- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hit a game-winning shot for the Thunder in a two-point victory over the Trail Blazers on Monday. Gilgeous-Alexander says he’s “super comfortable” in those situations, according to The Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto. His teammates concur. “The ball had to end up in our best player’s hand,” guard Luguenz Dort said.
- The Thunder picked up a three-point specialist when they signed Isaiah Joe after the Sixers waived him in training camp, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. Joe has claimed a rotation spot by shooting 46% from beyond the arc, and he was 5-of-8 in a career-high 23-point game Saturday night. “I’m definitely more than just a shooter,” Joe said, “and that’s gonna come out over time, but right now I just feel like this is what the team needs, and I’m going to aspire to be the best at it.”
- Thunder point guard Tre Mann is taking a positive approach toward his G League assignment, Mussatto tweets. Mann plans to focus on his catch-and-shoot game while he’s with the Oklahoma City Blue. “My mindset is do whatever I’ve gotta do to be the best player I can be,” he said. “That’s what we feel is best for me — me and the coaches. I understand it. I’m gonna go down there and get better.”
Thunder rookie Ousmane Dieng, the No. 11 overall pick of June’s draft, has been diagnosed with a small, non-displaced fracture in his right wrist and will be reevaluated in about six weeks, the team announced (via Twitter).
Dieng also suffered a “slight chip fracture” in his right wrist during Summer League action, but Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman reports (via Twitter) that the two injuries aren’t related.
Dieng was viewed as a developmental prospect after playing last season for the New Zealand Breakers in Australia’s National Basketball League. The French 19-year-old was the first top European prospect to take advantage of the NBL’s Next Stars program.
The 6’10” forward hasn’t played much at the NBA level thus far, appearing in 14 games (15.7 MPG) while averaging 4.4 PPG, 2.9 RPG and 1.4 APG.
However, he has played extensively in the G League — he suffered the injury in Wednesday’s game for the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s affiliate. In 11 games with the Blue, he averaged 15.8 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.2 BPG on .449/.343/.700 shooting.
Dieng hasn’t been a regular member of the Thunder’s rotation, so his absence won’t necessarily impact other players. Still, it’s an unfortunate setback for the versatile teenager, and hopefully he recovers quickly.
- Thunder forward/center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl isn’t expected to return from his right ankle sprain anytime soon. Head coach Mark Daigneault referred to Robinson-Earl as week-to-week rather than day-to-day, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman, who tweets that Daigneault called the injury an “impressive” sprain.
- Asked about Darius Bazley possibly re-entering the rotation, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault responded with a general answer, tweets Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. “We’re trying to help every guy understand their individual style of play that maximizes their strength and maximizes their ability to impact the team,” Daigneault said. “I would say that’s basically the template, the blueprint for every guy.”
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having an outstanding season in 2022/23, and looks destined for his first All-Star and All-NBA appearances. He’s third in the league in scoring at 31.1 PPG, and is also averaging 4.7 RPG, 6.0 APG, 1.7 SPG and 1.1 BPG on .500/.324/.926 shooting through 23 games (35.7 MPG).
In a lengthy profile on Gilgeous-Alexander’s emergence as a star, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (subscriber link) writes that, despite external speculation that the 24-year-old might grow impatient with the Thunder’s rebuild and eventually seek a trade, there’s no sense of that happening within the organization. Gilgeous-Alexander says he has a lot of faith in GM Sam Presti.
“It’s always easy to trust someone when they haven’t given you a reason not to trust them,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It’s always easier to trust someone when they tell you something and it happens. And that’s been my relationship with Sam so far.
“Everything he’s told me has happened, and he’s never lied to me … It’s easy to work — well, it’s crazy that basketball is work — but it’s easier to play basketball and put your all into every day and believe in the future when it’s a guy like that running the show.”
Here’s more from the West:
- Prior to the Timberwolves‘ matchup with the Jazz on Friday, which the Wolves won 118-108 to move to 13-12, Michael Rand of The Star Tribune wrote an article about whether Minnesota would still make the Rudy Gobert deal right now, with the knowledge that the start to the season would be uneven. He believes the answer is “probably,” because while there have definitely been bumps along the way, Gobert has played better of late and he’s starting to develop some chemistry with teammates.
- Dyson Daniels, the No. 8 overall pick in June’s draft, has emerged as an immediate contributor to the West’s No. 1 seed due to his strong defense, writes William Guillory of The Athletic. The 19-year-old Pelicans guard says he welcomes the challenge of guarding top players. “I like when people go at me. I love to accept that challenge,” Daniels said. “I want to show them that I’m here for a reason and I can defend. … Guys always want to go at the rookie, and I’m fine with that. It only makes me better.”
- Rockets guard Jalen Green, last year’s No. 2 overall pick, has had a bit of an up-and-down second season thus far, which is to be expected for a young player on a rebuilding club. According to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, Green focuses on big-picture growth and has proven to be a sponge when it comes to soaking up information and watching film.
- As expected – and as long planned – Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren underwent a successful “secondary” procedure on his foot on Tuesday to remove hardware from his initial Lisfranc surgery in August, the team announced. According to the Thunder, the timeline for Holmgren’s recovery hasn’t changed, and he remains on track to return for the 2023/24 season.
A number of NBA executives who have spoken to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype are “closely monitoring” the Bulls, Scotto told co-host Yossi Gozlan in the latest episode of the HoopsHype podcast. With Chicago off to an underwhelming 9-14 start and with no indication of when Lonzo Ball might be back on the court, teams are curious to see whether the club might become a seller.
There’s “a lot” of league-wide interest in DeMar DeRozan, according to Scotto, who says Nikola Vucevic is another name that figures to pop up in trade rumors over the next couple months. Scotto adds that some teams would have interest in Zach LaVine too, but the Bulls seem unlikely to move him midway through the first season of a five-year, maximum-salary contract.
Having signed with the Bulls over the summer, Goran Dragic and Andre Drummond will become trade-eligible on December 15, and Scotto suggests they could be worth keeping an eye on if Chicago does decide to sell, since both players are low-cost veterans who could slide into rotation roles on playoff teams.
Here are a few more highlights from the podcast:
- With JaVale McGee out of the rotation, it’s possible the Mavericks could peruse the trade market in search of another center. According to Scotto, if Dallas does look into that possibility, any trade target would have to be an upgrade defensively and a contrast to Christian Wood.
- Scotto has heard from some executives that the Suns ideally don’t want to add any extra salary to their books in a Jae Crowder trade. Crowder is on an expiring $10.2MM deal.
- Thunder big man Mike Muscala drew interest from about 10 teams as a free agent this past offseason, so if Oklahoma City is willing to make him available, he’d likely be a popular low-cost target, says Scotto. Due to the terms of his contract, Muscala has the ability to veto any trade that involves him.
- The Wizards hope to get Delon Wright within the next two weeks, per Scotto. A weekend report suggested the veteran guard could even be back in action this week.
Pacers reserve swingman Bennedict Mathurin and Thunder wing Jalen Williams have been voted the Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month for October and November, the league announced (Twitter link). Since the 2022/23 regular season only got underway in late October, the partial month was folded into November in this instance.
Drafted with the sixth pick out of Arizona, the 6’6″ Mathurin is averaging 19.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.5 APG and 0.6 SPG in 28 MPG off the bench for the 12-9 Pacers.
Williams, the No. 12 selection out of Santa Clara, is averaging 10.7 PPG on 52.4% field goal shooting, along with 3.2 RPG and 2.6 APG for a solid 9-13 Oklahoma City squad.
The NBA adds (via Twitter) that Rockets power forwards Tari Eason and Jabari Smith Jr., Kings power forward Keegan Murray, Trail Blazers rookie guard Shaedon Sharpe, Magic big man Paolo Banchero, Hawks wing AJ Griffin, Pistons guard Jaden Ivey, and Mathurin’s Indiana teammate Andrew Nembhard were also nominees for the honor.
Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. (left heel contusion) will miss his fourth consecutive game on Wednesday, but Denver will get some reinforcements vs. Houston with Bones Hyland (non-COVID illness) set to make his return following a three-game absence, per Harrison Wind or DNVR Sports (Twitter links).
Hyland last played on November 22 and was hampered by his illness on that night, logging just nine minutes. The Nuggets guard said today that he “couldn’t breathe on the floor” during that game, but is “feeling great” now, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post.
Here are a few more health-related updates from around the NBA:
- Heat guard Victor Oladipo practiced with the team on Tuesday, but there wasn’t any contact during that session and he won’t play on the current road trip, which runs through next Monday, head coach Erik Spoelstra said today (link via Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel). While Oladipo hasn’t played yet this season due to left knee tendinosis, it sounds like he’s making progress toward a return.
- Pelicans guard CJ McCollum has exited the NBA’s health and safety protocols, but will remain sidelined on Wednesday as he attempts to get back into game shape, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. New Orleans did get some good news on Larry Nance Jr. — he’ll be available after missing Monday’s game with a right shoulder injury.
- Still without Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, and Luke Kennard, the Clippers added Norman Powell to their injury report for Wednesday’s game in Utah due to a left groin strain. Powell is doubtful to play, says Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link).
- Thunder big man Chet Holmgren will undergo a follow-up procedure to remove the “hardware” in his right foot from his previous surgery, a team spokesperson tells Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. The procedure had been planned and is a sign that Holmgren is making progress, Mussatto adds.