Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups will miss the next two games — on Thursday and Saturday against Utah and Dallas, respectively — due to the recent passing of his grandmother, Portland announced in a press release (via Twitter).
According to the team, assistant Nate Bjorkgren will serve as acting head coach in Billups’ stead. Bjorkgren has previous head coaching experience with Indiana, though his stint was short-lived.
Our condolences go out to Billups’ family and friends.
Here’s more from the Northwest:
- Following the Timberwolves‘ victory over Dallas on Wednesday, power forward Julius Randle said he’s still getting used to acting as more of a facilitator after spending several years in New York being “wired to score,” according to Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. “That’s really been the biggest change. You’re somewhere for five years, playing a certain way and I come here and it’s a little bit different,” said Randle, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer if he declines his $30.94MM player option for 2025/26. “I love my role here. I love playing with my teammates, but finding what helps the team and what the team needs the most on a night-to-night basis has been the harder part, but everybody has been great with me, coaches included, helping me adjust and figuring things out.”
- The Nuggets are dealing with lingering injuries to Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. In the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss in Phoenix, Gordon aggravated a calf strain which already caused him to miss 10 games in 2024/25. “Thats the unfortunate thing — and the Suns have gone through this themselves — with those soft tissue injuries, is they linger. They hang around. They hang around,” Malone said of Gordon. “And you make one explosive move and you feel it. And I could tell in that third quarter, he goes, ‘I feel like it’s about to, like, really have a bad strain.’ So that was the decision at that point in time. Take him out, get him checked and shut him down for the night to hopefully avoid something a lot more sinister and severe.” Murray, meanwhile, revealed a couple weeks ago that he’s been dealing with plantar fasciitis for “years” and has also battled hamstring and ankle injuries this season, the latter causing him to miss Monday’s game. Denver’s starting point guard suggested he wasn’t fully healthy during yesterday’s game, per Durando.
- Thunder defensive stalwart Alex Caruso has been ruled out of Thursday’s game vs. Indiana due to a left hip strain, as Rylan Stiles of Sports Illustrated relays. According to Stiles, Caruso exited Monday’s contest early when he dove for a loose ball and appeared to land on his hip. Caruso, who recently signed a four-year, $81.1MM extension, will miss his ninth game of the season Thursday, largely due to issues with his left hip, Stiles notes.
Thinking of potential moves to make the Wolves better…
1. Brogdan and Kuzma for Randle and DiVancenzo
TWolves add Brogdan to the backcourt to help provide more of a playmaker, ball handler, facilitator aswell as add some shooting. Kuzma definitely provides a more faster, more mobile and more versatile forward than Randle. You lose some size and rebounding sure but you’ve got McDaniels and Gobert.
Conley Ant McDaniels Kuzma Gobert with Brogdan NAW and Reid off the bench that’s real tough.
As for Washington maybe you ask for some picks aswell but Randle is probably overall a slight upgrade on Kuzma at PF. DiVancenzo is a really solid trade chip for them, signed long term for cheap and proven ability to play a role in the playoffs. Also sets you up well for a Valaucanes trade with the lakers who look likely to give you Vincent and picks.
Bub Poole Coulibaly Randle Sarr with Vincent DiVancenzo and Kispert
2. Randle for Zion
This is a massive gamble because of axioms health and attitude and whatnot but should it work out it’s a home run. Ant and Zion would be an insane duo for the franchise, two of the most athletic players with huge fan bases and market ability together in Minnesota of all places.
Yes he’s poor defensively but you’ve also got McDaniels and Gobert on your team. The shooting would be awful with these three.
It means you don’t have to negotiate a new contract with Randle and instead you have Zion signed up long term of a contract which works in the teams favour if he doesn’t play.
For the pelicans maybe they’ve had enough of Zion and Randle is a good enough replacement. It’s near enough like for like with Randle an easy 25-8-4 kinda player who’s also quite athletic but offers more shooting. Murray CJ Ingram Randle that’s a pretty solid team without an real superstar type guys.
Not bad. I like the Washington trade a lot for both sides. Randle won’t like coming off the bench on the Pelicans.
So you want to make the Wolves better by trading KAT (who returned Randle and DiVincenzo from the Knicks) for Brogdan and Kuzma–who are objectively worse than Randle and DiVincenzo, and never in a million years would’ve been enough to land KAT–AND give the Wiz some picks? For real? May as well trade Ant and Naz and picks for Lavine while you’re at it.
Horrifying trade for Minnesota with trade 1