Dallas Mavericks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Dirk Nowitzki Done For Season After Ankle Surgery

April 5th, 2018 at 9:51am CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki had surgery on his left ankle this morning and will miss the rest of the season, according to Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. The procedure was called minor and has been scheduled for several days.

Nowitzki has played 77 games this NBA season, but started experiencing pain from an ankle impingement on Sunday. He didn’t accompany the team on its current road trip and opted for surgery to fix the problem. The procedure is designed to eliminate inflammation and it should enable him to be fully healthy for next season.

Nowitzki signed a two-year contract last summer and has said repeatedly that he intends to complete it.

“As long as my body feels fine like it has so far, with no setbacks like last year when I missed two months, I’m looking forward to hopefully fulfilling my contract,” he stated in December.

Nowitzki continues to remain productive at age 39, averaging 12.0 points per game and shooting better than 40% from 3-point range, the fourth-best mark in his career. He set a record for the most games by a player in his 20th NBA season.

The Mavericks have a $5MM team option on Nowitzki for next year that they are certain to use if he wants to return.

Mavericks’ J.J. Barea To Miss Rest Of Season

April 5th, 2018 at 8:55am CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks guard J.J. Barea is finished for the season after suffering a left oblique strain during last night’s game, tweets Dwain Price of Mavs.com. The injury occurred in the second quarter and Barea didn’t return to the game.

“I don’t want to finish the season with it messed up,” he said. “I had a good season, I don’t want anything to happen.”

The 33-year-old averaged 11.6 points and 6.3 assists in 69 games, primarily in a reserve role. A 12-year veteran, he is signed for one more season at about $3.7MM.

J.J. Barea Leaves Game With Oblique Strain

April 4th, 2018 at 8:46pm CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks guard J.J. Barea left tonight’s game after suffering a left oblique strain, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. With just three games remaining, it’s possible that Barea’s season is over.

Dirk Nowitzki Done For Season?

April 4th, 2018 at 10:50am CST by Luke Adams

Dirk Nowitzki didn’t accompany the Mavericks on their final road trip of the season as he battles a left ankle impingement, per Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. While Nowitzki could still join the team on the road trip or play in the regular season finale in Dallas, the lottery-bound Mavs may play it safe with the franchise icon and hold him out for their final four games. Nowitzki has said he hopes to play one more year in 2018/19.

Nerlens Noel, Thabo Sefolosha Receive Five-Game Suspensions

April 3rd, 2018 at 11:41am CST by Luke Adams

Mavericks center Nerlens Noel and Jazz forward Thabo Sefolosha have each received five-game suspensions for violating the NBA’s anti-drug program, the league announced today. The bans are for marijuana violations, tweets Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.

The lottery-bound Mavericks only have five games left in the regular season, so Noel will start serving his suspension immediately and avoid having it carry over to 2018/19. With unrestricted free agency looming for the former lottery pick, it’s possible that Noel has played his last game in Dallas. The suspension will cost him approximately $145K of this season’s salary.

As for Sefolosha, his situation is a little more complicated since he’s expected to miss the rest of this season with a knee injury. The veteran must receive medical clearance before he can begin serving his suspension, so the five-game ban figures to impact his availability at the start of next season.

Sefolosha is under contract for 2018/19, but his $5.25MM salary is non-guaranteed. The Jazz could release him by July 1 and avoid being on the hook for that salary — if they keep him on their roster, they’ll be without him for their first five games in the fall.

Aaron Harrison Signs Rest-Of-Season Deal With Mavs

April 2nd, 2018 at 8:12am CST by Arthur Hill

APRIL 2: The Mavs officially signed Harrison on Sunday, the team announced in a press release. The third-year guard actually received a rest-of-season contract rather than a 10-day deal.

Since the regular season is almost over, the agreement only keeps him under contract for 11 days this season, but Dallas will now have the option of making him a restricted free agent this summer.

MARCH 31: The Mavericks will sign Aaron Harrison to a second 10-day contract, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Harrison has appeared in four games under his current deal, averaging 4.5 points in about 20 minutes per night. He previously played five games for the Hornets last year and 21 in 2015/16. Before signing with Dallas, he was with the Reno Bighorns in the G League.

The Mavericks will have a full roster of 15 players once Harrison re-signs.

Mavs Notes: Smith Jr., Noel, Discrimination

April 1st, 2018 at 6:57pm CST by Austin Kent

Despite the Mavs’ disappointing 23-53 mark through 76 games, it’s hard to consider Dennis Smith Jr.‘s rookie season anything less than a success, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. The 20-year-old has put forth 15.2 points and 5.0 assists per game, which both rank among the top five for first-year players.

More importantly, however, Smith Jr. has been healthy for the majority of the season. Considering the high-flying guard tore his left ACL back in 2015, it bodes well that he has made it through the bulk of an entire NBA campaign in relatively good shape. With the exception of a few instances of soreness, the guard’s knee has held up and he’s played in 86% of the team’s games so far.

“A lot of rookie point guards who have the responsibility of starting would be worn down mentally and really banged up physically,” head coach Rick Carlisle said. “He’s neither. He’s very strong and has worked very hard on his body and his mind is fresh. He wants to be one of those guys that’s really depended on by a franchise and he’s gained is a real knowledge of the amount of work that’s going to go into that.”

There’s more news out of Dallas this evening:

While it seemed as though Nerlens Noel‘s exit from Dallas was a foregone conclusion a couple months ago, the fact that the injured big man has done so little over the course of the 2017/18 campaign may mean that there isn’t much of a market for him in free agency. Tim Cowlishaw of The Dallas Morning News writes that he doesn’t believe the franchise views Noel as a building block anymore but that the club could use him as a placeholder.
A woman fired by Arena Operating Co., the company that operates the American Airlines Center, is following up a January complaint alleging gender, sexual and racial issues by seeking information from Mark Cuban about a 2011 incident involving a noose hung in the Mavs’ stadium, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. It’s alleged that Cuban disposed of the noose at the time, but did not “make a big deal of it.”
Under the leadership of new CEO Cynthia Marshall, the Mavs have hired a pair of executive leadership employees and officially launched an initial “100-Day Plan” to improve the culture of the disgraced organization. A team-issued press release states that the Mavs plan to position the organization as a standard bearer for inclusion and diversity.

RFA Rumors: Parker, Gordon, Exum, Smart, Randle

March 30th, 2018 at 12:09pm CST by Luke Adams

Only about a quarter of the NBA’s teams are expected to have meaningful cap room this summer, so restricted free agents hoping for a major payday could have a tough summer, writes Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. Last week, we identified eight RFAs we believe have positioned themselves well for long-term contracts, and while we’re still bullish on those players, the RFA market may not be as active overall as it has been in some previous offseasons.

Within his latest piece, Kyler took a closer look at a few specific 2018 restricted free agents, so let’s round up some highlights from his breakdown…

Most NBA insiders believe the Bucks will ultimately retain Jabari Parker, according to Kyler, who suggests that – with a new arena on the way – Bucks ownership may not be as worried about the rising cost of team salary as you’d expect.
The Bucks and Magic may let the market drive the respective prices on Parker and Aaron Gordon, according to Kyler. With Orlando’s new management group looking to shed cap dollars, the team will be wary of overpaying Gordon. Kyler also notes that the Magic could be open to the possibility of a sign-and-trade if Gordon wants to play elsewhere. However, sign-and-trades can be particularly tricky to pull off for RFAs getting big raises due to the Base Year Compensation rule, so that may be a long shot.
The prevailing thought on Dante Exum is that he’ll be back with the Jazz, though likely not on a long-term deal, says Kyler.
In order to pry Marcus Smart away from the Celtics, it might take an offer sheet at least in the range of $12-14MM per year, per Kyler.
The Kings are worth watching as a possible suitor for Lakers big man Julius Randle, though many people expect the Mavericks to be the team “on Randle’s doorstep” when free agency opens on July 1, Kyler writes.
Clint Capela (Rockets), Zach LaVine (Bulls), Jusuf Nurkic (Trail Blazers), and Rodney Hood (Cavaliers) are among the RFAs considered more likely than not to stay with their current teams, according to Kyler. For more details on those players – along with an item on Suns guard Elfrid Payton – be sure to check out Kyler’s full piece.

Mavs Notes: Nowitzki, Kleber, Noel, Mejri

March 27th, 2018 at 8:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

All signs point toward Mavericks big man Dirk Nowitzki returning next season, Marc Stein of the New York Times reports in his latest newsletter. Nowitzki has been pleased how his body has held up this season, as he has appeared in all but one of the team’s 73 games. “I feel great,” he told Stein. “I’ve only missed one game this season. I signed a two-year contract because I wanted to play two more years. And here we are.” The Mavericks hold a team option on his modest $5MM salary for next season and would unquestionably welcome back the future Hall of Famer. He’s averaging 12.2 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 24.8 MPG.

In other Mavs news:

Maxi Kleber‘s future with the team is uncertain, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. The Mavs have too many similar players on the roster and won’t keep them all, Sefko notes. The 6’11” power forward has not played in five of the last 14 games and 10 or fewer minutes in seven others. Kleber’s $1.38MM salary for next season is not guaranteed.
Nerlens Noel is enjoying every chance he gets to play as he heads into unrestricted free agency, as he told Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. “I’m just playing basketball and having fun,” he said. “If that means showcase, then that’s fine, but I think I’m going out there just doing what I love to do.” Noel, who posted his second double-double of the season against the Hornets Saturday, signed his $4.2MM qualifying offer last summer after a disappointing foray into restricted free agency.
Salah Mejri is a better bet to return than Noel, Sefko opines in a live chat segment. Mejri would likely be a cheaper alternative and plays with a little more of an edge, Sefko adds. But it’s quite possible that both big men will not return. Mejri will be an unrestricted free agent unless the club extends a $1.84MM qualifying offer.

Draft Updates: Milton, McCoy, Roach, Ball, More

March 27th, 2018 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

SMU guard Shake Milton has decided to test the 2018 NBA draft waters, a source tells Patrick Engel of Pony Stampede. A junior, Milton would have the opportunity to return to school for his senior year if he enters the draft without hiring an agent.

Milton, who is currently ranked 34th on Jonathan Givony’s big board at ESPN.com, is coming off a strong season at SMU, averaging 18.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, and 4.4 APG with a shooting line of .449/.434/.847. In Givony’s most recent mock draft, he has Milton coming off the board at No. 36 to the Mavericks.

Here are more of the latest draft updates from around the basketball world:

UNLV center Brandon McCoy, who averaged 16.9 PPG and 10.3 RPG as a freshman and ranks 58th on ESPN’s big board, announced he’ll forgo his remaining years of NCAA eligibility to enter the draft, according to the school. “This is probably one of the toughest decisions I have ever made,” McCoy said in a statement. “I will always be a Rebel, but when weighing all the factors, with the support of my family I have decided it is in my best interest to forgo my collegiate eligibility and pursue my lifelong dream of playing in the NBA.”
The 65th-ranked prospect on ESPN’s top 100, Texas junior guard Kerwin Roach II will test the draft waters without hiring an agent, the school announced in a press release. “We want to see where I may stand in this year’s draft, but we’re also keeping all options open,” Roach said. “We want to get the most accurate feedback directly from the NBA, so we can make the best decision for my future.”
Marshall junior guard Jon Elmore and Eastern Michigan junior forward Elijah Minnie are each expected to declare for the 2018 draft without hiring an agent, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN (Twitter links).
Washington State’s basketball program announced on Monday that junior forward Robert Franks is declaring for the NBA draft without hiring an agent. An earlier report from Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports suggested that Franks would hire an agent rather than simply testing the waters, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Lonzo Ball‘s younger brother LiAngelo Ball has declared for the 2018 NBA draft after spending the last few months playing for Lithuanian team Vytautas Prienu, agent Harrison Gaines tells Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports. The former UCLA swingman isn’t expected to be drafted.