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Community Shootaround: Top NBA Stories Of 2019

December 31st, 2019 at 1:20pm CST by Luke Adams

We’re on the verge of flipping the calendar to 2020, but before we close the book on 2019, we want to take a look back at The Year That Was in the NBA.

The league crowned a new champion in 2019, as the Raptors won their first title in their 24th year of existence. Toronto made a memorable run to that championship, knocking out the Sixers in the Eastern Conference Semifinals with one of the most improbable buzzer-beaters in playoff history, then coming back from a 2-0 deficit in the Conference Finals vs. the Bucks before knocking off the defending-champion Warriors in the Finals.

Of course, the Warriors weren’t at full strength in those Finals. The respective Achilles and ACL tears suffered by Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson in that series not only paved the way for a Raptors’ victory — they also essentially ended Golden State’s dynasty. Six months later, Durant, Andre Iguodala, and Shaun Livingston are gone, Thompson and Stephen Curry are injured, and the Warriors are in the Western Conference basement.

While things took a turn for the Warriors this summer, it’s not as if their Finals opponents had a perfect offseason either. Kawhi Leonard became the first reigning NBA Finals MVP to leave his team in free agency, returning home to Los Angeles, where he and Paul George joined forces of members of the Clippers.

Leonard’s shocking free agent decision and the out-of-nowhere trade that sent George from the Thunder to the Clippers were among the highlights of one of the NBA’s most eventful offseasons ever. The summer also included Kyrie Irving and Durant teaming up for the Nets, as well as blockbuster trades sending Russell Westbrook to the Rockets and Anthony Davis to the Lakers. The AD trade was the culmination of a saga that began when Davis asked the Pelicans to trade him in January.

Although Davis eventually made his way to the Lakers, it happened after Magic Johnson had abruptly resigned from his position as the team’s president of basketball operations in the year’s most jarring impromptu press conferences. Not to be outdone, the Knicks held a surprise presser of their own several months later to announce, just 10 games into the 2019/20 season, that they weren’t happy with their team’s play. That James Dolan-mandated session may have been the beginning of the end for David Fizdale‘s tenure in New York.

A pair of the year’s biggest basketball stories originated in Asia. USA Basketball’s lengthy international winning streak was snapped at the 2019 World Cup in China, where Team USA had a disappointing showing and didn’t even make the medal round. Weeks later, Rockets GM Daryl Morey issued a brief tweet in support of Hong Kong protestors that kicked off an international firestorm between the NBA and China. That controversy has yet to be fully resolved and may have an impact on the league’s salary cap going forward.

While those were some of the top basketball stories of 2019, there are plenty of others worth mentioning. The league lost a pair of legends this spring when Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki officially retired. However, their longtime teams – the Heat and Mavericks – have been two of the NBA’s most pleasant surprises so far in 2019/20, led by Jimmy Butler and rising star Luka Doncic, whose emergence has been another one of the best stories of the year.

Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s ascension and his MVP battle with James Harden has been an ongoing source of entertainment. The Celtics‘ disappointing and drama-filled 2018/19 showing was a source of fascination. And the NBA’s desire to make major changes to its schedule has been a source of debate among fans.

With the year about to come to a close, we want to hear about your favorite NBA stories of the last 12 months. What will you remember most about the NBA in 2019 when you look back on it years from now?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in!

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Five Non-Guaranteed Contract Situations To Watch

December 31st, 2019 at 10:03am CST by Luke Adams

While non-guaranteed NBA contracts don’t technically become fully guaranteed until January 10, January 7 is really the day to watch. Because players have to clear waivers before January 10 to avoid having their salaries locked in for the rest of 2019/20, a team will have to release a player by next Tuesday at the latest to avoid guaranteeing his contract.

As our list of non-guaranteed contracts by team shows, there are a number of players around the NBA who don’t have fully guaranteed deals, though many are in no danger of being waived by next Tuesday. It’s not as if the Lakers are seriously considering whether or not to guarantee Dwight Howard‘s minimum salary. Ditto for the Jazz and Royce O’Neale, and several others players on that list.

However, there are at least a handful of players worth keeping an eye on as next Tuesday’s deadline nears. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of them:

  1. Marquese Chriss, F/C (Warriors): A handful of injuries opened a path for Chriss to get regular rotation minutes this season and he has made the most of the opportunity, averaging 7.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 1.7 APG in 33 games (17.2 MPG). He’s done enough on the court to earn a full salary guarantee, but retaining him would limit the hard-capped Warriors‘ flexibility at the back of their roster. Golden State’s decision on Chriss will likely come down to how confident the team is that minimum-salary players like Alec Burks and Willie Cauley-Stein can be moved without taking back money in return — trading those vets would open up room to promote two-way players Ky Bowman and Damion Lee while keeping Chriss.
  2. Javonte Green, F (Celtics): Green has been solid in limited minutes so far, shooting 68.4% on two-point attempts for the season. He has also appeared in every one of the Celtics‘ games since November 25. Still, he has played double-digit minutes just four times during that stretch, and waiving him would open up a spot on Boston’s roster, increasing the club’s flexibility at the trade deadline and possibly on the buyout market. If the Celtics are confident in Green’s ability to contribute off the bench, they’ll hang onto him and worry later about whether or not they need to open a roster spot.
  3. Derrick Walton, PG (Clippers): After playing just nine total minutes in the Clippers‘ first 19 games, Walton has appeared in 13 of the club’s last 15 contests. He’s still not a crucial part of the rotation, but he has performed well when called upon, so the Clippers will face the same decision the Celtics will — does opening up a roster spot in advance of trade and buyout season make more sense than locking in their 15th man’s 2019/20 salary for the year?
  4. The Rockets’ non-guaranteed players: The Rockets have a full 15-man roster, but three of those 15 players only have partial guarantees. Houston could part ways with Gary Clark, Isaiah Hartenstein, and/or Ben McLemore by January 7 and avoid taking on their full cap hits, which might appeal to a Houston team barely over the tax threshold. However, McLemore is playing heavy minutes and seems safe, while Clark has been seeing more regular playing time lately too. Up until this past weekend, I would’ve viewed Hartenstein as the odd man out, but he had his two best games of the season on Saturday and Sunday, averaging 14.0 PPG and 11.0 RPG on 72.2% shooting. Houston may simply hang onto all three players.
  5. The Wizards’ non-guaranteed players: Like the Rockets, the Wizards are currently carrying three players on non-guaranteed contracts. Washington’s situation is a little different though, since two of the team’s non-guaranteed players – Gary Payton II and Johnathan Williams – were recently added using the hardship exception. The Wizards, who have 17 players on standard contracts, will have to get back down to 15 as the roster gets healthier. Whether that happens before or after January 7, the club will likely eventually part ways with two players out of the group that includes Payton, Williams, and Justin Robinson, unless they trade or cut a player with a guaranteed salary. For now, Payton looks like the least expendable of the three.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Community Shootaround: NBA All-Decade Team

December 30th, 2019 at 1:30pm CST by Luke Adams

We’re just two days away from turning our calendars to 2020, which means the topic of the NBA’s All-Decade Team for the 2010s has been a popular one as of late.

Picking three All-NBA Teams for a full decade is even more complicated than selecting them for a single season. Longevity comes into play — if a player was only active for half the decade, but excelled during those five years, does that outweigh a solid 10-year run by another player? And how should consistent statistical stardom over a 10-year stretch by a player who didn’t win a title compare to someone who won three championships but didn’t necessarily post incredible numbers?

Among those who have shared their All-Decade Teams is Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports, whose picks followed the usual All-NBA format — Rohrbach selected three teams comprised of two guards, two forwards, and one center each.

The First Team is made up of the usual suspects. LeBron James and Stephen Curry lead the way, with Kevin Durant and James Harden joining them in the frontcourt and backcourt respectively. Those four players combined to win seven of 10 MVP awards since 2010, and six of the 10 champions this decade featured at least one of those four stars. James, Durant, and Harden are also the NBA’s three leading scorers over the last 10 years, while no player has a higher win-share rate than Curry since the start of the 2013/14 season.

No centers have dominated the decade from start to finish, so Rohrbach filled out his First Team with Anthony Davis, who may be the NBA’s best center right now, even if he prefers to play the four.

Rohrbach’s Second Team picks are guards Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul, forwards Kawhi Leonard and Giannis Antetokounmpo, and center Dwight Howard, who was a perennial All-Star for the first half of the decade.

Rohrbach’s Third Team features a few more players whose best years of the decade came in the first half of the 2010s, with guards Dwyane Wade and Kobe Bryant making the cut, along with center Tim Duncan. Forwards Paul George and Draymond Green fill out the Third Team.

While Rohrbach’s 15 selections are certainly worthy of recognition, a handful of noteworthy stars didn’t make the cut. Forwards Carmelo Anthony, Blake Griffin, and LaMarcus Aldridge, who combined for 16 All-NBA nods in the 2010s, only earn honorable mention, as do guards Jimmy Butler, Damian Lillard, Klay Thompson, and Kyrie Irving, and centers DeMarcus Cousins, Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol, and Joel Embiid. Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Chris Bosh, and Rudy Gobert were also considered.

I would’ve given Kyle Lowry serious consideration for a backcourt spot on the Third Team, so I’m surprised he didn’t even show up in Rohrbach’s honorable mentions, but otherwise I can’t quibble with too many of his picks.

We want to know what you think though. Are there any glaring omissions you’d like to see on the list? Do you think any players on Rohrbach’s Second or Third Teams should be bumped higher, or eliminated from the top 15 altogether?

To help refresh your memory on the full decade, here’s a list of every player who has earned multiple All-Star nods since 2010, sorted by win shares per 48 minutes, via Basketball-Reference.

Let us know in the comment section below who you think belongs on the NBA’s All-Decade Teams for the 2010s!

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NBA Dates, Deadlines To Watch In January

December 30th, 2019 at 12:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Near the start of the 2019/20 campaign, we looked ahead and identified several dates and deadlines to watch on the NBA calendar throughout the rest of the season. While that list covered the general highlights, it’s worth taking a closer look at some of those key dates to keep an eye out for in January, which should be a busy month.

Let’s dive in…

Non-guaranteed contracts become guaranteed

January 10 is the date that all non-guaranteed NBA contracts for 2019/20 will officially become guaranteed, but January 7 is really the day to watch. If a team wants to avoid having a salary become guaranteed, the player must clear waivers before January 10, which means he needs to be cut by January 7, at the latest.

Many players without fully guaranteed salaries are in no danger of being waived within the next week, but some teams will take the opportunity to save a little money and open up a roster spot.

Teams can begin signing players to 10-day contracts

Around the same time that some NBA clubs will be opening up a roster spot by waiving a player on a non-guaranteed salary, teams will also be able to use those newly-created openings to sign players to 10-day contracts. Those 10-day deals, which can be signed as of January 5, give teams the opportunity to pick up a short-term injury replacement, or perhaps to get a brief look at a standout G League player.

We extensively outlined the details of 10-day contracts and explained how they work in our glossary entry on the subject.

More players become trade-eligible

A huge percentage of the NBA’s offseason signees became eligible to be traded back on December 15, but there are still many players who can’t be dealt. By the end of next month, that list of players ineligible to be traded will shrink further, since there are 25 players currently on track to have those restrictions lift between now and January 31.

January 15 is the key date, with 20 players becoming trade-eligible as of that Wednesday. That group is primarily made up of players who almost certainly aren’t going anywhere, such as Klay Thompson and Kristaps Porzingis. However, a handful of players on that list could be involved in trade rumors in 2020, including Nene and Rudy Gay.

A few other offseason signees have unique trade-eligible dates in January, since they were signed sometime after September 15 or inked an offseason extension. Those players are Dwight Powell (January 6), Caleb Martin (January 19), Jalen McDaniels (January 20), Wenyen Gabriel (January 21), and CJ McCollum (January 30).

Two-way contract deadlines

NBA teams will face a pair of key deadlines relating to two-way contracts in January. The first of those dates arrives on January 15, which is the last day that a team can sign a player to a two-way contract this season.

Most teams have already filled both of their two-way slots. Still, it’s safe to assume that a number of clubs will make changes at those spots within the next couple weeks, while the one team with a two-way opening – the Suns – will likely fill it.

On January 20, all players on two-way contracts will have their G League salaries for the season become fully guaranteed.

Other odds and ends

There are a few other dates in January that are worth mentioning, despite the fact that they’ll likely come and go without much fanfare.

On January 10, mid-level and room exceptions – along with other cap exceptions like the bi-annual exception – will start to prorate for the year, meaning a team with its full room exception available would no longer be able to offer the full $4.767MM amount to a free agent. Exceptions will decline in value by 1/177th per day, starting on January 10.

January 15 is the last day that teams can apply for a disabled player exception to replace an injured player who is deemed unlikely to return this season. A disabled player exception can give a club extra cap flexibility, though that team may still have to open up a roster spot to add a player using its DPE.

Our glossary entry explaining the disabled player exception can be found right here, while our list of 2019/20 DPEs is here. The Wizards, Pelicans, Trail Blazers, Lakers, and Nets have been granted DPEs this season.

A series of modest trade exceptions created in trades last January will expire within the next month. Two small Rockets TPEs will expire on January 7 and January 22, while the Mavericks will lose the smaller of their two TPEs on January 31 if it goes unused.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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2019/20 NBA Reverse Standings Update

December 30th, 2019 at 10:05am CST by Luke Adams

Throughout the 2019/20 NBA season, Hoops Rumors is maintaining a feature that allows you to keep an eye on what the 2020 draft order will look like. Our 2019/20 Reverse Standings tool, which lists the NBA’s 30 teams from worst to first, is updated daily to reflect the outcomes of the previous night’s games.

Our Reverse Standings are essentially a reflection of what 2020’s draft order would look like with no changes to lottery position. We’ve noted each club’s odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick, based on the league’s current lottery format.

[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Draft Lottery]

In instances where two non-playoff teams or two playoff teams have identical records, the order in our standings isn’t necessarily definitive — for draft purposes, the NBA breaks ties via random drawings, so those drawings would happen at the end of the year. Of course, the 14 non-playoff teams all draft before the 16 playoff teams, even if some non-playoff teams have better records than playoff teams. Our reverse standings account for that.

Traded first-round picks are included via footnotes. For example, the note next to Cleveland’s pick says that the Cavaliers will send their pick to the Pelicans if it’s not in the top 10. As of today, Cleveland has the NBA’s fifth-worst record, meaning that pick wouldn’t change hands, even if several teams were to leapfrog the Cavs in the lottery.

A handful of the NBA’s worst teams have been playing fairly well as of late. The Knicks have a winning record over their last nine games; the Cavaliers have won four of their last five, as have the Warriors; and the Pelicans are currently riding a four-game win streak of their own. As a result, the 6-27 Hawks are currently in the driver’s seat for the most favorable pick in this year’s draft. Atlanta has a 2.5-game “lead” over the NBA’s second-worst team.

While the league’s bottom three teams will all have an equal chance at the No. 1 overall pick and a top-four selection, finishing atop the reverse standings would still benefit the Hawks — the NBA’s worst team can’t fall further than the No. 5 pick, while the third-worst team could end up selecting as low as No. 7.

Our Reverse Standings tracker can be found at anytime on the right sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features” on our desktop site, or on the “Features” page in our mobile menu. It’s a great resource not just for monitoring a team’s draft position, but also for keeping an eye on whether or not traded picks with protection will be changing hands in 2020. So be sure to check back often as the season progresses!

Note: Mobile users are advised to turn their phones sideways when viewing the Reverse Standings in order to see team records and lottery odds.

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Hoops Rumors Originals: 12/22/19 – 12/28/19

December 28th, 2019 at 2:31pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Every week, the Hoops Rumors writing team creates original content to complement our news feed. Here are our original segments and features from the past seven days:

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Free Agent Stock Watch 2019: Southeast Division

December 27th, 2019 at 9:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Every week, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents next offseason. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Southeast Division:

Allen Crabbe, Hawks, 27, SG (Down) – Signed to a four-year, $74.8MM deal in 2016
Remember when the Nets thought so highly of Crabbe they signed him to a giant offer sheet? And the Trail Blazers valued him so much they matched the offer sheet? And then Brooklyn wanted him so badly it traded for Crabbe the following summer? It all seems so silly now. The Nets were willing to give up two future first-rounders to get rid of Crabbe. Now in the final year of that odious contract, he’s averaging 5.0 PPG and shooting 28.8% from 3-point range. Crabbe will probably be looking at veteran’s minimum offers next season as he attempts to reboot his career.

Bismack Biyombo, Hornets, 27, C (Up) – Signed to a four-year, $72MM deal in 2016
Like Crabbe, Biyombo got silly money in the summer of 2016 after a solid playoff performance with Toronto. Orlando quickly got a case of buyer’s remorse and he was eventually shipped to Charlotte in 2018. To his credit, Biyombo has worked his way into the rebuilding Hornets’ rotation. He’s posted double digits in points six times this month while averaging 8.0 RPG in 22.1 MPG. Traditional big men like Biyombo are being phased out of the league, so he won’t attract a lot of interest. But he’s shown he can be a rotation piece somewhere.

Meyers Leonard, Heat, 27, PF (Up) – Signed to a four-year, $41MM deal in 2016
Another player who cashed in during the summer of 2016, Leonard has never averaged more than 8.4 PPG or 5.1 RPG. Other than avid Heat fans, few people realize that Leonard has started 30 games for one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams. He doesn’t often finish games but he’s endeared himself enough to coach Erik Spoelstra to keep his spot in the lineup. Leonard doesn’t shoot a lot of threes but he makes them (48.3%). He’s also making an impact on the boards (23 in the last two games). As a stretch four alone, Leonard will draw interest as an unrestricted free agent.

D.J. Augustin, Magic, 32, PG (Up) – Signed to a four-year, $29MM deal in 2016
Markelle Fultz is playing regularly but Augustin is still receiving steady playing time from coach Steve Clifford. Augustin threw in a two-point clunker against Chicago on Monday but in his previous four games he averaged 18.5 PPG and 5.3 APG. While Augustin’s overall shooting numbers are down, he can still be a productive rotation player. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Orlando brought back Augustin in a reserve role. If not, he still has enough left in the tank to be someone’s backup floor leader.

Davis Bertans, Wizards, 27, SF (Up) – Signed to a two-year, $14.5MM deal in 2018
Bertans was enjoying a breakout season until he was sidelined recently by a quad injury. Bertans was averaging 15.4 PPG and 4.9 RPG in 30.0 MPG while mostly coming off the bench for Washington. The Wizards have been feeding Bertans to ball beyond the arc and he’s consistently delivered, averaging 43.4% from deep on a whopping 8.6 attempts per game. Bertans’ prolific long range shooting is bound to get the unrestricted free agent some lucrative offers in this summer’s weak free agent class.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Players Eligible For Veteran Extensions During 2019/20 Season

December 26th, 2019 at 7:25pm CST by Luke Adams

As we noted in our glossary entry on veteran contract extensions, rookie scale extensions have historically been the most common form of contract extension in the NBA. However, the league’s latest Collective Bargaining Agreement loosened the rules on eligibility for veteran extensions and made them a little more financially advantageous for players who don’t expect mega-deals.

As a result, we’ve seen a bump in veteran contract extensions in recent seasons. So far in the 2019/20 league year, nine players have signed them, matching the number of players who signed rookie scale extensions.

[RELATED: 2019/20 NBA Contract Extension Tracker]

For a star like Anthony Davis, it still makes sense to wait until free agency to sign a new contract — the biggest raise he can receive on an extension would still be less than the maximum contract he’d be eligible to earn on the open market. The maximum starting salary a player like Davis can receive in a veteran extension is up to 120% of his current salary.

A player on a more modest contract can receive a maximum starting salary worth up to 120% of the NBA’s estimated average salary on an extension, assuming that amount is greater than 120% of his current salary. For this season, 120% of the estimated average salary would work out to a $11.47MM salary in the first year of a contract extension. A player who signs an extension that fits that bill could get up to four years and $51.39MM. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Dillon Brooks are among the players who are eligible for that sort of deal.

Now that the regular season is in full swing, the number of veterans eligible for contract extensions has declined, since players with more than one year left on their contracts aren’t permitted to ink an in-season extension. But there are still a number of veterans in the final year of their respective contracts who remain eligible for extensions right up until June 30, the last day of the current league year.

Listed below are the players who meet the criteria for a veteran extension. Players who were recently traded can be extended, but they have to wait for six months after the trade to sign a contract longer than three total years (including the current season) with a first-year raise exceeding 5%. If a player below is noted as having “limited” eligibility until a certain date, that’s why. Once six months pass, those players are eligible to sign an extension of up to five total years (including the current season) with a 20% first-year raise.

Additionally, extension-eligible players with a player or team option for 2020/21 would have to eliminate that option year as part of an extension agreement in order to meet the necessary criteria.

Here’s the full list of veterans currently eligible for contract extensions:

Atlanta Hawks

  • Jeff Teague
    • Note: Limited eligibility for rest of league year.

Boston Celtics

Brooklyn Nets

  • None

Charlotte Hornets

Chicago Bulls

  • Otto Porter
    • Note: 2020/21 player option must be declined.

Cleveland Cavaliers

Dallas Mavericks

Denver Nuggets

Detroit Pistons

Golden State Warriors

  • None

Houston Rockets

  • None

Indiana Pacers

  • None

Los Angeles Clippers

  • None

Los Angeles Lakers

Memphis Grizzlies

  • None

Miami Heat

Milwaukee Bucks

Minnesota Timberwolves

  • Allen Crabbe
    • Note: Limited eligibility for rest of league year.
  • James Johnson
    • Note: 2020/21 player option must be declined.
    • Note: Limited eligibility for rest of league year.
  • Evan Turner
    • Note: Limited eligibility for rest of league year.

New Orleans Pelicans

New York Knicks

Oklahoma City Thunder

Orlando Magic

Philadelphia 76ers

  • None

Phoenix Suns

Portland Trail Blazers

Sacramento Kings

San Antonio Spurs

Toronto Raptors

Utah Jazz

Washington Wizards

Information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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2019/20 In-Season NBA Trades

December 26th, 2019 at 6:24pm CST by Luke Adams

As we did with 2019’s offseason trades and the in-season swaps from 2018/19, we’ll be keeping track of all the NBA trades completed this season as they become official, updating this post with each transaction. This post can be found anytime throughout the season on our desktop sidebar under “Hoops Rumors Features,” or in our mobile menu under “Features.”

Trades are listed here in reverse chronological order, with the latest on top. So, if a player has been dealt multiple times, the first team listed as having acquired him is the one that ended up with him. For more details on each trade, click the date above it.

For more information on the specific conditions dictating if and when draft picks involved in these deals will actually change hands, be sure to check out RealGM.com’s breakdown of the details on traded picks. Trades that have been agreed upon but haven’t been officially finalized will be listed below in italics.

Here’s the full list of the trades completed during the 2019/20 NBA season:

February 6

February 6

  • Hawks acquire Dewayne Dedmon, either the Rockets’ or Heat’s 2020 second-round pick (whichever is more favorable), and the Heat’s 2021 second-round pick.
  • Kings acquire Jabari Parker and Alex Len.

February 6

  • Clippers acquire Marcus Morris and Isaiah Thomas.
  • Knicks acquire Maurice Harkless, the Clippers’ 2020 first-round pick, the Pistons 2021 second-round pick, the right to swap their own 2021 first-round pick with the Clippers’ 2021 first-round pick (top-four protected), and the draft rights to Issuf Sanon.
  • Wizards acquire Jerome Robinson.

February 6

  • Rockets acquire Bruno Caboclo.
  • Grizzlies acquire Jordan Bell and the right to swap the Mavericks’ or Heat’s 2023 second-round pick (whichever is less favorable) with the Rockets’ 2023 second-round pick (top-32 protected).

February 6

February 6

February 6

  • Sixers acquire Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III.
  • Warriors acquire the Mavericks’ 2020 second-round pick, the Nuggets’ 2021 second-round pick, and the Raptors’ 2022 second-round pick.

February 6

  • Hawks acquire Skal Labissiere and cash ($1,759,795).
  • Trail Blazers acquire the Hawks’ 2024 second-round pick (top-55 protected).

February 6

  • Hawks acquire Derrick Walton Jr. and cash ($1,313,576).
  • Clippers acquire the Hawks’ 2022 second-round pick (top-55 protected).

February 6

February 6

  • Magic acquire James Ennis.
  • Sixers acquire the Lakers’ 2020 second-round pick.

February 5

January 25

January 24

January 21

January 16

December 23

  • Jazz acquire Jordan Clarkson.
  • Cavaliers acquire Dante Exum, the Spurs’ 2022 second-round pick, and the Warriors’ 2023 second-round pick.
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Western Conference All-Stars: Who Should Start?

December 26th, 2019 at 3:54pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Voting for the NBA 2020 All-Star Game has opened up. We examined who should be the starters in the east on Wednesday. Now let’s take a look at who deserves the starting nod in the Western Conference.

Backcourt Selections

James Harden, Houston Rockets

Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

Where would the Rockets be without James Harden this season? The perennial MVP candidate is carrying the scoring load for Houston, averaging an insane 38.1 points per game, and his VORP tops all players in the league.

Luka Doncic‘s return to the lineup likely closes any window that would allow Damian Lillard to take over the other starting spot (Lillard would be the first guard I’d choose for second-team All-NBA if that ballot was cast today).

Frontcourt Selections

LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers

Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

Kawhi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers

The frontcourt in the Western Conference has a clear-cut top three and perhaps the only way to unseat the future Kawhi Leonard–Anthony Davis–LeBron James trio is for one to miss significant time between now and when voting ends for the All-Star starters. James could miss time with his nagging groin injury over the next month, but it’s fair to wonder whether another frontcourt player has the resume to supplant James regardless of how many games he misses.

Both Karl-Anthony Towns and Paul George have also missed chunks of time with various ailments. And while Brandon Ingram should certainly earn an All-Star spot with the numbers he’s putting up this season, LeBron’s year to date is arguably more impressive than anything his former teammate could do between now and the end of January to close the gap.

In year 17 of our King from Akron, only four players have a higher win share than the soon-to-be 35-year-old and if you exclude Doncic, Harden, and Giannis, no player has a higher VORP. Not to mention the raw stats: 25.7 PPG, 10.6 APG, and 7.6 RPG. LBJ has likely done enough already to earn a starting spot in the Western Conference regardless of how many games he misses over the next month.

Who do you believe should be the starters in the Western Conference? Take to the comment section below to share your thoughts and opinions on the matter. We look forward to what you have to say!

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