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Update On 2022 First-Round Picks

April 16th, 2022 at 12:34am CST by Rory Maher

Cleveland fell to Atlanta in the East’s final play-in game, missing out on a playoff berth. However, there was one silver lining for the Cavaliers: they’re keeping their first-round pick in the 2022 draft.

If the Cavs had won and advanced to the playoffs, the Pacers would have received Cleveland’s lottery-protected pick. But now that pick will be pushed off until next season, with Cleveland owing its lottery-protected 2023 first-rounder to Indiana.

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (via Twitter), if the Cavs fail to advance to the postseason in 2023, Indiana will again miss out on the first-round pick and will instead control Cleveland’s 2025 second-round pick.

The Cavs’ pick this season will be No. 14, unless they get lucky and move into the top four in the lottery. The Hawks, meanwhile, will move out of the lottery and will pick at No. 16.

The West’s final play-in tournament contest also had major first-round implications. The Pelicans defeated the Clippers, so the Hornets now own New Orleans’ first-round pick (No. 15), while the Trail Blazers will receive Milwaukee’s 2025 first-rounder (top-four protected; via NOLA).

All is not lost for the Pelicans, of course. In addition to making the playoffs as the No. 8 seed, there’s a 99.6% chance they’ll control the Lakers‘ first-round pick.

The Thunder also picked up an additional lottery pick from the Clippers, as they controlled LAC’s unprotected first-rounder. That pick will have the 12th-best lottery odds.

We’ll have a more complete picture of where things stand for the entire first round after the draft tiebreakers are conducted on Monday, at which point we’ll release a full breakdown of the lottery odds and draft order.

Jarrett Allen To Play On Friday

April 15th, 2022 at 6:05pm CST by Rory Maher

APRIL 15: Allen will make his return and start in the make-or-break matchup to determine the No. 8 seed in the East, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavs will also start Caris LeVert at shooting guard, with Isaac Okoro heading to the bench.

Charania first reported (via Twitter) that Allen would return on Friday, barring a last-minute setback.

APRIL 14: Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who is officially listed as questionable on the team’s injury report, is going to attempt to return for Cleveland’s play-in game against the Hawks on Friday, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski states (via Twitter) that Allen considers the odds of him returning to be “50-50,” as the pain in his fractured left middle finger is still bothering him quite a bit, but he’s intent on helping the Cavs make the playoffs. Allen missed the last 18 games of the regular season and Tuesday’s play-in tournament loss to Brooklyn after sustaining the injury on March 6.

A first-time All-Star in 2021/22, Allen had a stellar season for Cleveland, averaging 16.1 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while shooting 67.7% from the field and 70.8% from the free throw line. He appeared in 56 games, with an average of 32.3 minutes per contest. The team was just 9-17 in the 26 games Allen missed this season.

Hawks big man John Collins has officially been ruled out for Friday’s game, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Collins has been dealing with a right foot sprain and plantar fascia tear, as well as a right ring finger sprain. He was considered unlikely to play in the matchup to determine the No. 8 seed in the East, so the fact that he has formally been listed as out isn’t surprising.

In other injury-related news for the Hawks, Bogdan Bogdanovic is listed as questionable with a left ankle sprain, while Lou Williams has been ruled out with lower back discomfort, per Kirschner.

Potential 2022 RFAs Whose Qualifying Offers Will Be Impacted By Starter Criteria

April 15th, 2022 at 10:17am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s rookie scale, which determines how much first-round picks earn during their first four NBA seasons, also dictates how much the qualifying offers will be worth for those players when they reach restricted free agency after year four. However, the value of those qualifying offers can fluctuate depending on whether or not a player has met the “starter criteria.”

Here’s how the starter criteria works in a typical year:

A player who is eligible for restricted free agency is considered to have met the starter criteria if he plays at least 2,000 minutes or starts 41 games in the season before he reaches free agency.
A player can also meet the criteria if he averages either of those marks in the two seasons prior to his restricted free agency. For instance, if a player started 50 games one year and 32 the next, he’d meet the starter criteria, since his average number of starts over the last two seasons is 41.

The thresholds for the starter criteria this year are a little different due to the truncated nature of the 2020/21 season. We outlined those tweaks at the start of the season.

A player’s ability or inability to meet the starter criteria can affect the value of the qualifying offer he receives as a restricted free agent, as follows:

A top-14 pick who does not meet the starter criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the 15th overall pick would receive if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale.
A player picked between 10th and 30th who meets the criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the ninth overall pick would receive if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale.
A second-round pick or undrafted player who meets the criteria will receive a qualifying offer equal to the amount the 21st overall pick would receive if he signed for 100% of the rookie scale.
For all other RFAs, the standard criteria determine the amounts of their qualifying offers.

Extending a qualifying offer to a player eligible for restricted free agency officially makes that player an RFA, ensuring that his team has the right of first refusal if he signs an offer sheet with another club. It also gives the player the option of signing that one-year QO.

Generally, the value of a restricted free agent’s qualifying offer isn’t hugely important, since very few RFAs accept those offers outright. There are exceptions though.

Last offseason, for instance, Bruce Brown met the starter criteria heading into restricted free agency, increasing the value of his qualifying offer to $4,736,102. The Nets decided to issue that qualifying offer and he accepted it. Had he fallen short of the starter criteria, Brown only would have been eligible for a qualifying offer worth around $2MM and his free agency could have played out very differently.

Top-14 picks who failed to meet starter criteria:

With all that in mind, let’s check in on how this year’s RFAs-to-be will be impacted by the starter criteria. Listed below are the former top-14 picks on track for restricted free agency who did not meet the starter criteria. These players will be eligible for qualifying offers worth $7,228,448.

Marvin Bagley III (Pistons)
Collin Sexton (Cavaliers)
Kevin Knox (Hawks)

Seven of the 14 players selected with lottery picks in the 2018 draft signed rookie scale extensions in 2021, meaning they won’t have to worry about the value of their qualifying offers this offseason.

Of the other seven, the three players listed above failed to meet the criteria. Bagley is the biggest loser in the trio — his qualifying offer would’ve been worth approximately $14.76MM if he had met the starter criteria. Sexton’s would’ve been about $8.56MM, while Knox’s would’ve been $7.92MM.

Even with the amount of his qualifying offer lowered a little, Knox likely won’t receive a QO at all, making him an unrestricted free agent. Bagley and Sexton are much safer bets for QOs.

Top-14 picks Deandre Ayton (Suns) and Mohamed Bamba (Magic), each met the starter criteria, locking in their QO amounts at $16.42MM and $10.1MM, respectively. Miles Bridges (Hornets) also met the starter criteria, as detailed in the next section.

Jerome Robinson was the only top-14 pick from ’18 who was waived before completing his rookie contract — he’s no longer on an NBA roster and won’t be eligible for a qualifying offer this summer.

First-round picks between 10-30 who met starter criteria:

A player who fell into this category would see the amount of his qualifying offer increase to $7,921,300. Bridges, the No. 12 overall pick, was the only player to qualify.

As a result of meeting the starter criteria, Bridges’ qualifying offer will increase from about $7.46MM to $7.92MM, a modest bump. It shouldn’t change the outlook of his free agency, since he’ll almost certainly receive a lucrative long-term offer.

Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons looked like one of the best candidates to join Bridges in this group. He needed to make 41 starts this season for Portland, but only got to 30 before he was shut down for the season with a left knee injury. His qualifying offer will remain at $5.76MM, but that shouldn’t have a major impact on his free agency, since he’ll likely work out a multiyear deal with the Blazers.

Meanwhile, because Kings wing Donte DiVincenzo was a full-time starter for the Bucks in 2020/21, he only needed to make seven starts this season to meet the starter criteria. However, he ultimately started just once for Milwaukee and Sacramento, even when he was playing heavy minutes down the stretch for the Kings.

DiVincenzo’s qualifying offer will remain at $6.6MM, which actually could have a tangible effect on his free agency — if he doesn’t get a multiyear offer with a starting salary much higher than his qualifying offer, accepting the QO and reaching unrestricted free agency in 2023 may be DiVincenzo’s best option. Presumably, that’s why his camp reportedly wasn’t thrilled that he was still coming off the bench at the end of the season.

Second-round picks and UDFAs who met starter criteria:

The players listed below signed as second-round picks or undrafted free agents, but met the starter criteria and are now eligible for a qualifying offer worth $4,869,012.

Luguentz Dort (Thunder)
Jae’Sean Tate (Rockets)

Of course, it’s very possible neither Dort nor Tate will even become a free agent this summer, since their contracts both include team options for 2022/23.

The Thunder could decide to turn down Dort’s minimum-salary option for next season in order to make him a restricted free agent this year instead of an unrestricted free agent next year, but there’s no guarantee they’ll go that route. If they do, his QO would be worth $4.87MM instead of $2.22MM.

Meanwhile, there’s no incentive for the Rockets to decline Tate’s option, since he’ll still be eligible for restricted free agency in 2023, so the amount of his potential qualifying offer this summer will be rendered moot.

Among other second-round picks and undrafted free agents, Hornets wing Cody Martin (1,866 minutes), Clippers swingman Amir Coffey (30 starts), and Trail Blazers forward CJ Elleby (28 starts) are a few who were in the ballpark of the starter criteria, but none got there. Martin, Coffey, Elleby, and the rest of this year’s restricted free agents won’t have their projected qualifying offers impacted by the starter criteria.

Poll: Friday’s Play-In Games

April 14th, 2022 at 10:56am CST by Luke Adams

Through four games, there have been no upsets in the NBA’s 2022 play-in tournament. Both No. 7 seeds won on Tuesday and both No. 9 seeds were victorious on Wednesday, setting up a pair of No. 8 vs. No. 9 showdowns on Friday.

In the East, it’ll be the No. 9 Hawks visiting the No. 8 Cavaliers, and for the first time in this year’s play-in tournament, the road team will enter the game as the betting favorite. The Hawks are currently favored by 2.5 points on BetOnline.ag.

Although the Hawks finished the season a game behind the Cavaliers in the standings, Atlanta was clearly the better team in the second half. While the Hawks finished the season on a 26-14 run, the Cavs struggled to hold their spot in the Eastern Conference standings after a hot start and went 9-17 down the stretch. The two teams’ play-in results so far reflect that second-half momentum — Cleveland never led against Brooklyn on Tuesday, while Atlanta controlled Wednesday’s game against Charlotte for nearly the entire night.

Cleveland’s home-court advantage will be a boon. And if Jarrett Allen is able to return from his finger injury while John Collins‘ own finger and foot injuries keep him sidelined, the Cavs should have an advantage in the frontcourt. But there’s a real possibility that after holding a top-six spot for much of the season, Cleveland could miss the playoffs altogether.

[Note: The following section on the Western play-in game was written before word broke that Paul George will miss the game due to a positive COVID-19 test.]

In the West, the No. 8 Clippers will host the No. 9 Pelicans, with L.A. listed as a four-point favorite, per BetOnline.ag.

The Clippers finished the year six games ahead of the Pelicans in the standings, but those end-of-season records are somewhat misleading. Since November 17, New Orleans has actually been better (34-32) than Los Angeles (33-35), and the Pelicans have taken another step forward since acquiring CJ McCollum at the trade deadline.

Of course, that’s not to say that the Clippers were spiraling when the regular season ended — they’d just gotten Paul George and Norman Powell back in their lineup following lengthy injury absences and won their last five games of the year before losing a tight one in Minnesota on Tuesday.

Friday’s do-or-die late game would be can’t-miss TV if injured forwards Kawhi Leonard (ACL) and Zion Williamson (foot) were available, but even without those stars on the court, these are two talented, well-coached teams who each look capable of securing the No. 8 spot in the West.

We want to know what you think. Which teams will claim the final two playoff spots on Friday, and which two clubs are headed home?

Vote in our poll before Friday night, then head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts and predictions!

Lakers Notes: Monk, Westbrook, LeBron, Pelinka

April 13th, 2022 at 4:11pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers will likely make a strong effort to retain Malik Monk this summer, but they only hold Monk’s Non-Bird rights and would have to dip into their mid-level exception to sign the 24-year-old to a deal worth more than about $2.5MM. Even a deal using the taxpayer mid-level couldn’t start at more than about $6.4MM.

The Lakers’ cap limitations could open the door for another team to sign the former lottery pick, who will be an unrestricted free agent after enjoying a career year in Los Angeles. According to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, sources around the league believe Monk could get the equivalent of the full non-taxpayer MLE ($10MM+ per year) on the open market.

One general manager who spoke to Deveney speculated that the Bulls, Cavaliers, and Mavericks will be suitors for Monk this offseason and also singled out the Knicks as a team to keep an eye on.

“The team to watch, if he is going to leave the Lakers, which he obviously should, is the Knicks,” the executive said. “They had interest in him last year, and some of it might depend on what happens with Evan Fournier, do they keep him or move him? But that is a team that needs talent, needs shooters and Monk will be a good value even at the mid-level.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report considers six hypothetical Russell Westbrook trade scenarios and evaluates which of them are the most realistic — and which would appeal most to the Lakers.
Westbrook exhibited a lack of self awareness during his end-of-season press conference on Monday, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who says the point guard doubled down on past excuses and created new ones to absolve himself of responsibility for his disappointing season. “The famous ‘source’ stories that came out about myself, whether it be between me and the staff, me and Frank (Vogel), me and the fans, there’s just so many made-up stories that are not true,” Westbrook said, though he declined to give specific examples. “It’s just always having to fight against that constantly. It’s just not (being) given a fair chance.”
In a column for The Los Angeles Times, Dylan Hernandez argues that LeBron James also didn’t accept enough responsibility for the Lakers’ struggles in 2021/22. While multiple reports have suggested that James and Anthony Davis played major roles in orchestrating the trade for Westbrook last summer, LeBron downplayed his involvement in roster moves. “Ask me my opinion, I’m going to give my opinion,” he said. “But at the end of the day, they’re going to make the decision that they feel is best for the franchise.”
Conversely, in his own media exit interview, VP of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka made himself more accountable than he has in the past, though he didn’t look comfortable doing so, writes Bill Oram of The Athletic. Pelinka has two years left on his current contract with the Lakers, sources tell Oram, who says the GM is under significant pressure not to repeat this season’s disaster in 2022/23.

Injury Updates: Doncic, Allen, Kennard, Collins, Niang

April 12th, 2022 at 1:31pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks put out a press release on Tuesday formally confirming that Luka Doncic is dealing with a strained left calf and announcing there’s no timetable for his return.

Dallas won’t have to officially list Doncic on the injury report until Friday, so the club will likely continue to be cagey about his availability for Game 1 vs. Utah. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd declined to offer any specifics on Tuesday, offering coy responses about Doncic’s ability to practice and the possibility that he’ll play on Saturday, tweets Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.

For what it’s worth, Kidd said multiple times that Doncic is “in great spirits,” while Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie offered a positive assessment of his teammate’s status (Twitter link via Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News): “He seemed solid to me. I mean, he don’t seem like a guy that’s going to miss too much time, if any.”

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

The Cavaliers have officially listed Jarrett Allen (finger) as out for Tuesday’s play-in game vs. Brooklyn. An earlier report suggested there’s some hope that Allen would be able to play on Friday if Cleveland loses tonight.
Clippers sharpshooter Luke Kennard (hamstring) had been officially listed as questionable for Tuesday’s play-in game, but he didn’t make the trip to Minnesota, according to head coach Tyronn Lue (Twitter link via Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times).
Hawks big man John Collins, out since March 11 due to finger and foot injuries, played some 4-on-4 over the weekend, but head coach Nate McMillan isn’t sure whether he’ll be available for Wednesday’s play-in game vs. Charlotte, writes Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “He’s been moving a lot more, and today was pretty much shooting. … We’ll see tomorrow,” McMillan said on Tuesday. “We’ll see how he feels after the weekend of play and what he went through today.”
After missing the last two games of the regular season with a knee issue, Sixers forward Georges Niang was able to practice on Tuesday and should be ready for Game 1 on Saturday, head coach Doc Rivers told reporters, including Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

Contract Details: Gabriel, K. Edwards, Cannady, More

April 12th, 2022 at 8:35am CST by Luke Adams

During the final three days of the regular season, five NBA players who had been on two-way contracts were promoted to their respective teams’ 15-man rosters.

Three of those five players – Jazz guard Trent Forrest, Suns forward Ish Wainright, and Cavaliers Moses Brown – received straight conversions, having their contracts turned into one-year, minimum-salary contracts, Hoops Rumors has learned. Forrest, Wainright, and Brown will be eligible to play in the postseason with their respective teams, but won’t be under contract beyond the 2021/22 season.

The other two – Lakers forward Wenyen Gabriel and Nets forward Kessler Edwards – signed two-year, minimum-salary deals that include team options for the 2022/23 season. Their clubs will have the opportunity to bring them back for another year if they pick up those options before the June 29 deadline. Gabriel’s salary will remain non-guaranteed even if his option is exercised.

Here are a few more details on contracts signed in recent days:

The Magic used a portion of their mid-level exception to give Devin Cannady a three-year deal and a $100K rest-of-season salary on Sunday, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. A minimum-salary contract would’ve been limited to two years and would’ve resulted in a rest-of-season salary of just $8,558. Smith adds that Cannady’s second- and third-year salaries (worth the minimum) are non-guaranteed, with a team option on the 2023/24 season.
The Bucks dipped into their mid-level exception in order to give Rayjon Tucker a three-year, minimum-salary deal, according to Smith (Twitter link). The contract is non-guaranteed beyond this season.
Juwan Morgan‘s new two-year deal with the Celtics includes a minimum-salary team option for 2022/23, tweets Smith. Morgan’s salary will remain non-guaranteed even if the option is exercised.
Chaundee Brown‘s new two-way contract with the Hawks is a two-year deal, while the two-ways signed in recent days by Mac McClung (Lakers) and RJ Nembhard (Cavaliers) were just rest-of-season agreements, Hoops Rumors has learned. The majority of the players on two-way deals will be free agents this summer, but Brown is one of 13 who is also under contract for 2022/23, as our tracker shows.

Atlantic Notes: Dragic, Curry, Brown, Thybulle, Raptors

April 11th, 2022 at 5:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nets will have their veteran point guard available for Tuesday’s play-in matchup against Cleveland. Goran Dragic has cleared the league’s health and safety protocols, Marc J. Spears of ESPN tweets. Dragic hasn’t played since March 31. Dragic’s backcourt partner, Seth Curry, will also play on Tuesday, Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets. Curry has been dealing with an ankle injury.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Bruce Brown comes into the postseason in top form, Zach Braziller of the New York Post writes. Brown racked up 18 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and four blocks in a key win over the Cavaliers on Friday. The Nets swingman followed that up with 21 points against Indiana. Brown has made 12 three-pointers in the last six games. “Just all mental for me,” he said. “Just having confidence to shoot the ball. I got a lot of reps up this summer and during the year.”
Matisse Thybulle remains ineligible to play Games 3 and 4 in Toronto due to his vaccination status, Sixers coach Doc Rivers confirmed to ESPN’s Malika Andrews (Twitter link) and other media members. Thybulle explained why he decided not to get fully vaccinated to Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com, among others, on Sunday. “I was raised in a holistic household, where anti-vax is not like a term that was ever used, it’s a weird term that has been kind of been thrown around to just label people,” Thybulle said. “We grew up with Chinese medicine and naturopathic doctors. Just with that upbringing, coming into the situation, I felt like I had a solid foundation of medical resources that could serve me beyond what this vaccine could do for me.”
The Raptors have been thriving with an unusual rotation, using no true centers in the starting lineup and numerous big men off the bench, John Hollinger of The Athletic notes. They have a strong core group and can use their full mid-level exception this offseason for a guard to improve their depth in that area, Hollinger adds.

Poll: Tuesday’s NBA Play-In Games

April 11th, 2022 at 10:56am CST by Luke Adams

A year ago, the NBA scheduled its first two Eastern Conference play-in games for the Tuesday after the regular season ended, with both the Western Conference games taking place on the Wednesday.

The league has tweaked that schedule this time around — Tuesday’s slate of games will feature one from each conference, with the Nos. 7 and 8 teams all in action. The Nos. 9 and 10 teams in both conferences will play on Wednesday.

That means we’ll know by the end of the night on Tuesday which two teams will claim the No. 7 playoff seeds, securing first-round matchups against the Celtics in the East and the Grizzlies in the West.

The Nets are eight-point favorites over the Cavaliers in the first of Tuesday’s play-in games, according to BetOnline.ag, and for good reason. The game will be played in Brooklyn, where Kyrie Irving is now eligible to play despite not having received a COVID-19 vaccine. And after a strong start to the season, Cleveland didn’t play well down the stretch, posting a 9-16 record since the All-Star break.

Injuries will also be a factor in this game. Irving and Kevin Durant are both healthy, which is more than can be said about the Cavs’ All-Stars. While Darius Garland is good to go, center Jarrett Allen continues to battle a fractured finger and there’s pessimism he’ll be available on Tuesday. Ben Simmons and Joe Harris will be sidelined for Brooklyn, but the Nets have gotten used to playing without those guys — Harris hasn’t played since mid-November and Simmons has yet to make his Nets debut.

Over in the West, the Timberwolves will host the Clippers after finishing four games ahead of them during the regular season. Still, BetOnline.ag only lists Minnesota as a three-point favorite for the time being.

The Clippers are getting healthy at the right time, which is one reason why they’re viewed as a candidate to make a little noise in the postseason. Kawhi Leonard continues to recover from his ACL surgery, but Paul George has been back in the lineup since late March and Norman Powell returned last week.

Winning in Minnesota will be a tall order for L.A. though. The Wolves have been one of the NBA’s most dangerous teams since the new year, having gone 30-16 following a 16-20 start to the season. The trio of Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards, and D’Angelo Russell has been tough to stop on offense, while Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt helped anchor an above-average defense.

We want to know what you think. Which teams will win Tuesday’s play-in games and become this season’s No. 7 seeds?

Vote in our poll below, then head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Injury Notes: Allen, Doncic, Murray, LeBron, Barrett

April 11th, 2022 at 8:52am CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who has been sidelined since March 6 due to a fractured finger, has shed his splint and has his injured finger wrapped with black tape, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. However, sources tell Fedor there’s still pessimism about Allen’s potential availability for Cleveland’s play-in game vs. Brooklyn on Tuesday.

One of Fedor’s sources said it’s “unrealistic” to expect Allen to play on Tuesday, while another said that Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff is preparing to be without his All-Star center.

“I can’t give you an exact timeline,” Bickerstaff said before Sunday’s regular season finale. “He’s doing more and more with that hand. It’s just a matter of time.

“It’s a structure thing first and foremost. You always want to make sure that it’s as healthy as it possibly can be. In his position, the banging that he does, on the rim, like blocking shots, all those things. Then it becomes pain tolerance. Then strengthening and his ability to use that finger. But he’s making steps. It’ll be one of those things where the day will come and he’ll be ready to go.”

If the Cavaliers can’t get by the Nets on Tuesday, they would face either Atlanta or Charlotte on Friday, with the No. 8 spot up for grabs. One source who believes Allen will miss Tuesday’s game thinks it’s “50-50” that he’d return on Friday, according to Fedor.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Mavericks star Luka Doncic will undergo an MRI on his strained left calf on Monday to determine the severity of the injury and a potential recovery timeline, tweets veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein.
Appearing on 104.3 The Fan in Denver, Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said it’s “100%” up to Jamal Murray if he returns from his ACL injury this season. “We want him to feel no pressure, want him to know that the organization has his best interests in mind,” Connelly said (Twitter link via Mike Singer of The Denver Post). “… He’s done a great job in rehab, he looks really, really good.”
Lakers forward LeBron James underwent an MRI on his left ankle in Los Angeles this weekend and didn’t make the trip to Denver for the team’s regular season finale, Frank Vogel told reporters on Sunday (Twitter link via Dave McMenamin of ESPN). Presumably, the Lakers will be able to share more information on the results of that MRI at today’s exit interviews with the media.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau confirmed that RJ Barrett avoided a worst-case scenario when he injured his right knee earlier this week and has been diagnosed with just a sprain. The team anticipates Barrett will be back to 100% for offseason workouts in about a month, says Marc Berman of The New York Post.