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Olympic Notes: Bridges, Washington, Quickley, Stewart, Hernangomez

July 9th, 2021 at 11:33am CST by Luke Adams

Hornets forward Miles Bridges and P.J. Washington and Knicks guard Immanuel Quickley are no longer with the U.S. Select Team scrimmaging against Team USA’s Olympic roster in Las Vegas, tweets ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. The three players have been removed from the mix due to the coronavirus protocols.

A person with knowledge of the situation told Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press that one of those three players tested positive for COVID-19, while the other two were deemed close contacts and are being held out for precautionary reasons. According to Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (via Twitter), Quickley entered the protocols for contact tracing purposes rather than a positive test, which suggests that one of the Hornets forwards was the player who tested positive.

Here’s more on the Olympics:

  • The U.S. Select Team is down another player, according to Windhorst, who tweets that Pistons center Isaiah Stewart suffered an ankle injury during a scrimmage and left the game to receive treatment. There’s no indication at this point that Stewart’s injury is a significant one.
  • Timberwolves forward Juan Hernangomez, who had been preparing to represent Spain in the Olympics, dislocated his left shoulder during an exhibition game and will miss the Tokyo games, Reynolds writes for The Associated Press. The Wolves put out a statement indicating they’re aware of Hernangomez’s injury, but there’s no timeline yet for his recovery and return to the court.
  • Warriors guard Stephen Curry said it was a “hard decision” not to play for Team USA at the Olympics this summer, but he has “no regrets at all” about opting to skip the event, per Nick Wagoner of ESPN. “You take everything into account,” said Curry, who has won a pair of FIBA World Cup gold medals but hasn’t played in the Olympics. “I take how I’m feeling physically, mentally, what’s happening around the league, all those things. It’s not one specific reason or a part of it, but just knowing at the end of the day do I want to play or not? And the answer was no at the end of the day. And getting ready for next season (with a) relatively quick turnaround is important to me and I have a plan of how to do that and get ready for when training camp starts.”
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Hornets Worked Out Six Prospects On Wednesday

July 8th, 2021 at 2:45pm CST by Luke Adams
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Draft Notes: Early Entrant Decisions, Bleijenbergh, K. Johnson

July 7th, 2021 at 11:38am CST by Luke Adams

July 7 is the deadline for college early entrants who declared for the 2021 NBA draft to withdraw and maintain their NCAA eligibility. The NBA’s own withdrawal deadline for early entrants is July 19, but a college player who removes his name from the draft after today wouldn’t be able to play college ball next season.

With that in mind, we’re expecting several more updates before the end of the day on which players are going pro and which are returning to college.

Italian wing Gabriele Procida, Marquette forward Dawson Garcia, Southern Utah guard John Knight III, and Louisiana forward Dou Gueye are among the players withdrawing from the draft, according to reports from Jonathan Givony of ESPN, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, and Jeff Goodman of Stadium (all links go to Twitter). Garcia may transfer, with UNC, Arizona, and Illinois in the mix for his services, per Rothstein.

Conversely, Boston College forward Steffon Mitchell tells Rothstein (Twitter link) that he intends to remain in the draft, forgoing his final year of NCAA eligibility. Loyola Maryland forward Santi Aldama will also go pro rather than returning to college, a source tells Rothstein (Twitter link).

Here’s more on the draft:

  • Belgian wing Vrenz Bleijenbergh will keep his name in the draft, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Bleijenbergh, who will take part in the upcoming group workout in Minnesota, also has auditions lined up with the Thunder, Grizzlies, Kings, Hornets, and Mavericks, Givony reports.
  • Givony is joined by ESPN colleagues Mike Schmitz and Bobby Marks for an in-depth look at where things stand with the draft. The trio discusses how much trade action we should expect in the first round and suggests that Keon Johnson is one of the most polarizing prospects in this year’s class. Some teams have Johnson in the second tier of prospects alongside Jonathan Kuminga and Scottie Barnes, while others view him as a middle-to-late first-round flier, Givony writes.
  • Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report has shared a new version of his 2021 mock draft.
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Hornets Work Out Jalen Johnson

July 6th, 2021 at 7:09pm CST by Eli Cohen
  • The Hornets worked out potential lottery pick Jalen Johnson today, according to a tweet from the team. Johnson had a turbulent year at Duke, and eventually withdrew from the program, but came in with a high pedigree and an intriguing point-forward skillset.
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Draft Notes: Monyyong, Hornets, Bleijenbergh, Castleton

July 4th, 2021 at 2:37pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Little Rock big man Ruot Monyyong is set to work out for the Kings on July 8, tweets Jason Jones of The Athletic. Jones adds that the 6’10” Monyyong was the 2020 Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year and was twice named to the All-Sun Belt team during his college career. Monyyong averaged 11.9 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 1.8 BPG, 1.5 APG, and 0.9 SPG across his two NCAA seasons.

There’s more on the draft:

  • The Hornets tweeted their draft prospect workouts for Saturday, July 3. The club took a look at the following players: Western Kentucky center Charles Bassey, Marquette guard D.J. Carton, Oregon guard Chris Duarte, Tennessee guard Keon Johnson, Kentucky forward Isaiah Jackson, and Alabama guard Joshua Primo. Charlotte currently possesses the No. 11 and No. 56 picks in the upcoming 2021 draft.
  • 6’10” Belgian wing Vrenz Bleijenbergh has pre-draft workouts scheduled with the Thunder, Grizzlies, Pistons and Kings, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. Wasserman notes that the oversized small forward is thought of as a solid play-maker and shooter.
  • Florida power forward Colin Castleton plans to return to school for the 2021/22 season, and will accordingly withdraw from the 2021 NBA draft, tweets Jeff Goodman of Stadium. The 6’11” Castleton averaged 12.4 PPG, 6.4 RPG, and 1.1 APG last season.
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Bouknight Among Prospects At Latest Workout

July 2nd, 2021 at 9:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hornets worked out seven draft prospects on Friday, headlined by UConn guard James Bouknight, P.J. Morales of the Charlotte Observer writes. Bouknight is rated as the No. 8 overall prospect on ESPN’s Best Available list. Auburn guard Sharife Cooper (No. 18 on ESPN’s list), Tennessee guard Jaden Springer (No. 27), and Auburn forward JT Thor (No. 28) were some of the other potential first-rounders who visited. The group also included Iowa center Luka Garza, Howard center Makur Maker, and Croatian forward Roko Prkacin (No. 37).

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Central Notes: Pacers, Nored, Green, Grant, Carlisle

July 1st, 2021 at 9:12pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pacers are close to hiring former Hornets assistant coach Ronald Nored to join Rick Carlisle‘s staff, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star tweets. Nored reportedly received consideration for the Wizards’ head coaching job. It’s not clear if he remains a candidate for that position, but presumably if he takes an assistant job in Indiana he wouldn’t expect to be hired by Washington.

The Pacers have zeroed in on former Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce as Carlisle’s top assistant. Darrell Armstrong, Carlisle’s longtime assistant with the Mavericks, will not join him in Indiana, J. Michael adds in a separate tweet.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • Jalen Green‘s scoring ability makes him a legitimate candidate for the Pistons to select him with the top overall pick, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com writes. Green, who played with the G League’s Ignite team this season, is the most likely member of this year’s draft class to lead the league in scoring during his career, Langlois notes. At 6’6”, Green also has the size, elite skill level, athleticism and work ethic to be a special player in the league and that would give any team holding the top pick a lot to consider heading into the draft.
  • The Pistons shouldn’t consider trading Jerami Grant coming off his career year, Rod Beard of the Detroit News opines. Dealing Grant would send a bad message that Detroit would be willing to flip an improving player who chose the franchise in free agency, Beard notes. Grant, who was recently added to Team USA, would be a top-line scorer and defender on a contending team, Beard adds.
  • By re-hiring Carlisle, the Pacers are making a statement that they are no longer satisfied with mediocrity, says Bob Kravitz of The Athletic. Despite the team’s record this season, the Pacers have the pieces to make the playoffs and blossom into a contender. However, they need direction, professionalism and accountability, and bringing in Carlisle should facilitate that process.
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Roster Announced For U.S. Select Team

July 1st, 2021 at 12:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

The roster has been released for the U.S. Select Team, which will help Team USA prepare for the Olympics, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Select Team, which will practice with and scrimmage against the national team during the upcoming training camp in Las Vegas, is made up mostly of first- and second-year NBA players. It will be coached by Erik Spoelstra of the Heat.

Making up the roster are:

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Hornets To Work Out Joshua Primo

June 30th, 2021 at 1:30pm CST by Luke Adams
  • Besides Indiana, Primo is scheduled for workouts with the Pelicans, Hornets, Spurs, and Thunder, a source tells Wasserman (Twitter link). The draft’s youngest prospect, Primo is “firmly” in the first-round picture, Wasserman adds.
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Latest On Wizards’ Head Coaching Search

June 30th, 2021 at 1:10pm CST by Luke Adams

1:10pm: Bulls assistant Chris Fleming has also interviewed for the Wizards’ head coaching position, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).

12:28pm: The Wizards are continuing through their first round of head coaching interviews this week, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who hears that the team could move onto the next stage of the process by the end of the week.

An earlier report indicated that Washington’s search for Scott Brooks‘ replacement will be “lengthy and thorough.” Only a handful of candidates have been reported so far, but Scotto adds a couple more names to that list.

According to Scotto, Hornets assistant Ronald Nored and Heat assistant Chris Quinn are receiving consideration from the Wizards and were in the mix for the team’s first round of interviews.

Nored, who played for Butler from 2008-12 and coached the Long Island Nets from 2016-18, is also drawing interest from the Pacers as a possible assistant on Rick Carlisle‘s staff, Scotto adds. Quinn, meanwhile, has been a member of Erik Spoelstra‘s staff in Miami since 2014 and reportedly interviewed for Indiana’s head coaching job in 2020.

Nored and Quinn join a group of candidates that includes Wes Unseld Jr., Scott Morrison, Jamahl Mosley, and Sam Cassell. As we relayed earlier today, Cassell interviewed with the Wizards on Tuesday.

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