NBA G League Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Antetokounmpo, COVID Policy, Wembanyama, D. Stockton

August 30th, 2022 at 10:12am CST by Arthur Hill

Giannis Antetokounmpo was a runaway winner as the NBA’s best player in an ESPN poll of 15 coaches, scouts and executives. The Bucks star collected 11 votes, with three going to NBA Finals MVP Stephen Curry and one to LeBron James. Antetokounmpo tied with Kevin Durant for the top spot in the survey last year.

“He’s healthy, you can put the ball in his hands or play off the ball as a screen-and-roll guy, and his defensive effectiveness,” a Western Conference scout in choosing Antetokounmpo. “I think Durant is the most talented guy because of his shooting and scoring ability, [but] Giannis’ will, the human, the winner, the mentality, the everyday effort, raising the effort of guys around him … it’s hard to top that.”

The 27-year-old Antetokounmpo was also projected to be the league’s best player in five years, narrowly edging Luka Doncic, and he won a tight race to be named MVP for the upcoming season. In other significant categories, Paolo Banchero and Chet Holmgren tied as the best rookie in five years, Donovan Mitchell is almost unanimously expected to be with the Knicks by the trade deadline, the Celtics were picked as the team that had the best offseason and the Mavericks were tabbed as having the worst offseason.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The NBA has revised its health and safety protocols relating to COVID-19 for the 2022/23 season, tweets Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Unvaccinated players will have to undergo coronavirus testing once each week, while vaccinated players will be tested only when they show symptoms. Isolation measures will be implemented immediately following a positive test, and face masks won’t be required in team settings.
French center Victor Wembanyama and G League guard Scoot Henderson top the projected 2023 draft class, according to Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype. “Wembanyama is a physical freak who plays like a guard that can hit step-back shots and handle the ball,” a general manager told Scotto. “His durability is a concern. He’s not Kristaps Porzingis. I think he’s more talented. Defensively, he’s like Evan Mobley. Offensively, he’s like Porzingis.”
The Fort Wayne Mad Ants – the Pacers‘ G League affiliate – announced in a press release that they have picked up the returning player rights to David Stockton in a G League trade with the Memphis Hustle.

Eastern Notes: Gallinari, Hauser, Durant, Holden, Pistons

August 29th, 2022 at 7:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Danilo Gallinari‘s knee injury could open up some playing time for second-year Celtics forward Sam Hauser, according to Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. Gallinari suffered a meniscus tear during a World Cup Qualifier while playing for Italy and there’s no timetable for his recovery.

Hauser, who remained with the Celtics by signing a three-year deal in early July, can provide some perimeter shooting as Gallinari mends, though he needs to improve defensively. Boston could also go with more small-ball lineups with Grant Williams or even Jayson Tatum playing the center spot.

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Kevin Durant and the Nets have smoothed over their differences for the time being and Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report delves into the question of whether they can continue to maintain a peaceful relationship. It’s likely the team will keep an awkward status quo while hoping to make a deep playoff run, Pincus writes. If things go awry, they can revisit offers for Durant at the trade deadline or next offseason.
Speaking of the Nets, former Euroleague standout J.R. Holden is expected to be named GM of their G League affiliate in Long Island, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando tweets. Holden would replace Matt Riccardi, who accepted a front office position with Dallas this summer.
While there’s a good vibe coming out of Detroit, it will be very difficult for the Pistons to improve enough just to make the play-in tournament, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com points out. They may be better than they were last season but none of last year’s playoff and play-in tournament participants, save perhaps Charlotte, project to take a big step backward. At the same time, lottery teams New York and Washington have made major roster additions.

And-Ones: Players With Most To Prove, Trade Market, GL Trades

August 26th, 2022 at 6:37pm CST by Rory Maher

The Athletic’s staff released an article this week focused of one player with the most to prove for each of the NBA’s 30 teams in 2022/23. Interestingly, several players mentioned are current or former All-Stars, including a trio who missed all of last season: Ben Simmons of the Nets, Kawhi Leonard of the Clippers, and Zion Williamson of the Pelicans.

Simmons’ head coach, Steve Nash, also made the list, as Alex Schiffer wonders whether or not Nash can finally show he’s a solid coach if the roster stays healthy.

In addition to more established veterans, eight former first-round picks who are still on their rookie contracts made the cut, including De’Andre Hunter of the Hawks, Killian Hayes of the Pistons, and James Wiseman of the Warriors, amongst others.

Here are a few more odds and ends from the NBA world:

One league executive of tells Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com that he expects more transactional activity, like the recent Lakers/Jazz trade, to transpire now that the Kevin Durant saga is over — at least for now. “I think we’ll see some things,” the executive said. “I don’t think L.A. thought it had a chance at Durant, but they had to see how that played out. You had to be on the whole ‘Let’s keep hope alive for the possibility of being involved in this,’ thing. Teams have been like, ‘Something may fall to us if a deal for KD gets expanded to include other teams.’ But now I think teams return to sanity and say, ‘OK, what do we need to do?’“
The Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate, recently made a couple of returning player rights trades, the team announced in a press release. The Skyforce acquired the G League rights to Jared Harper from the Birmingham Squad (Pelicans’ affiliate) for Javonte Smart. They also acquired Cheick Diallo from the Motor City Cruise (Pistons’ affiliate) for Micah Potter, with Potter subsequently signing an Exhibit 10 deal with Detroit. Both deals involved G League draft picks swapping hands. All four players have NBA experience, and Harper, Smart and Diallo remain NBA free agents, these moves only impact their G League rights.
The Motor City Cruise made a separate trade (Twitter link) with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s affiliate. The Cruise sent Cassius Stanley‘s returning player rights to the Vipers in exchange for the Vipers’ 2022 first-round pick. Like previously mentioned with the players above, Stanley remains an NBA free agent.

Hawks Notes: Murray, Bogdanovic, Skyhawks

August 25th, 2022 at 9:57pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Hawks guard Dejounte Murray, a 2022 All-Star with the Spurs, will help shore up Atlanta’s backcourt defense thanks to his abilities to track passes, steal the ball in a variety of ways, and gobble up rebounds at a high rate for his 6’4″ frame, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes in a detailed analysis of how Murray can help his new team right the ship following a disappointing 2021/22 season.

Starting alongside All-Star point guard Trae Young, Murray is a solid driver with the ball, an above-average passer (he averaged 9.2 APG last season), and an effective mid-range jump shooter, though Schuhmann notes that Murray struggles as a catch-and-shoot three-point shooter.

There’s more out of Atlanta:

Hawks shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic has progressed to on-court work in his native Serbia as he continues to rehab following a May right knee surgery, reports Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. The 6’6″ wing is expected to be able to suit up for the Hawks’ preseason. Bogdanovic appeared in 63 contests for Atlanta in 2021/22, averaging 14.1 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 3.1 APG, and 1.1 SPG, while posting shooting splits of .431/.368/.843.
Three players from the Hawks’ NBAGL affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, are playing on Team USA’s 12-man roster in the current qualifying window for the 2023 World Cup. Skyhawks personnel believes that’s another sign that Atlanta’s G League club can serve as a development hub for young talent, writes Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Skyhawks players competing with Team USA are DaQuan Jeffries, Langston Galloway and Malik Ellison. “It validates a lot,” Skyhawks GM Tori Miller said. “Our end goal in College Park, it’s all about staff development and career developments and trying to create a pipeline of talent for the Atlanta Hawks… Knowing that we’re bringing in quality guys into the program, from a character standpoint and also from a talent standpoint, because being selected by Team USA, it’s more than talent, right?”
In case you missed it, free agent power forward Chris Silva has signed a contract with the Hawks, and appears poised to test his mettle in the team’s September training camp.

Mojave King Signs With G League Ignite

August 8th, 2022 at 5:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mojave King has signed with the G League Ignite, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony tweets.

King, 20, averaged 18.0 PPG and 3.3 APG in the New Zealand NBL for the Zerofees Southland Sharks this summer. He’s also played for Adelaide and Cairns in the Australian NBL.

King, who was born in New Zealand, is an NBA Academy alumnus looking to improve his draft prospects by joining the Ignite.

Projected 2023 No. 2 overall pick Scoot Henderson has committed to play for the Ignite, as well as French wing Sidy Cissoko, 6’10” Canadian forward Leonard Miller and Nigerian Efe Abogidi.

At the NBA Academy Games in Atlanta in July 2019, King averaged a tournament-high 19.2 PPG. He turned down several Division I schools before signing with the NBL.

And-Ones: McCormack, Luxury Tax, OKC Blue, Harrison

August 2nd, 2022 at 10:03pm CST by Dana Gauruder

David McCormack has signed with Besiktas in Turkey, according to a team press release. McCormack was reportedly signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Timberwolves but apparently chose to begin his pro career in Europe.

The undrafted big man out of Kansas was a prominent member of the Jayhawks’ national championship team. He spent all four of his college seasons at Kansas, starting 96 of 132 total games. In 2021/22, he averaged 10.6 PPG and 7.0 RPG in 40 contests (21.9 MPG).

We have more from around the basketball world:

A total of 10 teams are currently projected to collectively spend $650MM in luxury tax payments next season, according to Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. That would an NBA record for tax penalties. The Warriors, Nets, Clippers, Bucks, Lakers, Sixers, Celtics, Suns, Nuggets and Mavericks all project as taxpayer teams for the time being.
The G League’s Oklahoma City Blue will continue to play the Thunder’s Paycom Center next season, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman reports. The Blue also played there last season, having been the only G League team to host their games in an NBA arena. They often had to play late morning or early afternoon games with the Thunder playing there on the same night.
Former NBA swingman Andrew Harrison has signed with Yukatel Merkezefendi Belediyesi in Turkey, as JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors relays (Twitter link). Harrison has suited up with the Grizzlies, Cavaliers and Pelicans during his NBA career. In his last NBA season, he played a combined 16 games with Cleveland and New Orleans in 2018/19.

Central Notes: Bulls, Bucks, A. Antetokounmpo

July 28th, 2022 at 12:42pm CST by Rory Maher

The Bulls recently announced that they have promoted a number of members of their basketball operations department (Twitter link via K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago). Those promotions and new titles are as follows:

Pat Connelly – Assistant GM
Faizan Hasnany – Manager of basketball strategy and analytics
Josh Malone – Assistant GM of Windy City Bulls (G League affiliate)
Steve Pankow – Head equipment manager and travel coordinator
Chigozie Umeadi – Director of basketball operations and GM of Windy City Bulls
Steve Weinman – VP of basketball strategy and analytics

Chicago has also added Shaquin Albrow to serve as senior manager of team services and player development.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic gives the Bulls a “B” grade for their relatively quiet offseason. Mayberry notes that the team was able to re-sign Zach LaVine, Andre Drummond was a solid and affordable bench upgrade at center, and Goran Dragic will be an insurance policy in case Lonzo Ball is still dealing with his knee injury when the season rolls around. Dalen Terry, the No. 18 overall pick of last month’s draft, also looks like a solid addition, but Mayberry expects him to spend a good amount of time in the G League as he works on adding muscle and improving his shot.
Eric Nehm of The Athletic covers a number of Bucks-related topics in his latest mailbag column. Nehm doesn’t believe Milwaukee will give veteran extensions to either Khris Middleton or Brook Lopez before the season starts — Lopez is entering the last year of his contract at $13.9MM, while Middleton has a $40.4MM player option for 2023/24. The 2023 offseason will be a crucial one for the Bucks, Nehm notes, because if Milwaukee fails to win the Finals, ownership might choose to dodge the luxury tax and retool the roster with the salary cap flexibility created by Lopez and possibly Middleton becoming free agents.
The Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks‘ G League affiliate, have acquired the rights to Alex Antetokounmpo and a second-round pick in the 2023 G League draft from the Raptors 905, Toronto’s affiliate, in exchange for the rights to Jalen Lecque, the Herd announced in a press release. The youngest Antetokounmpo brother appeared in a total of 23 G League games last season, but didn’t receive much playing time.

Central Notes: Sexton, Nwora, Turner, Hield, Sykes

July 25th, 2022 at 8:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Collin Sexton‘s foray into restricted free agency could drag on into training camp or even the regular season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Talks between the Cavaliers and Sexton’s representatives have reportedly reached a standstill after the Cavs offered close to $40MM over three seasons.

Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, Sexton’s agent, has shown no interest in settling for anything less than a “starting guard salary” in negotiations, Charania adds. Sexton, who missed last season after knee surgery, could sign his $7.2MM qualifying offer and become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.

We have more from the Central Division:

Bucks GM Jon Horst hopes that Jordan Nwora‘s restricted free agency works out for both parties, Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes. Nwora must first figure out if he has a market around the league. Then, he can either sign an offer sheet that would force the Bucks to match or inform the Bucks of that interest and see if a trade is feasible.
The Pacers will inevitably trade both Myles Turner and Buddy Hield, as they’ve embraced a full rebuild, according to Bob Kravitz of The Athletic. Team president Kevin Pritchard isn’t in a rush to deal either player, but the Pacers are serious about opening up cap space and accumulating assets.
The Pacers’ G League affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, traded Keifer Sykes‘ rights to the Pistons’ affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, in exchange for the rights to Derrick Walton and Deividas Sirvydis, along with a 2023 second-round pick, Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files tweets. Sirvydis was a second-round pick by Detroit in 2019. The inclusion of the Cruise’s 2023 second-rounder signals that the Pistons and their affiliate expect Sykes to play in the G League in 2022/23. The 28-year-old appeared in 32 games with Indiana last season, averaging 5.6 PPG and 1.9 APG in 17.7 MPG.

Shareef O’Neal To Join G League Ignite

July 25th, 2022 at 5:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Shareef O’Neal, Shaquille O’Neal‘s son, is signing a six-figure contract with the G League Ignite, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

The younger O’Neal went undrafted out of LSU, then played on the Lakers‘ Summer League squad. Just before the draft, Shareef said his Hall of Fame father was opposed to him leaving school early.

Shareef O’Neal played one season for UCLA, then joined the Tigers for two seasons. A 6’10” forward/center, he averaged just 2.9 PPG and 2.1 RPG in 9.4 MPG in 14 appearances with LSU last season.

In six Summer League contests, O’Neal averaged 4.7 PPG and 3.7 RPG in 10.9 MPG.

The Ignite is mainly designed for draft prospects who want to hone their skills on a professional level. O’Neal will try to improve his game at that level with the hope of catching on with an NBA team.

Sidy Cissoko Joins Ignite, Looks To Emulate Daniels

July 19th, 2022 at 10:54pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Potential 2023 first-round pick Sidy Cissoko has signed with the NBA’s G League Ignite, Jonathan Givony of ESPN reports.

Cissoko, a 6’7” wing, is currently ranked No. 25 in ESPN’s 2023 mock draft.

“We explored several options with my agents and I was convinced G League Ignite was the best opportunity to achieve my goals,” Cissoko said. “The ability of this program to maximize the potential of its players on and off the court convinced me. Even more, the tailor-made development program and opportunity to start my transition to the US game style, 3-point line and off-court life is a key asset. I felt during our conversations with the staff that I was a priority.”

Cissoko, 18, is the third-ranked prospect in his class in Europe beyond projected 2023 top pick Victor Wembanyama and Rayan Rupert, Givony says.

Cissoko was encouraged by the ascension of Australian Dyson Daniels in this year’s draft. Daniels boosting his draft stock dramatically during his season with Ignite and was selected No. 8 overall by the Pelicans.

“Dyson shows the ability of the G League to get international players drafted high,” Cissoko said.

Cissoko joins projected 2023 No. 2 pick Scoot Henderson on the Ignite’s roster, as well as 6’10” Canadian forward Leonard Miller and Nigerian Efe Abogidi, who was recruited out of the NCAA transfer portal from Washington State. The Ignite are eyeing several more international prospects.

Cissoko played this past season for Baskonia’s second team in LEB Gold and participated in the Nike Hoop Summit at Portland in April. He is currently practicing with the French under-18 national team in preparation for the FIBA U18 European Championship, which starts on July 30 in Izmir, Turkey. He’ll join the Ignite after the tournament.