- Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe feels that Celtics coach Brad Stevens continues to search for consistent help at the back end of his rotation. Kemba Walker, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, Daniel Theis, Enes Kanter and Brad Wanamaker make up the team’s top eight players. Himmelsbach opines that Stevens wants his ninth and 10th options emerge from among Robert Williams, Semi Ojeleye, plus rookies Grant Williams, Javonte Green, Romeo Langford, and Carsen Edwards.
All-Star point guard Kemba Walker still gets plenty of support from Hornets fans whenever he plays in Charlotte, even if he’s now wearing a Celtics jersey after switching sides this summer, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston. Fans in Charlotte were no different yesterday, serenading Walker when he checked out for the night in a contest his new team won definitively, 109-92.
“People are going to react like that forever,” Celtics coach Brad Stevens told reporters post-game. “He’s a special guy and an awfully good player. He’s been really good for us.” Walker is averaging 22.5 PPG and 5.5 APG for the 23-8 Celtics.
- Celtics fans should not expect a trade to upgrade the frontcourt, according to Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. It’s unlikely they’ll find a deal for a quality big man that doesn’t involve moving one of the team’s top five players, Forsberg continues. They could add a proven role player before the trade deadline but they might be better off waiting to see which players wind up in the buyout market, Forsberg adds.
Al Horford hasn’t had a smooth transition to his new team after leaving the Celtics for the Sixers this summer, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Many expected Philadelphia to rise to the top of the East after adding the five-time All-Star, but Horford is still searching for his role in the offense alongside Joel Embiid.
- Former Celtics guard Terry Rozier notices the difference between this year’s 23-8 team and last year’s underachieving squad, relays Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. Rozier admits there may have been more talent last season, but the players seem to be enjoying the game more now. “Talent, it can’t always get you to where you want to go,” he said. “You’ve got to have the guys that want to be good, want to play hard, want to learn — stuff like that. Obviously you can have all the talent in the world; if you don’t put it together and everybody don’t buy in, it’s not going to work out. And I think that’s what we got caught up in last year.”
While non-guaranteed NBA contracts don’t technically become fully guaranteed until January 10, January 7 is really the day to watch. Because players have to clear waivers before January 10 to avoid having their salaries locked in for the rest of 2019/20, a team will have to release a player by next Tuesday at the latest to avoid guaranteeing his contract.
As our list of non-guaranteed contracts by team shows, there are a number of players around the NBA who don’t have fully guaranteed deals, though many are in no danger of being waived by next Tuesday. It’s not as if the Lakers are seriously considering whether or not to guarantee Dwight Howard‘s minimum salary. Ditto for the Jazz and Royce O’Neale, and several others players on that list.
However, there are at least a handful of players worth keeping an eye on as next Tuesday’s deadline nears. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of them:
Marquese Chriss, F/C (Warriors): A handful of injuries opened a path for Chriss to get regular rotation minutes this season and he has made the most of the opportunity, averaging 7.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 1.7 APG in 33 games (17.2 MPG). He’s done enough on the court to earn a full salary guarantee, but retaining him would limit the hard-capped Warriors‘ flexibility at the back of their roster. Golden State’s decision on Chriss will likely come down to how confident the team is that minimum-salary players like Alec Burks and Willie Cauley-Stein can be moved without taking back money in return — trading those vets would open up room to promote two-way players Ky Bowman and Damion Lee while keeping Chriss.- Javonte Green, F (Celtics): Green has been solid in limited minutes so far, shooting 68.4% on two-point attempts for the season. He has also appeared in every one of the Celtics‘ games since November 25. Still, he has played double-digit minutes just four times during that stretch, and waiving him would open up a spot on Boston’s roster, increasing the club’s flexibility at the trade deadline and possibly on the buyout market. If the Celtics are confident in Green’s ability to contribute off the bench, they’ll hang onto him and worry later about whether or not they need to open a roster spot.
- Derrick Walton, PG (Clippers): After playing just nine total minutes in the Clippers‘ first 19 games, Walton has appeared in 13 of the club’s last 15 contests. He’s still not a crucial part of the rotation, but he has performed well when called upon, so the Clippers will face the same decision the Celtics will — does opening up a roster spot in advance of trade and buyout season make more sense than locking in their 15th man’s 2019/20 salary for the year?
- The Rockets’ non-guaranteed players: The Rockets have a full 15-man roster, but three of those 15 players only have partial guarantees. Houston could part ways with Gary Clark, Isaiah Hartenstein, and/or Ben McLemore by January 7 and avoid taking on their full cap hits, which might appeal to a Houston team barely over the tax threshold. However, McLemore is playing heavy minutes and seems safe, while Clark has been seeing more regular playing time lately too. Up until this past weekend, I would’ve viewed Hartenstein as the odd man out, but he had his two best games of the season on Saturday and Sunday, averaging 14.0 PPG and 11.0 RPG on 72.2% shooting. Houston may simply hang onto all three players.
- The Wizards’ non-guaranteed players: Like the Rockets, the Wizards are currently carrying three players on non-guaranteed contracts. Washington’s situation is a little different though, since two of the team’s non-guaranteed players – Gary Payton II and Johnathan Williams – were recently added using the hardship exception. The Wizards, who have 17 players on standard contracts, will have to get back down to 15 as the roster gets healthier. Whether that happens before or after January 7, the club will likely eventually part ways with two players out of the group that includes Payton, Williams, and Justin Robinson, unless they trade or cut a player with a guaranteed salary. For now, Payton looks like the least expendable of the three.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Here are Monday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- Pacers star Victor Oladipo was assigned to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants as he continues his rehab from a quad injury, the team’s PR department tweets. Oladipo, who reportedly could make his season debut in approximately one month, joined the Mad Ants for practice.
- The Wizards recalled rookie forward Admiral Schofield and guard Justin Robinson from the Capital City Go-Go, the team’s PR department tweets. Schofield posted 19 points and seven rebounds in Capital City’s game on Sunday, while Robinson had 22 points and six assists. The Wizards, who have been riddled with injuries, played the Heat on Monday.
- The Celtics assigned rookie guard Carsen Edwards to the Maine Red Claws, the team tweets. Edwards has appeared in 24 Celtics games, averaging 3.4 PPG in 10.2 MPG.
- The Timberwolves recalled rookie center Naz Reid from the Iowa Wolves, according to a team press release. Reid is averaging 18.4 PPG, 9.8 RPG and 1.9 BPG in 16 games for Iowa.
Wizards guard and former Celtic Isaiah Thomas believes that Kyrie Irving may not have been cut out to be the Celtics’ leader, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reports.
“That’s just like Boston and New York. You have to have a different type of skin to be able to succeed there,” Thomas said when asked about Irving. “They won 17 championships. They have 30 jerseys retired. So it’s expectations like you can do great but we need better and it’s always been like that. The media attention of putting on a Celtics jersey, a Knicks jersey, a Lakers jersey, those legendary teams and franchises, it’s just a little different.”
11:40am: The NBA will investigate Dedmon’s comments to determine whether he’ll be fined, according to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. As noted below, the league’s CBA prohibits players from publicly requesting a trade.
8:55am: Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Friday that Kings center Dewayne Dedmon, who has fallen out of the team’s rotation after signing a three-year, $41MM contract in the summer, wants to be dealt. Speaking on Sunday to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee, Dedmon made no effort to deny Charania’s report or downplay his desire to be moved.
“I would like to be traded,” Dedmon confirmed. “I haven’t been playing, so I would like to go somewhere where my talents are appreciated.”
Dedmon, 30, was coming off two solid seasons in Atlanta when he reached unrestricted free agency this past offseason. In 2018/19, he averaged a career-best 10.8 PPG to go along with 7.5 RPG, 1.1 SPG, 1.1 BPG, and a .382 3PT%. That performance made him a popular target on the open market and resulted in a lucrative contract offer from Sacramento.
However, Dedmon was outplayed by bigs like Richaun Holmes and Nemanja Bjelica in the early going this season. With Marvin Bagley III and Harrison Barnes also in the frontcourt mix, head coach Luke Walton hasn’t found minutes for the former Hawk as of late — Dedmon, who is making just 41.9% of his shots from the field this season, has only played seven total minutes since December 6, and is frustrated that he hasn’t gotten more of a chance to reverse his slow start.
“I’m not the only person struggling with my shot, so if that’s a factor then it’s kind of crazy,” Dedmon told Anderson. “If you’re not allowed to shoot through your slumps, I don’t know how you’re supposed to make shots.”
Dedmon is earning $13MM+ this season and has another fully guaranteed year left on his deal, so the Kings may still want to get him back into the rotation at some point to rebuild his value and salvage their investment. However, the veteran big man sounds skeptical that things will turn around for him in Sacramento.
“I definitely appreciate (the Kings’ investment), but I want to be somewhere where I get to play,” Dedmon said. “That’s my biggest thing. I’m trying to play and I’ve been told I’m no longer in the rotation here, so there’s really nothing to wait on.”
According to Anderson, the Kings are listening to offers for Dedmon and there may be a market for his services, but the front office will insist that any deal must make sense for the team’s future. Sam Quinn of CBS Sports recently speculated that teams like the Clippers, Celtics, Timberwolves, Trail Blazers, and Hawks could be fits for Dedmon. Anderson adds the Mavericks and Magic to that list of hypothetical suitors.
The NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement prohibits players from making public trade demands, so we’ll see if the league responds to Dedmon’s comments. Anthony Davis was fined $50K last winter when agent Rich Paul publicly requested a trade.
- Celtics coach Brad Stevens is considering lineup changes to help improve the team’s defense, A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston writes. The Celtics have a 22-8 record on the season and dropped a 113-97 home game to Toronto on Saturday. “We’ve got to get back to being a better defensive team,” Stevens said. “And we’ve got to find … we’ve got to find the right mix of guys that will defend well together and that complement our best players to defend well. And just get back to that.”
- Wing Jaylen Brown, currently enjoying a breakout year for the ascendent Celtics, has a chance to make his first All-Star squad during his fourth season, according to NBC Sports Boston’s Chris Forsberg. However, that is hardly Brown’s focus. “I’m not really paying attention to [the All-Star buzz],” Brown claimed after a post-practice workout. “It would be extremely dope to even be mentioned in the conversation. To be honest, I still think I can be a lot better. I think the best is yet to come for me this season.”