Oklahoma City Thunder Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Thunder’s Nerlens Noel To Opt Out

June 27th, 2019 at 12:49pm CST by Luke Adams

Thunder center Nerlens Noel won’t exercise his 2019/20 player option, league sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Charania, Noel and the Thunder figure to discuss a potential reunion, but the big man is expected to draw interest from other suitors as well.

If Noel had opted in for ’19/20, he would’ve locked in a salary worth his minimum, $1,988,119, per Basketball Insiders. Instead, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent on Sunday.

After signing a minimum-salary deal with Oklahoma City last summer, Noel enjoyed a solid season as Steven Adams‘ backup, averaging 4.9 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 1.2 BPG in 77 games (13.7 MPG). The 25-year-old may not reach the ceiling that some experts anticipated when he was selected with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2013 draft, but his versatility and athleticism should appeal to some teams seeking frontcourt depth.

Assuming Noel signs elsewhere, the Thunder will have limited resources to replace him. OKC’s current commitments for 2019/20 already put team salary well above the projected tax threshold.

Now that we know which direction Noel is going, we’re just waiting for one last player-option decision, as our tracker shows. Nene‘s decision on a $3.8MM player option with the Rockets is the only one that has yet to be reported.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Named League MVP

June 24th, 2019 at 10:21pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo was named the league’s Most Valuable Player on Monday. NBA commissioner Adam Silver made the announcement at the league’s annual awards show.

Last year’s winner, Rockets guard James Harden, and Thunder forward Paul George were the other finalists.

Antetokounmpo’s overall excellence while leading the Bucks to a 60-22 record was enough to beat out Harden’s big scoring numbers. The Greek Freak averaged 27.7 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.5 blocks. Harden averaged 36.1 points, the highest total since Michael Jordan averaged 37.1 during the 1986/87 season.

The voting wasn’t as close as expected. Antetokounmpo received 78 of the 101 first-place votes and was second on the other 23 ballots. Harden had the reverse, with 23 first-place votes and 78 second-place selections.

The Bucks dominated the awards ceremony, as Mike Budenholzer won Coach of the Year and GM Jon Horst was named Executive of the Year.

Harden was Hoops Rumors’ consensus choice.

Links to the other major awards handed out on Monday can be found below:

Detialing Darius Bazley's Path To NBA

June 23rd, 2019 at 7:13pm CST by JD Shaw

Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman details Darius Bazley‘s uncommon path to the NBA. Bazley was selected by the Jazz with the No. 23 overall pick in the draft, who then traded him to Memphis. The Grizzlies later traded him to the Thunder.

Celtics Notes: Ainge, Adams, Dudley, Horford

June 23rd, 2019 at 10:21am CST by Arthur Hill

It’s been a rough few weeks for the Celtics since their playoff run ended, but president of basketball operations Danny Ainge insists he’s excited about the team’s new direction, relays Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. Kyrie Irving appears certain to leave Boston and Al Horford is gone as well. The Celtics missed out on Anthony Davis and traded Aron Baynes to the Suns. There’s also uncertainty over the future of free agents Terry Rozier and Marcus Morris. The benefit of all that movement is that the organization could have up to $34MM in cap room when free agency begins.

“We have a very attractive franchise to play for, and there’s a lot of people who would be dying to come play here,” Ainge said.

The Celtics’ first step into the future came at Thursday’s draft, where they picked up Romeo Langford and Grant Williams in the first round and Carsen Edwards and Tremont Waters in the second round. Forsberg notes that Ainge pointed frequently to the character of his draft class.

“Good people. Actually all four of (the picks).” Ainge said. “Very good guys. That played a very big part into why we selected them. Who they are, not just what they are capable of doing on the court. Very excited about their personalities and their character and I think they have the will to become great.”

There’s more this morning out of Boston:

Steven Adams could be a possibility if the Celtics want to solve their center issue through trade rather than free agency, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston. The Thunder are looking to trim salary to reduce their league-high luxury tax bill and may be willing to part with Adams, who will make $25.8MM next season and $27.5MM in 2020/21. Adams is among the league’s best defenders and rebounds and has a career shooting percentage of .588. Blakely lists Nikola Vucevic, Dewayne Dedmon, Ed Davis and Noah Vonleh as other possible targets.
Free agent Jared Dudley had good things to say about Celtics coach Brad Stevens in a tweet on Friday. Dudley responded to a question about Stevens by posting, “One of the best X and O’s in the game.. players coach but not afraid to try all types of lineups… Rewards playing time by playing smart but Hard.. heard only good things.” Dudley has expressed interest in joining the Celtics, notes Michael DePrisco of NBC Sports Boston.
Celtics legend and ESPN analyst Paul Pierce supports Horford’s decision to leave the team. “A lot of these guys when they get in their late 20’s or early 30’s and they know there’s light at the end of the tunnel, they try to maximize their dollars,” Pierce said in an interview with John Karalis of MassLive. “So if there’s an opportunity for Al Horford to get more money, I’m sure that’s something you have to look into.”

George Expected To Miss Most Of Preseason

June 22nd, 2019 at 10:40am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Thunder will get a better read on Paul George‘s status in late September, Erik Horne of The Oklahoman reports. He’s expected to miss most of the preseason after undergoing offseason surgeries to his right rotator cuff and left labrum. “He’s doing well,” GM Sam Presti said. “He’s going to make a full recovery.” Shooting guard Andre Roberson, who hasn’t played since January 2018 after suffering a serious knee injury, has been training in Texas, Horne adds.
Thunder center Steven Adams won’t play for New Zealand in the FIBA World Cup this summer, according to Sportando.

Luguentz Dort Signs Two-Way Deal With OKC

June 21st, 2019 at 12:32am CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 6: The Thunder have officially signed Dort to his two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release.

JUNE 21: The Thunder will sign Arizona State’s Luguentz Dort to a two-way contract, tweets Jonathan Givony of Draft Express.

Dort was one of the more surprising players to be passed over on draft night, as Givony had him going at No. 34 in his final mock draft. It’s not clear why Dort wasn’t taken, but sources tell Givony that he turned down a few draft-and-stash opportunities.

It may turn out to be good fortune for the Thunder, who get a low-cost chance to evaluate Dort. The 20-year-old guard was a versatile defender in college and a strong finisher in the transition game. He averaged 16.1 PPG in his only season with the Sun Devils.

Grizzlies Trade For No. 21 Pick Brandon Clarke

June 20th, 2019 at 8:49pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The trade is official, the Thunder announced today in a press release. Clarke and Bazley will now get the opportunity to join the Grizzlies and Thunder, respectively, in Las Vegas Summer League.

JUNE 21: The 2024 pick going to the Thunder in the trade is Memphis’ own pick, Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian clarifies (via Twitter). This deal won’t be officially completed until the new league year begins, since the No. 23 pick is tied up in the Mike Conley trade that’s not yet official.

JUNE 20: The Thunder and Grizzlies have reached an agreement to swap first-round picks, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter), Memphis is sending a 2024 second-round pick to Oklahoma City in order to move up from No. 23 to No. 21. The Grizzlies have used that 21st overall pick to select Gonzaga forward Brandon Clarke.

The Thunder had reportedly been exploring the trade market in deals that might have reduced their team salary for 2019/20, using the No. 21 pick as a sweetener. This trade won’t help the club shed salary, though the cap hold for the No. 23 selection will be slightly smaller than that of the No. 21 pick. Oklahoma City used that pick to select Darius Bazley.

The Grizzlies, meanwhile, added a player in Clarke who was viewed as a potential lottery pick heading into the night. He averaged 16.9 PPG and 8.6 RPG with a .687 FG% in his first season with the Zags in 2018/19 before he declared for the draft. In Memphis, he’ll team up Ja Morant, whom the Grizzlies drafted with the No. 2 overall pick earlier in the evening.

Draft-Night Notes: Bazley, Thunder, Bulls, Suns

June 20th, 2019 at 8:13pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Some teams holding mid-first-round picks have expressed interest in forward Darius Bazley and he could go earlier than projected, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today tweets. A McDonald’s All-American, Bazley didn’t go to college and instead spent the year preparing for the draft.

We have more draft nuggets:

The Thunder are engaged in trade talk with teams to move back in first round from the No. 21 pick, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.
The Bulls didn’t shop shooting guard Zach LaVine when they explored ways to move up in the lottery, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Chicago wound up holding onto the No. 7 pick and selecting North Carolina point guard Coby White. LaVine has three years and $58.5MM remaining on his contract.
The Suns’ selection of North Carolina power forward Cameron Johnson at No. 11 after trading down from the No. 6 pick earlier in the day was the surprise of the lottery. According to SInow’s Jake Fischer, it was an even bigger surprise due to injury concerns. Several teams red-flagged Johnson out of the first round due to his history of ailments on both hips (Twitter link).
The Sixers are trying to move up from the No. 24 pick, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. They’re hoping to snag either UNC small forward Nassir Little or USC shooting guard Kevin Porter Jr. and could wind up with one of them even if they don’t make a deal, Pompey adds.

Draft Rumors: Trades, Knicks, Celtics, Warriors

June 20th, 2019 at 4:22pm CST by Luke Adams

There’s an “ongoing flurry” of trade talks involving draft picks in the 20-23 range, league sources tell Jake Fischer of SI.com (Twitter link). According to Fischer, teams like the Warriors, Nets, Kings, Mavericks, and Spurs have expressed interest in moving up into that range of the draft.

The Celtics hold the 20th and 22nd overall picks, and are unlikely to use all three of their first-rounders (they also have No. 14), so it makes sense that they’d be listening to inquiries. The Thunder are picking at No. 21 and have reportedly explored moving their pick in an effort to reduce team salary. The Grizzlies are acquiring No. 23 overall in the Mike Conley trade and are said to be listening to offers for the selection, which is their second of the first round.

Here are a few more draft-related notes and rumors:

The Knicks are interested in buying another second-round pick, league sources tell Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter link). New York, which currently holds the No. 55 overall pick to go along with No. 3, hasn’t sent out any cash in trades so far this season, so the team has flexibility to make a move.
League sources tell Fischer and Jeremy Woo of SI.com (Twitter links) that the Celtics brought in six players for last-minute workouts on Wednesday: Darius Bazley, Jalen Lecque, Tremont Waters, Jordan Bone, Chris Clemons, and Jared Harper. It was the second workout with Boston for all six prospects.
People around the NBA are wondering how early the Warriors would be willing to draft Serbian power forward Alen Smailagic, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN.com. Smailagic played in the G League for Santa Cruz in 2018/19 but wasn’t draft-eligible until this year. He was shut down early in the pre-draft process and was “hidden” in Serbia from the rest of the NBA, according to Givony, who wonders if Golden State would use its newly-acquired No. 41 pick on Smailagic.
There are about 35 players whom various sources feel confident will be first-round picks, tweets Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. In other words, it’s tough to determine exactly which players will come off the board in the back half of the first round tonight.

Draft Rumors: Knicks, Barrett, Herro, Porter, More

June 19th, 2019 at 4:10pm CST by Luke Adams

Although they brought in Vanderbilt point guard Darius Garland for a last-minute workout today, the Knicks remain locked in on selecting Duke forward R.J. Barrett with the No. 3 overall pick, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

With just over 24 hours to go until the 2019 NBA draft, rumors continue to trickle in about which prospects other teams might be targeting with their first-round picks. Jeremy Woo and Jake Fischer of SI.com suggest that league sources believe the Celtics – who hold Nos. 14, 20, and 22 – have serious interest in Kentucky sharpshooter Tyler Herro. The SI duo also reports that the Spurs – who pick at 19 and 29 – are among the teams with real interest in Croatian forward Luka Samanic.

Woo and Fischer share a few more tidbits in their latest mock draft, writing that the Hornets, Heat, and Celtics are all showing “a degree of interest” in USC’s Kevin Porter Jr., who could be in play to come off the board near the end of the lottery.

League sources also tell SI.com that the Magic have put the No. 46 pick on the trade block and could sell it, with the Lakers, Wizards, and Trail Blazers among the teams believed to have interest in purchasing a second-rounder.

Here’s more on the draft:

Kevin Porter Jr. (USC), Nicolas Claxton (Georgia), and Mfiondu Kabengele (Florida State) have received last-minute invites to the Green Room for Thursday’s NBA draft, reports ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter links). That increases the number of prospects expected to be in attendance in the Green Room to 23, Givony notes.
Speaking today to reporters, including Jake Fischer of SI.com (Twitter link), Texas center Jaxson Hayes said he only worked out for two teams, the Bulls and Hawks, during the pre-draft process. Those clubs hold three top-10 picks between them.
UNC guard Coby White also confirmed his pre-draft workouts today, as Gina Mizell of The Athletic relays (via Twitter). White worked out for four lottery teams, including the Suns and Bulls, who are both believed to be in the market for a point guard.
Terry Harris, the younger brother of pending free agent Tobias Harris, is seeing his stock rise, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays (Twitter link). The younger Harris has worked out for the Suns and Thunder, among many other teams.

Chris Crouse contributed to this post.