- Wesley Matthews, who joined the Pacers last month, has been a great fit on and off the court for the club, writes Jim Ayello of The Indianapolis Star. “That’s why we recruited him so hard,” head coach Nate McMillan said. “We knew what type of player he was. He’s a competitor, and when he steps out on that floor, he’s all out. He’s giving you everything he has. It starts for him, which you don’t see from a lot of players in the NBA, on the defensive end of the floor. He accepts that challenge of guarding the best (wing) player.”
Struggling would-be contenders like the Celtics and Lakers could learn a lesson from the Pacers, who have bounced back impressively after losing star guard Victor Oladipo for the season, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com.
Within his examination of the Pacers’ ability to battle through adversity, Windhorst notes that the club’s leaders – head coach Nate McMillan, president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard, and GM Chad Buchanan – have an “open-door policy” when it comes to discussing players’ upcoming free agency — they aren’t afraid to sit down and talk to a player about his situation if he wants to, and have attempted to be transparent in those discussions.
As Windhorst observes, the Pacers’ rotation is stacked with players in contract years. Thaddeus Young, Bojan Bogdanovic, Darren Collison, Cory Joseph, and Tyreke Evans are among those who will be unrestricted free agents this summer. With long-term uncertainty facing so many of Indiana’s vets, the work McMillan has done to keep them all on the same page this season is impressive.
Here’s more from out of Indiana:
- Chris Sikich of The Indianapolis Star provides the latest updates on a piece of legislation aimed in part at keeping the Pacers in Indiana for the next 25 years. As Sikich explains, the bill, which the Indiana Senate voted in favor of this week, would see the Pacers chip in about $63MM in new money for facility upgrades and would give the team until next April to negotiate a new long-term lease for the Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
- Domantas Sabonis has been diagnosed with a left ankle sprain and may be forced out of action for the Pacers’ next few games, as J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star details. “He’s got a lot of swelling,” McMillan said. “He’s going to be out for a couple games. He’s not walking with crutches, but he can’t put a lot of pressure on it.” In Sabonis’ absence, frontcourt players like Kyle O’Quinn and T.J. Leaf could get the opportunity to play increased roles.
- Speaking of injured Pacers, while Oladipo won’t be able to return this season, he’s making progress in his rehab work. As Ameer Tyree of Sporting News passes along, Oladipo’s trainer recently posted a video of the All-Star guard working on his handle while wearing a leg brace.
Here are Tuesday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- The Jazz have recalled Grayson Allen from the Salt Lake City Stars, according to the team’s Twitter feed. The stint was Allen’s ninth assignment this season.
- The Clippers have assigned Jerome Robinson to the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
- The Pacers have assigned Edmond Sumner to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, according to the team’s transaction log. Sumner recently signed a two-year contract with Indiana.
- The Wizards assigned Troy Brown Jr. to the Capital City Go-Go, according to the team’s Twitter feed.
- The Heat have assigned Emanuel Terry to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to the team’s Twitter feed. Terry has seen action in just one game for Miami this season, playing just three minutes.
- The Grizzlies have assigned Jevon Carter to the Memphis Hustle, per the team’s Twitter feed.
Here are Monday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- The Jazz assigned rookie first-round pick Grayson Allen to the Salt Lake City Stars, the team’s PR department tweets. Allen has appeared in six Stars games, averaging 15.7 PPG in 30.6 MPG. The former Duke star is averaging 4.1 PPG in 9.9 MPG with Utah.
- The Pacers recalled forward Alize Johnson from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, according to a team press release. Johnson is averaging 19.2 PPG and 13.6 RPG in 36.9 MPG through 25 games with the Mad Ants.
- The Grizzlies assigned rookie guard Jevon Carter to the Memphis Hustle to get in a practice but recalled him prior to their game against the Lakers on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets. The second-round pick is averaging 2.8 PPG and 1.7 APG in 14.8 MPG over 26 games with the Grizzlies.
- The Nets recalled rookie forward Dzanan Musa from the Long Island Nets in time for their game against the Spurs on Monday, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. Musa is averaging 19.3 PPG and 6.6 RPG in 31.3 MPG through 25 games with the G League affiliate.
- The Rockets recalled guard Chris Chiozza from the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors tweets. Chiozza signed a 10-day contract with the team last week.
- The Hornets recalled forward Dwayne Bacon and guard Devonte’ Graham from the Greensboro Swarm, according to a team press release. Bacon has appeared in 14 games for the Swarm, averaging 20.6 PPG and 6.9 RPG in 31.7 MPG. Graham has appeared in 10 games for the Swarm, averaging 23.8 PPG and 4.8 APG in 33.8 MPG.
- The Warriors assigned rookie guard Jacob Evans III to Santa Cruz, according to a team press release. The first-round pick has appeared in 23 games with Golden State this season and 16 games (11 starts) with Santa Cruz. He’s averaging 11.8 PPG and 2.4 APG in 26.5 minutes per game.
Here are Friday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- In a rare move by an NBA veteran, Sixers big man Amir Johnson was granted a request to play for the Delaware Blue Coats on Friday in order to get some playing time, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia will recall Johnson in time for its game against Portland on Saturday. Johnson was in the rotation earlier in the season but hasn’t seen the court since January 26.
- The Magic assigned rookie guard Melvin Frazier Jr. to Lakeland, the team’s PR department tweets. The second-round pick appeared in Orlando’s last four games before the All-Star break but didn’t go longer than five minutes.
- The Spurs assigned first-round pick Lonnie Walker IV to the Austin Spurs, according to a team press release. Walker IV has seen action in 20 games with Austin, averaging 16.2 PPG in 27.3 MPG. He’s played in six games with San Antonio.
- The Hornets assigned forward Dwayne Bacon and rookie guard Devonte’ Graham to the Greensboro Swarm, according to a team press release. Bacon has played in 25 NBA games this season and 12 more with the Swarm. He’s averaging 20.4 PPG and 7.5 RPG in 32.4 MPG at the G League level. Graham has seen action in 31 games with the Hornets and eight with the Swarm. He’s averaging 21.3 PPG and 5.0 APG in 33.1 MPG for Greensboro.
- The Pacers assigned rookie forward Alize Johnson to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, according to a team press release. The second-round pick has played 11 NBA games this season. He’s averaging 19.2 PPG and 13.6 RPG in 36.9 MPG over 25 games with Fort Wayne.
- The Heat recalled forward Emanuel Terry from the Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to a team press release. Miami signed Terry, who has averaged 15.3 PPG and 8.9 RPG in 10 games with the Skyforce, to a 10-day contract on Wednesday.
Blake Griffin, who is in year two of a five-year, $171MM deal, is enjoying a resurgence a year after he was traded to the Pistons, Noah Trister of The Associated Press writes. Griffin expanded his offense, adding the 3-pointer to his game, which is something he credits for his success this year.
“It helps a lot, especially in today’s NBA, with everybody spacing the floor a little bit more, and playing with a guy like Dre (Andre Drummond), who’s so effective inside,” Griffin said. “To be able to give him a little bit more space is a good thing. I always see guys working to expand their range, and when you do, you see them add years to their career.”
Griffin has already made a career-high 134 shots from behind the arc this season. Here’s more on the Pistons and a few other teams in the Eastern Conference:
- Pistons coach Dwane Casey believes Griffin’s basketball I.Q. has helped the team stay in the playoff race, Trister relays in the same piece. “He’s thinking the game. He’s a couple steps ahead,” Casey said. “I’ve had a lot of great forwards, power forwards, and he’s right up there with the best, whether it’s [Dirk Nowitzki], [Kevin] Garnett, Detlef Schrempf — just a lot of great players that I’ve been around. He’s right in that category.”
- Myles Turner, who signed a four-year, $72MM extension with the Pacers earlier this season, should be considered a Defensive Player of the Year candidate, Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star contends. Turner is leading the league in blocks per game (2.7) and he has the league’s third-best defensive rating (99.6), giving him the credentials to be in the conversation for the award.
- Michael Scotto of The Athletic examines how the Nets got a steal in the secon -round with Rodions Kurucs. Kurucs, who was the No. 40 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft, has worked his way into Brooklyn’s starting lineup after beginning the season buried on the depth chart.
- The Pacers and city officials are negotiating a deal that would keep the team in Indiana for roughly 25 more years, Chris Sikich of the Indianapolis Star writes. The Pacers’ current deal is worth $160 million and expires in 2024, according to Sikich. The team has floated the idea of publicly funding upgrades to Bankers Life Fieldhouse for about two years.
The Bulls acquired Otto Porter Jr. from the Wizards in exchange for Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker and coach Jim Boylen is happy with the transaction.
“He’s just a basketball player. That’s what we needed, that’s what we got,” Boylen said (via Mark Strotman of NBC Sports). “What that means is you can throw him out there and he can get somebody else going, he can get himself going, he can make shots off the move.
“I think he showed the whole thing tonight. He showed a lot of versatility. I’m really thankful he’s a Bull.”
Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Magic coach Steve Clifford is using some his downtime to watch game tape of Markelle Fultz and analyze the point guard’s play, John Denton of NBA.com relays. Denton notes that Fultz will likely work with assistants Bruce Kreutzer and Steve Hetzel, two coaches whom Kemba Walker has previously credited with helping to improve his shot.
- While Clifford can understand how a change of scenery may help Fultz, the coach believes Fultz’s jump shot will ultimately determine his success with the Magic, as Denton passes along in the same piece. “How you fit with your teammates is a big deal, and the best players can play with anybody in any system,’’ Clifford said. “To me, if you want to say a different city, new start, different teammates, things like that [might help Fultz]. But, to be frank, the issue has been [Fultz’s] shoulder and his shooting and if you’re not a range shooter, you’re not going to be a good pick-and-roll player. With that part, we’ll see.’’
- Pacers forward Thaddeus Young was thrilled when he learned that the team was pursuing Bojan Bogdanovic in free agency in 2017, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star writes. “I said Bogey is a walking bucket. He can score in different ways that people don’t even know,” said Young, who previously played alongside Bogdanovic in Brooklyn. “I learned a lot about Bogey. I’ll play any day with Bogey on any team.”
- Victor Oladipo‘s season-ending quad injury occurred in the same area of his right knee that forced him to miss 11 games earlier this season, according to an ESPN report. However, the Pacers star guard is unsure if the earlier injury led to the more serious one. The soreness Oladipo felt in November and December was just above the right knee. “Sure, it might be connected, but who knows,” Oladipo said. “I’m not focused on the past because I have no control over that, just like I have no control over the future.”
Pacers guard Edmond Sumner, who has spent the last two seasons on a two-way contract with the team, is receiving a promotion to the 15-man roster, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, Sumner has agreed to a standard contract with Indiana that will cover the rest of 2018/19, with a team option for 2019/20. The Pacers have confirmed the signing in a press release.
Sumner, a Xavier alum, hasn’t played a whole lot for the Pacers since being selected with the 52nd pick in the 2017 draft. Appearing in 18 NBA games, he has averaged 2.4 PPG in just 9.4 minutes per contest.
However, the 6’6″ guard enjoyed a breakout year this season for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the G League, averaging 23.9 PPG on .500/.400/.744 shooting in 17 NBAGL games. That performance has earned him a spot in the Pacers’ rotation over the last couple weeks — Sumner has played in Indiana’s last eight games since Victor Oladipo went down, averaging 16.6 minutes per game.
The Pacers, who entered trade deadline week with one open roster spot, shuffled things around by waiving Ike Anigbogu, acquiring and waiving Nik Stauskas and Wade Baldwin, then signing Wesley Matthews. That series of moves still left Indiana with an opening on its 15-man roster, so Sumner will fill that opening, leaving Davon Reed as the Pacers’ lone two-way player.
As for Sumner’s contract, it will certainly be a minimum salary deal. It’s not clear whether his second year will be an actual team option or simply a non-guaranteed salary — if it’s an option, the Pacers will have to make a decision on it by the end of June, but if it’s a non-guaranteed salary, the club may not need to make a call on Sumner until later in the offseason, or even during the 2019/20 season.