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Community Shootaround: Eastern Conference Playoffs

July 19th, 2022 at 9:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The play-in tournament, which has been adopted as an every-season fixture, means that only 10 of 30 NBA teams won’t get at least a taste of the postseason from year to year.

Last season, the Knicks, Wizards, Pacers, Pistons and Magic were the five Eastern Conference teams who failed to qualify.

All of those teams, via some combination of the draft, free agency and trades, have made numerous roster moves this summer in an effort to improve their stock.

Let’s take a quick look at each of those clubs’ major moves, focusing on acquisitions beyond re-signing their own free agents:

Knicks – They made a big splash by dumping salary in order to sign one of the top free agents on the board, Mavs guard Jalen Brunson. They also upgraded their frontcourt by nabbing Isaiah Hartenstein in free agency. Of course, they are considered the favorites to acquire Donovan Mitchell if Utah deals the All-Star guard.
Wizards – They were intent on upgrading their point guard position and did so by trading for Monte Morris from Denver and signing free agent Delon Wright. Small forward Will Barton was also acquired from the Nuggets. They also added high-scoring guard Johnny Davis with their lottery pick.
Pacers – The went all-out to sign All-Star caliber center Deandre Ayton and came up short, as the Suns matched their offer sheet. They did add a very promising wing, Bennedict Mathurin, in the lottery. They also added guard Andrew Nembhard with the first pick of the second round. Guard Aaron Nesmith and center Daniel Theis were acquired in the trade that sent Malcolm Brogdon to Boston.
Pistons – Thanks to a draft-night swap, Detroit ended up with two lottery selections. The Pistons selected point guard Jaden Ivey with their own pick to pair up in the backcourt with last year’s No. 1 overall selection, Cade Cunningham. A three-way trade gave them the rights to center Jalen Duren. They also added guard Alec Burks and big man Nerlens Noel via the Knicks’ salary-dumping maneuvers.
Magic – Other then re-signing Mohamed Bamba and Gary Harris, the Magic have been relatively quiet on the free agent market. However, they had the No. 1 overall selection in a loaded lottery and used it on Duke forward Paolo Banchero, giving them a dynamic forward combo alongside last year’s lottery pick, Franz Wagner.

That brings us to our question of the day: Which Eastern Conference team that failed to reach the postseason this spring – Knicks, Wizards, Pacers, Pistons, Magic – has the best chance to qualify for next year’s playoffs?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

Suns GM Jones On Ayton: “We Wanted Deandre Here”

July 19th, 2022 at 11:28am CST by Luke Adams

Although the Suns never offered center Deandre Ayton the five-year maximum-salary deal he originally sought, they told him throughout his free agency that they intended to match any offer sheet he signed with another team, according to Marc J. Spears of ESPN.

The Suns made good on that promise, immediately matching Ayton’s offer sheet once they received it from the Pacers. In a phone conversation with Spears, Suns general manager James Jones said the team felt it was “critical” not to waste any time making that move.

“We wanted Deandre here,” Jones said. “He’s vital to what we do, at the core of everything that we do. And throughout this whole process it was, it rang true. We wanted to keep him here, and the moment we can come to an agreement, we would. So, waiting 24 hours, 48 hours, that wasn’t something we needed to do because going into it, we knew this is where he wanted to be and where we wanted him to be.

“I’m one to just be direct. And if you’re convicted, if you know what you want to do, you do it. But if there’s any doubt from anyone that we wanted him, I think that the matching did that. It was urgent for us. It was important. It was critical for us. So, we just wanted to make sure that we handled our business quickly.”

While Jones insists that Phoenix was “where (Ayton) wanted to be,” ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski hears from sources that the former No. 1 overall pick was intrigued by the possibility of teaming up with Tyrese Haliburton and becoming a core player in Indiana. Speaking to Spears, Ayton indicated he was happy to be back with his former team, but also praised the club he nearly joined for how it handled the restricted free agency process.

“I got to give a lot of respect to the Pacers organization. They were aggressive from the start and showing a lot of love. And we agreed to a max offer sheet. The Suns matched. Now, I’m back in Phoenix as a Sun,” Ayton said, adding that his new contract will have a “generational impact” on his family and on the community work he can do in Phoenix and in the Bahamas, his home country.

There was plenty of chatter earlier in the offseason about the possibility of Ayton leaving Phoenix, but the Suns never showed a willingness to discuss a sign-and-trade deal with the Pacers, despite Indiana’s interest in doing so, according to ESPN.

Ayton’s final 2021/22 appearance played a part in the speculation about his offseason departure — he logged a playoff-low 17 minutes in a blowout Game 7 loss to Dallas in the Western Conference Semifinals, and was seen jawing with head coach Monty Williams on the sidelines.

However, the two men downplayed that incident in their respective interviews with Spears. Williams referred to it as a “bad day,” while Ayton said it was “in the past,” adding that he and his coach are on good terms.

“Game 7 was an anomaly,” Ayton said. “We let that get away from us as a team. That is all in the past. We’re going to look forward. We are going to move on.”

Suns Re-Sign Deandre Ayton After Matching Pacers’ Offer Sheet

July 18th, 2022 at 9:14pm CST by Rory Maher

JULY 18: The Suns have officially re-signed Ayton, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets via a team press release.

“Deandre is a force at both ends of the floor, who has elevated his game every year and will continue to do so,” GM James Jones said in a statement. “DA is so important to what we do and without him we could not have reached our recent levels of success.”

JULY 14, 7:28pm: The Suns have indeed opted to match the Pacers’ offer sheet for Ayton, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Ayton’s four-year deal is fully guaranteed, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (YouTube video link).

As detailed below, Ayton is now ineligible to be traded until January 15, and will possess veto power over any trade after that until next July.

With the new Ayton deal on their books, the Suns are facing a projected $32MM tax penalty for the 2022/23 season, per Marks (via Twitter).

7:10pm: Ayton has now signed his offer sheet with the Pacers, starting the clock for the Suns to match, Woj reports (via Twitter).

2:54pm: The Suns haven’t shown any inclination to work out a sign-and-trade with Indiana for Ayton, but they are expected to match the offer sheet once Ayton signs it, sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

2:02pm: The Pacers are signing restricted free agent Deandre Ayton to a four-year, $133MM offer sheet, his agents Nima Namakian and Bill Duffy tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Once Ayton inks the deal, the Suns will have 48 hours to match the largest offer sheet in league history, Wojnarowski adds. ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets that Phoenix technically has until 11:59pm ET on Saturday to match the deal.

Sign-and-trades are not permissible once an offer sheet has been signed, so a potential swap for Pacers center Myles Turner is off the table once Ayton signs the deal. As Marks notes, if the Suns match the offer sheet, Ayton will have the ability to veto any trade starting January 15, which is when he’d be trade-eligible. He also cannot be traded to Indiana for a year.

However, in a follow-up tweet, Marks says that because Ayton hasn’t put pen to paper yet, the Suns and Pacers have until midnight ET to work out a possible sign-and-trade that might be mutually beneficial. What Indiana might get out of that arrangement is unclear.

John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix reports (Twitter links) that Ayton’s agents had been waiting for the right moment when they thought the Suns wouldn’t match an offer. The Pacers have no interest in a sign-and-trade, according to Gambadoro, who says Indiana knows the Suns don’t want to give Ayton — or any other center — a max deal.

According to Wojnarowski, the Suns never made Ayton a formal offer in free agency. Ayton’s agents told the team they’d be able to find a max offer, and now the Pacers are putting the Suns to the test.

As Marks observes (via Twitter), the Pacers technically can’t sign Ayton without making moves to clear additional cap space. They need to clear another $4.7MM to reach Ayton’s first-year starting salary of $30.9MM in 2022/23, so more maneuvers are imminent.

Marks noted in a recent appearance on 107.5 The Fan that the Pacers have multiple pathways to clear the needed cap space, as James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star relayed. Once those moves are made, they cannot be reversed if Phoenix decides to match.

Ayton, who turns 24 on July 23, was the No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 draft. In 58 games last season (29.5 MPG), the 6’11” center averaged 17.2 PPG and 10.2 RPG while shooting 63.4% from the floor and 74.6% from the line.

Ayton holds career averages of 16.3 PPG and 10.5 RPG in 236 regular season games (30.7 MPG). He was a key component of the Suns’ run to the NBA Finals in ’20/21, averaging 15.8 PPG, 11.8 RPG and 1.1 BPG in 22 postseason games (36.4 MPG).

An excellent finisher around the basket with a soft touch, Ayton has developed into a very solid defensive player over the past couple of years, anchoring Phoenix’s third-ranked defense last season. However, some have been critical about his shortcomings, mainly that he doesn’t get to the free throw line much despite a muscular frame.

The Pacers have been repeatedly linked to Ayton over the past several weeks, and clearly that interest did not wane.

If the Suns match, they project to be a taxpaying team, something owner Robert Sarver has consistently avoided during his tenure. If they don’t, Myles Turner seems very likely to be headed out of Indiana.

It also complicates Phoenix’s pursuit of Kevin Durant, since the Suns will lose Ayton as a possible trade chip. Even if they match the offer, as was previously noted, Ayton can’t be traded until January 15 and can veto any deal for a full year.

Keegan Murray Named Las Vegas Summer League MVP

July 18th, 2022 at 1:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Kings forward Keegan Murray has been named the Most Valuable Player of the 2022 Las Vegas Summer League, according to an announcement from the NBA (Twitter link).

Murray, the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft, averaged 23.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 steals in his four Summer League games. He also made 50% of his shots from the field and knocked down 40% of his 8.8 three-point attempts per contest.

It was a terrific start for a rookie who figures to play a major role for a Kings team that badly wants to end its 16-year playoff drought. The first player selected after the consensus top three prospects were off the board, Murray was rated behind No. 5 pick Jaden Ivey on some experts’ draft boards, so the two youngsters will likely be measured against one another for at least the first year or two of their professional careers.

Murray looks like he’ll be an excellent fit on a Kings roster led by De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis, two talented scorers who aren’t elite defenders or reliable outside shooters. The former Iowa standout is capable of stretching the floor and handling a variety of defensive assignments, so he’ll presumably see plenty of action alongside Sacramento’s two stars.

Tari Eason (Rockets), Quentin Grimes (Knicks), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Bucks), and Cam Thomas (Nets) joined Murray on the All-Summer League First Team, according to the league (Twitter links). Thomas and another King, Davion Mitchell, shared the Summer League MVP award in 2021.

This year’s All-Summer League Second Team is made up of Santi Aldama (Grizzlies), Bennedict Mathurin (Pacers), Marko Simonovic (Bulls), Trendon Watford (Trail Blazers), and Lindell Wigginton (Bucks).

Pacers Notes: Turner, Nesmith, Mathurin, Haliburton

July 15th, 2022 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Even though they didn’t get Deandre Ayton, the Pacers‘ decision to submit an offer sheet to the free agent center indicates that Myles Turner is probably on the way out, writes James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star.

Turner, 26, was the subject of trade rumors before this year’s deadline, but Indiana decided to keep him and move Domantas Sabonis instead. Turner wound up missing the final 39 games of the season with a stress reaction in his left foot, which could affect his trade value, but Boyd believes there’s still a market for him.

Turner has a $17.5MM expiring contract for next season, and Boyd expects the Pacers to pursue trades for other players with expiring deals to preserve their 2023 cap space. Indiana opened up additional room by waiving four players on Thursday before submitting the offer sheet to Ayton.

There’s more from Indiana:

Aaron Nesmith didn’t get the playing time he was hoping for in Boston after being selected in the 2020 lottery, but he’s hoping for a fresh start with the Pacers, Boyd states in a separate story. Nesmith, who was part of the return for Malcolm Brogdon, said his time with the Celtics was still a valuable experience. “I learned what it takes to win in this league,” he said. “Being able to be a part of a Finals run, make it to the playoffs both of my years, get some playoff experience. So hopefully I can bring that over here to Indiana and kind of show the other young guys what it takes to win and that nothing’s gonna be given to you.”
The Pacers will shut down first-round pick Bennedict Mathurin for the rest of Summer League, citing “precautionary reasons,” Boyd adds in another piece. Mathurin played well in his first three games, averaging 19.3 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 48.8% from the field and 38.5% from three-point range. Isaiah Jackson and Terry Taylor will also be sidelined for the team’s final two games.
In an interview with NBA TV, coach Rick Carlisle raved about the trade that brought Tyrese Haliburton to Indiana in February, according to Boyd. “Haliburton, yeah, that changed everything for this franchise,” Carlisle said. “Now you got free agents that want to come play for the Pacers because they want to come play with Tyrese Haliburton and that’s a huge deal.”

Suns ‘Not Counting On’ Kevin Durant?

July 15th, 2022 at 8:49am CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns‘ decision to match Indiana’s offer sheet for Deandre Ayton may take them out of the bidding for Kevin Durant, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggests on his latest Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to Real GM).

Ayton can’t be traded until January 15 and will have veto power over any deal for the next year. He was believed to be an important part of any package that Phoenix might offer the Nets for Durant.

“I think they have, and by the way they’re not alone… How do I want to put this? I think the position they’re taking is that they’ve made their offer for Kevin Durant. And their offer is their offer. And it’s not an offer that the Nets are interested in,” Windhorst said. “I’m not even sure the Suns can put together an offer that the Nets would be interested in by themselves. I think this is where the other teams are as well.”

Windhorst added that the Durant trade market is stagnant right now because all the interested teams are unwilling to come anywhere near Brooklyn’s asking price. He adds that the Pacers were trying to take advantage of the situation, gambling that Phoenix would either let Ayton go or agree to a sign-and-trade.

Although the Suns declined to offer Ayton a max extension when he was eligible, they were willing to bring him back under the terms of Indiana’s offer, possibly with an eye toward trading him later on.

“This is them partially saying ‘We’re not counting on Kevin Durant. We have a 64-win team. This is going to take us into the tax,'” Windhorst added.

Windhorst stated that the Suns should now be considered a longer shot to acquire Durant, although he doesn’t eliminate them entirely. He reported that the latest offer from Phoenix doesn’t include Mikal Bridges or the team’s full complement of future first-rounders and pick swaps.

The developments in Phoenix could affect Durant’s desire to join the Suns, ESPN’s Nick Friedell said in an appearance on “Get Up” this morning (video link). He adds that the Nets are hoping Durant might become more willing to start the season in Brooklyn and see how things work out.

Pacers Waive Duane Washington, Three Others

July 14th, 2022 at 7:18pm CST by Rory Maher

7:18pm: The four cuts are now official, according to a press release from the Pacers.

3:15pm: The Pacers are waiving Duane Washington and using the waive-and-stretch provision on Malik Fitts, Juwan Morgan and Nik Stauskas in order to create the necessary cap space to sign Deandre Ayton to a maximum-salary offer sheet, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Washington, 22, went undrafted last year after three college seasons with Ohio State. He signed a two-way contract with the Pacers and had a productive rookie season, appearing in 48 games (20.2 MPG) while averaging 9.9 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.8 APG on .404/.377/.754 shooting. More than half of his field goal attempts came from beyond the arc.

Washington received a promotion at the end of the season when his two-way deal was converted to a standard contract, but his salary for next season was non-guaranteed. He and the team previously agreed to push back his guarantee date from July 6 until July 15, so he’ll be released one day in advance of that deadline.

Fitts, Morgan and Stauskas were all sent to Indiana for salary-matching purposes as part of the trade that saw Malcolm Brogdon head to Boston. Each of the three players received significant guarantees on their minimum-salary contracts in order to complete the trade, but obviously none of them were part of Indiana’s long-term plans.

The stretch provision allows teams to pay players they waive over multiple years. In this case, the three salaries will be spread out over three seasons, because they were all waived between July 1 and August 31 and only had one year on their contracts.

Of the four players being waived, Washington seems like the best bet to immediately find a new team, whether it’s via waiver claim or a new deal after clearing waivers. Despite being a rookie, he had the most productive season in 2021/22, even if it was due in part to Indiana’s disappointing season that saw the team finish with a 25-57 record.

Central Notes: Ayton, Nesmith, Pacers, Ivey, Pistons

July 14th, 2022 at 12:40pm CST by Rory Maher

On a Tuesday appearance on 107.5 The Fan, ESPN’s Bobby Marks detailed a couple ways the Pacers can create enough cap space to sign Suns center Deandre Ayton, the top restricted free agent on the market, to a maximum-salary offer sheet. Indiana is currently about $26.4MM under the cap, but needs to get to $31MM to sign Ayton to a max deal.

“You’d have to waive a (non-guaranteed) player like Duane Washington Jr. and then you’d have to either make a trade or you would have to use the waive and stretch provision on a couple players, maybe the couple players you got in the Celtics trade,” Marks said, per James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star. “The challenge becomes if Phoenix matches (an offer sheet for Ayton), you can’t go back and take back those waivers. So you run the risk of losing three players to waivers on an offer sheet that likely would get matched.”

Marks believes the Suns would match the deal so they wouldn’t lose Ayton for nothing, even though he wouldn’t be trade-eligible for several months. As Boyd details, the three players Marks was referring to that came from the Celtics are Juwan Morgan, Nik Stauskas and Malik Fitts.

Boyd says Goga Bitadze might be a player the Pacers could deal away to give Ayton the offer sheet — Bitadze will make $4.765MM next season. However, as Boyd points out, the Pacers haven’t signed a restricted free agent to an offer sheet since 2013, and it was a very modest deal, relatively, for Chris Copeland.

A more viable alternative for Indiana to land Ayton might be a sign-and-trade for Myles Turner, which has been the subject of multiple rumors, but Marks wondered if Turner alone would be enough for Phoenix.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Aaron Nesmith, another player in the trade with Boston that sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Celtics, said he was “completely caught off guard” when he heard the news, but the Pacers had their eye on him for a while and he’ll get a bigger opportunity with Indiana, writes Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Indiana’s brass told Nesmith to focus on honing a specific skill set. “To play free, be a good 3-and-D guy and I could be a top-notch 3-and-D guy in this league, so that’s the focus,” Nesmith said, per Agness. “That’s what we’re going to work for and that’s what I’m going to become.”
The Pacers announced that they’re withholding first-rounder Bennedict Mathurin for the remainder of Las Vegas Summer League due to a sore left big toe. He was the No. 6 pick of last month’s draft. Second-year players Terry Taylor and Isaiah Jackson will also be out. Summer League ends on July 17, so I’m sure it’s just for precautionary reasons.
Jaden Ivey, the No. 5 pick of the draft, showed the Pistons flashes of his enormous upside in his brief Summer League action before suffering a sprained ankle, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Cade Cunningham, Detroit’s No. 1 overall pick last year, said on a recent NBA TV appearance that he was looking forward to playing with his new backcourt partner. “Definitely excited to play with him,” Cunningham said. “He’s so talented, brings so much to the team. Just the way he plays the game, trying to play the right way, trying to play for his teammates, spread the ball. It’s all exciting. Being able to take the court with him is exciting and it’s coming soon. I’m excited, man.”

Central Notes: Ball, Portis, Walton, Pacers

July 13th, 2022 at 2:11pm CST by Luke Adams

Echoing Billy Donovan‘s update on Sunday, Bulls president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said that Lonzo Ball is “progressing” from his left knee injury. However, as K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago writes, Karnisovas’ comments on Ball were somewhat sobering.

“He’s getting better. Probably not at the speed that we would like. But he’s getting better,” Karnisovas said of Ball. “Hopefully, he’s going to be ready for training camp. That’s just our hopes.”

Ball, who underwent surgery on a torn left meniscus in January, was bothered by a bone bruise when he attempted to ramp up his rehab process last season. According to Johnson, Ball has experienced “similar starts and stops” this offseason and still sometimes experiences discomfort when he increases his workload.

Here’s more from around the Central:

After years of betting on himself with shorter-term contracts and team-friendly salaries, Bucks big man Bobby Portis was thrilled to be rewarded in free agency this summer with a four-year, $48MM+ deal, as he tells Eric Nehm of The Athletic. “Finally being able to have financial security for not only myself, but my family, is great,” Portis said. “To be able to go into free agency and have a number of teams call and believe that I’m special and want me to join their team, that was cool too.” Portis added that he decided to re-sign with the Bucks in part because his two years in Milwaukee have made him not only a better player but a “better man off the court.”
New Cavaliers assistant Luke Walton spoke to Kelsey Russo of The Athletic about his decision to join J.B. Bickerstaff‘s staff in Cleveland, noting that he appreciates the level of continuity he sees in the franchise. “There’s a lot of people that are still working here that were here when I played here 10 years ago – which is rare in the NBA,” Walton said. “To me, it’s something that’s very important when you’re trying to build a winning team and a winning culture.”
We’re still waiting to see how Deandre Ayton‘s free agency will play out, but the Pacers make a lot of sense as a potential destination for the former top pick, according to Dan Devine of The Ringer. Adding Ayton would give Tyrese Haliburton an ideal pick-and-roll partner and would put Indiana on track to quickly pivot back to respectability, Devine writes.

Kevin Durant Rumors: Price Tag, Raptors, Pelicans, Warriors

July 12th, 2022 at 8:58am CST by Luke Adams

Reporting from the Las Vegas Summer League, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype says there’s skepticism among league insiders that a Kevin Durant trade will happen anytime soon, and a sense that the situation could linger into training camp.

According to Scotto, five executives he spoke to in Vegas felt as if Minnesota overpaid to acquire Rudy Gobert and increased the Nets‘ asking price for Durant in the process, creating a larger gap between what Brooklyn wants and what potential suitors are willing to give up. One GM told Scotto that he believes Durant is worth “a James Harden-type package.” It’s unclear if that’s a reference to the price paid for Harden by the Nets or the 76ers.

Scotto suggests it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Nets hang onto Durant for a while and wait for a “Godfather offer.” If that offer doesn’t come, the Nets may hope the former MVP changes his mind about wanting a trade and is satisfied to remain in Brooklyn at least for the time being.

Here’s more on the Durant market from Scotto:

The Raptors are still “hesitant” to include Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes in any offer for Durant, league sources tell HoopsHype. Scotto speculates that a package centered around Pascal Siakam and Gary Trent Jr. could be Toronto’s starting point, but notes that the Nets would want more. Scotto is unsure how willing the Raptors are to put OG Anunoby in a package for Durant.
According to Scotto, multiple executives are skeptical that the Pelicans will make a strong push for Durant instead of seeing how a healthy Zion Williamson meshes with the promising roster that made the playoffs in 2021/22. Scotto adds that some execs also believe Durant wouldn’t want to be dealt to New Orleans.
The Warriors wouldn’t be inclined to give up all of their promising young players – Jordan Poole, James Wiseman, Jonathan Kuminga, and Moses Moody – in a trade for Durant, says Scotto.
According to Scotto, some rival executives think the Spurs and Pacers are preserving their remaining cap room to see if they can be a salary-dumping ground in a multi-team Durant trade, netting draft assets in the process.