- While the Rockets are hoping that veteran additions like Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks help the team take a step forward this season, they’re also counting on reaping the benefits of “trading” the rookie versions of Jabari Smith Jr. and Tari Eason for more seasoned second-year versions of those players, says Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). “They had an opportunity last year to play through mistakes and I think they’re obviously going to take a natural step,” head coach Ime Udoka said of the duo. “They’ve shown that.”
Rockets wing Dillon Brooks was fined $25K by the NBA on Thursday, the league announced in a press release (Twitter link).
According to the statement, Brooks was fined for “recklessly making contact” with Pacers forward/center Daniel Theis in the groin area during a Tuesday preseason game between Indiana and Houston.
“The incident, for which Brooks was assessed a Flagrant Foul 2 and ejected, occurred with 7:27 remaining in the first quarter of the Rockets’ 122-103 win over the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 10 at Toyota Center in Houston,” the statement reads.
Speaking after the game to reporters, Brooks questioned the ejection, suggesting that he gets “picked on” due to his reputation as an instigator.
The Rockets acquired Brooks via sign-and-trade on a four-year, $86MM deal in July after the former Oregon standout spent the first six seasons of his career in Memphis. He holds career averages of 14.3 points and 3.3 rebounds.
The addition of Fred VanVleet provides a major upgrade as the Rockets try to move up the standings after three years of rebuilding, Sam Vecenie of The Athletic says in a discussion with Kelly Iko about the team’s prospects. Vecenie notes that VanVleet will be a reliable leader for Houston, which gave about 2,000 backcourt minutes last season to Daishen Nix, TyTy Washington and Josh Christopher.
The Rockets had been using Kevin Porter Jr., who is away from the team due to assault charges, as their point guard even though it’s not his natural position. Vecenie expects improvement just from having a true leader on the court, even though he views VanVleet as the league’s 12th- to 15-best point guard.
Vecenie adds that VanVleet’s shooting was down last season, but it was notably better after the Raptors traded for Jakob Poeltl to give them an effective screener. VanVleet can hit threes, make the right decisions on offense and challenge opponents on defense, and Vecenie notes that those are all areas where the team needed to improve.
There’s more from Houston:
- Vecenie also likes the addition of Dillon Brooks, but believes his four-year contract might be “a bit aggressive” because of the potential of Tari Eason. Vecenie says Eason was “phenomenal” at Summer League, and there’s a chance that he’ll be better than Brooks by the end of the season. Vecenie observes that Eason provides the same type of high-energy defense as Brooks, but without the questionable shot selection that can bog down offenses. At 40.2%, Brooks had the fourth-worst effective field goal percentage in the league last season.
- Coach Ime Udoka talked about the need for Brooks to play under control after he was ejected early in Tuesday’s preseason opener (video link). “You have to learn to control your emotions and stay in the game, Udoka said. “You can’t get yourself taken out in the first quarter.” Brooks said his reputation was responsible for the ejection, but referees determined that his low blow to Pacers center Daniel Theis was intentional.
- Free agent additions Jeff Green and Reggie Bullock are expected to make their debuts with the Rockets on Thursday night in New Orleans, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Green signed with Houston this summer to be a veteran leader after winning a title in Denver last season, while Bullock was added last week for outside shooting help after the Spurs waived him.
A.J. Dybantsa, a 6’8″ wing from Massachusetts and one of the top high school prospects in the country, intends to reclassify to the 2025 recruiting class, as Jeff Borzello of ESPN.com writes. Dybantsa had previously been the No. 1 player in ESPN’s 2026 recruiting rankings. Now, he becomes the favorite to be selected first overall in the 2026 NBA draft, according to Borzello.
As Borzello explains, Dybantsa, Cooper Flagg, and Cameron Boozer are widely considered the best high school prospects in the country. When ESPN asked 20 college coaches and NBA evaluators to rank the trio this summer, Dybantsa earned seven first-place votes and placed second behind Flagg, who is the frontrunner to be the top pick in the 2025 draft.
“Dybantsa is just the most complete,” one coach told ESPN. “Scores at all three levels. Super athletic. He’s the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft whenever he goes.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the league:
- Former Pelicans assistant Teresa Weatherspoon will be the next head coach of the WNBA’s Chiacgo Sky, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The former WNBA star was an assistant in New Orleans for four seasons before the team parted ways with her in June.
- In John Schuhmann’s general manager poll, two players received more votes than Magic forward Franz Wagner for this season’s top breakout candidate. However, Wagner sits atop the list compiled by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who spoke to 25 executives around the NBA and has shared the top nine vote-getters. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham and Rockets guard Jalen Green round out Scotto’s top three.
- John Hollinger of The Athletic lists a dozen under-the-radar NBA players whom he expects to have a real impact this season, including Celtics wing Oshae Brissett, Nuggets forward Peyton Watson, Thunder guard Vasilije Micic, and Pelicans forward Naji Marshall.
- The Capital City Go-Go have traded the returning rights to Isaiah Mucius to the Delaware Blue Coats along with a 2024 first-round pick and 2023 second-round pick in the G League draft. In exchange, the Sixers‘ G League affiliate has sent Michael Foster Jr.‘s returning rights to the Wizards‘ affiliate, the Go-Go announced today (via Twitter).
Just four-and-a-half minutes into his first game with the Rockets, Dillon Brooks provided a reminder of his occasional tendency to take his defensive tenacity a step too far, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). Brooks was ejected from Houston’s preseason opener with 7:27 left in the first quarter after officials determined he struck Pacers center Daniel Theis in the groin.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Brooks – who signed a four-year, $86MM deal with the Rockets in July – suggested his reputation was a factor in the quick hook he received on Tuesday.
“I tried to navigate a screen,” he said. “I might have tapped him below waist. But he got right back up. I don’t know. It’s weird that every time it happens to me, I get picked on. I guess it’s part of reputation.”
Asked if there’s a target on his back due to his past actions, Brooks didn’t dispute the idea.
“I don’t know. What’s my name?” he said, per Feigen. “The name is ‘Dillon the villain,’ so I guess.”
Here’s more from around the Southwest:
- Asked about his goals for the 2023/24 season, Rockets guard Jalen Green provided a simple response, according to Feigen (subscription required): “Winning. Winning. Winning. … Winning is very important in the NBA. I haven’t done any of that. It’s time for that to change.”
- Following a promising offseason in which he invested heavily in his personal training staff, forward Zion Williamson and the Pelicans‘ new-look offense looked good in Tuesday’s opener, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. Williamson had 12 points, five rebounds, and five assists in just 15 minutes of action. “You can condition,” head coach Willie Green said. “You can lift. You can do a ton of cardio. But the best basketball shape is to play basketball.”
- Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins offered a minor update on Tuesday on injured guard Marcus Smart, who has missed the team’s first two preseason games due to ab soreness. “It’s day-to-day. It’s kind of light core work right now,” Jenkins said (Twitter link via Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com). “Just being smart, anticipate a little bit more ramp up as week goes on.”
- In a conversation with Kelly Iko of The Athletic, Spurs wing Keldon Johnson spoke about his desire to become a better defender, what his role will look like in 2023/24, and his first impressions of Victor Wembanyama.
- In case you missed it, you can vote on the 2023/24 win totals for all five Southwest teams right here.
With the 2023/24 NBA regular season around the corner, we’re getting serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign and continuing an annual Hoops Rumors tradition.
With the help of the lines from a series of sports betting sites – including Bovada and BetOnline – we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.
In 2022/23, our voters went 16-14 on their over/under picks. Can you top that in ’23/24?
We’ll keep our series going today with the Southwest Division…
Memphis Grizzlies
- 2022/23 record: 51-31
- Over/under for 2023/24: 46.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Marcus Smart, Derrick Rose
- Lost: Dillon Brooks, Tyus Jones
- Note: Ja Morant will miss the first 25 games of the season while serving a suspension.
New Orleans Pelicans
- 2022/23 record: 42-40
- Over/under for 2023/24: 44.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Jordan Hawkins, Cody Zeller
- Lost: Josh Richardson, Garrett Temple, Jaxson Hayes, Willy Hernangomez
Dallas Mavericks
- 2022/23 record: 38-44
- Over/under for 2023/24: 44.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
Houston Rockets
- 2022/23 record: 22-60
- Over/under for 2023/24: 31.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, Amen Thompson, Cam Whitmore, Jeff Green, Reggie Bullock, Jock Landale, Aaron Holiday
- Lost: Kenyon Martin Jr., Frank Kaminsky, D.J. Augustin, Willie Cauley-Stein, Usman Garuba, Josh Christopher, TyTy Washington, Daishen Nix
- Note: Kevin Porter Jr. remains on the Rockets’ roster, but likely won’t play another game with the team following his arrest.
San Antonio Spurs
- 2022/23 record: 22-60
- Over/under for 2023/24: 28.5 wins
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Victor Wembanyama, Cedi Osman, Sidy Cissoko
- Lost: Keita Bates-Diop, Romeo Langford, Gorgui Dieng
Previous voting results:
- Denver Nuggets (53.5 wins): Over (52.0%)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (44.5 wins): Over (53.1%)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (44.5 wins): Under (53.6%)
- Utah Jazz (35.5 wins): Over (55.5%)
- Portland Trail Blazers (28.5 wins): Under (50.9%)
- Milwaukee Bucks (54.5 wins): Over (76.9%)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (50.5 wins): Under (52.0%)
- Indiana Pacers (38.5 wins): Over (64.1%)
- Chicago Bulls (37.5 wins): Under (61.9%)
- Detroit Pistons (27.5 wins): Over (53.8%)
The Celtics and Bucks made the best overall moves this offseason, according to the NBA’s general managers. In his annual survey of the league’s top basketball decision-makers, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes that 23% picked Boston as having the best summer, while another 23% picked Milwaukee. The Trail Blazers (17%) and Lakers (13%) were among the other clubs who received multiple votes.
Of course, the Celtics’ and Bucks’ pre-camp trades for Jrue Holiday and Damian Lillard, respectively, were huge factors in the positive perception of their offseasons. Of Schuhmann’s GM respondents, 47% said the Lillard acquisition was the most impactful move of the offseason, while Boston’s addition of Holiday placed second at 13% (the Celtics’ trade for Kristaps Porzingis tied for fourth, at 7%).
Both Boston and Milwaukee are viewed by the league’s general managers as good bets to compete for the title in 2024. The Celtics were selected by 33% of Schuhmann’s respondents as the team that will win the championship the season, while the Bucks got 23% of the vote share. No other Eastern club received a vote, with the Nuggets (33%), Suns (7%), and Clippers (3%) representing the only other teams that were chosen as potential champs.
Here are a few more interesting results from Schuhmann’s GM survey, which is worth checking out in full:
- As much as the NBA’s general managers like Boston’s roster, it was the Grizzlies‘ acquisition of Marcus Smart from Boston that was voted as the most underrated player addition of the summer (17%), narrowly edging out the Mavericks‘ sign-and-trade for Grant Williams (14%).
- The NBA’s GMs are high on the Thunder. Oklahoma City was the runaway winner as the team with the league’s most promising young core (73%) and also earned the most votes for which club will be most improved in 2023/24 (30%).
- Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama got plenty of love from the league’s GMs. He was the top choice for Rookie of the Year (50%) and was the overwhelming pick for which rookie will be the best player in five years (90%). He also placed second among the players Schuhmann’s respondents would most want to start a franchise with today, with his 23% vote share trailing only Nikola Jokic‘s 33%.
- NBA GMs expect Ime Udoka of the Rockets to be the head coach that has the biggest impact on his new team (57%), followed by Monty Williams of the Pistons (17%).
- Jordi Fernandez of the Kings, viewed as a future NBA head coach, comfortably won the vote on the league’s best assistant (31%).
- The NBA’s GMs consider Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (23%), Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (20%), and Magic forward Franz Wagner (13%) the top candidates for a breakout year.
- Which rookie was the biggest steal in the 2023 draft? Rockets wing Cam Whitmore (43%) was the top choice, with Jazz guard Keyonte George, Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson, and Heat forward Jaime Jaquez each receiving 10% of the vote.
Dillon Brooks, who said last month that he thinks he’s the NBA’s best defensive player, isn’t the only Rockets player with a tremendous amount of confidence in his abilities on that end of the floor. Tari Eason, entering his second season in the league, has expressed some lofty goals of his own, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required).
“I want to be the best defender in the NBA at some point,” Eason said. “I truly believe I can be. I will be. I just got to work, and the rest will fall into place. As far as effort and taking pride on that end of the floor, that’s kind of my calling card. I want to be the best defender I can be.”
Improving a defense that ranked 29th in the NBA last season has been a priority for new head coach Ime Udoka and the Rockets this fall as they focus on communicating more effectively on that side of the floor. Eason has noticed a difference in training camp.
“There are still some things we got to fully hash out, but I think we’re getting there,” Eason said. “The strides were made as far as communication. Last year, a lot of our defensive deficiencies come from us not being able to communicate, which also comes from us being young. With the mix of veterans and I guess the mentality coming in this year — we’ve all bought into the system — defensively we took a lot of leaps in terms of communication, knowing where to be and a willingness to want to get better on that end of the floor.”
Here are a few more items from around the Southwest:
- Ahead of the Mavericks‘ exhibition game on Tuesday against Real Madrid, star guard Luka Doncic had nothing but praise for the Spanish club, citing the impact Real Madrid had on his career development, notes Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. Doncic played for the club from 2015-18, earning three Spanish League titles and a EuroLeague championship during that time. “I’ve got a lot of great memories and I’m happy to be back,” Doncic said. “If I return to Europe one day, I’m sure it will be to Real Madrid. That’s 100%.”
- Spurs second-round pick Sidy Cissoko signed a standard contract this summer rather than a two-way deal, but the plan is for the French wing to spend the bulk of his rookie season in the G League, head coach Gregg Popovich told reporters on Monday (Twitter link via Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News).
- Veteran point guard Derrick Rose was a standout on Sunday in the Grizzlies‘ preseason opener, racking up 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting in just 14 minutes as the club beat Indiana in overtime. Rose’s new teammates aren’t surprised that the former MVP is showing he still has something left in the tank, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “We’ve been seeing it,” Ziaire Williams said. “When I say he’s still so fast, bro, that burst is there. I’m sure it was probably faster 10 years ago, which is insane to think about. He’s a talented player and a better person.”
In an interesting article for ESPN, Zach Lowe details why Jalen Green could be the key for the Rockets to turn the corner in 2023/24 and beyond.
Green, 21, had impressive counting stats in his second season, averaging 22.1 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 3.7 APG in 76 games (34.2 MPG). However, as Lowe notes, the former No. 2 overall pick struggled at times with scoring efficiency (.416/.338/.786 shooting), decision-making (2.6 turnovers per game) and defense.
According to Lowe, Green has shown he can make all the pick-and-roll passes necessary to manipulate defenses, but has been inconsistent with actually executing them. Lackadaisical play on both ends has also been an issue, but the team believes it can be corrected.
“This is a huge year for him,” GM Rafael Stone told ESPN. “It’s on him to really put together all the things he’s worked on. You see individual games where he’s locked in — whether it’s on-ball defense, help-side defense, making the right reads in the pick-and-roll. And then there are other games where he just kind of let go of the rope. He’s a bucket. It’s about all the little things.”
Green will be eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer.
Here’s more on the Rockets:
- Houston wants to lean into Green’s play-making, which is one reason why the team went after Fred VanVleet — who is adept at playing both on and off the ball — instead of James Harden in free agency, Lowe writes in the same story. “Nothing against James,” head coach Ime Udoka told ESPN, “but Fred is just a better fit. I coached James in Brooklyn. He’s one of the smartest players I’ve ever been around. The words ‘Ime doesn’t want James’ never came out of my mouth. It was, ‘Let’s look at the best fit.’ If we want Jalen and the young guys to take the next steps, we need them to have the ball. As for me saying I don’t want James, that was never the case. It was about fit.”
- VanVleet has made an immediate impact on Houston with his leadership and savvy two-way play, writes Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “I’m more of a booster, a confidence giver, energy giver with all of these guys — especially Jabari (Smith),” VanVleet said. “Keep boosting and instilling that confidence because when guys go out there and play free, you’ll get the best version of them.”
- VanVleet isn’t the only veteran the Rockets added in free agency this summer, with Dillon Brooks and Jeff Green also in the fold. As Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscriber link) writes, their experience and skill should help a young team going forward. “First and foremost, I would say experience,” Green said of what he will bring. “Being in every type of situation possible, winning the championship last year, going to the playoffs multiple years, I bring the experience itself and teaching these young guys what it takes to be a true professional. The winning aspect, what it takes, the everyday grind, them seeing it, I think it will help in the long run.”
OCTOBER 4: The signing is official, the Rockets announced (via Twitter). Bullock’s contract is a one-year deal worth the veteran’s minimum, tweets Kelly Iko of The Athletic.
OCTOBER 3: Veteran swingman Reggie Bullock intends to sign with the Rockets, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Bullock, who finalized a buyout agreement with the Spurs over the weekend, received interest from multiple clubs, according to Charania. He’ll join a Rockets team that had been seeking another rotation player to replace Kevin Porter Jr., who is not expected to play another game for Houston following his arrest last month.
Bullock, who was traded from the Mavericks to the Spurs as part of the three-team Grant Williams deal in July, spent the past two seasons with Dallas, serving as a part-time starter. His scoring average dipped to 7.2 points per game last season, his lowest mark since 2016/17. However, he still made 38.0% of his three-point attempts, which is right in line with his 38.4% career rate.
The Rockets have made an effort this offseason to bring in veteran talent in the hopes of moving up the standings following three consecutive seasons with no more than 22 wins. Bullock will join Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Jeff Green among the team’s veteran newcomers.
Charania’s report says Bullock will sign with Houston after he clears waivers, but NBA.com’s official transaction log indicates that the 32-year-old was officially cut on Saturday, meaning he would’ve cleared waivers and become an unrestricted free agent on Monday. That means he should be free to complete his deal with the Rockets anytime.
While details of Bullock’s deal haven’t been reported, it seems likely to be a one-year, minimum-salary contract. Houston has an open spot on its 21-man preseason roster and won’t have to cut anyone to make room for Bullock.