2021 February | Hoops Rumors

NBA Aims To Hold Vegas Summer League In August

February 19th, 2021 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA is working toward holding its annual Las Vegas Summer League sometime in early- or mid-August in 2021, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe. The league is still figuring out all the specifics, sources tell ESPN.

The NBA was forced to scrap its 2020 Summer League in Las Vegas due to the coronavirus pandemic — the league was ramping up for its summer restart at Walt Disney World in July at the time the Vegas Summer League would typically have taken place.

The 2020/21 season is scheduled to end about a month later than usual, with the playoffs set to run through mid-July. As such, it makes sense that the NBA would also push back its Summer League dates by about a month. It’s safe to assume there will be a number of strict health and safety restrictions in place for the event, even if the pandemic outlook has improved by the summer.

Within their report, Wojnarowski and Lowe also provide some details on the NBA’s second-half schedule, noting that teams expect to see a draft version either this weekend or sometime next week.

According to Woj and Lowe, the plan for now is to have all 30 teams play a full 72-game slate, even if that requires more back-to-back sets down the stretch for the clubs that have to make up several postponements from the first half.

However, the NBA has acknowledged that if more games have to be postponed during the second half, there’s a chance not every team will be able to play 72 games, per ESPN’s duo. That admission suggests that the possibility of pushing back the start and end of the postseason isn’t currently on the table.

Saturday’s Rockets/Pacers Game Postponed

February 19th, 2021 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Saturday’s game in Houston between the Rockets and Pacers is being postponed due to the ongoing weather-related state of emergency in Texas, according to reports from Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) and Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.

It’s the second Rockets game – and third NBA game in total – that has been postponed this week due to the severe weather conditions in Texas, which have caused significant power outages and running-water issues across the state, as well as a governmental shutdown of Houston’s Toyota Center.

Wednesday’s Pistons/Mavs game in Dallas and Friday’s Mavs/Rockets contest in Houston also couldn’t be played as scheduled.

The Rockets’ home stand is supposed to conclude with a Monday game vs. the Bulls. The league will likely wait another day or two to see if that game can be held as planned.

The Pacers, meanwhile, also had their February 22 game vs. San Antonio postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak among the Spurs and aren’t currently scheduled to play again until next Wednesday vs. Golden State.

In a couple instances this week when healthy teams had their games postponed, the NBA inserted a new game into the schedule to avoid squandering that down time — we’ll have to wait to see if the league plans to sneak a new opponent onto the Pacers’ schedule before next Wednesday.

And-Ones: McDonald’s Game, ASG, M. Jackson, S. Kidd

February 19th, 2021 at 12:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The McDonald’s All American Game for top high school basketball prospects has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic for a second straight year, as Shane Laflin of ESPN writes. McDonald’s will still announce its 48-player roster for 2021 (24 boys and 24 girls) later this month and will virtually honor the class, Laflin notes.

The event has served over the years as a showcase for future impact NBA players. The league’s five most recent No. 1 picks – Ben Simmons, Markelle Fultz, Deandre Ayton, Zion Williamson, and Anthony Edwards – are among the many future NBAers who have been named to the rosters for the McDonald’s All American Game since 2015 alone.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Defending the NBA’s decision to hold an All-Star Game this season, commissioner Adam Silver said on ESPN’s The Jump that the league also faced criticism for resuming play last summer in the bubble and for beginning its new season in December amid the coronavirus pandemic. “It seems like no decisions during this pandemic come without uncertainty and come without risk,” Silver said, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “This is yet another one of them, and yet it’s my job to balance all those interests and ultimately it feels like the right thing to do to go forward.”
Former Warriors head coach Mark Jackson remains interested in coaching in the NBA, but said during an appearance on The Boardroom: Out of Office Podcast that he believes the “narrative” surrounding his time in Golden State has contributed to limiting his opportunities. Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News has the story, including some quotes from Jackson.
Former Colorado State forward Stanton Kidd, who appeared in four games for the Jazz during the 2019/20 season, has signed with Hapoel Jerusalem through the end of this season, the Israeli team announced in a press release. Kidd, waived by Utah in November 2019, had been playing for OGM Ormanspor in Turkey before making the move to Israel.

Rockets Guarantee DeMarcus Cousins’ 2020/21 Salary

February 19th, 2021 at 11:45am CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have made an early decision on DeMarcus Cousins‘ contract, guaranteeing his veteran’s minimum salary for the rest of the 2020/21 season, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The league-wide salary guarantee date is February 27, but teams must release players on non-guaranteed contracts by February 24 to avoid taking on their full-season cap hits, so that they can clear waivers on or before February 26.

Cousins, who is earning $2.56MM on a one-year contract that counts as $1.62MM on Houston’s cap, is coming off a series of major leg injuries and hasn’t looked like his old All-Star self this season, averaging just 9.6 PPG and 7.6 RPG on 37.6% shooting in 25 games (20.2 MPG).

However, the 30-year-old has still occasionally flashed the ability to fill up the box score, including in a 28-point, 17-rebound, five-assist performance in Dallas on January 23. He has recently served as the Rockets’ starting center, with Christian Wood sidelined due to an ankle sprain.

Cousins will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.

Domestic Assault Charges Against Terence Davis Dismissed

February 19th, 2021 at 11:09am CST by Luke Adams

11:09am: As Blake Murphy of The Athletic explains (via Twitter), five of the seven charges against Davis were dismissed. The judge in the case technically granted an “adjournment in contemplation of dismissal” for criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of a child, which means those charges will also be dropped as long as the Raptors guard doesn’t run afoul of the law again for the next year.

10:29am: The New York District Attorney’s office has dismissed the domestic assault charges against Raptors guard Terence Davis, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Those charges stemmed from an October 2020 incident at a Manhattan hotel. Davis’ girlfriend, who visited him at the hotel, alleged that he hit her multiple times after a verbal dispute, then grabbed her phone and broke it. Davis was arrested and faced counts of assault, harassment, and criminal mischief, as well as endangering the welfare of a child, as the woman’s young son was allegedly present.

While Davis won’t face any legal ramifications as a result of those allegations, the NBA and NBPA continue to conduct their own investigation into the matter, as Doug Smith of The Toronto Star tweets. Depending on the outcome of that investigation, the league could discipline the second-year guard, but that’s significantly less likely now that the charges have been dismissed.

A member of the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team in 2019/20, Davis hasn’t played quite as regular a role for the Raptors so far this season. After appearing in all 72 regular season games as a rookie, he has been held out of six contests in 2020/21 and his minutes per game average has dipped from 16.8 to 13.3.

Still, Davis’ offensive numbers (6.5 PPG on .434/.378/.900 shooting) have been respectable, given his limited role, and the team has a slightly better net rating when he plays than when he sits. He’ll be eligible for restricted free agency at season’s end.

Southeast Notes: Magic, Hornets, Drummond, All-Star Game

February 19th, 2021 at 9:15am CST by Luke Adams

While the Magic‘s roster has been decimated by injuries this season, no pre-deadline fire sale appears imminent. League sources tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe that Orlando has been “projecting patience and optimism” about bringing their core players back next season, with Jonathan Isaac and Markelle Fultz due back from major knee injuries.

That doesn’t necessarily mean the Magic will stand pat entirely at this season’s deadline. Lowe suggests that the team might be open to a deal involving Evan Fournier, whose contract will expire this summer, but he stresses that’s just his speculation.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

In an effort to find a logical landing spot for Cavaliers center Andre Drummond, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic says the Hornets make sense as a potential trade partner for Cleveland. Drummond’s $28.7MM salary is tricky to match, but Charlotte could get most of the way there by using Cody Zeller‘s expiring $15.4MM contract, according to Vecenie, who notes that adding Malik Monk‘s and Bismack Biyombo‘s expiring deals would result in enough outgoing salary.
After having a pair of games postponed due to COVID-19 contact tracing and having been unable to conduct more than individual workouts this week, the Hornets anticipate being cleared to practice by late Friday afternoon, tweets Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. For now, the Hornets’ Saturday game vs. Golden State remains on the schedule as planned.
In explaining how the Hawks ended up hosting this year’s All-Star Game, team CEO Steve Koonin pointed to Turner Sports as a driving force behind the decision. “TNT has the All-Star game, it’s one of their marquee events, and by doing it in Atlanta, this allows Turner to not have to travel hundreds of people to another site,” Koonin explained, per Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “So there wasn’t a competition, there wasn’t an application process, there wasn’t a bid process, this was literally select by the NBA, Turner, and then asked if our building was available, which of course we’re going to make available to our partners.”

Lakers’ Davis Out About Four Weeks, Schröder In Protocols

February 19th, 2021 at 6:43am CST by Luke Adams

After initially being ruled out at least two or three weeks when he was diagnosed with a right calf strain on Monday, Lakers star Anthony Davis was reevaluated by team doctors on Thursday and has a new recovery timeline, head coach Frank Vogel told reporters last night.

According to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, the Lakers expect that Davis will miss approximately the next four weeks. That estimate includes the time it would take him to ramp up his conditioning once he’s healthy enough to resume workouts.

“We want to try to put this fully behind him and be conservative with it, just to make sure that it’s fully healed before he’s back,” Vogel said of Davis, who has also experienced Achilles tendinosis in his right leg.

The updated timeline ensures that Davis will remain out for the Lakers’ last seven first-half games and won’t be back on the court until at least a week into the second half, which gets underway on March 10. It will also sideline him for the March 7 All-Star Game, opening the door for another Western Conference player to replace him on the roster if he’s named a reserve, which is likely.

The Lakers figure to lean more heavily on the likes of Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, and Marc Gasol during Davis’ absence.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles also had to deal with a hole in its backcourt on Thursday night vs. Brooklyn, as Dennis Schröder was out due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols. Vogel said after the game that he’s not yet sure how much time Schröder will miss as a result of those COVID-19 protocols, per McMenamin (Twitter link).

There have been some instances of players receiving clearance within a day or two if they returned a false positive or inconclusive coronavirus test, or if they were subject to a contact tracing investigation and were determined not to have been a close contact of someone who tested positive for the virus.

However, if the player is determined to have been a close contact of someone who tested positive, he’s generally sidelined for at least a week. If the player registers a confirmed positive test himself, his return timeline is usually at least two weeks or so.

Wesley Matthews replaced Schröder in the Lakers’ starting lineup on Thursday. If Schröder has to sit for a week or two, Matthews, Alex Caruso, and Quinn Cook are among the top candidates to play extra minutes.

Southwest Notes: Tre Jones, Silas, Pelicans, Bane

February 18th, 2021 at 10:13pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

A seven-game losing streak has seen the Rockets plummet in the Western Conference standings. Houston is currently the No. 13 seed with an 11-17 record, and head coach Stephen Silas is struggling to determine how to break out of the slump, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle details. Silas concedes that adjusting to the absence of several key frontcourt contributors has been a big hurdle.

“There’s some sleepless nights for sure,” the Rockets’ coach said. “But internally, my nature is to be positive, No. 1, and to be a problem solver, No. 2. So as each guy goes down or as each challenge arises based on our roster or who we’re playing, it’s just my nature to not make it emotional and concentrate on the problem-solving part of it.”

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

Spurs point guard Tre Jones is impressing during his tenure with San Antonio’s G League affiliate, the Austin Spurs, according to Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News. Jones has appeared in just nine games with San Antonio, but Austin head coach Matt Nielsen lauded the rookie’s court vision. Jones leads the G League with 9.8 assists per game for Austin. “He’s a fantastic reader of basketball when the plays are in front of him,” Nielsen said. “At the same time, he knows how to use his teammates and get them involved.”
Pelicans star forwards Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram are continuing to figure out how to collaborate in late-game scenarios, per Scott Kushner of NOLA.com. “We’re going to get in the lab, individually and as a team, and prepare for a different outcome,” Williamson said following a recent late-game defeat.
Grizzlies rookie shooting guard Desmond Bane, the No. 30 pick out of TCU who currently leads all 2020/21 rookies in three-point shooting accuracy (48.2%), is set to rejoin Memphis for the club’s game against the Pistons tomorrow, following a four-game absence due to personal matters, per Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Richards, Bacon, Hornets

February 18th, 2021 at 9:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

An exact recovery timeline for new Hawks guard Kris Dunn is unclear following a PRP injection to treat right knee discomfort this week, per Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Dunn is also still recovering from a December right ankle scope.

Breakout swingman De’Andre Hunter is still on track to return in seven-to-10 weeks following a February 8 right meniscus surgery. The Hawks noted that Hunter has started to partake in “weight-bearing lower limb strength activities, form shooting and ball handling.”

The Hawks also revealed that reserve point guard Rajon Rondo participated in shooting and running drills this week, his latest injury this season being a left ankle sprain incurred last month.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hornets have sent rookie center Nick Richards back to their G League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm, according to Quinton Wash of Hornets.com. Richards, the No. 42 selection out of Kentucky in the 2020 draft, has played limited minutes across eight games with the club so far this season.
In his first season for the injury-ravaged Magic, swingman Dwayne Bacon has proven his worth both as a starter and a sparkplug off the bench, according to Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel. “When you’re in a game at such a high level, you’re not going to make every shot, so you’ve just got to stick with it,” Bacon said. “The same intensity, same, just everything, the total ingredients to be a good shooter, you’ve got to do the same thing, each and every time.”
After missing out on All-Star inclusion altogether during the 2019/20 season, Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal finds himself an All-Star starter for the first time this year. Fred Katz of The Athletic details Beal’s journey to starter status this season. “I definitely think the snub [last year] has a little bit to do with it,” Beal said. “I wouldn’t say all the way to the point to where I would start, but I think it was just gaining the recognition of last year and then it just carried over to this year and me just constantly working on my game and playing the way I’ve been playing.”

Atlantic Notes: VanVleet, Nets, Drummond, Flynn

February 18th, 2021 at 7:39pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

In the absence of injured veteran point guard Kyle Lowry, Raptors guard Fred VanVleet has provided Toronto a glimpse of the next era of its core leadership, per Dave Feschuk of The Toronto Star. The 34-year-old Lowry has served as the longtime emotional center driving Toronto. He will be an unrestricted free agent when the season ends. The Raptors have posted an encouraging 16-2 record without Lowry over the past two seasons.

VanVleet has averaged 22.0 PPG and 7.1 APG across 15 Raptors games without Lowry during the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons, Feschuk goes on to note.

“Any time a guy goes down, it’s that next-man-up mentality that we have always had around here and something that I have tried to continue to do is just increase my level of play when he’s out,” VanVleet said of adjusting to the absence of his current Raptors backcourt mate. “I thought the entire team just picked it up a notch when he went down and that’s what you like to see.”

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

A strained left hamstring will continue to sideline Nets All-Star forward Kevin Durant as Brooklyn takes on the Lakers in a TNT bout tonight, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets that the other injured Nets All-Star, guard Kyrie Irving, will be returning to action for Brooklyn tonight. Irving missed the Nets’ latest game, a 128-124 thriller against the Suns on Tuesday night, due to a lower back injury.
Now that the Cavaliers have established they are officially benching center Andre Drummond ahead of a trade or possible buyout, the Knicks should consider adding the big man to their ranks via trade, argues Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman notes that New York considered trading for Drummond last season before he was ultimately shipped to Cleveland by the Pistons.
The Raptors are recalling rookie point guard Malachi Flynn from their G League affiliate, Raptors 905, per Blake Murphy of The Athletic (via Twitter). Murphy adds that Flynn is available to play for the club tonight (Twitter link) in its current contest against the Bucks.

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