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Central Notes: Williams, Pistons, Haliburton, Toppin, Mitchell

July 27th, 2023 at 4:24pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The inclusion of young Pistons guards Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren on USA Basketball’s Select Team ahead of the August FIBA World Cup is a positive sign for Detroit, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com.

As Langlois explains, even being named to the group against which Team USA will scrimmage should be seen as a big honor, and being able to rub shoulders with some of the elite young players in the game should help clue the two young Pistons into just what it takes to thrive as a pro.

According to Langlois, Cunningham, the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft, actually received an invitation to join Team USA’s World Cup roster, but opted for a “more measured approach” as he continues to rehabilitate his surgically repaired shin.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

  • New Pistons head coach Monty Williams will have numerous options as he susses out Detroit’s rotation, writes Langlois in a separate piece. Langlois notes that, while the starting roles of Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, and power forward Bojan Bogdanovic are secure, it will be up to Williams to configure the rest of the club’s rotation.
  • Pacers All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton and newly acquired power forward Obi Toppin gave fans a tantalizing look at their on-court fit during Kyle Guy‘s Dizzy Runs Pro Am in Noblesville, Indiana, per The Indianapolis Star (subscriber-only link). Toppin discussed his offseason program. “It’s been mostly making shots and working on some of the actions that are different than New York’s,” Toppin said. “It’s just learning the new lingo and the offense that they run. I’ve been working with Ty with that and he’s been teaching me a little bit.”
  • The Cavaliers’ priority is holding onto All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell long-term with a team that he enjoys, not trading him, writes Sean Deveney of Heavy.com. Mitchell has a player option for 2025/26, meaning he could reach free agency in just two seasons. “They’re doing their best to reconfigure things around him and just keep rolling out the red carpet, making sure he knows he is taking care of, all of that,” a source told Deveney. “No one is hitting the eject button on this… Make him happy, make him comfortable, that is the job.”
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Cavs Optimistic About Ricky Rubio's Bounce-Back Potential

July 23rd, 2023 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams
  • The Cavaliers are optimistic about Ricky Rubio‘s bounce-back potential in 2023/24, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). As Fedor explains, Rubio is another year removed from ACL surgery and is expected to play for Spain in the World Cup, which could be a spring-board to a successful season. The Cavs’ addition of Ty Jerome was more about acquiring “playable depth” than an expectation he’ll usurp Rubio on the depth chart, Fedor adds.
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And-Ones: Summer League, McClung, Motiejunas, NBAGL Showcase

July 21st, 2023 at 10:37pm CST by Rory Maher

The Hornets‘ poor play was one of the worst parts of Las Vegas Summer League, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic.

Despite having eight players on the roster attending (and a ninth, James Nnaji, as one of a handful of remaining unsigned draft picks), Charlotte went 1-6 and was minus-55 overall. No one played particularly well, with Hollinger noting that the team may end up regretting not taking Scoot Henderson instead of Brandon Miller, if their brief Summer League performances were any indication.

Of more immediate concern for the Hornets are the fourth-year team option decisions on 2021 first-round picks James Bouknight and Kai Jones, which are due by late October. Neither looks like a sure bet to have his option picked up, as both players struggled in Vegas despite entering their third seasons, Hollinger adds. Bouknight’s option in 2024/25 is worth $6.1MM, while Jones’ is worth $4.7MM — not exactly team-friendly rates given they haven’t contributed much thus far.

Nnaji showed some defensive promise, but may be a draft-and-stash prospect while he develops his offensive game, says Hollinger.

Among the other players who struggled in Summer League were Pistons center James Wiseman (poor screening and defense), Nets first-rounder Noah Clowney (looked overmatched) and Lakers draft picks Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis, according to Hollinger.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

  • On the other end of the spectrum, Hollinger also revealed his under-the-radar Summer League standouts for The Athletic, including Javon Freeman-Liberty, who just agreed to a two-way deal with the Raptors, and Cavaliers guards Sam Merrill and Craig Porter Jr., the latter of whom went undrafted and signed a two-way contract with Cleveland. Hollinger says he would have given Merrill, whose contract for next season is non-guaranteed, the Summer League MVP award over Cam Whitmore.
  • Free agent guard Mac McClung, who finished last season on a two-way deal with the Sixers, tells Sean Deveney of Heavy.com he’s focused on making another NBA team, but he’s open to going to Europe if he can’t find a roster spot. “We’ll see,” McClung said. “I am in free agency right now, my agent is talking to some teams, back and forth. We’re just trying to evaluate what is the best situation for me. Hopefully, I will be in the NBA next year and finding my way.”
  • Former NBA big man Donatas Motiejunas has signed a two-year extension with AS Monaco Basket, the team announced (via Twitter). Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com had the scoop on Motiejunas’ extension (Twitter link). The 32-year-old spent six seasons in the NBA, ending with a brief stint with San Antonio back in 2018/19. He was productive on a per-minute basis for Monaco, which won France’s LNB Pro A and finished third in the EuroLeague playoffs.
  • In 2023/24, the NBA G League’s Winter Showcase event will be held in Orlando instead of Las Vegas, league sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The Showcase has been held Vegas for several years, but will be moving due to the NBA’s new in-season tournament, as the semifinals and final will be held in early December in Vegas.
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Isaiah Mobley Made Mark During Summer League

July 21st, 2023 at 7:41pm CST by Rory Maher
  • He may not be as well-known as his younger brother, but Cavaliers big man Isaiah Mobley, who is on a two-way deal with Cleveland, made his mark during Las Vegas Summer League, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). Mobley hit an overtime game-winner in the team’s fifth game against Brooklyn, with the Cavs going on to finish 6-0 and leaving with a championship. He averaged 17.8 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.5 BPG and 1.0 SPG on 49.3% from the field in 28.3 MPG in Vegas. Mobley is the older brother of Evan Mobley, who finished third in Defensive Player of the Year voting this past season.
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International Notes: Neto, Edwards, Bone, Brazdeikis, Cornelie

July 21st, 2023 at 3:00pm CST by Tristan Tucker

After spending the past eight seasons in the NBA, free agent guard Raul Neto could be headed to an opportunity overseas. Turkish club Fenerbahce is reportedly working on a deal with the 31-year-old point guard, who averaged 3.3 points and 1.6 assists in 48 games with the Cavaliers last season, tweets Shot Vetakis of LiveSport and SDNA.

Neto signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract with Cleveland in the summer of 2022 after spending the previous two years with the Wizards. The Brazilian guard’s best statistical seasons came in Washington, where he averaged 8.1 points and 2.7 assists in 134 games across two seasons.

Before his successful stint with the Wizards, Neto also had stops with the Jazz and the 76ers. Neto didn’t end up playing big minutes for the Cavaliers last season as a third-string point guard and he entered unrestricted free agency this summer.

There’s more from the international scene.

  • Point guard Carsen Edwards officially signed with FC Bayern Munich of Basketball Bundesliga, the club announced. Edwards, the No. 33 overall pick in the 2019 draft, played two seasons with the Celtics. The Purdue product wound up making a stop in the G League with the Salt Lake City Stars before briefly joining the Pistons at the end of the 2021/22 season, his most recent NBA team. Edwards holds NBA career averages of 3.7 points and 1.1 rebounds in 72 NBA games. He spent last season with Fenerbahce.
  • Former Pistons and Magic guard Jordan Bone officially signed with Vanoli Cremona of Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A, the club announced (hat tip to Sportando). Bone hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2020/21 season, when he appeared on a two-way contract with the Magic. Before that, he was on a two-way deal with the Pistons after being selected with the 57th pick in the 2019 draft. Bone holds career averages of 2.8 points and 1.1 assists per game at the NBA level but played more extensively in the G League, where he averaged 15.6 points and 5.8 assists.
  • Zalgiris Kaunas of the EuroLeague announced that it has retained former Magic, Knicks and Sixers wing Ignas Brazdeikis. Brazdeikis spent last season with the Lithuanian club, averaging 11.6 points and 2.9 rebounds. The Knicks acquired Brazdeikis’s draft rights after he was selected with the 47th pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and he spent two seasons there before making stops with the 76ers and Magic. Brazdeikis has 64 games of NBA experience and holds career averages of 5.0 points and 1.9 rebounds. The club also retained guard Keenan Evans, who hasn’t appeared in an NBA game but was briefly on a two-way contract with the Pistons in 2018.
  • Petr Cornelie, the No. 53 overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, signed a three-year contract with AS Monaco Basket of the EuroLeague, according to a tweet from the club. Cornelie is fresh off winning the EuroLeague with Real Madrid last season, averaging 5.8 points and 3.1 rebounds during the Spanish team’s run. Cornelie was drafted by the Nuggets in 2016 but didn’t come stateside until the 2021/22 season, when he signed a two-way contract with Denver. The French big man only played in 13 games with the Nuggets, averaging 1.1 points and 1.1 rebounds, but he played a much bigger role with Denver’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold, where he averaged 17.7 points and 12.8 rebounds.
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Nets, Cavaliers To Play In NBA’s 2024 Paris Game

July 19th, 2023 at 9:01am CST by Luke Adams

The Nets and Cavaliers will compete in the NBA’s Paris Game in 2024, the league announced today in a press release.

The game will take place at the Accor Arena in Paris, France on January 11, 2024.

After having previously only held exhibition games in Paris, the NBA played its first regular season game at Accor Arena in January 2020, when the Bucks faced the Hornets. Following a three-year layoff due to COVID-19, the league returned to Paris this past January, with the Bulls facing the Pistons.

The contest between the Nets and Cavaliers will be the NBA’s third regular season game in France. It’ll also be the first one that features two playoff teams from the prior season.

“We’re thrilled to be bringing the live NBA experience back to Paris with two exciting teams in the Brooklyn Nets and the Cleveland Cavaliers,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said in a statement. “This game has become a destination for our passionate fans across Europe and will build on the incredible momentum around basketball and the NBA in France and throughout the region.”

The NBA’s popularity in France figures to be on the rise this season due to the stateside arrival of No. 1 overall pick and generational prospect Victor Wembanyama. A previous report indicated that there’s hope that the Frenchman’s Spurs will get a chance to participate in the Paris game in 2025.

The league announced in May that the Mavericks and Timberwolves will take part in a pair of October preseason games in Abu Dhabi, but has yet to confirm any other regular season games that will take place outside of the U.S. or Canada in 2023/24. Last season, in addition to the Paris contest, the Spurs hosted a December game in Mexico City.

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Rockets’ Cam Whitmore Named Summer League MVP

July 17th, 2023 at 2:46pm CST by Rory Maher

Rockets forward Cam Whitmore has been named the Las Vegas Summer League Most Valuable Player, the NBA announced (via Twitter).

The NBA also announced its All-Summer League First and Second Teams, which are as follows (Twitter links):

First Team

Second Team

According to the NBA (Twitter link), Christie and Moon received the same amount of votes, which is why there is an additional backcourt player on the second team.

Whitmore, a projected lottery pick in last month’s draft who fell to Houston at No. 20, averaged 20.4 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 2.2 APG and 3.0 SPG on .465/.293/.625 shooting in his five Vegas Summer League games, per NBA.com.

Houston faces Cleveland at 8 p.m. CT tonight in the Summer League championship game. Both teams are undefeated, holding identical 5-0 records.

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Cavaliers Continue To Eye Free Agent Market

July 16th, 2023 at 9:41am CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers remain interested in adding at least one more free agent to their roster before training camp, sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). According to Fedor, the team isn’t targeting any specific position and is simply focused on “playable depth.”

As Fedor outlines, the Cavaliers currently have 12 players on guaranteed contracts, plus Sam Merrill on a non-guaranteed deal. The club has about $3MM in breathing room below the luxury tax line and has no interest in becoming a taxpayer, so the 15th roster spot will probably remain open to start the season. In all likelihood, the Cavs would add one more player on a minimum-salary contract (or two, if Merrill is cut) in order to set the regular season roster.

Sources tell Fedor that Cleveland has registered interest in some of the top unrestricted free agents still available on the open market, including forward Kelly Oubre and center Christian Wood. Oubre was viewed as the Cavs’ Plan B if they hadn’t been able to land Max Strus via sign-and-trade, Fedor adds.

Fedor also mentions restricted free agent P.J. Washington, noting that the Cavs might have enough expendable salary (starting with Ricky Rubio and Dean Wade) to build a sign-and-trade package for the Hornets forward. However, I don’t see a scenario in which Cleveland could put together an offer that appeals to Charlotte, pays Washington the sort of money he’s seeking, and keeps the Cavs out of the tax.

Cleveland’s next signing will probably be a “minor” one, Fedor acknowledges, with the team looking to land a “cheaper-than-expected” rotation player at the veteran’s minimum like Golden State did with Dario Saric.

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Free Agent Rumors: Oubre, Jones, Brooks, Smith, Giles

July 15th, 2023 at 1:43pm CST by Rory Maher

The Mavericks are actively looking to improve their roster and have shown “exploratory interest in several free agent forwards,” including veterans Kelly Oubre and Derrick Jones Jr., league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Although Dallas technically still has a good chunk of its full mid-level exception available, the team has yet to sign first-rounder Olivier-Maxence Prosper, and once that occurs the Mavs will be pretty close to the luxury tax line. They do have an open standard roster spot and could offer a free agent more money than the veteran’s minimum, but not much more unless other moves are made.

On a related note, Scotto confirms that the Mavs continue to shop Tim Hardaway Jr. and JaVale McGee in trade talks. Recent rumors have indicated Dallas tried to package Hardaway and McGee to the Pistons for Bojan Bogdanovic and Killian Hayes.

Scotto hears Detroit was looking for “essentially two first-round picks” in exchange for Bogdanovic last season, though Hayes could available with a glut of guards on the Pistons’ roster.

Here are more free agent rumors from Scotto:

  • Free agent guard Armoni Brooks, who has been playing well for the Nets in Summer League, could be a candidate for a two-way deal from Brooklyn, according to Scotto. However, if that doesn’t transpire, the 25-year-old has also drawn interest from “multiple EuroLeague teams,” Scotto reports. Brooks holds two years of NBA experience with the Rockets and Raptors. He played for Atlanta’s G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, in 2022/23.
  • League sources tell Scotto that the Hornets offered Dennis Smith Jr. more than the veteran’s minimum to return to Charlotte, but the Nets reached out to the point guard right after free agency opened and he saw an opportunity for more playing time in Brooklyn. The fact that he was a priority for the Nets also appealed to the former lottery pick, says Scotto.
  • The Pistons, Cavaliers, Knicks and Bucks were among the teams who watched Harry Giles‘ recent workout in Las Vegas, sources tell Scotto. Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News recently reported that members of the Timberwolves attended as well, which Scotto confirms. A former first-round pick, Giles has been out of the league the past two seasons after playing with the Kings and Trail Blazers from 2018-21. Still just 25 years old, Giles recently discussed his attempt to make it back into the NBA.
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Ricky Rubio Considering Return To Spain in 2024?

July 11th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams
  • Could this be Ricky Rubio‘s last season in the NBA? According to a report from Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, the veteran point guard is considering returning to his home country and playing for Barcelona in 2024. Rubio is under contract with the Cavaliers for two more seasons, though his ’24/25 salary is only partially guaranteed.
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