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Central Notes: Bucks, Pacers, Bulls, Smart, Beasley, Cunningham

December 23rd, 2024 at 5:52pm CST by Rory Maher

The Bucks have ruled out both Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard for Monday’s game vs. Chicago due to a non-COVID illness, as Jamal Collier of ESPN relays.

According to Collier, several of Milwaukee’s players and staff members have been feeling sick since winning the NBA Cup final last Tuesday. Lillard missed a pair of games over the weekend due to a right calf injury and was previously doubtful heading into Monday’s game with that ailment, while Antetokounmpo was out for Saturday’s back-to-back and was questionable prior to Monday’s contest with back spasms.

In an unrelated story, Antetokounmpo acknowledged he’s at a loss as to why the Bucks aren’t playing on Christmas for the first time in seven seasons, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic. The former Finals MVP said he was “little bit upset or kind of questioning it” in part because 10 other teams received the invitation, while Milwaukee did not.

“There’s gotta be an algorithm because if it’s — how can I say — like a popularity contest, I can give you facts,” Antetokounmpo said. “You want me to? Two of the NBA All-Star starters, Dame and Giannis, and the All-Star MVP, right? And the No. 1 vote-getter — not in the East, in the whole NBA — is not in the Christmas game? What? No, it’s a fact.

“The votes came out last year. I was the No. 1. Dame was a starter. I was a starter. Dame won the MVP. Dame won the 3-point contest. Maybe that has nothing to do with it. I believe we were one of the best teams in the East last year. Maybe not this year, OK. We don’t get a Christmas game. Why? Because we got a small market? Maybe that’s the case. Or I want to believe what I tell you, I think there’s an algorithm within the NBA that they choose which team will get the most attention, the most viewership that day.”

While Antetokounmpo said he was “pissed” he wouldn’t be competing on a marquee day, he and many other Bucks also said they’re happy they get to spend the holiday with their families, according to Nehm.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

The Pacers dominated the Kings in Sacramento on Sunday en route to their fourth straight victory, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. Veteran point guard T.J. McConnell said the team never splintered in the face of adversity — Indiana has had to a sluggish start to the season and is still just 14-15. “I really like how everyone in here didn’t hit the panic button while everyone else was,” McConnell said. “I feel like people don’t realize last year, at one point we were 14-14. Long season. Obviously, we didn’t start the way we wanted to. We went on a couple losing streaks, but we’re well coached. That’s kept us together and we have a really together group. Everyone is for everyone in here. In the NBA, that’s all you can ask for.” According to Dopirak, many Pacers, including McConnell, noted that injuries to Andrew Nembhard, Ben Sheppard and Aaron Nesmith have hurt the team. Nembhard and Sheppard have returned, improving the perimeter defense and offensive spacing, while Nesmith continues to be sidelined with an ankle injury. Although it’s obviously a positive that the Pacers have rebounded, they’ll be challenged by a difficult schedule — including a home-road back-to-back against Oklahoma City and Boston — over their next four games, Dopirak observes.
The Bulls have been better than expected to this point, currently holding a 13-16 record. Star guard Zach LaVine and head coach Billy Donovan have made it clear the players and coaches have no plan of tanking. That means the front office will play an important role if the team hopes to retain its top-10 protected first-round pick, and a source tells Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times that head of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and GM Marc Eversley still have “full autonomy” to change the roster ahead of the Feb. 6 trade deadline. Based on his wording, it’s unclear whom the Grizzlies might be interested in out of LaVine or Nikola Vucevic, but Cowley says Memphis “would love” to shed Marcus Smart‘s salary, noting the former Defensive Player of the Year has played sporadic minutes of late. However, Cowley states that Chicago doesn’t want to take on multiyear contracts unless it receives draft compensation in return — Smart makes $20.2MM in 2024/25, followed by $21.6MM in ’25/26. For what it’s worth, Vucevic is a near-perfect salary match ($20MM in ’24/25, $21.5MM in ’25/26).
Malik Beasley is on pace to break the Pistons‘ single-season record for three-pointers made and his outside shooting has opened up driving and passing lanes for reigning East Player of the Week Cade Cunningham, per Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. The Pistons have been very effective (+6.8) when the two players share the court together, Sankofa adds. “It’s really just understanding each other’s games, understanding where our spots are,” Cunningham said. “We play so well off of each other. He gives me an outlet so many times whenever guys send more at me, and for me, I think he loves playing with me because I throw it over to him. It’s just about building that relationship on and off the court and continuing to grow.” Beasley, 28, will be an unrestricted free agent next offseason after signing a one-year, $6MM deal with Detroit last summer.

Central Notes: Cunningham, Lillard, Toppin, Buzelis

December 22nd, 2024 at 9:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons collected a road win over the Suns on Saturday and Kevin Durant gave high praise to Detroit guard Cade Cunningham, Hunter Patterson of The Athletic writes.

“I think it’s his year to be an All-Star, take off and go to that next level. It’s always a joy to play against him because we compete,” Durant said. “He doesn’t treat me like the old head and take it easy on me and vice versa. I don’t try to take it easy on him.”

Cunningham, who grew up watching Durant, was grateful for the support from the star forward, referring to him as a “living legend.”

“It’s an honor, man,” said Cunningham, who signed a max rookie scale extension in the offseason. “Every time. I tell (Durant) every time we play each other, it’s an honor to be able to compete with him. He’s such a basketball junkie. I’ve gotten the chance to work out with him, see what he’s like in the offseason and how he works. It’s an honor to be able to play against him, somebody that I’ve watched as a kid.”

We have more from the Central Division:

The Bucks don’t expect Damian Lillard to miss much time. Lillard, who sat out Friday’s game against Cleveland due to a right calf strain, felt some discomfort before the NBA Cup final but still scored 23 points. “He could play as early as Chicago on Monday or right after that, so he’s close,” head coach Doc Rivers said told The Athletic’s Eric Nehm. “He worked out (Saturday) and felt pretty good.”
Obi Toppin signed a four-year, $60MM contract during free agency to remain with the Pacers. He’s backing that up by posting some solid numbers. Over his last eight games, Toppin is averaging 15.1 points on 59.2% shooting (including 42.9% from three-point range), 6.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 steals per game. As the Indianapolis Star’s Dustin Dopirak points out, the forward is impressing head coach Rick Carlisle with more than just his offensive production. “In the last two-and-a-half, three weeks, Obi has taken his game to another level,” Carlisle said. “More physical. Defense and rebounding really, really tremendous. Offensively, he’s getting in a rhythm. He’s one of our important weapons. When he defends and rebounds the way he has been in recent games, it’s another really important factor for us.”
After the Bulls selected him in the lottery, Matas Buzelis set two goals, according to the Chicago Tribune’s Julia Poe: 1. Win as many games as possible; 2. Win Rookie of the Year. Buzelis has been getting rotation minutes but has posted modest stats thus far. Buzelis discusses his rookie season at length with Poe.

Community Shootaround: 2024/25 NBA MVP Race

December 22nd, 2024 at 12:06pm CST by Luke Adams

As we relayed on Friday, three-time Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic led the way in the first MVP straw poll conducted by ESPN’s Tim Bontemps for the 2024/25 season. However, while Jokic earned 57 first-place votes from the 100 media members polled by Bontemps, it’s clearly a three-player race at this point.

Jokic totaled 827 total points in the voting, with Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at 678 points and Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo at 643. Gilgeous-Alexander received 24 first-place votes, while Antetokounmpo got 19 — no other player earned a single first-place vote, and Celtics forward Jayson Tatum was the only other player to even claim a second-place vote (he got three).

Plenty could change between now and the end of the regular season, and injury luck is always a factor, but it seems highly likely at this point that one of Jokic, Gilgeous-Alexander, or Antetokounmpo will be named this season’s Most Valuable Player. Here are their cases so far:

Nikola Jokic:

As usual, the Nuggets center has been an advanced-stats star. He leads the NBA in player efficiency rating (31.9), win shares per 48 minutes (.287), box plus/minus (12.8), and value over replacement player (3.0).

Of course, Jokic’s traditional stats look awfully impressive too. His 31.0 points per game would be a career best, as would his league-leading 50.0% mark on three-point attempts. He’s nearly averaging a triple-double, with 13.0 rebounds and 9.8 assists per game.

The main knock against Jokic at this point is that his Nuggets are fighting to stay out of play-in territory — they’re currently tied for sixth in the Western Conference at 14-11. But it’s hard to blame the big man for that modest record. Denver has a +9.7 net rating in his 819 minutes on the court, while their net rating in the 391 minutes he hasn’t played is a brutal -14.3.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander:

Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 30.3 points, 6.2 assists, and 5.5 rebounds per game with a 50.8% field goal percentage, a very strong mark for a guard. He’s also the only player in the NBA who is averaging at least two steals and one block per contest.

The fact that MVPs historically come from teams at or near the top of the standings works in SGA’s favor — his Thunder are 22-5, which is the second-best record in the league and the top mark in the Western Conference. Oklahoma City has a three-game lead in the conference standings on the No. 2 Rockets.

While his supporting cast is certainly stronger than Jokic’s, Gilgeous-Alexander has obviously had a huge hand in OKC’s success. The team has a +15.5 net rating in his 935 minutes and a +1.5 mark in 361 minutes without him on the floor.

The Thunder star also ranks first in the NBA in defensive win shares (2.0) and total win shares (5.4), while placing just behind Jokic in WS/48, BPM, and VORP. His only real weakness is his subpar three-point rate of 33.5% on 6.3 attempts per night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo:

No NBA player has averaged more points per game this season than Antetokounmpo (32.7), who is also among the league leaders in rebounds per game (11.6). The Bucks forward also fills the box score with 6.0 assists and 1.5 blocks per night, along with a career-best field goal percentage of 61.3%.

Giannis is right there with Jokic in terms of PER (31.8) and ranks third behind Jokic and SGA in BPM (9.1) and VORP (2.4). He earns extra points for pulling the Bucks out of an early-season hole, but as a result of that slow start, the team is still just 15-12, fifth in the Eastern Conference. That won’t help his case, so the Bucks will have to keep winning.

Antetokounmpo’s on/off-court numbers are also surprisingly unflattering compared to his top two MVP competitors. Milwaukee’s net rating is essentially the same with him on the court (+1.4) as it is when he’s not playing (+1.3).

We want to know what you think. Which of these three players would you be your MVP pick right now? Which one do you expect to lead the MVP race as the season progresses? Outside of this trio, which player do you think has the best chance to make a run at this season’s MVP award?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts!

Central Notes: Bulls, Nnaji, Strus, Wade, Middleton

December 22nd, 2024 at 8:06am CST by Luke Adams

Although the Bulls have reportedly talked to the Nuggets about a possible swap centered around Zach LaVine and Michael Porter Jr., they have shown no interest in taking Zeke Nnaji‘s contract back in a deal with Denver, reports K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network (Twitter link).

Porter is making $35.9MM this season and LaVine’s cap hit is about $43MM. The Nuggets wouldn’t be permitted to take back more salary than they send out in any trade, so adding Nnaji ($8.9MM) would make perfect sense for Denver. However, the forward/center, who is in the first season of a four-year contract and isn’t playing consistent rotation minutes, has negative trade value.

The Bulls’ position on Nnaji doesn’t necessarily mean the two sides can’t get a deal done. The Nuggets could try to offer additional sweeteners to convince Chicago to take him or find a third team willing to absorb Nnaji’s contract along with some sort of draft compensation. The two teams could also make a deal without including Nnaji — it would mean attaching Dario Saric and one more low-salary player (anyone except for Jalen Pickett or Hunter Tyson) to Porter in order to exceed LaVine’s incoming cap hit.

Here’s more from around the Central:

It was a successful season debut on Friday for Cavaliers wing Max Strus, who made a trio of three-pointers and was a +20 in 19 minutes of action in a blowout win over Milwaukee, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). Strus, who was sidelined for the first 27 games of the season while recovering from an ankle injury, was on a minutes limit on Friday and then sat out on Saturday during the second game of a back-to-back set for injury management purposes, notes Fedor (Twitter link).
With Isaac Okoro out and Strus just returning, Dean Wade started at small forward for the Cavaliers on both Friday and Saturday and was a +34 in 46 total minutes, registering 21 total points on 7-of-9 shooting in a pair of resounding victories. As Fedor writes in another Cleveland.com story, Wade’s performance is a reminder that the Cavs will have 11 players worthy of rotation minutes once everyone is healthy. Head coach Kenny Atkinson would ideally like to find playing time for all of them, sources tell Fedor. “Everyone can easily (say), ‘I deserve my minutes. We’re the best record in the league. Why shouldn’t I keep playing my minutes?'” Atkinson said. “But with Max back, we’re going to have those conversations individually and as a team.”
After missing the first 21 games of the season while recovering from offseason surgeries on both ankles, Bucks forward Khris Middleton is still rounding into form. He took a big step forward on Saturday in a win over Washington, playing in his first back-to-back and setting personal season highs with 18 points, eight assists, six rebounds, four three-pointers, and 24 minutes played. “Still got a little bit to go, but tonight definitely felt like the best night I’ve had thus far,” Middleton said after the game (Twitter link via Eric Nehm of The Athletic). “Always great to get a couple threes going, mid-range going.”

And-Ones: Team Canada, DSJ, 2025 Draft, Kendrick

December 21st, 2024 at 9:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

Canadian players are still dealing with the disappointment of not winning a medal at this year’s Summer Olympics, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Featuring a roster loaded with NBA talent, Team Canada had a chance to reach a milestone for the nation’s basketball program. Instead, they left Paris empty-handed with the realization that the next opportunity is four long years away.

“It’s different once it’s over and you realize that you’re not going to be in that position, not have a chance for four more years,” RJ Barrett said. “Like, that’s a rough part about it, especially when we felt like we had a team that had a great mix. I think we had young guys, but not rookies, you know, and we had guys in their prime or close to their prime, and we had some vets that are still at a good stage in their career. We had the experience, and we had the talent, we got we had the coach. We felt like that was our time, but I think experience, and those type of tournaments is huge.”

The Canadians looked like a legitimate threat to capture the gold after going undefeated in pool play against Greece, Australia and Spain, who were all viewed as medal contenders. But their hopes ended quickly with an 82-73 loss to France in the quarterfinal round. Grange notes that Canada was able to control Victor Wembanyama, holding him to seven points on 2-of-10 shooting with Dillon Brooks guarding him for much of the game, but Guerschon Yabusele and Mathias Lessort led the hosts to victory by combining for 35 points.

“Every year, I get a chance to win an NBA championship,” Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said, “(but it’s only) every four years I get a chance to try to win the Olympics, you know?”

There’s more from around the basketball world:

When Dennis Smith Jr. entered the G League player pool, he was expecting to be claimed by the Spurs‘ affiliate, Marc Stein and Jake Fischer write in a Substack column (subscription required). Instead, he wound up with the Bucks‘ affiliate, making his future in the G League less certain, sources tell The Stein Line. Real Madrid reportedly has interest if Smith wants to play in the EuroLeague.
Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey are making an impact at Rutgers, but the NBA executives and draft experts who talked to Adam Zagoria of NJ.com believe Duke’s Cooper Flagg remains very likely to be the top pick in 2025.
Frank Kendrick, who was part of a championship team with the Warriors during his only NBA season, died this week at age 74, the team announced (via Twitter). Kendrick also won an NIT title at Purdue and was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

Central Notes: Bulls, Pacers, Bucks, Pistons

December 20th, 2024 at 3:12pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bulls registered their most impressive win of the season on Thursday in Boston, defeating the defending champion Celtics for their third consecutive victory and increasing their record on the season to 13-15.

As a result of the win, Chicago is now tied with Sacramento for the 10th-worst record in the NBA. That’s notable because the Bulls will send their 2025 first-round pick to San Antonio if it doesn’t end up in the top 10. After scoring a game-high 36 points on Thursday, Zach LaVine made it clear that hanging onto that draft pick isn’t something the Bulls’ players and coaches are thinking about, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times.

“Players and coaches never tank. That’s just not going to happen,” LaVine said. “We’re a good team. From all the predictions early on in the year, like we’re better than what people predicted us to be off the talent we have here. We’re competitive, man. You go out there and play like we did, we can beat anybody.”

Of course, while it may be true that players and coaches “never tank,” the same can’t be said of front offices, who are in position to make in-season personnel moves to weaken a team’s roster and improve its draft position. LaVine is one candidate to be dealt by the February 6 deadline, and Cowley hears there’s “light momentum” in talks involving Chicago’s top scorer.

Still, head coach Billy Donovan said that he hasn’t gotten the impression in conversations with head of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas that the front office is in a hurry to start losing.

“The one thing I respect about the organization, and this was even in the summer from exit interviews, meetings, things like that, is I think collectively inside the organization there is an expectation about the integrity of competition and to go out there and put our best foot forward,” Donovan said. “… Nothing has ever been said, ‘Listen, we’ve got to keep this pick so do this and this.’ That is not happening, and I respect that as a coach. I feel like everything we’re doing each and every day is how do we put these guys, ourselves, in the best position to compete and win.”

Here’s more from around the Central:

The Pacers beat the Suns in Phoenix on Thursday for their third straight win and finally appear to be finding their identity after a shaky start to the season, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. “The practice time the last two weeks has helped us,” head coach Rick Carlisle said of a stretch in which Indiana played three games in 11 days. “It’s helped us regain an edge defensively. Our full-court defense is more of a factor. We just need teams to feel us. Even if we’re not the most physically bruising team, they need to feel our persistence at both ends. I thought we really picked it up tonight.”
Like the Pacers, the Bucks came out of the gates slowly this fall before reestablishing their identity and hitting their stride. Milwaukee is ahead of where Indiana is, having won 12 of its last 15 regular season games, plus the NBA Cup final. Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (subscription required) takes a closer look at how the Bucks have turned things around, with perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo leading the way. “Getting the ball in Giannis’ hands and letting Giannis dictate action,” head coach Doc Rivers said of the team’s game plan. “He’s our best player. And so, that’s what we’re doing. But, we gotta make sure we get it to him and then we gotta make sure to run to space.”
Determining whether Jalen Duren and Jaden Ivey are part of the long-term plans is one of the Pistons‘ top priorities this season, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com, who notes that both players will be extension-eligible during the 2025 offseason. Within his mailbag, Langlois also answers questions about Detroit’s trade candidates, Ausar Thompson‘s role, and Marcus Sasser‘s development.

And-Ones: MVP Race, Redick, Birch, Obst

December 20th, 2024 at 11:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Nikola Jokic has a commanding lead in ESPN’s first straw poll of the season on the MVP race, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. The Nuggets center captured 57 first-place votes among the 100 ballots, giving him 827 total points.

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander came in second with 24 first-place votes and 678 points, followed by Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo, who topped 19 ballots and has 643 points. Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (267 points) and Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (123) round out the top five.

A win by Jokic would give him four MVP trophies in five years and would put him in very select company, Bontemps notes. Only LeBron James and Bill Russell have collected the award four times in five seasons, while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain are the other players to be named MVP at least four times.

Bontemps adds that Antetokoumpo had a significant surge in the poll after his dominant performance in the NBA Cup final. Twenty-nine voters changed their ballots after Tuesday’s game, giving him more than twice as many first-place votes and moving him much closer to Gilgeous-Alexander.

There’s more from around the basketball world:

J.J. Redick, who was a rising media star before being hired to coach the Lakers, weighed in on the NBA’s declining television ratings after Thursday’s game, according to Sam Amick and Jovan Buha of The Athletic. Redick doesn’t believe the league is being presented well by its national TV outlets. “We don’t have anybody that’s willing to step up to the fact that this is an awesome game and we should talk about it and celebrate it in a positive way,” he said. “That doesn’t mean we don’t critique it. We should critique it, but we should celebrate it. Nobody’s doing that, and the people that are have a small niche following on Twitter. And frankly, I would argue as well, that everyone in our ecosystem pays too much attention to what is said on Twitter. And part of this whole ratings discussion is because people on Twitter are talking about it.”
Khem Birch will remain with Fenerbahce for the rest of the season, relays Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. In September, Birch signed a one-year contract with an exit clause that would have allowed the Turkish team to terminate the deal in January. Urbonas states that other EuroLeague teams had interest if the 32-year-old center had become a free agent again.
German sharpshooter Andreas Obst spoke about a potential three-point shootout with Stephen Curry and his interest in an NBA future in a BasketNews Film Session Episode. Obst says he heard that NBA executives were talking about him after he starred in the 2023 World Cup, but he never got a formal offer. “At some point, yeah, I could see myself in the NBA,” he said. “I can fill a role as a shooter. I know how to use my gravity to space the floor, spot up, and play off the ball. That’s something I think any NBA team could use.”

Central Notes: LaVine, Lillard, Smith, Sheppard, Furphy

December 19th, 2024 at 10:28pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Zach LaVine has reinvented himself and is restoring his trade value, says Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic.

LaVine’s play hasn’t been bad during his time with the Bulls, but his large contract (owed $44.5MM in AAV over the next two seasons with a $48.9MM player option in 2026/27) is a deterrent in this second-apron era and he missed much of last season due to a foot injury. This year, LaVine has taken his offensive game to another level in terms of efficiency. He’s shooting what would be a career-best 42.8% from beyond the arc on 7.5 attempts per game.

The Nuggets have reportedly shown real interest in trading for LaVine, which is a testament to just how much he has changed outside perceptions about his game this season. An anonymous Western Conference scout spoke to Mayberry about a potential fit between LaVine and Denver.

“He’s obviously going to have to defer (offensively),” the scout said of LaVine. “But the thing about (Nikola) Jokić is he makes everybody better. I’d be champing at the bit to be playing off of him. I think [LaVine] will fit in fine. Jokić is so special, he makes guys better probably more than anybody in the entire league.”

We have more from the Central Division:

For his part, LaVine remains focused on the Bulls, according to K.C. Johnson of Chicago Sports Network (Twitter links). “I’m not the one controlling that,” LaVine said of the trade rumors. “That’s what has been so good about my mindset. I can control what my mood is and my mindset going into each game. Outside of that, it’s out of my control. … I signed a lengthy contract here for a reason. I wanted to stay here. But it’s always good to know you have interest because that means you’re a player other people want to play with. I’m just thankful the position I’m at today getting ready for defending NBA champs.” LaVine’s 42.8% three-point percentage is a 7.9 percentage point increase from the previous season and he’s averaging 21.7 points per game.
After signing a G League contract on Wednesday, Dennis Smith Jr. was claimed by the Bucks‘ G League affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, according to NBA insider Marc Stein (Twitter link). Smith will also have a pro day in Orlando in front of several NBA teams as he hopes to make his league return, insider Chris B. Haynes relays (Twitter link). Smith went unsigned this offseason after spending last year with the Nets.
Milwaukee’s NBA Cup win gave Damian Lillard a taste of why he was traded to the Bucks, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Jim Owczarski writes. “I feel happy,” Lillard said. “The experience of winning something. I’ve had a lot of experience individually where I’ve had accomplishments and stuff, but to have some team success and win something and be the last team standing in this tournament, it feels great.“
After missing the last 14 games with a strained oblique, Ben Sheppard was available for the Pacers on Thursday, as first reported by IndyStar’s Dustin Dopirak (Twitter link). The second-year wing played a limited role off the bench.
Sheppard’s return might mean fewer minutes for second-round rookie Johnny Furphy, but the Pacers were impressed by what they saw from the young guard when he stepped up amid injuries. In 17 games this season, he’s averaging 3.4 points and shooting 39.3% from three. “We drafted Furphy to play 40 games in the G League and he’s been in our rotation,” coach Rick Carlisle said, per Dopirak (Twitter link).

Fischer: Valanicunas Among Several Centers On Trade Block

December 19th, 2024 at 3:19pm CST by Rory Maher

Jonas Valanciunas of the Wizards may be the most “attainable” and desirable trade candidate among centers this season, but he’s certainly not the only big man who could be on the move prior to the February 6 deadline, league sources tell Jake Fischer (Substack link via The Stein Line).

According to Fischer, several teams are looking for help in the middle, including the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks and Pelicans. The Clips and Bucks are interested in reserve centers to complement their starters (Ivica Zubac and Brook Lopez, respectively), with Lopez also drawing trade interest since last summer.

The Warriors are another team contemplating a trade involving big men, with Kevon Looney garnering “plenty of interest” from rival clubs, Fischer writes. Like Lopez, who earns $23MM in 2024/25, Looney is on an expiring contract ($8MM).

Confirming a recent report from Stefan Bondy, Fischer says Knicks center Jericho Sims is viewed as a potential trade candidate due to his inconsistent playing time as a backup this season. Fischer also notes that New York gauged injured center Mitchell Robinson‘s trade value around this time last year.

Despite his lengthy injury history, Trail Blazers center Robert Williams may be the “most coveted” big man on the market outside of Valanciunas, but it’s no lock that Portland will end up moving him, according to Fischer’s sources. If the Blazers do trade a member of their frontcourt, expect it to come closer to the deadline, Fischer adds.

Here’s more from Fischer:

Like Clint Capela, whom we highlighted in another story, Nikola Vucevic is a starting center who could be on the move, but it’s unclear if the Bulls will be successful in their attempts to trade the two-time All-Star, in part due to his contract ($20MM in ’24/25, $21.5MM in ’25/26).
Valanicunas, Williams and Walker Kessler are among the big men on the Lakers‘ trade wish list, sources tell Fischer. However, the Jazz have declined multiple offers for Kessler, so it’s difficult to decipher if Utah is actually willing to trade him or is simply gauging what he might bring in return.
Chris Boucher (Raptors), Day’Ron Sharpe (Nets), Trey Lyles (Kings), Daniel Theis (Pelicans) and Nick Richards (Hornets) are also “known to be on the market,” according to Fischer.

Antetokounmpo Headlines All-Tournament Team For NBA Cup

December 19th, 2024 at 12:24pm CST by Rory Maher

The NBA announced the All-Tournament Team for the NBA Cup on Thursday, with Giannis Antetokounmpo headlining the five-player group (Twitter link). The Bucks superstar was named tournament MVP after Milwaukee defeated Oklahoma City in Tuesday’s final.

Here’s the full team, along with the amount of votes each player received (in parentheses) from a group of 20 media members:

Antetokounmpo, Bucks (20)
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder (20)
Damian Lillard, Bucks (19)
Trae Young, Hawks (12)
Alperen Sengun, Rockets (6)

All five players advanced to at least the semifinals of the league’s second in-season tournament. Antetokounmpo and Gilgeous-Alexander were unanimous selections, while Lillard fell one vote shy.

According to the full voting results, Thunder big man Isaiah Hartenstein (5), Magic forward Franz Wagner (5), Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (4) and Thunder forward Jalen Williams (3) narrowly missed out on making the team. Six other players received one vote apiece.

The voting for the team is based on each player’s performance over the entire NBA Cup, including group play and the knockout round games. The Bucks went undefeated (7-0) to claim the trophy.