- D-League guard Jordan Loyd is drawing some NBA interest, according to international reporter David Pick, who tweets that Loyd will attend a Nets free agent mini-camp, then will audition for the Clippers and play in Summer League with the Pacers. The 23-year-old averaged 15.1 PPG in 49 games for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in 2016/17.
- The Pacers will bring in six players for a pre-draft workout on Tuesday, according to the team’s website. That group includes Antonio Blakeney (LSU), Isaac Hamilton (UCLA), Zak Irvin (Michigan), Naz Long (Iowa State), Johnathan Motley (Baylor) and Rashawn Thomas (Texas A&M-CC). It’s a group of second-round hopefuls, headlined by Blakeney, a shooting guard ranked No. 85 by DraftExpress.
The Bucks are finalizing their list of GM candidates with interviews expected to start Monday, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.
Assistant GM Justin Zanik remains a strong candidate to replace John Hammond, who left to become GM of the Magic. Sources tell Wojnarowski that Zanik has strong support inside and outside the Bucks organization.
Others expected to interview for the position are Minnesota assistant GM Noah Croom, Indiana vice president of basketball operations Peter Dinwiddie, Detroit assistant GM Pat Garrity, Denver assistant GM Arturas Karnisovas and Memphis VP of player personnel Ed Stefanski. Many of the names were already known, but Croom is a new addition, Wojnarowski tweets.
Sources indicate that Bucks owners Marc Lasry and Wes Edens will participate in the interviews. An original list of candidates was trimmed by a search firm.
Cavaliers GM David Griffin faces an uncertain future, writes Joe Drape of The New York Times in a well-written piece detailing the executive’s background, approach, and accomplishments. Griffin’s contract with the Cavs expires at the end of this month and, as Drape states, “[Dan] Gilbert is a hands-on owner who has a history of letting player and executive contracts run out before going to the negotiating table.”
Since being named the Cavs’ GM in May 2014, Griffin has lured LeBron James back to the team, traded for Kevin Love, acquired many vital role players, fired David Blatt as head coach, hired Tyronn Lue to replace him, and most importantly brought a championship to Cleveland. For all the recent interest in Griffin, the general manager wishes to maintain a low profile, text messaging regarding comment on the story: “I really appreciate the opportunity to reconsider but I am trying desperately to keep a low profile and my quotes being in something about me just makes me uncomfortable. Ownership wouldn’t appreciate either, I am sure.”
Here are some other stories you’ll want to check out from the Central division:
- The Pistons‘ openness to trading their 12th pick for a veteran does not surprise Keith Langlois of Pistons.com, but he cautions that any such trade would come with significant ripple effects.
- Point guard remains the Bulls‘ greatest need and Jordan Clarkson would provide an excellent fit, writes Mark Strotman of CSNChicago.com. Strotman cites a tweet from Jordan Schultz of The Huffington Post (link via Twitter) that the Lakers are actively seeking trade offers for their young guard.
- On Thursday night, Bulls star Jimmy Butler appeared as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live and was asked by the host why he is not coming to the Lakers, as relayed by CSNChicago.com. The small forward responded, “Because I love Chicago so very much. They took a chance at me in 2011 with the 30th pick so I’m forever grateful for that.”
- The Pacers will have several important decisions to make this offseason. In his mailbag, Scott Agness of VigilantSports.com addresses team-focused topics such as Monta Ellis‘ future, Rudy Gay‘s fit, and who the team should target in free agency.
- Justin Jackson of North Carolina will work out for the Pistons next week, reports Vincent Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (link via Twitter). As for the Pacers, the organization will hold a pre-draft workout on Monday, June 5th, featuring Bam Adebayo, Terrance Ferguson, Luke Kennard, London Perrantes, Ivan Rabb, and Davon Reed, per a press release from the Pacers’ official website.
The Pistons have interest in adding C.J. Miles this offseason, a source tells Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Miles will reportedly opt out of his deal with the Pacers to become a free agent this summer.
Ellis cautions that any additions will depend on what happens with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Reggie Bullock. Detroit already has nearly $95MM in guaranteed salary on the books for next season, so even if the team lets each one of its free agent wings walk, it won’t have much flexibility to add a sizable deal.
KCP and Bullock are both restricted free agents, so it’s likely coach/executive Stan Van Gundy opts to retain at least one of the two. If the team goes over the salary cap, which is projected to come in at $101MM, it will have the $8.4MM mid-level exception to work with and a new deal for Miles could fit into that slot. The swingman would have made roughly $4.77MM had he decided to stay on his deal with Indiana.
Miles, who spent the last three seasons with the Pacers, shot 43.4% from downtown on 8.5 attempts per contest last season. Detroit will certainly look to add shooting after making just 33.0% of its shots from behind the arc as a team last season, a figure which ranks 28th in the league.
12:06pm: ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links) provides an additional update on the Bucks’ GM search, noting that there’s still one GM candidate that the team hasn’t been given permission to interview. As was the case when Atlanta and Orlando expressed interest, the Cavs still aren’t granting permission to speak to David Griffin during the playoffs.
We heard last week that Cavaliers GM David Griffin, a popular target this spring for teams seeking a top basketball exec, is among the names on Milwaukee’s wish list.
11:35am: With John Hammond headed to Orlando, the Bucks’ search for a new general manager is underway. And according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, Milwaukee has requested and received permission to speak to a handful of candidates about the open position.
The Bucks are eyeing Pacers president of basketball operations Peter Dinwiddie, Nuggets assistant GM Arturas Karnisovas, Grizzlies VP of player personnel Ed Stefanski, and Hawks advisor Wes Wilcox, league sources inform Wojnarowski. Each of those four clubs has given Milwaukee permission to interview their respective execs.
According to Wojnarowski, Dinwiddie and Karnisovas have become two of the NBA’s “most respected” young executives. Wilcox and Stefanski are veteran execs — Wilcox was recently removed from Atlanta’s GM role, while Stefanski has a history with Bucks consultant Rod Thorn, having worked with him in New Jersey.
Although assistant GM Justin Zanik is currently running day-to-day operations for the Bucks, and is said to be a strong candidate to replace Hammond in the permanent GM role, the team is reportedly conducting a “broad” search for its new head of basketball operations.
Veteran swingman C.J. Miles will opt out of his contract with the Pacers this summer, becoming an unrestricted free agent, reports Chris Haynes of ESPN.com. Miles has a player option for the 2017/18 season worth approximately $4.77MM, but will decline that option in search of a more lucrative deal.
Miles, who turned 30 last month, was a key rotation piece for the Pacers in 2016/17, making a career-best 41.3% of his attempts from beyond the arc. He also averaged 2.2 made three-pointers per game for the third consecutive season.
Miles was one of two Pacers players who had a mutual option of sorts for ’17/18. The Pacers had the opportunity to waive both Miles and Rodney Stuckey before the end of the regular season to avoid the risk of guaranteeing their salaries for next season. The team cut Stuckey and hung onto Miles, but with Miles opting out, Indiana won’t carry his salary on its books next year anyway.
While Miles’ reps may point to a player like Courtney Lee, who signed a four-year, $48MM contract with the Knicks last summer at age 30, as a logical comparison for their client, I’d be surprised if Miles lands a deal in that range. He should do fairly well in free agency, earning a raise and a multiyear commitment, but teams around the league simply won’t have the same kind of cap room available to overspend on free agents this time around.
- The Pacers need to re-sign Jeff Teague but the cost will be substantial, according to Jay Siskin of AmicoHoops.net. Teague, who made $8MM this past season, will get a huge raise as he heads into the free agent market for the first time. While Teague enjoys playing for his hometown team, point-guard starved teams such as the Nets, Magic, Mavericks and Knicks could make runs at him and drive up his pricetag, Siskin adds.
Hamidou Diallo hasn’t played organized basketball in nearly five months, but he’s drawing interest around the league, sources tell Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog (Twitter link). The Nets, Bulls, Bucks, Heat, Pacers and Jazz have all expressed interest in the athletic shooting guard.
Diallo is currently ranked as the 42nd best prospect in the draft, according to Jonathan Givony of Draft Express. Some believe he has a chance to move into the first round, as Zagoria writes in a full-length piece for The New York Times. “I would not be surprised if his combination of athleticism and skills opens some eyes, and then he’ll have a tough decision,” ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla said. ” Do you want to be the 25th pick in this year’s draft or do you want to have a chance to maybe be a top 10 pick [next year].”
The Queens native hasn’t yet made a decision yet on whether he will remain in the draft or play at Kentucky, Zagoria passes along in a full-length piece on his website. Diallo enrolled at the school to play for John Calipari in January but opted not to join the basketball team. He, like all prospects, has until tonight to make a decision.
- The Pacers will work out Bryce Alford, Ike Anigbogu, Trevon Bluiett, Vince Edwards, Davon Reed and Trevor Thompson on Monday, the team announced on its official website.
- The Lakers aren’t likely to give up a lottery pick for a one-year Paul George rental, says Sam Smith of the Bulls official website, but the Pacers could potentially net Julius Randle, D’Angelo Russell and a matching salary should they decide to pull the trigger. Smith adds that Larry Bird‘s exit indicates that the franchise is eager to fully embrace a rebuild.