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Hawks Win 2024 NBA Draft Lottery; Wizards, Rockets, Spurs In Top 4

May 12th, 2024 at 2:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have won the 2024 NBA draft lottery, jumping all the way up from No. 10 in the pre-lottery order to No. 1.

Atlanta had just a 3% chance of claiming this year’s top pick. Those are the longest odds for any team that has won the lottery since the NBA revamped the format prior to the 2019 draft.

The full lottery order for the 2024 draft is as follows:

Atlanta Hawks
Washington Wizards
Houston Rockets (from Nets)
San Antonio Spurs
Detroit Pistons
Charlotte Hornets
Portland Trail Blazers
San Antonio Spurs (from Raptors)
Memphis Grizzlies
Utah Jazz
Chicago Bulls
Oklahoma City Thunder (from Rockets)
Sacramento Kings
Portland Trail Blazers (from Warriors)

There’s no consensus No. 1 pick in 2024 like there was with Victor Wembanyama a year ago, so the Hawks will have plenty of options to consider in the coming weeks.

French big man Alexandre Sarr, French forward Zaccharie Risacher, UConn center Donovan Clingan, G League Ignite wing Ron Holland, Ignite forward Matas Buzelis, Serbian point guard Nikola Topic, and Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham are among the prospects expected to be in the mix for the top few picks.

Some of those players look like better fits than others on the current Atlanta roster, but there has been an expectation that the Hawks will make some significant changes this summer, with Trae Young and Dejounte Murray viewed as possible trade candidates. Atlanta’s front office will have to take those potential moves into account as it weighs what to do with the No. 1 pick.

Washington, Houston, and San Antonio are among the other big winners of draft lottery day. The Wizards entered the day ranked second in the pre-lottery order and no team had better odds at the top pick, but they also had just a 27.4% chance to remain in the top two, so they can’t complain about the outcome. It will be the second lottery pick for the current front office, which will get the opportunity to add another building block to last year’s No. 7 overall selection Bilal Coulibaly.

The Rockets‘ own pick at No. 12 will be sent to the Thunder as a result of 2019’s Russell Westbrook trade, but Houston will pick third overall thanks to one of the unprotected Nets first-rounders that was included in the 2021 James Harden blockbuster. Prior to the lottery, that pick had just the ninth-best odds to move into the top three (14.5%).

A report this week stated that the Rockets are interested in trading their lottery selection for future draft assets after having made nine first-round picks in the past three years. Assuming Houston’s stance hasn’t changed following the lottery results, the fact that the pick is now No. 3 instead of No. 9 should significantly improve its value on the trade market.

The Spurs, meanwhile, had an eventful lottery day, landing a pair of picks in the top eight as they look to build a contending team around Wembanyama. Their own pick moved up one spot, from No. 5 in the pre-lottery order to No. 4, and they also secured a second pick as a result of Toronto dropping from No. 6 to No. 8.

The Raptors traded their top-six protected 2024 first-round pick to San Antonio in a package for Jakob Poeltl last year and would have retained it if no teams had leapfrogged them into the top four. Because Atlanta and Houston both moved up, that No. 8 pick will be controlled by the Spurs — the Raptors’ obligation to San Antonio is complete and they’ll control all their own first-rounders beginning in 2025.

It’s another disappointing lottery day for the Pistons, who – for a second consecutive year – finished with the NBA’s worst record and ended up with the No. 5 overall pick. For what it’s worth, Detroit only had about a 50/50 chance (52.1%) in each case to land in the top four, due to the flatter nature of the odds under the NBA’s current format. Still, losing that coin flip in back-to-back years is a discouraging outcome for a Pistons team whose rebuild hasn’t progressed at the rate the organization hoped.

While no team dropped as far as the Pistons (four spots), the Hornets (No. 3 to No. 6), Trail Blazers (No. 4 to No. 7), Grizzlies (No. 7 to No. 9), and Jazz (No. 8 to No. 10) also moved back multiple spots as a result of the lottery.

If Utah had fallen one more spot, the Jazz would’ve owed their top-10 protected first-round pick to the Thunder, but that obligation will roll over to 2025 instead — the pick will retain its top-10 protection next year.

The Wizards, Pistons, Hornets, Trail Blazers, and Kings also had traded picks fall into their protected range and will owe their 2025 first-rounders to rival teams. The Knicks will receive Washington’s 2025 pick if it’s not in the top 10 and Detroit’s pick if it’s not in the top 13. The Spurs will control Charlotte’s lottery-protected 2025 pick; the Bulls would get Portland’s 2025 pick if it’s outside the lottery; and the Hawks will acquire the Kings’ 2025 first-rounder if it doesn’t end up in the top 12.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the Warriors would have retained their 2024 first-rounder in the unlikely event that it had moved into the top four. Because it stayed at No. 14, it was sent to Portland and Golden State has no further obligation to the Blazers.

Eastern Notes: Carlisle, Knicks, Anunoby, Claxton, Stewart, Wizards

May 10th, 2024 at 6:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle‘s comments about the officiating following Wednesday’s Game 2, which earned him a $35K fine from the NBA, were “disrespectful” to the Knicks, according to New York forward Josh Hart. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Hart said Carlisle’s insinuation that the Knicks are winning because of the officiating “discredit(s) how we’re playing,” according to Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. Hart also laughed off Carlisle’s claim that the referees are favoring the big-market team in the series.

“That’s so stupid, bro,” Hart said. “I mean, we’re going to say the big market always wins? The Knicks ain’t won a [championship] in 51 years. So obviously that don’t hold much weight. I don’t fully understand that. Sorry, New York, for the reminder [about the 51-year drought]. But I think that’s just idiotic. At the end of the day it’s who’s playing the best. I’ve never seen a ref shoot a free throw or make a three or miss a rotation.”

According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), the Knicks have their own complaints about the referees through the first two games of the series, with members of the organization upset by how Jalen Brunson is being officiated. Those Knicks officials believe Brunson is being grabbed and hit “up and down the floor” and it’s going unnoticed by the refs.

Meanwhile, Carlisle was asked on Friday about his response to the $35K fine and suggested he didn’t have any regrets, per Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link).

“I’m gonna support my players and our fan base, and our ownership, 100%, and I’m done talking about it,” the Pacers’ coach said.

Here’s more from around the East:

Knicks forward OG Anunoby, who is dealing with a left hamstring strain, traveled to Indianapolis with the team for Games 3 and 4. While that means he could theoretically play on Sunday if he makes a quick recovery, that seems unlikely. The main reason he’s traveling with the club is because the medical staff is in Indiana, according to Begley, who tweets that Anunoby is getting treatment three times per day.
It looks like the Nets are going to do whatever it takes to re-sign free agent center Nic Claxton, and that’s the right call, according to Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily, who argues that even if it costs $25MM per year, that’s a fair price based on the growth of the NBA’s salary cap. For what it’s worth, $25MM will be approximately the same percentage of the cap in 2024/25 that $20MM was three seasons ago.
Keith Langlois of Pistons.com recaps Isaiah Stewart‘s season and looks ahead to what’s next for the Pistons big man, who will begin a four-year, $60MM extension this July. Despite being the longest-tenured Pistons player, Stewart will still be just 23 years old next season, Langlois points out, arguing that his transition from center to forward this past season increases his versatility and value.
The Wizards will own a top-six pick in this year’s draft, and while the general consensus is that the 2024 class lacks star-level talent at the top, general manager Will Dawkins says he doesn’t necessarily subscribe to that line of thinking, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “I think people hold their cards tight to their vests strategically, so I definitely don’t agree with the narrative,” Dawkins told Robbins. “I think people realize how good this draft is, and in any draft, I’d rather have the power of choice to make the decision than be left with other players on the board that I might not feel as good about. So for me and the Wizards, we’re ones that would always want the highest pick possible if you have an option to choose a player.”

Interviews For Pistons' New Front Office Post Should Start Soon

May 8th, 2024 at 8:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

It has been more than three weeks since the Pistons announced that they plan to hire a new head of basketball operations, but there have been no reports of any interviews in that time, Keith Langlois of NBA.com notes in a mailbag column. Langlois expects the interview process to get underway soon so that draft preparation can begin in earnest.

Eastern Notes: Pistons, Horst, Butler, Sixers, Hornets, Nets, More

May 6th, 2024 at 10:55am CST by Luke Adams

Now that the Bucks‘ season has come to an end, the Pistons are expected to formally seek permission to interview Milwaukee general manager Jon Horst for their president of basketball operations job soon, Marc Stein reports in his latest story at Substack. According to Stein, it’s not yet known whether the Bucks will grant Detroit permission to meet with Horst, a Michigan native who began his NBA career in the Pistons’ basketball operations department.

Elsewhere in his Substack article, Stein says that Jimmy Butler‘s future has become an “increasingly hot topic” around the NBA following the Heat‘s first-round playoff exit. Multiple rival teams have wondered if the Sixers will make a run at trading for Butler this offseason in an effort to reunite the star swingman with good friend Joel Embiid, per Stein. The Embiid/Butler 76ers took the eventual-champion Raptors down to the wire in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2019, but were broken up less than two months later when Butler was signed-and-traded to Miami.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Several executives around the NBA thought the Hornets would have concluded their head coaching search by now, but the team is taking a “very methodical” approach to the process and there’s no specific timeline to make a hire, Rod Boone writes in a mailbag for The Charlotte Observer. Boone’s mailbag also explores Charlotte’s draft strategy and how to revitalize the team’s brand, among other topics.
How much of a difference could it make for the Nets to have a healthy Ben Simmons and Dariq Whitehead next season? Net Income of Nets Daily explores that subject, citing league insiders who say Brooklyn has no plans to waive Simmons this offseason.
With Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby set to square off in the second round of the playoffs as members of the Pacers and Knicks, respectively, the Raptors will “catch some sass” for trading away both players this season, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. Given how well the two forwards have played alongside backcourt stars – Tyrese Haliburton in Indiana and Jalen Brunson in New York – Koreen wonders if things went wrong in Toronto because the club couldn’t find the right “dynamic” guard to allow Siakam and Anunoby to play their proper roles.
James L. Edwards III of The Athletic previews next week’s draft combine from a Pistons perspective, identifying the players the club will have its eye on in the top five and naming a few prospects who could make sense at No. 53. Edwards views Alexandre Sarr as the player likeliest to be atop Detroit’s board, with Stephon Castle, Cody Williams, Donovan Clingan, and Matas Buzelis in the next tier.

Central Notes: Pistons’ Depth, Trade Options, Mitchell

May 5th, 2024 at 4:17pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The depth of this season’s playoff rosters serves as a reminder that the Pistons are severely lacking in that department, suggests Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press.

Sankofa points to the five rotation players on the West’s top-seeded Thunder who went undrafted or were second-round picks as something of an indictment on Detroit’s inability to find much value at that stage of the draft (or after the draft) in recent years. Sankofa also takes current lead front office architect Troy Weaver to task for whiffing on several deeper picks and fringe roster free agency signings during his tenure.

There’s more out of the Central Division:

The Pistons seem poised to try to make significant personnel changes this summer, opines James Edwards III of The Athletic. Edwards and a few other staffers on The Athletic break down potential trade targets and packages for the rebuilding club, including former All-Stars like Brandon Ingram and Lauri Markkanen.
Even with rumors swirling around Donovan Mitchell‘s long-term future with the Cavaliers, the star guard managed to pull off a winning performance in the team’s Game 7 comeback victory against the Magic on Sunday, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. After pouring in 50 points in a losing Game 6 effort against Orlando, Mitchell scored 39 points in Sunday’s 106-94 elimination contest win. Thus far in these playoffs, he’s averaging 28.7 PPG on .459/.250/.824 shooting, with 5.0 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.4 SPG.
In case you missed it, long-injured Bulls point guard Lonzo Ball picked up his $21.4MM player option for the 2024/25 season, as had long been expected.

Front Office Search Expected To Pick Up Steam

May 5th, 2024 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pistons‘ search for a new president of basketball operations should accelerate soon, according to Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. He notes that some of the candidates Detroit wants to interview have been involved in playoff runs, making it difficult to get permission from their teams.

Pistons Considering Scott Perry For President Role

May 2nd, 2024 at 3:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Former Knicks general manager Scott Perry has emerged as a candidate to be the Pistons‘ new president of basketball operations, reports Ian Begley of SNY.tv.

As Begley notes, Detroit is consulting with an outside firm in its search for a head of basketball operations.

A Detroit native who got his start as a front office executive with the Pistons in 2000, Perry had stints with Seattle, Orlando and Sacramento before becoming New York’s GM in 2017. He parted ways with the Knicks last year when his contract expired.

For the 2023/24 season, Perry has been working as an analyst for ESPN. According to Begley, Perry is “well-regarded around the league among executives and agents.”

Marc Stein previously identified some other potential candidates to watch in Detroit’s search.

Central Notes: Portis, Giannis, Lillard, LaVine, Morris, Pistons

May 1st, 2024 at 9:01am CST by Luke Adams

Bucks forward Bobby Portis, who was ejected in the first quarter of Sunday’s Game 4 loss in Indiana, apologized to his teammates prior to Game 5, then matched Khris Middleton‘s game-high 29 points in Milwaukee’s home win on Tuesday, writes Jamal Collier of ESPN.

“I’m an emotional player, I wear my heart on my sleeve, I give my all every night and take pride of being available for my team,” Portis said on Tuesday. “Game 4, little scuffle, maybe crossed the line. I let my team down by getting ejected and not being available for my team. I owed them an apology for sure.”

With Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf strain) and Damian Lillard (Achilles tendinitis) both unavailable for Game 5, the rest of the Bucks’ starters came up big to extend the team’s season. Portis (29 points, 10 rebounds), Middleton (29 points, 12 rebounds), and Patrick Beverley (13 points, 12 assists) each posted double-doubles, while Malik Beasley and Brook Lopez combined for 30 points.

The Bucks are still down 3-2 to the Pacers in the series, but forcing a Game 6 on Thursday gives Antetokounmpo and Lillard another chance to return to the court. Their availability remains up in the air, but head coach Doc Rivers expressed some optimism after Tuesday’s victory.

“I think they’re very, very, very close,” Rivers said of his two stars, per Collier.

Here’s more from around the Central:

Zach LaVine is “well ahead” of the four-to-six month recovery timeline the Bulls set after he underwent right foot surgery in February, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Johnson says LaVine’s goal remains to resume on-court work at around the three-month mark, in the hopes of having a “relatively normal” offseason. Both Johnson and Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times reiterate that trying to make a LaVine trade is the top priority for the Bulls this summer — that task should be less complicated if he’s healthy.
After joining the Cavaliers as a free agent in March, veteran forward Marcus Morris didn’t play a significant role down the stretch, averaging 15.0 minutes per game in 12 regular season appearances and sitting out the team’s first two playoff contests. But he was a key contributor off the bench in Tuesday’s Game 5 win, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic, scoring 12 points and grabbing three rebounds in 26 minutes of action. “We knew what he’s capable of,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Morris, who was a +8 in the one-point victory. “He’s just a guy you trust. And he’s been through these battles before. He’s tough as nails. He’s not afraid of s–t.”
Within his latest mailbag for The Athletic, James L. Edwards III discusses whether Brandon Ingram is a realistic trade target for the Pistons and checks in on Detroit’s president of basketball operations search. Confirming reporting from Marc Stein, Edwards says Dennis Lindsey is a name to watch for the Pistons. Edwards also mentions Bulls general manager Marc Eversley and Timberwolves executive VP of basketball operations Sachin Gupta as possible candidates to keep an eye on.

Tim Connelly Among Potential Targets For Pistons’ President Opening

April 30th, 2024 at 6:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons would be interested in Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly if Connelly exercises the opt-out clause in his contract with Minnesota at the end of the season, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack post.

The dispute between current Timberwolves majority owner Glen Taylor and minority owners Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore could cause Connelly to weigh his future in Minnesota. Connelly signed a five-year, $40MM contract with the organization in 2022. The Pistons announced after their season ended that they would hire a president of basketball operations.

Here’s more info on the Pistons’ search for a new president, via Stein:

Detroit’s search is expected to ramp up during the second and third rounds of the playoffs, when more potential candidates will be available for interviews. Stein confirms that Bucks general manager – and former Pistons employee – Jon Horst will be a candidate if he is willing to move on from Milwaukee.
Mavericks consultant and former Jazz executive Dennis Lindsey is another name to watch for the basketball ops position, per Stein.
J.J. Redick, a candidate for the Hornets’ coaching vacancy, could get an interview if he’s interested in a front office job, Stein says. Pistons chairman Arn Tellem represented Redick in his days as a player agent.
The new president of basketball operations will have the ability to decide whether current GM Troy Weaver will remain in his position, be reassigned to a different front office role, or get cut loose, according to Stein. The new exec will also determine whether head coach Monty Williams, who just completed the first year of a six-year contract worth nearly $80MM, will remain in his position.

And-Ones: Media Rights, Awards, Hall Of Fame, Lithuania, More

April 30th, 2024 at 3:52pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBC is making a strong play for the right to broadcast NBA games beginning in 2025/26, according to Joe Flint, Amol Sharma, and Isabella Simonetti of The Wall Street Journal (subscription required). People familiar with the situation tell the WSJ trio that Comcast’s NBCUniversal is prepared to pay $2.5 billion per year for a package of NBA games.

As we wrote last week, Amazon Prime Video is in strong position to become a broadcast partner for the NBA, with ESPN/ABC (Disney) also making good progress in talks.

After operating with just two partners (ESPN/ABC and TNT) in its current media rights deal, the NBA is looking to expand to at least three partners this time around. If Amazon and NBC were to join the mix with Disney, it could leave TNT (Warner Bros. Discovery) on the outside looking in, though the league reportedly hasn’t ruled out making four separate deals.

As Flint, Sharma, and Simonetti detail, TNT Sports paid about $1.2 billion per year for its NBA rights the previous media rights agreement, which will expire after the 2024/25 season. TNT remains involved in negotiations with the league and will have the right to match NBC’s offer, but would be looking at a substantial increase in cost.

If Comcast is able to reach a deal with the NBA, their package would include both regular season and playoff games on NBC and their streaming service Peacock, according to the WSJ report.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

After revealing its Executive of the Year winner on Tuesday, the NBA has two more minor award announcements on tap this week, per the league (Twitter link) — Teammate of the Year will be announced on Wednesday, with the Hustle Award to follow on Thursday.
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame recently announced that its enshrinement ceremony for 2024 has been postponed from August to October, primarily for Olympic-related logistical reasons. Vince Carter and Chauncey Billups are among the headliners of the ’24 class, which was revealed earlier this month.
Eight years after being told by a Pistons doctor that he wouldn’t be able to play basketball again due to a back injury, Lithuanian big man Donatas Motiejunas remains active in the EuroLeague and has played in 123 consecutive games. In a conversation with Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com (subscription required), Motiejunas discussed how that incident – which resulted in a voided deadline-day trade – changed the trajectory of his professional career.
Speaking of Lithuanian big men, Kings center Domantas Sabonis and Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas are both expected to suit up for Lithuania’s national team in their Olympic qualifying tournament in Puerto Rico this summer, according to head coach Kazys Maksvytis. Eurohoops has the story, via a report from Lithuanian outlet 15min.lt.
With LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry combining for a single playoff win, this spring feels like a passing-of-the-torch moment for the NBA, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic.