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Pacific Notes: Durant, Thompson, Lakers’ DPE, Kings

September 11th, 2019 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant left the Warriors because he wasn’t able to find the family atmosphere he wanted, writes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. Durant got the championships and individual awards he was seeking when he signed with Golden State three years ago, but as he indicated in a Wall Street Journal interview this week, he couldn’t be part of the organization in the same way that Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala were.

Poole notes that Durant was impressed by the closeness those four players displayed when they came to the Hamptons to recruit him in 2016. That influenced his decision, but he still felt like an outsider. He wasn’t drafted to the organization like Curry, Thompson and Green, and he wasn’t instrumental in the Warriors’ first title in 40 years the way that Iguodala was.

Poole adds that the family dynamic faded over Durant’s three years with Golden State as players spent more time with their actual families. The Currys had two more children, Iguodala got married and Green became more devoted to fatherhood. Green was a close friend for Durant in his first season with the team, but he hung out with DeMarcus Cousins more often last year.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Steve Kerr tells Joe Vardon of The Athletic that it’s going to be like “Year 1” as he guides a much different Warriors roster. While many key pieces are gone from the championship years, Kerr said surviving while Thompson heals from a torn ACL will be the biggest challenge. “Losing Kevin, Andre, Shaun (Livingston) obviously, those are huge losses,” he said. “Losing Klay on top of all that really changes the way we’re going to have to play at both ends. Klay was always an integral part of everything. Movement on offense, but also the guarding of the ballhandler on defense, switching onto bigs. So until he gets back, we’ve got to re-imagine everything and adapt accordingly.”
  • The Lakers are seeking a disabled player exception after Cousins’ injury, but it’s likely just a tool that may be used later in the season, according to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. There are few options who could make a difference at a $1.75MM salary, which is half of what Cousins is owed. However, minimum contracts decrease through the year, and the DPE will be more valuable once buyout season arrives.
  • Buddy Hield and Bogdan Bogdanovic will be competing not just for minutes in the Kings‘ backcourt, but for contract extensions as well, notes James Ham of NBC Sports Bay Area.
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Kevin Durant Talks FA Decision, Warriors, Thunder

September 10th, 2019 at 12:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Kevin Durant hasn’t spoken much this summer about his decision to leave the Warriors for the Nets in free agency, but he opened up on that topic in a conversation with J.R. Moehringer of The Wall Street Journal.

As Durant explained to Moehringer, after going through an extended series of meetings during his free agency in 2016, the star forward didn’t feel the need to do the same in 2019. He didn’t even need to speak to the Nets before making his decision, having felt confident from the outside that Brooklyn was the right fit.

Durant also noted that the motion offense the Warriors run “only works to a certain point,” and that the later rounds of the postseason require him to get more creative on offense. According to Moehringer, the 10-time All-Star wanted to go somewhere where he’d be “free to hone that sort of improvisational game” over the course of the season.

The opportunity to join his “best friend in the league,” Kyrie Irving, was a plus for KD too.

Over the course of Moehringer’s piece, Durant offers a handful of interesting thoughts and observations on his fit with the Warriors, his relationship with the Thunder, and his feeling about the NBA. Here are a few of those highlights:

On never fully fitting in with the Warriors:

“I came in there wanting to be part of a group, wanting to be part of a family, and definitely felt accepted. But I’ll never be one of those guys. I didn’t get drafted there.… Steph Curry, obviously drafted there. Andre Iguodala, won the first Finals, first championship. Klay Thompson, drafted there. Draymond Green, drafted there. And the rest of the guys kind of rehabilitated their careers there. So me? S–t, how you going to rehabilitate me? What you going to teach me? How can you alter anything in my basketball life? I got an MVP already. I got scoring titles.

“As time went on, I started to realize I’m just different from the rest of the guys. It’s not a bad thing. Just my circumstances and how I came up in the league. And on top of that, the media always looked at it like KD and the Warriors. So it’s like nobody could get a full acceptance of me there.”

On the hostile reaction he received from the Thunder and their fans when he returned as a Warrior:

“Such a venomous toxic feeling when I walked into that arena. And just the organization, the trainers and equipment managers, those dudes is pissed off at me? Ain’t talking to me? I’m like, ‘Yo, this is where we going with this? Because I left a team and went to play with another team?’

“… I’ll never be attached to that city again because of that. I eventually wanted to come back to that city and be part of that community and organization, but I don’t trust nobody there. That s–t must have been fake, what they was doing. The organization, the GM, I ain’t talked to none of those people, even had a nice exchange with those people, since I left.”

On the business of the NBA:

“Some days I hate the circus of the NBA. Some days I hate that the players let the NBA business, the fame that comes with the business, alter their minds about the game. Sometimes I don’t like being around the executives and politics that come with it. I hate that.”

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Warriors Sign Juan Toscano-Anderson To Exhibit 10 Deal

September 10th, 2019 at 9:42am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors have signed free agent forward Juan Toscano-Anderson to an Exhibit 10 contract, according to agent Misko Raznatovic (Twitter link). RealGM’s transactions log confirms that the deal has been officially completed.

Toscano-Anderson, 26, played his college ball at Marquette before going undrafted in 2015. He has spent most of his professional career with teams in his home country of Mexico, but joined Golden State’s G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, for the 2018/19 season.

In 44 games (16 starts) with Santa Cruz, Toscano-Anderson averaged 7.0 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 2.1 APG with a .438/.341/.590 shooting line in 23.8 minutes per contest. At the conclusion of the NBAGL season, he rejoined Fuerza Regia in Mexico for the LNBP playoffs. He also participated in the G League Elite Camp this spring, then played for Golden State’s Summer League squad in Las Vegas.

His new deal with the Warriors indicates that Toscano-Anderson may return to Santa Cruz for the 2019/20 campaign. If he spends two months with the G League squad, he’d be eligible to earn a bonus of up to $50K as a result of his Exhibit 10 deal with Golden State.

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Delaney, Meeks, Afflalo Working Out For Warriors

September 10th, 2019 at 9:02am CST by Luke Adams

9:02am: Jodie Meeks, Arron Afflalo, and DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell are also working out for the Warriors today, Shaw has learned (Twitter link).

7:52am: Veteran point guard Malcolm Delaney is working out for the Warriors today, a source tells JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link). Delaney also recently auditioned for the Knicks.

A former Virginia Tech standout, Delaney spent two seasons with the Hawks from 2016-18, averaging 5.7 PPG and 2.8 APG in 127 total games in Atlanta. Outside of that two-year NBA stint, Delaney has spent his professional career overseas, playing for teams in France, Ukraine, Germany, Russia, and China.

A recent report indicated that Delaney was in talks with Spanish club Barcelona about a potential deal, but was continuing to seek out NBA offers before deciding whether or not to return to Europe.

While the Warriors have room on their offseason roster to add Delaney or another player, it’s hard to see a path to a regular season roster spot for a camp invitee in Golden State, given the team’s hard cap. The Dubs would have to release Alfonzo McKinnie‘s non-guaranteed contract or make a trade to create the room necessary to carry another player into the regular season.

A report on Monday indicated that former first-round pick Jared Cunningham would also be working out for the Warriors.

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Cauley-Stein, McKinnie Could Start

September 9th, 2019 at 8:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Willie Cauley-Stein will likely start at center for the Warriors but Kevon Looney will probably play more crunch-time minutes, Anthony Slater of The Athletic opines. Alfonzo McKinnie may get the nod at small forward with Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III in reserve, since McKinnie is a high energy player who should mesh well with the backcourt of Stephen Curry and D’Angelo Russell, Slater continues. However, rookie Eric Paschall is a darkhorse candidate to play down the stretch due to his versatility, Slater adds.

  • The Warriors preferred Cauley-Stein to DeMarcus Cousins even before Cousins committed to the Lakers, Slater writes in the same mailbag story. Cauley-Stein provided a younger option who better fit their new priorities, according to Slater. However, they never really had a decision to make because they were hard-capped after the sign-and-trade for Russell with the Nets was agreed upon. The hard cap meant the Warriors couldn’t give Cousins a max raise up to $6.4MM, Slater notes. Cauley-Stein agreed to join the Warriors on a two-year contract on July 2 and officially signed on July 8.
  • Jared Cunningham will work out for the Warriors on Tuesday, Marc Spears of ESPN tweets. Cunningham, a shooting guard who recently worked out for the Rockets, hasn’t appeared in an NBA game since the 2015/16 season.
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Bulls Notes: Satoransky, Porter, Blakeney, Harrison

September 7th, 2019 at 5:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Bulls believe they pulled off a steal by landing Tomas Satoransky in a sign-and-trade with the Wizards, writes Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. Chicago gave up a pair of second-round picks for the fourth-year combo guard after reaching a three-year, $30MM agreement with him in free agency. Satoransky was a restricted free agent, but his price tag was too high for Washington to match in the face of salary cap concerns.

Satoranksy averaged 8.9 points and 5.0 assists in 80 games last season and took over as the Wizards’ starting point guard after an injury sidelined John Wall midway through the season. But Bulls coach Jim Boylen said the intangibles that Santoransky brings are just as important.

“In my conversation with (vice president of basketball operations John Paxson) and (general manager Gar Forman), it was about what kind of character we can bring in that can still play, that can help us win because what we’ve needed is durability and availability. We haven’t had that,” Boylen said. “In looking out over the free agents and the guys we felt we could get, just looking at where Washington was and what they were trying to do, having some (cap) issues, he was the guy we targeted for all those characteristics I believe in.’’

There’s more from Chicago:

  • The Bulls had a strong advocate for Satoransky in former teammate Otto Porter Jr., Crowley adds. Porter, who was acquired from Washington in a February trade, was also deemed expandable because the Wizards were looking to trim salary. “Otto loved him, and ‘Sato’ loved Otto,’’ Boylen said. “Otto is a big part of this team. His trade is not talked about enough. We were 7-5 in February because, first of all, we got rid of (Jabari Parker), and we added a guy who brings synergy and chemistry. Otto has that synergy and chemistry with ‘Sato.’’’
  • The impending release of Antonio Blakeney is good news for Shaquille Harrison, who is now ticketed for the 15th roster spot, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. Harrison is entering his second season with the Bulls after putting together a 6.5/3.0/1.9 line in 73 games last year. He is scheduled to make $1,620,564 this season, but carries just a $175K guarantee until January 10, when all NBA contracts become fully guaranteed.
  • Once Blakeney hits waivers, he’ll be eligible to be claimed by any team except for the Warriors and Heat, who are both have hard cap restrictions, according to Marks (Twitter link). If he is claimed, Blakeney’s contract will carry a $1.6MM cap hit.
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Remaining Offseason Questions: Pacific Division

September 6th, 2019 at 4:06pm CST by Luke Adams

NBA teams have now completed the brunt of their offseason work, with the draft and free agency practically distant memories. Still, with training camps still a few weeks away, many clubs around the league have at least one or two outstanding issues they’ve yet to address.

We’ve spent the last couple weeks looking at all 30 NBA teams, separating them by division and checking in on a key outstanding question that each club still needs to answer before the 2019/20 regular season begins.

After focusing on the Atlantic, Southeast, and Central last week, we headed West and tackled the Northwest and Southwest this week. Today, we’re finishing things up with the Pacific. Let’s dive in…

Golden State Warriors
Will the Warriors try to create any additional breathing room under the hard cap?

As I noted earlier this week when I took a closer look at teams currently in luxury-tax territory, the Warriors are only about $407K from their hard cap, assuming they intend to retain Alfonzo McKinnie along with their 13 players on guaranteed contracts.

That proximity to the hard cap will significantly limit the Warriors’ roster flexibility this season. The Dubs won’t be able to carry a 15th man until late in the year. They’ll have little ability to replace an injured player on the roster. And they essentially won’t be able to take back more salary than they send out in any trade.

Warriors management would surely love to create some breathing room by cutting costs, but there aren’t many realistic ways for the team to move further below the hard cap. Only six players have cap hits greater than $2MM. Three of them – Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green – aren’t going anywhere, and the other three – D’Angelo Russell, Kevon Looney, and Willie Cauley-Stein – can’t be traded until at least December 15, even if the club wanted to.

In other words, if they want to create any extra room below their hard cap, the Warriors may have to get awfully creative.

Los Angeles Clippers
Who will be the Clippers’ 15th man?

The Clippers are carrying 14 players with fully guaranteed salaries and four with non-guaranteed camp contracts, leaving the door open for one of those non-guaranteed players – Donte Grantham, Terry Larrier, James Palmer Jr., or Derrick Walton Jr. – to claim the 15th regular season roster spot.

While it’s possible that one of those players will become the Clippers’ 15th man, I’d expect a team with title aspirations to be thinking bigger. Leaving that final roster spot open to start the season in case opportunities arise on the trade or buyout market is probably the most likely path for Los Angeles.

Still, it’s possible those opportunities will arise even before the season begins, as they did for L.A.’s other team when the Lakers signed Dwight Howard. Andre Iguodala is likely the Clippers’ top target to fill out the roster, but other veterans may shake loose as teams set their rosters this fall.

Los Angeles Lakers
Do the Lakers have a recovery timetable in mind for DeMarcus Cousins?

Assuming Dwight Howard looks okay in training camp, he’s on track to fill the Lakers‘ 15th regular season roster spot. Like the rival Clippers though, the Lakers are a team with championship aspirations and will want to make sure they’re optimizing all 15 roster spots. That’s where Cousins comes in.

A torn ACL isn’t quite as serious as a torn Achilles, so it’s possible Cousins will be able to make it back before the end of the 2019/20 season. But it’s his third major leg injury in the last two years, so he certainly shouldn’t be in a rush to return.

Cousins’ contract with the Lakers is only for one year, and he’ll receive his full $3.5MM whether or not he spends the whole season on the team’s roster. If the Lakers determine Cousins will miss the entire season, it would probably make sense to waive him and open up that roster spot for someone who could contribute in 2019/20.

While releasing Cousins now would create some added preseason roster flexibility, the Lakers won’t necessarily have to make this decision before the season begins — waiving him in, say, January would still open up opportunities at or after the trade deadline. His contract could also be used for salary-matching purposes in a deal.

Phoenix Suns
Is Devin Booker happy with the Suns’ offseason?

With the 2018/19 season winding down in March, Booker spoke about being involved in the Suns‘ offseason roster moves, suggesting that there was an “understanding” when he signed his five-year contract extension with the club that he’d have a voice in those decisions.

Booker hasn’t spoken in depth this summer about the Suns’ offseason, so it’s not clear if he pushed for – or voiced support for – any of the team’s acquisitions, such as Ricky Rubio, Dario Saric, Aron Baynes, Frank Kaminsky, or first-round pick Cameron Johnson. We did hear in the spring that Booker had no input in the firing of Igor Kokoskov, and a report during free agency suggested that Phoenix opted not to pursue point guard D’Angelo Russell despite Booker’s advocacy.

The Suns certainly have no obligation to run every move by their star guard, and as long as the on-court results start to improve, Booker should be on board with the direction of the franchise. Still, it’s a situation worth keeping an eye on. Even though he’s several years away from free agency, any sign of tension between Booker and the Suns would be a cause for some concern.

Sacramento Kings
Will the Kings sign Buddy Hield to a rookie scale extension?

With Ben Simmons, Jamal Murray, and Caris LeVert locked up to rookie scale extensions, Hield (along with Raptors forward Pascal Siakam) may be the next in line for a new deal. The Kings have until October 21 to get something done with their young sharpshooter, and GM Vlade Divac confirmed this week they’re working on it.

It will be fascinating to see if the Kings and Hield’s camp can agree on a fair price in the coming weeks. If he replicates or builds upon his impressive 2018/19 season, Hield can reasonably expect to get big-time offers as a restricted free agent in 2020, especially given how weak next year’s free agent class projects to be. He has some leverage, and won’t necessarily have to settle for a team-friendly deal.

The Kings, on the other hand, will have to be careful in negotiations with Hield, since he’s the first of many young players they’ll need to lock up in the coming years — De’Aaron Fox will be extension-eligible in 2020, with Marvin Bagley to follow in 2021. The higher they go for Hield, the less flexibility – and leverage – the Kings will have in those future negotiations.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Warriors Sign Andrew Harrison To Camp Deal

September 5th, 2019 at 7:51am CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 5: Harrison’s deal is official, per RealGM’s NBA transactions log.

AUGUST 27: The Warriors have reached an agreement with free agent guard Andrew Harrison, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Harrison is signing a training camp contract with the team. Agent Kevin Bradbury of BDA Sports informed Wojnarowski of the deal.

Harrison, 24, has spent the last three seasons in the NBA, appearing in 145 total regular season games for the Grizzlies, Cavaliers, and Pelicans. He spent time with all three teams early in 2018/19, averaging 3.2 PPG, 1.4 APG, and 1.2 RPG in 17 contests (11.0 MPG). After being waived by New Orleans in January, he caught on with Russian club Khimki to finish the season.

A former Kentucky standout, Harrison is on track to become the 18th player under contract with the Warriors. The team is currently carrying 13 players on fully guaranteed contracts, two on non-guaranteed deals, and a pair on two-way pacts.

Because they’re right up against a hard cap, the Warriors are unlikely to retain Harrison for their regular season roster. If he doesn’t catch on with another NBA team to start the 2019/20 season, it’s possible he’ll join Golden State’s G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors.

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Hawks, Warriors, Grizzlies Have Made Most Offseason Trades

September 3rd, 2019 at 9:30am CST by Luke Adams

A total of 43 trades have been completed by NBA teams since the 2018/19 season ended, including three deals involving three teams and one that included four teams. No club has been more active on the trade market during that time than the Hawks, who completed eight deals. However, the Warriors and Grizzlies have been hot on their heels, with seven trades apiece.

[RELATED: 2019 NBA Offseason Trades]

The Hawks were active early and often in the offseason. They were involved in the first trade agreement of June when they agreed to acquire Allen Crabbe from Brooklyn on June 6, then were part of the league’s first two officially-finalized pre-draft deals when they sent one second-round pick to the Warriors and another to the Heat.

Atlanta didn’t make any massive splashes on the trade market, but the trade up to No. 4 to land De’Andre Hunter‘s draft rights from New Orleans involved eight total players or picks, qualifying it as a modest blockbuster.

The Warriors made one massive move, acquiring D’Angelo Russell in a sign-and-trade deal with Brooklyn, but otherwise their summer swaps mostly focused on keeping team salary in check below the hard cap. Golden State moved veterans like Andre Iguodala and Damian Jones to cut costs, while acquiring second-round picks such as Alen Smailagic and Eric Paschall for their modest cap hits.

As for the Grizzlies, they’ve been one of the NBA’s most active teams after overhauling their front office in the spring. Their seven deals were all made with an eye toward the future, as they moved on from franchise point guard Mike Conley and loaded up on draft picks, netting three first-round selections and three more second-rounders over the course of the summer.

Here are a few other notable details related to this offseason’s trades so far:

Teams that have made the most trades:

  • Atlanta Hawks: 8
  • Golden State Warriors: 7
  • Memphis Grizzlies: 7
  • Philadelphia 76ers: 5
  • Washington Wizards: 5
  • Brooklyn Nets: 4
  • Detroit Pistons: 4
  • Miami Heat: 4
  • New Orleans Pelicans: 4
  • Oklahoma City Thunder: 4
  • Phoenix Suns: 4
  • Utah Jazz: 4

Teams that have made the fewest trades:

  • Toronto Raptors: 0
  • Charlotte Hornets: 1
  • Chicago Bulls: 1
  • Cleveland Cavaliers: 1
  • Houston Rockets: 1
  • New York Knicks: 1
  • Orlando Magic: 1
  • Sacramento Kings: 1
  • San Antonio Spurs: 1

Players who have been traded multiple times:

2019 All-Stars or All-NBA players who have been traded:

2020 first-round picks that have been traded:

  • Bucks‘ 2020 first-round pick to Celtics (via Suns; top-7 protected).
  • Cavaliers‘ 2020 first-round pick to Pelicans (via Hawks; top-10 protected).
  • Jazz‘s 2020 first-round pick to Grizzlies (1-7, 15-30 protection).
  • Nuggets‘ 2020 first-round pick to Thunder (top-10 protected).
  • Nets‘ 2020 first-round pick to Hawks (top-14 protected).
  • Pacers‘ 2020 first-round pick to Bucks (top-14 protected).
  • Sixers‘ 2020 first-round pick to Nets (top-14 protected).
  • Warriors‘ 2020 first-round pick to Nets (top-20 protected).

Future first-round picks that have been traded:

  • Heat‘s 2021 first-round pick to Thunder (via Clippers; unprotected).
  • Lakers‘ 2021 first-round pick to Pelicans (9-30 protected).
  • Clippers‘ 2022 first-round pick to Thunder (unprotected)
  • Heat‘s 2023 first-round pick to Thunder (via Clippers; top-14 protected).
  • Clippers‘ 2024 first-round pick to Thunder (unprotected).
  • Lakers‘ 2024 first-round pick to Pelicans (unprotected).
  • Rockets‘ 2024 first-round pick to Thunder (top-4 protected).
  • Warriors‘ 2024 first-round pick to Grizzlies (top-4 protected).
  • Clippers‘ 2026 first-round pick to Thunder (unprotected).
  • Rockets‘ 2026 first-round pick to Thunder (top-4 protected).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Atkinson Named G League GM

September 2nd, 2019 at 7:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • Ryan Atkinson has been named GM of the Warriors’ G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to a team press release. Atkinson, 34, had been the G League team’s assistant GM for the last three seasons. Previous GM Kent Lacob has been named the Warriors’ director of team development.
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