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Raptors Sign Joe Wieskamp To 10-Day Contract

January 7th, 2023 at 9:31am CST by Luke Adams

JANUARY 7: The Raptors have officially signed Wieskamp to a 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. The deal will run through January 16, covering Toronto’s next five games.

JANUARY 6: The Raptors are signing free agent swingman Joe Wieskamp to a 10-day contract, agents Kyle McAlarney and Mark Bartelstein tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Wieskamp, 23, was drafted 41st overall in 2021 by the Spurs and spent most of his rookie season on a two-way contract with the team. The 6’6″ wing was converted to a rest-of-season standard contract in March, then re-signed with San Antonio in August on a two-year deal that included a guaranteed $2.175MM salary for 2022/23. However, he was the victim of a roster crunch and was waived by the Spurs in October just before the regular season tipped off.

A former Iowa standout, Wieskamp appeared in 29 games for the Spurs in his first pro season, playing a very limited role for the NBA club. He averaged 2.1 PPG and 0.5 RPG in 7.1 MPG.

Wieskamp has seen more of the court at the G League level in the last two seasons. After playing for the Austin Spurs in 2021/22, he was the second overall pick in this season’s NBAGL draft and has spent this season with the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s affiliate. In 11 Showcase Cup games for the Herd (28.5 MPG), he averaged 17.0 PPG and 5.9 RPG on .504/.406/.842 shooting.

The Raptors won’t need to make a roster move to clear space for Wieskamp, since they have an opening on their 15-man squad after waiving Justin Champagnie last week.

Knicks Notes: Barrett, Reddish, Toppin, Rotation

January 7th, 2023 at 9:13am CST by Luke Adams

RJ Barrett has missed the Knicks‘ past five games with what the team has referred to as a laceration on his right index finger, but the injury was actually more gruesome than that, as Peter Botte of The New York Post writes. Barrett described the injury to reporters on Friday, explaining he received six stitches on the finger after it was temporarily dislocated.

“My (left) hand went into my other hand and my finger bent backwards and popped out of place, which caused the laceration,” said the Canadian forward, adding that he was disappointed not to be able to play in his hometown of Toronto on Friday.

“It popped out. I popped it back into place. I didn’t see (a bone through the skin). I was told after it was more like tendons, I guess,” Barrett said. “But yeah, so I looked at my hand, it was definitely a laceration right there. So, I immediately just walked out and got it stitched up. So, I still have stitches in right now … but oh, yeah. It was painful.”

The former No. 3 overall pick said he believes he’ll have the stitches removed within the next week and doesn’t think he’ll need much ramp-up time once he’s cleared to return, according to Botte.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

In a discussion about Cam Reddish‘s future in New York, or lack thereof, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News tells Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter video link) that he doesn’t envision a scenario where the forward reclaims a spot in the rotation. It’s probably unrealistic to expect Reddish to return more than a second-round pick in a trade, Bondy adds, suggesting that the best course of action may be packaging him with other players.
Although Obi Toppin was cleared to return from his leg injury earlier this week, he still has a little work to do before the Knicks feel comfortable playing him, tweets Fred Katz of The Athletic. Toppin was briefly assigned to the G League on Thursday to get some 5-on-5 practice reps, tweets Bondy, and head coach Tom Thibodeau said on Friday that the forward is “getting close” to being ready, per Katz.
Given that Thibodeau views Toppin as part of the Knicks’ nine-man rotation once he’s ramped up, Steve Popper of Newsday wonders who will be the odd man out, observing that there’s no obvious candidate for a demotion on a team that has won 12 of its last 17 games. “We’ll see,” Thibodeau said. “And again, there’s gotta be flexibility there. So we’ll get there, but obviously we want Obi back. The team has to be put first. Everyone has to sacrifice for the team. And for some guys, it’s starting; some guys, it’s shots; some guys, they may not be in the rotation.”
The Knicks have been so streaky this season that it might make sense for the team to wait a few more weeks to determine its direction at the trade deadline rather than making an early deal, Katz writes for The Athletic. New York has made trades far ahead of the deadline in each of the last two seasons.

Wolves Notes: Edwards, Gobert, Reid, Garza, Prince

January 7th, 2023 at 7:47am CST by Luke Adams

Anthony Edwards‘ evolution into the franchise player in Minnesota remains a work in progress, but the Timberwolves guard is viewed by teammates and coaches as a great listener who is willing to put in the work necessary to reach stardom, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports writes in a profile of the former No. 1 overall pick. One area of focus for the Wolves this season has been encouraging Edwards to find his teammates rather than forcing shots when opposing defenses double-team him.

“One thing we preach to him a lot is the essence of offense in the league is not how much you score, but when they put two on you and you create an advantage,” head coach Chris Finch said. “No matter how they do it, pick-and-roll trap, early gap help, all that stuff that comes from the gravity he creates, just trying to continue to find the right play and trusting his teammates to score. Keep trusting the right pass.”

While Edwards is averaging a career-best 4.4 assists per game through 40 appearances this season, it’s his scoring ability that makes him special. He’s averaging a career-best 23.7 points per contest so far this season and led the Wolves to a victory over Portland on Wednesday with a game-high 32.

“He’s six years away (from his prime) and he’s already this good,” teammate Austin Rivers said that night, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link). “Franchise player. He’s the guy here. There’s no doubt about it.”

Unfortunately, Edwards exited Friday’s game in the third quarter due to a sore left hip that has been bothering him as of late, tweets Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. The Wolves still managed to pull out a solid 128-115 win over the visiting Clippers.

Here’s more out of Minnesota:

Seth Partnow of The Athletic took a closer look on Friday at some advanced stats that suggest Rudy Gobert‘s defensive impact has declined this season, writing that the big man’s regression is a cause for concern. Hours later, Gobert delivered perhaps his best game since arriving in Minnesota, piling up 25 points and 21 rebounds in the team’s victory over the Clippers. “I don’t think we’ve seen the best Rudy yet,” he said after the game (story via Hine). “I’ve been putting in a lot of work. My teammates are sticking with me. The coaching staff is sticking with me. And I know that it’s going to pay off. It’s a long season. My goal is to just keep raising my level every day and set the tone for these guys.”
After missing the Wolves’ previous two games due to back spasms, backup center Naz Reid played just nine minutes on Friday before exiting early due to the same injury, Hine writes.
With Reid and Karl-Anthony Towns both sidelined, two-way player Luka Garza got a chance to crack the rotation this week and delivered with 23 points in 27 minutes during the two games Reid missed. Though Garza felt comfortable on the offensive end of the court, he was more concerned about how he performed on defense, Hine writes for The Star Tribune. “I know that’s the decider of how long I can stay in this league,” Garza said. “If I could become a real rotation piece, it’s how good I get at that end. … I think at the end of the day, just playing hard is going to help you most of the time.”
Taurean Prince‘s return has given the Wolves a shot in the arm, Hine says in another Star Tribune story. Prince has played 47 total minutes off the bench in his two games back after missing 20 consecutive contests due to a right shoulder injury. He scored double-digit points on Wednesday and Friday, both Minnesota wins. “He was our most consistent player in a lot of ways in his role, when he went out,” Finch said on Wednesday. “I knew what I was going to get from him every night. He knows who he is. His game is super well-defined and he sticks to his strengths, so definitely pleased to have him back.”

KZ Okpala’s Contract Guaranteed By Kings

January 6th, 2023 at 9:42pm CST by Rory Maher

The Kings are keeping KZ Okpala on their roster, according to Marc J. Spears of Andscape (Twitter link), who hears from a source that the forward had his contract guaranteed for the rest of the season.

The 32nd overall pick of the 2019 draft, Okpala spent his first two-plus seasons with the Heat. However, Miami traded him to Oklahoma City last February and he was subsequently waived by the Thunder.

The 23-year-old signed a two-year, $4MM deal with the Kings ahead of training camp, but it was only partially guaranteed for $250K. The guarantee increased to $500K when he made Sacramento’s regular season roster.

Okpala started the Kings’ first three games in 2022/23, but he hasn’t played a whole lot since. Overall, he’s appeared in 25 games for an average of 7.8 minutes per night. Head coach Mike Brown is a fan of Okpala’s defense.

And-Ones: All-Star Voting, Moore, Sophomore Class, 2023 Mock

January 6th, 2023 at 8:41pm CST by Rory Maher

Superstar forwards LeBron James and Kevin Durant lead the Western and Eastern Conferences, respectively, in the first round of All-Star fan voting, the NBA announced on Thursday (Twitter link). Fan voting makes up 50% of the vote for the starting lineup, with players and the media accounting for 25% each.

The projected starting lineups, based on the initial round of fan voting, would be James, Nikola Jokic and Anthony Davis in the West’s frontcourt, with Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic in the backcourt. The East’s frontcourt would be Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid, with Kyrie Irving and Donovan Mitchell in the backcourt.

Fan voting ends on January 21. The next round of votes will be released on January 12.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Free agent guard E’Twaun Moore, a career 38.8% three-point shooter, believes he can still help teams. He’s working out and staying ready in case he gets a call, but he’s also making plans for his post-NBA career. “I got to be prepared if a team doesn’t want to pick me up,” he told Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. “Then what am I going to do?” As Vorkunov details, the 11-year veteran views fellow East Chicago, Indiana, native and former NBA player Junior Bridgeman as a role model due to his successful business ventures — Bridgeman is worth an estimated $600MM. Moore earned more than $42MM during his career, but he’s already accumulated another $40MM in various business interests after spending $6MM to acquire them, per Vorkunov. “That’s just getting started,” said Moore, who graduated from Purdue with a bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership. “I want to try get nine figures. I want to make way more off the court than I did playing basketball.”
The 2021 draft class has been largely disappointing in 2022/23, according to John Hollinger of The Athletic. That’s a stark contrast from their rookie seasons, when players like Cade Cunningham, Scottie Barnes, Evan Mobley and Jalen Green looked like future stars. Cunningham’s second year was cut short by season-ending surgery, and while the other three have shown glimpses, they’ve been pretty inconsistent in year two, says Hollinger, who also evaluates several other players from the class.
In Jonathan Wasserman’s latest 2023 mock draft for Bleacher Report, Amen Thompson and Ausar Thompson, twin brothers for Overtime Elite, go No. 3 and No. 4 behind Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson. Villanova’s Cam Whitmore rounds out the top five.

Kings To Guarantee Matthew Dellavedova’s Contract

January 6th, 2023 at 6:54pm CST by Rory Maher

The Kings plan to guarantee Matthew Dellavedova‘s contract for the remainder of the season, a league source tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Dellavedova was signed to a partially guaranteed deal for the veteran’s minimum, so he will earn $2,628,597 in 2022/23. However, the Kings will only carry a $1,836,090 cap hit, as our Luke Adams details here.

Sacramento just waived Chima Moneke, another player with a partially guaranteed deal, ahead of tomorrow’s guarantee deadline. KZ Okpala is the last remaining player whose contract is partially guaranteed, but he has appeared in more games than both Dellavedova and Moneke, so it would be a mild surprise if he’s released.

A nine-year NBA veteran, Dellavedova spent most of his career with the Cavaliers, winning a title in 2016. He also spent two-plus seasons with the Bucks. However, he was out of the league in 2021/22 — he played for Melbourne United in his native Australia.

Kings head coach Mike Brown coached Dellavedova when he was a rookie with Cleveland back in ’13/14, and that familiarity played a big factor in him landing another NBA deal. The 32-year-old has appeared in just 15 games with Sacramento for an average of 6.7 minutes per contest.

Kings Waive Chima Moneke

January 6th, 2023 at 6:30pm CST by Rory Maher

The Kings have waived forward Chima Moneke, a source tells James Ham of ESPN 1320 and TheKingsBeat.com (Twitter link).

Moneke was one of three players on Sacramento’s roster on partially guaranteed contracts — Matthew Dellavedova and KZ Okpala are the others. The deadline to waive partially and non-guaranteed deals before they become fully guaranteed is tomorrow, January 7.

The 27-year-old rookie out of Australia only appeared in two NBA games this season for a total of eight minutes. He spent the majority of the season with the team’s G League affiliate, the Stockton Kings, averaging 17.6 PPG, 11.3 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.6 SPG and 0.8 BPG in 16 games (36.3 MPG) during the Showcase Cup.

After going undrafted in 2018, Moneke played internationally for teams in France and Spain, first competing in the French LNB Pro B league before receiving a promotion to Orléans Loiret Basket of LNB Pro A, the top league in France, in 2020/21.

Last season he played for Baxi Manresa of Liga ACB, the top Spanish league, averaging 14.5 PPG, 8.2 RPG and 1.6 SPG on .521/.290/.735 shooting in 36 games (30 starts, 24.1 MPG). He was also named the MVP of the Basketball Champions League with Baxi Manresa in ’21/22.

Moneke was on a standard contract, so the Kings now have 14 players on their 15-man roster, with both two-way contracts filled.

Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins Expected To Return On Saturday

January 6th, 2023 at 5:32pm CST by Rory Maher

Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins was a full practice participant on Friday, per head coach Steve Kerr (Twitter link via ESPN’s Kendra Andrews), and is now listed as probable for Saturday’s game against Orlando, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

Generally, when players are listed as probable, it means there’s a strong chance they’ll suit up, and that’s the expectation for Wiggins, according to Slater. The 27-year-old has missed 15 consecutive games due to strained right adductor and then an illness. As Slater notes, it has been the longest absence of Wiggins’ career — he had never missed more than 11 games in a season prior to this.

Through 22 games (32.8 MPG), all starts, Wiggins is averaging 19.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.4 SPG and 0.8 BPG on .511/.450/.628 shooting. His FG% and 3PT% are both career highs, as is his .621 true shooting percentage.

Wiggins is the second player expected to rejoin Golden State’s lineup on Saturday — forward Andre Iguodala announced on his podcast that he’s going to make his 2022/23 season debut against the Magic. The two veterans should help bolster the Warriors on both ends of the court — the defending champions currently rank 15th in offense and 18th in defense.

The Warriors are currently 20-19, the No. 9 seed in the West, but only trail the No. 6 seed Clippers by a half-game.

Scotto’s Latest: LaVine, Mavs, Heat, Dort, Raptors

January 6th, 2023 at 4:32pm CST by Luke Adams

Rival executives believe the Knicks, Mavericks, Lakers, and Heat would be among the most likely suitors for Zach LaVine if the Bulls were to make him available prior to this season’s February 9 trade deadline, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype said on the latest episode of HoopsHype’s podcast. However, with Chicago still hanging onto the 10th seed in the East despite a disappointing first half (17-21), there’s no indication that the team is on the verge of becoming a seller.

Here’s more from Scotto:

The Mavericks owe their 2023 first-round pick to New York, but control all their future picks and could theoretically move one or more at the trade deadline. However, Scotto has heard the Mavs will be reluctant to give up a first-rounder unless it’s for a player they believe can help make them a title contender this season.
Rival executives are keeping a close eye on the Heat as a team that may be active before the deadline, says Scotto. After finishing with the East’s best record in 2021/22, Miami is just 20-19 so far this season and holds the No. 8 seed. The team never really replaced P.J. Tucker after he departed in free agency and should have some tradable contracts, especially after Victor Oladipo and Dewayne Dedmon become movable on January 15 (though Oladipo will have veto power).
Luguentz Dort is another player who will become trade-eligible on January 15, but don’t expect him to be mentioned in any rumors this season, according to Scotto, who says the Thunder view him as a part of the team’s long-term future alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Some people around the league believe the Raptors will be more active in trade talks beginning in mid-January, Scotto says. Toronto may have a better sense by then of which direction the team’s season is headed.

Eastern Rumors: Bucks, Bogdanovic, Raptors, Wizards, Hampton

January 6th, 2023 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Bucks are tied for the NBA’s second-best record, they’re in the bottom five in offensive rating, having relied on one of the league’s best defenses during their strong first half. As they look to upgrade their offense, they’re expected to be in the market for help on the wing at the trade deadline, according to Matt Moore of ActionNetwork.com.

The Bucks, Suns, and Rockets reportedly discussed a three-team trade involving Jae Crowder, but it didn’t get done because Houston wanted more draft compensation than Milwaukee and Phoenix were willing to offer. Some league sources who spoke to Moore suggested they wouldn’t be surprised to see the three teams return to that framework and eventually get something done.

Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic is another player who is on the Bucks’ radar, per Moore, and he’d certainly provide the club’s offense with a boost. However, Detroit doesn’t appear eager to move Bogdanovic, Moore adds. Jake Fischer reported earlier this week that the Pistons are believed to be seeking a first-round pick, plus additional draft assets or a young player with upside.

Here are a few more rumors from around the Eastern Conference:

Sources who have spoken to Moore have indicated that the Raptors are willing to discuss a variety of players but have been seeking a substantial return for their potential trade candidates. Moore says the words “insane,” “astronomical,” and “far-fetched” have been used by his sources to describe Toronto’s asking prices. He adds that the price for OG Anunoby is believed to be higher than it was in the offseason, when the Raptors were reportedly seeking a top-10 pick.
Although there has been some trade speculation this season centered on Wizards guard Bradley Beal and especially forward Kyle Kuzma, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype has heard that the front office would like to build around Beal, Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis long-term and would ideally find a fourth core player to complement that trio.
As he did last month, Magic wing R.J. Hampton requested and was granted an assignment to the G League in order to get more playing time, reports Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. Hampton played a couple games with the Lakeland Magic last month before returning to Orlando, but has been a DNP-CD in four of eight contests since then and logged more than five minutes just once.