NBA Rumors - HoopsRumors.com

Western Notes: Gobert, Anderson, Irving, Doncic, Dunn

April 9th, 2023 at 7:19pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The confrontation between the Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert and Kyle Anderson got physical when Anderson profanely told Gobert to shut up during a timeout, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. The argument began with Anderson telling Gobert to block some shots and Gobert replying that Anderson should grab some rebounds.

The duo also had a heated verbal exchange in the locker room at halftime, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Timberwolves guard Mike Conley played a crucial role in calming things down and getting the team refocused.

After being told to leave the building, Gobert sent an apologetic text message to his Timberwolves teammates in a group chat, ESPN’s Andrew Lopez tweets. Anderson said he’ll talk things over with Gobert. “We’ll speak about it and move on. We’re grown men,” Anderson said.

We have more from the Western Conference:

Kyrie Irving is headed to unrestricted free agency. What are his plans? He kept that to himself after the Mavericks’ disappointing season ended on Sunday. He declined to speak to the media, the only Dallas player to do so, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon tweets.
As for the Mavericks’ franchise player, he provided some comforting words to the team’s fans. Luka Doncic says he’s happy where he is, MacMahon adds in another tweet, an indication that he won’t be asking for a trade any time soon. “I’m happy here, so there’s nothing to worry (about),” Doncic said.
Kris Dunn gave the Jazz a boost in the second half of the season and looks poised to help the team next season as well, Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune opines. Dunn showed improved scoring form, compared to his previous NBA stops, and he remains a quality defender. Dunn signed a multiyear deal with Utah last month, though his veteran’s minimum deal for next season isn’t guaranteed until October 23. Dunn had 26 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists against the Lakers on Sunday.

NBA’s Play-In Field, Top-Six Playoff Seeds Set

April 9th, 2023 at 5:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The NBA wrapped up its 2022/23 regular season on Sunday, and the teams and seeds for this year’s play-in tournament have been set. Here are the play-in matchups:

Eastern Conference

Tuesday, April 11

Game 1: Atlanta Hawks (8) at Miami Heat (7), 7:30pm ET
- Winner secures No. 7 seed; loser plays on Friday.

Wednesday, April 12

Game 2: Chicago Bulls (10) at Toronto Raptors (9), 7:00pm ET
- Winner plays on Friday; loser is eliminated.

Friday, April 14

Winner of Game 2 at Loser of Game 1, 7:00 or 7:30pm ET
- Winner secures No. 8 seed; loser is eliminated.

Western Conference

Tuesday, April 11

Game 1: Minnesota Timberwolves (8) at Los Angeles Lakers (7), 10:00pm ET
- Winner secures No. 7 seed; loser plays on Friday.

Wednesday, April 12

Game 2: Oklahoma City Thunder (10) at New Orleans Pelicans (9), 9:30pm ET
- Winner plays on Friday; loser is eliminated.

Friday, April 14

Winner of Game 2 at Loser of Game 1, 9:30 pm or 10:00pm ET
- Winner secures No. 8 seed; loser is eliminated.

Once the Nos. 7 and 8 seeds in each conference are set later this week, the eight first-round matchups will be finalized. Those first-round series will tip off on April 15 and 16.

Here are the top six seeds in each conference, along with the matchups that are locked in so far (and Game 1 info, per the NBA):

Eastern Conference

Milwaukee Bucks (1) vs. No. 8 seed (play-in) ^
Boston Celtics (2) vs. No. 7 seed (play-in) *
Philadelphia 76ers (3) vs. Brooklyn Nets (6) *
Cleveland Cavaliers (4) vs. New York Knicks (5) *

* Series begins on April 15.
^ Series begins on April 16.

Western Conference

Denver Nuggets (1) vs. No. 8 seed (play-in) ^
Memphis Grizzlies (2) vs. No. 7 seed (play-in) ^
Sacramento Kings (3) vs. Golden State Warriors (6) *
Phoenix Suns (4) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (5) ^

* Series begins on April 15.
^ Series begins on April 16.

Categories:
Newsstand

Rudy Gobert Punches Kyle Anderson; McDaniels Fractures Hand

April 9th, 2023 at 5:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:23pm: McDaniels has a fractured hand, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets.

Minnesota’s President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly, addressing the Gobert situation, didn’t specify whether he would take further action against Gobert, Wojnarowski tweets: “We made the decision to send Rudy Gobert home after the incident in the second quarter. His behavior on the bench was unacceptable and we will continue handling the situation internally.”

4:23pm: Rudy Gobert was sent home by the Timberwolves after he punched teammate Kyle Anderson during a timeout on Sunday afternoon, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

In a video posted by Backcourt Alerts (Twitter link), Gobert and Anderson could be seen standing up and arguing with each other. Gobert lurched forward and took a swing at Anderson, hitting him in the chest. Anderson then had to be restrained from retaliating.

Minnesota is in the midst of a pivotal game against New Orleans. The Timberwolves could be seeded anywhere from seventh to ninth in the Western Conference play-in tournament, depending on the outcome of that game and the Lakers’ game against Utah.

Interestingly and somewhat ironically, Gobert commented about Anderson’s leadership skills to Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune (Twitter link) on Saturday.

“Kyle wants to win and sometimes he’s a little aggressive in the way he talks, but I don’t take it personally,” Gobert said a day ago. “I receive it in a positive way because it comes from a place of wanting me to be the best Rudy I can be and wanting us to win. I love his competitiveness, love the way he plays the game.”

In a separate development, forward Jaden McDaniels left the game with a right hand injury, the team’s PR department tweets. McDaniels apparently suffered the injury when he punched a wall while exiting the court, Pelicans Film Room tweets.

It’s obviously an ominous way for Minnesota to enter the play-in tournament for the second straight season. It remains to be seen whether Gobert will draw a team suspension for his actions, which would put it at a disadvantage up front. Minnesota’s key frontcourt reserve, Naz Reid, underwent wrist surgery on Wednesday.

Mavs Rumors: Harrison, Wood, Irving, First-Round Pick

April 9th, 2023 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Despite the Mavericks‘ disappointing season, it sounds like both head coach Jason Kidd and general manager Nico Harrison will remain with the team for 2023/24.

Team owner Mark Cuban said earlier this week that the Mavs intend to bring back Kidd for a third season. As for Harrison, league sources tell Marc Stein (Substack link) that Cuban is pleased with the work that the longtime Nike executive has done since transitioning to a front office role. While the Mavs have faced criticism for a handful of roster moves – including losing Jalen Brunson and Kyrie Irving – Stein suggests that Harrison doesn’t need to worry about his job security at this point.

Here’s more on the Mavs from Stein:

Stein’s “up-to-the-minute sense” is that the Mavericks won’t attempt to re-sign big man Christian Wood in free agency this offseason. Noting that Dallas intends to make some roster changes over the summer, Stein identifies JaVale McGee and Tim Hardaway Jr. as two veterans who could find themselves back on the trade block.
There’s “considerable skepticism” around the NBA that the Mavs will take a hard-line stance and insist on a short-term deal in their negotiations with Kyrie Irving, according to Stein, who says early rumblings suggest the team may offer a three- or four-year contract to the star guard.
If the Mavericks retain their 2023 first-rounder (which they owe to New York with top-10 protection), they’re expected to explore their trade options with that pick, sources tell Stein. A loss to San Antonio today would ensure Dallas has nearly an 80% chance to hang onto that pick — those odds could climb even higher if Utah wins and Dallas loses today.

Draft Notes: McCullar, Cook, Clingan, Early Entrants

April 9th, 2023 at 3:40pm CST by Luke Adams

Kansas guard Kevin McCullar announced this week that he’ll enter his name in the 2023 NBA draft pool while maintaining his NCAA eligibility, as Michael Swain of Phog.net writes.

McCullar, who played his first three college seasons at Texas Tech before transferring to the Jayhawks, averaged 10.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.4 APG, and 2.0 SPG in 34 games (30.6 MPG) as a senior in 2022/23, earning spots on the All-Big 12 third team and the conference’s All-Defensive squad.

McCullar has one year of college eligibility left due to COVID-19, but is a candidate to be drafted in 2023 if he decides to go pro. He currently ranks 59th overall on ESPN’s big board.

Here are a few more draft-related updates:

Junior guard Jalen Cook, who intended to declare for the draft coming off his second consecutive All-AAC season at Tulane, has decided to transfer back to LSU, where he began his college career, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN. It sounds like Cook intends to use at least one more season of college eligibility rather than going pro this year.
After winning a national championship with UConn as a freshman, center Donovan Clingan will remain at school rather than going pro, he announced on Twitter. Clingan’s numbers as a reserve in 2022/23 were modest (6.9 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 13.1 MPG), but Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link) said multiple NBA evaluators believe the big man would’ve been selected in the 25-40 range if he’d entered the draft.
The following players have declared for the 2023 NBA draft and will test the waters as early entrants:
- Austin Crowley, G, Southern Mississippi (senior) (Twitter link)
- Jalen Hill, F, Oklahoma (senior) (Instagram link)
- Romain Parmentelot, G, France (born 2004) (Twitter link via Fusion Sports)
- Mark Sears, G, Alabama (junior) (Twitter link)

Dwane Casey To Transition To Pistons’ Front Office

April 9th, 2023 at 2:35pm CST by Luke Adams

Dwane Casey will still be part of the Pistons‘ organization next season, but the team will be in the market for a new head coach this spring.

Following Detroit’s regular season finale on Sunday, Casey told reporters – including Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) – that he’s transitioning from the Pistons’ bench to a front office role.

“(Team owner) Tom (Gores) is giving me an opportunity to move into the front office,” Casey said, per James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). “I’m excited to go to the next phase of my life. Time to spend more time with my family. This team is on the right track. They probably need to hear a new voice. This is my decision.”

Casey joined the Pistons in 2018, fresh off earning Coach of the Year honors in Toronto. He was let go by the Raptors due to the club’s disappointing postseason results. In Detroit, Casey led the team to a playoff berth in his first season, but was swept out of the first round and didn’t make it back in any of his four subsequent seasons as the Pistons embarked on a rebuild.

In total, Casey led the Pistons to 121-263 (.315) record across five seasons. Speaking to reporters today, he said that – while he’s not running away from his win-loss record – he hopes his legacy in Detroit is more about the growth of the team’s current young core than the underwhelming results on the court (Twitter link via Edwards).

Bucks assistant Charles Lee and former Celtics head coach Ime Udoka are expected to be among the candidates to replace Casey on the sidelines in Detroit, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link) confirms those names and adds a couple more, identifying Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin and Heat assistant Chris Quinn as possibilities.

Edwards and Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) suggest that former Pistons star Jerry Stackhouse, who is now the head coach at Vanderbilt, could also be an intriguing target, though it’s unclear if that’s just speculation or if he’s actually on Detroit’s wish list.

The Pistons will join the Rockets as the first two teams launching head coaching searches this spring.

Trail Blazers Sign Skylar Mays, Chance Comanche

April 9th, 2023 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have signed a pair of players ahead of Sunday’s regular season finale, announcing that they’ve brought back guard Skylar Mays (Twitter link) and added center Chance Comanche (press release).

The Blazers have a full roster, but they’re dealing with so many injuries that they’ve been granted three hardship exceptions — those exceptions allow the team to sign players to short-term deals without having to adhere to the usual roster limits.

Portland had been carrying Mays, Shaquille Harrison, and Justin Minaya on 10-day hardship contracts. Mays’ and Harrison’s deals expired overnight on Saturday, while Minaya’s runs through Sunday. The team re-signed Mays, but Harrison has joined the Lakers, so the Blazers used their third hardship exception to promote Comanche from the G League.

Mays, a 2020 second-round pick who spent his first two NBA seasons in Atlanta, averaged 14.2 points, 7.6 assists, and 3.0 rebounds in 29.6 minutes per night during his first five games (all starts) as a Blazer.

Comanche, who will turn 27 on Friday, was a rotation player for the Stockton Kings, Sacramento’s G League affiliate, this season. The former Arizona Wildcat appeared in 32 regular season games and averaging 13.0 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 1.6 BPG in just 22.9 MPG.

Since they’re on hardship contracts, Mays, Comanche, and Minaya will all become free agents after today’s game and the Blazers won’t hold any form of Bird rights on them this summer. Portland is now carrying 20 players, with at least nine of them ruled out for Sunday’s game vs. Golden State due to injuries.

Lakers Sign Tristan Thompson, Shaquille Harrison

April 9th, 2023 at 12:45pm CST by Luke Adams

12:45pm: The Lakers have officially signed Thompson and Harrison while waiving Reed, the team confirmed in a press release.

10:43am: The Lakers are making a pair of roster additions to fortify their depth ahead of the postseason, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, who reports (via Twitter) that center Tristan Thompson and guard Shaquille Harrison are joining the team.

Los Angeles had an open spot on its 15-man standard roster, so only one cut will be necessary to make room for the two incoming veterans. Davon Reed will be the odd man out and will be placed on waivers today, per McMenamin.

Thompson, 32, has been out of the NBA for the entire 2022/23 season but worked out for the Lakers last month and played alongside Lakers star LeBron James for several years in Cleveland.

The big man averaged 6.0 points and 5.1 rebounds in 57 games (15.7 MPG) for the Kings, Pacers, and Bulls last season and has career averages of 9.0 PPG and 8.4 RPG in 730 games. Thompson also has no shortage of postseason experience, having appeared in 88 career playoff contests for the Cavaliers, Celtics, and Bulls.

Harrison has made 180 regular season appearances for six NBA teams since making his debut in 2018. Like Thompson, the 29-year-old guard hasn’t been in the league for most of this season, though he did play five games while on a 10-day contract with the Trail Blazers. That deal expired overnight on Saturday, freeing him up to join a new team.

Harrison was actually in training camp with the Lakers last fall, but was cut at the end of the preseason and ended up playing for the South Bay Lakers, L.A.’s G League affiliate. Known as a stout perimeter defender, he finished third in NBAGL Defensive Player of the Year voting.

Reed, who will turn 28 in June, joined the Lakers along with Mohamed Bamba as part of the four-team February trade that sent Thomas Bryant to Denver. He never cracked L.A.’s regular rotation though, logging just 27 total minutes across eight games with his new team. His minimum salary for 2023/24 is fully non-guaranteed, so the Lakers won’t be on the hook for any money for him beyond this season.

Both Thompson and Harrison will be eligible to play in the postseason for the Lakers because neither one has been waived since March 1.

Pelicans Re-Sign Dereon Seabron To Two-Way Contract

April 9th, 2023 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

Just three days after waiving rookie shooting guard Dereon Seabron, the Pelicans have re-signed him to a new two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release.

The move is an unusual one, since Seabron had already been on a two-way deal. It’s possible his new contract covers the 2023/24 season instead of just the rest of this season like his old one did — we’ll have to wait for confirmation on the details to be sure.

Seabron signed with the Pelicans last summer after going undrafted out of North Carolina State. He appeared briefly in just five games at the NBA level, but was a regular for the Birmingham Squadron, New Orleans’ G League affiliate.

Seabron played in 17 Showcase Cup games in the fall, averaging 14.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.6 assists with a .484/.227/.729 shooting line in 32.3 minutes per night. He bumped his scoring average to 18.4 PPG on .503/.375/.778 shooting in 27 G League regular season appearances, adding 5.5 APG and 5.0 RPG in 34.5 MPG.

The Pelicans, one of two teams that entered Sunday with an open two-way slot, now have a full 17-man roster as they prepare for a crucial regular season finale.

Rockets Sign Willie Cauley-Stein

April 9th, 2023 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have officially signed free agent center Willie Cauley-Stein, the team announced today (via Twitter).

Houston’s announcement doesn’t include any details on Cauley-Stein’s contract, so it’s unclear if it extends beyond this season at all or if it’s essentially just a one-day deal.

Cauley-Stein and the Rockets agreed to a one-year contract last offseason, but the big man’s salary was non-guaranteed and he was waived at the end of the preseason. He later rejoined the team on a 10-day deal near the end of February but has been an NBA free agent since that contract expired.

Cauley-Stein spent much of the season with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston’s G League affiliate. In 13 NBAGL regular season games, he averaged 8.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.5 blocks in 27.0 minutes per night. He also contributed 6.0 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.4 APG, and 1.0 BPG in 16 Showcase Cup contests (24.2 MPG).

The sixth overall pick in the 2015 draft, Cauley-Stein has appeared in 422 total regular season games for the Kings, Mavericks, Warriors, and Sixers, but is a borderline NBA player at this point, as his game isn’t an ideal fit for the league’s current style.

The Rockets were one of three NBA teams that entered Sunday with an open 15-man roster spot, so no one needed to be waived in order to make room for Cauley-Stein.