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Pacers, Lakers First Teams To Clinch Tournament Quarterfinal Spots

November 22nd, 2023 at 7:21am CST by Luke Adams

The first two quarterfinalists for the NBA’s inaugural in-season tournament were determined on Tuesday, as the Pacers‘ win over Atlanta and the Lakers‘ blowout of Utah ensured that both clubs will advance to the knockout round of the tournament.

Indiana, the winner of East Group A, is 3-0 in round robin play and holds the tiebreaker over the 2-1 Cavaliers due to their head-to-head record. Cleveland remains in the hunt for the East’s wild card spot.

As for the Lakers, they’ve played their full round robin slate in West Group A and won all four games, with a +74 point differential. The club has secured home court advantage for the quarterfinals and is in strong position to claim the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed.

Only two other undefeated teams are left in the West and those two clubs – the Kings and Timberwolves – will have to face each other this Friday. If either Sacramento or Minnesota finishes with a 4-0 record in group play, point differential would be the tiebreaker to determine seeding — the two clubs are only +16 and +10, respectively, through two games and would probably need a pair of blowout victories to pass the Lakers.

By making the quarterfinals, the Pacers and Lakers have clinched per-player bonuses worth at least $50K. The value of those bonuses would increase to $100K if they advance to the semifinals, $200K if they make the final, and $500K if they win the entire tournament. The Lakers haven’t been shy about referring to that prize money as a motivating factor, as Dave McMenamin of ESPN notes.

“It’s not a run-of-the-mill regular-season game,” Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said after Tuesday’s win. “They’re well aware. That purse is pretty attractive. … Guys like money. … Not like it, they love it. That incentive right there — it’s huge.”

Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton and head coach Rick Carlisle said this week that they appreciate the fact that the in-season tournament has given a young club – which hasn’t made the playoffs since 2020 – a chance to compete in meaningful games.

The Pistons, Wizards, Trail Blazers, Grizzlies, and Spurs have been eliminated from quarterfinal contention, but every other team technically remains alive. The full in-season tournament standings can be found here.

Timberwolves’ Jaden McDaniels Sidelined At Least Two Weeks

November 21st, 2023 at 8:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves will be without one of their starters for at least the remainder of the month.

Forward Jaden McDaniels, who sprained his right ankle during the first quarter in Monday’s 117-100 victory over the Knicks, is expected to miss two-to-three weeks, according to a team press release.

McDaniels underwent an MRI on Tuesday at the Mayo Clinic which confirmed a Grade 1 right lateral ankle sprain. His will be reevaluated in one week.

While McDaniels isn’t asked for much offensively — he averages 7.2 shots per game — he’s an essential part of the Timberwolves’ defense. In 11 starts this season, he’s averaging 9.5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 23.6 minutes per game. Last season, McDaniels started 79 games, averaging 12.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 30.6 minutes.

Minnesota made a major commitment to McDaniels this summer, handing him a five-year extension that can be worth up to $136MM.

Michael Malone Signs Extension With Nuggets

November 21st, 2023 at 4:42pm CST by Arthur Hill

NOVEMBER 21: The multiyear extension is official, the team announced in a press release.

“We are thrilled to announce this extension with Coach Malone and to keep him leading the Nuggets for years to come,” said Kroenke Sports & Entertainment vice chairman Josh Kroenke. “To see our team continue to improve year after year, culminating with our ultimate goal of an NBA championship is exactly what we all envisioned on the day we hired Michael in 2015. This extension is extremely well deserved and there’s no question about the commitment and dedication that Michael has shown to our organization.”

NOVEMBER 13: After winning the NBA title, Nuggets coach Michael Malone has been rewarded with an extension that will make him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Malone’s extension will cover two more years in addition to the two remaining on his current deal, a source tells Mike Singer (Twitter link). That would put him under contract through the 2026/27 season.

Malone came to Denver in 2015, taking over a team that was near the bottom of the league. After missing the playoffs in his first three seasons, he has guided the Nuggets to the postseason in each of the past five years, culminating last spring with the first championship in franchise history.

With 375 wins in Denver, Malone is already third on the Nuggets’ career list behind Doug Moe and George Karl, and he’s likely to move into the top spot by next season. Wojnarowski points out that Denver has the NBA’s second-best winning percentage since 2018/19, behind only Milwaukee.

Malone is the fourth longest-tenured coach in the league, Woj adds. Only Gregg Popovich, Erick Spoelstra and Steve Kerr have spent more time with their current teams.

[RELATED: Longest-Tenured NBA Head Coaches]

Malone, 52, is the son of former NBA coach Brendan Malone, who passed away last month. He also served as head coach of the Kings for a little more than a season prior to his time with the Nuggets and spent time as an assistant with the Knicks, Cavaliers, Hornets and Warriors.

Pistons’ Monte Morris Out At Least 6-8 More Weeks

November 21st, 2023 at 2:28pm CST by Luke Adams

Monte Morris‘ debut for the Pistons is unlikely to happen until 2024. The team announced today in a press release that Morris, who continues to rehab a right quad strain, underwent a PRP (platelet rich plasma) injection last Friday and is expected to be reevaluated in about six-to-eight weeks.

Detroit acquired Morris from the Wizards in a July trade in exchange for a future second-round pick. The plan was for him to be a steady presence in a young backcourt that features recent first-rounders like Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Killian Hayes, and Marcus Sasser.

However, Morris was affected during the preseason by lower back soreness, then hurt his quad while rehabbing his back injury. He has yet to play this season, and even if he can return in just six weeks, that would mean he’d be sidelined until early January.

Morris, a Michigan native, averaged 10.3 points, 5.3 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in 27.3 minutes per night last season for the Wizards, posting a shooting line of .480/.382/.831 in 62 games (61 starts).

The Pistons’ press release did include a couple health updates that are more positive. Jalen Duren (right ankle) is expected to return to practice this week, according to the team, while Bojan Bogdanovic (right calf strain) has begun a return-to-play progression and has been cleared for full contact. Duren has missed the past five games, while Bogdanovic has yet to play this season.

Knicks’ Dolan Resigned From NBA Board Committee Positions

November 21st, 2023 at 12:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks owner James Dolan stepped down from his positions on the NBA Board of Governors’ advisory/finance committee and media committee several months ago, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Dolan also informed the league at that time that he no longer intends to attend Board of Governors meetings.

“Given all that has occurred lately, I have come to the conclusion that the NBA neither needs nor wants my opinion,” Dolan wrote in a July memo to commissioner Adam Silver and the league’s other 29 team owners, per Wojnarowski.

“My hope is that the Knicks will be treated equally and fairly as all other NBA teams,” Dolan stated. “… As you know, I am very busy with all my duties at MSG family of companies. I need to apply my time where I can be most productive.”

As Wojnarowski explains, Dolan has been “increasingly critical” of both Silver and the NBA on several issues. Notably, sources tell ESPN, he has expressed dissatisfaction with elements of the league’s revenue sharing system, which requires high-earning teams like the Knicks to share their revenues with smaller-market teams.

Since resigning from his Board of Governors committee positions, Dolan and the Knicks launched a lawsuit against the Raptors seeking more than $10MM in damages over an issue that would typically be arbitrated by the NBA. The suit, which alleges that a former team employee illegally took files with him to his new position in Toronto, accused Silver of bias due to his friendship with Raptors chairman Larry Tanenbaum and Tanenbaum’s position as chairman of the Board of Governors.

Although Knicks general counsel Jamaal Lesane is now representing the franchise at Board of Governors meetings in place of Dolan, the Knicks owner didn’t give up his voting power, according to Wojnarowski.

As Woj points out, the Knicks have been the lone dissenter in two recent votes that otherwise would have been unanimous — Dolan voted against approving the sale of the majority share of the Hornets to Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin; he also voted against WNBA expansion to San Francisco.

While ESPN’s report may not provide a full picture of everything going on behind the scenes here, Dolan’s recent actions – including those dissenting votes and his claim that the league “neither needs nor wants my opinion” – suggest he’s staging a passive-aggressive protest against the NBA due to his unhappiness about certain policies. That wouldn’t be out of character for a team owner who has a reputation for pettiness.

Knicks Respond To Raptors’ Motion, Don’t Want Silver To Rule On Dispute

November 20th, 2023 at 5:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks have responded to a motion filed by the Raptors that sought to dismiss New York’s lawsuit against them, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post reports. The Knicks are seeking more than $10MM in their lawsuit and have also dragged commissioner Adam Silver’s name into the dispute between the Atlantic Division clubs.

The Knicks argued that the court system should handle the matter, rather than the NBA, because of Silver’s allegedly tight relationship with Toronto minority owner Larry Tanenbaum.

Tanenbaum is currently the NBA’s Chairman of the Board of Governors.

The Knicks wrote in their 24-page response on Monday, “Silver himself described Tanenbaum as ‘not just my boss as the chairman of the Board of Governors, but he’s very much a role model in my life. If Silver were to preside over the instant dispute, he would be arbitrating a case for his boss and ally,” ESPN’s Baxter Holmes tweets.

The Knicks also inferred that Tanenbaum was handpicked by Silver as Chairman, Bondy adds.

The lawsuit stems from their allegations that Ikechukwu Azotam, a former Knicks video coordinator, stole scouting and analytics secrets – including files containing “over 3,000 videos” – and gave them to the Raptors after he was hired by their organization. Azotam and Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic were also named in the suit.

In the motion to dismiss, Toronto called the lawsuit “baseless” and “a public relations stunt” by the Knicks. The Raptors also wrote that the dispute should be handled by Silver instead of a federal judge, pursuant to a bylaw in the NBA’s constitution that reads, “The Commissioner shall have exclusive, full, complete, and final jurisdiction of any dispute involving two (2) or more Members of the Association.”

The Knicks also claim that since their damages exceed $10MM, which is more than NBA can penalize a team, the courts should handle the case rather than the league office, Mike Vornukov of The Athetic tweets.

Cade Cunningham On Pistons: “We’re Bad,” Compete Level “Unacceptable”

November 20th, 2023 at 8:33am CST by Luke Adams

After winning two of their first three games to open the season, the Pistons have dropped 11 in a row. The 11th game of the losing streak was especially ugly, as the team surrendered a season-high 142 points in Toronto on Sunday and never held a lead in the 29-point defeat.

While head coach Monty Williams has said he’s encouraged by the progress his young team has made behind the scenes, point guard Cade Cunningham expressed displeasure with the Pistons’ effort level and said the club has to “be realistic” about its situation.

“It’s hard to just be like, ‘We’re good, we’re good,’ you know what I’m saying? Because we’re bad,” Cunningham said, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. “We have to address that. We have to address what we’re not good at. Address it with not only our words but on the court, in the huddles.”

Williams isn’t wrong that the Pistons have been a little better than their record suggests. Entering Sunday’s action, the team sat dead last in the NBA’s standings, but only had the league’s seventh-worst net rating (-4.8) despite dealing with a handful of injuries to key players, including Bojan Bogdanovic, who has yet to play this season.

That net rating took a hit in Sunday’s blowout loss, however, and Cunningham suggested the team’s compete level in Toronto was “unacceptable.”

“We’re the youngest team in the league, scrapping and clawing for everything,” Cunningham said. “That should be the last thing that needs to be asked of us or talked about; how hard we’re competing. That should be a given. When we wake up in the morning, we should be like, ‘We got to get to the court.’ (Williams) shouldn’t have to ask (about our competitive level). That’s something me and (Isaiah Stewart) are also trying to stay vocal about. Everyone has to come with it.”

As Edwards writes, Cunningham’s comments may be a good thing for the club. The former No. 1 overall pick is the face of the franchise and a leader in the locker room, so if anyone is going to step up and try to jump-start a turnaround, it should be him. According to Edwards, Cunningham and Stewart have helped keep the locker room connected, so there’s no “turmoil and friction” to worry about.

It won’t be easy for the Pistons to end their losing streak on Monday though — on the second end of a back-to-back set, they’ll host the defending-champion Nuggets.

Bulls Front Office Reportedly “Less Than Thrilled” With LaVine

November 19th, 2023 at 5:23pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Bulls secured a come-from-behind, 21-point comeback win against the Heat on Saturday, but the victory wasn’t without drama, according to the Chicago Sun-Times’ Joe Cowley.

Star guard Zach LaVine “all but stormed off” the court and cameras caught him pulling his arm away from the team’s public relations director during an attempt to get him to fulfill his post-game media obligations, Cowley writes.

“Just a miscommunication with the PR team,” LaVine said. “We’re all fine.”

According to Cowley’s sources, Chicago’s front office was immediately made aware of the situation and are “less than thrilled” with LaVine’s actions. Further, Cowley adds that when coach Billy Donovan found out about the incident, he was “downright ticked.”

All of this comes off the heels of reporting over the past week indicating LaVine and the Bulls are both open to exploring a potential change of scenery.

LaVine is one of the league’s premier scorers, averaging 24.4 points and shooting 38.4% from deep since arriving in Chicago. Despite his individual success, the Bulls have just one playoff appearance in the six full seasons he’s been there and at 5-9 this year, look to be fast-tracking toward missing the playoffs or an early exit.

Of course, the Bulls’ issues don’t start and end with LaVine. To his credit, he emerged into a two-time All-Star there and Chicago has dealt with numerous issues during his time with the team. The biggest what-if facing this current grouping is the long-term absence of Lonzo Ball, who hasn’t played since Jan. 14, 2022 and isn’t expected back anytime soon. When Ball was healthy, the Bulls were 26-10 at one point and sat atop the Eastern Conference standings with this very core.

Additionally, the post-game issues could have truly been a misunderstanding. Still, Cowley reporting anger from Chicago management and coaching is significant and adds another chapter to the perception of disconnect between the parties.

Latest On Bulls, Zach LaVine

November 17th, 2023 at 9:42pm CST by Rory Maher

The Bulls explored Zach LaVine trades over the offseason, but they had a very high asking price — the fact that they’re open to moving him isn’t new. However, LaVine had always remained loyal to Chicago, and he’s now open to a trade himself — something he didn’t deny when asked about it this week.

According to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, LaVine doesn’t think the Bulls will be able to turn into a contender in the East after being mired in mediocrity ever since Lonzo Ball injured his knee in January 2022. Multiple sources tell Fischer that LaVine would prefer to play under a new head coach as well, which aligns with recent reporting that the two-time All-Star may not be the biggest fan of Billy Donovan.

As Fischer observes, while LaVine is one of the most talented scorers in the league, there are reasons why other players on the roster could have more trade value. He’s not known for his defense, he’s in the second season of a five-year, maximum-salary contract, and he’s had multiple knee injuries in the past.

Still, there are plenty of teams interested in LaVine, according to Fischer, who says rival executives view the shooting guard as more of a complementary piece rather than a player to build around. A potential deal isn’t expected to come together in the near future, which is typical considering many players around the league aren’t eligible to be traded but will be in a month or two.

Sources tell Fischer that LaVine would like to play for a “winning franchise” and he has interest in the Lakers, Heat and Sixers, who were all previously identified as potential suitors. But there are questions about whether any of those teams will ultimately pursue him for various reasons, particularly Philadelphia, which prefers to add more of a two-way player.

That list is far from comprehensive, however. They aren’t a winner at the moment, but LaVine is interested in joining the Spurs and No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama — as Fischer writes, LaVine played under Gregg Popovich on Team USA in the 2020 Olympics, winning a gold medal with the Hall of Fame coach.

Sources tell Fischer that LaVine has interest in several other teams as well, including the Kings. LaVine signed an offer sheet with Sacramento as a restricted free agent back in 2018, though that was under a different front office regime, Fischer notes.

While recent reports have indicated that the 4-9 Bulls are unlikely to entertain a rebuild even if they continue to struggle, Fischer hears ownership has recently changed its stance and would be open to dealing additional veterans beyond LaVine. That could include DeMar DeRozan, who is on an expiring $28.6MM contract, and All-Defensive guard Alex Caruso.

If Caruso does become available, his market would be robust, according to Fischer, who writes that the Bulls have asked for multiple first-round picks in exchange for the 29-year-old in the past. Due to Caruso’s favorable contract (he’s owed $19.4MM over the next two seasons) and the winning plays he makes on the court, Fischer believes Chicago could indeed get a couple first-rounders for him.

Grizzlies’ Marcus Smart Out 3-5 Weeks With Foot Sprain

November 17th, 2023 at 5:12pm CST by Rory Maher

Grizzlies guard Marcus Smart is expected to miss three-to-five weeks after being diagnosed with a left foot sprain, the team announced in a press release (via Twitter).

Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) first reported that Smart is expected to miss multiple weeks as a result of the injury, which occurred during Tuesday’s loss to the Lakers. Smart left the game in the first quarter after landing on Austin Reaves‘ foot while contesting a shot (Twitter video link via Bally Sports).

Smart, 29, was acquired in a three-team trade this offseason that involved Boston and Washington. The 2021/22 Defensive Player of the Year is averaging 12.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.0 steals on .429/.295/.810 shooting in 11 games this season (29.9 minutes per night).

It’s a tough blow for the Grizzlies, who won 50-plus games each of the past two seasons but are currently 2-9 and rank last in the Western Conference. Injuries and a suspension have played a major part in that, and losing Smart certainly won’t help matters.

Luke Kennard also left Tuesday’s game early after sustaining a left knee bone bruise, and he has been ruled out for Saturday’s game in San Antonio (Twitter link via the Grizzlies). The sharpshooting guard led the NBA in three-point percentage the past two seasons.

The Grizzlies are particularly shorthanded at point guard, with Ja Morant out for the first 25 games of 2023/24 after being suspended multiple times in the past year. Derrick Rose has also been out since October 30 due to a left knee injury, but he’s officially listed as questionable for Saturday’s game, so he may be back soon.

The frontcourt is another area of the roster that has been decimated by injuries. Steven Adams is out for the year after undergoing season-ending knee surgery, while Brandon Clarke figures to remain on the shelf for most of the season after tearing his Achilles tendon in March. Xavier Tillman has missed four of the past five games with a left knee injury, and he’s out Saturday as well.

For what it’s worth, the Grizzlies could qualify for a second extra roster spot via a hardship exception, but that would require four players to have missed at least three consecutive games due to an injury or illness, with an expectation they’d remain sidelined for some time beyond those three games, and they don’t meet that criteria right now. Bismack Biyombo currently occupies the first extra spot after Morant was placed on the suspended list.

Two-way player Jacob Gilyard, a 5’9″ point guard, has started the past three games for Memphis and will likely continue to receive extended run until the Grizzlies get more reinforcements back.