Rockets’ Rafael Stone Talks Draft, Udoka, Free Agency, More

This season, the Rockets finished with a solid 41-41 record but missed the postseason as the West’s No. 11 seed. The team then moved up in this past weekend’s draft lottery, claiming the No. 3 pick.

General manager Rafael Stone recently explained to The Athletic’s Kelly Iko that, despite the middling reputation of this year’s draft class, his front office likes a lot of the prospects available.

“I think it’s a really talented draft, and there will be very good players in it,” Stone said. “Historically, what we’ve seen is that people do not do a very good job predicting how good a draft is or is not. There are kind of unicorn-type players that occasionally appear in drafts and that signal early on in their lives that they have a chance to be extraordinarily special. And you see teams kind of falling over themselves to get themselves in positions to pick No. 1 in those drafts, even though the way everything’s set up, that’s a pretty impossible task. In that sense, there’s not someone like that in this draft.”

Their conversation is well worth reading in full, but here are some key highlights.

On how new Houston head coach Ime Udoka’s input impacts Stone’s draft process:

“Ime is a really good coach and basketball mind. We definitely solicit his opinion and get his thoughts as another smart person who can give us some insight on who’s likely to be successful. But in terms of draft philosophy, it’s very much let’s try and bring in guys who can be good basketball players.”

On whether the team’s strong season will affect its offseason approach:

“We’re comfortable with our team and we think we’re going to improve internally. Because of that, I don’t think we’re likely to be super aggressive. It doesn’t mean we won’t listen. And it doesn’t mean if we think that there’s a unique opportunity, we won’t jump at it. But we have very talented players, they’re young and we lost a ton of games to injury. That combination means our primary focus is bringing back our core group as a better core group than it was last year, both through internal improvement and health.”

On the growth of young talent like Alperen Sengun and Jalen Green, both of whom are extension-eligible:

“We want those guys to start next year at or above the level they finished at the end of the year. I think all of our young players got materially better. They understood what Ime wanted, how to play defense better, the right reads on offense. It needs to not be two steps forward, one back. If we do that, we’ll be in a good position. Those guys just have to work and we have workers. I’m very confident they will do it, but there is no magic elixir. It’s all about putting in the work. We don’t expect it to be linear. And some of the reason is because of externalities — playing time from the coach, the way the offense flows. All these other things can influence how people play. But notwithstanding, it’s mainly on them. They need to make sure they stay on this trajectory.”

Texas Notes: Sheppard, Knecht, Kentucky, Doncic, Game 5

The Spurs hold two picks in the top eight (No. 4 and No. 8) of this year’s NBA draft. A fresh mock draft from Nick Moyle of The San Antonio Express-News sees San Antonio adding a pair of talented shooters by selecting Kentucky combo guard Reed Sheppard and Tennessee swingman Dalton Knecht.

Sheppard, Moyle contends, could help as both a passer and shooter, though he may have limitations as a lead ball-handler at the pro level. Moyle approves of Knecht’s versatile scoring acumen, and thinks he’d complement Rookie of the Year center Victor Wembanyama and power forward Jeremy Sochan offensively, while cautioning he may struggle defensively.

Knecht, 23, aspires to be a day-one contributor to whichever club drafts him, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News.

“I can definitely be a guy to plug right in and be able to produce,” Knecht said.

There’s more out of the Lone Star State:

  • The Spurs are keeping tabs on both Kentucky lottery prospects, Sheppard and backcourt colleague Rob Dillingham, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “I learned a lot from Reed,” Dillingham said of his teammate. “He taught me about being poised and helping my teammates, the little things.”
  • All-NBA Mavericks guard Luka Doncic played through a nagging knee injury to record an impactful 31-point triple-double and secure a key Game 5 win against the Thunder on Wednesday night, writes Tim Cato of The Athletic. “I just (went) out there and had fun,” Doncic said. “It was the old Luka.” Dallas now leads their series 3-2.
  • Following the Mavericks’ 104-92 Game 5 victory, Doncic reflected on how his teammates elevated their play alongside him, writes Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News. “This team is special,” Doncic said. “We’ve only been together for what, five months? I’ve been having a lot of fun with this team.” Forward Derrick Jones Jr., who submitted 19 points of his own, revealed postgame that he could tell Doncic was in a rhythm even before Game 5 tipped off. “He came out earlier and was knocking down shots and I was just sitting back saying, ‘It’s going to be a long day for them,’” Jones said.

Mike Conley Officially Available For Must-Win Game 6

Starting Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley has been officially given the green light to play in a critical Game 6 of Minnesota’s second round matchup against the Nuggets on Thursday night, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (via Twitter).

Head coach Chris Finch revealed the news pregame, Hine reports. The former All-Star sat out Game 5 of the ongoing Western Conference second round playoff series with a right soleus strain, and had been previously listed as questionable for Game 6.

“He’s in,” Finch said, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link).

Conley has served as something of a coach on the floor for the Timberwolves, who started off the series with two stunning road victories against the defending champs in Denver. The Nuggets, propelled by three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, roared back, winning the last three games of the series — they hold a 3-2 edge. The Timberwolves will at least be playing on their home court for Thursday’s must-win bout.

Through his eight healthy playoff games so far, the 36-year-old Conley is averaging 11.3 points (on .400/.375/.846 shooting), 7.0 assists, 3.8 boards, and 1.1 swipes per night.

OG Anunoby Out For Game 6, Could Play In Game 7

Knicks forward OG Anunoby will remain sidelined for Game 6 of New York’s second round playoff series against the Pacers on Friday, sources inform Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).

The 6’7″ swingman has been on the shelf since suffering a a hamstring injury in Game 2.

New York is ahead of Indiana 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, meaning the Knicks could close out the Pacers on the road Friday without Anunoby. Should they fail to do this, Begley adds that there is a chance Anunoby could be healthy enough to play in a Game 7. Previous reporting indicated that the Eastern Conference Finals could be a more realistic target for the forward’s return.

In his eight available playoff contests for New York this spring (all starts), Anunoby has averaged 16.4 points (on .495/.395/.615 shooting), 6.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.1 blocks and 1.0 steal per game.

The winner of the series will face off against the top-seeded Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. Boston vanquished the Cavaliers in a five-game series on Wednesday night.

Cavs Notes: Mitchell, Bickerstaff, Offseason, Gilbert

It flew under the radar, but the Cavaliers‘ 2023/24 season was filled with turmoil for a variety of reasons, according to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required).

There was a lot,” playoff-tested swingman Max Strus said. “A long year. A very long year.”

In addition to confirming the uncertain nature of head coach J.B. Bickerstaff‘s future with the team and some internal frustration toward Jarrett Allen‘s injury, Fedor is another reporter who has heard “whispers” that the relationship between Bickerstaff and star guard Donovan Mitchell has deteriorated.

According to Fedor’s sources, while Mitchell has repeatedly stated he’s happy in Cleveland, there were also times “he grew frustrated with some teammates’ lack of maturity, focus, playoff-level readiness and a willingness to listen.” Mitchell strongly pushed back on that reporting (Twitter link), writing, “Yeah aight (cap emoji) I’m sick of y’all sometimes!”

Here’s more on the Cavs:

  • For his part, Bickerstaff said he “definitely” wants to return as Cleveland’s head coach, Fedor adds. “I consider this season an improvement,” Bickerstaff said. “To win a round in the playoffs isn’t easy. I thought we faced a tough challenge in that first round, obviously, and to be able to go to seven games and win it showed a ton of growth. I think the play of our guys continued to show their growth. You guys will judge what success looks like. I think we accomplished what we were trying to accomplish but coming up short of a goal of obviously winning a championship.”
  • Shams Charania, Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd of The Athletic have more details on what went wrong for Bickerstaff the past couple seasons, with players openly griping about his offense after their first-round embarrassment last year. Players also questioned Bickerstaff’s lackadaisical and unstructured practices and shootarounds. The organization was also confused by Bickerstaff’s comments ahead of Game 2 against Boston, in which he praised the Celtics while simultaneously making it seem like the Cavs didn’t stack up, per The Athletic.
  • Mark Deeks of HoopsHype and ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link) preview a critical offseason for Cleveland, which could have several big changes even if the team is able to convince Mitchell to sign an extension. Marks also provided a video with some highlights from his full article (YouTube link). In addition to Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Isaac Okoro and Allen will all be eligible for extensions this summer, Marks observes.
  • After the shorthanded Cavaliers were eliminated on Wednesday, owner Dan Gilbert took to Twitter to express pride in the team’s season, Fedor writes for Cleveland.com. “Cleveland, it’s heartbreaking, but I am proud of the fight and the progress of this team,” Gilbert wrote. “Thanks to all Cavs fans and supporters who were there all season for us. The future is bright in The Land!

Wolves Notes: Conley, Confidence, Maturity, Jokic, Gobert, NAW

Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley was ruled out for Tuesday’s Game 5 with a right soleus strain and is officially questionable for tonight’s Game 6. However, the 36-year-old plans to suit up, Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (via Twitter).

After Game 5, head coach Chris Finch said the team was optimistic Conley could return for Game 6, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “We’re hopeful Mike can go in Game 6,” Finch said. “That was one of the reasons to be cautious with him right here, feeling that he could go [on Thursday].”

Conley’s leadership and steady hand in the backcourt have buoyed Minnesota throughout the team’s 56-win season, writes Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. The 36-year-old also understands his window of opportunity is shrinking, and the same may be true of the Wolves in the series.

I’m one of those people, I don’t want to learn through losing,” Conley said. “I don’t want to learn by letting a team win a couple games in a series to make us change some things. Why don’t we, in games, figure this out? We’re good enough to do this. I don’t have time for it, y’all don’t have time for it.”

Conley, who signed a two-year extension during the season, played 76 regular season games in ’23/24 and is the team’s top on-ball decision-maker.

Here’s more on the Wolves:

  • Despite dropping three straight games for the first time all season, the Timberwolves remain confident as they look to stave off elimination against Denver in Thursday’s Game 6, according to McMenamin of ESPN. “Adversity has been something we’ve answered all year,” All-Star big man Karl-Anthony Towns said. “It’s something that if I was to go through this with anyone, I would go through it with these guys in this locker room. I have full confidence in these guys, I have full confidence in our locker room, I have confidence in our coaching staff. Everyone has been tremendous all year. It’s now time to put all that experience and that unity we’ve built throughout the whole year, even last year, and put it on the table and play our best basketball so we can give ourselves a chance to bring back Game 7 here.”
  • Star guard Anthony Edwards struggled with Denver’s extra defensive pressure in Game 5, but he said he’s looking forward to making up for it tonight in Minnesota, McMenamin adds. “Super excited,” Edwards said. “You get to compete. Get to go home and play with our backs against the wall. It should be fun.” If he’s healthy, Conley’s return should alleviate some double-team pressure from Edwards.
  • Despite their public proclamations of confidence, the Wolves haven’t dealt with adversity well the past few games, particularly from an emotional maturity standpoint, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (subscriber link). Several players have been guilty of immature moments, which has been an issue for this group the past couple seasons, Hine adds. “I mean, we got to keep our head. I think that’s the story for us,” Rudy Gobert said. “… We have to be mentally tough, individually and collectively, to be able to keep playing our game and not let anything that happened in the game affect the way we play.”
  • Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic details how three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, who is also the reigning Finals MVP for the defending-champion Nuggets, was able to eviscerate four-time Defensive Player of the Year Gobert and Minnesota’s top-ranked defense in Game 5. The Serbian superstar was particularly lethal in the third period, recording 16 points on just seven shot attempts and recording four assists, frequently while intentionally hunting Gobert. John Hollinger of The Athletic contends that Jokic’s remarkable performance — 40 points on 15-of-22 shooting, 13 assists, seven rebounds, two steals and a block with zero turnovers — isn’t being discussed enough.
  • Nickeil Alexander-Walker has become an unlikely X-factor for the Wolves, writes Andrew Lopez of ESPN. The former first-round pick was traded three times in quick succession but has turned into a defensive stopper and a leader for Minnesota, Lopez notes.
  • Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune argues that if the Wolves are eliminated by the Nuggets, they shouldn’t blow up the big man pairing of Towns and Gobert. Souhan also says the team should replace Kyle Anderson with another three-point shooter to improve the offense, which has been the primary issue over the past three games.

2024 NBA Offseason Preview: Charlotte Hornets

The Hornets had postseason aspirations entering training camp in 2023, but their season never really got off the ground, due in large part to a series of injuries that affected nearly every one of their starters and rotation players.

Among those injuries: LaMelo Ball, Charlotte’s star point guard, appeared in only 22 games due to a right ankle ailment that required surgery; back issues limited promising young starting center Mark Williams to just 19 contests all season; and three-and-D wing Cody Martin, a key connecting player, ended up playing only 28 times after missing the first two months of the season while recovering from a procedure on his left knee.

The Hornets’ roster wasn’t exactly loaded with star-level talent to begin with, so without much room for error, the team was unable to overcome a constantly full injury report to stay in the hunt in the Eastern Conference. But that was probably a blessing in disguise. Falling out of contention early made it an easy decision to sell off talent – including veterans like Terry Rozier, P.J. Washington, and Gordon Hayward – for young players, draft picks, and expiring contracts prior to February’s trade deadline.

It also served as a good time for the new ownership group, headed by Rick Schnall and Gabe Plotkin, to overhaul the front office — they hired promising young executive Jeff Peterson away from the Nets to replace Mitch Kupchak as the club’s head of basketball operations. A season of change was capped by head coach Steve Clifford stepping down from his role at season’s end to transition to a position in the front office.

Charlotte’s short-term outlook might not look much different than it did 12 months ago, but with a new general manager (Peterson), a new head coach (Charles Lee), and a new young cornerstone player (2023’s No. 2 overall pick Brandon Miller) in place, there’s more reason for optimism in the long term.


The Hornets’ Offseason Plan

When a new management group takes over a rebuilding team, the first order of business is to establish which of the incumbent players are part of the long-term plan. In the Hornets’ case, there’s one obvious sure thing: Miller, whose impressive rookie season was largely overlooked while Victor Wembanyama was doing things we’ve never seen before in San Antonio and Chet Holmgren was anchoring the defense for the West’s No. 1 seed in Oklahoma City.

But Miller, a versatile wing defender with size, averaged 17.3 points per game and made 37.3% of his three-pointers in his first NBA season. He’s just 21 years old and has legitimate star upside, so the fact that Charlotte will have him on a rookie scale contract for three more years is a huge boon for the franchise.

We can probably add Ball to that list of core building blocks too. He’ll need to be healthier going forward for the Hornets to count on him, but Ball – who is only 15 months older than Miller – has an All-Star berth under his belt and appeared to be on the verge of leveling up early in the 2023/24 season, averaging 25.9 points and 8.6 assists in his first 14 games before getting hurt in the 15th. His five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension will begin this summer, so barring an unexpected pivot from the new front office, it’s safe to assume the plan will be to continue adding pieces around Ball and Miller.

Assuming his back issue doesn’t linger, Williams looks like one solid piece to complement those two rising stars. The big man showed in 2023 – both at the end of his rookie season and the start of his sophomore year – that he has the potential to develop into a solid starting center. He has one more year before he becomes extension-eligible, so the Hornets won’t have to make any decisions on him in the short term — they’ll just hope he’s healthy enough to get a longer look at him as the starting five in 2024/25.

While there’s no obvious fourth long-term keeper under contract at this point, there are a couple more candidates who could join that group. The first is whichever prospect Charlotte drafts with the No. 6 pick.

Assuming the franchise remains fully committed to Ball, selecting another ball-dominant player in that spot might not make sense, but pretty much any other position is a possibility, given the relatively wide-open nature of the roster. That includes a sharpshooter (Reed Sheppard or Dalton Knecht), a three-and-D forward (Zaccharie Risacher), a secondary ball-handler and play-maker (Matas Buzelis), a wing scorer (Ron Holland), or even a rim-protecting big man (Donovan Clingan). Some, but not all, of those players will be off the board by the time Charlotte is on the clock at No. 6, and Peterson will have a chance to put his stamp on the roster with his choice in that spot.

The other player whom the Hornets could make part of their core is unrestricted free agent Miles Bridges, who returned after a year out of the league and showed no signs of rust, averaging 21.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in a team-high 37.4 minutes per game. However, Bridges’ free agency is more complicated than most.

The reason Bridges was out of the league for a year is because he was facing credible domestic assault charges. His case was resolved when he accepted a plea deal and was sentenced to three years of probation, at which point he re-signed for one year with the Hornets, served an NBA suspension, and then reclaimed his spot in the team’s starting lineup. However, he later faced new allegations of domestic violence following the resolution of the initial case.

Those newer charges were eventually dismissed due to insufficient evidence for a trial, but they won’t exactly work in Bridges’ favor as he seeks a lucrative, long-term deal. The Hornets have a series of questions to answer before investing in Bridges long-term. Are they confident his legal issues are fully behind him? Are they comfortable making a major financial investment in him from a moral – and public relations – perspective? Do they want him to be one of the faces of their franchise? If they do try to re-sign him, will the off-court baggage bring his value down, both in contract talks and in potential future trade negotiations? And beyond all that, exactly how much value does he provide on the court, where he has only made 35.0% of his three-pointers in one of five NBA seasons?

It’s obviously not in a rebuilding team’s best interest to let a talented 26-year-old player go for nothing, but giving Bridges a big payday and then having him show up in the headlines again for the wrong reasons would be a black eye on the organization. The Hornets have a lot to consider as they weigh Bridges’ future — if they have reservations, it could make sense to explore another short-term contract, a deal with protections for the team, or sign-and-trade scenarios.

There are no true potential impact players on the rest of the roster, but Grant Williams, Martin, Nick Richards, Vasilije Micic, and Tre Mann are solid enough depth pieces who could either be trade chips this offseason or could return to fill out next season’s roster.

Of those players, I’d consider Micic the most likely trade candidate. A salary-matching piece in the Hayward deal, the Serbian play-maker was given a chance to play real minutes down the stretch and showed he’s capable of playing a backup point guard role at the NBA level. Micic will be on a pseudo-expiring contract (he has a team option for 2025/26) and the 30-year-old rookie would likely prefer to play for a contender. His poor three-point shooting (27.9% on the season, including 29.4% in Charlotte) will hurt his value a little, but he could at least net a second-round pick if the Hornets take back an unwanted contract.

After taking into account the cap hold for Bridges and the No. 6 pick, along with the partial guarantee on Davis Bertans‘ option year, the Hornets won’t have significant cap room this summer, especially if they decide to retain some of their players with non-guaranteed contracts, including Seth Curry, Aleksej Pokusevski, Bryce McGowens, and JT Thor.

Still, they could easily have at least $15MM+ to work with (or $30MM+ if Bridges walks), plus the $8MM room exception. That space might be best spent on accommodating salary-dump trades with teams looking to shed salary.

Having taken a step backward last season by trading a series of veterans, the Hornets presumably aren’t giving Peterson a mandate to get the team back to the playoffs as soon as possible, so he can afford to take things slow and continue to stockpile draft assets — that patient, deliberate approach to the rebuild may line up the team to land another top-six pick in the 2025 draft, which is considered stronger at the top than this year’s.


Salary Cap Situation

Guaranteed Salary

Non-Guaranteed Salary

  • Seth Curry ($4,000,000)
    • Curry’s salary will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through June 28.
  • Aleksej Pokusevski ($2,273,252)

    • Pokusevski’s salary will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through July 8.
  • Bryce McGowens ($2,019,699)
    • McGowens’ salary will become guaranteed if he remains under contract through July 18.
  • Leaky Black (two-way)
  • Marques Bolden (two-way)
  • Total: $8,292,951

Dead/Retained Salary

  • None

Player Options

  • Davis Bertans ($16,000,000): Bird rights
    • Bertans technically holds an early termination option. If he opts in, his salary will be partially guaranteed for $5,250,000.
  • Total: $16,000,000

Team Options

  • JT Thor ($1,988,598): Bird rights
    • Thor’s salary would remain non-guaranteed if his option is exercised.
  • Total: $1,988,598

Restricted Free Agents

  • None

Two-Way Free Agents

Draft Picks

  • No. 6 overall pick ($7,510,680)
  • No. 42 overall pick (no cap hold)
  • Total (cap holds): $7,510,680

Extension-Eligible Players

  • Tre Mann (rookie scale)
  • Cody Martin (veteran)
  • JT Thor (veteran)
    • Extension-eligible until June 30 (or beyond, if his team option is exercised).

Note: Unless otherwise indicated, these players are eligible for extensions beginning in July.

Unrestricted Free Agents

Other Cap Holds

Note: The cap holds for these players are on the Hornets’ books from prior seasons because they haven’t been renounced. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.

Cap Exceptions Available

Note: The Hornets project to operate under the cap. They would have to renounce two trade exceptions – worth $3,585,600 and $442,826 – in order to use cap room. If they were to operate over the cap, they’d lose the room exception and would have access to the mid-level exception ($12,859,000) and bi-annual exception ($4,681,000).

  • Room exception: $8,006,000

Sixers’ Tyrese Maxey Wins 2023/24 Sportsmanship Award

After being named the league’s Most Improved Player last month, Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey has added another 2023/24 award to his trophy case, having been voted the Sportsmanship Award winner for this season as well, the NBA announced in a press release (Twitter links).

The Sportsmanship Award has been presented annually since ’95/96 and “honors a player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.”

According to the NBA, each team nominated one of its players. The 30-player list was then trimmed down to six — one player from each division — by a panel of league executives. Finally, current players voted on the six finalists.

As the full voting results show, Maxey received the most first-place votes and most total points, making him the winner. Heat big man Kevin Love was the runner-up, followed by (in order) Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kings forward Harrison Barnes, and Spurs point guard Tre Jones.

The 21st overall pick of the 2020 draft, Maxey will be eligible for restricted free agency this offseason. After his excellent performances this season, there’s no doubt that the 23-year-old will return to the 76ers.

Celtics Notes: Horford, Brown, Porzingis, Mazzulla

Veteran big man Al Horford delivered his best performance of the postseason at an opportune time. He contributed 22 points, 15 rebounds and five assists as the Celtics eliminated the Cavaliers on Wednesday. He also held down Darius Garland on switches, Jared Weiss of The Athletic notes.

“There’s obviously things that you have to focus on, rebounding and stuff like that, but it made us answer the bell,” coach Joe Mazzulla said. “You’ve got to guard your yard. This is what it takes to win this game, this is what it takes to win this series.”

Horford felt his team looked flat in the first half and he needed to do something to change the momentum. “I just wanted to bring that energy to our group, and the group was able to feed off it,” he said.

Horford, 37, has one more year remaining on his contract with a $9.5MM salary.

We have more on the Celtics:

  • Jaylen Brown has taken note of the spirited battles between the Knicks and Pacers. He feels the key to the Eastern Conference Finals will be Boston matching the intensity level of the opponent, he told Jay King of The Athletic. “Definitely gotta get ready to just bring it,” Brown said. “Both of those teams play hard as s–t. That’s what you’ve gotta be ready for. It’s just, how bad do you want it? Those dudes are out there putting their lives on the line, it seems like. They’re diving for loose balls, pulling hamstrings, whatever. How much are we willing to do that? That’s going to be the key.”
  • Brown’s bank account got a boost thanks to Boston reaching the conference finals. He gained a $369,048 bonus under the terms of his contract, ESPN’s Bobby Marks tweets.
  • Ending the second round series in five games buys more time for Kristaps Porzingis‘ return to action from a calf injury, Brian Robb of MassLive.com notes. Boston’s regulars will be well rested for the conference finals, reducing the need to get Porzingis back into action right away. He’ll also get a couple extra days to recover if the Pacers-Knicks series, or the Nuggets-Wolves, goes the limit. In those instances, Boston would host Game 1 on Tuesday instead of Sunday. Porzingis has begun light workouts during his rehab.
  • Mazzulla showed his growth in the deciding game of the Cleveland series in terms of making in-game adjustments, Robb writes. The Celtics’ head coach was proactive with his timeouts and stuck with Horford instead of going with a smaller lineup in the second half. The offensive strategy also worked well in the fourth quarter with Brown and Jayson Tatum setting up their teammates.

Spurs Haven’t Shown Much Interest In Trae Young

Trae Young could be an ideal fit for the Spurs. However, San Antonio has thus far shown little interest in acquiring the Hawks point guard, sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. Fischer’s story echoes a couple other reports from the past month that have downplayed the idea of Young ending up in San Antonio.

The Hawks, who unexpectedly landed the top overall pick via the draft lottery, are widely expected to consider trade scenarios that would break up their backcourt of Young and Dejounte Murray. Atlanta scoured the league to gauge interest in all of its players prior to February’s trade deadline with the exception of forward Jalen Johnson, Fischer notes.

San Antonio has no clear long-term floor leader and it’s expected the Spurs will explore their options to find a pick-and-roll partner for Victor Wembanyama. Yet multiple league figures tell Fischer that San Antonio’s interest in trading for Young has been vastly overstated.

The two teams could be doing some business together this summer, whether or not it involves Young. San Antonio holds the No. 4 and No. 8 picks, making it a natural trade partner if the Hawks choose to move down. The franchises, of course, completed the Murray blockbuster two summers ago and Atlanta’s front office duo of general manager Landry Fields and assistant GM Onsi Saleh began their careers in the Spurs’ front office.

As for Young, the Lakers hold some interest in him and now have three first-rounders available to trade. Los Angeles will have to consider other options before committing any type of capital for Young, Fischer adds, though Donovan Mitchell might be off the table if he signs an extension.

The Lakers are still pondering their coaching options and they might wait until next month to make that hire, Fischer confirms in a separate story. That’s primarily due to their interest in J.J. Redick. His current obligation to ESPN/ABC for the network’s postseason schedule and NBA Finals has various insiders under the impression Los Angeles’ search may stretch into June, as Marc Stein previously reported.

The Lakers have numerous candidates on their list, but James Borrego has been widely categorized as the experienced, veteran foil to Redick’s candidacy, Fischer writes. The former Hornets head man and current Pelicans assistant has maintained close ties with Anthony Davis since Davis was a rookie and Borrego was an assistant for the then-Hornets.

In other coaching news, Mike Brown’s contract extension talks with the Kings are expected to center around an eight-figure threshold and a Tom Thibodeau extension with the Knicks is also expected to reach those figures, Fischer notes.