Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Injury Updates: Anunoby, Simmons, Warren, James, Doncic, Young, Butler

January 30th, 2023 at 10:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

OG Anunoby is one of the bigger names churning through the trade rumor mill, so the latest injury news regarding the Raptors forward could complicate those discussions.

The team has ruled out Anunoby for the remainder of its road trip, a seven-game journey which concludes with stops in Utah, Houston and Memphis this week, Michael Grange of Sportnet.ca tweets. He sprained his left wrist against Golden State on Friday.

We have more notable injury updates:

The Nets’ Ben Simmons (left knee soreness) and T.J. Warren (left shin contusion) sat out Monday’s win over the Lakers, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets. Coach Jacque Vaughn is hopeful both will be “ready to go” for Wednesday’s matchup against Boston, Adam Zagoria tweets.
LeBron James sat out that game with what Lakers coach Darvin Ham describes as “some really significant soreness” in his left foot, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register tweets. The Lakers play against the Knicks on Tuesday.
Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic returned to action after a one-game absence due to an ankle sprain and continued his scoring rampage. He notched 53 points against Detroit, his league-best fourth 50-point game this season, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press notes (Twitter link).
Hawks guard Trae Young sat out Monday’s game against Portland due to right ankle soreness, Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets. He had 31 points in 36 minutes against the Clippers on Saturday.
Heat forward Jimmy Butler (right quad contusion) is listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game against Cleveland, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald tweets. Butler scored 28 points against Charlotte on Sunday.

Injury Updates: Davis, James, Doncic, Wiggins, Gobert, Haliburton

January 29th, 2023 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers will play without both of their superstars against the Nets on Monday, Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times writes.

LeBron James has a sore left ankle ankle, while Anthony Davis will rest his right foot. It’s the first game of a back-to-back, so they both could return on Tuesday against the Knicks.

We have more notable injury updates:

Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic is listed as questionable to play against Detroit on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets. Doncic suffered a left ankle sprain three minutes into their game against Phoenix on Thursday. He missed their loss to Utah on Saturday.
Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, who missed the last two games due to a non-COVID illness, is not listed on the injury report for Monday’s game against Oklahoma City, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets.
Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is listed as questionable to play against Sacramento on Monday due to right groin soreness, the team’s PR department tweets. Gobert played 36 minutes in Minnesota’s victory over the Kings on Saturday.
Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton hopes to practice Tuesday and Wednesday with “the aim to play this weekend,” according to coach Rick Carlisle, Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star tweets. Indiana plays home games against the Lakers, Kings and Cavaliers later this week. Haliburton has missed 10 games due to knee and elbow injuries.

Trade Candidate Watch: Veteran Guards

January 29th, 2023 at 12:45pm CST by Rory Maher

Leading up to the February 9 trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA. We’re continuing today with a handful of veteran guards.

D’Angelo Russell, Timberwolves

2022/23: $31.4MM

2023/24: UFA

Like many players on Minnesota’s roster, Russell had a slow start to the season, averaging 14.4 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 6.7 APG and 1.3 SPG on a sub-optimal .425/.318/.759 shooting line (53.1 true shooting percentage) through the end of November (22 games, 31.3 MPG).

However, he has been on fire ever since, averaging 20.5 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 5.9 APG and 1.0 SPG on .496/.441/.931 shooting (65.7 TS%) over his past 27 games (34.4 MPG).

Overall, he is averaging 17.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 6.2 APG and 1.1 SPG. He’s posting career-best shooting splits from all over the court, including 54.2% on twos, 39.1% on threes (46.6% from the field), and 87.1% from the free throw line, for a career-high (by far) 60.5 TS%.

Part of the reason he’s had so much success scoring lately is because the Wolves been using him more off the ball – he’s shooting 39.3% on catch-and-shoot threes, per NBA.com. It will be difficult for the Wolves to replace the former All-Star’s production, as they rank just 18^th in 3PT%, and he has been the team’s second-leading scorer with Karl-Anthony Towns injured.

That’s not to say he’s a perfect player by any means, as he has always been a below-average defender and rebounder who can frustrate with lack of effort. His decision-making can also be questionable at times, which is why he’s best utilized as more of a combo guard than a traditional point.

Russell, who turns 27 next month, is not making it an easy decision for the Wolves to move him in his contract year. They have been winning lately, and he’s had a big role in that. Do they want to pay him in free agency if they don’t extend him, especially after last year’s poor playoff performance?

Mike Conley, Jazz

2022/23: $22.7MM

2023/24: $24.4MM ($14.3MM guaranteed)

Conley, on the other hand, is more of a traditional pass-first floor general, with an elite 4.73-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. At 35 years old, he is on the downside of his career, but the Jazz have been better (+2.0 net rating) when he’s on the court, going 21-19 when he plays and 5-7 without him.

While he isn’t scoring much this season (10.3 PPG), Conley is dishing out a career-high 7.6 APG, and his 36.6% mark from deep is above league average. He’s fallen off a little more on the other end – Conley used to be one of the better point-of-attack defenders in the league, but isn’t as quick as he once was.

The big thing with Conley isn’t whether he provides an immediate positive impact (he does), it’s more about paying a small, aging point guard $24.4MM next season. His large partial guarantee makes it impractical to waive him, because whichever team he’s on would still be on the hook for a substantial amount.

Patrick Beverley, Lakers

2022/23: $13MM

2023/24: UFA

As is the case with Russell, it’s been a tale of two halves for Beverley. Through 20 games (26.9 MPG), he was averaging just 4.5 PPG on a miserable .298/.234/.760 shooting slash line.

Over the past 21 games (26.7 MPG), that has completely flipped, as he’s averaging 8.2 PPG on an excellent .473/.434/.875 shooting line. He’s up to 34.7% from deep on the season, which isn’t great, but it’s respectable (his career mark is 37.6%).

Beverley’s fit with the Lakers has been a little more awkward than anticipated, but it’s probably not a coincidence that he’s been playing some of his best basketball while two other guards (Austin Reaves and Lonnie Walker) have been injured (Walker just returned on Saturday against Boston). That’s more a product of poor roster construction than anything against the players individually.

The 34-year-old is a natural trade candidate because he’s the only player on the roster who makes more than $7MM and less than $37MM, plus his deal expires at the end of the season. Beverley’s improved play of late makes him more than just a salary-matching piece – the Lakers will need a legitimate upgrade if they move him, even if it almost seems inevitable.

Seth Curry, Nets

2022/23: $8.5MM

2023/24: UFA

Fun fact: Curry is the NBA’s active leader with a career mark of 43.9% from three-point range, good for third-best all-time. In ’22/23, he’s shooting 43.8% from deep.

Curry, who turns 33 this summer, is an impending free agent with an affordable expiring contract. He got off to a slow start following offseason ankle surgery, but he is a very good offensive player due to his elite shooting (he’s also great on mid-range pull-ups).

The problem is he’s only 6’2” and is definitely more of a two guard than a lead ball-handler. He has always been a negative defensively.

Curry would provide value on a lot of teams – the main issue is the Nets have multiple small guards who can shoot and struggle defensively, making his skill set a little redundant. Adding frontcourt size and depth seems like it should be a priority.

Note: This list isn’t meant to be comprehensive, just a brief overview. There are a number of other guards that have been in the rumor mill, including Kyle Lowry (though he seems unlikely to be traded), Russell Westbrook (ditto), Bones Hyland, Derrick Rose, R.J. Hampton, Grayson Allen and Gary Harris, among others.

Pacific Notes: Walker, Reaves, Fox, Paul, Crowder, Warriors

January 28th, 2023 at 2:53pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers guard Lonnie Walker could return to the lineup for Saturday’s matchup in Boston, tweets ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. Walker plans to test his knee before the game to see if he’s ready to go. If he does play, he says he’ll likely be restricted to around 20-25 minutes.

Walker, who last played a month ago, has been dealing with left knee tendinitis. He has missed 14 consecutive games with the injury.

Austin Reaves is not ready to return yet, however. The second-year guard will be reevaluated next Thursday, as Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group relays (via Twitter). Reaves has missed the last 11 games with a left hamstring strain.

Here’s more from the Pacific:

Nekias Duncan of BasketballNews.com details why he believes Kings guard De’Aaron Fox should be the early frontrunner for the inaugural Clutch Player of the Year award.
Jae Crowder signed with Phoenix in the 2020 offseason, which is also when the Suns traded for Chris Paul. The 11-time All-NBA point guard says he misses the veteran forward, who has yet to play this season as the team tries to trade him. “Jae, 9-9, I miss him,” Paul said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “I miss him. Ain’t no secret about it. That’s one of our brothers.”
The Warriors have been using some small-ball lineups featuring four guards and Draymond Green at center in recent games, and that is having an impact on the rest of the team’s big men, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. For example, James Wiseman has been active the past two games after recovering from a left ankle sprain, but he’s fourth on the current center depth chart behind Green, Kevon Looney and JaMychal Green, so he hasn’t played in either contest. “Do the math,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s hard to get four centers into a game, especially in 2023.”

Antetokounmpo, James Head All-Star Starters; Embiid Falls Short

January 26th, 2023 at 6:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lakers forward LeBron James tied Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Thursday with his 19th NBA All-Star selection. James, who currently shares the record with Abdul-Jabbar for most All-Star Games played with 18, was chosen as a starter, according to a league press release.

All of the starters were revealed on Thursday night.

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, Warriors guard Stephen Curry and Mavericks guard Luka Doncic were the other starters chosen out of the Western Conference. James will serve as a team captain for the sixth straight year, since he received the most votes.

Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, named a team captain for the third time, heads the list of starters out of the Eastern Conference. Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, Nets forward Kevin Durant, Nets guard Kyrie Irving, and Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell will join him, but the league’s second-leading scorer, Sixers center Joel Embiid (33.4 PPG), didn’t garner enough votes.

The starters are selected by a weighted voting process with the fan vote accounting for half of the final outcome. The player and media portions of the vote each counted for 25 percent. Three frontcourt players and two guards were selected from each conference.

Embiid finished third in the player and media voting among Eastern Conference frontcourt players but fourth in the fan voting. All voting results can be found here.

The game will be played Feb. 19 in Salt Lake City. James and Antetokounmpo will choose their teams shortly before the game begins. James will set the league record for most All-Star appearances if he plays, since Abdul-Jabbar did not play in the 1973 game after being chosen.

The reserves, which are chosen by the league’s coaches, will be announced Feb. 2.

Lakers Notes: Davis, Hachimura, Pelinka, Walker, Reaves

January 25th, 2023 at 11:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers are using Anthony Davis off the bench in his return to action tonight after he missed five-and-a-half weeks with right foot issues, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. It marks just the sixth time in Davis’ career that he will be a reserve and the first since the 2013/14 season. Team doctors gave him clearance to play after watching his pre-game warmup.

“I’m happy for him, first and foremost,” coach Darvin Ham said. “I know how frustrating this process has been for him, especially at the level at which he was playing. I’m just happy for him, and definitely happy for us. We’ll get him out there, we won’t go too crazy with his minutes, and see how he responds.”

Davis will be kept on a restriction for a while, expected to begin at about 20-24 minutes per game. Ham told reporters he plans to arrange Davis’ playing time so he’s available late in the fourth quarter in case games are close. He also expressed confidence that Davis is fully ready to return after completing rehab.

“He’s gone through some rigorous therapy, weight training, weight-bearing exercises, activity on the court — both individually and some group workouts,” Ham said. “We would save him from himself if we thought there was any type of threat or harm that he could do to himself. So he had these boxes that he had to check, and he’s checked all of them. So we feel comfortable with him appearing tonight.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

Newly acquired Rui Hachimura should take minutes away from Troy Brown, Wenyen Gabriel and Juan Toscano-Anderson in the Lakers’ frontcourt, Jovan Buha of The Athletic states in a discussion with fellow Athletic writer Josh Robbins about Monday’s trade. Buha sees Hachimura as an upgrade in terms of size and athleticism, though Robbins cautions that he focused too much on scoring with the Wizards and didn’t develop other parts of his game.
After the Hachimura deal, vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka said the Lakers will only consider trading their 2027 or 2029 first-round picks if the deal makes them a championship “front-runner,” but Buha observes in a separate story that there doesn’t appear to be an available trade that would do that. Pelinka promised that the team will remain active in the trade market, but Buha doesn’t believe expectations should be high.
Lonnie Walker and Austin Reaves will both be reevaluated Friday before the Lakers leave on a five-game road trip, tweets Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register. Walker, who was listed as questionable for tonight’s game, has left knee tendinitis, while Reaves is recovering from a strained left hamstring.

Pincus’ Latest: VanVleet, Rozier, Russell, Conley, More

January 25th, 2023 at 9:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

There’s a huge market for Fred VanVleet if the Raptors decide to trade him, according to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report.

The 28-year-old guard will be a free agent this summer if he turns down a $22.8MM player option, which Pincus says many league insiders expect to happen. VanVleet can negotiate an extension with Toronto through June 30, but the Raptors could try to move him before the deadline if they aren’t confident about reaching a new deal.

Pincus hears that the Heat, Lakers, Clippers, Timberwolves, Mavericks, Suns and Wizards would be among the most interested teams if VanVleet is made available. He also throws in the Magic, who are seeking an experienced lead guard to play alongside their young core.

The Raptors will want a premium price if they decide to part with VanVleet, Pincus adds, with some combination of young talent, draft assets and players on team-friendly contracts.

Pincus looks at a few other guards who could be changing teams before the deadline:

With the Hornets near the bottom of the Eastern Conference, they may be willing to consider trading Terry Rozier, who has three more years and nearly $75MM left on his contract. Pincus notes that Charlotte discussed dealing Rozier to the Lakers last offseason and points out that Marc Stein recently identified the Suns as a possible suitor.
Pincus hears that the Heat, Suns, Mavericks and Clippers would all be interested in trading for D’Angelo Russell if the Timberwolves can’t reach an extension soon with the impending free agent.
Pincus lists the Lakers, Clippers and Timberwolves as teams in the market for Mike Conley if the Jazz decide to part with their veteran point guard. Conley has a $14.32MM guarantee on his $24.4MM salary for next season and would be much cheaper to acquire than Van Vleet.
Eric Gordon is attracting interest from the Suns, Lakers and Bucks, but Pincus believes the Rockets may not get the first-round pick they want in return. He suggests Houston might have to settle for a pick swap, using the 2023 first-rounder the team is owed from Milwaukee.
The Lakers haven’t given up trying to trade Russell Westbrook, but Pincus says they’re not willing to part with their two available first-round picks unless they get a star in return. He adds that L.A. may focus on smaller deals involving Patrick Beverley and Lonnie Walker in an effort to find wing depth or a backup big man.
The Hawks aren’t looking to move Trae Young now, but a source tells Pincus that it could be a consideration during the offseason. Young has clashed with coach Nate McMillan, and Atlanta’s overall turmoil may lead the team to seek a fresh start.

Lowe’s Latest: Hart, Hachimura, Crowder, D. Green, T. Davis, More

January 25th, 2023 at 1:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers forward Josh Hart “is a name that is very, very hot right now,” ESPN’s Zach Lowe said in the latest episode of his Lowe Post podcast.

In a conversation with ESPN colleague Bobby Marks about Portland’s possible approach to this season’s trade deadline, Lowe stated that there are “a lot” of teams around the NBA who would like Hart, specifically citing Miami as a possible suitor since the 27-year-old is a “Heat kind of guy.”

Hart is playing a crucial role this season for the Blazers. In addition to starting all 45 games he has played, he’s averaging 34.0 minutes per contest and ranks third on the team in total minutes played (1,530). However, his contract situation has made him the subject of trade speculation — he holds a player option on his contract for 2023/24, so he could become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

Here’s more from Lowe and Marks:

Both Marks and Lowe have heard rumblings that the Wizards and Rui Hachimura had discussions prior to the season about a rookie scale extension worth in the neighborhood of $12MM annually, but Hachimura opted to play out his contract year. The forward was traded to Los Angeles on Monday, so the Lakers will have to find common ground with him in free agency if they intend to keep him beyond this season.
A source from a team with interest in Jae Crowder told Lowe that the Suns are seeking two of the following three things in exchange for the veteran forward: A first-round pick, a good young player, and a solid rotation player. Both Marks and Lowe are skeptical about Phoenix’s chances to get that sort of return, with Lowe remarking that the asking price is why Crowder is still a Sun.
Lowe keeps hearing that the Grizzlies love Danny Green‘s locker room presence and don’t want to trade him. Green is on track to make his season debut next Wednesday.
In a discussion about possible deadline moves for the Kings, Lowe said that he’s not sure guard Terence Davis is “loving his playing time” this season and suggested that Davis could be a trade chip. The fourth-year guard is averaging a career-low 12.7 minutes per contest.
Echoing a recent report from Marc Stein, Lowe indicated that the Hornets appear motivated to hang onto forward P.J. Washington and re-sign him as a restricted free agent this offseason rather than moving him at the deadline.
Lowe believes the Clippers are a good bet to make a deadline move, but suggests it might be more around the edges than anything major, since the team is reluctant to move Terance Mann and doesn’t have many movable first-round picks left.

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

Anthony Davis Set To Return On Wednesday

January 25th, 2023 at 7:06am CST by Luke Adams

Lakers star Anthony Davis is on track to make his return from a foot injury on Wednesday night, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

According to McMenamin, Davis intends to suit up in Los Angeles against the Spurs as long as he doesn’t experience any setbacks in his pregame warmups.

Davis has been sidelined since December 16 due to a bone spur and stress reaction in his right foot. The Lakers, who were 12-16 when Davis went down, have held their own without one of their two superstars available, going 10-10 in their last 20 games and remaining very much in the play-in hunt.

At 22-26, the Lakers are 13th in the Western Conference, but they’re only three games back of the fifth-seeded Clippers.

As McMenamin outlines, the plan on Wednesday is for Davis to be on a restriction of about 20-to-24 minutes. The Lakers’ next game isn’t until Saturday in Boston, so the team will have a couple days off to assess how the big man’s foot responds to his return to action.

In addition to getting Davis back, the Lakers will have more reinforcements in their frontcourt when they host the Spurs — newly acquired forward Rui Hachimura will be available to make his debut with his new team, head coach Darvin Ham told McMenamin and other reporters on Tuesday.

With Davis just coming off a major injury and Hachimura working on getting acclimated to a new situation, the Lakers’ rotation on Wednesday will be a work in progress. According to a previous report, the plan is for Hachimura to join the starting frontcourt alongside Davis and LeBron James, but that may not happen right away.

Lakers Notes: Pelinka, Hachimura, Ham, Reaves

January 24th, 2023 at 9:13pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka spoke to the media on Tuesday evening following the trade for Rui Hachimura. He said they started talking to the Wizards “about a week ago” when the young forward was made available.

“It felt like it was an opportunity for us to strike early and address a need, in a market that has proven to be a little bit slow. It doesn’t mean our work is finished,” Pelinka said, per Mark Medina of NBA.com (Twitter video link).

When asked by Jovan Buha of The Athletic (Twitter link) about potentially dealing away their 2027 and 2029 first round-picks, Pelinka said that option is always on the table, but only if it makes the Lakers a championship “frontrunner.”

“The calculus for the Lakers is to win a championship or not,” Pelinka said. “There’s no in between or incremental growth. As we analyze opportunities, we have to do it through that lens.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Head coach Darvin Ham said he’s “super-duper excited” about Hachimura’s addition, Buha tweets. “I’ve always been impressed by him,” Ham said. “Just a multi-faceted, strong, athletic, skilled young player. … I think he’s gonna bring a lot.”
Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report explores what’s next for L.A. following the deal. While he liked the move in some ways, he points out that dealing away second-rounders in 2028 and 2029 could come back to bite the Lakers if they want to try to add protections to their two first-rounders in future trades.
Although Nekias Duncan of BasketballNews.com views Hachimura as a “mixed bag” defensively, he notes that the 24-year-old is a strong finisher in transition, so that should play to the team’s strengths — the Lakers rank seventh in the league in pace. Overall, Duncan thinks it was a worthwhile gamble, as Hachimura should have a better pathway to easy looks playing with the Lakers rather than the Wizards.
Austin Reaves is currently sidelined with a left hamstring strain and is set to be reevaluated later this week, but he’s confident he’ll be back “soon,” as Buha writes for The Athletic. “We’re going forward, moving forward,” Reaves said of his injury. “Progress. Feeling good.” The second-year guard was able to sprint on Monday first the first time since the injury, Buha adds.