Dallas Mavericks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Kyler’s Latest: Bamba, Kings, Magic, Mavs, Grizzlies

June 19th, 2018 at 2:18pm CST by Luke Adams

Mohamed Bamba may be a candidate to slip a little further than expected in the 2018 NBA draft, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders writes in his latest round-up of draft rumors. According to Kyler, Bamba is “in the mix” for a handful of clubs in the top seven, but it’s not clear if any of those teams view him as their first or second option.

As Kyler explains, Bamba is widely expected to be a strong defender at the NBA level, but there are questions about his offensive potential. Since many of the other big men at the top of the draft are considered more well-rounded prospects, they may come off the board before Bamba, creating some uncertainty about the Longhorn’s potential landing spot.

Here’s more from Kyler’s article, which is worth checking out in full:

The Kings appear likely to keep their pick at No. 2, but Kyler’s sources remain skeptical that the club will draft Luka Doncic in that spot. While Sacramento has taken a “long look” at Michael Porter Jr., it’s looking more and more as if the club will opt for the less risky option, Marvin Bagley III, Kyler writes.
If there are no surprises in the top five picks, there’s a very real chance that Collin Sexton will be the Magic‘s man at No. 6, per Kyler. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski has also suggested that Orlando is high on the Alabama point guard.
League sources tell Kyler that the Mavericks don’t intend to move the No. 5 pick unless they can land an All-Star or would-be All-Star.
While it remains to be seen if the Grizzlies will make a trade involving the No. 4 selection and Chandler Parsons, they’ve received some offers that include lower picks and expiring contracts, according to Kyler, who says the club should have options it if wants to pull the trigger on a deal.
The Lakers and Celtics have expressed some interest during the pre-draft process in moving up significantly in the draft, but neither team seems eager at this point to part with assets necessary to make such a jump, says Kyler.

Woj’s Latest: CP3, Rockets, George, Suns, Mavs

June 19th, 2018 at 10:17am CST by Luke Adams

Having appeared on a pair of draft specials on ESPN on Monday night, Adrian Wojnarowski shared several interesting tidbits related to the draft and free agency during his segments. We’ve already passed along a few of those notes and rumors in a pair of posts this morning, but we’ve got more to round up in the space below, so let’s dive in…

Chris Paul still appears to be a virtual lock to return to the Rockets, and is focused less on his own free agency than on recruiting LeBron James to Houston, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link via Sagar Trika). Meanwhile, the Rockets would also love to re-sign Trevor Ariza, but the veteran forward will be a popular free agent who draws interest from multiple contenders, per Woj (Twitter link via Trika).
Wojnarowski is the latest to report that the Thunder still have a good chance to re-sign Paul George, despite the club’s underwhelming showing in the postseason (Twitter link via Trika).
After Wojnarowski reported that the Suns‘ No. 16 pick could be in play for a trade, GM Ryan McDonough confirmed as much during an appearance on ESPN, suggesting that his team would be willing to package the selection and another asset or two in order to acquire a second lottery pick (Twitter links via Trika).
The Mavericks are high on Luka Doncic, and are weighing whether they’ll have a shot to select the Real Madrid star at No. 5, says Wojnarowski (link via The Dallas Morning News). The Mavs have previously indicated that they have no plans to move up, but it sounds like they’d at least consider the possibility if it means landing Doncic.
According to Wojnarowski, the Sixers aren’t expected to hire a new general manager anytime soon — Woj reports the team will likely interview candidates deep into July (Twitter link via Trika).

Draft Notes: Mavericks, Robinson, Smith

June 17th, 2018 at 9:54pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Mavericks hold the No. 33 pick in the upcoming draft and the team feels there will be players available who provide great value at that spot, as Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News passes along.

“It’s a really good area,” president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said. “If you look at the area from 15 to 40, you may be getting the same guy.

“You may not be able to draft for a position, but you can get a good player. And there’s a number of point forwards. You may be looking at an athlete or a shooter or a point guard. At that spot, you take the best player on the board. The difference is not that much honestly.”

Here’s more on the upcoming draft:

There’s a growing belief that Boston College’s Jerome Robinson will be selected in the middle of the first round, multiple league sources tell Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. The scribe adds that organizations are impressed by Robinson’s scoring skills as well as his character.
It will be hard for the Mavericks to pass up on Michael Porter Jr. if he falls to No. 5, especially if the forward checks out medically, Sefko writes in a separate piece. Sefko adds that Porter is seen as one of the biggest risk/reward prospects in the draft.
Rafael Uehara of Real GM breaks down the game of Texas Tech’s Zhaire Smith, speculating that the combo forward could be versatile enough to play center at the next level. Smith sits at No. 16 on ESPN’s latest top 100 rankings.

Draft-Day Deal With Bulls Could Make Sense

June 15th, 2018 at 5:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

A draft night trade with the Bulls might make sense for the Mavericks, Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News speculates. Dallas owns the No. 5 pick with Chicago slotted at No. 7. If Michael Porter Jr. and Trae Young go a little higher than anticipated, the Mavs could move down and either Mohamed Bamba, Wendell Carter or Jaren Jackson would still be on the board, Cowlishaw points out.

DeMarcus Cousins will most likely stay put with the Pelicans but there are three other Western Conference teams where the big man would be a good fit, HoopsHype tweets. The Mavericks, Lakers and Spurs are the most likely landing spots for Cousins if he leaves New Orleans, HoopsHype adds.
A draft night trade with the Bulls might make sense for the Mavericks, Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News speculates. Dallas owns the No. 5 pick with Chicago slotted at No. 7. If Michael Porter Jr. and Trae Young go a little higher than anticipated, the Mavs could move down and either Mohamed Bamba, Wendell Carter or Jaren Jackson would still be on the board, Cowlishaw points out.

Brandon McCoy To Work Out For Mavs

June 14th, 2018 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

UNLV’s Brandon McCoy has a workout on tap with the Mavericks and still intends to work out with four or five other teams before draft night, tweets Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.

Strained Hip Caused Porter To Cancel Workout

June 14th, 2018 at 1:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

1:11pm: Porter’s representatives sent out a statement this afternoon to teams planning to attend his workout, Givony tweets. “Porter will be evaluated again tonight and if the doctor feels Michael is moving well enough to go through the medical evaluation tomorrow, then we are going to proceed with the evaluation at 3pm CST tomorrow,” it read.

Also from Porter’s camp: “After being shut down to do strengthening/core stabilization work for his first 4 weeks in Chicago, and then being ramped up as hard as he was the last 3 weeks, Michael developed some inflammation that wrapped around his nerve and caused massive spasms. After being shut down to do strengthening/core stabilization work for his first 4 weeks in Chicago, and then being ramped up as hard as he was the last 3 weeks, Michael developed some inflammation that wrapped around his nerve and caused massive spasms.” (Twitter links)

12:21pm: Porter underwent an MRI that showed no physical problem and he is feeling better, tweets Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. A decision is expected later today on whether his workout will be rescheduled.

JUNE 14, 10:40am: Michael Porter Jr. called off Friday’s scheduled pro day in Chicago after suffering a strained hip, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Porter was experiencing muscle spasms yesterday and was unable to get out of bed.

The planned workout could be rescheduled, depending how Porter responds to treatment, but Givony notes that time is running short with just a week left before the draft. Several lottery teams that planned to attend the event were notified of the cancellation Wednesday afternoon. They were going to bring their own medical staffs to examine Porter, which is an unusual move for a pro day.

Porter has been zooming up draft boards lately and now appears likely to be taken in the top seven, according to Givony. The Kings, Grizzlies and Mavericks appear to be the most interested teams, and the Bulls appear ready to grab him at No. 7 if he falls that far.

Medical concerns have haunted Porter since the college season began in November. He injured his back in his first game with Missouri, prompting microdiscectomy surgery that sidelined him until the SEC tournament. He refused to undergo medical examinations at the draft combine, and his first pro day was delayed a week to give him more time to heal.

Porter stopped all basketball activity once the season ended, Givony adds, and concentrated on rehab. He lost strength due to the injury, especially in his left leg, and received medical clearance to play just two weeks before the first pro day on June 8. He reportedly felt just “50%” physically for that session, but impressed scouts with his shooting and overall performance.

The Bulls conducted a medical exam on Porter, with the results released to all 30 NBA teams. Givony relays that multiple team representatives have said there are no major causes for concern in the report.

“There doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with him right now,” an unidentified executive said. “But a conservative doctor could still [be concerned about] what might happen down the road.”

Mavs Notes: J. Jackson, Ferrell, G League, Barea

June 13th, 2018 at 12:47pm CST by Luke Adams

The Mavericks will face a tough decision this summer, ESPN’s Bobby Marks writes in his offseason preview for the team. While the franchise typically hasn’t had to be patient when it comes to rebuilding, the conservative play would be to do just that, since it’s better for the team’s long-term health, Marks argues.

Dallas has the cap space make a splash in free agency, but the club might be better off viewing 2018/19 as a bridge year in which to continue developing its young players before entering the 2018 free agent period with even more room available.

As we wait to see which direction the Mavs go, let’s round up more items out of Dallas…

Michigan State big man Jaren Jackson Jr. will be among the prospects who works out for the Mavericks before the draft, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News, who notes that Deandre Ayton is the only top college prospect known not to be working out for the club.
Yogi Ferrell will be a free agent for the first time in his NBA career this summer and said recently that he’d like to remain with the Mavericks, as Sefko writes in a separate Dallas Morning News article. “I want to be here,” Farrell said. “And I think they want me to be here. I’m just going to wait and see how it works out.” If the two sides both want to work something out, there shouldn’t be many roadblocks, since Farrell is a restricted free agent.
In his latest newsletter, Marc Stein of The New York Times reports that Mavs owner Mark Cuban has secured majority control of the Texas Legends, the Mavericks’ G League affiliate. Cuban has since officially named longtime equipment manager Al Whitley the owner’s liaison to the Legends. “He reports directly to me,” Cuban said of Whitley.
Veteran guard J.J. Barea has received the 2017/18 J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award from the Pro Basketball Writers Association, per a press release. Barea earned the award, which is given for community service work, after spending much of the year assisting with disaster relief in Puerto Rico.

Kings, Mavs Open To Trading Down In Draft?

June 12th, 2018 at 1:16pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings and Mavericks are open to the possibility of moving down in the draft, multiple NBA front-office executives tell Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. Sacramento holds the No. 2 pick, while Dallas owns the No. 5 overall selection.

As O’Connor observes, the Kings are in the “asset-stacking business,” so if they can still nab a player they like with a later pick and acquire an extra asset or two in the process, that could appeal to them. Sacramento has shown a willingness to move down in each of the last two drafts, trading the No. 8 pick in 2016 and the No. 10 pick in 2017. The Kings have also reportedly shown “significant interest” in Michael Porter Jr. over the past year, and Porter isn’t expected to go as high as No. 2.

As for the Mavericks, they’ll be trying to compete for the playoffs next season, according to O’Connor. I get the sense that Dallas would be happy to keep that No. 5 pick to pair Dennis Smith Jr. with another potential franchise cornerstone, and GM Donnie Nelson has suggested as much. However, it sounds like the Mavs wouldn’t rule out trading down if the right offer came along.

We’ve now heard rumors that all five teams picking in the top five might be open to moving down. A May report indicated that the Grizzlies would listen to offers for the No. 4 pick, and the general managers in Phoenix and Atlanta have both left the door open to potential deals for No. 1 and No. 3, respectively.

As ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz wrote today, while Deandre Ayton is the strong frontrunner to be picked first overall, there are several prospects at the top of this year’s draft class that certain teams are very high on. Givony notes that some clubs love Luka Doncic, for instance, while others only have him sixth and seventh on their boards. “You hear similar things about [Mohamed] Bamba, [Jaren] Jackson, [Marvin] Bagley, Porter and even Ayton at times,” Givony writes.

In other words, the possibility that a team picking in the top five might view a top prospect much differently than a team outside the top five could create some interesting trade opportunities next week.

Draft Updates: Porter, Young, Simons, Sexton

June 9th, 2018 at 6:22pm CST by Arthur Hill

Michael Porter Jr. was impressive at Friday’s pro day in Chicago, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. Although there’s no question about his talent, several teams are concerned about Porter’s physical condition in the wake of back surgery that cost him nearly his entire freshman season at Missouri. Porter’s representatives will decide over the next few days which teams they plan to hold meetings with and who will receive his medical records.

Kyler adds that most scouts view Porter as a top three to five talent in the draft (Twitter link), but the back problems may scare some teams away. Even so, Kyler speculates that he won’t fall lower than the Bulls at No. 7 (Twitter link).

There’s more news as the draft draws closer:

The Knicks are among several lottery teams that will travel to Chicago next week to meet with Porter, a league source tells Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog (Twitter link).
The Suns are trying to arrange a workout with Oklahoma’s Trae Young, tweets Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report. Team officials are expected to meet with Young before the draft, but scheduling conflicts may prevent the Suns from working him out. Because Phoenix holds the No. 1 pick and Young is unlikely to be taken that high, Wasserman cites the report as evidence that the team is trying to acquire a second top 10 selection.
Anfernee Simons, who worked out today for the Magic, has been among the most active pre-draft prospects, tweets Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Simons has already been to sessions with the Bulls, Suns, Trail Blazers, Lakers and Jazz and has upcoming workouts scheduled with the Knicks, Cavaliers, Grizzlies and Bucks.
The Cavaliers brought in Alabama’s Collin Sexton for a workout today, tweets ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
The Nuggets have six players scheduled for a session on Monday, according to a story on the team’s website. Expected to attend are Idaho’s Brayon Blake, Georgetown’s Marcus Derrickson, UNLV’s Brandon McCoy, USC’s Jordan McLaughlin, Wake Forest’s Doral Moore and Northern Colorado’s Andre Spight.
Seton Hall’s Desi Rodriguez will work out tomorrow for the Spurs, Zagoria writes. The Mavericks will see him Tuesday, followed by the Raptors, then then Lakers on June 20. Rodriguez has also worked out for the Knicks, Nets, Suns, Thunder, Celtics, Bucks and Kings.
The Nets have already held sessions with about 60 players, roughly the same amount the team saw through the entire pre-draft process last year, according to a story on NetsDaily.

Mo Bamba Working Out For Suns, Mavs

June 8th, 2018 at 10:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

10:50pm: Bamba will work out Saturday for the Suns, who hold the top pick, according to the team’s website.

5:11pm: The Mavericks will work out Texas center Mohamed Bamba on Monday, Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated tweets.

Bamba has been linked to Dallas in some mock drafts — if he falls to No. 5. He’s zoomed up the draft board and is currently ranked No. 3 overall by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. Bamba’s offensive game is a work in progress but he’s expected to be a defensive force at the next level, in part because of his imposing 7’9″ wingspan.

In his lone college season, Bamba averaged 12.9 PPG, 10.5 RPG and 3.7 BPG for the Longhorns.

Bamba has already worked out for the Bulls, who own the No. 7 selection, and is scheduled to work out for the Hawks on Thursday.

Duke big man Wendell Carter will work out for the Mavericks on Wednesday, Fischer adds. Carter has workouts lined up with six lottery teams.