2023 February | Hoops Rumors

Thunder Waive Eugene Omoruyi

February 27th, 2023 at 8:53am CST by Arthur Hill

The Thunder opened a roster spot by waiving second-year forward Eugene Omoruyi, the team announced in a press release.

Omoruyi, 26, signed a two-way contract with Oklahoma City last summer and was converted to a standard deal earlier this month. His new contract ran through 2023/24, but the second season was non-guaranteed.

The Thunder wanted roster flexibility and the decision came down to Omoruyi or Dario Saric, tweets Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. The team opted to hold onto Saric, who was acquired from the Suns at the trade deadline.

Omoruyi appeared in 23 games for the Thunder, averaging 4.9 points and 2.3 rebounds in 11.8 minutes per night. He also spent part of the season with the team’s G League affiliate.

After going undrafted out of Oregon in 2021, Omoruyi broke into the NBA on a two-way contract with the Mavericks. He played four games for Dallas before being waived in December of that year.

Marc Lasry To Sell Stake In Bucks To Haslam Sports Group

February 27th, 2023 at 7:42am CST by Arthur Hill

Marc Lasry has reached an agreement to sell his stake in the Bucks to Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and his Haslam Sports Group, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. The sale agreement will value the Bucks at $3.5 billion.

Milwaukee’s $3.5 billion valuation is second only to the $4 billion purchase price that Mat Ishbia paid for the Suns, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link). He notes that it’s also the third-highest ever for a U.S. sports franchise, also trailing the price paid for the Denver Broncos last year.

Lasry owns about 25% of the Bucks and shares controlling owner responsibilities with Wes Edens. Since buying the franchise in 2014, they have served alternating five-year terms as the primary owner. Lasry has been in that role since 2019. His interest in selling was first reported in December, and he talked to Ishbia about buying the team before he purchased the Suns.

Haslam, 68, had considered buying a stake in hte Bucks for several months and had several meetings with the parties involved before a deal was reached, according to Charania. Sources tell Charania that Haslam will continue to seek sports-related business opportunities and may consider buying a professional team in another league.

The Bucks became one of the NBA’s best teams under Lasry and Edens, capturing the second championship in franchise history in 2021. The owners also opened the Fiserv Forum in 2018, which led to a thriving business area around it known as the Deer District.

Haslam and his wife Dee are the controlling owners of the Browns and the Columbus Crew of the MLS. He is the chairman of the Pilot Flying J truck stop chain.

Injury Notes: Green, Nance Jr., VanVleet, Dedmon, Gordon

February 26th, 2023 at 9:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors forward Draymond Green missed his second consecutive game on Sunday due to a right knee contusion, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Green suffered the injury on Thursday when he bumped knees with the Lakers’ Jarred Vanderbilt. Green’s knee unexpectedly flared up Sunday afternoon, something coach Steve Kerr categorized as a “setback.” He may undergo an MRI.

We have more injury-related news:

Pelicans forward Larry Nance Jr. will miss Monday’s game against Orlando due to a left ankle sprain, the team’s PR department tweets.
Raptors guard Fred VanVleet missed both of the team’s games this weekend for personal reasons, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet tweets. VanVleet is away from the club due to the birth of his third child.
Sixers head coach Doc Rivers said before Saturday’s contest that backup center Dewayne Dedmon is expected to miss a couple more games but doesn’t have a long-term injury, Kyle Neubeck of ThePhillyVoice.com tweets. Dedmon has yet to make his Philadelphia debut due to a hip issue.
Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon returned to the lineup on Sunday night after missing the previous five games due to a left rib contusion, Mike Singer of the Denver Post writes.

Eastern Notes: Hampton, Hart, Thomas, Brown

February 26th, 2023 at 9:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons were interested in R.J. Hampton leading up to the 2020 draft and even held an in-person interview with him, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press reports in a subscriber-only story.

Hampton, the 24th pick of that draft, wound up in a Pistons uniform this month after getting waived by Orlando. He played five scoreless minutes in his Detroit debut on Saturday but is glad to join GM Troy Weaver’s club.

“Troy’s a great dude,” the Pistons’ newcomer said. “Somebody that’s real, somebody that expects a lot from his players but also knows what it means to develop young guys. That’s something I look forward to, being in an organization that takes the time with players, takes the time to figure out the areas that they’re really good in and weaknesses and coming together and making it all fit. I think he’s great in that aspect and I’m excited about it.”

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Josh Hart admits he had some trepidation about being traded by Portland to the Knicks, wondering how he’d mesh with coach Tom Thibodeau. Hart has been pleasantly surprised, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News writes. “Coming here I didn’t exactly know how Thibs’ system was. But it worked out,” Hart said. He’s averaging 14.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists with his new team. Hart holds a $12.96MM option on his contract for next season, which he’s expected to turn down.
Cam Thomas scored 22 points off the bench for the Nets on Sunday in a loss to the Hawks. Thomas is averaging 26.1 points per game this month but coach Jacque Vaughn says he’ll continue to use Thomas as an instant offense reserve, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets.
The Knicks won’t have to deal with the Celtics’ second-leading scorer when the teams square off on Monday. Jaylen Brown is taking the night off for personal reasons, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets.

Southeast Notes: Butler, Lowry, Herro, Oubre Jr., Porzingis, Morris

February 26th, 2023 at 7:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat have lost four straight, including a five-point decision to the lottery-bound Hornets on Saturday, and Jimmy Butler is fed up, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. Butler said he was “tired of losing.”

The Heat recently added Kevin Love and Cody Zeller but that hasn’t turned their fortunes around in the short run. “I don’t think anybody in here wants to lose,” Butler said. “We’ve got to figure this out very, very quickly.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Kyle Lowry, who has been dealing with left knee soreness, has been upgraded to questionable for the Heat’s game against Philadelphia on Monday, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets. Tyler Herro is listed as questionable due to a rib contusion.
Forward Kelly Oubre Jr. is headed to unrestricted free agency this summer but it sounds as if he’d like to stay with the Hornets. Oubre said he still has a “lot to give” to the franchise, Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer tweets. I have a lot to give to this city, to this organization, to my teammates as far as my leadership and my life path,” he said.
Kristaps Porzingis missed the Wizards’ game on Sunday due to left knee soreness, while Monte Morris sat out with lower back soreness, the team’s PR department tweets.

Quin Snyder Named Hawks’ Head Coach

February 26th, 2023 at 6:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

6:48pm: The Hawks have officially named Snyder as their head coach, according to a team press release.

“From our first conversation, it was clear that Quin had all the characteristics we were looking for in our next head coach. He has both an incredible basketball and emotional IQ, and we share the same core values and basketball philosophies of having honest communication and collaboration with players, tremendous attention to detail and placing a great emphasis on player development,” Fields said in a statement.

Snyder is a former Hawks assistant coach.

“I am thrilled to go back to Atlanta as the next head coach of the Hawks,” he said. “Landry has a tremendous reputation as an incredibly bright, high character, high quality individual and it was quickly evident that we share a passion and commitment to building a winning team with a strong foundation and high standards. I am excited to collaborate with Landry to create a successful program that devoted Hawks fans are proud of and cheer for and am grateful to Tony, Jami and the Ressler family for this opportunity. My family and I are looking forward to immersing ourselves in the community and calling Atlanta home.”

6:07pm: Former Jazz coach Quin Snyder has agreed to become the Hawks’ head coach, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports.

Atlanta will give Snyder a five-year contract and he could be coaching as soon as Tuesday, when the Hawks face Washington.

Snyder replaces Nate McMillan, who was dismissed by the franchise on Tuesday. At the time, the Hawks were expected to conduct a wide-ranging search but they quickly focused on Snyder.

Snyder was Utah’s head coach from 2014-22 and compiled a 372-264 (.585) record during the regular season. However, the Jazz were unable to get over the hump in the postseason. They were 21-30 in the playoffs over the last six seasons, never getting past the Western Conference semifinals.

Assistant Joe Prunty served as the interim coach since McMillan was let go, including in a 129-127 win over Brooklyn on Sunday.

The Hawks chose to hire a permanent coach before the end of the season because they hope to make a deep run in the Eastern Conference playoffs. They also wanted to give Snyder a chance to start implementing his program while evaluating the roster in order to facilitate their offseason approach.

Snyder will have a significant say in player personnel matters, according to Woj. Snyder has been in talks with general manager Landry Fields, assistant GM Kyle Korver and owner Tony Ressler on a number of philosophical, team building and staff budgetary issues, Woj adds.

McMillan was named the club’s interim coach in March 2021 in place of Lloyd Pierce. Atlanta made a surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals, prompting the Hawks to remove the interim tag and give him a four-year contract in July 2021.

The Hawks finished the regular season at 43-39 and lost in the first round of the playoffs last spring and were 29-30 when they fired him. Atlanta won both of its games under Prunty.

Pacific Notes: Baldwin, Thompson, Russell, Okpala

February 26th, 2023 at 5:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors rookie forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. is getting some playing time and coach Steve Kerr sees a bright future for the first round pick, C.J. Holmes of the San Francisco Chronicle writes.

“When I watch Patrick I see a future rotation player,” the Warriors coach said. “He fits. You can see it. He makes shots from the perimeter with ease. He shoots it from such a level of extension that you can barely challenge the shot.”

Baldwin contributed 11 points in 10 minutes for the Warriors against the Lakers on Thursday and 11 more points in 16 minutes against Houston on Friday.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

Klay Thompson has four rings and a contract that runs through next season. The Warriors shooting guard says he’s still hungry at this stage of his career, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Thompson became the first player in NBA history to make 12 three-pointers in multiple games in a season while scoring 42 points against Houston. “I did something that no one else has ever done before,” Thompson said. “I looked at (Stephen Curry) immediately when I did it because, I mean, that man’s got all the records, so it’s fun to push the game forward with him. I’m still so hungry to be great. I’ll never be satisfied.”
Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell went through pregame warmups but was ultimately ruled out of the team’s game against Dallas, according to Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register (Twitter links). Acquired from Minnesota at the trade deadline, Russell suffered a sprained right ankle against Golden State on Thursday.
The Kings still believe KZ Okpala can be a defensive factor in his NBA career, but chose to waive him after determining that he needed knee surgery, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee reports in a subscriber-only story. Okpala, who appeared in 35 games after signing as a free agent, has been sidelined with bilateral knee soreness and is now expected to undergo season-ending surgery. The team consulted with multiple medical professionals to evaluate Okpala’s injury, Anderson adds.

Northwest Notes: Gordon, Jackson, Dunn, Timberwolves

February 26th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Rory Maher

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone told reporters, including Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link), that there’s no firm timeline for Aaron Gordon to return from his rib injury.

Based on Malone’s wording, the team is taking Gordon’s injury one day at a time, but he was ruled out for the sixth consecutive game on Sunday, tweets Singer. Reserve big man Zeke Nnaji was also listed as out with a shoulder injury.

Gordon is having a career year for the Nuggets, averaging 17.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 2.9 APG on .587/.397/.623 shooting through 49 games (30.3 MPG). Denver has a five-game lead on Memphis for the No. 1 seed in the West, so the team will likely be cautious with Gordon in an effort to get him back to full strength for the playoffs.

Here’s more from the Northwest:

The Nuggets signed guard Reggie Jackson after he was bought out by the Hornets. Typically players acquired on the buyout market don’t have much of an impact on their new teams, but Jackson could be critical for a Nuggets team whose bench unit has struggled all season long, Singer writes for The Denver Post (subscriber link). “You just want to play well,” Jackson said. “They brought me here for a reason. Part of me is like, ‘I don’t want to mess it up. Let’s keep it rolling.’”
Kris Dunn is making an immediate impact for the Jazz after they signed him to a 10-day contract, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (subscriber link). After notching 11 points, one rebound, one assist and two steals in 16 minutes in his Jazz debut versus Oklahoma City, Dunn followed that up with 15 points, eight assists, seven boards, one steal and one block in 23 minutes versus San Antonio. Utah was victorious in both efforts, with Larsen saying the veteran guard was arguably the team’s second-best player against the Spurs on Saturday.
In the Timberwolves‘ latest injury report (Twitter link), three key rotation players are questionable for tonight’s game in Golden State. Center Rudy Gobert is sick, guard Jaylen Nowell has left knee tendinopathy, and forward Taurean Prince is dealing with a personal matter.

Hornets Sign Bryce McGowens To Four-Year Contract

February 26th, 2023 at 3:09pm CST by Rory Maher

3:09pm: McCowens’ new contract is official, the Hornets announced in a press release.

1:29pm: Bryce McGowens is receiving a promotion from the Hornets, as they plan to convert his two-way contract to a four-year, $7.4MM standard deal, his agents, Mark Bartelstein and Kyle McAlarney of Priority Sports, tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The fourth year of the deal, which would be for the 2025/26 season, is a team option, Wojnarowski adds.

McGowens was the 40th overall pick of last June’s draft after spending one college season at Nebraska. In 26 games (14.7 MPG) as a two-way rookie for Charlotte, he has averaged 4.1 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.0 APG on .379/.364/.786 shooting.

The Hornets still have their full mid-level exception available, and they’ll be using a portion of it to give the 20-year-old a four-year deal for more than the minimum in year one.

Charlotte has two openings on its 15-man roster at the moment, so the team won’t need to waive anyone to promote McGowens. Today was the deadline for the Hornets to fill the 14th spot on their standard roster, as we previously explained.

Once the signing is official, the Hornets will have one standard roster spot open as well as a two-way slot.

Hawks Notes: Collins, Young, McMillan, Timing

February 26th, 2023 at 2:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Hawks forward John Collins has cleared the NBA’s concussion protocol, but he’s still being affected by another injury. The 25-year-old is dealing with lower back tightness and was initially listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. Brooklyn, according to Hawks reporter Brad Rowland (Twitter links).

However, Collins went through warm-ups unscathed and is available this afternoon, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post.

Through 50 games (31.1 MPG) in 2022/23, Collins is averaging 13.2 PPG, 7.1 RPG and 1.2 BPG on .506/.248/.813 shooting splits. Trade deadline acquisition Saddiq Bey, who started in Collins’ place during Friday’s victory over Cleveland, was moved back to a reserve role.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

Trae Young spoke to the media for the first time on Friday following former coach Nate McMillan‘s dismissal. While their relationship may not have been perfect, Young says he was surprised by the timing of the move and has “nothing but love and respect” for McMillan, as Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays. “I was waking up from a nap and heard about it,” Young said. “And it was surprising to me. I mean, the timing and stuff, right now. But obviously, I know what this league is and Nate knows. We’ve talked since then and had a conversation and stuff like that. So, I got nothing but love and respect for Nate and the type of person he is, and things like that. So it’s not the last time me and him are going to talk. I mean I talk to all my coaches that I’ve played for. So, that’s what I was expressing to him, and I appreciated him for, I mean, being a part of that run that took us in this franchise further than it’s been. So, he should get a lot of love for that alone (and) for what he’s done for us and his team and this organization. So I got nothing but love for him, and it’s a tough situation. But, it’s part of this league, and I got nothing but love for him.”
There had been rumblings about the Hawks moving on from McMillan in the offseason and a report that he had considered resigning himself, so the news wasn’t totally unexpected. Still, as Young alluded to, the timing of the firing seemed to catch many within the organization off guard, ESPN’s Zach Lowe recently said on his Lowe Post podcast (hat tip to RealGM). “I think a lot of people within that team, players, coaches, staff were blindsided by 23 games to go at the end of the All-Star break,” Lowe said. “‘… We’re pulling the trigger now on this?’“
In case you missed it, the Hawks have reportedly offered their head coaching job to former Jazz coach Quin Snyder, and the two sides are said to be nearing a deal.

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