Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers’ Kendrick Nunn To Exercise Player Option

April 11th, 2022 at 6:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lakers guard Kendrick Nunn says it’s a “no-brainer” that he’ll opt in to the final year of his contract, Bill Oram of The Athletic tweets.

Nunn has a $5.25MM player option for 2022/23. He signed a two-year contract as a free agent last summer but didn’t appear in any games this season, mainly due to a knee injury.

Nunn deemed his right knee bone bruise “extremely frustrating” and didn’t anticipate he would need a full season to recover, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register tweets. He says he’s feeling much better and expects to be completely healthy for training camp.

Nunn was a productive rotation player for Miami the last two seasons. A year ago, he averaged 14.6 PPG, 3.2 RPG and 2.6 APG in 29.5 MPG in 56 regular season games.

Nunn is just one of five Lakers players with a guaranteed contract for next season. Along with the Big Three of LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, Talen Horton-Tucker is the only other player who isn’t a free agent this summer or will have to sweat a team option. Westbrook holds an option of $47MM on his contract which he’ll undoubtedly exercise.

Lakers Part Ways With Frank Vogel

April 11th, 2022 at 12:53pm CST by Luke Adams

APRIL 11: The Lakers have informed Vogel he has been relieved of his duties, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The team put out a press release formally confirming the move.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for Frank both on and off the court,” Pelinka said in a statement. “Frank is a great coach and a good man. We will forever be grateful to him for his work in guiding us to the 2019/20 NBA championship. This is an incredibly difficult decision to make, but one we feel is necessary at this point. All of us here wish Frank and his wonderful family all the best for the future.”

Vogel’s assistants haven’t been let go at this time, tweets ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

APRIL 10: Frank Vogel has coached his final game for the Lakers, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter).

The decision – which has been viewed as a foregone conclusion for weeks, if not months – is expected to be shared with Vogel as soon as Monday, says Wojnarowski. According to Woj, the team’s search for a replacement will be “lengthy and expansive,” with no clear frontrunner at this point.

Asked about the report during his postgame press conference after Sunday’s win over Denver, Vogel confirmed that he hasn’t yet been given the official word on his ouster.

“I haven’t been told s–t and I’m gonna enjoy tonight’s game,” he said, per Bill Oram of The Athletic (Twitter link). “… We’ll deal with tomorrow tomorrow.”

Formerly a head coach in Indiana and Orlando, Vogel was hired by the Lakers in 2019 to replace Luke Walton. Vogel, who appeared to be a fallback option after the club missed out on targets like Monty Williams and Tyronn Lue, only received a three-year contract, but quickly made a strong impression in Los Angeles by leading the Lakers to a title in his first season at the helm.

Vogel’s second and third seasons in L.A. weren’t as successful, as the Lakers dealt with more frequent injury woes. The team went 42-30 in 2020/21 and earned a playoff spot via the play-in tournament, but was dispatched in six games by Phoenix in the first round. This season, the Lakers went just 33-49 and missed out entirely on the play-in tournament.

Vogel received a contract extension prior to the 2021/22 season, but it only tacked one year onto his initial deal with the team, which wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement.

Given Los Angeles’ disappointing performance this season, Vogel has spent much of the year on the hot seat. A report in January indicated that the Lakers came close to firing him at that point, when the team was at .500 (22-22). L.A. posted a disastrous record 11-27 the rest of the way, but ultimately decided to wait until after the regular season to make a change.

One recent report indicated that Jazz coach Quin Snyder and/or Sixers coach Doc Rivers could be candidates for the Lakers’ coaching vacancy if they become available this offseason. Another report mentioned Michigan’s Juwan Howard as a possible target. More names figure to be linked to the position once Vogel is officially let go.

LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, and Lakers VP of basketball operations Rob Pelinka are all scheduled to speak to reporters on Monday as part of the Lakers’ exit interviews, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN. Vogel’s dismissal figures to be a popular topic of conversation during that media session.

Lakers Rumors: Nurse, Davis, LeBron, Westbrook, Carmelo

April 11th, 2022 at 11:39am CST by Luke Adams

Once the Lakers officially dismiss head coach Frank Vogel, Raptors head coach Nick Nurse is expected to be one of the team’s top targets, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic. The Lakers are hoping that Nurse is an option, according to Charania, who acknowledges that it’s unclear whether Nurse “will be attainable or whether he would have interest.”

In order to even talk to Nurse, the Lakers would have to get permission from the Raptors, since the former Coach of the Year remains under contract in Toronto for two more years. Nurse would then have to be interested in leaving a stable, well-run organization for one that was mired in dysfunction this season. And the Lakers would likely have to be willing to give up substantial draft compensation to acquire Nurse from the Raptors.

Given all of those obstacles, I’d be shocked if Nurse emerged as a realistic candidate for the Lakers’ job, but it doesn’t hurt to ask. As one Eastern Conference executive observed to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, Nurse is represented by Andy Miller at Klutch Sports, the same agency that reps LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

“I would expect the Lakers to at least ask about Nick Nurse,” the executive told Deveney. “… He got the big contract with the Raptors and he is secure there. They’re not going to let him go. But it makes him look better and Klutch look better if they are asking for him, right? So yeah, I would not be surprised to see the Lakers ask about him but more as a favor to Klutch. Maybe they won’t because he is so far out of reach. But, you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours, that is how things work.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Anthony Davis said on Sunday that he still believes a roster built around him and LeBron James can contend for a title moving forward, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes. “I think us two can. We’ve shown that we can,” Davis said.
While James and Davis are widely expected to remain in Los Angeles going forward, Russell Westbrook‘s future is cloudier. According to Charania, rival executives believe the Pacers will be open to discussing trades involving Malcolm Brogdon and Buddy Hield and could emerge as a Westbrook suitor, which is something Marc Stein suggested over the weekend. While Brogdon and Hield would be good fits on the Lakers’ roster, L.A. would likely have to attach sweeteners to Westbrook to realistically make any deal with Indiana.
James told reporters today that an MRI on his left ankle showed that he won’t require surgery or any injections, but he’ll have to stay off of it for the next four-to-six weeks (Twitter link via Mark Medina of NBA.com). LeBron also said that he and the Lakers could have extension discussions later this offseason once CBA rules allow for it (Twitter link via McMenamin). James will become extension-eligible in August.
Asked about potential roster moves and the possibility of playing with Westbrook next season, James said he’ll defer to the front office. “I’m not here to make decisions for the front office and that nature,” he said (Twitter links). “But I loved being teammates with Russ.”
Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com spoke to multiple league sources about the Lakers’ disappointing season and the perception that head coach Frank Vogel was being undermined. “On a regular basis, (Kurt) Rambis would get on Vogel in front of staff and players — in practices, in the hallway where everybody can see it. He wasn’t taking it behind closed doors and laying it out,” one source said. “And what position does Rambis have? What’s his title? His title is friend of Jeanie Buss. Trust me, Frank Vogel would have been happy to have been fired from that mess.”
Addressing Vogel’s firing, Bill Oram of The Athletic contends that the way the news leaked – before the team formally informed Vogel – should be a warning sign for potential replacements.
Asked about his priorities in free agency this offseason, Carmelo Anthony said he’d like to win a championship, but also wants to be somewhere he’ll be happy. “If I gotta be unhappy to try to go fight and win a championship, I don’t want that. I don’t want that unhappiness,” he said, per McMenamin (Twitter link). “… I think at this point in my carer, it’s about just being happy and being able to wake up and come to work every day with a good attitude. Being positive.”

Injury Notes: Allen, Doncic, Murray, LeBron, Barrett

April 11th, 2022 at 8:52am CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who has been sidelined since March 6 due to a fractured finger, has shed his splint and has his injured finger wrapped with black tape, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. However, sources tell Fedor there’s still pessimism about Allen’s potential availability for Cleveland’s play-in game vs. Brooklyn on Tuesday.

One of Fedor’s sources said it’s “unrealistic” to expect Allen to play on Tuesday, while another said that Cavaliers head coach J.B. Bickerstaff is preparing to be without his All-Star center.

“I can’t give you an exact timeline,” Bickerstaff said before Sunday’s regular season finale. “He’s doing more and more with that hand. It’s just a matter of time.

“It’s a structure thing first and foremost. You always want to make sure that it’s as healthy as it possibly can be. In his position, the banging that he does, on the rim, like blocking shots, all those things. Then it becomes pain tolerance. Then strengthening and his ability to use that finger. But he’s making steps. It’ll be one of those things where the day will come and he’ll be ready to go.”

If the Cavaliers can’t get by the Nets on Tuesday, they would face either Atlanta or Charlotte on Friday, with the No. 8 spot up for grabs. One source who believes Allen will miss Tuesday’s game thinks it’s “50-50” that he’d return on Friday, according to Fedor.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Mavericks star Luka Doncic will undergo an MRI on his strained left calf on Monday to determine the severity of the injury and a potential recovery timeline, tweets veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein.
Appearing on 104.3 The Fan in Denver, Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said it’s “100%” up to Jamal Murray if he returns from his ACL injury this season. “We want him to feel no pressure, want him to know that the organization has his best interests in mind,” Connelly said (Twitter link via Mike Singer of The Denver Post). “… He’s done a great job in rehab, he looks really, really good.”
Lakers forward LeBron James underwent an MRI on his left ankle in Los Angeles this weekend and didn’t make the trip to Denver for the team’s regular season finale, Frank Vogel told reporters on Sunday (Twitter link via Dave McMenamin of ESPN). Presumably, the Lakers will be able to share more information on the results of that MRI at today’s exit interviews with the media.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau confirmed that RJ Barrett avoided a worst-case scenario when he injured his right knee earlier this week and has been diagnosed with just a sprain. The team anticipates Barrett will be back to 100% for offseason workouts in about a month, says Marc Berman of The New York Post.

L.A. Notes: Lakers’ Roster, Howard, Rondo, George, Powell

April 10th, 2022 at 5:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers‘ hopes of reaching the play-in tournament were extinguished this week, but these final games are still important for a few players, writes Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. The team’s roster figures to look much different next season, and young players such as Mason Jones, who finished third in the G League MVP race, see the late-season contests as a chance to shape their future.

“At the end of the day, I want to be a good player in the league,” he said. “From this day forward, you’ve got to continue to take steps. I was with South Bay earlier and I took that as the right mindset. And I’ll continue to take steps. From here, I want to continue to take the steps and learn from them because possibly, they could be my teammates next year.”

Beyond LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook, the Lakers have only a few players under contract for next season, Goon notes. Talen Horton-Tucker is signed for two more years and Kendrick Nunn for one more, and the team has 2022/23 options on Austin Reaves and Stanley Johnson. That may create an opportunity for Wenyen Gabriel, whose two-way contract was converted to a standard deal on Friday.

“Obviously we didn’t get a lot of wins this month and we obviously wish we could have won more,” Gabriel said. “But I played with a lot of energy, and I feel I showed some things – some tools that the front office thinks can help the next following season. So it’s just them believing in my potential.”

There’s more NBA news from Los Angeles:

Michigan coach Juwan Howard has been mentioned as a possibility to replace Frank Vogel as head coach of the Lakers, tweets Steve Bulpett of Heavy, who adds that if that happens Rajon Rondo could join him as an assistant. Rondo, 36, is currently playing for the Cavaliers.
There appears to be no concern about Paul George‘s elbow as the Clippers head toward the play-in tournament, according to Joe Reedy of The Associated Press. George, who missed three months with a torn ligament, has been excellent since returning last week and the team has gone 5-1 in the games he has played. “The elbow’s fine. It feels pretty good,” George said. “Overall, I’m trying to take each possession for what it is and trying to make the best play possible.”
Norman Powell is happy to back in time for the postseason after fracturing a bone in his left foot shortly after being traded to the Clippers, per Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register. “I’m excited for what we’re building here,” Powell said after returning Wednesday. “Playing along PG, it still doesn’t seem real to me. He was a guy that I looked up to growing up, a guy, we had some battles in Toronto in the playoffs, and early on in my career he gave me some words of encouragement – my rookie year, that stuck with me. So being able to play alongside with him, and Kawhi (Leonard) when he gets back healthy, it’s going to be fun.”

And-Ones: Kerr, Schofield, Lopez, Harrell, Play-In, McClung, Harrison

April 10th, 2022 at 3:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Would less be more? When it comes to the NBA schedule, Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes so. He’d like to see the NBA cut its regular season from 82 games to 72, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area writes. That would encourage coaches to play their regulars more often, instead of giving them nights off, particularly as the season winds down.

“What makes the most sense is cutting back to maybe a 72-game schedule,” Kerr said. “Take 10 games off and get more time to rest in between games. I think you’ll get buy-in from the teams to play their guys more often.”

We have more tidbits from around the basketball world:

Magic forward Admiral Schofield was fined $20K, while Magic center Robin Lopez and Hornets center Montrezl Harrell were fined $15K for their roles in an on-court altercation on Thursday, the NBA announced (Twitter link). All three were ejected during the fourth-quarter scuffle (video link).
Commissioner Adam Silver likes the way the play-in tournament has encouraged teams on the playoff bubble to remain competitive but might tweak it in future years, Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic tweets. Executive VP of basketball strategy and analytics Evan Wasch suggested the league would consider a scenario where the ninth- and 10th-place finishers in each conference would have to win a certain number of games to qualify for the play-in.
Guard Mac McClung was named NBA G League Rookie of the Year after averaging 21.6 PPG and 7.6 APG for the South Bay Lakers, the league tweets. The Lakers rewarded McClung with a two-way contract on Saturday.
Free agent guard Shaquille Harrison has been named G League Defensive Player of the Year, according to a league press release. Harrison averaged 1.93 steals per game for the Delaware Blue Coats.

First-Round Pick Will Almost Certainly Go To New Orleans

April 9th, 2022 at 10:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers‘ late-season slide has increased the chances that the Pelicans will receive their first-round pick, tweets Christian Clark of NOLA.com. There’s now a 99.6% chance that the selection will fall in the top 10 and be conveyed to New Orleans. The pick would go to the Grizzlies if it lands outside the top 10.
The chances of LeBron James leaving the Lakers to team up with Luka Doncic on the Mavericks down the road should be considered remote but not impossible, contends Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.

Lakers Sign Mac McClung To Two-Way Deal

April 9th, 2022 at 1:15pm CST by Rory Maher

APRIL 9: McClung has officially signed his two-way contract with the Lakers, the team announced on social media (Twitter link).

APRIL 8: The Lakers intend to sign G League guard Mac McClung to their open two-way spot, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (via Twitter).

Los Angeles recently created a two-way opening by promoting Wenyen Gabriel to a standard contract on Friday after waiving Trevor Ariza on Thursday.

McClung, 23, went undrafted in 2021 after three college seasons. He started his collegiate career with Georgetown, but transferred to Texas Tech following his sophomore year. He signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Lakers last summer, but was waived in October before the season began.

McClung signed a couple of 10-day hardship contracts with the Bulls in December and January, but only appeared in one NBA game for just three minutes. He has spent the majority of the season in the G League with the Lakers’ affiliate, South Bay, where he was named NBAGL Rookie of the Year.

In 35 NBAGL appearances, including 33 with South Bay, McClung stuffed the stat sheet with averages of 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.4 steals on .459/.365/.857 shooting. Once the signing becomes official, the Lakers will have a full 15-man roster and both two-way spots filled.

Johnson Hopes Lakers Bring Him Back Next Season

April 9th, 2022 at 12:10pm CST by Rory Maher

After Friday’s win over the Thunder, forward Stanley Johnson said he hopes the Lakers exercise their team option to retain him for next season, according to team beat reporter Mike Trudell (Twitter link). “Hopefully I’ve played well enough that they would take me back,” Johnson said.

Sixers Notes: Rivers, Thybulle, Green, Jordan, Bassey

April 8th, 2022 at 11:10pm CST by Rory Maher

Should the Sixers suffer an early playoff exit, there has been speculation that coach Doc Rivers might be on the hot seat, and with Frank Vogel expected to be fired after the season, Rivers has surfaced as a name to watch for the Lakers‘ head coaching job.

Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com explores the topic of whether Rivers makes sense as a candidate in Los Angeles — assuming he’d even be interested in the job. Neubeck states that Rivers deserves credit for publicly embracing the team’s championship aspirations, but it could lead to him being the fall guy if the Sixers fail to make a significant postseason run.

Here’s more on Philadelphia:

A league source tells Neubeck that there’s no indication that Matisse Thybulle has changed his stance about getting vaccinated. Toronto won Friday night, clinching at least the No. 5 seed in the East. As ESPN’s Tim Bontemps notes (via Twitter), the Bucks will either be the No.2 or the No. 3 seed after Friday’s victory, and the Sixers can finish no better than third, because Milwaukee holds the tiebreaker. Point being, the odds have increased that the Sixers could face the Raptors in the first round of the playoffs.
Rivers was vague in his response to Thybulle being ineligible to play in Toronto, per Gina Minzell of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). “It’s one game tonight. We’ll go from there,” Rivers said before Thursday’s meeting. When asked how it might impact the team in the postseason, Rivers said, “We don’t know who we’re playing yet, so we’ll just handle that when it comes.” Philly lost to Toronto this week in Thybulle’s absence.
Veteran Danny Green says he’s not happy about the situation with Thybulle, but it wasn’t clear from his wording whether he’s displeased about the rule that unvaccinated foreign nationals can’t enter Canada, or with Thybulle himself. “I’m not happy about it. It is an opportunity for myself and other guys to get more minutes on the road with James [Harden] and other rotations, but I think we’re a better team when we’re whole and we have everybody,” Green said. He added that it was tough to evaluate the team when it isn’t whole. “Most guys, I don’t want to say [are] disappointed, but. … it’s still a point in the season when we’re still trying to gauge who we are, where we are. The only way to do that is to have everybody together. It’s tough to do that when we don’t have everybody” (Twitter thread courtesy of Mizell).
DeAndre Jordan has been positive locker room presence for the Sixers, Mizell writes in a story for The Inquirer. Jordan has served as the team’s primary backup center after being waived by the Lakers.
Rookie Charles Bassey suffered a right shoulder sprain and missed his game with the team’s G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats, per Derek Bodner of The Daily Six (Twitter link). Bassey will be reevaluated in about 10 days. The 21-year-old hasn’t played much at the NBA level, appearing in 23 games with an average of 7.3 minutes per contest, but he’s been productive when given opportunities.