- The Timberwolves were active on the phones throughout the draft considering potential trades, but ultimately decided that keeping the 20th and 48th picks was their best option, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Minnesota had spoken to the Pacers, Trail Blazers, and Hawks about moving down from No. 20, but with a run on wings happening, didn’t want to risk losing out on a player like Okogie, Krawczynski notes.
- The Mavericks, Nuggets and Spurs were all among the winners in tonight’s draft, according to Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz of ESPN. Dallas was able to trade up to get Doncic, Denver saw Michael Porter Jr. fall to No. 14 and San Antonio picked up Lonnie Walker at 18. Other teams that had a good night, according to the authors, were the Pacers, Sixers and Celtics.
The Sixers have named Connor Johnson as their G League coach, the team announced in a press release. Johnson will coach the Delaware Blue Coats after working the past four seasons working with the 76ers coaching staff. The newly-named Blue Coats will play in the new 76ers Fieldhouse in Wilmington. Johnson was Philadelphia’s director of player development and coaching administration last season.
In other coaching-related news around the league:
- The Raptors were denied permission from the Pelicans to hire Chris Finch as an assistant coach, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. New Raptors coach Nick Nurse was an assistant under Finch on Great Britain’s Olympic team in 2012 and was hoping to bring his well-regarded knowledge of offensive schemes to Toronto, Stein adds in another tweet.
- The Pelicans did lose one of their assistants as Jamelle McMillan, son of Pacers coach Nate McMillan, joined Igor Kokoskov’s staff with the Suns, Marc Spears of ESPN tweets. The younger McMillan is just 29 years old.
- The Raptors hired Jama Mahlalela as head coach of their NBA G League affiliate, Raptors 905, the team’s media relations department tweets. Mahlalela, who has five years of experience as an NBA assistant, replaces Jerry Stackhouse. Stackhouse, who led the team to consecutive G League Finals, joined the Grizzlies’ staff after being interviewed for multiple NBA head coaching jobs.
The trade that sent Paul George to Oklahoma City in exchange for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis, widely panned at the time, was the catalyst for the Pacers‘ surprisingly strong 2017/18 season. Although they were unable to knock off the Cavaliers in the first round of the playoffs, the Pacers won 48 regular-season games and then gave LeBron James‘ squad all it could handle in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
Having cleverly sidestepped the prospect of a potential rebuild, the Pacers are now in position to keep fortifying an impressive roster, given their cap flexibility.
Here are five key questions facing the franchise this summer:
1. Will Thaddeus Young opt out of his contract?
The second-highest-paid player on the Pacers’ roster in 2017/18, Young also averaged the second-most minutes per game behind Oladipo, playing an important role in the team’s success. Still, as a frontcourt player who doesn’t protect the rim or make many outside shots, Young probably wouldn’t be one of the league’s most coveted free agents if he opts out of his contract this summer.
Nonetheless, Young is reportedly strongly considering the possibility of declining a player option worth $13.76MM. The veteran forward, who turns 30 on Thursday, may never again have a better chance to land a long-term contract than he does this summer, so even if he has take a pay cut for 2018/19, signing a multiyear deal and receiving some long-term security could be worth it.
Young’s decision will have a significant impact on the Pacers’ cap outlook for next season. If he opts out and doesn’t re-sign in Indiana, the club could potentially double its available cap room, which would create new opportunities in the free agent and/or trade market.
The best outcome for both sides may see Young turn down his player option in order to sign a new contract with the Pacers. For instance, an agreement in the three-year, $30MM range would give Young a good reason to turn down a one-year payday of $13MM+, and it would open up some extra cap space for Indiana this summer.
2. Will the Pacers retain their veterans on partially guaranteed contracts?
The majority of players around the NBA who are on non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts for 2018/19 will earn the minimum salary if they’re retained. That’s not the case for three Pacers veterans, who would make a combined $30.5MM if they stick with Indiana.
Bojan Bogdanovic ($10.5MM) and Darren Collison ($10MM) signed similar two-year contracts with Indiana last summer, and now both look like good bets to return for next season. Bogdanovic only has a $1.5MM guarantee, but he had an excellent year as the Pacers’ starting small forward, averaging a career-high 14.3 PPG and knocking down 40.2% of his three-pointers. At $10.5MM on an expiring deal, he’s a solid value, and the same can be said for Collison, who has a $2MM partial guarantee for now. As Indiana’s starting point guard, he recorded 12.4 PPG and 5.3 APG to go along with a league-leading .468 3PT%.
That leaves Jefferson, who also has a $10MM salary for next season, with $4MM currently guaranteed. Unlike Bogdanovic and Collison, the 33-year-old isn’t a regular rotation player for the Pacers, having established new career lows in minutes in each of his two seasons in Indiana. The Pacers would save $6MM by waiving Jefferson, and I’d be surprised if they don’t take advantage of that opportunity.
It’s possible that the outlooks for these players could change — if the Pacers get a shot at a marquee free agent, perhaps Bogdanovic and/or Collison would need to be waived to create extra cap space. If Indiana needs to reach the minimum cap floor, perhaps Jefferson’s salary will get guaranteed. But for now, the club’s decisions seem fairly straightforward.
The Sixers will host Kentucky forward Kevin Knox and Texas Tech guard Zhaire Smith for the second time on Tuesday, according to a team release. Knox’s workout will be separate from the other six players they will bring in, including Smith. The Sixers hold the No. 10 selection in the lottery. Knox is currently ranked No. 9 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, while Smith is slotted at No. 16.
The other members of the group workout are all guards, including B.J. Johnson (La Salle), De’Anthony Melton (USC), Tyler Nelson (Fairfield), Malik Newman (Kansas) and Landry Shamet (Wichita State). Melton (No. 24, Givony) is a possibility for the Sixers with their other first-rounder at No. 26.
We have numerous other draft workouts to pass along:
- Potential first-rounder Bruce Brown (Miami, Fla.) is among the players the Grizzlies will evaluate on Tuesday, according to a team release. Brown, a shooting guard, is currently ranked No. 28 by Givony. Allonzo Trier (Arizona), Anfernee Simons (IMG), Brandon Sampson (LSU), Tim Bond (Eastern Michigan) and Markel Crawford (Ole Miss) are the other players invited to the workout. Melvin Frazier (Tulane), Nuni Omot (Baylor), J.P. Macura (Xavier), Daxter Miles (West Virginia), Brenton Scott (Indiana State) and William Lee (UAB) will visit the Grizzlies on Wednesday.
- The Pacers will bring in Rawle Alkins (Arizona), Marcus Derrickson (Georgetown), Arnoldas Kulboka (Lithuania), Kelan Martin (Butler), Elie Okobo (France), and Theo Pinson (North Carolina) on Tuesday, according to a press release.
- The Hornets will be evaluating some second-round prospects on Tuesday, including A.J. Davis (Central Florida), James Demery (St. Joe’s), Jerome Robinson (Boston College), Sam Hunt (North Carolina State) and Jared Terrell (Rhode Island), according to a team release.
- Terrell worked out twice for the Timberwolves, according to Rhode Island basketball’s Twitter feed. Frazier visited Minnesota on Saturday, Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweets. Projected first-round prospect Troy Brown (Oregon) also worked out on Saturday along with Duncan Robinson (Michigan), Andrew Rowsey (Marquette) and Kulboka, according to Wolfson (Twitter links). Duke’s Gary Trent visited on Monday and could also visit the Jazz and Warriors before the draft, Wolfson adds in another tweet.
- Jim Ayello of The Indianapolis Star looks for clues about the Pacers‘ draft plans based on the prospects the team has brought in for workouts, observing that there has been a focus on potential three-and-D wings.
The Lakers are “super infatuated” with Zhaire Smith and have held several meetings with the Texas Tech guard, tweets Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype. Smith has worked out for a number of teams, but L.A. is excited about his potential fit in its backcourt.
The Lakers, who don’t pick until No. 25, will have to trade up to have a shot at Smith. The 19-year-old averaged 11.3 points per game as a freshman with the Red Raiders and is projected to go to the Suns with the 16th selection in the latest mock draft compiled by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
There’s more draft-related news to pass along:
- Maryland’s Kevin Huerter, a potential first-round pick, is expected to miss two months after having surgery to fix torn ligaments in his right hand, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Projected at No. 21 in Givony’s mock draft, Huerter has been rising on draft boards since an impressive performance at the combine. He averaged 14.8 points per game for the Terrapins and shot 41.7% from 3-point range.
- Duke’s Grayson Allen will work out for the Timberwolves Thursday, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. Allen has already auditioned for the Sixers, Celtics, Lakers and Jazz, among others, and made a strong impression at the combine and his pro day.
- Donte Ingram of Loyola-Chicago will also take part in a session Thursday with the Wolves, Wolfson adds (Twitter link). Ingram had a recent workout with the Grizzlies.
- Oklahoma’s Trae Young will work out for the Bulls on Thursday, tweets ESPN’s Nick Friedell.
- Villanova’s Jalen Brunson will have an individual workout for the Pacers Thursday, the team announced on its website.
- Six players will work out for the Nuggets Thursday, tweets Gina Mizell of The Denver Post. Scheduled to attend are UCLA’s Thomas Welsh, Idaho’s Victor Sanders and Iowa State’s Donovan Jackson, along with Dayon Goodman of Westminster (Utah), Todd Withers of Queens (North Carolina) and Tryggvi Hlinason of Valencia Basket.
- European sources are confident that Serbian center Dusan Ristic will be taken as a draft-and-stash player, according to Orazio Cauchi of Sportando (Twitter link).
- Josh Okogie‘s busy workout schedule includes visits to the Suns, Jazz, Clippers, and Pacers, with possible returns to the Lakers and Celtics also possible, tweets Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. Okogie is considered a potential first-round pick.
- The Pacers will host their fourth pre-draft workout on Wednesday, and Marcus Foster (Creighton) will be earning a second look after working out for the club last week. Jordan Barnett (Missouri), Robert Johnson (Indiana), Quentin Snider (Louisville), Jae’Sean Tate (Ohio State), and Yuta Watanabe (George Washington) will also participate in the workout.
While Dwane Casey was always viewed as a strong candidate for the Pistons‘ head coaching job, right up until the team hired him on Monday, the former Raptors coach seriously considered taking a year off, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. As Lewenberg observes though, the Pistons really sold Casey on their situation, and sitting around isn’t really in his nature anyway.
TNT’s David Aldridge provides further context on Casey’s decision, tweeting that the veteran coach wasn’t inclined to accept the job as recently as Saturday morning. However, Pistons ownership and management – led by Tom Gores – put the “full-court press” on in order to finalize a deal.
According to Aldridge, one concession the Pistons made was letting Casey pick his assistants. Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) hears from a source that there was no pressure from ownership to pick Casey’s assistants for him, and Aldridge notes the team’s denial, but insists that multiple sources say otherwise (Twitter link). As Aldridge notes, it wouldn’t have been unprecedented for Casey to inherit some assistants that Pistons management likes, and it’s possible he’ll do just that, but he won’t be obligated to do so.
Here’s more from around the Central division:
- With his restricted free agency approaching, Bulls swingman David Nwaba has hired new representation, signing with agent Charles Briscoe, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Charania previously identified Nwaba as an under-the-radar RFA target who should generate plenty of interest this summer.
- When word of Jimmy Butler‘s trade broke last June, Butler’s trainer Travelle Gaines made some pointed comments about the Bulls and GM Gar Forman in a now-deleted tweet. However, as he tells Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago, Gaines doesn’t “feel the Bulls are a bad organization or franchise” and wouldn’t steer current clients like Trae Young away from Chicago.
- As Thaddeus Young considers opting out of his contract, ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (via Twitter) that the Pacers could easily carve out about $23MM in cap space if Young walks. Meanwhile, J. Michael and Scott Horner of The Indianapolis Star identify some free agents the Pacers could go after with that space.