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Eastern Notes: Hampton, Hart, Thomas, Brown

February 26th, 2023 at 9:04pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pistons were interested in R.J. Hampton leading up to the 2020 draft and even held an in-person interview with him, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press reports in a subscriber-only story.

Hampton, the 24th pick of that draft, wound up in a Pistons uniform this month after getting waived by Orlando. He played five scoreless minutes in his Detroit debut on Saturday but is glad to join GM Troy Weaver’s club.

“Troy’s a great dude,” the Pistons’ newcomer said. “Somebody that’s real, somebody that expects a lot from his players but also knows what it means to develop young guys. That’s something I look forward to, being in an organization that takes the time with players, takes the time to figure out the areas that they’re really good in and weaknesses and coming together and making it all fit. I think he’s great in that aspect and I’m excited about it.”

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Josh Hart admits he had some trepidation about being traded by Portland to the Knicks, wondering how he’d mesh with coach Tom Thibodeau. Hart has been pleasantly surprised, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News writes. “Coming here I didn’t exactly know how Thibs’ system was. But it worked out,” Hart said. He’s averaging 14.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists with his new team. Hart holds a $12.96MM option on his contract for next season, which he’s expected to turn down.
Cam Thomas scored 22 points off the bench for the Nets on Sunday in a loss to the Hawks. Thomas is averaging 26.1 points per game this month but coach Jacque Vaughn says he’ll continue to use Thomas as an instant offense reserve, Brian Lewis of the New York Post tweets.
The Knicks won’t have to deal with the Celtics’ second-leading scorer when the teams square off on Monday. Jaylen Brown is taking the night off for personal reasons, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweets.

Southeast Notes: Butler, Lowry, Herro, Oubre Jr., Porzingis, Morris

February 26th, 2023 at 7:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat have lost four straight, including a five-point decision to the lottery-bound Hornets on Saturday, and Jimmy Butler is fed up, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes. Butler said he was “tired of losing.”

The Heat recently added Kevin Love and Cody Zeller but that hasn’t turned their fortunes around in the short run. “I don’t think anybody in here wants to lose,” Butler said. “We’ve got to figure this out very, very quickly.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Kyle Lowry, who has been dealing with left knee soreness, has been upgraded to questionable for the Heat’s game against Philadelphia on Monday, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel tweets. Tyler Herro is listed as questionable due to a rib contusion.
Forward Kelly Oubre Jr. is headed to unrestricted free agency this summer but it sounds as if he’d like to stay with the Hornets. Oubre said he still has a “lot to give” to the franchise, Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer tweets. I have a lot to give to this city, to this organization, to my teammates as far as my leadership and my life path,” he said.
Kristaps Porzingis missed the Wizards’ game on Sunday due to left knee soreness, while Monte Morris sat out with lower back soreness, the team’s PR department tweets.

Quin Snyder Named Hawks’ Head Coach

February 26th, 2023 at 6:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

6:48pm: The Hawks have officially named Snyder as their head coach, according to a team press release.

“From our first conversation, it was clear that Quin had all the characteristics we were looking for in our next head coach. He has both an incredible basketball and emotional IQ, and we share the same core values and basketball philosophies of having honest communication and collaboration with players, tremendous attention to detail and placing a great emphasis on player development,” Fields said in a statement.

Snyder is a former Hawks assistant coach.

“I am thrilled to go back to Atlanta as the next head coach of the Hawks,” he said. “Landry has a tremendous reputation as an incredibly bright, high character, high quality individual and it was quickly evident that we share a passion and commitment to building a winning team with a strong foundation and high standards. I am excited to collaborate with Landry to create a successful program that devoted Hawks fans are proud of and cheer for and am grateful to Tony, Jami and the Ressler family for this opportunity. My family and I are looking forward to immersing ourselves in the community and calling Atlanta home.”

6:07pm: Former Jazz coach Quin Snyder has agreed to become the Hawks’ head coach, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports.

Atlanta will give Snyder a five-year contract and he could be coaching as soon as Tuesday, when the Hawks face Washington.

Snyder replaces Nate McMillan, who was dismissed by the franchise on Tuesday. At the time, the Hawks were expected to conduct a wide-ranging search but they quickly focused on Snyder.

Snyder was Utah’s head coach from 2014-22 and compiled a 372-264 (.585) record during the regular season. However, the Jazz were unable to get over the hump in the postseason. They were 21-30 in the playoffs over the last six seasons, never getting past the Western Conference semifinals.

Assistant Joe Prunty served as the interim coach since McMillan was let go, including in a 129-127 win over Brooklyn on Sunday.

The Hawks chose to hire a permanent coach before the end of the season because they hope to make a deep run in the Eastern Conference playoffs. They also wanted to give Snyder a chance to start implementing his program while evaluating the roster in order to facilitate their offseason approach.

Snyder will have a significant say in player personnel matters, according to Woj. Snyder has been in talks with general manager Landry Fields, assistant GM Kyle Korver and owner Tony Ressler on a number of philosophical, team building and staff budgetary issues, Woj adds.

McMillan was named the club’s interim coach in March 2021 in place of Lloyd Pierce. Atlanta made a surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals, prompting the Hawks to remove the interim tag and give him a four-year contract in July 2021.

The Hawks finished the regular season at 43-39 and lost in the first round of the playoffs last spring and were 29-30 when they fired him. Atlanta won both of its games under Prunty.

Pacific Notes: Baldwin, Thompson, Russell, Okpala

February 26th, 2023 at 5:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Warriors rookie forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. is getting some playing time and coach Steve Kerr sees a bright future for the first round pick, C.J. Holmes of the San Francisco Chronicle writes.

“When I watch Patrick I see a future rotation player,” the Warriors coach said. “He fits. You can see it. He makes shots from the perimeter with ease. He shoots it from such a level of extension that you can barely challenge the shot.”

Baldwin contributed 11 points in 10 minutes for the Warriors against the Lakers on Thursday and 11 more points in 16 minutes against Houston on Friday.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

Klay Thompson has four rings and a contract that runs through next season. The Warriors shooting guard says he’s still hungry at this stage of his career, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Thompson became the first player in NBA history to make 12 three-pointers in multiple games in a season while scoring 42 points against Houston. “I did something that no one else has ever done before,” Thompson said. “I looked at (Stephen Curry) immediately when I did it because, I mean, that man’s got all the records, so it’s fun to push the game forward with him. I’m still so hungry to be great. I’ll never be satisfied.”
Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell went through pregame warmups but was ultimately ruled out of the team’s game against Dallas, according to Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register (Twitter links). Acquired from Minnesota at the trade deadline, Russell suffered a sprained right ankle against Golden State on Thursday.
The Kings still believe KZ Okpala can be a defensive factor in his NBA career, but chose to waive him after determining that he needed knee surgery, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee reports in a subscriber-only story. Okpala, who appeared in 35 games after signing as a free agent, has been sidelined with bilateral knee soreness and is now expected to undergo season-ending surgery. The team consulted with multiple medical professionals to evaluate Okpala’s injury, Anderson adds.

Northwest Notes: Gordon, Jackson, Dunn, Timberwolves

February 26th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Rory Maher

Nuggets head coach Michael Malone told reporters, including Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter link), that there’s no firm timeline for Aaron Gordon to return from his rib injury.

Based on Malone’s wording, the team is taking Gordon’s injury one day at a time, but he was ruled out for the sixth consecutive game on Sunday, tweets Singer. Reserve big man Zeke Nnaji was also listed as out with a shoulder injury.

Gordon is having a career year for the Nuggets, averaging 17.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG and 2.9 APG on .587/.397/.623 shooting through 49 games (30.3 MPG). Denver has a five-game lead on Memphis for the No. 1 seed in the West, so the team will likely be cautious with Gordon in an effort to get him back to full strength for the playoffs.

Here’s more from the Northwest:

The Nuggets signed guard Reggie Jackson after he was bought out by the Hornets. Typically players acquired on the buyout market don’t have much of an impact on their new teams, but Jackson could be critical for a Nuggets team whose bench unit has struggled all season long, Singer writes for The Denver Post (subscriber link). “You just want to play well,” Jackson said. “They brought me here for a reason. Part of me is like, ‘I don’t want to mess it up. Let’s keep it rolling.’”
Kris Dunn is making an immediate impact for the Jazz after they signed him to a 10-day contract, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (subscriber link). After notching 11 points, one rebound, one assist and two steals in 16 minutes in his Jazz debut versus Oklahoma City, Dunn followed that up with 15 points, eight assists, seven boards, one steal and one block in 23 minutes versus San Antonio. Utah was victorious in both efforts, with Larsen saying the veteran guard was arguably the team’s second-best player against the Spurs on Saturday.
In the Timberwolves‘ latest injury report (Twitter link), three key rotation players are questionable for tonight’s game in Golden State. Center Rudy Gobert is sick, guard Jaylen Nowell has left knee tendinopathy, and forward Taurean Prince is dealing with a personal matter.

Hornets Sign Bryce McGowens To Four-Year Contract

February 26th, 2023 at 3:09pm CST by Rory Maher

3:09pm: McCowens’ new contract is official, the Hornets announced in a press release.

1:29pm: Bryce McGowens is receiving a promotion from the Hornets, as they plan to convert his two-way contract to a four-year, $7.4MM standard deal, his agents, Mark Bartelstein and Kyle McAlarney of Priority Sports, tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The fourth year of the deal, which would be for the 2025/26 season, is a team option, Wojnarowski adds.

McGowens was the 40th overall pick of last June’s draft after spending one college season at Nebraska. In 26 games (14.7 MPG) as a two-way rookie for Charlotte, he has averaged 4.1 PPG, 1.7 RPG and 1.0 APG on .379/.364/.786 shooting.

The Hornets still have their full mid-level exception available, and they’ll be using a portion of it to give the 20-year-old a four-year deal for more than the minimum in year one.

Charlotte has two openings on its 15-man roster at the moment, so the team won’t need to waive anyone to promote McGowens. Today was the deadline for the Hornets to fill the 14th spot on their standard roster, as we previously explained.

Once the signing is official, the Hornets will have one standard roster spot open as well as a two-way slot.

Hawks Notes: Collins, Young, McMillan, Timing

February 26th, 2023 at 2:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Hawks forward John Collins has cleared the NBA’s concussion protocol, but he’s still being affected by another injury. The 25-year-old is dealing with lower back tightness and was initially listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. Brooklyn, according to Hawks reporter Brad Rowland (Twitter links).

However, Collins went through warm-ups unscathed and is available this afternoon, tweets Brian Lewis of The New York Post.

Through 50 games (31.1 MPG) in 2022/23, Collins is averaging 13.2 PPG, 7.1 RPG and 1.2 BPG on .506/.248/.813 shooting splits. Trade deadline acquisition Saddiq Bey, who started in Collins’ place during Friday’s victory over Cleveland, was moved back to a reserve role.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

Trae Young spoke to the media for the first time on Friday following former coach Nate McMillan‘s dismissal. While their relationship may not have been perfect, Young says he was surprised by the timing of the move and has “nothing but love and respect” for McMillan, as Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays. “I was waking up from a nap and heard about it,” Young said. “And it was surprising to me. I mean, the timing and stuff, right now. But obviously, I know what this league is and Nate knows. We’ve talked since then and had a conversation and stuff like that. So, I got nothing but love and respect for Nate and the type of person he is, and things like that. So it’s not the last time me and him are going to talk. I mean I talk to all my coaches that I’ve played for. So, that’s what I was expressing to him, and I appreciated him for, I mean, being a part of that run that took us in this franchise further than it’s been. So, he should get a lot of love for that alone (and) for what he’s done for us and his team and this organization. So I got nothing but love for him, and it’s a tough situation. But, it’s part of this league, and I got nothing but love for him.”
There had been rumblings about the Hawks moving on from McMillan in the offseason and a report that he had considered resigning himself, so the news wasn’t totally unexpected. Still, as Young alluded to, the timing of the firing seemed to catch many within the organization off guard, ESPN’s Zach Lowe recently said on his Lowe Post podcast (hat tip to RealGM). “I think a lot of people within that team, players, coaches, staff were blindsided by 23 games to go at the end of the All-Star break,” Lowe said. “‘… We’re pulling the trigger now on this?’“
In case you missed it, the Hawks have reportedly offered their head coaching job to former Jazz coach Quin Snyder, and the two sides are said to be nearing a deal.

Magic Sign Michael Carter-Williams To Two-Year Deal

February 26th, 2023 at 12:50pm CST by Rory Maher

The Magic have signed free agent guard Michael Carter-Williams, the team announced (via Twitter).

Shams Charania of The Athletic was the first to report the deal, tweeting that it’s a two-year contract with a team option for 2023/24.

Carter-Williams, 31, was the No. 11 pick of the 2013 draft out of Syracuse, winning Rookie of the Year with the Sixers in the ’13/14 season. He has bounced around a good amount since, having also played for Milwaukee, Chicago, Charlotte, Houston and Orlando.

The veteran guard, who is known for his defense, originally caught on with the Magic at the end of the 2018/19 season, signing a couple of 10-day contracts and then a rest-of-season deal. He signed a one-year, minimum-salary deal to remain with Orlando that summer, then re-signed with the Magic in the 2020 offseason on a two-year, $6MM contract that ran through the end of 2022.

Carter-Williams’ last NBA appearance came in April 2021 during the ’20/21 season, as he had offseason ankle surgery in August 2021 that kept him sidelined in ’21/22 until he was waived as part of a multiplayer trade. He has been a free agent since he was cut last February.

In 391 games, including 217 starts (25.3 MPG), Carter-Williams holds career averages of 10.3 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 4.4 APG and 1.3 SPG on .402/.255/.706 shooting splits. The Magic have an opening on their standard roster, so a corresponding move is not necessary.

Community Shootaround: NBA’s Race To The Bottom

February 26th, 2023 at 11:57am CST by Luke Adams

Coming into the 2022/23 season, there was some concern that the presence of Scoot Henderson and (especially) Victor Wembanyama at the top of the 2023 draft class could result in some pretty aggressive tanking from the bottom third of the NBA’s teams.

It hasn’t played out that way so far though, due to a competitive race for the top 10 spots in each conference. In the West, the top 13 teams all either hold a playoff or play-in spot or are no more than 1.5 games back of the No. 10 seed. It’s not quite as congested in the East, but the conference’s 13th team is only four games out of a play-in spot.

As a result, there have been only four teams in full-on “race for Wembanyama” mode, and one of those four clubs hasn’t exactly been in tanking mode as of late, winning its last four games. Here’s what the bottom of the NBA’s standings look like as of Sunday morning:

Houston Rockets (13-46)
San Antonio Spurs (14-47)
Detroit Pistons (15-46)
Charlotte Hornets (19-43)
Orlando Magic (25-36)
Indiana Pacers (27-35)
Chicago Bulls (27-33)
Los Angeles Lakers (28-32)
(tie) Portland Trail Blazers / Oklahoma City Thunder / Washington Wizards (28-31)

Given that the odds for the No. 1 pick are the same for each of the NBA’s three worst teams, it seemed as if we’d get a four-team race for those three spots at the bottom of the standings. But the Hornets have won their last four games and appear far better positioned to continue getting victories than the Rockets (losers of eight in a row and 23 of their last 26), the Spurs (losers of 15 in a row and 21 of 22), and the Pistons (losers of four in a row and seven of their last eight).

Of course, if the Hornets were to play .500 ball the rest of the way, they’d still end up with just 29 wins, so they may end up with the NBA’s fourth-worst record even if they finish strong. After all, the Bulls, Lakers, Trail Blazers, and Wizards all seem motivated to make the play-in.

The Magic, Pacers, and Thunder are perhaps candidates for stealth end-of-season tanks in order to secure top-five lottery odds, since none of those clubs expected to be a playoff team this season. But they’ve been competitive all season and would probably have to start ruling out some of their top players due to injuries if they want to start winning less often (similar to what Portland did last year).

As for the race to the bottom among the NBA’s three worst teams, it’s hard to bet against the Rockets, who also finished with the league’s worst record in 2021 and 2022. But the Spurs are giving them a run for their money with their recent stretch of futility, posting an abysmal -15.8 net rating during their 15-game current losing streak. And the Pistons seem happy to experiment with new lineups while incorporating recently added players.

We want to know what you think. How will the race for lottery positioning play out the rest of the way? Which team will finish as the NBA’s worst? Has the Hornets’ recent success locked them into the fourth spot in the lottery standings? Are there any teams with 25 or more wins that you expect to go into full-on tank mode in the coming days or weeks?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in!

Checking In On RFAs-To-Be Who Have Met Starter Criteria

February 26th, 2023 at 10:49am CST by Luke Adams

As we explain in a glossary entry, a player who is eligible for restricted free agency at the end of a given season can have the value of his qualifying offer adjusted depending on whether or not he meets the “starter criteria.”

A player is considered to have met the starter criteria if he plays at least 2,000 minutes or starts 41 games in the season before he reaches free agency. A player can also meet the criteria if he averages either of those marks in the two seasons prior to his restricted free agency.

If a top-14 pick doesn’t meet the starter criteria, he has the value of his qualifying offer adjusted downward and receives a QO equal to the amount the 15th overall pick would get if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale.

A player drafted at No. 10 or later can increase the value of his qualifying offer by meeting the starter criteria.

Players drafted between 10th and 30th who meet the starter criteria receive a QO equal to the amount the ninth overall pick would receive if he signed for 120% of the rookie scale, while second-round picks or undrafted free agents who meet the criteria receive a QO equal to the amount the 21st overall pick would receive if he signed for 100% of the rookie scale.

In simplified terms, here’s how those rules will apply in 2022/23:

A top-14 pick who falls short of the starter criteria will have a qualifying offer worth $7,744,600.
A player picked between No. 10 and No. 30 who meets the starter criteria will have a qualifying offer worth $8,486,620.
A second-round pick or undrafted free agent who meets the starter criteria will have a qualifying offer worth $5,216,324.

A qualifying offer is essentially a one-year contract offer that functions as a placeholder if the player doesn’t accept it. If a player is considered a good bet to sign a lucrative long-term contract, a slight adjustment to his qualifying offer generally has no material impact on his free agency.

However, a change in a qualifying offer can sometimes be a difference maker. The best recent example of this came in 2020, when then-Bulls guard Kris Dunn met the starter criteria, ensuring that his qualifying offer would be worth $7,091,457 instead of $4,642,800.

The Bulls opted not to extend that $7MM+ QO, making him an unrestricted free agent, and he ended up signing a two-year, $10MM contract with Atlanta. If Dunn hadn’t met the starter criteria, it’s possible Chicago would’ve been more comfortable issuing a $4.6MM qualifying offer, which would’ve significantly changed the way Dunn’s free agency played out.

So far in 2022/23, three players have met the starter criteria:

P.J. Washington, Hornets (60 starts)
Tre Jones, Spurs (52 starts)
Ayo Dosunmu, Bulls (49 starts)

Washington was the 12th overall pick in 2019 and will therefore have his qualifying offer bumped up to $8,486,620.

As second-round picks in 2020 and 2021, respectively, Jones and Dosunmu will now have QOs worth $5,216,324.

Here are some more players eligible for restricted free agency this summer whose qualifying offers can – or will – be impacted by the starter criteria:

Coby White, Bulls (top-14 pick)
Jaxson Hayes, Pelicans (top-14 pick)
Rui Hachimura, Lakers (top-14 pick)
Cameron Johnson, Nets (top-14 pick)
Romeo Langford, Spurs (top-14 pick)
Matisse Thybulle, Trail Blazers (No. 20 pick)
Grant Williams, Celtics (No. 22 pick)
Herbert Jones, Pelicans (second-round pick) *
Kenyon Martin Jr., Rockets (second-round pick) *
Naji Marshall, Pelicans (UDFA) *

(* Player has a team option for 2023/24)

White, Hayes, Hachimura, and Langford have no realistic path to meeting the starter criteria this season, so if their teams want to make them restricted free agents this summer, the qualifying offer cost will be $7,744,600. Johnson could join them in that group, though he has started 20 games so far this season and Brooklyn still has 23 contests left, so he still has a shot to make 41 starts as long as he stays healthy and the Nets don’t move him to the bench.

Thybulle and Williams are the only two non-lottery first-round picks who will be RFA-eligible later this year and still have a chance to meet the starter criteria, bumping their QOs to $8,486,620.

It’s probably a long shot for Thybulle, who has made 59 starts since the beginning of 2021/22 — the Trail Blazers only have 23 games remaining, so Thybulle would have to start every single one of them to get to 82 total starts (an average of 41) over the last two seasons.

Williams has a clearer path to get there. He has logged 1,651 minutes so far this season, averaging 27.5 per game. The Celtics play 21 more times this season and Williams would have to play 349 more minutes (16.6 per night) to reach the 2,000-minute threshold. That seems likely as long as he stays off the injured list.

Jones, Martin, and Marshall belong in a different group. All three players have team options on their contracts for 2023/24, so their clubs could simply exercise those options and not have to worry about restricted free agency this year. That’s absolutely what will happen in Jones’ case, since he’ll still be RFA-eligible in 2024.

Martin and Marshall, however, would be on track for unrestricted free agency in 2024 if their team options for next season are picked up — the Rockets and Pelicans could decide to decline this options this summer and negotiate with their players as restricted free agents instead, giving them more control over the process. Houston took this route last summer with Jae’Sean Tate.

With that in mind, it’s worth keeping an eye on whether Martin and/or Marshall will reach the starter criteria and bump their potential QOs to $5,216,324 (from approximately $2.3MM). Martin, who has been in the Rockets’ starting five since mid-January, would need to start 15 of the team’s last 23 games to get there. It’s a more difficult path for Marshall, who would need to average 29.6 minutes per game in the Pelicans’ final 21 contests to get to 2,000 minutes on the season.