- The Hawks will bring in six prospects for a workout on Tuesday, according to a team press release. That group includes Carsen Edwards (Purdue), Kyran Bowman (Boston College), Dorian Pickens (Stanford), Kerem Kanter (Xavier), Tremont Waters (LSU) and Kenrich Williams (TCU).
The Jazz worked out Shake Milton (SMU), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall), Theo Pinson (North Carolina), Omari Spellman (Villanova), Thomas Wilder (Western Michigan) and Elijah Stewart (USC) on Monday, according to team’s Twitter feed. Milton, a borderline first-round guard prospect ranked No. 34 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, headlined that group.
The Jazz will host six more prospects on Tuesday — Kameron Chatman (Detroit), Sedrick Barefield (Utah), Kenneth Ogbe (Utah Valley), Dayon Goodman (Westminster), Tyler Rawson (Utah) and Ryan Richardson (Weber State) (Twitter links).
We have more draft workout news:
- Wichita State’s Landry Shamet worked out for the Warriors on Sunday, Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.com tweets. The point guard is ranked No. 42 by Givony.
- Syracuse swingman Tyus Battle, rated No. 32 by Givony, worked out for the Knicks on Friday, Zagoria reports in another tweet. Small forward Brian Bowen, who was ineligible to play college ball last season, worked out for New York the same day and the Lakers on Sunday.
- The Suns brought in UCLA’s Aaron Holiday and Anfernee Simons, who spent a post-grad year at IMG Academy, and four other prospects on Monday, the team tweets. Holiday is rated No. 17 by Givony while Simons is ranked No. 21. Hamidou Diallo (Kentucky), Tony Carr (Penn State), Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk (Kansas) and Bruce Brown (Miami, Fla.) joined them.
Hawks assistant coach Chris Jent will remain with the team in that capacity as part of new head coach Lloyd Pierce‘s staff, tweets Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Jent joined Atlanta’s coaching staff last season after spending the previous season as an assistant at Ohio State.
Jent, 48, has a history with Pierce as both men were part of former head coach Mike Brown’s staff with the Cavaliers. Jent also served as an assistant coach for the Sixers, Magic, and Kings. Jent was an interim head coach for the Magic for the last 18 games of the 2004/05 season. As a player, Jent played in six NBA games, three with the 1994 NBA championship-winning Rockets and three with the Knicks.
It makes sense for Pierce to retain someone with both a wealth of coaching experience and familiarity with the Hawks as he prepares for his first head coaching job. We passed along earlier this week that Melvin Hunt will join the Hawks as Pierce’s lead assistant, while former Suns assistant Marlon Garnett will also be part of the team’s staff.
UCLA point guard Aaron Holiday and Villanova floor leader Jalen Brunson headline the list of six players the Hawks will work out on Friday, according to a team press release. Holiday is ranked No. 17 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, while Brunson is rated No. 26 overall.
Gary Clark (Cincinnati), Rawle Alkins (Arizona), Juwan Morgan (Indiana) and Tony Carr (Penn State) are the other players trying to make a favorable impression. The Hawks hosted Donte DiVincenzo (Villanova), Ben Lammers (Georgia Tech), Jalen McDaniels (San Diego State), Markis McDuffie (Wichita State), Doral Moore (Wake Forest) and Brandon Sampson (LSU) on Thursday.
While he has long been considered a strong candidate to be the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, Luka Doncic no longer appears to be a lock to even be a top-three selection, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Insider link). While it’s hard to know what to believe at this time of year, Givony explains to Kevin Pelton that the Kings, Hawks, and Grizzlies didn’t send anyone to watch the EuroLeague Final Four in person last week, and several NBA evaluators seem to have cooled on Doncic.
Givony believes those evaluators are overthinking matters, but admits “the skepticism is a lot more prevalent than expected.” As ESPN’s draft guru explains, some people around the league have concerns about Doncic’s athleticism – or lack thereof – and his ability to keep improving. However, Givony points to Doncic’s incredible workload over the last 18 months, along with European teams’ relative inattention to players’ diets and conditioning, as reasons why the young star may have not looked quite as impressive in recent months as he did last fall. On an NBA schedule, working with NBA coaches, those issues could be addressed.
Ultimately, Givony and Pelton both believe that Doncic is worthy of the No. 1 pick, with Givony writing that the 19-year-old is “too productive, too skilled, too smart and too good a fit in the modern game to pass up.” However, it remains to be seen how many teams at the top of the draft will agree with that assessment.
Here’s more on the 2018 NBA draft:
- UNC forward Luke Maye has decided to return to the Tar Heels for his senior year after testing the draft waters, he announced today on Instagram. Maye, who earned a spot on the All-ACC First Team and was named the conference’s Most Improved Player, averaged a double-double (16.9 PPG, 10.1 RPG) in 2017/18.
- Texas guard Kerwin Roach II has withdrawn his name from the 2018 draft and will head back to the Longhorns for his senior year, the school announced in a press release. “I’m hungry for the opportunity to make a career in the NBA, but I realize I have to improve in so many areas on the court,” Roach said in a statement. “I’m also on pace to earn my degree, and that is a big deal for me and my family.”
- After testing the draft waters without an agent, West Virginia forward Sagaba Konate will head back to school for his junior year, he confirms to ESPN’s Jeff Goodman (Twitter link).
- Sean Deveney of The Sporting News and the staff at Basketball Insiders are among those who have released new mock drafts this week.
While the Grizzlies hold the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft, the group of prospects working out for the team on Thursday won’t be candidates to come off the board that early. Memphis also holds the No. 32 selection, so today’s workout participants will vie to receive consideration at that spot. According to a team release, Braian Angola (Florida State), Justin Bibbs (Virginia Tech), Chris Chiozza (Florida), Josh Okogie (Georgia Tech), Admiral Schofield (Tennessee), and Jonathan Stark (Murray State) are getting a look today from the Grizzlies.
Here’s more pre-draft workout news:
- Seton Hall big man Angel Delgado and Maryland guard Kevin Huerter each have workouts on tap with the Lakers and then the Jazz, per Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com (Twitter links).
- In addition to his previously reported workouts, Arizona guard Rawle Alkins has an audition with the Suns scheduled for next week, according to Zagoria, who adds that Alkins will also have a Pro Day next Thursday.
- Zagoria provides another workout update, tweeting that Miami’s Dewan Huell has auditioned for the Thunder, Cavaliers, Bucks, Hawks, and Grizzlies so far. Huell, who is testing the waters without an agent, remains undecided about whether or not to stay in the draft.
- After working out for Washington this week, Kansas guard Devonte’ Graham will work out for the Suns, Hawks, Rockets, Grizzlies, and about six or seven teams after that, he tells Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).
- Xavier’s J.P. Macura, who has a workout lined up with the Spurs, met with the Bucks, Clippers, Magic, and Pacers at this week’s Pro Basketball Combine, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
After peaking with a 60-win performance in 2013/14, the Hawks were trending in the wrong direction when new general manager Travis Schlenk assumed the reins last summer. Schlenk decided to accelerate the club’s gradual decline, allowing Paul Millsap and several other veterans to depart in free agency or trades.
The Hawks’ plan to bottom out worked — the team finished with a 24-58 record and got a little luck in the draft lottery, snagging a top-three pick. After effectively tearing things down during his first year in Atlanta, Schlenk will now be under pressure to start building the Hawks back up.
Here are five key questions facing the franchise this summer:
1. Is Dennis Schroder on the trade block?
The 2017/18 Hawks were short on star power, with Schroder representing the closest thing the team had to a star player. The 24-year-old comfortably led the team in scoring (19.4 PPG) and assists (6.2 APG), establishing new career highs in both categories.
However, there are signs that Schroder may not be a part of the next playoff team in Atlanta. He’s currently dealing with legal trouble, having been arrested on a battery charge last fall, and there are have been rumblings that he’s not exactly a positive locker room influence. Most recently, Schroder made comments suggesting that he wouldn’t mind being traded by the Hawks.
Reports as of last week indicated that neither Schroder nor his agent had formally asked the Hawks to explore possible trades, but given the mounting red flags and the fact that the new front office didn’t draft Schroder or sign him to his current extension, it’s possible that Schlenk and company aren’t married to the point guard long term. It will be worth watching to see whether Schroder’s name pops up in trade rumors this offseason.
2. What’s the timeline for the rebuild?
Schroder should just be entering his prime and is under contract at a reasonable rate of $15.5MM annually through 2021, making him a seemingly ideal cornerstone piece for a rebuild. So if Atlanta does explore trading Schroder, it’s fair to ask what sort of timeline the franchise envisions for its rebuild.
Outside of Schroder, there aren’t many promising young building blocks on the Hawks’ roster. John Collins and Taurean Prince certainly qualify, but they’re unlikely to develop into franchise-type players or perennial All-Stars.
So how might Atlanta find one or two of those players with franchise-changing potential? This year’s No. 3 pick is one tool available, though if the team is preparing for a slow rebuilding process, it might not be the last time the Hawks head into the draft with a top-five pick.
The free agent market is another potential path for the franchise, but even with $30MM+ in cap room this summer, I don’t expect Atlanta to be in the mix for top-tier free agents. The Hawks don’t seem to be eager to speed up their rebuild, so they’re probably at least a year or two away from making a serious run at veteran difference-makers in free agency.
- Frank Urbina of HoopsHype examines four potential landing spots for restricted free agent Jusuf Nurkic, identifying the Mavericks, Hawks, Wizards as possible suitors. However, Urbina writes that a return to the Trail Blazers is the most likely outcome for Nurkic.
- Lloyd Pierce has begun to fill out his coaching staff in Atlanta, with Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated reporting that former Mavericks assistant Melvin Hunt will join the Hawks at Pierce’s lead assistant, while former Suns assistant Marlon Garnett will also be part of the team’s staff. Marc Stein of The New York Times first reported (via Twitter) that the Hawks were in advanced discussions with Hunt.
- Many of the Hawks‘ former assistants are preparing to relocate to Milwaukee along with Mike Budenholzer, leaving the Bucks‘ old staff in the lurch. Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times looks at what’s next for those Bucks assistants.
The NBA has officially announced its First and Second All-Rookie Teams for the 2017/18 season. Ben Simmons of the Sixers and Donovan Mitchell of the Jazz – widely viewed as the top two contenders for this season’s Rookie of the Year award – were the only two players to be unanimously selected to the First Team. Celtics forward Jayson Tatum received 99 of 100 potential First Team votes.
Listed below are the NBA’s All-Rookie teams for 2017/18, with the player’s vote total in parentheses. Players received two points for a First Team vote and one point for a Second Team vote.
First Team:
- Ben Simmons, Sixers (200)
- Donovan Mitchell, Jazz (200)
- Jayson Tatum, Celtics (199)
- Kyle Kuzma, Lakers (193)
- Lauri Markkanen, Bulls (173)
Second Team:
- Dennis Smith Jr., Mavericks (96)
- Lonzo Ball, Lakers (87)
- John Collins, Hawks (76)
- Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kings (75)
- Josh Jackson, Suns (45)
Jackson, who received one First Team vote to go along with 43 Second Team votes, narrowly beat out Bam Adebayo of the Heat for the final spot on the Second Team — Adebayo finished with 44 points.
Outside of Adebayo and the 10 players who earned spots on the All-Rookie teams, 14 other players received votes, with De’Aaron Fox (Kings), OG Anunoby (Raptors), and Jarrett Allen (Nets) leading the way among that group.