, it still seems unlikely that we will see him in Game 1, but the questionable designation does breed hope for an earlier return, perhaps in Game 2 on Sunday.

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KZ Okpala To Remain In 2019 NBA Draft

May 29th, 2019 at 8:14pm CST by clarkcrum

Stanford sophomore forward and potential lottery selection KZ Okpala will remain in this year’s draft class and forgo his final two seasons of college eligibility, reports Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.

As we touched upon back when Okpala first declared for the draft, the 19-year-old was a relatively late bloomer out of high school but had a promising freshman season before breaking out as a sophomore. He averaged 16.8 PPG, 5.7 RPG, and 2.0 APG while connecting on 36.8% of his three-point attempts during the 2018/19 season.

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony currently ranks Okpala as 2019’s No. 24 overall prospect, two spots higher than when he first declared nearly two months ago. During the draft process, Okpala has reportedly met with the Wizards and Pistons, who pick at No. 9 and No. 15, respectively.

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