2021 March | Hoops Rumors

Jeff Weltman Discusses Magic’s Deadline-Day Trades

March 26th, 2021 at 12:21pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking today to reporters following an eventful trade deadline, Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman said that he believed the team could be a top-four seed in the East entering the season.

That may sound bullish, but considering the 22-21 Hornets currently rank fourth in the conference, it certainly wouldn’t have been out of the question. However, after a 6-2 start, injuries decimated Orlando’s roster, ultimately forcing a change of direction (Twitter link via Keith Smith of RealGM).

As Weltman explained today, the Magic still considered trying to make win-now moves to improve this year’s roster, but when they realized that there would be more buyers than sellers, that helped guide their direction (Twitter links via Smith). The club also had to come to terms with the fact that it didn’t have a championship-level roster and had no clear path to get there with the existing core, Smith tweets.

Orlando ended up moving Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier, and Aaron Gordon in three separate deals on Thursday. Without those veterans on the roster, the 15-29 Magic, who already have the fourth-worst record in the NBA, are in position to nab a high pick in the 2021 NBA draft, which Weltman acknowledged.

“You win with stars in this league. We’re in position to add talent through the draft” he said, per Smith (Twitter link). “We’re not focusing on that too much because it’s not something we have full control over. But we’re in a good position for this year’s draft.”

Here’s more from Weltman on the Magic:

According to Weltman, the Nuggets were initially hesitant to include R.J. Hampton in their offer for Gordon, but those talks gained traction once Denver relented (Twitter link via Roy Parry of The Orlando Sentinel). “I can’t tell you how excited we are about him,” Weltman said, adding that he believes Hampton can play alongside Markelle Fultz and Cole Anthony (Twitter link via Smith).
Asked if he felt the Magic got a strong enough return for Vucevic, Weltman replied, “Obviously we thought we got enough, because we did the deal.” He also pointed out that the Magic were on the receiving end of the only three first-round picks that changed hands on Thursday, and said the team has received “glowing reports” on Wendell Carter (Twitter links via Smith).
Although the Magic valued Fournier’s Bird rights, they felt as if it didn’t make sense to trade Vucevic and Gordon while hanging onto Fournier, and decided to take the best offer available, per Weltman (Twitter link via Smith).

Wolves Notes: Trade Deadline, Gordon, McDaniels, Collins, Power Forward

March 26th, 2021 at 12:03pm CST by JD Shaw

The Timberwolves allowed the trade deadline to pass without making a move, opting not to make a trade just for the sake of doing so, president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas said.

Minnesota was most heavily linked to forward Aaron Gordon, who was moved from Orlando to Denver on deadline day. The team has struggled with injuries and currently holds the league’s worst record at 10-34.

“You don’t make a trade for the sake of making a trade,” Rosas explained, as relayed by Chris Hine of the Star Tribune. “We haven’t seen this group together enough starting with our best two players and everybody else. That played a big part in it. We want to see what we have in order to make the best-educated decisions we can make.”

As a whole, an astounding 23 teams were involved in trades on deadline day this year, though Minnesota naturally wasn’t one of them.

Here are some other notes from Minnesota today:

A significant hurdle in the Wolves’ talks to acquire Gordon was the availability of rookie Jaden McDaniels, Hine writes. Minnesota and Orlando held discussions for multiple weeks, but Orlando reportedly wanted McDaniels in a potential agreement. Rosas and his team ultimately balked at the idea of parting ways with the 20-year-old.
Don’t expect the Wolves to stop monitoring Hawks big man John Collins in the coming months, Hine contends. Collins will be a restricted free agent this summer and received interest from Minnesota until the deadline passed. The 23-year-old has averaged 18.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 30.6 minutes per game this season.
The power forward position remains an area of concern for the franchise, Hine relays. What remains to be seen, however, is whether the solution will come internally or externally. “The one thing we don’t want to do is plug a long-term hole with a short-term solution that’s not going to be there when we need it,” Rosas said. “So we’ll continue investing in and developing our young players to see if the answer is there. Jaden gives us a lot of excitement and a lot of optionality there, but it’s a need.”
A source tells Hine that the Timberwolves could have made trades involving Ed Davis and Ricky Rubio, but opted against it.

Lakers Notes: Drummond, Schröder, Davis, Gasol

March 26th, 2021 at 11:14am CST by Luke Adams

After a quiet trade deadline, the Lakers will shift their focus to the buyout market, according to Mark Medina of USA Today, who takes a closer look at the team’s pursuit of big men such as Andre Drummond and LaMarcus Aldridge.

While a Thursday night report from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports confirmed that the Lakers will get an opportunity to talk to both players, Aldridge is believed to be leaning toward the Heat, according to multiple reports. If so, the Lakers figure to zero in on Drummond, and executives around the league believe L.A. is the frontrunner to land the big man after he finalizes a buyout with Cleveland.

Appearing on ESPN’s Keyshawn, JWill & Zubin Show on Friday morning (video link), ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that a number of Lakers players have already been making an effort to recruit Drummond, who could potentially slide right into a starting role in Los Angeles.

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Lakers guard Dennis Schröder strongly hinted that he plans to reach free agency rather than signing an in-season extension, telling reporters on Thursday that while he wants to stick with the Lakers, he also wants to “see my options” (Twitter link via Bill Oram of The Athletic). A Thursday report stated that the Lakers and Schröder remain far apart in extension negotiations.
While he didn’t specifically confirm Shams Charania’s Thursday report that said Anthony Davis (calf) will miss at least two more weeks, head coach Frank Vogel said last night that Davis is “still a ways away,” tweets Medina.
Upon returning to the Lakers this week, Marc Gasol detailed his recent bout with COVID-19, admitting that the virus seriously affected him, as Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register writes. “I had a little bit of headaches, but I’m like, ‘Well, hopefully I’m going to be pretty much asymptomatic,'” Gasol said. “And then when it hits you, it hits you really hard, at least for me.”
The Lakers allowed fans into Staples Center for the first time on Thursday night, albeit on a small scale. The team received permission from local health officials to have 50 fans in the arena, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Kupchak: Hornets Not Yet Ruling LaMelo Ball Out For Season

March 26th, 2021 at 10:44am CST by Luke Adams

After suffering a broken wrist last week, Hornets guard LaMelo Ball underwent surgery to repair the fracture. Initial reports suggested Ball was expected to miss the rest of the season, but the team’s press release following the surgery didn’t close the door on the possibility of a return, indicating that the standout rookie would be reevaluated in four weeks.

Addressing Ball’s injury publicly for the first time today, Hornets president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak acknowledged that the team isn’t ruling out the 19-year-old for the rest of 2020/21, as Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes.

“We don’t know if LaMelo is out for the season or not,” Kupchak said during a conference call. “There is a possibility (of Ball playing again), just based on other players who have had this injury, that maybe he does come back for some portion of the year.”

As I noted at the time of Ball’s surgery, the idea of getting him back for the end of the season, including possibly for a play-in tournament appearance or a postseason series, is a tantalizing one. The 22-21 Hornets are currently the No. 4 seed in the East, so it’s safe to assume they’ll be in the hunt for a playoff berth all the way down to the wire, if they haven’t clinched a spot by the end of the regular season.

Still, I also cautioned that the Hornets won’t be in any rush to get their potential franchise player back on the court unless they’re absolutely confident that he’s 100% healthy. Kupchak confirmed that point in his conversation with the media today.

“The one thing we know we’re not going to do in any event is put his health in jeopardy,” Kupchak said, per Bonnell. “If we get to the end of the (regular season), and we’re in a playoff hunt, and he’s not quite ready — (where) we feel we could get him back on the court and push it — we won’t do that.”

Assuming Charlotte sticks its timeline of a four-week reevaluation, we should get a formal update from the team on Ball’s status on or around April 20.

Jazz Acquire Matt Thomas From Raptors

March 26th, 2021 at 10:06am CST by Dana Gauruder

MARCH 26: The trade is official, according to a press release from the Raptors.

MARCH 25: The Raptors are trading guard Matt Thomas to the Jazz for a future second-round pick, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. The pick will be the Warriors’ 2021 second-rounder that was owed to Utah, Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets.

Thomas provides the Jazz with another shooter off the bench. Thomas, 26, made his NBA debut last season, appearing in 41 games and averaging 4.9 PPG in 10.7 MPG. He’s appeared in 26 games this season, averaging 2.7 PPG in 7.4 MPG. However, the 6’4” Thomas has knocked down 45.7% of his 3-point attempts over the last two seasons.

Thomas is making approximately $1.52MM. The Jazz will have to decide by the start of free agency whether to guarantee his $1.78MM salary next season.

Utah will use a $3,542,060 traded player exception to absorb Thomas’ salary, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets. The Jazz had an open roster spot.

Toronto will generate a $1.5MM TPE through this transaction. The Raptors also open up a roster spot, which they may need if they deal Kyle Lowry by the trade deadline.

Southwest Notes: Ball, Thornwell, Rockets, Spurs

March 26th, 2021 at 10:02am CST by Luke Adams

As of Wednesday, Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball seemed more likely than not to be traded this week. But Thursday’s deadline came and went without a Ball deal, and the former No. 2 overall pick is now on track to reach restricted free agency with New Orleans later this year.

In the view of Will Guillory of The Athletic, the Pelicans made the right move by hanging onto Ball, who has noticeably improved since joining the team two years ago and complements New Orleans’ star forwards (Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram) well. Guillory suggests there were “legitimate” offers on the table, with the Hawks, Knicks, and and Bulls among the teams in the mix, but the Pels ultimately opted to take their chances with the point guard in restricted free agency.

Ball’s free agency will provide its own set of challenges, particularly since the Pelicans also want to retain RFA-to-be Josh Hart and may have to move off Steven Adams‘ or Eric Bledsoe‘s contract to re-sign both Ball and Hart and avoid the tax. An aggressive offer sheet for Ball from a rival suitor could also force New Orleans into a tough decision. But Guillory believes there would be a trade market for Ball down the road even if his next contract is worth a little more than the Pelicans would like.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

After signing Sindarius Thornwell to a pair of 10-day contracts, the Pelicans had been considering a rest-of-season deal for the veteran guard. If that happens though, it’ll have to be a little later this spring. As Andrew Lopez of ESPN notes (via Twitter), New Orleans moved so close to the tax line following its deadline-day trade that a rest-of-season signing at this point would push team salary over that threshold.
Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle explains the thinking behind the Rockets‘ decision to trade Victor Oladipo to Miami for a relatively modest return. As Feigen details, Oladipo’s days in Houston were likely numbered if the Rockets had hung onto him through the deadline, and the team wanted to open up more minutes for Kevin Porter alongside John Wall, so the front office opted to take the best offer available for Oladipo on Thursday.
With several veterans on expiring contracts, the Spurs were in position to shake up their roster at the trade deadline. However, as is typically the case in San Antonio during the season, the team opted to stand relatively pat instead, making just one small financially motivated move, acquiring Marquese Chriss and cash from Golden State. Noting that the Chriss trade was the Spurs’ first deadline deal since 2014, Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News examines the club’s decision to once again remain quiet at the deadline.

Cavs, Nuggets Finalize JaVale McGee Trade

March 26th, 2021 at 9:13am CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 26: The trade is official, the Cavaliers announced in a press release.

MARCH 25: The Cavaliers are finalizing a trade that will send veteran center JaVale McGee to the Nuggets, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Cleveland will acquire big man Isaiah Hartenstein and a pair of second-round picks in the deal, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Mike Singer of The Denver Post first reported that the two teams were discussing Hartenstein.

According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link), the picks headed to the Cavs are a top-46 protected 2023 second-rounder and an unprotected 2027 second-rounder.

The move represents a reunion for McGee, who was previously traded to the Nuggets at the 2012 trade deadline and spent the next three years with the franchise. The 33-year-old has played for Philadelphia, Dallas, Golden State, the Lakers, and Cleveland since then, averaging 8.0 PPG and 5.2 RPG in 33 games (15.2 MPG) this season for the Cavs.

In his return to Denver, McGee figures to slide into the backup center role behind Nikola Jokic. Hartenstein was penciled into that role at the start of the season, but had a somewhat underwhelming year, with 3.5 PPG and 2.8 RPG in 30 games (9.1 MPG). JaMychal Green, Zeke Nnaji, and Bol Bol have also seen some occasional minutes at the five, but McGee should be a more reliable veteran option for the Nuggets’ second unit.

As Singer observes (via Twitter), the Cavs were one of the teams with interest in Hartenstein before he signed with Denver last fall, so the 22-year-old should take on a bigger role in Cleveland. However, the second-rounders the Cavs are acquiring in the swap are probably a bigger factor in the team’s willingness to make the deal.

Although Hartenstein’s minimum-salary contract isn’t big enough to match McGee’s $4.2MM expiring deal, the Nuggets will be able to absorb that money using a trade exception created in last November’s Jerami Grant sign-and-trade and will still have about $5.33MM left on that exception, which expires in the offseason. The Cavs will create a $4.2MM traded player exception in the deal, while the Nuggets will generate a new $1.62MM TPE.

McGee will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. Hartenstein has a minimum-salary player option for 2021/22.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pelicans Trade Redick, Melli To Mavs; Lonzo Ball Stays Put

March 26th, 2021 at 9:03am CST by Luke Adams

MARCH 26: The trade is now official, according to announcement from thes Mavericks (Twitter link) and Pelicans.

MARCH 25: The Pelicans won’t be trading point guard Lonzo Ball at today’s deadline, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). However, New Orleans has agreed to a deal that will send J.J. Redick to the Mavericks, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Pelicans will receive James Johnson, Wesley Iwundu, and a 2021 second-round pick in exchange for Redick and Nicolo Melli, a source tells Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter links). New Orleans also received cash from the Mavericks in the deal, tweets Marc Stein of The New York Times.

Charania initially reported that the Redick deal would be a three-team trade that also sent Trey Lyles from the Spurs to Dallas, but has since clarified that it will just be a direct trade between the Pelicans and Mavs.

Redick, who was averaging 8.7 PPG in 31 appearances off the bench, had expressed a desire to be dealt to a team in the Northeast, where his family resides. He’ll have to wait until the offseason to make that happen but he’ll provide the Mavericks with another 3-point threat off the bench. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent.

Melli reportedly wanted out after seeing his playing time decline in his second NBA season. He’s only appeared in 22 games this season. He can be a restricted free agent if Dallas decides to extend a $4.87MM qualifying offer. The Mavs will keep Melli at least through the end of this season, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets.

Johnson has an expiring $16MM contract. He’s averaging 5.7 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 29 games this season and gives the Pelicans another frontcourt option. Iwundu has seen action in 23 games this season but has only averaged 2.1 PPG in 12.5 MPG during those outings. He has another year left on his contract but his 2021/22 salary is just $1.82MM.

As for Ball, the Bulls, Knicks, Clippers, Nuggets and Sixers had all been linked to the former No. 2 pick to varying degrees in recent weeks, but New Orleans didn’t find a package attractive enough to deal its current floor leader.

The Pelicans will have to decide after the season whether to extend Ball a $14.36MM qualifying offer and make him a restricted free agent, or let him enter the market unrestricted. Assuming they extend that QO, as is expected, they’ll then have to weigh how aggressive they’re willing to be when it comes to a long-term contract offer.

Ball is averaging 14.2 PPG and 5.6 APG for the Pelicans, who are a disappointing five games below .500.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.

Celtics Notes: Kornet, Smart, Fournier, R. Williams, More

March 26th, 2021 at 8:51am CST by Luke Adams

After completing a three-team trade with Chicago and Washington that sent Moritz Wagner and Luke Kornet to Boston, the Celtics are expected to waive a player to pursue a veteran big man on the buyout market, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic, who says Kornet would likely be the odd man out.

However, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link) hears that there are no immediate plans to drop Kornet. As Himmelsbach explains, since Daniel Theis is now a Bull and Tristan Thompson remains sidelined due to the NBA’s health and safety protocols, the Celtics may need some extra depth at the five in the short term.

Himmelsbach’s report makes sense — whether Kornet remains on the roster for another day, another week, or the rest of the season, the Celtics will owe him the same amount of money, so the logical move would be to hang onto him until the team lines up a deal with a free agent center.

Of course, there’s no guarantee anything will materialize on the buyout market, but the Celtics intend to weigh all the options, as Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said today (Twitter link via Keith Smith of RealGM).

Here’s more on the Celtics:

Within his Athletic story linked above, Weiss suggests that Thursday’s series of moves provide further evidence that Celtics ownership is reluctant to green-light a “long-term deep dive” into luxury tax territory.
Ainge assured Marcus Smart that the team wasn’t shopping him and that his name only came up in trade rumors prior to the deadline because he was being brought up by teams interested in him, a source tells Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald (Twitter link). Smart was rumored to be part of the club’s trade talks with Orlando, but ultimately stayed put.
Having previously stated that he preferred not to use the Celtics’ massive trade exception on a player with an expiring contract, Ainge explained on Friday to reporters that he felt comfortable committing a significant chunk of that TPE toward Evan Fournier because he’s hopeful the veteran wing will remain in Boston beyond this season (Twitter links via Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston). Ainge also said part of the reason he wanted to land an impact scorer like Fournier was that he sensed internal discouragement and wanted the players and coaches to “feel hope” (Twitter link via Forsberg).
The trade of Theis will free up a bigger role for Robert Williams going forward, according to Ainge, who said the third-year big man has been the club’s best defensive center this season (Twitter links via Smith).
Ainge said that Wagner and Kornet could join the Celtics as soon as today, while Fournier could report to the team in Oklahoma City this weekend. Additionally, the hope is that Thompson and Romeo Langford will be available at some point next week (Twitter links via Forsberg).

Pacific Notes: Oubre, Warriors, Clippers, Zubac, Kings

March 26th, 2021 at 8:02am CST by Luke Adams

The subject of a few trade rumors leading up to the deadline, Warriors forward Kelly Oubre ended up staying put. Oubre – a free agent at season’s end – said on Thursday that he’d “love” to remain with Golden State beyond this season, though he didn’t sound particularly enthusiastic about the idea of moving to the bench to accommodate Klay Thompson‘s return, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN.

“I can’t speak for the future, brother,” Oubre said. “You keep asking me questions like I’m a psychic. But at the end of the day, I’m growing, I’m honing in on my skills in this league and I can offer a lot more than coming off the bench, so at the end of the day, this is my life. I can’t tell the future. Only God can.”

As Friedell observes, the Warriors have the NBA’s most expensive roster this season and there’s no real relief coming next year, especially if the team re-signs Oubre to a deal that matches or exceeds his current $14.38MM salary.

According to Friedell, when asked if he’d accept a below-market deal this offseason to remain in Golden State, Oubre simply replied, “Next question.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Head coach Steve Kerr said last night that about 12 Warriors players and coaches received their COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, tweets Friedell.
The Clippers‘ hope that Rajon Rondo will become ‘Playoff Rondo’ this spring was the motivating factor behind their decision to send Lou Williams and two second-round picks to Atlanta for the veteran point guard, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. As Greif notes, Rondo has a long-standing relationship with head coach Tyronn Lue, who began his coaching career as an assistant in Boston in 2011, when Rondo was an All-Star for the Celtics. That relationship – and the trust Lue has in Rondo – was a factor in the Clippers’ decision to make the trade.
Within the same story, Greif says the Clippers received calls from multiple teams about center Ivica Zubac, but didn’t seriously consider moving him, as they believe he’s a key part of the roster going forward.
James Ham of NBC Sports California broke down the Kings‘ deadline acquisitions after the team completed three separate trades.

Month: November 2024