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Draft Notes: Green Room Invites, Makur, Taylor, Draft Intel

July 20th, 2021 at 8:17pm CST by Eli Cohen

The NBA has finalized the list of 20 prospects who will be invited to the Green Room on draft night, writes ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. While 15 of the names had already been reported, the final five players were identified over the last two days: Chris Duarte, Cameron Thomas, Isaiah Jackson, Alperen Sengun and Ziaire Williams will round out the group.

While an invitation to the Green Room is no guarantee of being drafted in the top 20, the decision is considered to be an indication of teams’ thinking, as the invitations are determined through a series of conversations with general managers and a voting process where teams vote on the 25 prospects most likely to have their name called first, Givony writes.

We have more news from around the draft world:

  • Howard University’s Makur Maker has withdrawn from the draft, tweets draft analyst Chad Ford. The 6’11 forward flashed versatility at the NBA Combine, but his draft stock was still hazy. Because he missed the NCAA’s withdrawal deadline, Maker will likely pursue professional options, whether in the G League, Australia’s NBL, or elsewhere.
  • Terry Taylor worked out with the Bucks yesterday and the Nuggets today, tweets Adam Zagoria of Forbes. Taylor has workouts lined up with the Nets, Cavaliers and Mavericks this week, and already worked out for the Knicks, Warriors, Kings, Pacers, Grizzlies, Bulls, Spurs and Pelicans. The 6’5″ wing led the country in double-doubles, Zagoria notes.
  • Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo released his latest mock draft today, sharing some pieces of intel gathered from sources. Within his mock, Woo confirms that the prevailing notion is that the Rockets prefer Jalen Green to Evan Mobley, that the Thunder are being increasingly linked to James Bouknight, that the Magic covet Scottie Barnes, and that Jonathan Kuminga‘s range seems to be settling around six-to-eight, rather than being a top-five pick.
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Pacers To Hold More Pre-Draft Workouts

July 19th, 2021 at 9:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum
  • The Pacers are set to hold their sixth round of pre-draft workouts Tuesday, per a team press release. The club possesses the No. 13 pick in the 2021 draft, as well as the No. 54 and No. 60 picks in the second round. Indiana will work out Kansas guard Marcus Garrett, South Carolina guard A.J. Lawson, Alabama guard John Petty Jr., Tennessee forward Yves Pons, Mississippi State guard D.J. Stewart Jr., and Clemson forward Aamir Simms.
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Pacers Reveal Four Assistants Under Carlisle

July 16th, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder
  • The Pacers officially announced in a press release that former Hawks head coach Lloyd Pierce, Ronald Nored, Mike Weinar and Jenny Boucek will be assistant coaches under Rick Carlisle. Pierce is currently an assistant with Team USA. Nored spent the past three seasons as an assistant with the Hornets, while Weinar spent 13 seasons with the Mavericks, four as an assistant coach. Boucek was also on Carlisle’s staff in Dallas the past three seasons.
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Draft Workouts: Wizards, Springer, Kuminga, Pacers, Hornets, Bezhanishvili

July 14th, 2021 at 3:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Wizards own the No. 15 pick and they’ve been very busy working out players. Guards Chris Duarte of Oregon, Ayo Dosunmu of Illinois and Josh Christopher of Arizona State visited last week, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. They brought in some less heralded prospects on Tuesday, a list that includes Mitchell Ballock (Creighton), D.J. Carton (Marquette), Matt Coleman III (Texas), Ryan Daly (St. Joseph) and Mark Vital (Baylor), according to a team press release.

Potential first-round Jaden Springer (Tennessee) heads the list of prospects who will work out for the club on Thursday, Hughes tweets. They’ll also take a look at Zane Martin (Towson), Asbjorn Midtgaard (Grand Canyon), Eugene Omoruyi (Oregon), Micah Potter (Wisconsin) and Guilherme Santos (Minas-Brazil).

We have more draft workout info:

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Sixers Have Engaged In Ben Simmons Trade Talks

July 13th, 2021 at 1:07pm CST by Luke Adams

1:07pm: In addition to Indiana and Minnesota, the Cavaliers and Kings are “known suitors” for Simmons, according to Marc Stein, who says the Raptors are also believed to have expressed interest.

9:42am: The Sixers have opened up discussions about a possible Ben Simmons trade and have engaged with teams, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Following a disappointing postseason, there was a sense that Simmons’ value around the NBA may have dipped. However, sources tell Charania that the 76ers’ asking price in their trade talks has been high.

“(They) want an All-Star-caliber player in return,” one source told The Athletic.

Simmons’ reluctance to shoot and his struggles at the free throw line in the second round of the playoffs played a part in the Sixers getting eliminated earlier than expected by Atlanta.

However, the former No. 1 overall pick has a strong NBA résumé, including three All-Star berths and a runner-up finish in this year’s Defensive Player of the Year voting. He’ll be entering his age-25 season and is under contract for four more years — as Charania notes, that kind of team control is rare for a star player on the trade market. Leaguewide interest in Simmons continues to be “robust,” per The Athletic.

According to reports in recent weeks, the Timberwolves are among the teams expected to pursue Simmons, and the Pacers are believed to have made a trade offer.

The Sixers have suggested both publicly and privately that they’re comfortable working with Simmons on his shot this offseason and bringing him back in the fall. While that may be posturing, the team’s high asking price in talks so far indicates that president of basketball operations Daryl Morey won’t be looking to sell off the three-time All-Star at a discount rate.

For what it’s worth, Charania says Simmons appears to be exhibiting a “renewed determination” to improve and expand his game this summer. Whether he’ll play his next game as a member of the Sixers or another franchise remains to be seen.

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Southeast Notes: Mosley, Barnes, Wizards, Gallinari, Hornets

July 13th, 2021 at 12:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jamahl Mosley has interviewed for head coaching jobs before, but he said the experience with the Magic was different because of the relationships involved. In an interview with Josh Robbins of The Athletic, Mosley talks about his prior experience with president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman in Denver and front office official Anthony Parker in Cleveland.

“I started to sense that there was a little bit of a joy to where it was going,” said Mosley, who was officially hired Sunday morning. “That happened after the second or third interview. It felt good. And I met the DeVos family, and you just saw family. That’s when it really kind of set in.”

Mosley chose to sidestep a question about the end of his time in Dallas, where he served as an assistant to Rick Carlisle for the past seven years. There was an expectation that Mosley might become the Mavericks‘ next head coach when Carlisle left for Indiana, but the front office chose Jason Kidd instead.

“It’s me moving forward, and that’s the best thing,” Mosley said. “I’m moving into a situation that allows me to grow, allows me to walk into exactly what I started out doing, and that’s developing and helping young men become better individuals on and off the court.”

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

  • The Magic, who hold picks No. 5 and 8 in this year’s lottery, brought in Florida State forward Scottie Barnes for a private workout over the weekend, Robbins tweets. Barnes is ranked sixth on ESPN’s big board and is considered a possible top-five pick.
  • With Bradley Beal eligible for free agency next summer, the Wizards may value veteran help more than the No. 15 pick they hold in the draft, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. He notes that not many teams are willing to part with useful players in exchange for a mid-round draft choice, but he proposes a few trades involving the Knicks, Lakers, Hawks, Grizzlies and Pacers.
  • Hawks forward Danilo Gallinari has confirmed on Instagram that he will play in the Tokyo Olympics. Gallinari has been representing Italy in international competitions since he was a teenager, but this will be his first Olympic Games.
  • The Hornets are hosting six players today in a pre-draft workout, according to a tweet from the team. Taking part are West Virginia’s Derek Culver, prep school player Jimma Gatwech, Nikita Mikhailovskii of Avtodor (Russia), UNC-Greensboro’s Isaiah Miller, Georgetown’s Jamorko Pickett and Kentucky’s Olivier Sarr.
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Pacers Finalizing Deal To Hire Ronald Nored

July 11th, 2021 at 7:51pm CST by JD Shaw
  • The Pacers are finalizing a deal with Ronald Nored to join Rick Carlisle‘s staff, according to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Nored most recently served as an assistant coach with Charlotte from 2018-21, though he’s been involved in coaching and player development since 2013.
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Rockets Talked To Pacers About No. 13 Pick

July 11th, 2021 at 11:57am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pacers are looking for a player who can contribute right away and are willing to trade the 13th pick in this year’s draft for veteran help, according to J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star (hat tip to RocketsWire). A source tells Michael that Indiana talked to the Rockets about a possible deal.

Michael adds that the Pacers want somebody who is under contract for at least two more years, which suggests Eric Gordon is a target in any deal with Houston. Gordon will make $18.2MM in the upcoming season and $19.6MM in 2022/23, along with a non-guaranteed $20.9MM for the 2023/24 season.

The Rockets are rebuilding after posting the league’s worst record and would welcome another lottery selection. They own three picks in the upcoming draft and may be willing to send No. 23 or 24 to Indiana in the deal.

Gordon, 32, is an Indiana native and played college basketball at the University of Indiana. Injuries limited him to 27 games this season, but he was still productive when he was on the court, averaging 17.8 points and 2.6 assists in about 29 minutes per night.

The Pacers would have to match salary in any deal, and Ben DuBose of RocketsWire notes that Jeremy Lamb, who has a $10.5MM expiring contract, would be a good start. The Rockets originally drafted Lamb in 2012, but shipped him to Oklahoma City in the James Harden trade.

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Wizards Notes: Nored, Coaching Search, Beal, Workouts

July 9th, 2021 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards recently conducted a second interview with Ronald Nored for their head coaching job, league sources tell Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).

A report last week indicated that Nored was close to leaving his position as a Hornets assistant for a role on Rick Carlisle‘s staff in Indiana. Haynes’ report today suggests Nored may still be in the running for Washington’s top job — presumably, if he isn’t hired by the Wizards, the 31-year-old will pivot to finalizing a deal with the Pacers.

Here’s more on the Wizards:

  • Besides Nored, the Wizards’ top head coaching candidates are believed to be Wes Unseld Jr., Charles Lee, Darvin Ham, and Jamahl Mosley (who may be hired by the Magic). Fred Katz of The Athletic takes an in-depth look at those four contenders for the job to assess what they could bring to the organization.
  • Before the Wizards finalize their head coaching hire, general manager Tommy Sheppard will meet with Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook to get their feedback on the finalists, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.
  • Within the same NBC Sports Washington story, Beal says he appreciated the five years he spent playing for Scott Brooks. “When I first got the news (Brooks wouldn’t return), it was tough,” Beal said. “Scotty was great. This is my second coach I’ve played for and even when I talked to him afterwards, (I said) how grateful I was towards him. He helped change my game and evolved my game to what it is now.”
  • The Wizards are working out a pair of guards today, according to Hughes, who tweets that Arizona State’s Josh Christopher and Illinois’ Ayo Dosunmu are visiting the team. Christopher and Dosunmu rank 33rd and 34th, respectively, on ESPN’s big board for the 2021 draft, so it seems like a long shot that the Wizards would select either with the No. 15 pick.
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Pacers Work Out Two Prospects On Tuesday, Six More On Wednesday

July 6th, 2021 at 3:08pm CST by Arthur Hill
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