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Sixers Notes: Embiid, Maxey, McCain, Yabusele

October 3rd, 2024 at 5:13pm CST by Tristan Tucker

By all measures, Joel Embiid‘s NBA career has been a resounding success. Having burst onto the scene in 2016 after missing his first two seasons with injury, Embiid has won an MVP award, received seven All-Star nods, has an Olympic gold medal and, as Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated writes, has locked in over $500MM in total (past and future) career earnings.

However, Embiid has never made it past the second round of the playoffs during his tenure with the Sixers. From 2017-23, Embiid’s teams went to the second round in six of seven seasons, but didn’t appear in the Eastern Finals. Teams like the 2019 Sixers gave it their all but lost to the eventual NBA champions. In other years, like in 2021 against the Hawks, the Sixers probably should’ve advanced on paper.

Regardless of the fact that teams like the reigning champion Celtics or the new-look Knicks stand in their way, Embiid is more than ready to add a championship to his resume, Mannix writes. At nearly 31 years old, he’s feeling the urgency to win now. After several injuries that have impacted him in the playoffs, the star center is prepared to do whatever it takes to get to the playoffs in a healthy and dominant state.

“Basically every single year of my career, I’ve been hurting in the playoffs,” Embiid said, after explaining that back-to-backs would be phased out for him this season. “So I think that’s the goal. And it is all about doing whatever it takes to get there.”

While the Sixers made plenty of strong moves this offseason, including adding Paul George and Caleb Martin, they all understand their postseason ceiling hinges on the availability of Embiid, who is now in his 30s. While the championship window may be limited overall, Embiid is excited by the success he enjoyed this summer with the Olympic team, per Mannix, and he’s hoping to keep that momentum going this season.

We have more from the Sixers:

On the subject of staying healthy, Embiid knows the medical staff will tell him to ease off more than he would like this season, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps writes. He understands that’s what he will need to do if he wants to make the postseason and stay there. “They know that if they have to punch me, slap me, take my stuff away from me [to] not to get on that court, they’re going to have to do it,” Embiid said. “I might get mad, I might curse people out, but I think it’s a relationship. We’ve been working together for years now. Now I look at the big picture, and I’ve always listened to them, but now it’s even more of the time where I should listen and see what they have to say.” According to Embiid, he has already lost 25-30 pounds before the season and is aiming to lose more in accordance with his conditioning.
Tyrese Maxey has consistently improved over the course of his four NBA seasons, but he’s now added muscle and is sounding different thus far in training camp, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Maxey is assuming the role of a veteran leader during training camp, which has included closely mentoring 2024 draftees Jared McCain and Adem Bona. All three went out together for dinner, Pompey adds. “I lead by example now,” Maxey said. “I get up early and work out early in the morning before practice. And I like to win. I want to win. I know how things work around here. I’m just trying to be what’s demanded and make us be more dominant.“
The Sixers used the 16th overall pick in the 2024 draft on McCain, a sweet-shooting guard prospect out of Duke. While he’s only 20 years old, the rookie is already impressing teammates in training camp. According to Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports (Twitter link), Embiid called McCain the team’s best player in camp so far, making a point to highlight his competitiveness and shooting. McCain averaged 14.3 points per game and shot 41.4% from three in his first and only college season. He’ll compete for minutes with veterans Kyle Lowry and Reggie Jackson.
Former first round pick Guerschon Yabusele turned heads during the 2024 Olympics due to his play for France. Although he hasn’t played in the NBA since 2019, the Sixers are counting on the 6’8″ forward to make an impact as a high-energy reserve who can make hustle plays and hit the occasional deep shot. “Yabusele was a great pickup just from when you are looking at the whole roster all summer long,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “You are kind of thinking, ‘Where is a need there?’ And I think there was probably a need at the four spot, and that’s what he is.” According to Pompey in a separate story, Nurse said Yabusele will get a shot at regular rotation minutes.

Pelicans’ Trey Murphy Out At Least 3 Weeks With Hamstring Strain

October 3rd, 2024 at 3:50pm CST by Rory Maher

Pelicans wing Trey Murphy sustained a right hamstring strain during Wednesday’s practice, the team announced (via Twitter). An MRI on Thursday confirmed the injury, and Murphy will be reevaluated in approximately three weeks.

The timing of the injury is certainly unfortunate for Murphy, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension until Oct. 21, the day before the 2024/25 regular season begins. It’s obviously discouraging news for New Orleans as well, which will be without one of its best shooters for the rest of training camp and preseason.

It seems likely that Murphy will miss some regular season games as a result of the injury. Soft-tissue injuries are notoriously tricky to manage, and Murphy will be reexamined in three weeks; that doesn’t mean he’ll be ready to play at that point. Three weeks from today is Oct. 24, and the Pelicans season-opener is Oct. 23 vs. Chicago. They also have five more games at the end of October.

Murphy, 24, was the No. 17 pick of the 2021 draft. The start of his ’23/24 season was delayed by knee surgery, which caused him to miss the team’s first 19 games. Overall, he averaged 14.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.2 APG and 0.9 SPG on .443/.380/.815 shooting in 57 regular season games last season (29.6 MPG).

Murphy will make $5.16MM in ’24/25, which is the final season of his rookie scale contract. If he doesn’t sign an extension this fall, he will be eligible for restricted free agency next summer.

Kings Exercise 2025/26 Option On Keegan Murray

October 3rd, 2024 at 3:12pm CST by Rory Maher

The Kings have exercised their 2025/26 team option on Keegan Murray, tweets Sean Cunningham of Fox 40 KTXL.

The move ensures that Murray, who is slated to make $8,809,560 this season, will earn a guaranteed $11,144,093 in ’25/26, which is the fourth and final year of his rookie scale contract.

Murray, 24, was the fourth overall pick of the 2022 draft out of Iowa. It was a mere formality that Sacramento would pick up the option, since Murray emerged as a vital part of the team’s core over his first two seasons.

A 6’8″ forward, Murray made the All-Rookie First Team in ’22/23 and followed that up by appearing in 77 regular season games in ’23/24, averaging 15.2 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.7 APG and 1.0 SPG on .454/.358/.831 shooting in 33.6 MPG. He was also frequently tasked with defending the opposing team’s top perimeter player and has positional versatility on both ends of the court.

The deadline for teams to decide on ’25/26 rookie scale team options is Oct. 31. We’re tracking all of those decisions right here.

Hornets Notes: Green, Lee, Defense, Ball, Peterson

October 3rd, 2024 at 1:13pm CST by Rory Maher

Offseason acquisition Josh Green has been a bright spot thus far for the Hornets in training camp, writes Roderick Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Green had a very busy summer, making the NBA Finals with the Mavericks and then suiting up for his native Australia in the Olympics.

“It’s a different training camp time for me,” Green said. “Different than previous years. So, getting back into shape, making sure my body is ready. Just making sure certain injuries are taken care of since last year. So, overall, the training staff has been great here … making sure that I’m ready to go, and adjusting to a new system and everything. But I think the staff has done a great job making me welcome, and making sure I’m ready to go.”

Green was acquired from Dallas in the six-team mega-trade that saw Klay Thompson end up with the Mavs. Known for his defense, energy and athleticism, Green is looking forward to an expanded offensive role with Charlotte, though he acknowledges there will be an adjustment period.

“I think just getting used to having the ball back in my hands a lot,” Green said, per Boone. “In Dallas, I was in the corners and just playing the role that was given to me. I think the coaches have done a great job of being open with me dribbling, passing and creating. And I think I’m comfortable with that, too. It’s just getting back into that rhythm.”

Here’s more on the Hornets:

New head coach Charles Lee has emphasized defense in the first few days of camp after the Hornets finished with the second-worst defensive rating in the league last year, Boone writes for The Charlotte Observer. “On our coaching staff and our program, it’s on the top of the list for us,” Lee said. “So, that’s why we wanted to start training camp with our first drill being defense. Every film session we have is going to start with defense. I’ve learned, as I’ve gone through this journey as an assistant and a coach, that you end up getting good at the things that you emphasize. So, we are just going to continue to emphasize it and eventually it’s going to sink in. A lot of it is a mindset and we have to be willing to do it consistently.”
Point guard LaMelo Ball has been limited to 58 combined games over the past two seasons due to a series of ankle injuries, including just 22 contests in 2023/24. Head of basketball operations Jeff Peterson says Ball is healthy entering the ’24/25 season, according to Boone, who notes that the former All-Star is wearing protective braces on both ankles. “Yeah, Melo, he is in a really good place from a health standpoint,” said Peterson. “He’s had a really, really good summer as well and it’s been neat to see his commitment level. He loves Charlotte and he stayed in Charlotte basically the whole time, which is great. He’s put the time in, not only on the court, but in the weight room and training room. He’s in a really good place. I’m excited. I didn’t get to see him play last year when I was here. He was out. So, I’m excited to get to see him and take the next steps.”
At media day, Peterson discussed Charlotte’s offseason and the team’s general plans for the future, as Boone relays. “We wanted to take a holistic approach in terms of just having sustainable success,” Peterson said. “It’s not one of these things where we want to make the playoffs one year, and then we’re out for another four years; Or make the play-in game one year, and then we’re out for five. We want to be a consistent, relevant contender. You don’t do that overnight, right? It takes time. You have to build it the right way. You can’t skip steps. We’re very strategic in every move to see if that’s possibly going to impact that goal, knowing it’s the north star.”

Terence Davis Signs Exhibit 10 Contract With Bucks

October 3rd, 2024 at 12:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

OCTOBER 3: Davis’ deal with the Bucks is now official, per RealGM’s transaction log.

OCTOBER 2: Free agent shooting guard Terence Davis will join the Bucks on an Exhibit 10 contract, sources tell Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Davis is hoping to return to the NBA after playing three G League games last season with the Rip City Remix and then suffering a season-ending Achilles injury. He had a workout with Milwaukee in August.

Davis, 27, last played for Sacramento in 2022/23, averaging 6.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 64 games. He began his NBA career in Toronto in 2019 and was dealt to the Kings at the 2021 trade deadline. He has specialized in providing scoring off the bench during his four NBA seasons.

The Bucks have 14 players with fully guaranteed contracts, along with Andre Jackson, who has a $946K guarantee on this season’s $1.89MM deal, so Davis faces long odds to earn a roster spot. If he gets waived and spends at least 60 days with the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s G League affiliate, he’ll be eligible for a bonus of up to $77.5K.

The Bucks currently have 20 players in camp, one short of the offseason limit, so Davis can be signed without a corresponding move.

Southeast Notes: KCP, Barlow, Nance Jr., Davis, Poole

October 3rd, 2024 at 10:53am CST by Dana Gauruder

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was one of the biggest free acquisitions this summer, as the Magic signed him for three years and $66MM. Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley says KCP will have a major impact on both ends of the floor, Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel tweets.

“It’s the fact that he just knows where to be on the floor,” Mosley said. “It goes back to the fact he’s played with some of the game’s best players, so he understands the spacing, the time to cut and the time to move to find the open window that they can pass him the basketball. Defensively, he’s always in the right position.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The Hawks added former Spurs forward Dominick Barlow on a two-way deal this summer. Barlow believes he can force his way into the rotation by doing the “little things,” Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal Constitution writes. “Screening, hard, rolling hard, being able to hit that shot in the corner and then just guarding, I think will be my way to get on the court, for sure,” he said.
The Hawks acquired Larry Nance Jr. in the Dejounte Murray deal with the Pelicans. The veteran forward has quickly emerged as a vocal leader during the early days of training camp, Williams writes in a separate story. “He’s done a great job,” Barlow said. “He’s a new guy, but he’s been in a bunch of different situations throughout his career, so he kind of understands, how this works. And I think he’s kind of stepped in and taken that role.”
Wizards third-year guard Johnny Davis resents being called a bust at this stage of his career. Davis was the 10th pick of the 2022 draft but hasn’t performed like a lottery pick in his first two NBA seasons. “It’s a word that’s thrown around a lot, and I feel like it’s not fair to anybody,” Davis told Candace Buckner of the Washington Post. “I just want to show that I belong here. People can say what they want about Tommy Sheppard, the GM at the time when I got drafted here, but I don’t think people randomly get drafted top-10 for nothing.”
Jordan Poole expects his second season with the Wizards to go much smoother than his first year with the organization. He went from a perennial contender in Golden State to a rebuilding team. “I’m just a competitive person,” he said, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “It was new for me to go just through the losing process, honestly. Obviously, we’re in a rebuilding phase, but it was a transition year. There was a lot of movement, a lot of new things, a lot of new pieces on both sides. But now coming into Year 2, we have a little bit more clarity in what we want to do, a little bit more direction in what we want to do. So that not only helps me but it helps other guys know what they can focus on, where they can put their energy to. And that’s all you really need: a little bit of direction.”

Knicks Sign T.J. Warren To Exhibit 10 Deal

October 3rd, 2024 at 9:58am CST by Arthur Hill

OCTOBER 3: The signing is official, according to a team press release.

OCTOBER 2: Veteran forward T.J. Warren will sign an Exhibit 10 contract with the Knicks, sources tell Ian Begley of SNY (Twitter link).

The 31-year-old finished last season with Minnesota after inking a pair of 10-day deals in March and earning a contract for the remainder of the season. He only got into 11 games, averaging 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in 11.4 minutes per night. He also saw limited action in three playoff contests.

Warren’s best season was 2019/20 with Indiana when he averaged 19.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 67 games and became one of the stars of the post-COVID “bubble” in Orlando. However, he injured his left foot four games into the following season and hasn’t been the same since.

After sitting out all of 2021/22, Warren played 42 combined games with the Nets and Suns in 2022/23. He was out of the league for most of last season before landing the opportunity with the Timberwolves.

Warren has been searching for his next team throughout the summer and had a workout with the Kings last month.

The Knicks had to trade away several players to complete the Karl-Anthony Towns deal, so they currently have three open spots on their projected regular season roster, though hard cap restrictions will prevent them from filling them all. With only 12 fully guaranteed contracts, there’s a chance for Warren to make the roster with a strong preseason showing.

If he gets waived, the Exhibit 10 language would enable Warren to earn a bonus of up to $77.5K if he spends at least 60 days with New York’s G League affiliate.

New York Notes: Finney-Smith, Load Management, Kolek, Towns, Tsai

October 3rd, 2024 at 9:20am CST by Dana Gauruder

Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith is irritated by the notion that the team will just mail it in this season, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes.

“Me, Dennis Schröder, we were talking and we just want everybody to know that we ain’t deferring to just tank or whatever,” Finney-Smith said. “They’re saying we’re going to win 17 games. I feel like this team should take that as disrespect, and use it as motivation. People don’t know how healthy Ben (Simmons) is going to be. But we’ve been seeing him for the last four weeks and he looks great. So, if bro gets back on the court I feel like it’s gonna help our team a lot, and we’re going to shake the NBA.”

We have more on the New York teams:

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau isn’t a fan of load management. Despite some injuries late in the regular season and playoffs last season, Thibodeau isn’t planning to give players nights off if they’re healthy enough to take the court, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “Every team has injuries. You just deal with them,” he said. “That’s part of pro sports. So some years you don’t have any injuries, some you do. So whatever your reality is, you deal with it.”
Second-round pick Tyler Kolek made a strong impression during Summer League competition and continued to endear himself to the Knicks‘ coaching staff prior to camp. “Obviously, we drafted him (with the 34th pick), there’s a lot of things we liked about him so we’re anxious to see him in training camp and we’ll see where it goes from there,” Thibodeau said, per Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. “I’ve always said the first step for a rookie coming in is to learn how to be a pro and he’s already exhibited great qualities. He’s in the gym all the time, hard worker, coming in multiple times a day, so he’ll give himself the best shot possible and he’s already adding value to the team.”
With the Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster deal official, the Knicks regulars can soon start building chemistry with the high-scoring big man. Josh Hart has already got a picture in his mind of how Towns can make them more dangerous, Bondy writes in a separate story. ““For me, I haven’t played with that many shooting bigs in my career so I’m looking forward to someone we can isolate on the post, make good decisions, put the ball in the basket,” Hart said. “I’m going to tell him whenever I get a rebound and run, just trail to the 3-point line. I’m sure he’ll get some open 3s that way. It’s going to take some time just to get the feeling down. Obviously (Jalen Brunson), Mikal (Bridges), myself, we played together for a while. OG (Anunoby) played with [Brunson] and myself for a handful of games. It’s going to take a little bit and that’s what training camp and preseason are for — so we can hit the ground running on opening day.”
Nets owner Joe Tsai is close to acquiring a 3% stake in the NFL’s Miami Dolphins, Net Income relays via a Bloomberg News report. Tsai’s investment company is making the purchase from New York real estate developer Steve Ross. The Miami Grand Prix, Ross’ Formula 1 racing event, is also part of the deal.

Lakers Notes: LeBron, Bronny, Christie, Redick, Pelinka

October 2nd, 2024 at 11:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

As he prepares for his 22nd NBA season, Lakers star LeBron James appears to be energized by the chance to compete alongside his son, writes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. After Wednesday’s practice, Anthony Davis detailed a spirited exchange between LeBron and Bronny James during a five-on-five scrimmage.

“It’s fantastic to be able to be here and witness it in practice,” Davis said. “Bronny hit a three over him today. Everybody was talking smack in Bronny’s favor. Then Bron came down and just bullied somebody. Just took it out on (the defender) — I forgot who it was — and got a layup. Bronny came down and hit another three, I think over Austin (Reaves). And Bron wanted the ball. So you could see, even though they weren’t matched up, the competition is there. And that’s what we love to see.”

At age 39, LeBron is coming off a long summer of basketball that culminated with a gold medal for Team USA in Paris. New head coach J.J. Redick has talked to team trainer Mike Mancias about slowly getting LeBron ready for the start of the season, but he declined to divulge any details.

“I think we have a pretty clear plan,” Redick said. “We’ll share that plan when it’s appropriate.”

There’s more from Los Angeles:

LeBron believes third-year wing Max Christie is ready to take on a larger role this season, McMenamin adds in another story. A second-round pick in 2022, Christie received a new four-year, $32MM contract this summer. “I think for me it’s kind of just proving myself again,” Christie said. “I haven’t proven too much as a player in this league. I’ve had spurts and sporadic moments where I’ve been really good, but I want to put a whole season together. Hopefully I get the opportunity to do that this year.”
Redick has to balance his analytical side with his basketball instincts as he adjusts to viewing the game as a coach, observes Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times. Although Davis believes “numbers aren’t anything,” they’re very important to Redick, who wants as much statistical data as he can get. “More information is better,” Redick said. “That’s how I … every person we’ve hired, that’s been a key thing that I’ve told them. ‘Do you want to get in the weeds?’ ‘Yeah, I do want to get in the weeds. Yeah.’ So as much info as possible.”
General manager Rob Pelinka had a surprisingly quiet summer in terms of personnel moves, but he indicated at a recent press conference that he’s willing to part with future first-round picks to make the Lakers better this season (hat tip to Lake Show Life). “I think the philosophy that J.J. and I are aligned on is: We want to build sustainable Lakers excellence … every lens that we look through has to lead to sustainable Lakers excellence,” Pelinka said. “So the direct answer to your question is: Yes, we would do a trade with both (available first-round draft) picks if that would lead to sustainable Lakers excellence. We would also use one pick to make a marginal upgrade if we felt it was the right thing to do.”

Mavericks Notes: Doncic, Marshall, Thompson, Kleber, Edwards

October 2nd, 2024 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

The left calf contusion that forced Mavericks star Luka Doncic to miss the second day of training camp is considered to be minor, writes Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. The team will give Doncic a week to rest before reevaluating his condition, which means he’ll miss a “Fan Jam” open practice on Sunday as well as the preseason opener Monday against Memphis. Barring any unexpected complications, he should be back soon after that.

“He got hit in the calf,” coach Jason Kidd said. “Reported it tight yesterday so they went and got an MRI. We’ll reevaluate him in a week and see where he stands.”

Curtis recalls that Doncic suffered a strain in his left calf last October when the Mavs were in Spain. He was limited to five minutes in an exhibition matchup with Real Madrid, his former team, and sat out the last game of the preseason, but was ready for opening night.

Doncic’s teammates don’t seem concerned about having him miss a week or more of training camp.

“I don’t think it’s going to be hard because when he’s on the court, it’s easy to play with him,” P.J. Washington said. “For us, it’s just learning our spacing and learning where we need to be. He’s going to be Luka, so we’re not really worried about him. It’s just us getting in our right spots, making sure we know the plays and defenses and all of that type of stuff.”

Sources tell Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link) that there are no concerns about Doncic’s availability for the October 24 opener.

There’s more from Dallas:

The Mavericks signed Naji Marshall to be a defensive stopper after losing Derrick Jones in free agency, but Marshall may provide an offensive lift as well, Curtis states in a separate story. Klay Thompson was raving about Marshall’s shot-making after the first day of camp. “Naji played incredible,” Thompson said. “The guy was making floaters, pull-ups. I thought he played really well. I was impressed with Naji. He scored a couple of times on me. His jumper was fluid and his mid-range was nice.”
Thompson had to “get the nerves out” in his first day of training camp with a new team after spending 13 years with the Warriors, Curtis adds in another piece. “It feels like transferring schools,” he said, “but it’s a feeling you want to embrace because it’s so rare to get those butterflies as a player. It’s awesome.”
Maxi Kleber and Kessler Edwards were both held out of the start of camp, although Kidd didn’t provide a reason, according to Curtis. Kleber missed much of last season’s playoff run with a right shoulder AC joint separation.

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