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Pacers Notes: Haliburton, Game 2, Officiating, Carlisle

May 7th, 2024 at 9:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Tyrese Haliburton was a non-factor offensively in the Pacers’ tight loss to the Knicks during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Monday. Haliburton had just six points and committed three turnovers.

The Pacers advanced past the Bucks in the opening round even though their star guard shot 43.5% from the field and 29.6% on 3-point attempts, Brian Lewis of the New York Post notes. Haliburton only attempted six shots and did dish out eight assists in Monday’s four-point defeat.

“He gets trapped every time he comes off and pick and roll. And the best thing about Tyrese is he won’t force a bad shot,” fellow guard T.J. McConnell said. “He gets others involved and we trust him wholeheartedly. With the ball in his hands every single time.”

We have more on the Pacers:

Haliburton spoke about his offensive woes after the team’s practice on Tuesday and vowed to be better in Game 2. “I erred on the side of play-making … and that wasn’t the right decision for me,” Haliburton said, per Brian Windhorst of ESPN. “I still got to be who I am, but yeah, I’ll just be better (Wednesday).” Haliburton is dealing with back spasms and is listed as questionable for Game 2, as he was entering the series. “I’m confident he’ll play, but it’s a concern,” coach Rick Carlisle said.
The Pacers had a right to be upset with the officiating in Game 1 but generally chose to take the high road, Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star writes. During the final minute, forward Aaron Nesmith deflected a pass with his hand that was called a kicked ball, stopping play dead instead of giving the Pacers a steal that they could have turned into a fast-break bucket. With 12 seconds left and the Pacers down 118-117, Myles Turner was called for an offensive foul for an illegal screen. “I don’t want to talk about the officiating,” Carlisle said. “We’re not expecting to get calls in here.” Turner felt the officials’ controversial calls marred a thrilling contest. “In my experience in this league, I think it’s best when the players decide the outcome of the game,” Turner said. “I think it’s unfortunate that it happened.” The league’s Last Two Minutes report indicated Turner did commit an offensive foul, Ian Begley of SNY TV tweets. Video of the plays can be found here (Twitter links).
Carlisle said in the pregame press conference on Monday that the Mavericks tried hard to trade up and snag Haliburton in the 2020 draft, when he slipped to the 12th pick, Dopirak tweets. “We thought he was the best player in the draft that year when we were in Dallas. We were trying desperately to trade up to get him,” Carlisle said. During a 2023 podcast appearance, Dallas’ then-owner, Mark Cuban, confirmed the team’s interest in trading up for Haliburton.

Mitchell Robinson Out For Remainder Of Postseason

May 7th, 2024 at 7:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson has sustained a stress injury to his left ankle and will miss the remainder of the postseason, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter link).

Robinson won’t even be reevaluated for six-to-eight weeks, thus his injury-marred season is over. The big man underwent testing late this afternoon, which determined the extent of the injury, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV (Twitter link). He won’t require surgery, Begley adds.

Earlier in the evening, the team ruled him out for Wednesday’s Game 2 against the Pacers due to left ankle injury management. It’s now apparent the injury is much more serious.

Robinson played just 12 minutes in New York’s Game 1 victory, contributing two points, two rebounds and an assist. He also missed one game during the first-round series against Philadelphia after spraining the same ankle.

Robinson underwent left ankle surgery in December. He didn’t return until March 27.

Overall, Robinson only appeared in 31 regular season games. He has two years remaining on his four-year, front-loaded $60MM contract.

With Robinson out, Precious Achiuwa‘s role figures to expand dramatically. He played just four minutes off the bench as the team’s eighth man on Monday.

Jamal Murray Fined $100K, Avoids Suspension

May 7th, 2024 at 6:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nuggets guard Jamal Murray has been fined $100K for throwing multiple objects in the direction of a game official during Game 2 of their playoff series against the Timberwolves, the league announced in a press release. However, Murray averted a suspension.

Murray threw a towel toward the court during the second quarter of the Nuggets’ 106-80 loss on Monday, then tossed a heat pack that made it onto the court during live play (Twitter video link).

The incident, which Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch referred to after the game as “dangerous” and “inexcusable,” wasn’t caught in the moment by game officials. Referee crew chief Marc Davis said Murray would have been assessed with a technical foul if they knew Murray had thrown the heat pack.

Murray, who scored just eight points on 3-of-18 shooting, has been battling a calf injury during the playoffs.

Knicks’ Mitchell Robinson Won’t Play On Wednesday

May 7th, 2024 at 6:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Knicks center Mitchell Robinson won’t play in Game 2 against the Pacers on Wednesday. The team has already ruled him out due to left ankle injury management, Steve Popper of Newsday tweets.

Robinson played just 12 minutes in New York’s Game 1 victory, contributing two points, two rebounds and an assist. He also missed one game during the first-round series against Philadelphia.

New York’s starters are already playing heavy minutes, with starting center Isaiah Hartenstein logging 38 minutes in Game 1. Forward Precious Achiuwa, who played just four minutes off the bench as the team’s eighth man on Monday, will likely see more action with Robinson unavailable.

Robinson underwent left ankle surgery in December and sprained his ankle during Game 3 against the Sixers.

Rudy Gobert Named Defensive Player Of Year For Fourth Time

May 7th, 2024 at 5:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rudy Gobert has been named the Defensive Player of the Year for the fourth time in his career, the NBA announced on Tuesday (via Twitter).

The Timberwolves center joins Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace as the only four-time winners of the award. Gobert also claimed the award in 2018, 2019, and 2021 when he played for Utah.

Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, who was unanimously voted the Rookie of the Year on Tuesday, finished second in the voting, with the Heat‘s Bam Adebayo a distant third.

Gobert was the league’s second-leading rebounder (12.9 per game) and sixth-leading shot-blocker (2.1). More significantly, he anchored a Timberwolves defense that held opponents to a league-low 106.5 points per game during the regular season. Minnesota was also best in defensive field goal percentage, limiting opponents to 39.0 percent shooting.

Gobert received 72 of a possible 99 first-place votes while compiling 433 points. Wembanyama, who was the league’s top shot-blocker at 3.6 per game, received 19 first-place votes and earned 245 points.

Adebayo received three first-place votes and wound up with 91 points, eight more than fourth-place finisher Anthony Davis of the Lakers (four first-place votes).

Pelicans forward Herbert Jones finished fifth and Celtics guard Jrue Holiday, who notched the other first-place vote, was sixth. The full voting results can be found here.

Magic Notes: First-Round Loss, Wagner, Offseason, Cap Room

May 7th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

After blowing a Game 7 lead in Cleveland on Sunday in a game that ended their season, the Magic went home disappointed, but viewed the loss with a mature, even-keeled perspective, as Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel writes.

“It doesn’t define us,” said second-year forward Paolo Banchero, who averaged a team-high 27.0 points per game in the seven-game series. “This is our first time in the playoffs. I’m just proud of how we played, and I know we’ll be back.”

“I walked in the locker room, and I said, ‘It sucks,'” head coach Jamahl Mosley told reporters, including Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “It does — not to get the game, knowing what you were capable of doing, to be up 18, to feel you (had) a chance to close out and not get it done. It doesn’t feel good. And, then in the same breath, you have to put it all into perspective. Sometimes these painful things are blessings in disguise.”

The Magic had missed the playoffs for three straight seasons prior to 2023/24 and this year’s young team – led by Banchero and third-year forward Franz Wagner – was considered unlikely to make a deep postseason run. So the fact that Orlando took the Cavaliers to seven games and outplayed them for much of the series should be viewed as a positive development rather than a letdown that the team didn’t go further. The Magic’s players said they intend to build off the experience.

“We won’t be walking into next season’s playoffs and have people questioning our ability to have done it before,” Jonathan Isaac said. “We took a good team to a Game 7 and we’ll be able to have that chip on our shoulder leading into next season.”

“This was a great year,” Cole Anthony added, according to Matt Murschel of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). “We set goals and accomplished our goals. Was it the outcome that we wanted? Obviously not, but we’ve got to look at the positives. We’ve got to take those and build on top of that for the summer and into next season.”

Here’s more on the Magic:

It was a brutal Game 7 on Sunday for Wagner, who scored just six points on 1-of-15 shooting and missed all five of his three-point attempts. He took the loss hard and said he felt like he “let my team down a little bit,” according to Robbins, but Banchero came to his teammate’s defense. “We’re not here without Franz,” Banchero said (Twitter link via Beede). “… He’s going to have a great summer. He’s going to get better. Just knowing him, I know he’s going to use this to motivate him and take it to another level. I don’t think he let anybody down. Sometimes it happens.”
Armed with a significant chunk of cap room, how can the Magic continue to improve this summer? ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Insider link), Mark Deeks of HoopsHype, and Robbins and Danny Leroux of The Athletic each explore that topic, previewing the offseason in Orlando. While adding shooting is a priority, the Magic could also use a facilitator who can create easier shots for Banchero and Wagner, Marks writes. Additionally, the team faces important decisions on the non-guaranteed salaries of Isaac ($17.4MM) and Joe Ingles ($11MM) — letting go of one or both players, perhaps in an effort to try to bring them back at a lower price, would substantially increase Orlando’s cap room.
Magic president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman didn’t offer many hints about how the team intends to use its cap room this summer, suggesting that it could be used in trades or on draft night as well as in free agency, per Murschel of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). The goal is to use it “wisely and with future planning in mind,” according to Weltman, who indicated there are at least three cornerstone players Orlando intends to build around. “We don’t want to lose the North Star of our team, which is our three leading scorers (Banchero, Wagner and Jalen Suggs) who are 22 and under,” said Weltman. “A lot of good things happened to our team this year. Now it’s up to us to earn our way into repeating that.”

Pacific Notes: Suns’ Stars, Vogel, Kings, A. Davis

May 7th, 2024 at 3:02pm CST by Luke Adams

While there has been some speculation that the Suns will break up their big three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal this summer following a disappointing first-round playoff exit, Brian Windhorst of ESPN doesn’t get the sense the team is seriously considering taking that path. In an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show (YouTube link), Windhorst said he expects all three stars to remain in Phoenix.

“Do people in the league say (the Suns will have to trade a star)? Yes, they do,” Windhorst said (hat tip to RealGM). “I’ve talked to multiple people who think that’s what they’re going to have to do. Do the Suns say that? No, they do not. I think the Suns’ intention is to keep all three of these star players, tweak the roster, tweak some of their systems and their processes, and try to be better next year.”

As Windhorst notes, the Suns’ approach to the offseason could change if one of their stars asked to be traded, but there was no indication in their end-of-season comments to the media that any of them is looking to get out of Phoenix. In fact, Durant and Booker expressed a belief in the value of continuity.

“Not that he is sworn to telling the whole truth all the time (but) Durant when he left basically said, ‘I think continuity is valuable,'” Windhorst said. “He was looking at the Timberwolves team that had basically brought their entire team back from last year and he was like, ‘That continuity is pretty important there.'”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

A decision on the future of Suns head coach Frank Vogel is expected to happen “soon,” sources tell Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Team owner Mat Ishbia essentially said as much when he spoke to reporters last Wednesday, indicating that the club would conduct an in-depth evaluation of its season, including Vogel’s performance, before making any decisions. It sounds like that evaluation process is almost complete.
While the NBA’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement will make it more difficult for taxpaying teams like Phoenix to make roster upgrades, it could actually benefit the Kings, according to James Ham of The Kings Beat. As Ham details, the new CBA gives teams that are under the tax aprons more trade flexibility, since they’re subject to more lenient salary-matching rules and – beginning this offseason – are permitted to use their mid-level exception to acquire players via trade.
Appearing on ESPN’s SportsCenter (Twitter video link) over the weekend, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said that Lakers star Anthony Davis will have a voice in the team’s head coaching search (hat tip to Lakers Nation). “Of course LeBron James’ opinion will be taken into consideration, but not just LeBron James — Anthony Davis as well, I’m told,” McMenamin said. “The team kind of looks at Anthony Davis as finally taking the torch from LeBron in the last season-and-a-half. While LeBron can still have the time to process the end of this season as he decides his future with the team, they have another voice and another leader in Anthony Davis, whose opinion they will take under consideration.”

Community Shootaround: Celtics/Cavaliers Series

May 7th, 2024 at 2:10pm CST by Luke Adams

No second-round series in the this year’s NBA playoffs is viewed as more one-sided than Celtics vs. Cavaliers. Ahead of Game 1 on Tuesday, betting site BetOnline.ag has made Boston a -2000 favorite to advance, listing Cleveland at +1000 to pull off the upset.

Based on what we’ve seen this season from Boston, those odds don’t come as a major surprise. At 64-18, the Celtics won seven more games than any other team in the NBA and 14 more than any Eastern Conference rival. They put up the third-best net rating in NBA history (+11.7), finishing with the league’s top offensive rating (122.2) and second-best defensive rating (110.6).

In Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, and Kristaps Porzingis, the Celtics have a starting lineup full of two-way impact players, with no weak links on either end of the floor. And while they’re not exactly loaded with depth, the first few players off their bench – Al Horford, Payton Pritchard, and Sam Hauser – all made positive contributions this season.

The Celtics experienced a minor hiccup in round one, losing Game 2 at home to a Miami team that was missing star forward Jimmy Butler, but they bounced back admirably with dominant victories in Games 3, 4, and 5, holding the Heat to between 84 and 88 points in each of those contests to close out the series in convincing fashion.

The Cavaliers, on the other hand, had a middle-of-the-pack net rating this season (their +2.5 mark ranked 12th in the league), and their 48-34 record was buoyed by 17-1 run in January and February. They went 13-18 to close the regular season and then needed seven games to get past an Orlando team that outscored them overall.

Donovan Mitchell was excellent in that first-round series, averaging 28.7 points per game, but he’s still dealing with a leg injury and the Cavs struggled to get much secondary offense going against the Magic, with Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Caris LeVert, and Max Strus all scoring well below their regular season averages.

It doesn’t help matters that the team has been missing starting center Jarrett Allen, who has been out for the last three games due to a rib contusion, and Dean Wade, a rotation forward who likely would have been playing regular minutes in the playoffs.

On paper, it looks like a one-sided matchup, but there are a few arguments against penciling in the Celtics for a sweep. For one, they’re missing Porzingis, who may remain on the shelf for the entire second round while he recovers from a calf strain. They can slot Horford into Porzingis’ starting spot, but he’s not as dynamic an offensive player, and it will mean relying more on reserves who barely played in the first round, such as Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman.

The Cavaliers also played the Celtics competitively during the regular season, with all three games between the two teams decided by single-digits. Cleveland lost a pair of contests in Boston, but beat the C’s at home in March. That victory should give the Cavs a little confidence entering Game 1, as should the fact that they were able to get a monkey off their back by winning a playoff series this spring after a disappointing showing in 2023 — that could remove some pressure entering round two.

The Celtics have their own playoff demons to reckon with. They lost the Eastern Conference finals to the Heat last spring as heavy favorites and are in championship-or-bust mode this year after falling short with rosters led by Tatum and Brown for the past several seasons. A second-round loss would be a disaster for the franchise, so if they hit another snag like they did in Game 2 vs. Miami last round, they’ll have to respond like they did against the Heat and not let the Cavs start to get comfortable.

We want to know what you think. Will the Celtics have any problems against the Cavs or do you expect Boston to advance without too much trouble? Is there any chance of a Cleveland upset? Are the Celtics bound for the NBA Finals?

Head to the comment section below to share your thoughts and predictions!

Eastern Notes: Wade, Allen, J. Brown, Claxton, Bucks

May 7th, 2024 at 12:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Cavaliers forward Dean Wade, who continues to recover from a right knee injury, hasn’t played since March 8, but it’s possible he’ll return to action at some point in the Eastern Conference semifinals, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscription required). Sources tell Fedor that there’s hope Wade will be able to play later in the series, possibly as early as Game 3 or 4 in Cleveland.

Wade is ramping up his on-court activity, having conducted an individual workout on Monday and then doing some light shooting and conditioning work at Tuesday’s shootaround, according to Fedor. His availability later in the series will depend on how his knee responds to the increase in activity.

After averaging a modest 5.4 points per game in 54 regular season appearances, Wade likely won’t be a difference-maker in the series vs. Boston. However, as Fedor observes, the Cavs haven’t gotten much this postseason from Georges Niang, who has made just 6-of-29 (20.7%) shots in six games and has nearly as many fouls (15) as points (17). Having another frontcourt option available off the bench could come in handy for Cleveland.

The presence of another power forward in the rotation would be even more crucial if center Jarrett Allen remains sidelined. Allen, who missed the final three games of the Cavs’ first-round series vs. Orlando, is listed as questionable to play in Game 1 on Tuesday.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Celtics wing Jaylen Brown spoke back in the fall about wanting to take on more challenging defensive assignments and play at an All-Defensive level in 2023/24, and he has delivered on that promise, according to Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston, who says that Brown will likely “draw a heavy dose” of Donovan Mitchell in the second-round series vs. Cleveland. “He’s picking up point guards, he guards bigs,” teammate Derrick White said of Brown. “Just an athletic freak. He can guard so many different positions and he just really bought in this year. I think he was a good defender before the season but just taking it to that next level, just consistently night in, night out, and wanting those challenges. Taking on those challenges and stepping up big time.”
Within a look at the Nets‘ upcoming offseason, Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily cites sources who say Brooklyn remains “very confident” in its ability to re-sign unrestricted free agent Nic Claxton, even if his price is in the neighborhood of $25MM per year.
Adding athleticism to their roster figures to be a priority for the Bucks ahead of the 2024/25 season, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic, who notes that the team will also benefit from many of its key pieces having their first full offseason together — Damian Lillard was acquired just ahead of training camp last fall, while Doc Rivers was hired in January. “I told Giannis (Antetokounmpo) and Dame I’m going to send them things all summer we’re working on for them to work on,” Rivers said. “And they both were very excited about that. I’m assuming Khris (Middleton) will like the same thing. That gives us an advantage.”

Lakers’ Christian Wood Opts In For 2024/25

May 7th, 2024 at 11:31am CST by Luke Adams

Lakers big man Christian Wood has exercised his player option for 2024/25, league sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). The move guarantees Wood’s $3,036,040 salary for next season, postponing his free agency until 2025.

Wood, 28, remained on the free agent market for over two months last summer despite averaging 16.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 25.9 minutes per game across 67 appearances for Dallas in 2022/23. He eventually signed a two-year, minimum-salary contract with the Lakers that featured a player option on the second season.

Wood played a limited role in Los Angeles, averaging 6.9 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 50 games (17.4 MPG). His shooting percentages – 46.6% from the floor and 30.7% on three-pointers – were both well below his career rates and his season came to an early end when he was sidelined by a left knee injury in February that forced him to undergo arthroscopic surgery in March.

The veteran forward/center was technically cleared to play in the final two games of L.A.’s first-round series vs. Denver, but the club opted not to use him after such a long layoff.

Given how much trouble he had finding a favorable deal in free agency a year ago, it’s no surprise that Wood opted into the second year of his existing contract after a down season that ended with a major injury. His option decision doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be back in Los Angeles for ’24/25, since he could be a trade candidate this offseason.

Wood is the second player to pick up a player option this spring, joining Bulls guard Lonzo Ball. The full list of pending player option decisions – which features four more Lakers, including LeBron James – can be found right here.