- Clippers coach Doc Rivers believes Kawhi Leonard‘s health is trending upwards, and the 2019 NBA Finals MVP agrees, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN writes. “You know, he’s been doing it a lot lately,” Rivers said. “I think he is in a far better place now than he was in Game 1 [of the regular season], let’s just put it like that. You can see it with him, you can see it in the practices, it’s just going up. You can feel it, you can see it, he has a better thrust now. And it’s good, it has been really good to see.”
Here are Sunday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- The Clippers have recalled forward Mfiondu Kabengele from the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, the team’s public relations department announced. Kabengele was drafted No. 27 overall last June.
- The Pacers have recalled Goga Bitadze and Alize Johnson from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, announcing the news on social media today. Indiana will host Philadelphia on Monday night.
- The Kings recalled Wenyen Gabriel and Justin James from their G League affiliate in Stockton, the club announced (Twitter link).
Here are Friday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Thunder assigned guard Deonte Burton and center Justin Patton to the Oklahoma City Blue for the G League affiliate’s game against Raptors 905, according to a team press release. Burton has played in 21 games with the Thunder this season, averaging 2.3 PPG in 8.4 MPG. Patton has made three brief appearances with the Thunder this season.
- The Clippers recalled guard Terance Mann from the Agua Caliente Clippers, the team’s PR department tweets. The second-round rookie has appeared in 22 games with the NBA club this season, averaging 2.4 PPG in 9.2 MPG.
- The Knicks assigned rookie forward Ignas Brazdeikis to their Westchester affiliate, the team’s PR department tweets. The former University of Michigan standout has appeared in nine games with the NBA Knicks this season, averaging 1.9 PPG in 5.9 MPG.
The Clippers‘ collection of trade assets puts them in a better position than many rival contenders to upgrade their roster at the deadline, according to one rival NBA executive who spoke to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com.
“They’re the team that’s doing more talking (than the Lakers),” the executive said of the Clippers, per Deveney. “They’re in better position. They’ve got everything you want if you’re looking to get assets back for players. They have a draft pick, they have expiring contracts they can give up, they have really good, interesting young players. They’re in a great position to help themselves.”
As Deveney observes, the Clippers have traded away a handful of future picks but aren’t prohibited from trading their 2020 first-rounder, since they still control both it and their 2021 pick. And unlike a handful of other contenders, they have a movable contract in the mid-level range — Maurice Harkless is making $11MM in the last year of his contract, and while he has been a solid defender for Los Angeles, his offensive game is limited.
The Clippers are actively seeking help at power forward, according to Deveney, who notes that the team has at least expressed interest in Thaddeus Young (Bulls) and Marcus Morris (Knicks). Sources tell Deveney that the Clips believe they have the necessary assets to make a deal for Morris if they so choose, but will continue to scour the trade market.
While Harkless and a first-round pick would be a strong enough package for an upgrade, the Clippers also have young players who may intrigue teams. Even if the club isn’t willing to move Montrezl Harrell – who will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end – or Landry Shamet, players like Jerome Robinson and rookies Terance Mann and Mfiondu Kabengele could appeal to trade partners.
“Both of those guys are NBA players,” that same exec told Deveney, referring to Mann and Kabengele. “We had a lot of discussion about both of them at the draft, they’re strong, NBA bodies, they play both ways. How good? That would be the question, but they’re both NBA players.”
The Clippers have four more weeks to make a deal before the February 6 trade deadline.
Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Pacers assigned Victor Oladipo to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants for practice as part of his injury rehab, per the team (Twitter link). Oladipo is targeting a January 29 return to action.
- The Magic assigned swingman Melvin Frazier to the G League, according to the team (Twitter link). Frazier has bounced back and forth between the NBA and NBAGL this season, with 11 appearances for Orlando and three for Lakeland.
- After re-signing him to a 10-day contract today, the Cavaliers sent Tyler Cook to the Canton Charge, the team noted in a press release. We have more on Cook’s new deal right here.
- The Clippers assigned rookies Mfiondu Kabengele and Terance Mann to the G League, the club announced today. The Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario are in action on Thursday night and both Kabengele and Mann are in the starting lineup for L.A.’s affiliate.
- According to the G League’s assignment log, the Sixers sent Zhaire Smith to the Delaware Blue Coats today, while the Jazz assigned Miye Oni to the Salt Lake City Stars.
Marcus Morris verbally accepted a two-year, $20MM deal with the Spurs before opting to sign with the Knicks instead, but that deal with San Antonio isn’t the only contract he turned down this past summer. The forward confirmed that he turned down a three-year, $41MM deal from the Clippers in July, as Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic relays.
“It had nothing to do with me playing here (in L.A.),” Morris explained. “Personally, as a player, I felt as though I was worth more. I felt as though my time in the NBA, with the production I had throughout the years, I felt I was worth more than what they offered. That was just my opinion. As a player that’s what I was standing on.”
Morris inked a one-year, $15MM deal with New York and there’s chatter that the franchise would like to keep him long-term. Rival scouts and executives believe the Knicks could get a late first-round pick for Morris should they decide to deal him. Vorkunov speculates that the Clippers could be a team to watch out for if the franchise indicates it wants to move on.
Morris added he turned down Los Angeles’ offer, which was first reported last July, because he wanted to “bet” on himself.
“I came with the Knicks, I’d seen a great opportunity, I’d seen a great group of guys, and I wanted to bet on myself on an opportunity where I can showcase what I really can do and I thought that New York would be the perfect place for me to come,” Morris said.
While none of the subsequent offers Morris received came close to matching the overall value of the Clippers’ deal, he did at least secure a higher 2019/20 salary on his deal with the Knicks. He and agent Rich Paul parted ways after Morris’ eventful free agent period.
Here are Wednesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Pacers have recalled Goga Bitadze and Alize Johnson from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the team announced on Twitter. Both players were sent down to the G League on Tuesday.
- The Clippers have recalled Terance Mann, Mfiondu Kabengele and Jerome Robinson from the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the club. The trio was sent down to the G League on Tuesday as well.
- Jovan Buha of The Athletic explores the likelihood of the Clippers adding a veteran like Darren Collison, Aron Baynes, or Thaddeus Young. Buha views a trade for Baynes or Young as a long shot, but believes the Clips shouldn’t hesitate to open a roster spot for Collison if he’s willing to sign with them.
Here are Tuesday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Raptors have recalled Matt Thomas, Stanley Johnson, and Malcolm Miller from their G League affiliate, according to Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Raptors 905’s next game is on Friday.
- The Pacers have assigned Goga Bitadze and Alize Johnson to the Fort Wayne Mads Ants, per the team’s Twitter feed. Bitadze was the team’s first-round pick in the 2019 draft.
- The Clippers have assigned Mfiondu Kabengele, Terance Mann and Jerome Robinson to the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario. Kabengele was the No. 27 overall pick in the 2019 draft.
- The Hornets have sent Caleb Martin and Jalen McDaniels to the Greensboro Swarm, according to the team’s website. This marks Martin’s seventh trip to the G League and McDaniels’ sixth.
Here are Sunday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA G League:
- The Clippers have recalled guard Terance Mann and center Mfiondu Kabengele from their G League affiliate, the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, according to the team’s public relations department. Los Angeles hosted New York at Staples Center on Sunday night.
- The Wizards assigned forward Admiral Schofield to the Capital City Go-Go, announcing the news on social media. The Go-Go hosted the Oklahoma City Blue earlier today, with Schofield recording 19 points and 10 rebounds in a win.
- The Nuggets assigned Jarred Vanderbilt to the Windy City Bulls, the team announced on social media. Vanderbilt was drafted with the No. 41 overall pick back in 2018.
- The Thunder have recalled center Justin Patton from the Oklahoma City Blue, general manager Sam Presti announced today. Patton is averaging 10.4 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 21 games with the Blue this season.