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Pacific Notes: Lakers, S. Johnson, Booker, Suns, Warriors

February 15th, 2023 at 9:28am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein (Twitter link) has confirmed that the Lakers remain ineligible to sign free agent swingman Stanley Johnson.

NBA rules prohibit Team A (in this case, the Lakers) from signing a player when he’s traded to Team B (ie. Utah) and that team waives him later in the season (or during the following season, if the trade took place during the offseason).

In this specific case, Johnson – after being cut by Utah – was signed and then waived by Team C (San Antonio), but the restriction on the Lakers remains in place. If the Jazz had hung onto Johnson, traded him to the Spurs, and he had subsequently been released by San Antonio, the restriction on the Lakers would no longer apply.

While there has been no indication the Lakers actually had interest in bringing back Johnson, the application of this particular rule is still worth clarifying for any similar instances in the future.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report considers how the Lakers‘ moves at the trade deadline will affect their offseason, outlining their various cap options and taking a look at their potential luxury tax situation for 2023/24.
Suns star Devin Booker, who won a gold medal with Kevin Durant at the Tokyo Olympics, is thrilled to be teaming up with Durant in the NBA and proud of the fact that he has helped turn Phoenix into a desirable destination for stars, per Nick Friedell of ESPN. “We built something that the league has picked up on,” Booker said. “We were probably the laughingstock of the NBA about four or five years ago, and just turning that around to something serious to championship contenders is a quick turnaround for us, so we take a lot of pride in what we’ve built here. For us to be a destination that Kev wanted to come to is a big sign of that, to show respect of what we’ve done so far. We still have more to do, but we’re moving in the right direction.”
John Hollinger of The Athletic is skeptical that the Warriors will be in line for any significant compensation based on the NBA’s investigation into whether the Trail Blazers disclosed certain medical information about Gary Payton II. In Hollinger’s view, Golden State would be lucky to get back one of the five second-round picks that went to Portland in the deal.

Injury Updates: Curry Brothers, LeBron, Kuzma, Robinson

February 14th, 2023 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s still no target date for Stephen Curry‘s return from a left leg injury, as he told reporters – including Kendra Andrews of ESPN – on Monday. The Warriors announced last week that Curry would be reevaluated after the All-Star break, but even if that assessment goes well, the former MVP won’t be ready to return to action right away.

“Ligaments can heal in all different types of timelines,” Curry said. “So there’s a window for each checkpoint. After the All-Star break, I will hopefully get back on the court, and then depending on how things go from there, we can key in on a specific date to get back.”

As Anthony Slater of The Athletic writes, the Warriors have a busy schedule out of the All-Star break, with six contests in nine days, so Curry’s missed games could add up quickly if he still needs a week or two to get up to speed after his next reevaluation.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

A left adductor strain has kept Nets wing Seth Curry on the shelf for the last five games, but he has been cleared to return on Wednesday vs. Miami, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post.
Lakers star LeBron James has missed three straight games with foot and ankle injuries and could get an extra week of rest if he sits out the team’s last game before the All-Star break. However, head coach Darvin Ham said on Monday that “in all likelihood” James will return on Wednesday vs. New Orleans, writes Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group.
Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma will be back in action on Tuesday night in Portland after missing four consecutive games with a left ankle sprain, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson, who has been sidelined since January 2 due to finger surgery, appears to be on the verge of returning. He has been upgraded to questionable for Wednesday’s game in Brooklyn, tweets Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.

Warriors’ Myers On Payton, Wiseman, Trade, Buyout Market

February 13th, 2023 at 2:03pm CST by Rory Maher

Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers held a press conference on Monday following the four-team trade that saw Gary Payton II sent back to Golden State from Portland. The deal was held up for a few days as the Warriors considered their options, but it ultimately went through even though they failed Payton’s physical due to a core muscle injury.

The veteran guard will be reevaluated in one month and the team hopes he’ll be back before a potential playoff push, Myers told reporters, including Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). Regarding Payton’s injury, Myers added that “there are things I can’t say for legal reasons and HIPAA reasons,” tweets Mark Medina of NBA.com.

A formal league inquiry into the Trail Blazers‘ alleged failure to provide sufficient medical information is expected to be opened. Myers didn’t want to comment on the potential investigation.

“Good question, but I don’t want to answer that. I can’t go down that road of accusations,” Myers said (Twitter link via Medina).

As far as why the process took a few days, Myers said the team was evaluating its options and wanted clarity on whether the trade could potentially be amended, which wasn’t possible after the deadline passed. He hopes to get a “fair” result from the investigation.

“What do I want? Whatever the NBA says is fair,” Myers said, per Slater (Twitter video link).

Here’s more from Myers’ press conference:

Slater pointed out to Myers that Payton missed the first 35 games of the season after a long recovery following surgery, and when he returned he wasn’t always playing every day. Was that a red flag? “We looked at the fact that he started the night before against our team…I didn’t factor in the thought that he’d be out as long as he will be,” Myers replied (Twitter video link).
Myers said it was a difficult decision to deal way former No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman, who was sent to Detroit as part of the trade. He said it was a “tough, tough move to make,” adding that “he’s a great kid and did everything we asked him to do” (Twitter link via Medina).
The Warriors were still high on Wiseman’s long-term potential, but Myers believes he needs playing time to develop his skills, and that wasn’t happening on Golden State. He said the trade was “not an indictment of James” and “it’s a hard rotation to crack,” tweets Medina. Part of the reason the Warriors decided to go through with the trade was because they “didn’t see a path” for Wiseman to be successful if they rescinded the trade and brought him back, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews (Twitter link).
Myers was asked if the Warriors would look to the buyout market to address frontcourt depth. “It doesn’t matter if he’s seven feet tall or eight feet tall. Any buyout conversation has to be done in collaboration with the coaching staff. Because why bring a player in if they’re not going to use him? But if there’s a player that the coaching staff and front office thinks can be helpful, then absolutely we’ll go target that guy,” Myers replied (Twitter video link courtesy of Slater).
When Slater asked Myers about the possibility of converting Anthony Lamb or Ty Jerome, both of whom are on two-way contracts, to a standard deal, Myers said a decision hasn’t been made yet. “I think we’ve gotta look and see whether it’s that or another player or whatever it might be and compare them. And say to Steve, ‘Hey, these are your options. Which player do you think helps us the most?’ And make that determination,” Myers said, adding that system fit would factor in as well.

Warriors Won’t Nix Four-Team Deal

February 12th, 2023 at 6:00pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

6:00pm: A formal league inquiry into the Trail Blazers ‘ alleged failure to provide sufficient medical information is expected to be opened, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. That could result in the Warriors receiving further compensation.

5:07pm: The Warriors have decided to go through with the four-team deal despite Payton’s injury, The Athletic’s Shams Charania tweets. Golden State will not pass Payton’s physical exam but they’ve decided to move forward with the trade anyway.

All the players involved can now suit up for their teams.

4:45pm: The trade is tracking toward becoming official, Wojnarowski tweets.

1:00pm: The NBA is working with Golden State to help the Warriors finalize their four-team trade without losing their ability to pursue recourse for the way the Trail Blazers shared Gary Payton II‘s health information, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

As we previously relayed, the Warriors have filed an official complaint with the league office, arguing that Portland withheld key medical information about Payton.

The reserve guard, shipped out to Golden State from Portland at the trade deadline last week, flunked a physical exam when the Warriors’ medical staff discovered that his core muscle injury, which he had been playing through for a month, was severe enough it could sideline him for three additional months this season.

Reports from The Athletic and ESPN have indicated that Payton was using Toradol to relieve his pain, which the Warriors didn’t know before agreeing to the trade. Agent Aaron Goodwin told Chris Haynes of TNT (Twitter link) that “despite of what’s being reported, my client never took Toradol shots to be available for games during his time in Portland.”

[Note: The Athletic has since clarified that Payton received Toradol doses orally, rather than via injection.]

Should the Warriors ultimately decide not to move forward with their trade, it would have a ripple effect on four clubs. Their deadline to do so is 9:30 pm ET tonight.

According to Wojnarowski, Golden State will likely move forward with the deal as long as doing so doesn’t cost the team its ability to further pursue the matter. As Woj explains, an NBA investigation could result in a fine and/or lost draft picks for the Blazers if the league discovers “a failure to disclose relevant information.”

The Warriors shipped out 2020 No. 2 draft pick James Wiseman to the Pistons and two second-round draft picks to the Blazers in the trade. Meanwhile, the Pistons sent out small forward Saddiq Bey to the Hawks and combo forward Kevin Knox to the Trail Blazers. The Hawks traded three second-round picks to Portland and two seconds to Golden State.

Luke Adams contributed to this report.

Warriors File Complaint Over Gary Payton II Trade

February 12th, 2023 at 11:31am CST by Arthur Hill

The NBA has started an investigation of the Trail Blazers for possibly providing misleading information after receiving a complaint from the Warriors regarding a four-team trade involving Gary Payton II, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Payton failed a physical with Golden State’s medical staff after being acquired from Portland on Thursday. The Warriors have a deadline of 9:30 pm Eastern time today to decide whether to keep Payton or rescind the entire deal, which would also affect the Pistons and Hawks.

The Warriors’ doctors determined that Payton has a core muscle injury that could keep him out of action for up to three months. The injury prevented him from playing until January 2, but he had been a regular part of the Blazers’ rotation since then.

Portland general manager Joe Cronin spoke to reporters about the situation on Friday, saying he didn’t do anything to mislead the Warriors.

Payton played an important role in Golden State’s run to a championship last season, and the team saw him as a way to upgrade its perimeter defense. He left last summer in free agency, signing a three-year deal with Portland worth more than $26MM.

In the trade, the Hawks acquired Saddiq Bey from the Pistons; the Pistons acquired former lottery pick James Wiseman from the Warriors; the Trail Blazers acquired Kevin Knox from the Pistons, three second-round picks from Atlanta, and two second-rounders from Golden State; and the Warriors re-acquired Payton from Portland, along with two second-round picks from Atlanta.

None of those players are able to take the court for their new teams until the Warriors announce their final decision.

Warriors’ Decision On Gary Payton II Trade Due By Sunday Night

February 11th, 2023 at 6:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors must decide by 9:30 pm Eastern time on Sunday whether to rescind a four-team trade in the wake of Gary Payton II‘s failed physical, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. He adds that Golden State may take another day to evaluate Payton’s condition and determine if it’s in the team’s best interest to keep him.

Sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link) that Warriors officials believe the Trail Blazers withheld important information about Payton’s condition prior to the trade, which was completed shortly before Thursday’s deadline. Payton is dealing with a core muscle injury that Golden State’s medical staff says could sideline him for up to three months. The muscle issue prevented Payton from making his season debut until January 2, but he has been playing regularly since then.

Portland general manager Joe Cronin insists the Blazers were completely open in trade negotiations, saying Friday that the organization was “confident that he was healthy.”

At stake is a complex trade in which the Hawks acquired Saddiq Bey from the Pistons; the Pistons received former lottery pick James Wiseman from the Warriors; the Trail Blazers landed Kevin Knox from the Pistons, three second-round picks from Atlanta and two second-rounders from Golden State; and the Warriors re-acquired Payton from Portland, along with two second-round picks from Atlanta.

Because the trade deadline has passed, the terms of the deal can’t be altered, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. Initial reporting indicated that might be an option after news broke about the failed physical, but Marks has learned that accepting the trade in its current form or rescinding it entirely are the Warriors’ only choices.

Marks reports that the NBA issued a reminder to each team last week that medical information on players had to be fully disclosed in trade talks (Twitter link). The Warriors could ask the league to investigate (there’s precedent for a team being retroactively rewarded a draft pick in such a case), but Marks notes that it could take weeks or months to complete and wouldn’t help the team with its current decision.

Multiple league sources tell Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area that Golden State is strongly considering holding on to Payton, even if he’s out of action indefinitely. Poole notes that the Warriors’ perimeter defense has been an issue lately, and Payton showed last season that he can make a difference as a point-of-attack defender.

Tim Kawakami of The Athletic first reported that Golden State would have until Sunday to make a final decision on the Payton trade.

Western Notes: LeBron, Warriors, Mavs, Vassell

February 11th, 2023 at 3:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Medical imaging conducted on LeBron James‘ injured left foot this week didn’t show any damage, but the Lakers star will miss a second consecutive game due to what the team is calling left ankle soreness, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The Lakers have officially ruled out James for Saturday’s contest vs. Golden State.

Chris Haynes said on his latest #thisleague UNCUT podcast with Marc Stein that LeBron’s foot issue was bothering him quite a bit during Tuesday’s game against Oklahoma City, when he broke the NBA’s all-time scoring record.

“I was told LeBron was severely struggling with that foot injury he has,” Haynes said. “It’s something that’s been nagging him for a few weeks already, but it gets to points where it just gets unbearable, and he plays through it. … The way it was explained to me is that might be something that lingers all season long.”

Although the Lakers will be without James on Saturday vs. Golden State, they’ll get a chance to see several of their newly acquired players in action, with D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Davon Reed all expected to be available, according to McMenamin. Mohamed Bamba is still serving a suspension that he earned while he was with the Magic.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Tim Kawakami of The Athletic (Twitter link) hears from a source that the Warriors actually have until Sunday evening, not Saturday evening, to finalize a decision on whether or not to nix their four-team trade with the Trail Blazers, Pistons, and Hawks due to Gary Payton II‘s failed physical. However, Kawakami notes that the Warriors probably don’t want to drag out the situation any longer than they have to and could make their call sooner.
Speaking on Friday to reporters, including Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News, Mavericks president of basketball operations Nico Harrison discussed the Kyrie Irving trade, why he doesn’t think the team needs another ball-handler, and whether the club will be looking to add one more free agent. “We’re going to look at it closely,” Harrison said of the buyout market. “If there’s something we think can help strengthen our bench, then we’ll definitely do it, for sure.” Dallas is reportedly considered a frontrunner to sign Terrence Ross if and when he’s bought out by Orlando.
Spurs wing Devin Vassell told Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link) on Friday that there’s still no “set date in stone” for his return from a left knee procedure, but he said it definitely won’t happen until sometime after the All-Star break.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

February 11th, 2023 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

In the wake of Thursday’s trade deadline, several rosters around the NBA remain in flux. Some players will be waived or bought out in the coming days, while others will sign with new teams as free agents, either on 10-day contracts or rest-of-season deals.

With that in mind, we’re doing a Saturday afternoon check-in on open roster spots across the league. Given how much action we expect on the transaction wire in the coming days, it may not take long for this list to become outdated, but this is a snapshot of where things stand as of 1:00 pm Central time on February 11.

With the help of our roster counts page, which will continue to be updated for the rest of the season to account for each new transaction, here are the teams that currently have open roster spots:

Teams with two open roster spots:

Milwaukee Bucks
New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns

These three teams all sent out more players than they received in trade-deadline deals and are carrying just 13 players apiece on standard contracts.

Technically, NBA teams are required to carry a minimum of 14 players on standard contracts, but they’re allowed to dip to 13 for up to two weeks at a time, so these clubs will have until February 23 to fill at least one of their two openings.

Teams with one open roster spot:

Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
- Note: The Hornets are reportedly likely to buy out Reggie Jackson, which would open up a second roster spot.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Denver Nuggets
Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
- Note: The Heat’s 14th roster spot is occupied by Jamaree Bouyea, who is on a 10-day contract, so they’ll open up a second roster spot when his deal expires during the All-Star break.
Oklahoma City Thunder
- Note: The Thunder have a full 15-man roster, but one of their two-way contract slots is open.
Philadelphia 76ers
Utah Jazz

We’re still waiting to see which players are officially bought out, but more roster spots will open when those moves are completed. For instance, the Magic currently have a full 15-man roster, but would create two openings if they finalize buyouts for both Terrence Ross and Patrick Beverley — they’re said to be in talks with both players.

The Jazz would open up a second spot on their 15-man roster if they buy out Russell Westbrook.

The Rockets and Pacers currently have full 15-man rosters, but will create openings by officially waiving John Wall and Serge Ibaka, respectively. However, the expectation is that they’ll re-sign Boban Marjanovic and James Johnson, respectively, to fill those newly opened spots.

The Wizards are in a similar situation — they’re reportedly working on a buyout with Will Barton, but the expectation is that they’d use their 15th roster spot in that scenario to promote Jordan Goodwin from his two-way deal. That would create a two-way opening for the team.

Finally, while the Mavericks and Pistons technically have full rosters at this time, each team’s 15th man (Chris Silva for Dallas, Stanley Umude for Detroit) is in a 10-day contract, so they’re both in good position to open up a spot if they need it.

Blazers GM Cronin Defends Handling Of Payton’s Injury

February 10th, 2023 at 9:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Trail Blazers general manager Joe Cronin denied that the team did anything wrong in its medical treatment of Gary Payton II, saying that the reserve guard had been “cleared” to play and the organization was “confident that he was healthy,” Bill Oram of The Oregonian tweets.

The four-team trade involving the Warriors, Pistons, Trail Blazers and Hawks is in jeopardy after Payton failed to pass the Warriors’ physical exam on Friday. Though the trade has been announced as official, players still had to undergo physical exams.

Payton has a lingering core muscle injury that could sideline him for up to three months, according to the exam by the Warriors’ medical staff. Payton underwent surgery in the offseason to address a core muscle injury and was sidelined until early January.

He has been playing regularly since his return, including a 22-minute stint against Golden State on Wednesday in which he scored nine points and grabbed three rebounds.

However, Payton has been playing through pain and the Blazers training staff has been giving him Toradol shots to help him stay on the court, according to a report by The Athletic. That information wasn’t relayed to the Warriors during the negotiation process, The Athletic adds.

Cronin defended the Portland organization and medical staff.

“Player safety is super important to us, it’s a super important thing around the league,” he said. “We were playing him, he was playing. He had been cleared. We were confident he was healthy when he was playing. We would not have brought him back if we thought he wasn’t healthy or he was at risk, so you trust that we did the right thing, and you trust that our process was correct.”

The Warriors have until Saturday to decide whether to nix the complex deal.

Gary Payton II Fails Physical; Four-Team Trade In Jeopardy

February 10th, 2023 at 6:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Gary Payton II has failed a physical exam, placing the four-team swap involving the Warriors, Pistons, Trail Blazers and Hawks in jeopardy, Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic report.

Payton has a core muscle injury that could sideline him for up to three months, according to the exam by the Warriors’ medical staff.

Though the trade has been announced as official, players still had to undergo physical exams. The Warriors have until Saturday to call the complex trade off, according to Charania and Slater.

In the deal, the Hawks acquired Saddiq Bey from the Pistons; the Pistons acquired former lottery pick James Wiseman from the Warriors; the Trail Blazers acquired Kevin Knox from the Pistons, three second-round picks from Atlanta, and two second-rounders from Golden State; and the Warriors re-acquired Payton from Portland, along with two second-round picks from Atlanta.

Payton’s debut with Portland was delayed until Jan. 2 due to a core muscle injury. He has played regularly since returning to action, including a 22-minute stint against Golden State on Wednesday in which he scored nine points and grabbed three rebounds.

However, Payton has been playing through pain, according to Charania Slater, and that the Blazers training staff has been giving him Toradol shots to help him stay on the court. That information wasn’t relayed to the Warriors during the negotiation process, The Athletic’s duo adds.

The defensive ace was a key member of the Warriors’ championship rotation last season and Golden State felt he could have a similar impact on its bench this season.

According to Charania and Slater, there have been behind-the-scenes discussions on Friday about possibly amending the trade. The amount of parties involved complicates matters.