- In an appearance on ESPN’s NBA Today, Richard Jefferson said there might be some interference from the Clippers‘ front office when it comes to coaching decisions. “This is pure speculation… I’m hearing grumblings that people up top are having opinions about who should be playing… There’s a lot of cooks in the kitchen and that is never a good recipe,” he said (Twitter video link via Talkin’ NBA). Ordinarily, I wouldn’t put much stock into something that Jefferson says is “pure speculation,” but he does have connections to the Clippers — he played under head coach Tyronn Lue with the Cavaliers and under president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank when Frank coached the Nets.
- Lue told reporters, including Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter video link), that Paul George (hamstring) and Luke Kennard (calf) would not practice with the Clippers on Thursday, but both players were working out and shooting prior to practice. George has been ruled out for Friday’s contest against Denver and Kennard seems unlikely to suit up.
Prior to a blockbuster trade to acquire Rudy Gobert in the offseason, the Timberwolves explored the possibility of acquiring Dejounte Murray instead, sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
According to Fischer, extension talks between the Wolves and guard D’Angelo Russell went nowhere in the offseason, and there’s a belief among rival teams that Minnesota is open to moving him. It’s unclear if those extension talks came before or after the team’s interest in Murray, but clearly there was a difference of opinion on value.
A couple weeks ago, Brian Windhorst of ESPN floated a hypothetical on his Hoop Collective podcast wondering if the Wolves would consider calling the Heat about Kyle Lowry in exchange for Russell’s $31.4MM expiring contract. Lowry has one more year on his deal at $29.7MM, and Windhorst thought Miami might be open to moving him due to future luxury tax concerns, though he admitted he wasn’t sure how the Heat would view Russell’s fit.
A couple days later, Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype wrote about Russell’s situation and explored the idea of Russell-Lowry swap. Russell unfollowed the Wolves on social media the same day, which raised some eyebrows.
“Yeah, it’s my life,” the Russell told Fischer of paying attention to rumors. “That’s it. Just be conscious of it.”
While neither of those instances were actual rumors, Fischer hears from sources that the Heat have actually shown interest in Russell, but says a “direct deal for Lowry would appear unlikely.” Fischer suggests the Wolves might be hesitant to acquire Lowry due to his contract and the possibility of having to extend him or risk losing him for nothing, much like their current situation with Russell.
Fischer writes that there isn’t much of a market for lead guards with large salaries, but rival executives are watching the Clippers and Suns as teams looking for backcourt upgrades. The Suns were linked to Russell a handful of years ago, and he’s close with star Devin Booker, per Fischer.
The growing sense among rival teams is that the 23-19 Pacers could be a buyer, rather than a seller, at this season’s trade deadline, writes Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.
Fischer acknowledges that Indiana’s trade deadline outlook could certainly be altered if Tyrese Haliburton‘s foot injury causes him to miss an extended period. Fischer also adds a caveat to the team’s potential status as a buyer — the Pacers won’t be in the market for short-term veterans like Jae Crowder or Bojan Bogdanovic, but will have an eye out for players who could be long-term fits.
According to Fischer, power forward is the spot the Pacers would most like to upgrade. Indiana was high on Keegan Murray prior to the 2022 draft, and while the club was happy to ultimately land Bennedict Mathurin at No. 6, missing out on Murray means the power forward position remains a priority going forward.
If they want to get aggressive, the Pacers will have a couple extra 2023 first-round picks to dangle in trade talks, having acquired Cleveland’s and Boston’s first-rounders. Additionally, while Indiana viewed Chris Duarte as off limits at one point, multiple front office sources tell Fischer that the team has been more willing to discuss him in recent talks.
Here’s more on the Pacers’ plans:
- Indiana has had internal discussions about the possibility of pursuing Hawks power forward John Collins, according to Fischer, who notes that Duarte and draft capital might appeal to Atlanta. The Hawks previously pitched the idea of trading Collins to the Pelicans for Trey Murphy and a first-round pick, Fischer explains. The fact that the Pacers could absorb Collins into their cap room without sending out matching salary could also intrigue the Hawks, who are right around the luxury tax line.
- The Pacers and Myles Turner‘s representatives at CAA continue to discuss a possible renegotiation-and-extension for the veteran center, sources tell Yahoo Sports. Fischer suggests that the four-year, $133MM offer sheet Indiana gave Deandre Ayton in July would be an “obvious benchmark” for Turner’s side to use in contract negotiations.
- Trade rumors involving Turner have slowed down as of late, Fischer observes. Teams like the Hornets, Pelicans, Mavericks, and Lakers have been viewed as potential suitors in the past, but don’t appear to be targeting Turner at this point. If the 26-year-old ends up back on the trade block, the Knicks, Raptors, and Clippers could be fits, Fischer writes.
- The most likely Pacers center to be traded is Goga Bitadze, according to Fischer, who hears from sources that the club would be willing to work with Bitadze’s representatives to find him a new team. Daniel Theis is due back from injury soon and Bitadze hasn’t had much of a role even with Theis out. The fourth-year center also hasn’t been interested in accepting an assignment to the Pacers’ G League team in Fort Wayne, says Fischer.
Last week, with the Clippers in the midst of a six-game losing streak that dropped their overall record to 21-21, veteran swingman Norman Powell spoke to his teammates to reiterate his confidence in the group and to remind them what they’re capable of, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. Powell, along with Kawhi Leonard, was a member of the Raptors team that won a championship in 2019 and believes this year’s Clippers have a similar ceiling.
“I talked to the team. I told them: ‘This team is deeper than the Raptors team I was on. It’s all about identity and who we are and how we’re going to play,'” Powell said. “I feel like every team goes through it. If you look back at championship teams and top teams, there’s always a point in the season where you get here. And we’ve been here a couple times for whatever reason it is, and it’s just gutting up and taking it and coming out of it.”
The 2018/19 Raptors were far more consistent than this year’s Clippers have been, but Powell pointed to a stretch in January 2019 when Toronto lost three of four games (the third at home to Milwaukee on national TV) as a turning point for that club. There’s hope that the Clippers’ recent slide can galvanize this team in the same way and compel them to play with more urgency in the second half.
“The identity of who we are every single night that we’re on the floor is the biggest thing that we have to figure out, and that doesn’t matter who’s suiting up that night,” Powell said. “It’s just, we’re going to be a hard-nosed, tough-playing defense. We’re going to be an offense that moves the ball, attacks you, puts pressure on the rim and generates open shots. And that’s not — PG (Paul George) doesn’t have to play for that, Kawhi doesn’t have to play for that. That’s just an identity and style of basketball we have to start really locking into now.”
The Clippers snapped their losing streak and got back over .500 with a victory over Dallas on Tuesday.
Here’s more from around the Pacific:
- After leading the Clippers past Luka Doncic and the Mavs on Tuesday by scoring a season-high 33 points in 36 minutes, Kawhi Leonard acknowledged that he’s relieved to no longer be on the minutes limit that he faced earlier in the season. “If you’re basing it on minute restriction, it is frustrating,” Leonard said, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. “Because I’m not going in there jacking shots, so I’m trying to play team basketball. It was frustrating (with the restriction). We were losing games. From a minute restriction, I’m not the only one either that was on it. Guys have been in and out the lineup all year, getting injured.”
- The Warriors had their full starting lineup available on Tuesday for the first time since December 3, but lost at home to the shorthanded Suns in a game that showed Stephen Curry and the rest of the rotation still have dust to shake off, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Curry, who scored 16 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, said he “felt like myself again” by the end of the game. “I’m hoping that fourth quarter was the team that I have come to know and love and recognize,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “But we have to show in the first quarter, not in the fourth quarter.”
- Chimezie Metu rejoined the Kings‘ rotation as the backup center on Monday for the first time since early December and had his best game of the season, with 11 points and nine rebounds in 14 minutes. The performance went a long way toward rebuilding head coach Mike Brown‘s trust in Metu, according to Chris Biderman of The Sacramento Bee. Brown said he thought the big man “relaxed just a little bit” before losing his spot in the rotation last month.
The Clippers headed into Tuesday’s game against Dallas on a six-game losing streak. However, coach Tyronn Lue drew some positives from the way the team competed in a four-point loss to Atlanta on Sunday, Janis Carr of the Orange County Register writes. “We had a conscious effort of playing the right way and so I could live with the results,” Lue said. “We have to keep working. Nobody’s going to feel sorry for us. But I’m encouraged.”
- Coach Tyronn Lue tinkered with the lineup as the Clippers dropped their sixth straight game on Sunday night, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Reggie Jackson, who has been the starting point guard for the past two-plus seasons, played just eight minutes, all in the first half, as Lue turned to Terance Mann to improve the team’s defense. Lue explained that the change isn’t necessarily permanent. “No, I just think tonight it was Reggie,” he said. “Then tomorrow, it could be somebody else. Just kind of experimenting with different things. When you lose five games in a row, you want to try some different things.”
- The Clippers continue to be careful with the health of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, but a five-game losing streak may bring some urgency to the team, per Dan Devine of Yahoo Sports. L.A. was so thoroughly outplayed Thursday in Denver that coach Tyronn Lue benched his starters for the entire second half.
- After missing Monday’s loss to Miami with a non-COVID illness, Kawhi Leonard is no longer on the Clippers‘ injury report for Thursday’s contest in Denver, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Paul George, who tweaked his hamstring on Monday, is listed as questionable, while Nicolas Batum is out with a left ankle sprain.
- Can Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue find lineups that work whether or not Leonard and/or George are in the lineup? Law Murray of The Athletic explores that topic, writing that if Lue is unable to optimize the current group, trades could be in order for a team that hopes to compete for a championship.
Clippers forward Paul George was limited to playing just five minutes in the fourth quarter of Monday’s loss to Miami after tweaking his right hamstring, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.
George said after the game that he’ll receive treatment on the injury on Tuesday and see how it responds. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be available for the team’s brief road trip to Denver on Thursday and Minnesota on Friday.
As Youngmisuk observes, George missed seven games in late November and early December after straining that same right hamstring, so it has been a recurring issue this season for the Clippers star.
“Often hamstrings are very, very serious injuries,” George said on Monday, per Youngmisuk. “So, I thought the first approach when I was dealing with my hamstring (during the previous absence) was just good, smart. We waited until it felt better and I didn’t have any issues, once I returned. “We won’t know more until (Tuesday). But my job is to do the best that I can and go from there.”
The Clippers have been relatively cautious this season with health issues, especially those affecting George and Kawhi Leonard, who missed Monday’s game due to a non-COVID illness. The team is taking the long view and its top priority to be at full strength entering the postseason, so we likely won’t see George or Leonard back in action until they’re feeling 100% or very close to it.
- Kawhi Leonard is listed as questionable for the Clippers’ game against Miami on Monday due to a non-COVID illness, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Leonard has averaged 23.2 points in his last four games.