- Mavericks rookie Olivier-Maxence Prosper received his first career start on Sunday. Prosper had a 16-point, six-rebound, two-steal outing in 29 minutes against the Pistons on Sunday. He spent a good portion of the season in the G League and believes that fostered his development, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. “You guys know my story this year,” he said. “Playing up and down in the G – I see the improvement in my game. I see how much more comfortable I feel out there and more poised.”
Confirming prior reporting from Forbes, Marc Stein (Substack link) cites sources who say that Mark Cuban‘s sale agreement with Miriam Adelson and Patrick Dumont stipulates that the Mavericks‘ new majority owners have the option to buy an additional 20% of the franchise in four years.
For the time being, Cuban has retained control of 27% of the team and reportedly still maintains a voice in the personnel decisions, though he’s no longer the final decision-maker. However, if Adelson and Dumont exercise that option a few years from now, the extra shares would come out of Cuban’s stake in the team, reducing his holdings to below 10%.
Here’s more from around the Southwest:
- Luka Doncic likely won’t finish higher than second in MVP voting this season, but the fact that he’s legitimately in the conversation is more important to the Mavericks than him actually winning the award, opines Tim Cato of The Athletic. As Cato explains, this version of Doncic raises Dallas’ ceiling and makes the team a bona fide contender.
- Alperen Sengun (ankle/knee) won’t return for either of the Rockets‘ final two games of the season, Kelly Iko of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter). Sengun is a candidate for this year’s Most Improved Player award, but because he only appeared in 63 games, an independent doctor would need to rule that his injury is likely to sideline him through at least May 31 in order for him to be eligible for award consideration.
- Although New Orleans has yet to clinch its playoff spot, the team looks better than it has in years and is on track to win the most games it has in a season since being rebranded as the Pelicans in 2013. James Herbert of CBS Sports checks in on the Pelicans to get a sense of why this year’s team is more dangerous than the one we’ve seen in recent seasons, as well as what the next steps are for the franchise.
- Victor Wembanyama has been everything the Spurs hoped he’d be in his first year in the NBA and figures to only get better going forward, but will San Antonio be able to build a contender around the young star? Isaac Levy-Rubinett of The Ringer explores that question, considering the players the Spurs already have on their roster, their draft assets, and a potential trade target.
Pressure is mounting on the Cavaliers, who have stumbled to an 11-16 record after the All-Star break after once sitting at 36-17, NBA insider Marc Stein writes in his latest Substack post. While an 18-2 record spanning through December and January improved coach J.B. Bickerstaff‘s standing within the organization, he may be on the hot seat following this disappointing stretch of games.
As Stein writes, Bickerstaff is still dealing with the fallout from losing to the Knicks in the first round of last year’s playoffs in just five games. Frustration is growing in Cleveland after last season’s playoffs and this season’s lackluster recent stretch, according to Stein.
The Cavaliers as a whole are feeling pressure, given the need to sign Donovan Mitchell to a contract extension this offseason. Mitchell is entering the final guaranteed year of his contract next year if there’s no extension and there’s a “growing belief” from rival teams that the Cavs might be forced to trade their superstar if the two sides can’t agree to an extension, Stein writes.
The Cavaliers paid a hefty price to bring in Mitchell in 2022, sending out Lauri Markkanen, Ochai Agbaji, Collin Sexton and multiple first-round picks for the All-Star guard.
We have more from Stein:
- The Mavericks are 16-2 since they inserted Daniel Gafford and Derrick Jones Jr. into the starting lineup, and have officially secured their second 50-win season since Jason Kidd took over as head coach in 2021. An offseason extension for Kidd seems likely, according to Stein.
- Likewise, the Rockets‘ strong play in the second half of their season means general manager Rafael Stone may also earn a contract extension, Stein writes. The Rockets are hovering around the .500 mark after winning just 22 games last season. The Ime Udoka hiring and the additions of Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks are among the reasons for Houston’s impressive season, which were all accomplished without sacrificing any of its core pieces. Still, future decisions regarding whether the team will continue to build around Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green or trade for a higher-profile star are percolating, per Stein.
- Bulls head coach Billy Donovan‘s name was thrown around in regard to the newly opened Kentucky coaching job, but Stein expressed skepticism about the chances of him moving back down to the college ranks, where he most notably coached at Florida from 1996-2015. It looks like Stein’s skepticism was warranted, as Kentucky is reportedly targeting BYU’s Mark Pope to be its next head coach, meaning Donovan will stay with the Bulls, tweets NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson.
During Wednesday’s matchup in Miami, which was a blowout win for Dallas, members of the Mavericks organization wore shirts saying “Pravi MVP,” which translates from Slovenian to English as real or true MVP, referencing the excellent season by Luka Doncic, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
Doncic, who has made the All-NBA First Team each of the past four seasons, is a top contender for the MVP award. However, it’s “generally expected” that Nuggets center Nikola Jokic will claim the trophy for the third time in the past four seasons, Reynolds notes.
While he may not win his first MVP in 2023/24, Doncic’s coaches and teammates certainly think he deserves it.
“He’s the real MVP. … I think his resume is better than anybody else’s resume,” forward P.J. Washington said. “I don’t feel like there’s a complete argument that anybody had a better season this year.”
Here’s more on the Mavs:
- Eight-time All-Star Kyrie Irving earned a $1MM bonus on Wednesday for a combination of playing 50-plus games and the Mavs winning their 50th game, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. The bonus was considered unlikely since Dallas only won 38 games last season. As Marks observes, Irving’s cap hit for 2023/24 will now be $38.04MM, and his ’24/25 figure will be adjusted up to $41MM. Irving has been instrumental in the team’s success this season, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link), who notes that Dallas is 39-19 when Irving plays, including 24-7 over his past 31 appearances.
- In an interview with Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (subscription required), Mavs general manager Nico Harrison discussed a number of topics, including the job performance of head coach Jason Kidd and his staff. Harrison praised Kidd, who reportedly has one more year left on his contract and hopes to sign an extension with Dallas this offseason. “The coaches have done a great job,” Harrison told Townsend. “One, when you have two superstar players, first and foremost, getting those guys to play together at a high level and respect each other’s play and to play together, you always have to take a little bit off your game for the success of the team. To be able to do that is remarkable. Jason and his staff have done that at a high level. We’re not successful if that doesn’t happen.”
- Regarding the trade-deadline acquisitions of Washington and center Daniel Gafford, Harrison said that while the two players were high on Dallas’ priority list, the front office was also working on multiple other deals at the time in case talks fell apart. He said he’s been pleased with how the two veterans have fit in thus far, according to Townsend. “I think if you go back to last year, the exit interview that we did, admittedly we didn’t do what we wanted to do,” Harrison said as part of a larger quote. “But we didn’t have the right players around those two guys (Doncic and Irving). We feel like we started that during the summer, getting longer, getting more athletic, getting better defensively. And then also in the draft with (Dereck) Lively. And then we just continue. The message hasn’t changed. The goal hasn’t changed. Now you do it with P.J., now you do it with Gafford. We’ve just continued with building it the same way that we talked about.”
The Australian national team has revealed its preliminary roster for the 2024 Olympics, announcing a list of 22 players that are in the mix to play in Paris. That group will have to be cut down to 12 players ahead of this summer’s tournament.
Australia’s preliminary roster includes several NBAers, including Thunder guard Josh Giddey, Mavericks guard Dante Exum, Trail Blazers forward Matisse Thybulle and big man Duop Reath, Mavericks wing Josh Green, Pelicans guard Dyson Daniels, Magic forward Joe Ingles, Heat guard Patty Mills, Rockets center Jock Landale, and Grizzlies forward Jack White.
As Olgun Uluc of ESPN notes, the newest addition to the Boomers’ roster is 19-year-old Johnny Furphy, who played for the Kansas Jayhawks in 2023/24 and is projected by ESPN to be a potential first-round pick in this year’s draft.
The most notable absence is Ben Simmons, as the Nets guard underwent back surgery last month that will sideline him for the Olympics. Simmons doesn’t have much history with the Australian national team, so it’s unclear if he would’ve been part of the Boomers’ roster in Paris even if he’d been healthy.
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Former NBA guard Ben McLemore was arrested and jailed this week in Oregon and faces multiple felony sexual assault charges, reports Baxter Holmes of ESPN. The charges, which include first-degree rape, stem from an alleged incident in 2021, when McLemore was a member of the Trail Blazers.
- Former NBA guard Gabe York, who appeared in five games for the Pacers across two seasons from 2021-23, has signed with Basquet Girona, the Spanish team announced this week in a press release. York played for the G League Ignite earlier this season.
- Following a two-year hiatus from basketball, Swedish forward Jonas Jerebko is making a comeback, having signed with Puerto Rican team Santeros de Aguada, according to Eurohoops. Jerebko, who turned 37 last month, appeared in 635 NBA regular season games for four teams from 2009-19. He last played professionally for CSKA Moscow in 2022.
- Shams Charania and Kyle Tucker of The Athletic take an in-depth look at John Calipari‘s decision to leave Kentucky for Arkansas after 15 years with the Wildcats, detailing how Calipari’s deal with the Razorbacks came about.
- One Legacy Sports Management, led by veteran agent Mike George, is becoming part of Klutch Sports, CEO Rich Paul tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Jamal Murray, Dillon Brooks, and Shaedon Sharpe are among George’s clients, per RealGM.
Rockets center Alperen Sengun, who has been sidelined since March 10 due to knee and ankle injuries, had hoped to get back on the court in the season’s final week, but it doesn’t look like it’ll happen, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).
“I would say (it’s) unlikely,” head coach Ime Udoka said. “Alperen still has swelling. A lot was going to be based on our results and how we finished the season. No need to really rush him back.”
Sengun enjoyed a breakout year for the Rockets this season, averaging 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists in 32.5 minutes per game across 63 starts. He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension as of this July.
Here’s more from around the Southwest:
- The Spurs will hold Victor Wembanyama out of action on Wednesday at Oklahoma City in the second end of a back-to-back set due to right ankle management, writes Andrew Lopez of ESPN. San Antonio appears to just be playing it safe with its franchise player as the season winds down, but it means Wembanyama won’t get one more matchup with fellow rookie standout Chet Holmgren. The two big men are virtual locks to be the top two vote-getters for this season’s Rookie of the Year award.
- Mavericks wing Josh Green has missed the club’s past 12 games due to a sprained right ankle, but he appears to be on the verge of a return. As Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News tweets, Green’s status for Wednesday’s game in Miami has been upgraded to questionable.
- The Pelicans are getting more comfortable playing small-ball, according to Christian Clark of NOLA.com, who notes that Jonas Valanciunas‘ playing time has declined in recent weeks — the veteran center played a season-low four minutes in Sunday’s win over Phoenix. “It’s something I have been watching and studying and feeling for a long time,” head coach Willie Green said. “We are getting more and more comfortable playing a small unit. We got to continue to rebound. We outrebounded them (on Sunday). When we go small, play fast and open up the floor, it’s harder for teams to load up the paint on us.”
Two months after being traded from the Hornets to the Mavericks, P.J. Washington returned home on Tuesday night, relishing the opportunity to see his family and to play in front of the fans in Charlotte, according to Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer.
“It was great, just being able to cheer for me one last time in this arena,” Washington said. “It meant the world to me. Being drafted here and obviously (having spent) my whole career here. So, it just meant a lot for sure.”
It has been a whirlwind couple months for Washington, who is still adjusting to playing for a new NBA team after spending the first four-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Hornets. But he has no complaints about getting the opportunity to play alongside stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving for a Mavericks team that clinched its spot in the playoffs with Tuesday’s blowout victory over Charlotte.
“It’s been great,” Washington said. “It’s two of the best to ever play the game, so it makes it a lot easier for me. They bring so much attention, which opens up the game for a lot of different people. So, they’ve made it a lot easier for me for sure.”
Head coach Jason Kidd appreciates what Washington has brought to the club: “(He has) the ability to play both sides — offense and defense. You could see when one of the guys are out — Luka, Ky — he’s stepped up for us. He’s given us an offensive spark. And then when you look at the defensive end, he’s been able to guard 1-5. He’s helped us here since March 7 be the No. 1 defensive team in the league. And he’s a pro. He comes to work every day, never complains, and he’s one of the few that when he runs out, comes out of the game, he gives you five. And that’s just a character thing that he has. He’s about the team and he just wants to win.”
Here’s more on the Mavs:
- While there were some rumors that Hornets forward Grant Williams wore out his welcome in Dallas or rubbed Doncic the wrong way, Luka said he has no issues with his former teammate. “Grant is a great guy,” Doncic said. “We have a good relationship. Outside, some people say we don’t. But we have (one).”
- Williams has been playing better in Charlotte than he did in Dallas, making the deadline deal a success so far for both the Mavericks and Hornets, writes Boone. “Yeah, I think when you look at the trade it is a win-win,” Kidd said. “Grant’s doing an incredible job here (in Charlotte), You look at playing the five or playing whatever position they’ve asked him to play. He’s shooting the ball, he’s making decisions, he’s posting up, he’s guarding the five on the other end. So, I think he’s done an incredible job since the trade.”
- Having clinched a playoff spot, the Mavericks will send their 2024 first-round pick to the Knicks, closing the book on the blockbuster 2019 Kristaps Porzingis trade, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (via Twitter). Dallas’ pick currently projects to be No. 25 overall — a year ago the Mavs tanked their final game of the season to ensure they’d avoid sending their top-10 protected first-rounder to New York.
- After last season’s second-half collapse, there were some questions about how the backcourt pairing of Doncic and Irving would mesh going forward, but the duo has thrived in 2023/24. According to Doncic, having Irving in Dallas has been a “blessing,” per Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). “Obviously on the court everybody knows what kind of player he is,” Doncic said. “Off the court he helps me a lot — not just me but the whole team. He knows how to win the championship. He’s a very humble guy. Great guy.”
- Hornets forward Grant Williams says he has harbors no ill will toward the Mavericks for trading him after Dallas added him in a sign-and-trade last offseason, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets. “No hard feelings on my end or, I think, their end,” he said. “We communicated well throughout the process. (Dallas GM) Nico (Harrison), I respect those guys a lot from an honesty perspective.”
- Even Mavericks teammates marvel at the ability of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, according to The Athletic’s Tim Cato. “I never play NBA 2K, so I don’t know if there’s a self-created player who does stuff like they do,” Maxi Kleber said. “But it’s just incredible what they do.”
Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving has been named Western Conference Player of the Week, while Celtics big man Kristaps Porziņģis has claimed the Eastern Conference’s weekly honor, the NBA announced (via Twitter).
Irving averaged 31.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while shooting 52.4% from the field as Dallas went 3-1 last week. Porzingis averaged 19.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks in four Boston victories.
Irving has gained Player of the Week honors five times in his career, but this is his first since the 2014/15 season.
The Suns’ Devin Booker, Lakers’Anthony Davis, Mavs’Luka Doncic, Timberwolves’Rudy Gobert and Spurs’Victor Wembanyama were the other Western Conference nominees. The Magic’sPaolo Banchero, Knicks’Jalen Brunson, Sixers’ Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey and Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton were the other Eastern Conference nominees (Twitter link).
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd likes his team’s spirit with the postseason nearing, Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com relays. Dallas pulled out an OT win over the Rockets on Sunday and strengthened its grip on the fifth spot in the Western Conference.
The Mavs’ backcourt duo combined for 85 points.
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd likes his team’s spirit with the postseason nearing, Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com relays. Dallas pulled out an OT win over the Rockets on Sunday and strengthened its grip on the fifth spot in the Western Conference.
“We have each other’s backs. We’re playing for something bigger than just the back of the jersey,” the Mavericks’ coach said. “We’re playing for one another. You can see the chemistry, the celebration at the end. It takes a long time to build that. That just doesn’t happen overnight. But the beauty of (Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic) hugging there at the end . . . those two trusting in their teammates that were out on the floor was huge.”
- In their previous game, which Doncic sat out, the Mavericks got a big game out of midseason acquisition P.J. Washington. He erupted for 32 points, five rebounds, five steals and two blocks and also made the game-winning shot against the Warriors on Friday, Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets. Washington grabbed 13 rebounds on Sunday.