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Month: November 2024

Hawks’ Dejounte Murray Suspended For Game 5 On Tuesday

April 24th, 2023 at 4:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The league has suspended Hawks guard Dejounte Murray one game without pay for making inappropriate contact with a game official, the league’s communications department tweets. He will serve his suspension in Game 5 on Tuesday.

Murray also verbally abused the official at the conclusion of the Hawks’ 129-121 loss to the Celtics in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series on Sunday.

It’s possible Murray will miss the final game of Atlanta’s season, as the Hawks trailing 3-1 in the series and facing elimination as they head back to Boston.

Murray will lose $93,622 for the suspension, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Bogdan Bogdanovic, AJ Griffin and Saddiq Bey could all see more action in his absence.

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Dayton’s DaRon Holmes II Among Final Draft Early Entrants

April 24th, 2023 at 4:28pm CST by Rory Maher

Dayton forward DaRon Holmes II was among the players who declared for the 2023 NBA draft ahead of Sunday’s deadline, a source tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link). It’s unclear if Holmes will be maintaining his remaining college eligibility or going pro outright.

In 34 games as a sophomore in 2022/23, Holmes averaged 18.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.9 blocks for the Flyers. He is currently ranked No. 65 on ESPN’s big board, making him perhaps a borderline second-round pick.

Senegalese center Ousmane N’Diaye, who plays for a third division Spanish team (Grupo Eleyco Baskonia), and Spanish small forward Michael Caicedo, who plays for Covirán Granada of Spain’s top league (Liga ACB), have also entered the draft (Twitter links courtesy of Sigma Sports and Global Scouting). N’Diaye is ranked No. 59 on ESPN’s list, while Caicedo is No. 86.

Another possible second-rounder, Spanish point guard Juan Nunez, decided not to declare for the draft, according to Givony (Twitter link). The 18-year-old, who is ranked No. 60 on ESPN’s board, plays for German club Ratiopharm Ulm and is considered a talented passer. He could improve his stock and possibly be a first-round pick next year, Givony adds.

Here are a few more players who entered the draft before yesterday’s deadline:

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De’Aaron Fox Doubtful For Game 5 After Fracturing Finger

April 24th, 2023 at 2:55pm CST by Rory Maher

Kings point guard De’Aaron Fox has sustained a fractured index finger on his left hand, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports that Fox is expected to officially be listed as doubtful for Tuesday’s Game 5 against Golden State (Twitter link).

The injury is believed to have occurred in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s Game 4, Charania adds (via Twitter). Anthony Slater of The Athletic provides a video (Twitter link) of the play, where Fox’s finger appears to be unintentionally clipped by Kevon Looney when Fox casually shot a layup after a foul had already been called on Jordan Poole.

Although Fox will be listed as doubtful, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN hears the Kings are hopeful their All-Star guard will be able to play through the injury Tuesday (Twitter link). Fox apparently broke the tip of his finger and will need to wear a protective covering if he suits up, according to Wojnarowski.

The Kings finally snapped their record-long playoff streak and got off to a 2-0 start against the defending champions, only for the Warriors to respond with two straight wins at home to even the series at two games apiece. Fox was Sacramento’s leading scorer during the regular season and is averaging 31.5 points, 6 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 2.5 steals on .447/.342/.700 shooting in his first four playoff games (38.5 MPG).

Unfortunately, Fox is far from the first player to be injured this postseason. He joins Giannis Antetokounmpo, Tyler Herro, Ja Morant, Kawhi Leonard, Joel Embiid and Victor Oladipo, among others, as players who have suffered injuries of varying severity.

If the 25-year-old is unable to suit up for the pivotal Game 5, fellow guards Davion Mitchell, Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk are candidates for more playing time. Reserve guard Terence Davis could see some action as well after playing just 13 combined minutes in his two appearances in the series.

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Grizzlies Notes: Brooks, Free Agency, Tillman

April 24th, 2023 at 1:44pm CST by Rory Maher

Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks is playing on an expiring $11.4MM contract in 2022/23, making him an unrestricted free agent this summer if he doesn’t sign an extension. Will Memphis bring him back for ’23/24?

ESPN’s Tim MacMahon noted on the Hoop Collective podcast that the Grizzlies have already tried to upgrade from Brooks, having made unsuccessful trade deadline pitches to Brooklyn for Mikal Bridges and Toronto for OG Anunoby. MacMahon suggested Memphis might call the Nets about Dorian Finney-Smith if the team chooses not to re-sign Brooks (hat tip to RealGM).

“I don’t know if Dillon Brooks is on this team after this (Lakers) series,” MacMahon said. “We’ll see if the Grizzlies can come back and win it. I certainly don’t know if he’s on this team after free agency this summer, but the problem is if he’s not, who’s guarding all the best players? All the stars on the other teams?”

“If they’re letting Dillon Brooks go, they absolutely have to get a really, really, really good defensive wing player. They can let him go in free agency, they just have to figure out how to replace him. Trust me, they’ve put a lot of thought into that.”

Here’s more on the Grizzlies:

  • Damichael Cole and Mark Giannotto of The Memphis Commercial Appeal believe it’s looking unlikely that the Grizzlies will re-sign Brooks unless he turns things around in a major way for the rest of the playoffs. Although he is a very good defensive player, Brooks’ shooting has been a liability against the Lakers — through three games (23.5 MPG), he’s posting just a .325/.250/.600 shooting line while averaging more shots (13.3) than points (11.3).
  • Brooks was ejected in the third quarter of Game 3 after hitting LeBron James in the groin while going for a steal, but he won’t be suspended for Monday’s Game 4, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).
  • Brooks, 27, believes being labeled as a “villain” is why he received a flagrant foul 2 for the incident, according to MacMahon of ESPN. “The media making me a villain, the fans making me a villain and then that just creates a whole different persona on me,” Brooks said. “So now you think I intended to hit LeBron James in the nuts. I’m playing basketball. I’m a basketball player. So if I intended — and that’s whatever is in the flagrant 2 category — if you think I did that, that means you think I’m that type of person.”
  • One of the primary reasons the Grizzlies were able to win Game 2 is third-year big man Xavier Tillman (22 points on 10-of-13 shooting, 13 rebounds) outplayed Lakers star Anthony Davis (13 points on 4-of-14 shooting, nine rebounds, five blocks). Tillman’s journey this season has been an eventful one, as Cole writes for The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Tillman played in summer league and then spent time with the Grizzlies’ G League affiliate to open the year. However, injuries to Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke have opened up minutes in the middle, and Tillman has taken advantage of his opportunity, Cole notes. “I think it’s a true sign of a winner,” Jenkins said. “It’s a true sign of a pro, and that’s why we love (Tillman), a guy who always stays ready. He wants to impact winning in whatever his role is going to be.” The Grizzlies hold a $1.93MM team option for ’23/24 on Tillman, who will be extension-eligible this offseason.
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Charles Lee, Kevin Ollie, Jarron Collins To Get Second Interviews With Pistons

April 24th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons are moving on to the second round of interviews in their search for a new head coach, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Bucks associate head coach Charles Lee, former Connecticut and Overtime Elite coach Kevin Ollie and Pelicans assistant Jarron Collins will all meet with team officials again this week, sources tell Wojnarowski.

All three were recently identified as early frontrunners in the process by James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Marc Stein previously stated that Lee and Ollie were considered favorites of general manager Troy Weaver, while Edwards said Collins had a “stellar” first interview with the organization.

The Pistons have been without a coach since Dwane Casey announced after the end of the regular season that he will transition into a front office role.

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Heat Notes: Oladipo, Roster, Highsmith, D. Robinson

April 24th, 2023 at 11:06am CST by Arthur Hill

Heat guard Victor Oladipo expects to have surgery later this week on his torn left patellar tendon, sources tell Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Although this will be Oladipo’s third major surgical procedure in roughly four years, doctors believe he’ll be able to make a full recovery and he plans to continue his basketball career, Chiang adds.

Oladipo will travel to New York to have the operation performed by Dr. Jonathan Glashow, who handled the second surgery on the quadriceps tendon in Oladipo’s right knee two years ago. Glashow anticipates a six-month recovery process, according to Chiang, although an official timeline won’t be established until the operation is complete. If all goes well with Oladipo’s rehab, he could return to action early in the 2023/24 season.

Chiang notes that Oladipo wasn’t in Miami’s rotation at the end of the season, but coach Erik Spoelstra turned to him after Tyler Herro broke his hand in Game 1 of the playoffs. Oladipo played 26 minutes in Game 2, scoring 15 points, and had eight points in 19 minutes before getting hurt Saturday.

“This year and last year, he worked his way back to be healthy and back in it,” Spoelstra said. “But all those times where he was just rehabbing and not available to play, those can be very frustrating times. But you’d never see that on his face, he was always with a positive attitude and a smile.”

There’s more from Miami:

  • The injuries to Oladipo and Herro, along with the back spasms that have sidelined Nikola Jovic, leave the Heat with just 12 available players, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. NBA rules prevent teams from adding replacements in the postseason as long as they have at least nine players who are capable of taking the court. “The next guy’s going to have to step up,” said Kyle Lowry, who has been listed as questionable for each game in the series due to an ongoing struggle with knee soreness. “And we understand that we’ll get more minutes from Gabe (Vincent) and more minutes from myself, Caleb (Martin).”
  • Haywood Highsmith could be part of the rotation if Spoelstra wants to use more than eight players, Winderman notes in a separate piece. With Udonis Haslem not a realistic option, Winderman states that Spoelstra’s only choices are Highsmith, Cody Zeller and Omer Yurtseven.
  • Duncan Robinson has excelled since Herro’s injury, leading the team with 10 made three-pointers while shooting a sizzling 76.9% from beyond the arc in the first three games of the series, Chiang adds in another Miami Herald story. It’s a gratifying conclusion to a season that saw Robinson move in and out of the rotation and miss 20 games due to finger surgery. “Some ups and downs just personally and as a group, as well,” he said. “And that’s the beautiful thing about this time of the year, you just got to commit everything you can to try to help us win.”
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Draft Notes: Bates, Early Entrants, NTX Combine

April 24th, 2023 at 9:44am CST by Arthur Hill

Eastern Michigan’s Emoni Bates, the nation’s top high school recruit in 2021, has decided to enter the NBA draft, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

“What I been dreaming for my whole life,” Bates wrote on his Instagram account this morning.

The 19-year-old swingman spent his first collegiate season at Memphis before transferring to the Eagles last summer. He averaged 19.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 30 games as a sophomore while shooting 40.5% from the field and 33% from three-point range.

Bates has slipped to 56th on ESPN’s latest big board of the top 100 draft prospects, so he’s not a sure thing to be selected. EMU is coming off an 8-23 season, and ESPN’s Jonathan Givony speculated last month that Bates might have hurt his draft stock by staying in school.

There’s more draft news to pass along:

  • Kansas State’s Keyontae Johnson (Twitter link), Missouri’s Kobe Brown (Instagram link), and Baylor’s Jalen Bridges (Twitter link) have all declared for the draft while retaining their college eligibility. Johnson ranks 40th on ESPN’s big board, while Brown is 43rd and Bridges is 69th. The deadline to withdraw from the draft and still be eligible to play in college next season is May 31 at 11:59 pm ET.
  • Creighton’s Arthur Kaluma announced on his Twitter page that he’ll be entering the draft, making no mention of possibly returning to college. The sophomore power forward is 90th in ESPN’s rankings.
  • Serbia’s Mihailo Boskovic has also put his name in the draft, according to Misko Raznatovic (Twitter link).
  • The NTX Combine expects to host 32 draft prospects from May 2-4 with representatives of more than 20 NBA team in attendance, tweets Marc J. Spears of Andscape. He notes that past participants have landed Exhibit 10, summer league and G League contracts. Former NBA players Maurice Evans, Mike James and Shawn Respert will be among the coaches at the combine.
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Knicks Notes: Toppin, Rotation, McBride, Randle

April 24th, 2023 at 8:41am CST by Arthur Hill

Obi Toppin was part of an unusual closing lineup for the Knicks in Sunday’s Game 4 victory over the Cavaliers, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. With Julius Randle shooting just 3-of-10 from the field, coach Tom Thibodeau used Toppin as his power forward for virtually the entire fourth quarter. He delivered five points and eight rebounds in the game, and New York outscored Cleveland by 11 points in the 20 minutes he was on the court.

“I thought Obi was terrific,” Thibodeau said. “He gave us energy, but he also gave us rebounding.”

The Knicks finished out the contest with Toppin and Isaiah Hartenstein joining RJ Barrett, Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson. Thibodeau stuck with the unconventional lineup, which staged a late 15-6 run that put the game out of reach.

“Those guys built the lead,” he said. “Obviously whatever you think gives the team the best chance to win, that’s what you’re gonna do.”

There’s more from New York:

  • Quentin Grimes‘ shoulder injury is creating an opportunity for Miles McBride, Braziller adds. The second-year guard hit a three-pointer and did a solid job defending Donovan Mitchell during his five minutes of action Sunday. “The coaches are gonna be pretty transparent with me, so they were like, ‘be ready, games can flow in different ways,’ so I was always trying to stay ready,” McBride said. “My development coach has definitely been locked in with the film showing me a lot of things and making sure I was staying on it. And then just trust in my abilities.”
  • A left ankle injury that Randle suffered in late March is contributing to his struggles so far in the series, per Nick Friedell of ESPN. The All-Star forward was limited to 27 minutes Sunday and is shooting 21-of-65 through the first four games. “The thing is, he had to work around the clock to get back,” Thibodeau said. “That’s what I love about Julius. He gives you everything that he has. There’s 77 games, he sprains his ankle and then he works like crazy to get back, you know how important he is to the team, but to get back, to get ready to play — our medical people did a great job, but that’s all him. He was working around the clock on that, he still is. That’s the challenge that we have and that’s what I respect about him. And we just got to get ready for our next game.”
  • While Mitchell was misfiring with his shot on Sunday, going 5-of-18 from the field, the Knicks got major contributions from players who were rumored to be part of trade negotiations to acquire him from the Jazz last summer, notes Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. Toppin, Barrett and Mitchell Robinson all played a role in the Game 4 victory.
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Dejounte Murray Faces Possible Suspension For Bumping Official

April 24th, 2023 at 7:31am CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA has launched an investigation into the actions of Hawks guard Dejounte Murray following Sunday’s loss to the Celtics, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

As he was leaving the court, Murray made contact with referee Gediminas Petraitis (video link). Murray also pointed and yelled at someone before heading to the locker room, Bontemps adds.

The Hawks didn’t make Murray available to the media after the game, so he wasn’t able to explain what happened.

Bontemps notes that the league normally imposes suspensions for players who make contact with officials. He cites the example of Celtics forward Grant Williams, who was suspended for one game after being ejected in October.

Bontemps also points out that suspension decisions in the playoffs are typically issued before the next game in the series, which means any discipline for Murray could be announced today. The teams will meet again Tuesday night in Boston with the Celtics holding a 3-1 lead.

Murray has been one of Atlanta’s most productive players in the series, averaging 25.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.3 steals through the first four games.

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And-Ones: Biggest Issue, Awards, Baldwin, Faried, Campazzo

April 23rd, 2023 at 9:54pm CST by Dana Gauruder

What’s the biggest issue facing the NBA? Not surprisingly, a poll of players conducted by Josh Robbins and Sam Amick of The Athletic placed the officiating at the top of the list. Out of 70 participants, 25.8 percent called out the officials for a variety of reasons.

“Ref accountability. It’s the (big) thing right now. Because there is none,” one poll respondent said. “There’s just not a system set up for it. And it’s been real shaky, I think, this year. Just something to keep them accountable. I don’t know if I want to take their money. But something to get them to have some type of, ‘I can’t f–k this up’ mentality.”

Load management was a close second in the poll. Rules skewed in favor of offensive players also ranked high on the list.

We have more from around the basketball world:

  • The NBA will reveal the winner of the Most Improved Player award on Monday, the league’s communications department tweets. Lauri Markkanen, Jalen Brunson and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are the three finalists. The Rookie of the Year will be revealed on Tuesday, with Paolo Banchero considered the heavy favorite.
  • Former NBA player Wade Baldwin IV has signed a two-year contract extension with Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv, according to Eurohoops.net. He averaged 16.7 points, 5.0 assists and 3.6 rebounds this season. Baldwin played 56 career NBA games, most recently with Portland during the 2018/19 season.
  • Reyer Venezia is interested in signing big man Kenneth Faried for the Italian playoffs, according to Sportando. Faried spent this season playing in Mexico with Soles de Mexicali. Faried has been out of the NBA since he played a combined 37 games for Brooklyn and Houston during the 2018/19 season.
  • Another former NBA player, Facundo Campazzo, is joining Real Madrid next season, Sportando relays. Campazzo joined Serbia’s Crvena Zvezda after being waived by the Mavericks in late November. He appeared in eight games with Dallas this season.
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