- Several teams are doing due diligence on Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma in case he’s placed on the trade block, says Charania. However, league sources tell The Athletic that the Lakers still view Kuzma as a core long-term piece. Additionally, L.A. is more focused on making moves around the edges than making a big splash at the deadline.
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Guard Darren Collison is mulling a February return to the NBA and would prefer to play with either the Lakers or Clippers, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.
Collison retired after last season for religious reasons.
Collision was projected to get offers in the $8-10MM range in free agency over the summer, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Both Los Angeles teams have full rosters and would need to shed a player to sign the veteran point man. Either team could ink him for the prorated minimum and the Lakers also have a $1.75MM Disabled Player Exception which expires on March 10, Marks adds (Twitter link).
Collison averaged 11.2 PPG and 6.0 APG for Indiana last season. He’s averaged 12.5 PPG and 5.0 APG in 29.4 MPG over 708 career regular-season games.
Collison chose to retire in order to devote more time to his Jehovah’s Witness ministry and spend more time with his family. He was also working with Pro’s Vision, a training company that works primarily with young athletes.
The Lakers have a crowd at point guard, though no standout. That group includes Alex Caruso, Rajon Rondo and Avery Bradley. The Clippers also have a number of point options, including Patrick Beverley, Lou Williams, Terance Mann and Derrick Walton Jr.
- Lakers guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has caught fire since being moved to the bench, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register notes. Caldwell-Pope, who holds an $8.49MM option on his contract for next season, has knocked down 11 of his last 15 3-point attempts. “It’s a credit to his mental toughness and character,” coach Frank Vogel said. “At times guys can go in a shell if they’re facing heavy criticism and he didn’t do that. He responded by remaining confident, being true to himself, believing in himself.”
Jared Dudley isn’t one of the NBA’s best players, but he’s one of the league’s best interview subjects, according to Bill Oram of The Athletic, who notes that Dudley is willing to talk to virtually any reporter about virtually any subject.
In his own Q&A with Dudley, Oram asked the Lakers‘ forward about his music tastes, his favorite current teammate, his least favorite NBA cities, how he spends his off days, his biggest fears, and much more.
If you have an Athletic subscription, the conversation is definitely worth checking out in full. But here are a few of Dudley’s more noteworthy comments:
On Kyle Kuzma‘s mini-controversy related to his trainer’s anti-LeBron James comments:
“Not only have I talked to him (about it), other players have talked to him. So when it comes to Kuz, this has been good for him, his maturity and having to deal with it. When I heard he was meeting with the media (on Saturday), that’s something I would do. I would have gone to social media right then and there. ‘He don’t speak for me. Yes I’ve trained with him, but this is where I view it at.'”
On his least favorite current or former teammate:
“I don’t get along with Blake Griffin now. When I was with him I didn’t have a bad relationship with him. That team (the 2013/14 Clippers) was the most toxic team. It was weird because it was a bipolar type team. We were somewhat cool off the floor; we weren’t cool on the floor.
“I just don’t like his personality and attitude. I think he’s a great basketball player and I think you can differentiate the two. It’s easy to be the greatest teammate when you’re winning. How about when you’re losing? How about when you’re down 20? And that’s the biggest thing with that team. It was the biggest front-running team. You’re up 20, everything’s good, throwing lobs. Down 20, people want to fight, bickering. I don’t want to say my least favorite … That’s a teammate right now that I don’t talk (to), don’t get along (with), words aren’t exchanged on the court, yada yada.”
On how he has weighed taking the most lucrative contract offer vs. playing for a contender:
“I never have taken a discount because, for one, I’m never going to get that back. I never believed on that. That being said, I signed a one-year deal (with the Lakers). I might have potentially been able to get a two-year deal somewhere else, but I wanted to come to the Lakers because this not only benefits me this year to win a championship but long-term. Media, dealing with you guys. If I try to become a head coach or a GM, I’ve now played with LeBron, I’ve been on a championship-caliber team. It helps my whole resume going forward.”
On the first change he’d make for the Knicks if he were in position to do so:
“I’d be getting rid of that practice facility in Westchester. Nobody wants to live there, no one wants to commute there. You have to get as close to the city as possible. That’s why Brooklyn got Kevin Durant. I told DeAndre Jordan who told Kevin Durant: The (Nets’) practice facility is two minutes from (Barclays Center). They didn’t even know that. I lived in the city. It took me 12 minutes to get to the practice facility. That’s a huge bonus. People bash the Knicks, but I definitely wouldn’t bash the Knicks. I would have gone there if the Lakers wouldn’t have offered me, or Brooklyn. If it was my third or fourth option, sure.”
A rejuvenated Kyle Kuzma helped the Lakers defeat the Blazers 128-120 on Saturday, with the 24-year-old finally healthy and back to leading the team’s bench unit, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com writes.
Kuzma missed five straight games this month due to a lingering left ankle injury, officially returning to the lineup one week ago in Denver.
“I’m just healthy now,” Kuzma said, as relayed by McMenamin. “I’m confident in my body. I took a little bit of time off, sitting out for five games and really just self-collected what I needed to do and got it done.”
Kuzma scored 20 first-half points against Portland and finished with 24 on the night, proving his worth on 9-for-17 shooting off the bench. He’ll likely be viewed as Los Angeles’ third-leading scorer going forward, naturally behind LeBron James and Anthony Davis.
“I’m just being in attack mode at all times,” Kuzma said. “Being the third option, you don’t have the luxury of taking it easy sometimes, so just being in attack mode.”
The Lakers broke a four-game losing streak by beating Portland, bringing their record to 25-7 on the season. They’ll begin a five-game homestand by hosting Dallas on Sunday, followed by Phoenix, New Orleans, Detroit and New York.
Here are some other notes from the Western Conference:
- Lakers star LeBron James has received the honor of being named The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Decade, joining a list that already includes Tiger Woods, Wayne Gretzky and Arnold Palmer, as relayed by ESPN.com. “You add another 10 years of learning and adversity, pitfalls, good, great, bad, and any smart person who wants to grow will learn from all those experiences,” James told the AP. “A decade ago, I just turned 25. I’m about to be 35 [on Monday], and I’m just in a better [place] in my life and have a better understanding of what I want to get out of life.”
- Spurs forward Rudy Gay plans to continue firing away from three-point territory, doing whatever it takes to help the team win this season, Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News writes. “We are just trying to figure out how we can help the team and right now it is with three-point shooting,” Gay said of himself and teammate LaMarcus Aldridge. Gay tallied 16 points in 20 minutes against Detroit on Saturday, connecting on 4-of-7 attempts from deep.
- The Spurs are ready for a “new season” in 2020, wiping the slate clean and shifting their focus to obtaining a playoff seed this spring, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News writes. San Antonio has the ninth-best record in the Western Conference at 13-18, winning six of its last 10 games.
Shooting guard Alec Burks is among several players the Warriors are willing to part with before the February 6 trade deadline, according to Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. Poole suggests Golden State could be one of the most active teams on the trade market after virtually ignoring it during the past five years.
He identifies Burks as the most coveted of the Warriors’ assets because he can stretch defenses and has an affordable contract at $2.3MM. Burks is averaging 15.5 PPG through 30 games and shooting 34.9% from 3-point range.
Poole names the Lakers, Mavericks, Clippers, Pacers and Raptors as teams that could use another wing player who can shoot from the outside. He states that the Warriors will be looking for future assets such as draft picks and young players.
Although Golden State’s front office likes Burks, they need to open up roster spots soon to keep two-way players Damion Lee and Ky Bowman, who are both nearing their 45-day NBA limit. Lee has 12 days remaining and Bowman has 11. After that, they will have to have their contracts converted to NBA deals or remain in the G League until that season is over.
“It’s an awkward situation for us, because Ky and Damion are coming up on their limit,” coach Steve Kerr told reporters after Friday’s game. “And they’re two of our top seven players in our rotation. And yet the rules are that we only have them for another nine or 10 days each. Everybody is aware of that. We don’t know how it’s going to play out.”
Several league sources told Poole that the Warriors are ready to move into serious trade discussions. They added several veterans over the summer on contracts that they believed would be easy to move when the time came.
Those include Glenn Robinson III at $1.9MM, Marquese Chriss at a non-guaranteed $1.7MM and Willie Cauley-Stein at $2.2MM with a $2.3MM player option for next season. They also traded for Omari Spellman, who makes $1.9MM this year, and picked up his option for 2020/21 at nearly $2MM.
In the words of Omar Little: “If you come at the king, you best not miss.” Likely omitted from the famous The Wire quote is if someone associated with you comes at the king, you best distance yourself from said person, which is what Kyle Kuzma is currently doing.
Earlier this week, Kuzma’s personal trainer posted an Instagram story criticizing LeBron James. Some may have assumed that Kuzma shared those sentiments, but that is not the case, as Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times relays.
“I just told him that I can’t control what another man says,” Kuzma said. “Obviously I don’t feel that way. Everybody knows that me and LeBron have a great relationship, and left it at that. Can’t control another man’s mouth and what they say, so we left it at that.”
Kuzma’s trainer raved about Kawhi Leonard‘s skillset in comparison to LeBron’s after the Clippers took down the Lakers on Christmas day. Kuzma had then tweeted “call a spade a spade,” and if you thought that now-deleted tweet was related to his trainer’s comment, then the 24-year-old power forward would like to clarify.
“No correlation,” Kuzma said. “I didn’t even see what he said at first. Obviously you guys see, I tweet things all the time. So definitely not about that.”
James, who is nursing a groin injury, isn’t overly concerned about the comments, as lions don’t concern themselves with the opinion of sheep.
“I really don’t care for someone’s trainer or whatever the case may be,” James said. “Everyone can have their own opinion. And any time someone wants to get some notoriety they can throw my name in and people are going to pick it up. That’s why you’re asking me about it because my name was in it.
“I’ve never met the guy, I don’t know the guy, I could care less about the guy. Whatever the case may be. I wish him the best.”
Despite having dropped their last four games, the Lakers remain atop the Western Conference and offseason import Anthony Davis has been a huge part of L.A.’s return to prominence. The Lakers’ dynamic duo – Davis and LeBron James – has lived up to the billing thus far and championship aspirations remain intact for the franchise.
Ahead of the team’s eventual Christmas Day loss to the Clippers, Davis spoke to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports to discuss the journey that brought him to Hollywood. Davis, a free agent at the end of the season, has not committed to the Lakers beyond the current season. However, he was reflective in his discussion on the mindset that led him to request a trade from the Pelicans and what his goals are for the remainder of the regular season.
Check out some of the highlights from Davis’ chat with Haynes below:
On which teams Davis had in mind as potential destinations after his trade request:
“There were several teams in mind. My agent [Rich Paul] was doing a good job talking to the front office and management over there. He was the one communicating back and forth with them, and I was just trying to continue being a leader over there and still playing when they allowed me to. I’m not sure what was really being talked about, but the Pelicans didn’t do anything. So I still tried to lead that team, and when I got a chance to play, I played my heart out. It’s basketball. I’m still going to be a professional, and any time I’m on the floor with four other guys, I’m going to go out there and compete.”
On when he decided that he wanted out of New Orleans:
“I think it was just the wins weren’t adding up, and it seemed like we weren’t making the playoffs. Everyone around me and everyone who knows me knows that I want to win. And I didn’t feel like we were going to be able to do that last year. I want to be able to win. We got off to a great start. We were 4-0. Then guys got hurt and little things started to go south. But my mindset at the time was to keep trying to lead my team.”
On the ultimate goal of a championship driving his decision:
“You don’t have a lot of time in this league. It goes by very fast. So for me, it was about putting myself in position where I can win before this career is over. And hopefully win several championships and have several winning seasons. That’s what was going through my head at that time. I’m not sure what the record was, but I felt like it was time for me to at least let the organization know where my head was at.”
The Kings offered some good news on guard De’Aaron Fox‘s latest ailment, according to a team press release. Fox left Thursday’s game in the first quarter against Minnesota with back spasms. A precautionary MRI revealed no structural damage and he will be listed as day-to-day. Big man Marvin Bagley III, who also made an early departure on Thursday, will have his left foot evaluated by a specialist Saturday.
We have more injury-related news:
- Lakers star LeBron James thought he’d miss some time after getting injured on Christmas Day but that may not be the case, according to an ESPN report. James has a groin contusion and is listed as questionable to play against Portland on Saturday.
- Big man Kevon Looney will miss the Warriors’ games this weekend with abdominal soreness, Logan Murdock of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. Looney has played just 10 games this season, mainly due to a hamstring issue.
- Hornets rookie forward PJ Washington is listed as probable to play on Friday, the team’s PR department tweets. Washington suffered a fracture of his fifth finger on his right hand during a game against Chicago on December 13.
- The injury to Justise Winslow‘s back is now listed as a bone bruise rather than a strain, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets. The Heat’s point forward has not played since December 6.
Lakers star LeBron James has been dealing with a nagging groin injury and he aggravated the ailment during a collision with Patrick Beverley in Wednesday’s contest.
“I felt healthy going into the game,” James said after the game. “I got kneed in the groin taking a charge from Pat Bev, and it kind of set me right back to where I was five days ago.”
James could miss time with the injury and several members of the organization have approached the four-time MVP, urging him to sit out until he is fully recovered, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com reports. James missed his first game of the season earlier this week as he was nursing the groin injury as well as a muscle strain in his rib cage.
James has repeatedly rejected the notion of load management, McMenamin writes. The team has an upcoming back-to-back (at Portland; vs. Dallas), and it sounds like James isn’t going to sit out either game if he can help it.
“To be honest, I haven’t even thought about Portland just yet,” said James, who will turn 35 next week. “I’m always around the clock with my body, getting my treatment. If I’m feeling great, I’ll be in the lineup. If I’m feeling well, I’ll be in the lineup…We’ll see what happens.”