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Nets Notes: Offseason Needs, C. Johnson, Curry, Watanabe

April 22nd, 2023 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Nets may be encouraged by how they performed after trading Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, but they’ll need to add rebounders and shot creators to get past the first round of the playoffs, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Brooklyn couldn’t muster a single win in its series against the Sixers, even with Joel Embiid sidelined today with a sprained right knee. Playing without its starting center, Philadelphia had a decisive 54-38 advantage on the glass.

“We’ve got to get bigger over the summer. We’ve got to get nasty over the summer,” coach Jacque Vaughn said. “We’ve got to get guys who really love hitting, and take it personal when the other team gets a rebound. That’s what we’ll be looking for.”

Rebounding was only part of the problem. The Nets shot 9-of-37 from three-point range today and just 5-of-29 after the first quarter. Mikal Bridges appeared exhausted by the end of the series, Lewis observes, and would benefit from having at least one more teammate who can run the offense and attack the basket.

“For our group going forward, the ability for multiple people to get downhill and get to the paint and create opportunities, that’s a need for us, yes,” Vaughn said.

There’s more from Brooklyn:

The Nets will almost certainly have to go over the luxury tax line to keep restricted free agent Cameron Johnson, according to Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype. He notes that Johnson would be a good fit for virtually all the teams with cap space this summer, such as the Rockets, Magic, Jazz, Thunder and Spurs. Gozlan projects a four-year offer sheet for Johnson somewhere around $80-90MM.
Seth Curry could be headed elsewhere in free agency, Gozlan adds. The 32-year-old guard doesn’t appear to fit the Nets’ long-term plans and may find a better opportunity with another team. Re-signing Yuta Watanabe may be a higher priority, but Gozlan notes that Brooklyn only has non-Bird rights and would have to use part of its mid-level exception to give him a salary that’s very much above the minimum.
The Nets have offseason decisions to make on Royce O’Neale, who only has a $2.5MM guarantee for next season on his $9.5MM salary, and Edmond Sumner, whose $2.2MM contract for 2023/24 is non-guaranteed, per Bobby Marks of ESPN (Insider link). Marks also points out that Spencer Dinwiddie will become eligible for a four-year extension worth up to $128MM in August.

Heat’s Victor Oladipo Leaves Game With Knee Injury

April 22nd, 2023 at 9:49pm CST by Arthur Hill

The excitement over the Heat‘s blowout of the Bucks in Saturday’s Game 3 was lessened by a knee injury that Victor Oladipo suffered late in the fourth quarter, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

The veteran guard was driving to the basket when he fell to the floor and grabbed his left knee. A stretcher was brought onto the court, but Oladipo opted to walk to the locker room with help from coach Erik Spoelstra and others.

“Vic, we don’t know right now,” Spoelstra said in his postgame press conference. “We’ll have him checked out tomorrow. I feel how everyone feels. Great win, but when you see a player go down like that – particularly a player like Vic, who has gone through so much. I don’t know what it is right now. I feel like throwing up right now, but I don’t know what the prognosis is.”

Oladipo was an All-Star before suffering a ruptured quadriceps tendon in his right knee midway through the 2018/19 season. He had a second operation on the tendon in May of 2021. Oladipo appeared in 42 games this season, which is the most since the original injury, but he hasn’t come close to reaching his former level of production.

As we noted earlier this week, Oladipo’s status could have a major impact on Miami’s financial picture heading into the offseason. He holds a $9.45MM option for next season that he would be certain to pick up if the injury is serious. If that happens, the Heat’s team salary for 2023/24 projects to be well above the luxury tax line.

Ja Morant Returns For Game 3

April 22nd, 2023 at 8:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

Grizzlies guard Ja Morant will be active for tonight’s Game 3 against the Lakers, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. He will be in Memphis’ starting lineup, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link).

Morant wound up missing just one game with the right hand injury he suffered in the fourth quarter of the series opener last Sunday. The Grizzlies won without Morant on Wednesday night to knot the series at 1-1 heading to Los Angeles.

Team officials were encouraged during Saturday morning’s shootaround as Morant was making shots with his right hand, according to Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal. He wore black tape on the hand as he attempted spot-up three-point jumpers, Cole adds, noting that reporters had only seen Morant dribbling and shooting with his left hand throughout the week.

“He looked good,” Luke Kennard told Cole. “We had a great couple days here so far, and he looked good so far. He was able to shoot the ball some, so we’ll see how it goes.”

There was hope that Morant would be available for Wednesday’s Game 2, but he wasn’t able to pass grip and dribbling tests, so he was ruled out shortly before game time.

Green Says Suspension “Doesn’t Change Draymond”

April 22nd, 2023 at 7:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

As he prepares to return from his one-game suspension, Warriors forward Draymond Green delivered a defiant message in an interview with Kendra Andrews of ESPN.

Green was ejected from Game 2 and given the suspension for stepping on the chest of Kings big man Domantas Sabonis. The league cited his past transgressions and called him a “repeat offender,” but Green said he won’t let the incident change his approach on the court.

“Draymond won’t be moved by the Draymond rule,” Green said. “I’ll continue to play the game how I play the game, operate how I operate, be exactly who I am because that leads to winning. If I was losing, they wouldn’t be creating Draymond rules. As long as they create Draymond rules, that means we’re winning and that’s great … but it doesn’t change Draymond.”

Green remained close to his teammates, even though he wasn’t permitted to be in the arena for Thursday’s Game 3, Andrews adds. He addressed the team before Wednesday’s practice, then worked out for a few hours at Chase Center prior to the game and returned to the arena after it ended.

The Warriors responded with a 114-97 victory to cut their series deficit to 2-1.

“My message to them was that none of it matters. What matters is the task at hand,” Green said. “To know and feel they have your back is huge. It’s a great feeling. My focus was being as involved as I could be.”

Southeast Notes: Young, Murray, Wizards, Bridges, Love

April 22nd, 2023 at 6:43pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks still face long odds in their first-round series with the Celtics, but they have to be encouraged by the way Trae Young and Dejounte Murray played together Friday night, writes Jeff Schultz of The Athletic. Atlanta avoided a 3-0 deficit as the backcourt combination turned in one of its best games since Murray was acquired last summer. They combined for 57 points in the Game 3 victory, with 38 of those coming in the second half.

“At one point, I was just like, I should just keep quiet and let them do it,” coach Quin Snyder said. “They had some isolation situations where they created for themselves and for other guys, and a lot of that was them just figuring it out. People feed off that.”

Schultz notes that there have been questions about whether they can be effective together ever since the Hawks sent three first-round picks and other assets to the Spurs in exchange for Murray. Former general manager and team president Travis Schlenk reportedly didn’t support the deal, and the results hadn’t been positive during a 41-41 season.

A recent report indicated Atlanta will consider trading Young this summer, but Schultz states that Friday’s performance may show that he and Murray can find a way to make things work.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Wizards may dream about landing a big name like Raptors president Masai Ujiri or Warriors general manager Bob Myers to replace fired GM Tommy Sheppard, but they’re better off pursuing someone who has succeeded in building a team in a mid-level market, contends Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. She names Pelicans GM Trajan Langdon, Knicks GM Scott Perry, Bucks assistant GM Milt Newton and Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly as potential targets.
The NBA was too lenient with former Hornets forward Miles Bridges when it agreed to reduce his 30-game suspension to 10 games for next season, argues David Aldridge of The Athletic. Aldridge disagrees with the league’s reasoning that Bridges would have served 20 games of that suspension if he had signed with a team this year and notes that the CBA gives commissioner Adam Silver the power to invoke a harsher penalty under its “misconduct” section.
Kevin Love is back in the Heat‘s starting lineup for tonight’s Game 3 against the Bucks, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Chiang observes that the new starting five of Love, Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo has only played together for two minutes in the series and 13 minutes during the regular season.

Giannis Antetokounmpo Won’t Play In Game 3

April 22nd, 2023 at 5:09pm CST by Arthur Hill

Giannis Antetokounmpo will miss at least one more game with a lower back contusion, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Bucks have decided to keep their superstar on the sidelines for tonight’s Game 3 in Miami.

Antetokounmpo suffered the injury in Sunday’s Game 1 when he crashed to the court on a drive to the basket. He was ruled out for Wednesday’s Game 2 shortly before tipoff, and the Bucks have decided to use the same caution for tonight’s contest.

In a pre-game meeting with the media, coach Mike Budenholzer said Antetokounmpo has made progress in his recovery, but added, “These things just aren’t always a linear thing,” tweets Eric Nehm of The Athletic. Budenholzer declined to point to a specific problem that’s preventing Antetokounmpo from playing, telling reporters, “He’s just not ready to go.” (Twitter link)

Milwaukee responded without its team leader to even up the series with a 16-point win on Wednesday. Game 4 will take place Monday night, so Antetokounmpo will have just one off day to try to heal.

Joel Embiid May Not Be Ready For Start Of Second Round

April 22nd, 2023 at 5:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Sixers aren’t sure if Joel Embiid will be available when their second-round playoff series begins, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

After Philadelphia wrapped up a sweep of the Nets on Saturday afternoon, coach Doc Rivers told reporters that Embiid is “probably 50 percent, at best” to be ready for the team’s next game, which will likely be played next weekend.

Embiid sat out Saturday’s contest with a right knee sprain that he suffered in Thursday’s Game 3 when he landed awkwardly while trying to block a shot. He was experiencing pain and swelling in the knee and underwent an MRI after the game.

“From my understanding, they checked his knee out right after the game because he was complaining about some soreness behind the knee,” Rivers said, “which is always a scary thing to hear about with players. There was swelling already, which is way too early, so we did the MRI. … It just feels like whenever they tell a coach we’re going to get an MRI, it doesn’t turn out well most of the time and this one did not.”

The Sixers won today without Embiid, but he’s obviously indispensable to their title hopes. He captured the league’s scoring title this season, averaging 33.1 PPG in 66 games, and is a finalist for MVP honors.

The knee sprain continues a troubling run of playoff injuries for Embiid. A year ago, he suffered a right orbital fracture and concussion that sidelined him for the first two games of the conference semifinals. He had a small lateral meniscus tear in his right knee during the 2021 postseason and played with an ankle injury in the 2020 playoffs, although he didn’t miss any games. He also dealt with knee soreness in the 2019 playoffs and another orbital fracture in 2018.

“Obviously, clearly that’s on your mind,” Rivers responded when asked about his message for Embiid. “But as I said, this is another obstacle in the story that we’re going to write this year, and you’re going to be OK. It may take a minute, but this is just part of it. To me, I’m sure … he’s human, and goodness, this happens again. Let’s win, let’s get him back on the floor and let’s keep on our own journey.”

If Reed isn’t available for the start of round two, he will likely be replaced again in the starting lineup by Paul Reed, who delivered 10 points and 15 rebounds in today’s close-out game.

Knicks Notes: Randle, Brunson, Quickley, Grimes

April 22nd, 2023 at 3:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

After sitting out the Knicks‘ final five regular season contests with a left ankle sprain, All-Star power forward Julius Randle has seemed downright giddy in discussing New York’s ongoing playoff series with the Cavaliers, writes Zach Braziller of The New York Post.

“I’m just having fun, man, this is a lot of fun,” Randle said earlier this week. “This is what you work so hard for. For me it goes back to our team, all the work that we’ve put in, in the summer, individuals. That’s what this is about. So I’m excited.”

Randle enjoyed a fairly modest Game 3 against Cleveland, scoring 11 points on 3-of-15 shooting from the floor, pulling down eight rebounds, and dishing out three assists. He has not quite been up to his regular All-Star production while playing through the injury. For the series thus far, he’s averaging 16.5 PPG on 31.4% shooting, plus 8.0 RPG, 2.0 APG and 1.0 SPG.

New York leads Cleveland 2-1 thus far in the best-of-seven series and will hope to improve that advantage when the action resumes tomorrow at Madison Square Garden.

There’s more out of New York:

The relationship between star Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson‘s father Rick Brunson, now an assistant coach on the team, and head coach Tom Thibodeau played a big role in selling Brunson on New York in free agency, as Nick Friedell of ESPN details. Thibodeau was an assistant coach under Jeff Van Gundy when Rick joined the team as a player in 1998. They developed a friendship, and Thibodeau brought the elder Brunson aboard his bench when he booked his first head coaching gig with the Bulls in 2010. “I think being around him for a long time, knowing the trust that my dad has in him, I’ve been around it,” Jalen told Friedell. “I’ve been around his philosophies for a long time, so I guess I’m used to it. I’ve seen it from afar — he’s going to push me no matter if I have 48 [points] or four. “
Though backup New York guard Immanuel Quickley was the runner-up behind Celtics reserve Malcolm Brogdon for this year’s Sixth Man of the Year award, Quickley isn’t dwelling on missing out on that award, writes Petter Botte of The New York Post. “There’s been a lot of, there’s been more players that have started a lot more games than me,” Quickley said. “So it’s something that I wanted to win, but at the end of the day, it’s not the end of the world. Still got a long career hopefully, God willing, ahead of me.”
Second-year Knicks shooting guard Quentin Grimes left the first half of last night’s 99-79 New York win with what the team described as a shoulder contusion and did not return in the second, Botte writes in a separate piece. Across the Knicks’ first three games of the series, Grimes has been erratic on offense, scoring just 11 points on 2-of-11 shooting from the floor.

Lakers Notes: Russell, Thompson, James, Brooks

April 22nd, 2023 at 2:01pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Lakers starting point guard D’Angelo Russell, reacquired by Los Angeles at the trade deadline, has had an underwhelming first postseason with L.A. to this point, but the team is hopeful he can turn that around posthaste, writes Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times.

Broderick notes that Russell is connecting on an abysmal 32.1% of his field goals and 28.6% of his triples so far, while averaging 12.0 PPG, 5.5 APG, 5.5 RPG, and 0.5 SPG.

“It’s a make-or-miss league,” head coach Darvin Ham noted. “Sometimes you’re on. Sometimes you’re not. We’re just hopeful he’ll be on Saturday.”

There’s more on the Lakers:

Reserve big man Tristan Thompson appreciates that he was added on the last day of the regular season to essentially be another locker room voice and positive influence on his new teammates, as he told Jovan Buha of The Athletic. “If I help them become one percent better, it helps our team be better,” Thompson noted. “And that’s part of my role being here, is how can I help this team get one percent better?”
All-Star forward LeBron James has been dismissive of Grizzlies guard Dillon Brooks‘ recent postgame smack-talking, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “I’m not here for the bulls—,” James said following a team practice yesterday. “I’m ready to play and that’s it.” Following Memphis’ 103-93 Wednesday victory over L.A. to even their series at 1-1, Brooks held little back in his comments to gathered media, calling James “old” while opining that the 38-year-old was no longer his peak self.
In case you missed it, Grizzlies All-Star point guard Ja Morant was sidelined for the second game of Memphis’ series against L.A., and remains questionable ahead of Game 3 tonight.

Clippers Notes: Powell, Leonard, Current Era

April 22nd, 2023 at 12:42pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Clippers guard Norman Powell is not backing down from the challenge of replacing injured star’s Kawhi Leonard‘s output in L.A.’s series with the Suns, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times.

Powell started with Leonard out on Thursday, and poured in 42 points in a narrow defeat to Phoenix. Though he couldn’t hope to replicate Leonard’s defensive contributions, he played his role as a scorer admirably. Head coach Tyronn Lue noted that Powell’s work ethic has prepared him for moments like this.

“When you put that kind of work in, every single day, just grinding every single day, you’re going to play well,” Lue said.

There’s more out of Los Angeles:

Leonard’s impact on both sides of the hardwood is hard to replace, Greif notes in a separate piece. Leonard scored or assisted on 45% of L.A.’s offense across the series’ first two games, and had guarded Suns All-Star forward Kevin Durant a team-most 53 possessions through those two bouts.
Although he has already been ruled out for today’s matinee against Phoenix, Leonard has merely been considered day-to-day for Los Angeles. However, it now sounds like his knee sprain injury could keep him out longer than initially anticipated, per Chris Haynes of NBA TV (Twitter video link). “The Clippers are still ruling him day-to-day with a right knee sprain, and what we know is that this injury is not connected to the ACL tear that he suffered two years ago, but it is the same knee,” Haynes said. “So that is worrisome right there. But there is no timetable as of right now, we don’t know when Kawhi is going to return, they’re still putting… hope out there that he could at some point, but it’s not looking good.”
This mid-series Leonard injury represents just the newest impediment to what has been an incredibly disappointing Clippers era, opines Law Murray of The Athletic. Leonard and All-Star Clippers forward Paul George have been beset by injuries at inopportune times for years, and the team has never lived up to the championship expectations it had when the two stars joined forces in the 2019 offseason.