- Health issues continue to plague the Grizzlies, who saw Grayson Allen leave Wednesday’s game in the second quarter due to a left ankle sprain, writes Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. The club -which is already missing Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson, and Justise Winslow – will have to hope Allen’s sprain is a minor one.
Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant is expected to miss the next three to five weeks recovering from a left ankle injury, the team announced today (via Twitter). According to the Grizzlies, Morant was diagnosed with a Grade 2 sprain after undergoing tests today.
The 21-year-old suffered the injury on Monday night in the second quarter of Memphis’ game vs. the Nets, when he landed on Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot‘s foot while trying to contest a shot. He left the court area on a wheelchair.
While the injury could have been worse, it’s still an unfortunate setback for Morant, who was looking to build off his Rookie of the Year campaign and was off to a strong start this season. In his two full games before suffering the injury on Monday, he averaged 36.0 PPG and 8.0 APG on .583/.333/.813 shooting.
With Morant sidelined, the Grizzlies will have to lean more heavily on Tyus Jones in the short term. De’Anthony Melton also should see an uptick in minutes once he clears the NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
Grizzlies star guard Ja Morant sprained his left ankle during the second quarter of his team’s game against the Nets on Monday, the team’s PR department tweets.
The severity of the injury wasn’t immediately known but Morant hopped around in severe pain after he landed on Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot‘s foot while trying to contest a shot. X-rays revealed no fracture, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets, and the team will await the results of an MRI as soon as Tuesday.
Morant was eventually brought back to the locker room in a wheelchair. He returned to the bench in the second half wearing a walking boot.
If Morant is sidelined for a long stretch, it would have a huge impact on the team’s goal of reaching the playoffs. Tyus Jones would likely be thrust into a starting role in his absence.
Memphis is already a little shorthanded in the backcourt as De’Anthony Melton has missed playing time due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
Grizzlies guard De’Anthony Melton is the latest player to miss game action due to the coronavirus pandemic. He won’t play against Atlanta on Saturday due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols, the team’s PR department tweets. Melton played 25 minutes in Memphis’ season-opening loss to San Antonio on Wednesday.
Seventeen teams have indicated that they plan to participate in the NBA G League bubble, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN, who notes that the G League Ignite select team will be the 18th squad.
While we don’t yet have a full, official list of the teams participating in the G League bubble, Ridiculous Upside has done a good job passing along reports (including some of ours) and providing new details on which clubs are in and out. Their list includes 13 teams believed to be in, not counting the Ignite, as follows:
- Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario (Clippers)
- Austin Spurs (Spurs)
- Canton Charge (Cavaliers)
- Delaware Blue Coats (Sixers)
- Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Pacers)
- Lakeland Magic (Magic)
- Long Island Nets (Nets)
- Memphis Hustle (Grizzlies)
- Oklahoma City Blue (Thunder)
- Raptors 905 (Raptors)
- Salt Lake City Stars (Jazz)
- Santa Cruz Warriors (Warriors)
- Westchester Knicks (Knicks)
G League expert Adam Johnson says the Greensboro Swarm (Hornets), Iowa Wolves (Timberwolves), and Erie BayHawks (Pelicans) are also expected to take part (Twitter link).
The G League reportedly asked for teams to volunteer to opt out, since bringing 29 franchises to the bubble wouldn’t have been logistically possible, so the clubs passing on the bubble aren’t necessarily doing so because they’re not interested in participating.
Teams opting out of the bubble who signed players to Exhibit 10 contracts before the season will be given the option to loan or “flex” those players to another G League team for the bubble and will be responsible for paying all expenses for those players, Givony explains.
The Wizards, for example, aren’t expected to have the Capital City Go-Go play in the bubble, but will likely use the Pelicans’ affiliate – the BayHawks – as their temporary affiliate for their former Exhibit 10 players, such as Caleb Homesley, Marlon Taylor, and Yoeli Childs, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic.
A G League draft would take place in January, according to Givony, who reports that players whose returning rights are held by non-bubble teams would temporarily be dispersed to other clubs in that draft. If non-bubble teams don’t want to “flex” their former Exhibit 10 players to G League teams participating in the bubble, those players will also enter the draft pool, says Givony.
Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News reported earlier this week that the tentative start date for the G League season is February 8. Adam Zagoria of Forbes (Twitter link) shares a more detailed breakdown of the proposed timeline, which would see G League players and staffers begin an “at-home” quarantine period on January 13.
Givony confirms that teams participating in the bubble still expect to play a minimum of 12 games apiece (not including the playoffs), as was reported in November.
Finally, Givony reports that the G League is making adjustments to its roster rules to make it easier for NBA teams to recruit and sign veterans with five or more years of NBA experience. Each team will be able to designate an “NBA Vet Selection” who fits that bill, and won’t have to navigate the NBAGL’s complicated waiver process to add that player, per Givony.
As Johnson tweets, the rule will be a one-off for this season and will allow – for instance – the Warriors to add Jeremy Lin to their Santa Cruz affiliate, like they wanted to.
The 2020/21 NBA regular season will get underway on Tuesday, so it’s time to get serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign.
With the help of the lines from a handful of sports betting sites, including Bovada and BetOnline, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division. In a series of team-by-team polls, you’ll get the chance to weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.
Of course, there are plenty of wild cards to take into account this season. For one, teams are scheduled to play 72 games instead of 82, so if you’re picking a team to win 41 games, you’re not just expecting them to be a .500 club — you’re projecting them to finish 10 games above .500. For each team’s over/under below, we’ve noted the record they’d have to achieve to finish “over” their projection, as a reminder.
It’s also worth noting that the coronavirus pandemic could cause some games to be canceled in 2020/21. We don’t want you to have to take possible cancellations into account when making your picks though, so don’t let that stop you from taking the “over.” If a team has a couple games canceled, we’ll adjust their over/under figure downward, so you’re essentially just projecting that team’s winning percentage.
We’ll wrap things up by heading to the Southwest…
Dallas Mavericks
- 2019/20 record: 43-32
- Over/under for 2020/21: 43.5 wins (44-28)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Mavericks poll.
New Orleans Pelicans
- 2019/20 record: 30-42
- Over/under for 2020/21: 36.5 wins (37-35)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Pelicans poll.
Houston Rockets
- 2019/20 record: 44-28
- Over/under for 2020/21: 35.5 wins (36-36)
- Major offseason moves:
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Rockets poll.
Memphis Grizzlies
- 2019/20 record: 34-39
- Over/under for 2020/21: 32.5 wins (33-39)
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Desmond Bane, Xavier Tillman
- Lost: Josh Jackson, Anthony Tolliver, Marko Guduric
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Grizzlies poll.
San Antonio Spurs
- 2019/20 record: 32-39
- Over/under for 2020/21: 30.5 wins (31-41)
- Major offseason moves:
- Added: Devin Vassell, Tre Jones
- Lost: Bryn Forbes, Marco Belinelli, Tyler Zeller, Chimezie Metu
Trade Rumors app users, click here for Spurs poll.
Previous voting results:
- Boston Celtics (45.5 wins): Over (66.3%)
- Brooklyn Nets (45.5 wins): Over (58.6%)
- Philadelphia 76ers (44.5 wins): Over (57.4%)
- Toronto Raptors (42.5 wins): Over (54.7%)
- New York Knicks (22.5 wins): Under (59.5%)
- Denver Nuggets (44.5 wins): Over (69.7%)
- Utah Jazz (42.5 wins): Over (59.9%)
- Portland Trail Blazers (41.5 wins): Over (70.1%)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (29.5 wins): Under (50.3%)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (22.5 wins): Under (64.4%)
- Milwaukee Bucks (51.5 wins): Over (73.7%)
- Indiana Pacers (39.5 wins): Over (57.9%)
- Chicago Bulls (29.5 wins): Under (61.6%)
- Cleveland Cavaliers (23.5 wins): Under (68.5%)
- Detroit Pistons (22.5 wins): Over (53.9%)
- Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Over (79.1%)
- Los Angeles Clippers (47.5 wins): Under (50.4%)
- Phoenix Suns (40.5 wins): Over (51.0%)
- Golden State Warriors (38.5 wins): Over (60.3%)
- Sacramento Kings (29.5 wins): Under (60.7%)
- Miami Heat (44.5 wins): Over (67.6%)
- Atlanta Hawks (36.5 wins): Over (58.0%)
- Washington Wizards (34.5 wins): Under (50.7%)
- Orlando Magic (31.5 wins): Under (73.5%)
- Charlotte Hornets (26.5 wins): Over (56.3%)
- With COVID-19 cases spiking in Memphis, the Grizzlies will not host any fans in person for games at their home court, the FedEx Forum, to start the regular season, according to a team press release.
The Grizzlies have made three roster cuts, announcing today in a press release that they waived forward Bennie Boatwright, along with guards Shaq Buchanan and Ahmad Caver.
Boatwright, Buchanan, and Caver each signed non-guaranteed Exhibit 10 contracts with the Grizzlies after playing last season for the Memphis Hustle in the G League. All three players are likely to rejoin the Hustle – the Grizzlies’ NBAGL affiliate – now that they’ve been waived, and should be in line for bonuses worth up to $50K apiece.
After today’s cuts, the Grizzlies’ roster is all set for the regular season. The team is carrying a full squad, with 15 players on fully guaranteed contracts and a pair on two-way deals.
The NBA’s general managers liked the Lakers‘ offseason moves and are bullish on the team’s chances to repeat as champions in 2020/21, as John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes in his annual survey of the league’s GMs.
An impressive 81% of the responding general managers picked the Lakers to win the championship in 2021, which is the third-highest percentage any team has received since Schuhmann began conducting his annual GM survey 19 years ago. The Clippers ranked second at 11%, while the Nets and Heat received one vote apiece.
Meanwhile, the Lakers (37%) beat out the Suns (22%) and Thunder (15%) in the voting for best offseason roster moves. The Hawks, Bucks, and Sixers each received two votes, while the Trail Blazers got one too.
Here are a few more of the interesting responses from Schuhmann’s GM survey, which is worth checking out in full:
- The Suns‘ acquisition of Chris Paul (44%) and the Bucks‘ trade for Jrue Holiday (33%) were voted the moves that will have the biggest impact this season. The Clippers‘ signing of Serge Ibaka (15%), the Pelicans‘ deal for Steven Adams (11%), and the Trail Blazers‘ trade for Robert Covington (11%) were the front-runners for the most underrated offseason player acquisition. Gordon Hayward‘s $120MM contract with the Hornets (54%) was voted the most surprising offseason move.
- While NBA GMs view Hornets guard LaMelo Ball (39%) as the favorite to win Rookie of the Year over Warriors big man James Wiseman (29%), Wiseman received the most votes (36%) among this year’s rookies to be the best player in five years, followed by Ball (25%). Kings guard Tyrese Haliburton, meanwhile, was voted the biggest steal in the 2020 draft (43%).
- Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo and Mavericks guard Luka Doncic were the top choices as the player GMs would want to start a franchise with today. They each received 43% of the vote, with Lakers stars Anthony Davis and LeBron James and Pelicans youngster Zion Williamson also picking up votes.
- Speaking of Williamson, he helped the Pelicans receive the nod for the team with the most promising young core (41%). The Grizzlies (22%), Hawks (11%), Celtics (11%), and Nuggets (11%) also got multiple votes.
The Grizzlies have exercised contract options for the 2021/22 season on Ja Morant, Jaren Jackson Jr., Brandon Clarke and Grayson Allen, the team announced in a press release (via Twitter).
Morant, the second pick in the 2019 draft, had an outstanding first season, capturing Rookie of the Year honors and helping the Grizzlies reach the playoffs. He averaged 17.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 7.3 assists in 67 games. Morant is part of the foundation for the future in Memphis, along with Jackson, the fourth overall pick in 2018, who averaged 17.4 points and 1.6 blocks per game last season.
Clarke set a rookie record in 2019/20 by shooting 61.8% from the floor. He posted a 12.1/5.9/1.4 line in 58 games, earning a spot on the All-Rookie team and finishing fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting. Allen, who was acquired from the Jazz last summer, averaged 8.7 PPG in 38 games in his first season with the Grizzlies.
Morant’s third-year option for ’21/22 will be worth $9.6MM, while Clarke’s has a value of $2.7MM. The fourth-year options for Jackson and Allen will pay them $9.2MM and $4.1MM, respectively.