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L.A. Notes: McGee, James, Scott, Teodosic

November 23rd, 2018 at 9:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

JaVale McGee is grateful to LeBron James for lobbying the Lakers to sign him, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press reports. The 30-year-old journeyman center is averaging a career-high 13.4 PPG, 6.6 RPG and 2.4 BPG after signing a one-year, $2.93MM contract over the summer. “He could have said get anybody,” McGee said. “It’s just a reassuring feeling, a confidence-builder I guess, knowing that you’re going into a situation wanted as an option, like you’re really wanted. That’s pretty dope.”

We have more on the Lakers and Clippers:

  • The Lakers haven’t proven whether they’re a quality team yet and they’ll need to give James more help than he required in Cleveland if they want to compete for championships, Dan Woike of the Los Angeles Times opines. James is now in a tougher conference and while he might be able to drag the team into the playoffs, if would be easier if the players around him were more productive, Woike adds.
  • Forward Mike Scott has become a valuable piece on the Clippers’ second unit since signing a one-year, $4.3MM contract over the summer, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times notes. Scott has taken 64.4% of his shots beyond the arc and made 48.9% of them with top reserves Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell drawing most of the defensive attention.
  • Clippers coach Doc Rivers doubts guard Milos Teodosic will wind up in Europe this season, Greif writes in the same piece. Teodosic has expressed frustration over his lack of playing time and speculated he could leave the Clippers before the season’s end despite his $6.3MM contract. Rivers shrugged it off. “We want Milos to be happy, too,” Rivers said. “He’s a great guy and he’s great for this organization. Obviously he hasn’t played the minutes or the way he wants to, but we love him around here, so we’ll figure that all out.”
  • The Lakers are urging point guard Lonzo Ball to stay aggressive on a consistent basis, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
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Poll: Will The Clippers Make The Playoffs?

November 23rd, 2018 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

If the 2018/19 NBA season ended today, six of the eight postseason teams in the West would be clubs widely expected to finish in the top eight in the conference coming into the year — the Warriors, Rockets, Lakers, Nuggets, Thunder, and Trail Blazers. However, the other two teams in the playoff picture in the Western Conference are a little more surprising.

On Thursday, we asked for your thoughts on one those two teams – the Grizzlies – and today we’re shifting our focus to the other one: the Clippers.

With the regular season nearly at its one-quarter mark, the Clippers are currently tied with the Thunder at 11-6 for third in the West. Viewed as a borderline playoff contender entering the season, the Clips have had success so far despite not having a bona fide star on their roster.

Tobias Harris is the closest thing Los Angeles has to an All-Star, and he’s off to a great start in 2018/19, averaging 21.4 PPG and 8.7 RPG with a scorching-hot .519/.444/.810 shooting line. Danilo Gallinari and Lou Williams have chipped in more than 18 points per game apiece, Montrezl Harrell (15.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 1.8 BPG) is enjoying a breakout year, and lottery pick Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having an immediate impact on both ends of the court.

While the Clippers’ playing style is epitomized by hard-nosed defenders like Patrick Beverley and Avery Bradley, the team also has a top-five offensive rating. The Clippers don’t shoot a ton of threes, ranking 28th in attempts, but they have the second-best three-point percentage in the NBA, and have a knack for getting to the foul line — they rank second in the league in both free throws made and free-throw percentage.

Staying healthy will be a concern for Gallinari, who hasn’t played more than 63 games in a season since 2012/13, but this Clippers roster is deep and could withstand the loss of a rotation player or two. The team also has the assets and flexibility necessary to make a trade or two in the coming months.

Still, with star-heavy clubs like the Pelicans, Spurs, and Jazz expected to push their way into the postseason conversation at some point, the Clippers will face a season-long challenge to hang onto a playoff spot.

What do you think? Will the Clippers exceed expectations and earn a place in the postseason, or will they eventually fall back and finish in the lottery? Vote in our poll, then head to the comment section to share your thoughts.

Trade Rumors app users, click here to vote.

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Khris Middleton In Line For Significant Raise In 2019

November 22nd, 2018 at 3:10pm CST by Luke Adams

While much of the speculation about the 2019 NBA free agent class has focused on stars like Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, and Kyrie Irving, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News points to Bucks swingman Khris Middleton as another free-agent-to-be who could command a star-level salary next summer.

Although Middleton has flown somewhat under the radar during conversations about 2019 free agency, Deveney says there’s speculation around the NBA that the 27-year-old will be able to land a maximum-salary – or near-max – contract.

[RELATED: Early Maximum Salary Projections For 2019/20]

According to Deveney, it’s a “foregone conclusion” that Middleton, who is earning $13MM this season with a $13MM player option for 2019/20, will opt out next summer, since he could very well double his salary. His market could be similar to Klay Thompson‘s, in the view of at least one NBA general manager.

“He is as good a two-way wing as Klay,” the GM told The Sporting News. “Nearly as good a shooter, as good a defender, a better playmaker. You can run things through him more than you can do with Klay. Khris would be as big a star as Klay if he were playing in Golden State, and he’s probably going to get similar money.”

The Bucks, off to a great start this season with Middleton and Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the way, are prepared for Middleton to reach free agency and plan to be aggressive in their attempts to re-sign him, writes Deveney.

Milwaukee will likely face plenty of competition though, given the amount of teams projected to have cap room. Sources tell The Sporting News that the Lakers and Clippers figure to be among the clubs with interest, while Deveney also cites the Knicks, Mavericks, and Cavaliers as possible suitors.

For his part, Middleton – who has posted 19.4 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 4.4 APG, and a .460/.423/.919 shooting line through 17 games – admits it’s “good to hear” that he’s highly valued around the NBA. However, he downplayed his interest in looking ahead to a potential payday.

“I have always been the kind of guy who just takes it one day at a time,” Middleton said to Deveney. “Focus on what needs to be done that day. Don’t think too far ahead. Once you start thinking too far ahead, you get distracted by things that don’t matter on that day. So that doesn’t matter.”

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Milos Teodosic Talks About Leaving Clippers

November 22nd, 2018 at 8:56am CST by Arthur Hill

Frustrated over a lack of playing time, Clippers guard Milos Teodosic is thinking about returning to the EuroLeague, possibly before the season ends. In an interview with GlasAmerike (hat tip to Antonis Stroggylakis of EuroHoops), Teodosic sounds ready to end his NBA experiment.

“I think I definitely won’t stay here because … I came, I saw how it looks and somehow … I enjoy more and it’s nicer for me to play in Europe,” he said. “So, I will return to Europe for sure, will it be during this season or at the end, we’ll see.”

To make a move before the end of the season, Teodosic would have to negotiate a release from his $6.3MM contact in Los Angeles. He and the Clippers made a mutual decision this summer that enabled him to return for this season. Teodosic exercised his player option in June, but it was only guaranteed for $2.1MM. L.A. could have saved the rest by waiving him before July 15, but opted to bring him back.
The 31-year-old was a longtime star in Europe before deciding to give the NBA a try last season. However, his brief career in the U.S. has been marked by injuries. He was limited to 45 games last year, then suffered a tear of the plantar fascia in his left foot near the end of the season. He has gotten into just eight games this year and is averaging about 10 minutes per night in a crowded Clippers backcourt.

If he does get out of his NBA contract, Teodosic would be in great demand in Europe, Stroggylakis adds. When he came to the Clippers in the summer of 2017, the Serbian star passed on a three-year, $12MM offer from CSKA Moscow that would have made him the highest-paid player in the EuroLeague.

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L.A. Notes: Harris, Rivers, Ball, Walton

November 21st, 2018 at 5:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

Tobias Harris is one of the leaders of a surprising Clippers team that is near the top of the Western Conference, but he still isn’t immune to trade rumors. Harris checked with management after he heard his name floated as part of a package to acquire Jimmy Butler from the Timberwolves, writes Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. It turned out that the Clippers were interested in Butler, but they envisioned using him and Harris together.

“It is hard, but you have to be honest and there’s times when you tell [players], ‘I can’t tell you.’ I tell guys that,” coach Doc Rivers said. “But with Tobias it was easy. I was pretty confident he wasn’t going anywhere. That one wasn’t that hard for us. We love Tobias. And we think he’s part of our future here.”

Harris, who has been with four teams in his eight NBA seasons, is headed for free agency next summer and can expect a significant raise from the $14.8MM he is making this year. Whether he stays in L.A. or not, he already has plenty of experience with the business side of basketball.

“It didn’t bother me. It was funny,” Harris said of the trade rumor. “At the end of the day, I’m so well-equipped and well-suited for whatever’s next that nothing will ever surprise me.”

There’s more today out of Los Angeles:

  • With cap room to offer at least one max contract, the Clippers are expected to be a major player in free agency and Rivers believes the organization has a unique selling point, relays Martin Rogers of USA Today. “Coming to the Clippers and turning them into a team that wins a title? It hasn’t been done,” Rivers said. “For a lot of these players, it is the chance to go to a franchise and ‘be the man,’ be the one that gets them to something [we’ve] never done in the history of the franchise.”
  • The Lakers have tried several options to run the second-unit offense with Rajon Rondo injured, and it appears that job may fall to Lonzo Ball, according to Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. Ball played more minutes with the reserves in Sunday’s win in Miami and may get that role on a long-term basis.
  • Head coach Luke Walton has heard that his job is in jeopardy several times since taking over the Lakers, but he has a supporter in Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who coached LeBron James under similar circumstances, Goon adds in a separate story. “If you look at his whole professional career, all of [it] he has been involved with are teams like this with great expectations, with a lot of pressure and a lot of noise,” Spoelstra said. “He doesn’t know any different. I don’t think you can find a better fit than to coach that team.”
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Clippers Have Bright Future; Bradley Expected Back Monday

November 18th, 2018 at 11:43am CST by Arthur Hill
  • After missing the playoffs last season, the Clippers are making a strong statement with a 10-5 start and will be in position to get even better next summer, notes Tom Ziller of SB Nation. The team is 5-1 since inserting rookie guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander into the starting lineup and ranks first in the league in opponents’ effective field goal percentage. With only five players signed beyond this season, L.A. could have up to $63MM in cap space in July, enough to offer two max contracts. However, Ziller states that the Clippers’ ultimate plan is to attract Kawhi Leonard, re-sign Tobias Harris and add a few complementary players around them.
  • The Clippers are expected to add another key piece tomorrow when Avery Bradley returns from an ankle injury, according to Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. “I still don’t feel like I’ve been able to get a consistent offensive flow here in this game and what I can bring to the team,” said Bradley, who has missed the past six games. “I still think there’s an area of shot-making that I can contribute to this team.”
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Atlantic Notes: Butler, Celtics, Harris, Nets

November 18th, 2018 at 10:23am CST by Arthur Hill

This week’s trade that brought Jimmy Butler from the Timberwolves puts the Sixers in win-now mode, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. It gives the team a third star to join with Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, but removes the luxury of developing younger players such as Markelle Fultz.

Butler displayed his ability to be a difference maker in Saturday’s win over the Hornets. He blocked a shot by Kemba Walker late in overtime, then sank a game-winning 3-pointer.

“I think it’s the beginning of something different now,” coach Brett Brown said. “I think there’s a cleansing and sort of a base that has been built. We are very proud of the culture, the standards, the rules and all that stuff. … I think there is a starting point now that’s more pronounced as far as a base to take off than there has ever been.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • There was a tense atmosphere in the Celtics‘ locker room following Saturday’s one-sided loss to the Jazz, relays Jay King of The Athletic. Coach Brad Stevens inserted his end-of-the-bench players with about nine minutes left in the game, then questioned his team’s toughness in a post-game interview. It’s the latest bump in the road for the Celtics, who have stumbled to a 9-7 start after being the preseason favorites to win the East. Kyrie Irving suggested the problem may stem from younger players forcing shots because they’re trying to duplicate the success they had last year when they had their roles expanded because of injuries.
  • Tobias Harris would be a sensible free agent target for the Nets, especially if he continues playing the way he did Saturday, writes Bryan Fonseca of NetsDaily. The Clippers forward and Long Island native lit up Brooklyn for 27 points and eight rebounds, showing that he would make a nice addition to the Nets’ lineup. “I’m just focused on the team that I put a jersey on every single night for,” he said when asked about the possibility of coming to Brooklyn. “I think it wouldn’t be fair if I had my mind somewhere else at this time. I’m just focused on helping this team and let’s see how far we can go.”
  • Someone will be pulled from the Nets‘ rotation when Rondae Hollis-Jefferson returns from his ankle injury, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Lewis adds that coach Kenny Atkinson doesn’t want to give regular minutes to more than 10 players per night.
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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/11/18

November 11th, 2018 at 8:41pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

Here are Sunday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 11/9/18

November 9th, 2018 at 8:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Here are Friday’s assignments and recalls from around the NBA:

  • The Hornets assigned rookie guard Devonte’ Graham to the Greensboro Swarm, according to a team press release. Graham has appeared in two games with Charlotte, averaging 3.5 PPG and 1.5 APG in 9.5 MPG. The 6’2 Kansas product, an early second-round pick, has averaged 23.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG and 8.0 APG in two outings with Greensboro.
  • The Sixers recalled forward Jonah Bolden from the Delaware Blue Coats prior to their game against the Hornets on Friday, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. The 6’10” Bolden, a 2017 second-rounder, has appeared in four NBA games this season but none this month.
  • The Spurs recalled forward Chimezie Metu from the Austin Spurs after assigning him to the G League on Thursday, according to a team press release. The 6’10” Metu, a second-round pick in June, is averaging 1.6 PPG  and 1.2 RPG in 4.0 MPG over five games with San Antonio.
  • The Thunder assigned forward Abdel Nader to the Oklahoma City Blue, the team announced in a press release. The 6’6” Nader, acquired from Boston in July, has seen just seven minutes of action with OKC.
  • The Clippers assigned guards Jerome Robinson and Sindarius Thornwell to the Agua Caliente Clippers, then recalled Thornwell, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter links). The 6’5” Thornwell has yet to make his season debut with the Clippers after appearing in 73 games last season. The 6’5” Robinson, the 13th overall pick in this June’s draft, has appeared in seven games and averaged 2.9 PPG in 5.0 MPG.
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How Early Hot, Cold Streaks May Impact Traded Draft Picks

November 9th, 2018 at 2:55pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors, Nuggets, Bucks, Grizzlies, and Kings are among the NBA teams that have made the strongest impression in the first month of the 2018/19 season, outperforming expectations early in the year. On the other end of the spectrum, the Cavaliers and Mavericks have been among the league’s worst teams, underperforming expectations that weren’t all that high to begin with.

These teams all have something in common — they’ve traded away their 2019 first-round picks, often with protections on them. We still have about 70 games to go in ’18/19, so it’s way too early to determine exactly where those picks will fall, or even whether or not they’ll changes hands in many cases. However, based on what we’ve seen from those teams so far, we have a better idea of what to expect the rest of the way than we did a month ago.

Let’s take a look at how some of those early-season trades may affect 2019’s traded first round picks…

Toronto Raptors (11-1)
First-round pick traded to Spurs (top-20 protected)

Even with top-20 protection, this pick looks like a very safe bet to change hands. If the season ended today, it would be No. 30, since Toronto has the NBA’s best record.

Denver Nuggets (9-2)
First-round pick traded to Nets (top-12 protected)

After a season in which the Nuggets narrowly missed the playoffs, it wasn’t unreasonable for Brooklyn to hope this pick would fall in the mid-teens. Instead, with Denver looking like one of the Western Conference’s best teams so far, it may land well into the 20s.

Milwaukee Bucks (9-2)
First-round pick traded to Suns (top-3 protected; 17-30 protected)

The unusual protections on this pick will likely to prevent it from changing hands for a second consecutive year, since it projects to fall in the 17-30 range. If Milwaukee’s 2019 first-rounder doesn’t convey, the Bucks would owe the Suns their 2020 first-rounder, with top-7 protection.

Memphis Grizzlies (6-4)
First-round pick traded to Celtics (top-8 protected)

After finishing last season with a 22-60 record, the Grizzlies were no lock to take a major step forward in 2018/19. In the early going though, the club looks like a legitimate playoff contender. Assuming Memphis can remain in the postseason mix, even if it’s just on the outskirts, this pick should stay out of the top eight and get sent to Boston.

Sacramento Kings (6-5)
First-round pick traded to Sixers (if it’s No. 1 overall or if it’s less favorable than Sixers’ pick) or Celtics (if it’s more favorable than Sixers’ pick and isn’t No. 1 overall)

The Kings, who were expected to be one of the NBA’s worst teams entering the season, would generate some fascinating drama between the Sixers and Celtics if their pick ends up in play for No. 1 overall. However, Sacramento’s young roster has created more problems than anticipated for opponents so far, with the team occupying a playoff spot for now.

Despite the Kings’ hot start, a finish in the lottery still seems likely, but if Sacramento keeps exceeding expectations, the team’s first-round pick will almost certainly end up in Boston instead of Philadelphia, avoiding that No. 1 spot.

Los Angeles Clippers (6-5)
First-round pick traded to Celtics (top-14 protected)

This could be one to watch all season long — the Clippers currently hold a playoff spot in the West by one game, but teams like the Jazz, Lakers, Pelicans, and Rockets are right on their tail. If the Clips eventually fall out of the top eight in the West, they’ll keep their 2019 pick and would owe Boston their top-14 protected 2020 first-rounder. If L.A. keeps winning, the Celtics have a real shot at ending up with four first-rounders next spring.

Dallas Mavericks (3-8)
First-round pick traded to Hawks (top-5 protected)

After drafting NBA-ready prospect Luka Doncic and signing DeAndre Jordan, the Mavericks hoped to contend for the postseason and expected to lose this pick. Given the way Dallas has struggled so far, that no longer looks like a sure thing. I don’t view the Mavs as a bottom-five team in the NBA, but if they don’t turn things around soon, an aggressive second-half tank is a possibility. The Hawks would love for this pick to land in the back half of the top 10.

Cleveland Cavaliers (1-10)
First-round pick traded to Hawks (top-10 protected)

While Atlanta may luck out with the Mavs’ pick, the Hawks will probably have to wait at least one more year to get anything from the Cavaliers, who have the NBA’s worst record so far and aren’t exactly in position to turn things around. If the Cavs keep their 2019 first-rounder, they’ll owe the Hawks their top-10 protected 2020 pick.

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