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Knicks Notes: Mitchell, Grimes, Reddish, Rose

December 5th, 2022 at 8:01am CST by Arthur Hill

A potentially embarrassing night turned into a positive for the Knicks as Donovan Mitchell made his first appearance of the season at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, writes Steve Popper of Newsday.

Mitchell, a New York native who was nearly traded to the Knicks this summer, has raised his game since Cleveland swooped in with a better offer. Although he scored 23 points in Sunday’s contest, he was limited to 8-of-22 from the field and 2-of-11 from three-point range. Afterward, he wasn’t interested in speculating about what might have happened if New York’s front office had completed the trade.

“What’s done is done, and I’m happy as hell to be where I’m at,” Mitchell said. “At the end of the day, this decision was made and I don’t think I’ve been happier since I’ve been in the league. But I think for me it’s always going to be motivation to come back and play well in my hometown, but you could say that about anybody. But with what happened this summer, it’s over with, it happened and I’m happy to be with the Cavaliers.”

There’s more from New York:

Quentin Grimes, whom the Knicks were reluctant to include in a potential deal with Utah, was excited to get the assignment to guard Mitchell, Popper adds. Grimes set the tone in the first quarter as Mitchell hit just 1-of-6 shots, with his lone make coming on a switch. “I knew that was going to be a big matchup with everything that happened this summer,” Grimes said. “Come in focused. That’s one of the best players in the NBA. Had to stay locked in, and I feel like I did a good job on him today and we came out with a win.”
Cam Reddish didn’t play against Cleveland as coach Tom Thibodeau trimmed his rotation for the game, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Braziller notes that Reddish has been ineffective since returning from a groin injury and adjusting to a reserve role after spending time as a starter earlier in the fall.
Derrick Rose also wasn’t used Sunday, marking his first healthy scratch of the season, adds Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Thibodeau indicated that it may have been a one-game situation with Rose, resting the veteran guard because the team was on the second night of a back-to-back. “I wanted to get it to nine-man rotation,” Thibodeau told reporters. “It worked a lot better.”

Atlantic Notes: Brunson, Mitchell, Melton, VanVleet

December 3rd, 2022 at 7:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

After an unsuccessful outing against his former team Saturday afternoon, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson sought to take some heat off coach Tom Thibodeau, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Brunson had a season-low 13 points and was minus-26 overall in his first game against Dallas since leaving in free agency.

The 21-point loss drew boos from the Madison Square Garden crowd as the Knicks suffered their seventh defeat in their last eight home games. Thibodeau has become a target for the fans, but Brunson insists the downturn isn’t his fault.

“Coach Thibs has done a great job,” Brunson said. “He’s been able to put us in positions where we need to succeed. I think he knows where to put those puzzle pieces. It’s just on us to actually execute and do things. So it’s just — I know he’s going to get a lot of the blame, guys are going to get some of the blame. It’s on us. We’re the players out there not battling. It’s his job to put us in positions, which he’s done.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The Knicks will get a reminder of their most significant decision of the summer when Donovan Mitchell and the Cavaliers come to town Sunday night, Bondy adds. Team president Leon Rose’s refusal to part with a large amount of draft capital after extensive trade talks with Utah is looking like a “backfire,” according to Bondy.
De’Anthony Melton is making an impact on defense for the Sixers after being acquired in a draft night trade, notes Spencer Davies of Basketball News. Melton is second in the league with 2.0 steals per game and ranks first overall with a 3.6% steal percentage. “I think De’Anthony’s a very easy guy to play with,” coach Doc Rivers said. “… He defends. And I think guys who defend always have a little more longitude to do whatever. Guys respect that. You want to get respect in a locker room? Go stop somebody and you’ll get it, and I think De’Anthony has that.”
Raptors guard Fred VanVleet isn’t overreacting to two bad road games, per Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. VanVleet said the losses at New Orleans and Brooklyn can be part of a growing experience. “I think we’ve got to learn how to be a team,” he said. “We have to learn to play together a little bit more, be professional, be a little bit more ready to go. You can find excuses in this league every night — there are a million of them — or you can show up and play the game the way it is supposed to be played.”

Community Shootaround: Sub-.500 Playoff Hopefuls

December 2nd, 2022 at 1:23pm CST by Luke Adams

So far this season, 19 of the NBA’s 30 teams have played at least .500 basketball, and many of the clubs that have fallen short of that mark are ones we expected to do so. The Magic, Pistons, Hornets, Rockets, Spurs, and Thunder, for instance, were widely considered during the preseason to be lottery-bound.

If we set aside those six teams, along with the 19 who are .500 or better, five clubs remain. These are the teams that entered the season expecting to be in the playoffs and have fallen short of their expectations so far.

Let’s start with the most obvious one of the five: the Lakers got off to a miserable start to the season, losing their first five games and 10 of their first 12. They’ve bounced back to some extent as of late, winning six of their last eight contests, but three of those victories came against San Antonio, and L.A. is still just 8-12 overall, good for 13th in a competitive Western Conference.

With Russell Westbrook adapting well to a sixth man role, Lonnie Walker enjoying a breakout year, Anthony Davis looking like a superstar again, and LeBron James back in the lineup following a groin strain, there’s some reason for optimism in Los Angeles. But it’s still not clear if the supporting cast is strong enough for the Lakers to make a real run, and it remains to be seen whether the front office has the appetite to move one or two first-round picks to acquire real upgrades.

While they’re ahead of the Lakers in the standings, the 10-11 Mavericks are currently out of the play-in picture too, holding the No. 11 seed in the West. Like L.A., Dallas has a top-heavy roster, with Luka Doncic submitting an MVP-caliber performance this fall. But Doncic can’t do it all himself, and the Mavs’ supporting cast beyond Christian Wood and Spencer Dinwiddie hasn’t produced like the team had hoped.

Over in the East, the Heat (10-12), Knicks (10-12), and Bulls (9-12) find themselves out of the top nine and vying for the No. 10 spot in the standings.

Of these three teams, Miami probably has the most reason for optimism. The Heat have been hit hard by the injury bug in the first quarter of the season, but appear to be getting healthier, with All-Star forward Jimmy Butler on the verge of returning. This iteration of the Heat may not get back to the NBA Finals like the 2020 squad did, or even to the Eastern Finals like last year’s team, but it would be pretty shocking if they missed the postseason, given how much talent is on the roster.

Chicago and New York, meanwhile, were both considered borderline playoff teams entering the season — oddsmakers had them as the East’s ninth- and 10th-best teams ahead of training camps. So it’s perhaps not a surprise that they’re both hovering around .500 and looking more like play-in contenders than serious candidates for a top-six seed.

Still, both teams had higher aspirations than simply contending for a play-in spot, so it will be interesting to see how they approach the trade deadline if their inconsistent performances continue.

Will the Knicks put some of their future first-round picks back on the table in search of an impact player after missing out on Donovan Mitchell? Will the Bulls – who have already traded away two of their own future first-rounders – continue to push their chips into the middle of the table or will they pull back and hope for the possible return of point guard Lonzo Ball can help fuel a second-half surge?

We want to know where you stand on these five teams. Do you expect the Lakers, Mavericks, Heat, Bulls, or Knicks to finish the season as a top-six seed, securing an automatic playoff berth? Are you counting on some of them to have to clinch postseason spots via the play-in tournament? Will some finish outside the play-in altogether as bottom-five teams in their respective conferences?

Head to the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Mavs’ Harrison Talks Brunson’s Departure, Roster Moves, Kemba

December 2nd, 2022 at 9:25am CST by Luke Adams

With the Mavericks set to play the Knicks on Saturday for the first time this season, Jalen Brunson will get an opportunity to face his old team, while the Mavs will get the chance to see what they’ve been missing since losing the standout point guard in free agency over the summer.

Asked by Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News about whether the team regrets how Brunson’s free agency played out, Mavericks president of basketball operations Nico Harrison was quick to point out that Brunson’s departure “wasn’t our choice” and that Dallas made a competitive offer.

Still, as Tim Cato of The Athletic writes, there’s “no question (the Mavs) mishandled” the Brunson situation, given that they could’ve locked him up well before his free agency if they had been willing to offer a four-year extension worth approximately $56MM — the same deal Dorian Finney-Smith signed last season. By the time the Mavs put that extension (the most they could offer during the season) on the table for Brunson, he had outperformed it and was headed for a bigger payday on the open market.

In the wake of Brunson’s departure, the Mavs could have pursued a veteran free agent replacement – perhaps Goran Dragic – in July, but opted not to do so. Instead, they’ve used their 15th roster spot so far this season to audition veteran play-makers on non-guaranteed salaries. They began the season with Facundo Campazzo in that role and have since waived him to sign Kemba Walker.

Asked by Caplan whether the Mavs should have done more to address that third point guard spot in the summer, Harrison said it’s easy to second-guess the team’s thinking, but that he still has confidence in the current roster.

“You can look back at it and say that, but I also have faith in the guys that we have here,” Harrison said. “… Guys haven’t made shots, but we’ve seen them do it, and I have faith in them. I think if guys make shots just at the rate or slightly below what they normally do, we’re not even having this conversation. I think that erases a lot of the doubt or the feeling that we’re not quite achieving what the expectations would’ve been. The law of averages, they eventually equal out, and guys will make shots.”

Here are a few more of the most noteworthy quotes from Harrison’s Q&A with Caplan, which is worth checking out in full if you’re a Mavs fan:

On his thoughts about the Mavericks’ up-and-down performance so far this season:

“It’s no secret — we’ve lost some bad games, and we haven’t played good on the road, and our guys who shoot the ball well haven’t shot well. If you add those three up, I’m not surprised where we’re at, but I wouldn’t have expected all three of those things to happen.”

On whether the Mavs felt the need to use the 15th roster spot to address a lack of ball-handling rather than leaving it open:

“I just think it’s one of those things that you’re just constantly evaluating the team. When you see that there’s a hole, then you’ve got to try to fill it. I mean, you say lack of ball-handling, but at the end of the day, whoever that person is that we bring in, whether it was Facu or whether it was whoever, it’s not like they’re in the regular rotation. If we have one of the best, one of the best point guards in the league who’s one of the highest usage rates, it’s kind of a gift and a curse.”

On the Mavs’ expectations for Kemba Walker:

“I don’t think there’s any expectations, really. One, I hope his body holds up. I think that’s the first and foremost thing. I hope his body holds up. If it does, he’s a veteran guy. One, he’s an amazing person — I think that’s the point. He’s an amazing person. He’s been through everything in the league. He obviously can handle the ball and everybody knows he’s an ex-All-Star. I won’t even say ex-All-Star. He’s an All-Star. He’s a scorer. Adding that veteran presence for if and when we need it ready will be helpful.”

Atlantic Notes: M. Robinson, Knicks, Trent, Hauser

December 1st, 2022 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

Responding early on Wednesday morning to a fan who asked him about the possibility of working with Amar’e Stoudemire on his post moves, Knicks center Mitchell Robinson replied, “The way we play is not set up for me to do any moves.”

As Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News writes, Robinson’s tweet could have been read as a simple statement of fact about the Knicks’ system, or it could have been interpreted as a “subliminal complaint” about his role, since the big man has occasionally griped about his lack of involvement on offense in the past.

Robinson answered that question during and after Wednesday’s game against Milwaukee. He scored 15 points and racked up 20 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, then told reporters in his postgame media session that he has no complaints about his role, per Zach Braziller of The New York Post.

“If I was unhappy, I wouldn’t have (done) what I came out here and did today and last game,” Robinson said. “I would’ve just chilled out and just (said), ‘Oh well.'”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

There is “heightened scrutiny” on the Knicks‘ game-by-game performance internally at MSG, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. There has been some speculation that head coach Tom Thibodeau‘s seat could get hotter if the team doesn’t show signs of taking a step forward, but Begley says “the entire organization is under the microscope” in the wake of an up-and-down 10-12 start.
With a potentially huge payday looming during the 2023 offseason, it’s a big year for Raptors wing Gary Trent Jr., who put in extra work in an effort to break out of a recent slump, as Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca details. Challenged by head coach Nick Nurse to be more disruptive on defense, Trent has 11 steals in his last four games and poured in a season-high 35 points on 12-of-20 shooting off the bench on Wednesday in New Orleans.
Celtics sharpshooter Sam Hauser is enjoying a breakout season in Boston, notes Chris Mannix of SI.com. While Hauser’s traditional stats – including 7.5 PPG on .514/.479/.778 shooting – are solid, it’s his advanced stats that really jump off the page. The former undrafted free agent leads the Eastern Conference in offensive rating (124.1) and net rating (+19.1) through his first 22 games. Boston re-signed Hauser to a three-year, minimum-salary contract over the summer, locking him into a team-friendly deal through 2024/25.

Big Trade Remains Best Path To Success

November 29th, 2022 at 7:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The most realistic path to improvement for the Knicks is still the trade route, Ian Begley of SNY TV opines. They’ll continue to seek out top talent and have a surplus of draft picks and some young players to offer teams. Stuck in mediocrity, the only question is whether they’ll make a big move before the trade deadline or wait until the offseason.

Knicks Waive Feron Hunt, Sign DaQuan Jeffries To Two-Way Deal

November 29th, 2022 at 4:57pm CST by Luke Adams

4:57pm: The signing of Jeffries to a two-way deal is official, the team announced in a tweet.

3:14pm: The Knicks have waived forward Feron Hunt, the team announced today (via Twitter). Hunt had been on a two-way contract with the team.

New York will fill its newly opened two-way contract slot by signing free agent wing DaQuan Jeffries, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Hunt signed a two-way deal with the Knicks last March and appeared in two games for the club down the stretch. Because his contract included a second year, he continued to occupy one of New York’s two-way spots into 2022/23, though he had yet to see any playing time at the NBA level this season.

In eight G League games (34.5 MPG) for the Westchester Knicks this fall, Hunt filled up the box score with 16.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.6 blocks per contest. He made 53.8% of his field goal attempts, albeit just 28.6% of his three-pointers and 63.6% of his free throws.

Jeffries, who was in training camp with the Knicks this fall, has also been a mainstay in the Westchester lineup in the early part of the NBAGL season, averaging 14.6 PPG and 4.2 RPG in five appearances (30.2 MPG). Like Hunt, he has made more than half his shots from the floor (50.8%), but has been less efficient from beyond the arc (21.4%) and at the foul line (60.0%).

Jeffries, 25, has appeared in a total of 47 NBA games for Sacramento, Houston, and Memphis since going undrafted out of Tulsa in 2019. He has also represented Team USA in several qualifying games for the 2023 World Cup.

Assuming he signs within the next couple days, Jeffries will be eligible to appear in up to 38 regular season games for the Knicks as a two-way player. That’s a prorated portion of the 50 games that players on full-season two-way deals can play.

Hunt, meanwhile, will become an unrestricted NBA free agent if he clears waivers on Thursday. Westchester would still hold his G League rights if he chooses to remain with the team.

Quad Injury Doesn't Sideline Brunson

November 27th, 2022 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Knicks fans can breathe a sign of relief. There was concern that a right quad contusion could force Jalen Brunson to miss his first game since signing with the club. However, Brunson was in the lineup for their game against Memphis on Sunday, Ian Begley of SNY TV tweets.

The high-priced free agent entered the game leading the Knicks in scoring (21.8 points per game) and assists (6.5).

Atlantic Notes: Siakam, Milton, Niang, Toppin, Harris

November 27th, 2022 at 1:47pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Raptors star big man Pascal Siakam, who has been sidelined with a right adductor strain since November 4, was cleared for contact and fully participated in a team practice on Friday, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (via Twitter).

Lewenberg tweets that Siakam feels that he is improving daily, and remains deferential to Toronto’s medical staff when it comes to managing his ailment.

Toronto has upgraded Siakam’s status to questionable ahead of the team’s game against the Cavaliers on Monday night, reports Marc Stein (Twitter link). If Siakam is determined to be not quite ready for Monday’s game, he could return to the floor against the Pelicans on Wednesday, Lewenberg adds.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Sixers reserves Shake Milton and Georges Niang, both of whom will be unrestricted free agents in 2023, have been playing well in the absence of injured Philadelphia stars James Harden, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, writes Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com. Neubeck notes that Milton, who hadn’t received much playing time of late, has exhibited an enticing display of scoring, ball-handling, and off-ball defense as a fill-in starter that could earn him more minutes long-term. Neubeck adds that Niang’s reliable three-point shot has opened up the team’s offense when he plays.
Knicks backup power forward Obi Toppin is hoping to return to his early-season long-range shooting form, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “I feel like I’m still taking the right shots, it’s just not falling,” Toppin told Botte following a practice on Saturday. “I’m just in a little lull right now, and I’m gonna break out of that real soon. Have to start hitting shots again, and continue making the right plays. But I know I don’t have to shoot good to play good.” Toppin has shot just 16.7% from deep in his last five games. The 6’9″ big man had made 42.4% of his triples during New York’s first 14 contests.
Nets sharpshooter Joe Harris has seen his minutes reduced as his three-point shooting takes a dip, according to Mark W. Sanchez of The New York Post. Harris has shot just 2-of-16 from the floor across his last three Brooklyn games. “We really shortened the rotation,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said. Only eight Nets players logged for 10 minutes or more in a 128-117 Friday loss to the Pacers. At 12:02, Harris played the fewest minutes among that top eight.

Knicks Notes: Brunson, Rose, Barrett, Robinson

November 26th, 2022 at 5:10pm CST by Arthur Hill

A right quad contusion may force Jalen Brunson to miss his first game since signing with the Knicks, according to Peter Botte of The New York Post. Brunson suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Friday’s loss to Portland. He sat out today’s practice and is listed as questionable for Sunday when New York hosts the Grizzlies.

Brunson has been worth the $104MM investment that the Knicks made in free agency, leading the team with 21.8 points and 6.5 assists per game through the first quarter of the season. He has also become an on-court leader for a franchise that spent years searching for an answer at point guard.

“The leadership, I think point guard is a leadership position, and it helps you to manage and control the team,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “I think Jalen is so team-oriented, I think it makes your team play unselfishly. I think we’re scoring a lot of points, and he gives us an attack, a pace to the game, downhill, guys are playing off each other. And if you move and you’re open on a cut, he’s gonna hit you. He wants to get the ball up the floor fast and when we do that, I think it presents a lot of easy scoring opportunities for everybody.”

There’s more from New York City:

Derrick Rose participated in most of today’s practice after missing the past two games with an injured toe, Botte adds. Thibodeau said Rose looked “better,” but he’s still questionable for Sunday. Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride figure to see additional playing time if Brunson and Rose are out.
RJ Barrett‘s extended shooting slump continued Friday, but he told reporters, “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. I’m fine,” writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Barrett made 6-of-22 shots against the Trail Blazers and is now 36-of-114 in his last seven games. Thibodeau thought Barrett was too focused on trying to draw fouls rather than attacking the basket, and Barrett seemed to agree. “They were getting everything, I thought I would get some. Sheesh,” he said, referencing Portland’s 51 free throw attempts. “Second half I started going in more aggressively, trying to finish. I played a little better.”
Mitchell Robinson, who had to leave Monday’s game due to pain in his right knee, admitted that the knee still isn’t 100% but he’s trying to be available for the team, Braziller adds. Robinson played 23 minutes Friday with 12 points and eight rebounds.