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NBA GMs Weigh In On 2018/19 Season

October 3rd, 2018 at 9:48am CST by Luke Adams

NBA.com has completed its annual survey of NBA general managers, with John Schuhmann of NBA.com asking each of the league’s 30 GMs to answer an array of questions about the league’s top teams, players, and coaches. Unsurprisingly, the Warriors are once again viewed by the NBA’s general managers as the overwhelming favorites to be the last team standing, with 26 of 30 GMs (87%) picking Golden State to win the NBA championship for the fourth time in five years.

While there are many responses in the GM survey worth checking out, we’ll focus on rounding up some of the more noteworthy ones related to rosters and player movement. Let’s dive in…

  • LeBron James (30%) and Kevin Durant (27%) are viewed as the frontrunners for the 2018/19 MVP award, but two younger players led the voting for the player GMs would most want to build a franchise around starting today. Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo (30%) and Pelicans big man Anthony Davis (23%) led the way in that category. Interestingly, Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns didn’t receive a single vote this year after leading the way with 29% of the vote in 2017.
  • The Lakers‘ signing of James helped them earn 70% of the vote for the team that made the best overall moves this offseason. The Raptors, buoyed by their acquisition of Kawhi Leonard, finished second at 20%.
  • A ton of different signings and trade acquisitions received votes for the most underrated addition of the summer, with the Pacers‘ signing of Tyreke Evans barely leading the way with four votes. The Spurs‘ trade for DeMar DeRozan, the Bulls‘ signing of Jabari Parker, the Pelicans‘ addition of Julius Randle, and the Thunder‘s acquisition of Dennis Schroder received three votes apiece.
  • DeMarcus Cousins‘ decision to join the Warriors (35%) was considered the most surprising move of the offseason, followed by the Spurs/Raptors blockbuster trade (29%) and Paul George remaining with the Thunder (19%).
  • While Mavericks guard Luka Doncic is the strong frontrunner for Rookie of the Year, GMs expect Suns center Deandre Ayton and Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. to be the best players five years from now. Meanwhile, the Clippers‘ selection of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at No. 11 was viewed by the most GMs as the steal of the draft.
  • The Sixers (47%) and Celtics (33%) dominated voting for the teams with the most promising young cores.
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Community Shootaround: Rookie Scale Extensions

October 1st, 2018 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

So far this offseason, two players have signed rookie scale extensions: Devin Booker got a new deal from the Suns, and the Timberwolves locked up Karl-Anthony Towns to a new long-term pact.

In each of those instances, the player received a maximum salary extension. Max deals, which require little negotiation, typically get done well before the mid-October deadline for rookie scale extensions. But with that deadline now just two weeks away, we may start seeing progress on a few other deals around the NBA.

Besides Booker and Towns, 21 players are eligible for rookie scale extensions this offseason, though some of the players on that list assuredly won’t get new deals. The Cavaliers aren’t about to give Sam Dekker a long-term contract, for example. And it’s safe to assume that the Bulls aren’t looking to lock up Cameron Payne early.

Still, there are several names on that list who are intriguing candidates for new deals. Here are 12 of them:

Not all the players on this list will sign rookie scale extensions within the next two weeks. In fact, most of them probably won’t. There are plenty of reasons for teams to wait — maybe the asking prices are too high, maybe their financial situations aren’t conducive to more long-term investments at this point, or maybe they simply want another season to take a closer look at their extension candidates.

[RELATED: Recent NBA Rookie Scale Extension History]

Still, it’s safe to assume that at least a couple players on this list will receive new deals. Typically, at least four players per year sign rookie scale extensions, and the numbers in previous seasons have often been much higher than that — in 2014, 2015, and 2016, a combined 24 players signed rookie scale extensions, for an average of eight per year.

With that October 15 deadline fast approaching, we want to know what you think. Which of this year’s extension candidates will receive new deals? Which deserve them, and at what price point? Which should be put off until they reach restricted free agency next summer?

Head to the comment section below to share your two cents on this year’s rookie scale extension candidates!

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Celtics Sign Marcus Georges-Hunt, Cut Justin Bibbs

October 1st, 2018 at 1:33pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics have officially made a change to their 20-man preseason roster, announcing today (via Twitter) that they’ve signed free agent guard Marcus Georges-Hunt, waiving camp invitee Justin Bibbs to create room. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported on Friday that Boston was nearing a deal with Georges-Hunt.

Georges-Hunt, 24, spent last season with the Timberwolves, playing limited minutes in 42 games for the club. The former Georgia Tech standout, who appeared in five games for the Magic during his rookie year in 2016/17, spent most of that season in the G League, where he recorded 15.8 PPG, 6.2 RPG, and 4.4 APG in 45 contests for the Maine Red Claws, Boston’s affiliate.

Georges-Hunt, who has a reputation as a tough perimeter defender, may have a chance to earn a spot on the Celtics’ 15-man regular season roster this fall. The team is currently carrying 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts, but one of those 15 is Jabari Bird, who is dealing with medical and legal issues and whose future in Boston remains unclear.

As for Bibbs, the 22-year-old shooting guard – who signed as an undrafted free agent out of Virginia Tech – looks like a good candidate to end up with the Red Claws this season, assuming he opts to sign a G League contract.

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Al Horford Focusing On Celtics' Opportunity, Not Free Agency

October 1st, 2018 at 11:31am CST by Austin Kent
  • Well aware of the opportunity that the Celtics have to win the Eastern Conference and compete for a title, potential 2019 free agent Al Horford is focused exclusively on playing basketball this season. “We have such a big opportunity that we can’t allow ourselves to look ahead or look at any of that,” Horford told Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “I’m really locked in with this season.“
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Atlantic Notes: Leonard, Smith, Williams, Brand

September 30th, 2018 at 8:52pm CST by JD Shaw

Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard showed flashes of brilliance in his debut with the team on Saturday, finishing with 12 points, three assists and one steal in 19 minutes of action.

“I think everybody saw Kawhi, he was shaking off some rust, right?” coach Nick Nurse asked postgame, according to Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. “But you can obviously see the level that he has and I think he looks like we’re all running around really fast and he gets it and everything goes into slow motion. It’s kind of a gift for guys that are as good as him and it’s neat to watch, too.”

Leonard was traded to the Raptors in July after a tumultuous end to his stint with the Spurs. He missed most of last season due to injury, with Saturday’s preseason game marking his first contest since January.

“I think it’s just going to take on-court minutes, getting the experience together, going out there and playing and getting a feel for the overall team, the overall game that he likes to play,” Kyle Lowry said of Leonard. “And the pace. We played at a really good pace tonight. It was a fun game, just good to get out there and compete against another team.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

 

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Ainge Not Surprised That Irving Wants To Stay

September 29th, 2018 at 8:48pm CST by Arthur Hill
  • Kyrie Irving made headlines this week with comments indicating that he plans to stay in Boston beyond this season, but they were nothing new to Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge, relays Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. Irving, who is expected to opt out of his current deal next summer, has expressed similar sentiments to his boss before. “I’ve talked to Kyrie a lot,” Ainge said. “Maybe he’s changed his tune with you [media], but he has been very positive from the day he got here. I talk to Kyrie all the time, his representation. I think Kyrie is very happy here in Boston, always has been. That will hopefully make this a place he wants to stay much longer once the season ends.”
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Celtics Near Agreement With Marcus Georges-Hunt

September 28th, 2018 at 4:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Celtics are close to reaching a contract agreement with guard Marcus Georges-Hunt, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

It’s apparently a training-camp contract but Georges-Hunt should have a reasonable chance of making the opening-night roster.

Georges-Hunt worked out for the Celtics on September 11th.

The 6’5” Georgia Tech alum appeared in 42 games for the Timberwolves last season, averaging 1.4 PPG in 5.3 MPG, after making his NBA debut with the Magic in 2016/17.

Georges-Hunt was well-known in the Celtics organization prior to the workout. He was on their 2016 training camp roster and then played that season with their G League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws, averaging 15.8 PPG, 6.4 RPG and 4.4 APG.

The 6’5” Georges-Hunt worked out for the Timberwolves a week prior to his visit to Boston, even though they made him a free agent by declining to extend him a qualifying offer earlier in the summer. The Cavaliers also brought him in during a free agent tryout earlier this month, while the Nuggets worked him out last month.

The Celtics currently have 15 players on guaranteed contracts and have filled both two-way slots but shooting guard Jabari Bird‘s future with the organization is in doubt. Bird is not with the team as he sorts through legal and medical issues after being arraigned on assault changes in a domestic incident.

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Five Rookie Scale Options That May Not Be Exercised

September 28th, 2018 at 2:46pm CST by Luke Adams

Team and player options on veteran contracts must be exercised by the end of June before the new league year begins on July 1, but the same rules don’t apply to team options in rookie scale contracts. First-round picks who signed standard rookie contracts have third- and fourth-year options included in their deals, and those options must be exercised – or declined – seven months early.

The deadline for rookie scale option decisions is October 31, which means that teams have about another month to decide whether to pick up those options for the 2019/20 season.

It’s an unusual structure, one that forces teams to make decisions before seeing how their players will perform on the court that season. Last fall, for instance, the Magic turned down their fourth-year option on Mario Hezonja for 2018/19. Hezonja subsequently enjoyed his best season as a pro, and instead of entering the final year of his rookie contract with Orlando, he was able to hit the open market and secure a larger salary with the Knicks.

Cases like Hezonja’s are rare, however. For the most part, teams will exercise their rookie scale options, particularly third-year options. Third-year options are generally pretty affordable, and decisions are due after a player has been in the NBA for just one season, so clubs are reluctant to give up on their first-round picks that early.

Still, while many of this year’s rookie scale option decisions will be no-brainers, there are at least a small handful of players who aren’t locks to have their options picked up. Here’s a look at five players who fall into that category:

  1. D.J. Wilson, Bucks (third year, $2,961,120): Wilson had some good games in the G League last season, but his overall NBAGL numbers were just okay for a first-round pick, and he only played 72 minutes in 22 NBA games. As noted above, teams often don’t give up this early on first-round picks, and Wilson’s cap charge is affordable enough that it’s probably worth securing him for at least one more year. This isn’t a slam-dunk though.
  2. Malachi Richardson, Raptors (fourth year, $2,581,597): When the Raptors sent Bruno Caboclo to Sacramento in exchange for Richardson at last season’s trade deadline, it reduced their 2017/18 payroll and increased their flexibility to make a move on the buyout market. But it also meant taking on Richardson’s guarantee for 2018/19, while Caboclo’s contract expired. Richardson seems unlikely to have any sort of role this season on a deep, talented Toronto team, and with the club at risk of being in the tax again in 2019/20, I don’t expect the Raps to lock in Richardson for another year.
  3. Guerschon Yabusele (third year, $3,117,240): While the “Dancing Bear” has no shortage of fans in Boston, it’s hard to see how he’ll earn playing time in a frontcourt that features Al Horford, Aron Baynes, Semi Ojeleye, Daniel Theis, and first-rounder Robert Williams — especially if Jayson Tatum and/or Gordon Hayward see significant minutes at the four. Yabusele has promise, but with the Celtics now in the tax, it might make sense to use his roster spot on a minimum-salary player starting in 2019/20.
  4. Malik Beasley, Nuggets (fourth year, $2,731,714): Denver’s lack of reliable backcourt depth bodes well for Beasley, who could parlay a solid Summer League showing into a regular backup role at shooting guard. The Nuggets don’t have serious tax concerns for 2019/20, so exercising Beasley’s modestly-priced option wouldn’t be a major risk. Still, it would be an easier decision if he’d shown more improvement in his sophomore season. Instead, he posted just 3.2 PPG on 41.0% shooting in 62 games in 2017/18.
  5. Justin Patton, Timberwolves (third year, $3,117,240): After missing nearly all of his rookie season due to foot problems, Patton has undergone another foot procedure this month, raising some doubts about his availability for the 2018/19 season. Nonetheless, I expect the Timberwolves will want to give Patton another chance to get healthy before cutting their losses on him, particularly since he may soon be the lone piece remaining from last summer’s trade with the Bulls.

For a full breakdown of this year’s decisions on 2019/20 rookie scale options, click here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Irving Wants To See Jersey In Rafters

September 24th, 2018 at 9:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • Kyrie Irving is trying to downplay the notion that he wants to leave Boston when he becomes a free agent next summer, as he told Celtics.com in comments that were relayed by USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt. The Celtics point guard even tossed out the possibility of getting his jersey in the rafters with other franchise greats when he retires. “Obviously it’s everybody else’s job to look forward to my future before I can, so I just really thought it was important to make sure it’s known that this franchise is really built for the next few years of being at the top-tier of teams in the league,” he said. “Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that? What more could you ask for from an organization to really elevate your game? When you want to be on the same lineage of greatness as the guys that have come before you, there are times where I have thought about having No. 11 in the rafters, hopefully, one day. That’s a dream.”
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Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Nets, Stevens, Raptors

September 23rd, 2018 at 8:02pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

With training camp kicking off this week, on-court expectations the Knicks aren’t particularly high for the upcoming season. As Marc Berman of the New York Post explains, the organization has shifted its focus to player development and building a strong culture for the 2018/19 campaign.

After years of misguided attempts to make the playoffs, team president Steve Mills is excited about what the team is building, laying the groundwork with the recent hirings of Scott Perry as GM and David Fizdale as head coach.

Berman points out that all summer the discussion throughout the organization has been about patience, process and not skipping steps, words and phrases you would expect to hear from a team that is finally focused on building a contender in a more efficient manner.

With Kristaps Porzingis expected to miss a good chunk of the season, Fizdale will have the opportunity to work and develop the young players on the team, including 2018 first round pick Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina, the talented defensive point guard.

The Knicks have their own 2019 first round draft pick and significant space under the salary cap to spend in free agency should they look to contend in the 2019/20 season. For now, the focus is on player development and instilling a successful culture behind the scenes in order to set the organization up for sustained success in the future.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson is focused on Brooklyn’s defense in the upcoming season, as he believes it’s the area the team can show the most improvement. Brian Lewis of the New York Post points out that such improvement will have to come organically, as the Nets didn’t add any standout defenders in the offseason despite the plethora of moves they made to improve their roster.
  • Despite all of the offensive firepower and talent on the Celtics‘ roster, head coach Brad Stevens still has concerns heading into the upcoming campaign. As Steve Bulpett writes for The Boston Herald, Stevens wants to make sure the Celtics don’t simply go through the motions on the offensive end of the court as a result of their talent and depth.
  • From their change in head coach to the addition of Kawhi Leonard, the Raptors are preparing for a training camp and season like no other, says Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. All eyes will be on the Raps this season as they look to not only compete for a championship, but also work to convince Leonard to re-sign in the 2019 offseason.
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