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Pacific Notes: Vincent, Reaves, Green, Beal

March 5th, 2024 at 10:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lakers guard Gabe Vincent should be back sometime this month, Shams Charania said on FanDuel’s Run It Back program (video link).

“Gabe Vincent is doing more and more on the court. … Barring any setbacks, his hope is still mid-to-late March to get back in the lineup for the Lakers,” Charania said, adding, “(With) Gabe, you’d want to kind of change the tempo, change the pace. That’s why they signed him from Miami.”

Vincent underwent left knee surgery in late December. He was signed to a three-year, $33MM contract last summer but has only appeared in five games.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

Austin Reaves is taking on more essential defensive responsibilites with Taurean Prince and Cam Reddish no longer in the Lakers’ starting lineup. Reaves shadowed Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Los Angeles’ victory on Monday, Khobi Price of the Orange County Register notes. “He just took the challenge,” LeBron James said of Reaves. “Obviously, Shai is one of the best players that we have in our league, so it’s just trying not to put him at the free-throw line because that’s where he gets a lot of his points from too. Austin was sensational from the start to the finish, whenever he was out on the floor just trying to play the ball and making Shai and making [Jalen Williams] take tough shots and we’d just try to protect him on the back end.”
Warriors forward Draymond Green wants to finish his career on a positive note, which is why he’s continuing to go through therapy even after his league-imposed suspension ended, he told Howard Beck of The Ringer. “I’m far closer to the end than I am the beginning,” Green said. “Do you want the end to look like complete s–t? Or do you want the end to look closer to how it looked in the beginning? Do you want to leave gracefully? Or do you want to leave like a f–ing a–hole? Do you want your legacy to be a guy who couldn’t contain himself, a guy who couldn’t finish the job? Or do you want your legacy to be a guy who did it his way, yes, but did it the right way? I think that’s what it boils down to.”
Bradley Beal was instructed to wear a mask after suffering a broken nose in late January but he hasn’t done so since returning this month from a hamstring injury. He’s not done with nasal procedures, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets. “Still have to get my septum realigned. Think I’ll do it after the season,” the Suns guard said. “Still having a little trouble breathing out my right nostril.”

Raptors Notes: Olynyk, Carton, Gueye, Barnes

March 5th, 2024 at 10:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The contract extension that Kelly Olynyk reached with the Raptors had an added bonus: It clears the way for the longtime member of the Canadian Olympic team to play in the Paris Olympics, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports notes.

If he had been a free agent, it would have been difficult to secure insurance ahead of Canada’s training camp, which opens in Toronto in late June.

“That was definitely a big part of it, as well, getting this out of the way,” he said. “To not have [the contract situation] on your plate and your mind, just be able to play free and easy, and then obviously in the summer just be able to work out, train, and be present right at the start with no complications was a big factor. That also played a huge part in the decision.”

Olynyk, acquired from Utah, signed a two-year, $26.25MM extension. The Toronto native hopes to remain with the Raptors the remainder of his career.

“They traded for me, they wanted me here,” Olynyk said. “Just to reciprocate that love and show that I do want to be here, too – I’ve wanted to be here since I was four years old. It’s special, to create that trust and that bond. Hopefully I’ll be here for the rest of my career.”

We have more on the Raptors:

Securing Olynyk’s services on a reasonable contract was a savvy move by the franchise, according to The Athletic’s Eric Koreen. Olynyk’s first year salary of approximately $12.8MM is less than the $18.3MM cap hold he would have had as a free agent. That potentially will give Toronto $5.3MM in extra cap room. On the court, Olynyk’s skill set will help head coach Darko Rajakovic continue to build his movement-heavy offense, Koreen adds.
The two-way contracts for D.J. Carton and Mouhamadou Gueye are both two-year deals, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet tweets. They’ll get the full guarantee allowable (50% of a 2024/25 two-way contract) if they remain with the team on two-way deals next season. The Raptors also have option to convert their contracts to standard deals at any time over the two-year period.
Scottie Barnes hasn’t formally been ruled out for the season after he underwent hand surgery on Monday, Lewenberg tweets. “Everybody would like him to come back and finish the season,” Rajakovic said. “I know he’s eager but we just don’t have enough information at this time.”

And-Ones: Officiating, Stewart, Eubanks, Ntilikina, Bronny

March 5th, 2024 at 8:25pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr once again lamented the way that NBA games are called, suggesting that offensive players get the benefit of the doubt too often, according to Eric Koreen of The Athletic.

“I think there just needs to be a general rule: No bulls–t allowed. Really. It’s the truth,” Kerr said. “And I could go through a tape with you and show you: A guy dribbles off a high ball screen and the defender tries to fight over (the screen) and the guy (with the ball) jumps backwards and the ref calls a foul. Like, what are we doing? Can you imagine calling that in the pickup game? It would start a fight. We just have to get back to (determining) what’s basketball.”

With scoring numbers reaching record heights, NBA executive vice president of basketball operations Joe Dumars confirmed last month that the league has formally launched a review into whether rule changes are necessary to slow that trend and restore the offense/defense balance. Kerr believes that tweaking the way fouls are called would be a good start.

“Let’s make players create an advantage in order to call a foul,” Kerr said. “But we have these exact phrases — ‘illegal guarding position.’ Sometimes a guy will just slam right through the defender and the ref will call a foul on the defender. (The referee will) say, ‘It’s an illegal guarding position.’ The refs have to call that. That’s how they’re judged and taught.

“Like I said, the officials are great. It’s just that we have to recognize what’s happening. I think it’s been about a decade where the offensive players are so smart, they see what’s happening and they’re just completely manipulating the rules to let them go.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

TMZ Sports has obtained the Phoenix Police Department incident report on the altercation between Pistons forward/center Isaiah Stewart and Suns center Drew Eubanks. According to the report, Eubanks told police that Stewart confronted him while he was entering the arena due to physical play between the two big men in a previous game. Stewart, who punched Eubanks in the face, was arrested on a misdemeanor assault charge and issued a citation, but Eubanks later told police he wanted the charges dropped, per TMZ.
Frank Ntilikina is reportedly looking to return to his home country after being waived by the Hornets last month. Alessandro Maggi of Sportando, relaying a report from French outlet BeBasket, says Ntilikina has been linked to ASVEL and Paris Basketball but would need to be signed as an injury replacement to be eligible suit up for either team down the stretch. The guard is said to be hoping to use the rest of this season to make his case for a spot on the French national team for the Paris Olympics this summer.
As he considers whether to enter the 2024 NBA draft or remain at USC, Bronny James is expected to weigh specific team interest more heavily than draft position, agent Rich Paul told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN over the weekend. That would mean seeking out the best developmental fit rather than trying to get drafted as high as possible. Paul added that getting Bronny on the same team as father LeBron James isn’t a top priority, though LeBron would be “head over heels excited if that were to happen organically.”

Central Notes: DeRozan, Caruso, Pistons, K. Brown

March 5th, 2024 at 7:15pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The league leader in minutes played per game is a 34-year-old. The Bulls’ DeMar DeRozan is averaging 37.8 MPG, followed by 20-somethings Luka Doncic, Tyrese Maxey and Miles Bridges. It’s a source of pride for DeRozan that he’s receiving such a heavy workload at this stage of his career.

“I love it,” the Bulls forward told K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. “I love the game. As a kid when you’re young, you play until your Momma scream at you and those streetlights come on. Same thing here. You love it. You try to relish in these opportunities.”

We have more from the Central Division:

Bulls guard Alex Caruso believes this season has probably been his best from an individual standpoint, though it depends on how he finishes, he told Johnson. “We’re only 75 percent of the way through. We have to finish strong for this to be a completed sentence,” he said. “But to this point, I think it’s up there. I think offensively it’s probably my best. I think the numbers show that. I think I’m close to 10 points a game. And I’m pretty sure I’m close to 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Defensively, it’s been different for me. I’ve been guarding big wings or posts a lot more rather than lead guards. In turn, I have more blocks than I ever have and about the same for steals. That’s been a unique challenge defensively.”
Due to a steady diet of roster moves, Pistons head coach Monty Williams has been constantly tinkering with the rotation. James Edwards III of The Athletic suggests that Williams should cut his rotation down to eight players, staggering the starters’ minutes to make it work. In that scenario, recent acquisitions Simone Fontecchio and Quentin Grimes, along with rookie Marcus Sasser, would be the only reserves getting steady minutes.
Kendall Brown‘s rookie season with the Pacers was cut short by shin surgery. Brown, a second-round pick, has shown enough this season in the G League to get his two-way deal promoted on Monday to a three-year standard contract. “It’s been a long two years,” Brown said, per Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star. “… The reward feels so much better when the path has been hard. My path has been different than a lot of other players in my class. I was just staying the course, just staying focused. Good things don’t come easy a lot of times. This is a good feeling to finally get that done.”

Atlantic Notes: Brunson, Bogdanovic, DiVincenzo, Maxey, Lowry

March 5th, 2024 at 6:07pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks got more good news on Jalen Brunson‘s knee. An MRI on the injured area came back clean, coach Tom Thibodeau told Newsday’s Steve Popper (Twitter link) and other media members.

Brunson, who didn’t play against the Hawks on Tuesday, was diagnosed with a left knee contusion after colliding with teammate Isaiah Hartenstein in the opening minute of New York’s win over Cleveland on Sunday. It initially looked much worse. The Knicks’ All-Star guard was helped off the court after attempting a mid-range shot and did not return.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Bojan Bogdanovic and Donte DiVincenzo combined for 48 points after Brunson left Sunday’s game and snapped out of shooting slumps. They were aided by crisp ball movement, Jared Schwartz of the New York Post notes, as the Knicks had 32 assists on Sunday, the most they had recorded since Dec. 11.
Sixers star guard Tyrese Maxey has entered the league’s concussion protocol, as relayed by ESPN’s news services. He was diagnosed with a mild concussion, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. Maxey hit his head against the knee of Mavericks forward Derrick Jones in the third quarter of Sunday’s win and was subbed out, though he did eventually return.
Kyle Lowry, who has taken over as the Sixers’ starting point guard, doesn’t want to reflect on his career accomplishments until he retires, he told Pompey. “Of course, I know what they are,” Lowry said. “I’ve never sat down and really thought about the things that I’ve done. I just continue to live in the moment where I can’t think about what I’ve done, what is there to do, you know? ‘Do you want to win a couple more championships or whatever I can win?’ But I never sat back and thought about it yet. The reason is because I’m still playing.”

Isaiah Thomas To Join Jazz’s G League Team, Hopes For NBA Return

March 5th, 2024 at 4:19pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas is joining the Salt Lake City Stars, the Jazz’s NBA G League affiliate, in the hopes of eventually getting an NBA offer, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports (Twitter link).

In a December interview, Thomas confirmed that he was looking for another NBA opportunity.

“I’m still trying to play the game of basketball. I want to get back to the NBA,” he said at the time. “So, I’m still working out and staying ready.”

Thomas held workouts last summer for NBA teams during the Las Vegas Summer League last July, hoping to catch someone’s attention. He signed 10-day hardship deals with the Mavericks and Lakers during the 2021/22 season before catching on with the Hornets for the remainder of that campaign. He appeared in a total of 22 games that season, but wasn’t in the league in ’22/23.

Thomas’ career peaked when he averaged 28.9 points and 5.9 assists per game for the Celtics during the 2016/17 season. His career was sidetracked by a right hip injury. He has also played for Sacramento, Phoenix, Cleveland, Denver, Washington and New Orleans.

In 550 regular season games, Thomas has averaged 17.7 points and 4.8 assists in 28.3 minutes per night. A late second-round pick in 2011, he turned 35 last month.

Spurs Notes: Wembanyama, McDermott, Branham, Barlow, Gray

March 5th, 2024 at 4:02pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne declared during an NBA Today segment on Monday (Twitter video link) that Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama is “ready to win” and questioned how patient the Rookie of the Year frontrunner will be as the front office looks to build out the roster around him.

However, Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link) pushed back against the idea that Wembanyama will be urging the team to accelerate the roster-building process.

“I say this without an ounce of exaggeration or hyperbole: I talk to people about the Spurs every day. And of all those people, there is one who is, by far, the most forward-thinking and relentlessly patient when it comes to the plan,” Finger wrote. “It’s the 20-year-old kid. And it’s not close.”

Armed with plenty of cap flexibility and an excess of draft picks this offseason, the Spurs will be well positioned to continue adding talent to their young core, but there’s no indication that the club will be looking to consolidate several of its assets in a win-now move quite yet.

Here’s more on the Spurs:

Ahead of the Spurs’s game against the Pacers on Sunday, Zach Collins admitted that he was sad to see former teammate Doug McDermott go at last month’s trade deadline, though he appreciated that McDermott landed in a favorable situation. “I talked to him the day it happened and just told him I was going to miss him and that it was really fun playing with him,” Collins said, per Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (subscription required). “But I am happy for him that he got to go (to a playoff contender). In the playoffs you need shooting, and he is going to be really valuable for them.” McDermott was unable to suit up against his old team on Sunday due to a calf injury.
A full-time starter for the Spurs in November and December, Malaki Branham had been coming off the bench since January 2. However, he earned a rare start on Sunday and took full advantage by scoring 18 points and handing out six assists, much to the delight of his teammates, Orsborn writes (subscription required). “I don’t have words to say how excited I am for him,” Keldon Johnson said. “I’m happy for him and the way he stepped up tonight. We really needed it and it was big.”
After having been promoted to the Spurs’ standard roster from his two-way contract, Dominick Barlow earned praise from head coach Gregg Popovich for having improved “pretty dramatically” since joining the team, according to Orsborn. “He is someone who plays in a solid manner,” Popovich said. “You don’t see him making mistakes really. He is not really a shooter. He is a pretty good defender and he goes to the boards pretty well, runs well. So, all those kind of basic things he puts together and plays a game that kind of complements everybody else.”
RaiQuan Gray‘s new two-way contract with the Spurs will cover two years, running through next season, Hoops Rumors has confirmed.

Andrew Wiggins Reports Back To Warriors

March 5th, 2024 at 3:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran forward Andrew Wiggins has rejoined the Warriors after missing the past four games due to family matter, according to Kendra Andrews of ESPN, who tweeted a video of Wiggins at practice.

Shams Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic first reported that Wiggins was flying into the Bay Area and reporting to the team on Tuesday after tending to a personal family matter.

Golden State is back in action on Wednesday at home vs. the Bucks, and Wiggins is expected to be active for that game, head coach Steve Kerr said today (Twitter link via Andrews). He’ll likely be reinserted into the starting lineup, though he may be on a minutes restriction.

Moses Moody played well as a starting forward in Wiggins’ absence, but he’s in danger of falling out of the club’s crowded rotation again with the former No. 1 overall pick set to return. Moody averaged 12.0 points and 4.0 rebounds on .500/.400/.500 shooting in his four starts, three of which were Warriors wins. The one loss was an ugly one — the Dubs were blown out by 52 points on Sunday in Boston.

Wiggins missed the final 25 games of the 2022/23 season due to personal reasons, returning just before the postseason began.

Timberwolves Notes: Edwards, Sale Process, Anderson

March 5th, 2024 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves got off to an inauspicious start on Monday night vs. Portland, as star guard Anthony Edwards didn’t report to the court on time for the opening tip. According to reports from Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune and ESPN, Edwards – who does resistance band work outside the team locker room before each game – said he lost track of the time.

The Timberwolves were hit with a delay of game violation as Nickeil Alexander-Walker ended up starting in Edwards’ place and playing the first 35 seconds before the All-Star checked in.

“Sixth Man of the Year,” Edwards joked after the game, per Zgoda.

As Zgoda details, the Wolves weren’t exactly firing on all cylinders for much of the night against a Trail Blazers team missing several key players due to injuries, but they did just enough to come away with a five-point win, avoiding a third consecutive loss. Rudy Gobert led the way with 25 points and 16 rebounds on a near-perfect shooting night. He went 9-of-10 from the floor and 7-of-7 from the foul line.

Here’s more on the Wolves:

Following up on a pair of tweets over the weekend discussing the situation, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic takes a more in-depth look at the Timberwolves’ unconventional sale process, which remains on track to be finalized in the coming weeks. As Krawczynski explains, the incoming group led by Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez already controls 40% of the franchise and exercised its option in late December to purchase another 40%. That option pick-up opened a 90-day window to complete the transaction, so it should be completed by the end of March. Longtime team owner Glen Taylor will retain 20% of the franchise even after Lore and Rodiguez assume majority control.
There have been some questions throughout the process about whether Lore and Rodriguez have the money to complete their purchase of the Wolves, but sources tell Krawczynski that “everything is in order.” The new ownership group, which recruited some minority investors along the way to help with financing, will have to be approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors as majority stakeholders.
Second play-maker Kyle Anderson got off to a slow start in his second season in Minnesota, but has looked more comfortable as of late, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Anderson has three assists or more in 14 straight games, the longest streak of his career, and has shot 50.0% from the field during that time, bumping his season-long mark to 46.9%. “He understands that he needs to be a play-maker for us at all costs. He’s a guy we can trust with the ball, a guy who makes the right decisions whether it’s scoring the ball, posting up or finding guys in the right spots,” teammate Mike Conley said of Anderson. “Defensively he’s a guy who can switch onto different guys, guard other guys and give Jaden (McDaniels) a break, give Ant a break. He has been those things so far. He’s just confident in that role.”
In a separate story for The Star Tribune, Hine says there’s not a specific playoff matchup that Minnesota fears, since the Wolves believe they’re capable of beating any team in the West if both clubs are playing their best basketball.

Grizzlies’ Ziaire Williams, Derrick Rose To Miss Multiple Weeks

March 5th, 2024 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Grizzlies wing Ziaire Williams and point guard Derrick Rose will be sidelined for the next several weeks due to injuries, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link).

Williams, who suffered his injury on Saturday vs. Portland, has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain of hip flexor and low back muscles. According to the team, he’ll be reevaluated in four weeks.

Rose, meanwhile, exited last Wednesday’s game in Minnesota early due to low back and groin soreness. He has been diagnosed with right osteitis pubis (joint inflammation) and will be reevaluated in three weeks, per the Grizzlies.

Williams and Rose are two of the many Grizzlies players who have been hampered by health issues this season. Williams has averaged 8.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 20.5 minutes per game across 51 contests, while Rose has been limited to just 24 appearances. He has averaged 8.0 PPG, 3.3 APG, and 1.9 RPG in 16.6 MPG in those games.

While neither player has been ruled out for the season, there are less than six weeks left to play, so it wouldn’t be shocking if either one is shut down. Their multi-week absences could open the door for the Grizzlies to sign more players to 10-day hardship contracts for depth purposes. Currently, Matthew Hurt is on a 10-day hardship deal.

Looking beyond this season, Williams is under contract for $6.13MM in 2024/25 and will be extension-eligible as of July 1, while Rose holds a $3.36MM player option for ’24/25, which he’ll likely exercise. However, neither player is a lock to be on Memphis’ roster next year, given their relatively modest contributions in ’23/24 and the fact that they’ll be on expiring deals.