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Heat Notes: Road Trip, LeBron, Highsmith, Smith

January 2nd, 2024 at 5:24pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Heat were missing four rotation players in their 121-104 loss to the Clippers on Monday, including Jimmy Butler, who is dealing with right foot irritation. Miami now faces the Lakers on Wednesday and the Suns on Friday to close out the five-game road swing.

Coach Erik Spoelstra said the Heat can’t use injuries as a crutch as the club tries to avert a third consecutive loss, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes.

“We’ll do whatever we have to do. Everybody is ready,” Spoelstra said. “Nobody cares if we have guys out and we’re not making any excuses for it.”

We have more on the Heat:

  • Spoelstra believes that former Miami superstar LeBron James doesn’t get enough credit for the hard work he puts in to maintain his level of excellence, Chiang relays in the same story. “Most people don’t see it and they assume that he doesn’t. They just assume that he’s the best athlete in this game, which he was for so many years,” Spoelstra said of the current Lakers forward. “But he’s been able to maintain this level because of all that other stuff. “There will be a day where he can still dominate even without the physical tools, he can do it with his size and his brain. But he’s nowhere near that. He can still do it physically, as well.”
  • Haywood Highsmith is currently in the NBA’s concussion protocol. He left the team Monday to return to Miami and will likely miss the rest of the West Coast trip, according to Chiang. It’s been a rough season physically for Highsmith. He previously sat out four games with a sprained left knee, six games with a lower back contusion and one game because of a non-COVID illness. Highsmith has appeared in 21 games, including 15 starts.
  • Dru Smith underwent successful right ACL reconstruction surgery on Dec. 29, Chiang tweets. Per a Heat statement, Smith will miss the remainder of the season but can begin rehabilitation immediately. There is no timetable for his return. The Heat announced on Nov. 24 that Smith had suffered a season-ending injury against Cleveland two nights earlier.
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And-Ones: 2024 Draft, HS Prospects, Breakout Players, Ray

January 2nd, 2024 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN draft experts Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo (Insider link) continue to rotate prospects in and out of the No. 1 spot on their draft board for 2024, moving French big man Alexandre Sarr into that top spot in place of USC guard Isaiah Collier, who has struggled for the Trojans as of late.

The 2024 draft class doesn’t have a clear headliner, so the race for No. 1 remains wide open. Matas Buzelis and Ron Holland, two G League Ignite youngsters who were atop ESPN’s big board during the summer of 2023, are now in the back end of the lottery at No. 10 and 11, respectively, while Collier has slipped all the way to No. 8.

Conversely, the latest risers on ESPN’s board include Colorado wing Cody Williams, who is up to No. 3 from No. 10, and Serbian point guard Nikola Topic, who has risen four spots to No. 5. Two more notable prospects who jumped from outside of the lottery into the top seven are French forward Tidjane Salaun and Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham, who moved up nine spots to Nos. 6 and 7, respectively.

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

  • Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report breaks down his top 10 prospects in high school basketball, with Cooper Flagg, Cameron Boozer, and A.J. Dybantsa topping his list.
  • Michael Pina of The Ringer singles out eight players across the NBA who are taking their games to another level this season, from stars like Kings guard De’Aaron Fox and Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton to role players such as Heat sharpshooter Duncan Robinson.
  • Former Nuggets forward James Ray, the No. 5 overall pick in the 1980 draft, died last week at age 66 due to complications from a surgery, as Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes. A college star for the Jacksonville Dolphins, Ray appeared in 103 NBA games across three seasons for Denver, then spent several years in Europe before retiring as a player.
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Gilgeous-Alexander, Haliburton Named Players Of The Week

January 2nd, 2024 at 2:42pm CST by Luke Adams

Two of the NBA’s best guards have earned Player of the Week honors for the week of December 25-31, with Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander winning the Western Conference award and Tyrese Haliburton of the Pacers claiming the award in the East (Twitter link).

It’s the first time that either player has been named Player of the Week this season. Gilgeous-Alexander has now earned the honor four times in his career; Haliburton won it once last season.

Gilgeous-Alexander led the streaking Thunder to a 4-0 week, averaging 33.5 points, 6.5 assists, and 5.3 rebounds in 34.5 minutes per game with a shooting line of .623/.385/.943. He had his fifth 40-point game of the season on Friday in a blowout victory in Denver.

Haliburton’s Pacers also had an undefeated week, with victories over Houston, Chicago, and New York. The star point guard had back-to-back 20-point, 20-assist performances against the Bulls and Knicks and averaged 25.3 PPG and 17.7 APG across Indiana’s three wins, with a shooting line of .509/.417/.714.

In addition to several of the usual suspects – Luka Doncic, Anthony Davis, De’Aaron Fox, and Domantas Sabonis – Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson was among the nominees in the Western Conference for the first time in his young career.

Over in the East, Haliburton’s teammate Myles Turner, Jarrett Allen, Cade Cunningham, Jayson Tatum, Julius Randle, and Andre Drummond were the other nominees (Twitter link).

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Raptors Notes: Quickley, Barrett, Poeltl, Dick

January 2nd, 2024 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

It would have been easy for Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic to bring his two new players off the bench on Monday and gradually ease them into the game plan, but both Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett started and played key roles in a victory over Cleveland, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Despite battling foul trouble, the duo combined for 33 points and 15 rebounds in the win.

“Obviously adding two new players in the middle of the season is challenging,” Rajakaovic said. “But both of those players are player of impact and we want to use those guys to the best of their ability.”

As Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca details, Quickley showed in his Raptors debut the kind of pick-and-roll action he’s capable of running with center Jakob Poeltl, which is something Rajokovic is especially excited about. The first-year coach observed that Quickley’s ability to make outside shots will allow the team to set higher screens, creating more space for everyone else on the court.

“The NBA is a pick-and-roll game for sure,” Rajakovic said. “I’m a big believer in making the right decisions and playing the right way and moving the ball and engaging all five players on the court. But a lot of great things can happen when you initiate offense in the pick-and-roll and that’s something we’re going to monitor with Immanuel, because he’s really good pick-and-roll player.”

Here’s more on the Raptors:

  • A Toronto native, Barrett said it was “special” to suit up for a Raptors team he grew up rooting for and that it “meant a lot” to earn a loud ovation from the fans at Scotiabank Centre, per Lewenberg and Grange. “I mean, who doesn’t want to come home?” he said. “Who doesn’t want to come home and play in front of family and friends and try to get a team that I’ve always loved so much back to where they were in 2019?”
  • Discussing the Raptors-Knicks trade on the latest episode of The Lowe Post podcast, ESPN’s Zach Lowe said there’s a wide range of opinions on Barrett around the NBA, from “future All-Star” to “toxic asset” (hat tip to Zach Bachar of Bleacher Report). “That is a word that got thrown around yesterday in my conversations with front office people and coaches—toxic asset, like you’re swallowing his contract,” Lowe said. However, Lowe clarified that his own opinion on Barrett falls on the more positive end of the spectrum: “I think RJ Barrett has a chance to be a good NBA player, and in fact has been for long stretches of his career.”
  • Raptors rookie Gradey Dick is in the midst of a two-week “special program” in which he’s doing weight, conditioning, and on-court work to improve his body, Rajakovic said on Monday (Twitter links via Lewenberg). Once he’s completed that program, the plan is for Dick to have another G League stint and then hopefully earn an NBA rotation spot later in the season. “He’s definitely going to be back with us and he’s going to be a rotation player,” Rajakovic said. “He’s the future of this organization, but he needs to check a couple of (boxes) before we really unleash him on the floor.”
  • In his latest mailbag, Eric Koreen of The Athletic explores whether Pascal Siakam has a future in Toronto and discusses several other topics, including the Raptors’ player development program, the 2024 first-round pick they owe the Spurs, and Gary Trent Jr.‘s role.
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NBA Players Who Can’t Be Traded This Season

January 2nd, 2024 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

As we explained when we identified the players who will become trade-eligible on unique dates this season, there’s a small group of players whose trade restrictions won’t lift until sometime after the February 8 trade deadline. These players meet one of the following criteria:

  1. They signed a free agent contract or were promoted from a two-way contract after November 8.
    • A player who signs a free agent contract or is promoted from a two-way contract is ineligible to be traded for at least three months.
  2. They signed a veteran contract extension (meeting certain criteria) after August 8.
    • A player who signs a veteran extension that keeps him under contract for more than three total years (including his current contract) and/or includes a raise exceeding 5% is ineligible to be traded for six months.
  3. They signed a super-max contract.

We identified all the players who fell into these three categories in our previous story on unique trade dates, but they may have slipped through the cracks amid the larger list of players we discussed in that article.

With that in mind, we want to specifically single them out today to make sure it’s clear which players won’t become trade-eligible at all until sometime after the 2023/24 regular season.

Here are the players who fall into the three aforementioned groups and who can’t be traded this season:

Players who have signed free agent contracts since November 8:

There hasn’t been a ton of action on the free agent market since the regular season began, with most players who have signed with NBA teams receiving two-way contracts rather than standard deals. But the Knicks and Pacers reunited with old friends Gibson and Johnson, respectively; the Blazers promoted Mays from his two-way deal; the Clippers added Primo and Theis to their standard roster; and the Kings filled an open roster spot by signing Toscano-Anderson.

All of those players are ineligible to be moved this season, and this list will continue to grow if more free agents sign standard contracts between now and February 8.

Players who have signed veteran contract extensions meeting certain criteria since August 8:

While the Bucks never would have traded Antetokounmpo this season, the other four players might have emerged as viable candidates to be moved if they hadn’t signed new extensions. Now, they’re ineligible to be dealt until the 2024 offseason.

It’s not uncommon for some players who are eligible for in-season veteran extensions to sign new deals well into the season, as McBride did over the weekend, so it’s certainly possible more names will be added to this group before February’s trade deadline.

Players who have signed super-max contracts:

Brown signed his designated veteran extension on July 26, 2023, which means he won’t become trade-eligible until July 26, 2024.

No other players will join the Celtics wing on this list prior to next month’s trade deadline, since super-max deals can’t be signed during the season.

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Grizzlies Notes: Clarke, Biyombo, Tillman, V. Williams

January 2nd, 2024 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

Grizzlies forward/center Brandon Clarke, who is making his way back from a torn Achilles, is “trending in a really good direction,” head coach Taylor Jenkins said before Sunday’s game vs. Sacramento.

“His on-court has picked up, he’s still in one-on-zero kind of format right now. He’s starting to move a lot more,” Jenkins said. “Obviously, you’ve seen the videos of him elevate and dunk and all that stuff. We are still being smart obviously with the nature of the injury, but he’s trending in a good direction. I don’t think the timelines are really shifted. Hopefully in the next month or so, we’ll be able to ramp up a little bit more and have a better feel.”

Clarke told Marc J. Spears of Andscape last month that he’s aiming to return at some point right around the All-Star break. Based on Jenkins’ comments, it sounds like that timeline remains realistic.

Here’s more on the Grizzlies:

  • While the Grizzlies have played better since Ja Morant‘s return from his 25-game suspension, the team needs more from its centers, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Centers Bismack Biyombo and Xavier Tillman have been solid defensively, but neither player is a great rebounder or contributes much on offense, so Clarke’s eventual return will be a boon up front.
  • Improving their floor spacing and their rebounding numbers are important areas of focus for the Grizzlies if they still hope to secure a playoff spot this season, Cole says in another Commercial Appeal story. Reaching the postseason will be an uphill battle for a Memphis team that is currently six games back of the 10th-seeded Lakers.
  • In yet another article for The Commercial Appeal, Cole takes a look at how Vince Williams went from being a little-used to reserve to being a key defensive X-factor for the Grizzlies. The 47th overall pick in the 2022 draft, Williams logged just 105 total minutes in 15 games as a rookie, but is averaging over 20 minutes per night in 24 appearances so far this season. “I didn’t know he would be this type of defender, but I knew he had that dog in him,” teammate Desmond Bane said. “He’s shown that in his time being here. He got his opportunity, and he’s running with it.”
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Spurs Apply For Disabled Player Exception For Bassey

January 2nd, 2024 at 10:54am CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs have submitted a request for disabled player exception following Charles Bassey‘s season-ending ACL injury, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

A disabled player exception grants an over-the-cap team some extra spending power when it loses a player to an injury deemed likely to sideline him through at least June 15.

As we explain in our glossary entry, the exception can be used to sign a free agent, to claim a player off waivers, or to acquire a player in a trade. A DPE can only be used on a single player and can only accommodate a player on a one-year deal. A free agent signee can’t get a multiyear contract, and any trade or waiver target must be in the final year of his contract.

The disabled player exception is worth either half the injured player’s salary or the value of the mid-level exception, whichever is lesser. Since Bassey was only earning $2.6MM this season, the Spurs’ DPE (if granted) would only be worth $1.3MM, so its usefulness would be extremely limited.

Additionally, while the disabled player exception gives a team extra cap flexibility, it doesn’t open up an extra spot on the 15-man roster. The club must have a roster spot available to use the DPE to add a player, which the Spurs currently don’t.

Still, while San Antonio may not end up having any use for a disabled player exception, it can’t hurt to apply and potentially add one more minor asset to its toolbox ahead of next month’s trade deadline.

So far this season, the Bulls, Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers have been granted DPEs, while the Knicks have reportedly applied for one as well.

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Dwight Howard Joining Filipino Team

January 2nd, 2024 at 9:06am CST by Luke Adams

Dwight Howard, an eight-time NBA All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, is joining the Filipino team Super Group for 2024’s Dubai International Basketball Championship, reports Shams Charania of Stadium (Twitter video link).

The Dubai International Basketball Championship is a tournament that takes places each winter. This year’s event is scheduled for January 19-28, so Howard will get the opportunity to showcase his skills in a handful of games and then return to the free agent market as he continues to seek an NBA comeback.

Howard, 38, last played in the NBA in 2021/22, when he averaged 6.2 points and 5.9 rebounds in 16.2 minutes per game for the Lakers across 60 appearances (27 starts). He was out of the league last season, instead suiting up for the Taoyuan Leopards in Taiwan.

Howard met with the Warriors prior to the start of the 2023/24 campaign, but Golden State opted not to sign him. The former No. 1 overall pick was said in November to be considering the possibility of resuming his playing career with a team in Europe or Australia.

Once a dominant rim protector and rebounder, Howard has lost a step since his prime and would be one of the NBA’s oldest players if he returns to the league; he was also accused in a civil lawsuit of sexual assault and battery, which may further reduce his chances of finding a new NBA opportunity.

Former NBA guards Nick Young and Shabazz Muhammad were among the players who were part of the Super Group squad from the Philippines that competed in the Dubai International Basketball Championship last year. That team went 3-1 in group play but was eliminated in the first game of the knockout round.

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Knicks Notes: Anunoby, McBride, Sims, Achiuwa

January 2nd, 2024 at 8:00am CST by Luke Adams

Prior to his first game with the Knicks on Monday, new starting forward OG Anunoby told reporters that he was “excited” to be with the team and that he always loved playing in New York as a visitor, writes Peter Botte of The New York Post. After getting a “crash course” on Tom Thibodeau‘s system, Anunoby logged 35 minutes against the Timberwolves and was a team-best plus-19 in the Knicks’ six-point victory.

“I felt good,” Anunoby said after the win, per ESPN’s Tim Bontemps. “I felt good. Just trying to help the team on both ends. Just talking to guys on defense and them talking to me, helping know where to be, and stuff. Felt good.”

Anunoby admitted that his new teammates were still telling him during the game where to be and what to do on the court, adding that he was “thankful” for their help. Thibodeau, who spoke earlier on Monday about how Anunoby would help shore up New York’s defense (Twitter link via Fred Katz of The Athletic), was pleased with what he saw from the veteran three-and-D forward in his Knicks debut.

“I thought for the first game, impressive,” Thibodeau said. “Just to be ready, and kind of figure it out on the fly. Played smart, played off people well, hustled, moved without the ball, shot good shots, made good plays … very good start.”

Here’s more on the new-look Knicks:

  • Fred Katz of The Athletic, Mark W. Sanchez of The New York Post (subscription required), and Stefan Bondy of The New York Post all took a closer look at Anunoby’s debut and the new Knicks’ rotation, noting that Julius Randle referred to his new teammate as the “perfect piece” for the roster. “He can be very special here,” Jalen Brunson added.
  • Anunoby deflected talk about his upcoming free agency on Monday, indicating that he’ll let his agents “handle that stuff,” according to Bontemps. However, he didn’t sound like someone who will be looking to leave New York in the summer. “When the time comes, [we’ll] figure it out,” Anunoby said. “But I’m really excited to be here.”
  • After playing fewer than four total minutes in the six games leading up to the trade, reserve guard Miles McBride has logged 25 total minutes in the past two contests and appears likely to play an increased role going forward. As Botte and Bontemps relay, McBride admitted that the contract extension he signed hours after the trade was finalized came as a bit of a surprise. “It was pretty sudden, but I’m glad we got it done,” he said. “It just shows their belief in me and my hard work really paid off. They were watching me, and I think I proved it.”
  • Reserve center Jericho Sims was technically cleared to play on Saturday following a right ankle sprain and was available again on Monday, but he didn’t appear in either contest, Botte notes. Taj Gibson backed up center Isaiah Hartenstein on Saturday, while newcomer Precious Achiuwa got those minutes on Monday.
  • Before his NBA career began and before playing his college ball at Memphis, Achiuwa attended schools in the Bronx and Newark, so the trade to the Knicks represents something of a homecoming for the big man, according to Bridget Reilly of The New York Post. “I’m very excited to be back home in front of my family, friends that I grew up with,” Achiuwa said before Monday’s game. “Really, really a very exciting opportunity and I’m looking forward to it.”
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