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2020/21 NBA G League Draft Results

January 11th, 2021 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA G League held its draft for the 2020/21 season on Monday afternoon.

In a typical year, the G League draft lasts four rounds and teams are only required to make two selections. However, this year’s draft was just three rounds and teams weren’t required to make any picks.

Because only 17 of 28 NBA G League affiliates (plus the G League Ignite) are participating in the revamped season at Walt Disney World in Florida, and because teams aren’t permitted to bring extra players to training camp for health and safety reasons, roster spots will be at a premium in the NBAGL this season, and the draft reflected that. Only 25 players were selected.

With the first overall pick, the Greensboro Swarm – the Hornets‘ affiliate – nabbed former Wizard Admiral Schofield. The 42nd overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, Schofield averaged 3.0 PPG and 1.4 RPG in 33 games (11.2 MPG) as a rookie before being traded to the Thunder during the offseason. Oklahoma City waived him last month.

With the second overall pick, which they acquired in a trade earlier in the day, the Memphis Hustle selected former Baylor standout Freddie Gillespie, who had been in camp with the Mavericks. Gillespie recently spoke to JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors about his desire to make it to the NBA and his plans to begin his professional career in the G League. He’s now in position to suit up for the Grizzlies‘ affiliate.

Here are the full 2020/21 G League draft results:

Round One:

  1. Greensboro Swarm (Hornets): Admiral Schofield (Tennessee)
  2. Memphis Hustle (Grizzlies): Freddie Gillespie (Baylor)
  3. Canton Charge (Cavaliers): Antonio Blakeney (LSU)
  4. Iowa Wolves (Timberwolves): Allonzo Trier (Arizona)
  5. Lakeland Magic (Magic):  Tahjere McCall (Tennessee State)
  6. Canton Charge: Anthony Lamb (Vermont)
  7. Oklahoma City Blue (Thunder): Zavier Simpson (Michigan)
  8. Lakeland Magic: DJ Hogg (Texas A&M)
  9. Westchester Knicks (Knicks): Justin Patton (Creighton)
  10. Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Rockets): Armoni Brooks (Houston)
  11. Raptors 905 (Raptors): Kevon Harris (Stephen F. Austin)
  12. Rio Grande Valley Vipers: Jarron Cumberland (Cincinnati)
  13. Oklahoma City Blue: Vince Edwards (Purdue)
  14. Austin Spurs (Spurs): Jonathan Kasibabu (Fairfield)
  15. Raptors 905: Gary Payton II (Oregon State)
  16. Memphis Hustle: Anthony Cowan Jr. (Maryland)
  17. Iowa Wolves: Dakarai Tucker (Utah)
  18. Salt Lake City Stars (Jazz): No pick
  19. N/A

Round Two:

  1. Delaware Blue Coats (Sixers): Jemerrio Jones (New Mexico State)
  2. Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Pacers): Oshae Brissett (Syracuse)
  3. Westchester Knicks: No pick
  4. Iowa Wolves: No pick
  5. Long Island Nets (Nets): No pick
  6. Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario (Clippers): No pick
  7. Fort Wayne Mad Ants: Quincy McKnight (Seton Hall)
  8. Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario (Clippers): No pick
  9. Santa Cruz Warriors (Warriors): Selom Mawugbe (Azusa Pacific)
  10. Raptors 905: No pick
  11. Memphis Hustle: No pick
  12. Austin Spurs: Anthony Mathis (Oregon)
  13. Erie BayHawks (Pelicans): No pick
  14. Greensboro Swarm: No pick
  15. Austin Spurs: Kaleb Johnson (Georgetown)
  16. Santa Cruz Warriors: No pick
  17. Memphis Hustle: No pick
  18. Oklahoma City Blue: Rob Edwards (Arizona State)
  19. Salt Lake City Stars: No pick

Round Three:

  1. Greensboro Swarm: No pick
  2. Erie BayHawks: No pick
  3. Westchester Knicks: No pick
  4. Delaware Blue Coats: Braxton Key (Virginia)
  5. No picks from 43-57

The teams that didn’t make any picks will fill their rosters with affiliate players and returning rights players, meaning they didn’t need to draft anyone and/or didn’t have the open spots to do so.

As Jonathan Givony of ESPN and Blake Murphy of The Athletic noted (via Twitter), NBAGL teams overwhelmingly opted for youth, passing on most of the notable veteran NBA players in the draft pool. That group included Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers, Lance Stephenson, Emeka Okafor, and Shabazz Muhammad, among others.

Former Nets first-rounder Dzanan Musa removed his name from the draft pool before the event began, per Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).

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Cavaliers Sign Yogi Ferrell To 10-Day Contract

January 11th, 2021 at 9:54am CST by Luke Adams

9:54am: The Cavaliers have officially signed Ferrell to his 10-day deal, the team announced in a press release. The contract will run through next Wednesday, January 20.

8:27am: The Cavaliers are signing veteran point guard Yogi Ferrell to a 10-day contract, reports Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Ferrell is expected to be available to play on Monday night vs. Memphis after finalizing his deal and conducting the necessary COVID-19 testing, Fedor adds.

Typically, teams can’t sign players to 10-day contracts this early in the season — the 10-day signing window for 2021 doesn’t open until February 23. However, the NBA tweaked its rules a little for this season, allowing teams to complete 10-day deals early if they’re adding a player via the hardship provision.

A hardship exception allows a team to add an extra player to its 15-man roster on a short-term basis. It can be granted by the league if the club has at least four players who have missed three or more games due to injury or illness and are expected to be out for at least two more weeks.

We heard last week that the Cavaliers, who are currently without Kevin Love (calf), Dylan Windler (wrist), Dante Exum (calf), and Matthew Dellavedova (concussion), among others, planned to apply for an extra roster spot via the hardship provision as soon as they became eligible. It appears that request was approved, so Cleveland won’t have to waive anyone to sign Ferrell.

Ferrell, 27, was a member of the Kings for the last two years, averaging 5.3 PPG and 1.7 APG on .430/.342/.881 shooting in 121 total games (13.2 MPG) across those two seasons. He didn’t find a new NBA home in free agency in November after his contract with Sacramento expired, but will – at least for the time being – provide some point guard depth for the Cavs.

In addition to missing Exum and Dellavedova, Cleveland will also be without Darius Garland (shoulder) on Monday, while Collin Sexton (ankle) is listed as questionable. In other words, Ferrell could be immediately thrust into a prominent role, given the lack of options available at the point for the Cavs.

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Bickerstaff Goes Old School Due To Injuries

January 10th, 2021 at 2:28pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • Prior to suffering a shoulder sprain, Cavaliers guard Darius Garland was emerging as the most improved player of the NBA’s sophomore class, Garrett Brooks of Basketball Insiders opines. Garland, the No. 5 pick of the 2019 draft, is averaging 17.2 PPG and 6.3 APG and shooting 46.9% from 3-point range.
  • Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff has been forced to improvise due to a number of injuries, especially to his backcourt, and he’s using an old-school scheme, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. “It’s a flashback to the 80s,” Bickerstaff said. “We try to slow the game down. We try to make it half court. We’re calling sets and running plays that literally they ran into the early’ 90s, late ’80s when they played with those bigs.”
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Cavs To Apply For Hardship Exception

January 7th, 2021 at 10:39am CST by Luke Adams

Hit hard by injuries, the Cavaliers are expected to apply for a hardship exception this weekend, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.

Unlike a disabled player exception – which gives teams extra cap flexibility and can only be used to replace a player who suffers a season-ending injury – a hardship exception allows a team to add a 16th player to its 15-man roster on a short-term basis. It can be granted by the league if a club has at least four players who have missed three or more games due to injury or illness and are expected to be out for at least two more weeks.

As Fedor notes, the Cavaliers can’t apply for the exception quite yet, since one of their four injured players – Dante Exum – has only been sidelined for a single game so far. Exum will miss his third game on Saturday, at which point Cleveland can officially seek approval.

Kevin Love (calf) and Dylan Windler (wrist) will also be sidelined for the foreseeable future. With Darius Garland (shoulder) a candidate to return within the next week or two, Matthew Dellavedova (concussion) may be the fourth Cav expected to remain out for multiple weeks — he has yet to suit up for the team this season and is considered out indefinitely.

If their application is approved, the Cavs will target another ball-handler, says Fedor. The goal would be to solidify the point guard spot, with Exum and Dellavedova out. In light of the NBA’s recent rule tweaks, any player signed via the hardship provision by Cleveland would almost certainly receive a 10-day contract.

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Cavs' Injury Woes Continue

January 6th, 2021 at 10:38am CST by Luke Adams
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Cavs’ Dante Exum To Miss 1-2 Months

January 5th, 2021 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers guard Dante Exum is expected to miss 1-2 months with a strained right calf, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Exum suffered the non-contact injury during the first quarter of the team’s game against Orlando on Monday. He was writhing in pain and eventually hobbled to the bench, unable to put weight on his leg.

It’s a blow to the Cavs, as coach J.B. Bickerstaff had plugged Exum in a defensive stopper role.

“I think (Dante) is a heck of a defender,” Bickerstaff said over the weekend. “He’s extremely intelligent. He’s got great length. And he’s committed to trying to go out and get the job done.”

The injury could impact Exum’s future earnings. Exum, who is making $9.6MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. He’s dealt with a number of health problems over the years that sidetracked his career. He hasn’t played more than 42 games in the past three seasons.

Cleveland has been hit hard by injuries and other issues this season

Exum was inserted into the lineup when rookie Isaac Okoro sprained his foot and then was placed on the league’s COVID-19 list. Kevin Porter Jr. has been out for personal reasons and his return is unknown, while Kevin Love is expected to miss most of this month with a calf strain. Matthew Dellavedova has been sidelined after suffering a concussion during the preseason.

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Injury Updates: Exum, Hayes, Bogdanovic, Okogie, Towns

January 4th, 2021 at 9:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers guard Dante Exum departed Monday’s game against Orlando in the opening minute with a right calf strain, according to Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He went down with a non-contact injury and eventually hobbled to the bench, unable to put weight on his leg. Cleveland players spoke with optimism regarding the injury after the game, Fedor tweets.

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

  • Pistons lottery pick Killian Hayes left Monday’s game against Milwaukee during the third quarter with a right hip injury, James Edwards III of The Athletic tweets. Hayes has started regularly during his rookie season. He’ll have an MRI on Tuesday, coach Dwane Casey said after the game.
  • Jazz swingman Bojan Bogdanovic has continually experienced soreness in his surgically repaired right wrist, Sarah Todd of The Deseret News writes. Bogdanovic put on a brace during Sunday’s game against San Antonio and it helped dramatically, as he scored 28 points. “I really hate to play with anything on my body, any tape, any brace, anything,” he said. “But I really needed it because my wrist is kind od sore whenever I follow through when I’m shooting.”
  • Josh Okogie is closer to returning than Karl-Anthony Towns for the Timberwolves, Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweets. Okogie has missed the last four games with a left hamstring strain. Towns has only played two games due to a dislocated left wrist. Meanwhile, Jaylen Nowell is ramping up in practice and is close to making his season debut. He’s been sidelined with a left ankle injury.
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Exum Getting Reputation As Defensive Stopper

January 4th, 2021 at 5:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Cavaliers have plugged Dante Exum into the role of defensive stopper, according to Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. New head coach J.B. Bickerstaff used Exum to help hold Atlanta star guard Trae Young to 16 points on Saturday. “I think (Dante) is a heck of a defender,” Bickerstaff said. “He’s extremely intelligent. He’s got great length. And he’s committed to trying to go out and get the job done.” Exum, who is making $9.6MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

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Cavs Were Among Teams With Offseason Interest In Hartenstein

January 4th, 2021 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams
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Cavaliers Notes: Okoro, Garland, Dellavedova, Porter

January 2nd, 2021 at 6:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

It didn’t take long for rookie Isaac Okoro to establish himself as a difference maker for the Cavaliers, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The fifth player taken in this year’s draft won the starting small forward job in training camp and was effective in his first two games before suffering a sprained foot. He was recently placed in the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocol, so the Cavs aren’t sure when he can return, although they’re hoping he’ll be back before their road trip ends next Saturday.

“He makes you feel comfortable. He makes you feel like you can trust him because of the way he plays,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Okoro. “He’s safe with the basketball. He doesn’t mess up many assignments. He executes offensively where he’s supposed to, and he just does all the little things that make the game of basketball easy. He made us feel extremely comfortable that we can rely on him while he’s out there on the floor.”

Cleveland has started three different players at small forward in the three games since losing Okoro. Larry Nance Jr. got the assignment first, followed by Cedi Osman and then Dante Exum in what Bickerstaff called a “matchup thing” against the Pacers. Damyean Dotson may also be in the mix until Okoro returns, Fedor adds.

There’s more from Cleveland:

  • The Cavaliers are seeing significant improvement from second-year guard Darius Garland, notes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. After a rough rookie season, there were reports that Garland stepped up his game at the team’s voluntary mini-camp. He’s carried that over to the new season, averaging 19.0 points, 7.2 assists and 3.6 rebounds through five games.
  • The Cavs are being careful with veteran guard Matthew Dellavedova, who hasn’t played since suffering a concussion during the preseason, Pluto adds in the same piece. Dellavedova has experienced several concussions in his career, and the team wants to make sure he’s completely ready to play.
  • Kevin Porter Jr. is dealing with personal issues and Cavaliers officials aren’t sure when he’ll resume playing, sources tell Pluto. Charges against Porter from a November incident were dropped last month, but the front office remains concerned about his maturity level.
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