Pacific Notes: Comanche, Ellis, Warriors, Lakers

Center Chance Comanche, who had been playing for the Kings‘ G League affiliate in Stockton, was released by the team on Friday after he was arrested as a person of interest in an out-of-state FBI investigation, Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee reports.

According to Anderson, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office helped the FBI apprehend Comanche, who is being held without bail in the county’s main jail. Jail records show Comanche’s felony arrest fell under a California penal code provision allowing peace officers to arrest a person “charged by a verified complaint… with the commission of any crime in any other state.”

His first appearance before a judge is scheduled for 3 p.m. Tuesday in Sacramento Superior Court, per Anderson. It’s not clear what charges he faces in another state or where in Sacramento County he was apprehended.

Comanche played in one game for the Trail Blazers last season, which was his lone NBA appearance to date. He signed with the Kings this summer on an Exhibit 10 contract before being waived ahead of the season.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

  • Two-way wing Keon Ellis had his best game in a Kings uniform on Friday against the Thunder, writes The Athletic’s Hunter Patterson. Ellis scored 17 points, hitting five of his seven three-point attempts, and added six rebounds and three assists. “Keon was big. He’s been big ever since we gave him minutes,” head coach Mike Brown said. “He just doesn’t seem to get rattled out there. … We have faith or confidence — or however you want to call it — in him, especially when his feet are set and he’s shooting wide open catch-and-shoot 3s. Heck of a game from him on both ends of the floor. He could’ve easily gotten the Defensive Player of the Game [crown].” Ellis is averaging 4.5 points in 16 games (two starts) on a two-way contract.
  • Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. was adamant the next 15-20 games, many of which will be played without Draymond Green, will impact the direction the team takes at the trade deadline. The Athletic’s Anthony Slater explores what that span of time could look like, writing the team could continue to rely on younger players, such as Trayce Jackson-Davis, in the short term.
  • The Lakers are 13-5 in their last 18 games and have multiple players performing at a high level. Outside of the usual star-level play from LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves is establishing Sixth Man of the Year candidacy, Cam Reddish is announcing himself as a top-level defender and players like Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent will soon return to the lineup, The Ringer’s Seerat Sohi writes. Still, the Lakers have room to improve on offense and Sohi explores what the team needs to do between now and the trade deadline.

Heat Notes: Adebayo, Herro, Jovic, Hampton, More

Time is no longer on Heat center Bam Adebayo‘s side when it comes to potentially earning a super-max contract extension after the season, writes The South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Ira Winderman.

In order to be eligible for a super-max deal worth 35% of the cap, Adebayo has to either earn a spot on the All-NBA team or be named the league’s MVP or Defensive Player of the Year. And in order to be eligible for any of those honors, he must play in at least 65 games as a result of changes made in the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Adebayo has already missed nine games this season, including six in a row. That means he can only miss up to eight more before he’s deemed ineligible for those awards. Adebayo is nearing a return to the court and is expected back sometime in December, per the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson, but another injury or two in the coming months could cost him a shot at super-max eligibility in 2024.

Adebayo is in the middle of a strong season, averaging 22.3 points and 9.9 rebounds for the 14-11 Heat. If he’s able to stay healthy, he should be a candidate for both an All-NBA nod and for the Defensive Player of the Year award. He’s finished in the top five in voting in the latter in each of the past four seasons.

We have more from the Heat:

  • Adebayo isn’t the only key player the Heat are expecting back soon. We recently wrote Tyler Herro is expected back soon and Jackson says he’s targeting a Dec. 18 return. Herro hasn’t played since Nov. 8. R.J. Hampton also recently returned for the Heat, logging roughly nine minutes against the Bulls on Thursday in his first action since Oct. 28.
  • In the second of a three-part series, Jackson explores potential trades the Heat could make with Western Conference teams. However, there aren’t many options that are either easy or make much sense. Jackson mentions Lauri Markkanen‘s supposed availability, but writes the Jazz would rightly want a huge return and any other trade with Utah could limit the team’s availability to re-sign Caleb Martin. Other teams exploring trades, like the Spurs and the Warriors, don’t have many packages that make sense for Miami either.
  • Center Thomas Bryant and two-way player Jamal Cain have both seen their roles fluctuate with the Heat this season, observes the Miami Herald’s Anthony Chiang. Bryant opened the year as Adebayo’s primary backup, but fell out of the rotation and remained that way even with Adebayo out. Meanwhile, Cain had a strong summer and sought a standard deal but ultimately ended back up on a two-way deal that limits him to 50 regular season games. However, both players are continuing to stay ready for any opportunity, which coach Erik Spoelstra commented was “never easy.” Bryant has responded by scoring 17 points and 11 rebounds in about 27 minutes over his last two appearances. Cain meanwhile, scored 14 points in just under 29 minutes against the Hornets on Wednesday.

Knicks Notes: Brunson, Quickley, Gibson, Randle

Knicks guard Jalen Brunson‘s three-point shot is the key to New York’s ability to win games, writes the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. Overall, Brunson is shooting a career-best 46.0% on 6.8 attempts per night from beyond the arc. When the Knicks win, Brunson shoots 57.4% from deep, but when they lose, he shoots just 27.4%.

Bondy breaks down what Brunson’s threes have looked like this season in victories and defeats. Generally, entering Thursday, Brunson was getting more open looks in wins than in losses, including 37% of his threes in wins being “wide open” (compared to 32% in losses).

Like clockwork, Brunson had a historic night from downtown in a 17-point victory against the Suns on Friday. Brunson scored a career-high 50 points in the win, 35 of which came in the second half, where he shot 12-for-12 from the floor and 8-for-8 from three-point range in the period.

Brunson’s overall 9-for-9 performance from three tied the NBA record for the most three-point attempts in a game without a miss (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Fred Katz). Latrell Sprewell did it for the Knicks in 2003.

We have more from the Knicks:

  • Immanuel Quickley returned from a brief injury absence on Dec. 13, playing just 18 minutes against Utah as Tom Thibodeau continues to navigate his guard rotation. He wasn’t concerned about the lack of minutes, writes Bondy. “Just whatever minutes you get, go out there and be effective,” Quickley said. “Whatever minutes I get — whether 15, 20, 25. I played 55 [in an overtime game] last season. Whatever minutes I get, go out there and help the team win.
  • The Knicks are happy to have veteran big man Taj Gibson back in the fold after signing him on Friday. Gibson, 38, spent three seasons with the Knicks before joining the Wizards last year. With Mitchell Robinson sidelined due to injury, it made sense for Gibson to come back, writes Newsday’s Steve Popper. Gibson also spoke about his future upon arriving with the Knicks. “I’m still considering [coaching],” Gibson said. “But it has to be the right situation. I want to be somewhere where I can learn, brighten my future. This is a bright spot for me, being around the coaching staff who I can learn from. Just top to bottom, this is just family for me.
  • After a sluggish start to the season that saw him shoot just 31.6% from the field and average 16.5 points per game, Julius Randle has improved his efficiency and turned his season around, writes Bondy in a separate story. Randle’s stated goal before the season was to become a more efficient player, which didn’t seem likely after his start to the year, but he’s shooting 60.0% from the floor and 41.2% from three over the last eight games while averaging 28.0 PPG. “Just playing to my strengths and understanding spots on the court where I can get high-percentage shots where I can either get a high-percentage shot or they double me and I can kick out and play-make for my teammates,” Randle said. “So I understand who I am as a player. While I can shoot the ball and make a ton of 3s, I understand who I am as a player, what my strengths are.

Latest On Draymond Green

There’s an “expectation” that Draymond Green will not take the floor again for the Warriors until at least early 2024, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on Friday during an appearance on NBA Countdown (YouTube link). While there isn’t a definitive timeline, if Green would miss at least nine games if he doesn’t play until 2024. He was suspended by the league indefinitely after striking Suns center Jusuf Nurkic in the face during a Dec. 12 matchup.

Green missed five games earlier this season due to a suspension following an on-court incident with Rudy Gobert. Wojnarowski thinks that Green’s current absence could be approximately double the amount of games he received for the Gobert altercation.

The Warriors are currently on a three-game losing streak and have dropped 12 of their last 16. Because of their lackluster start to the season and the loss of Green, it’s possible Golden State looks to make additions via trade. Wojnarowski said a handful of decision-makers have already called Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. in the past few days. While it’s unclear what Golden State’s exact plans are, Wojnarowksi points out that the team is likely to be open to moves as they continue to try and piece together a championship-caliber team around Stephen Curry.

Wojnarowski envisions “difficult decisions” for Dunleavy and the Warriors as they approach the deadline, with several veterans not producing to their standards.

Green is averaging 9.7 points, 5.8 assists and 5.5 rebounds in 15 games this season. The Warriors are 10-14 and currently sit at 11th in the Western Conference.

We have more on Green:

  • Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said the NBA’s indefinite suspension of Green “makes sense,” according to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, and that it gives Green an opportunity to reflect and change his approach. “This is about someone I believe in, someone I’ve known for a decade, someone who I love for his loyalty, his commitment, his passion, his love for his teammates, friends, his family. Trying to help that guy,” Kerr said. “Because the one who grabbed Rudy, choked Rudy, the one who took a wild flail at Jusuf, the one who punched Jordan [Poole] last year, that’s the guy who has to change and he knows that.
  • The Warriors made it clear they’re still supporting Green in the wake of the suspension. Sportsnaut’s Mark Medina explores why, writing that he believes it’s easier for the Warriors to strengthen an existing, if awkward, relationship as opposed to ending it early. Medina writes that Green is still playing at a high level and the franchise needs to make sure they’re helping him deal with whatever he’s going through, though Green needs to do better. “Championships are at stake in terms of us being a contender, a realistic contender or even just us being a good team,” Curry said. “He’s a part of that.
  • For his part, Green has accepted this suspension and apologized to Nurkic after the altercation. It isn’t the first time this season Green’s had to reflect on an on-court incident, and according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Green spoke to Curry following the incident with Gobert. According to Shelburne, Green said he lost his sense of time and place in that fight. “When I watched it back, I said, ‘Damn, I held [Gobert] much longer than I realized in that moment,’” Green said. “But the reality is, in those moments, you don’t know what time is. You don’t have a sense of time.

Suns’ Bradley Beal Exits Friday’s Game With Ankle Injury

In just the second game featuring all of the members of Phoenix’s “big three,” Suns guard Bradley Beal sustained a right ankle injury in the first quarter of Friday’s contest against New York, per Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports (all Twitter links here).

Beal appeared to be in a lot of pain after attempting a shot and having Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo step under his foot as he landed, which caused him to roll his right ankle (video link). DiVincenzo received a Flagrant 1 foul on the play.

Beal stayed in the game to shoot free throws and was able to walk off the court without assistance, but he seemed to have a limp and immediately headed back to the locker room. The Suns later ruled him out for the remainder of the contest, Bourguet adds.

It’s a tough setback for Beal, who was making just his sixth appearance of the 2023/24 season after battling a back injury for much of the fall, which caused him to miss 19 games. Phoenix’s other two stars — Kevin Durant and Devin Booker — have also missed time this season due to various injuries (four absences for Durant, nine for Booker).

As Bourguet tweets, the sample size is extremely small, but the Suns are plus-15 in the 23.8 minutes the trio have shared the court together thus far.

Hopefully the injury turns out to be minor, though it certainly looked like a bad sprain. Despite dealing with several injuries, the Suns have held their own to this point and had a 13-11 record entering Friday’s game.

Here are a few more injury notes on the Suns:

  • Sharpshooter Grayson Allen was questionable heading into the game but he returned from a three-game absence on Friday after dealing with a right groin strain, as Bourguet relays (via Twitter). Allen, who was acquired via trade in the offseason, is averaging career highs in several statistics, including points (12.3), rebounds (4.5), assists (2.9) and three-point percentage (46.8) through 19 games, all starts.
  • Josh Okogie missed his second straight game on Friday with a right hip injury, but it’s not a long-term concern, head coach Frank Vogel told reporters, including Bourguet (Twitter link). The 25-year-old is in his second season with the Suns after re-signing on a two-year deal in free agency over the summer.
  • Forward Nassir Little, who was acquired in the same blockbuster trade as Allen, recently returned from an orbital fracture, which requires him to wear a face mask on the court. He thinks the play he was injured on (video link) was a “dirty” one by Kings center JaVale McGee, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link). “I feel like it was a dirty play, I watched it over and over,” Little said. “He had hooked my arm … I could have broke my arm.”

And-Ones: Panic, Trade Candidates, Awards, Atkinson, Thabeet

Which teams that hoped to be contenders entering 2023/24 should be panicking after slow starts? John Hollinger of The Athletic explores that topic, with the Warriors topping his list (an eight on a scale of one-to-10).

The indefinite suspension of Draymond Green and the poor play of Andrew Wiggins and Klay Thompson “presents a dilemma” for Golden State, which just won the title two seasons ago. The Warriors will be faced with many difficult decisions in the coming months, Hollinger notes, with Thompson’s expiring contract looming large.

The Raptors (seven), Hawks (six), Grizzlies (five) and Suns (four) also hold places on Hollinger’s “Panic Meter” for various reasons.

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

  • Speaking of the Raptors, two of their starters — Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby — are at the top of the trade candidate big board compiled by Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. Bulls guard Zach LaVine ranks third on the 25-player list, followed by his Chicago teammates DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso.
  • Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press takes a look at the early impact of the NBA’s new 65-game requirement for awards, writing that Heat guard Tyler Herro (ankle) and Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons (thumb surgery) are among the noteworthy players who won’t meet that requirement due to injuries, with many others having missed several games already. Herro has accepted that he won’t have a shot at a postseason award. “Next year then,” Herro said. “Or the year after that.”
  • Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson has joined the staff of the French national team, per a team press release. Atkinson, formerly the head coach of the Nets, interviewed for several NBA head coaching jobs in recent years.
  • Hasheem Thabeet, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2009 draft, is signing a contract with the Kaohsiung Steelers, a Taiwanese team, agent Jerry Dianis tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). Thabeet appeared in 224 NBA games with the Grizzlies, Rockets, Blazers and Thunder, but has been out of the league since the ’13/14 season.

Nuggets Notes: Jokic, Officiating, Second Unit, KCP

While Bozidar Maljkovic — the president of Serbia’s Olympic committee — previously stated that Nuggets star Nikola Jokic would represent his home country at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, the reigning Finals MVP recently said he hasn’t decided yet if he’ll participate, as BasketNews.com relays.

It’s far. Some people put words in my mouth that I said something that I didn’t. The head coach is the first to know [my commitment]. I always talk to the family and the team after the season,” Jokic told Aleksandar Zigic of RTS.

After Denver’s lengthy playoff run ended in its first championship, Jokic decided to sit out the World Cup over the summer. Despite missing the best player on the team, the Serbians took home the silver medal behind strong performances from Bogdan Bogdanovic and other teammates.

Here are a few more notes on the defending champions:

  • Jokic has been ejected from two games over the past month for arguing with officials about foul non-calls. The second incident occurred on Tuesday in Chicago, with Jokic immediately kicked out despite not having any technical fouls leading up to that point. When asked about how Jokic is officiated, head coach Michael Malone said he’s discussed it with the NBA, according to Ryan Blackburn of Mile High Sports (Twitter link). I’ve been contacting the league and having conversations about certain plays, certain games where we don’t think he’s getting the whistle he deserves,” Malone said as a part of a larger quote.
  • The team’s bench is trending in a positive direction after some up-and-down play to open 2023/24, writes Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. Second-year players Christian Braun and Peyton Watson, plus rookie Julian Strawther, “have become the backbone” of Denver’s second unit, according to Wind, who takes a closer look at the play of Braun and Watson in particular.
  • Starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope sat out Thursday’s victory over Brooklyn after being placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol and will be sidelined for Saturday’s contest against Oklahoma City as well, per Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette (Twitter links). Caldwell-Pope is shooting 40.4% from three-point range and is frequently tasked with defending the opponent’s top perimeter scorer. He’s making $14.7MM this season and holds a $15.4MM player option for ’24/25.

Trade Breakdown: Chris Paul To The Warriors

This is the third entry in our series breaking down the significant trades of the 2023 offseason. As opposed to giving out grades, this series explores why the teams were motivated to make the moves. Let’s dive into a blockbuster deal between the Warriors and Wizards…


On July 6:

  • The Warriors acquired Chris Paul.
  • The Wizards acquired Jordan Poole, Patrick Baldwin Jr., Ryan Rollins, the Warriors’ 2030 first-round pick (top-20 protected), the Warriors’ 2027 second-round pick, and cash.
  • Note: The Wizards created a $3,344,643 traded player exception as part of this deal, which is the difference between Paul’s outgoing salary ($30,800,000) and the incoming salary of Poole ($27,455,357). Baldwin ($2,337,720) and Rollins ($1,719,864) were acquired via existing TPEs.

The Warriors’ perspective:

Poole being traded was seemingly inevitable as soon as the Warriors lost in the second round of the 2022/23 playoffs, with the young guard struggling mightily throughout the postseason. It had been clear for a while that it was probably going to come down to moving Poole or Draymond Green, whom the team re-signed to a four-year, $100MM contract in free agency.

The Warriors needed to reconfigure their chemistry and on-court results following an uneven attempt to repeat as champions last season. Instead of moving on from a core member of their dynasty, they traded Poole.

That really wasn’t much of a choice – Green has arguably been the best defensive player in the league over the past decade, helping Golden State reach six NBA Finals and win four championships, and Stephen Curry has referred to him as his favorite teammate.

Green has made plenty of poor decisions over the years – he’s annually one of the league leaders in technical fouls and has been suspended multiple times in the regular season and playoffs. Blowing up the Warriors’ season before it even began by punching a teammate he had previously mentored was a new low. And despite plenty of media grandstanding, he never publicly or privately apologized to Poole, according to Logan Murdock of The Ringer.

The organization has always catered to Green, as he didn’t even face punishment for the incident other than an undisclosed fine. Following a string of incidents in ’23/24, he received an indefinite suspension to (perhaps) address some of the underlying causes for his reckless behavior.

It’s worth noting that Green will make less money than Poole ($123MM+) over the next four years as well. Future payroll considerations played a significant factor in this deal, as owner Joe Lacob acknowledged in September.

The Warriors have had record-setting luxury tax bills for multiple years running, but Lacob has said they hope to be below the second tax apron in ‘24/25. Paul’s $30MM salary for ‘24/25 is non-guaranteed, while Poole will be in the second year of his rookie scale extension.

Even if Golden State wins the title in ‘23/24 – which is looking extremely unlikely at this point — I’d be shocked if the team guarantees Paul’s salary for next season. The only way that would make sense would be if the Warriors trade him for a roster upgrade in the offseason, but that would probably require taking on long-term money, which they’ve said they want to avoid.

That doesn’t mean the Warriors can’t try to re-sign Paul at a lower figure, assuming things turn around and he’s open to it. That would require a major discount though, as they’ll lose his Bird rights if they waive him — they’d likely be limited to offering him a minimum-salary deal unless they remove additional salary from their books.

The logic behind this trade made sense for the Warriors, but I’m sure it was painful to move Poole so soon after extending him, even if they view Paul as a short-term upgrade. That’s reasonable enough.

Paul is one of the greatest point guards in NBA history, earning 12 All-Star berths, 11 All-NBA nods, and nine All-Defensive spots over the course of his 18 seasons. He has led the league in steals per game six times and assists per game five times, with three of those seasons overlapping.

Despite being 38 years old, Paul remains a clear upgrade over Poole in several areas. He’s a better rebounder, and there’s not so much a gap as a chasm between Paul’s defense, decision-making, passing, and ability to take care of the ball compared to Poole’s. Paul is nicknamed “the Point God” for a reason.

Turnovers were a major problem for the Warriors in ‘22/23, with the team ranking 29th in the league with a 15.8% turnover percentage. Poole was a major contributor to that, averaging 3.1 turnovers per game — second-most on the team behind Curry — and posting a 1.46-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio, slightly worse than his career mark (1.61-to-1).

Remarkably, Paul has had an assist-to-turnover ratio below 3-to-1 only once in his career – back in 2019/20 with OKC, when he shared ball-handling duties and was more focused on scoring. And even then, it was just barely under (2.93-to-1). For his career, he’s at 3.98-to-1. Last season: 4.6-to-1. So far in ‘23/24: 6-to-1.

While it’s true that the Warriors had to attach some marginal assets to move Poole’s long-term contract, this trade does show one of the fringe benefits of rookie scale extensions: Having his salary already locked in for ’24/25 meant that Golden State didn’t have to deal with restricted free agency or work out a sign-and-trade, which is much more complicated, especially for the league’s biggest spenders.

He has never won a title, but Paul’s teams have made the playoffs 15 times in his 18 years in the league, including the last 13 seasons in a row.

His elite basketball IQ undoubtedly remains, but Paul’s ability to create shots for himself and convert them at a high level has taken a step back. Through 21 games, he has a career-low true shooting percentage (53.2%) and usage rate (15.0%). Part of that is due to the team’s roster construction, but he also isn’t playing at the same level as he did a couple years ago.

Obviously, there are major injury concerns as well, and Poole was quite durable, appearing in 76 and 82 regular season games the past two years (compared to 65 and 59 for Paul).

The Warriors miss Poole’s ability to generate offense for himself, take on an increased scoring load when Curry misses time, and get to the free throw line – Golden State was dead last in free throw attempts per game in ‘22/23, and Poole led the team with 5.1 per contest (just ahead of Curry at 5.0).

After starting the season 5-1, the Warriors have gone 5-13 over their past 18 games and currently hold a 10-14 record. The majority of those defeats have been very competitive, with blowing leads an issue of late. Still, as the saying goes, a loss is a loss.

With Golden State in a tailspin, it would be easy to point the finger at a newcomer like Paul. But the Warriors have been markedly better when he’s on the court and much worse when he’s off, and advanced stats say he’s been one of the more impactful players on the team.

Paul has been spearheading the second unit, which has undergone a remarkable turnaround to this point – it’s actually the starting unit that has struggled in ’23/24, not the reserves. Last season was the total opposite, as the starters were the best five-man group in the NBA and the bench was a major liability.

Both Rollins and Baldwin missed chunks of their rookie seasons in ‘22/23 and didn’t play much at the NBA level when they were healthy. They almost certainly weren’t going to have rotation roles for the Warriors this season either. The 2027 second-rounder isn’t a significant asset on its own.

Trading the 2030 first-round pick stings, even if it’s heavily protected (it will turn into Golden State’s 2030 second-rounder if it doesn’t convey). The primary reason for that has less to do with the pick itself and more to do with the Stepien rule, which will prevent the Warriors from trading their own first-rounders in 2029 and 2031, at least once they’re able to (you can only trade picks seven years out).

Dealing three young players and marginal draft assets for a future Hall of Famer who is still effective but clearly in the twilight of his career showed that new general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. is willing to make bold moves, particularly with an eye on future financial flexibility. I certainly wouldn’t rule out the possibility of the Warriors trading Paul again this season either, depending on how they play in the next several weeks leading up to the deadline.


The Wizards’ perspective:

I admire Poole for two reasons. One, he’s a late first-round pick who struggled mightily early in his career, spent a lot of time in the G League, and then emerged as an important contributor on a championship team.

Two, I never once saw him publicly discuss last fall’s incident when he had every opportunity to throw Green and the Warriors under the bus. There are no “competitor” justifications for Green did – it was wrong, plain and simple.

Imagine being asked nearly every day about something terrible that happened to you, that millions of people witnessed via video, and you only take the high road. That says something about Poole as a person, regardless of what you think of him as player.

I can’t say I’ve ever been partial to Poole’s game. He’s undeniably talented, but flashy scorers who don’t play defense aren’t my cup of tea.

Paul didn’t fit the Wizards based on the position they’re currently in. Poole, Baldwin, Rollins and draft assets do.

As mentioned in a previous article, Paul was the primary salary-matching piece acquired in the Bradley Beal trade, so these two deals are directly connected. For the Wizards, this was about flipping Paul for as many assets as they could.

Is Poole even an asset right now? I would say no, he likely has negative value due to his declining play. But that doesn’t mean the reasoning for this trade was illogical at the time it was made.

It’s easy to overlook now that he’s no longer on the team, but Poole was a key member of the Warriors’ championship run in ’21/22, averaging 17.0 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists over 22 playoff games (27.5 minutes). He posted a .508/.391/.915 shooting line over that span for 65.4% TS – an elite mark. That’s a big part of why Golden State gave him the extension.

But the NBA is a “what have you done for me lately” league, and Poole struggled mightily last postseason, averaging more field goal attempts (10.4) than points (10.3) while his shooting rates dipped to .341/.254/.765 (a dreadful 44.7% TS) in 13 games (21.8 MPG). His apathetic defense, poor shot selection, questionable decision-making and inconsistency were issues throughout ‘22/23.

I thought Poole might have a turnaround with Washington in ‘23/24, and I wasn’t alone. In early August, one betting site had him as a way-too-early favorite for Most Improved Player.

Poole averaged 25.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists on 59.5% TS in 17 games with Curry sidelined in ‘21/22. He averaged 26.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists on 56.5% TS in 26 games with Curry injured last season. There were valid reasons to think he could put up big numbers this season.

I was wrong, and the Wizards’ gamble hasn’t paid off to this point. Poole has had a dreadful start to the season, with advanced stats indicating he has been one of the worst rotation regulars in the NBA – perhaps even the worst high-usage player in the league.

Poole’s numbers are down across the board — he has recorded fewer points, rebounds and assists per game in nearly the same amount of minutes as ‘21/22 and ‘22/23. His turnover rate is up and his assist rate is down. His efficiency has cratered, with his true shooting percentage down to 51.0%, compared to 58.4% over the last three seasons (for context, the league average TS in ’23/24 is 57.7%, but it’s nearly always a couple points lower for guards).

The Wizards are terrible. They’re 3-20, which remarkably is only tied for the second-worst record in the league.

Despite their overall ineptitude, there’s still no sugarcoating how poorly Poole has played in his 22 games. His net rating differential is a ghastly minus-19.9. When he’s off the court, the team actually has a (slightly) positive net rating – he’s the only player on the roster who holds that distinction.

Rollins has only played 49 minutes for the Wizards; Baldwin is at 36. You can’t draw any conclusions from sample sizes that small. They’re young, on relatively inexpensive contracts, and may or may not develop into useful NBA players.

Given Poole’s poor play and pricey long-term deal, the lack of roles for Rollins and Baldwin, and the fairly modest draft assets the Wizards acquired for Paul, you could argue the early return hasn’t been great for the Wizards. However, that’s only a small part of the bigger picture.

Beal’s contract is far more onerous than Poole’s, as he’s owed $208MM over the next four years and has a full no-trade clause. And he’s only played five games in ‘23/24 so far due to a back injury.

Beal, 30, had no place in a rebuild. Nor did Paul, whom the Suns reportedly considered waiving before making a high-risk, high-reward trade for Beal.

In total, when combining the two trades, the Wizards received Poole, Baldwin, Rollins, Landry Shamet, a top-20 protected first-rounder, four first-round swaps, seven second-round picks (one was sent to Indiana) and cash for Beal.

Poole is only 24 and doesn’t have a no-trade clause. Some of those pick swaps could be valuable in the future. Second-round picks can be useful, for trades and for finding diamonds in the rough. They could probably flip Shamet into another second-rounder or two if they want to move him.

The Wizards accomplished their overall goal of acquiring assets while getting younger and focusing on player development. Time will tell if they’re able to turn into a winning franchise, but they’ve been stuck in NBA purgatory for decades, and needed to get worse before they had a chance at getting better.

Central Notes: Cavs, Mitchell, DeRozan, Pacers, Johnson, Bucks

After the Cavaliers‘ 51-win 2022/23 season came to a disappointing end with an unceremonious exit in the first round of the playoffs, that momentum appears to have carried over to this fall, with the team off to a 13-12 start. However, speaking to Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com, star guard Donovan Mitchell rejects the idea that the postseason letdown in the spring left a lasting mark on the team.

“I think we came back motivated,” he said. “We’ve got guys who came back ready to go. I think it motivated us, but, you know, it’s not showing it. That’s the tough part. But I’m not deflated. We’ve got to figure this thing out. That’s it. That’s all you can really do. Find ways. That’s it. It’s tough obviously, you know, winning a few, losing a few, but we’re not going to quit. We’re going to keep going.”

Mitchell also said that he believes the Cavaliers have the pieces to be a contender and that it’s just a matter of getting everyone on the same page. But Mitchell’s conversation with Bulpett occurred on Thursday, and the challenge facing the team got a lot tougher on Friday, when word broke that both Darius Garland and Evan Mobley will be sidelined until well into the new year due to injuries.

Earlier today, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported that the Cavaliers had shown no inclination to make Mitchell available via trade despite the “mounting interest” of rival teams. It’s unlikely that stance has changed in the past few hours, in spite of the Garland and Mobley news, but it’ll certainly be worth keeping a close eye on how the situation in Cleveland plays out in the coming weeks to see how the club responds.

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan is “deeply valued internally,” according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, who says the organization appreciates the veteran not just for his skills on the court but for his leadership off of it. The team has similar feelings about Alex Caruso, Johnson adds.
  • A recent report indicated that the Bulls and DeRozan are far apart in extension talks and suggested that the forward is a trade candidate in the final year of his contract. For what it’s worth though, DeRozan has expressed a desire to stay where he is. “Chicago is Chicago to me,” he told Julia Poe of The Chicago Tribune. “I love it here. Obviously it’s a place I want to be in my career. None of that has changed. I don’t have no other type of doubts or feelings or suggestions to be elsewhere. That don’t cross my mind.”
  • Following a run to the play-in tournament final, Tyrese Haliburton spoke about his hope that seeing how the Pacers play will make impact players want to join him in Indiana. With that in mind, Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star considers what sort of moves the Pacers could make by February’s deadline and what their best trade assets might be.
  • James Johnson‘s new one-year, minimum-salary deal with the Pacers is non-guaranteed, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. Johnson will receive his full salary ($2,241,188) if he remains under contract beyond January 7.
  • The chippy, hard-fought nature of Wednesday’s victory over the division-rival Pacers, which culminated in an argument over the game ball, may have helped the Bucks build a stronger bond, as Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes. “When stuff happens, whether it’s extremely serious or it’s small, any time you can get into something and you can look over and see people got your back and they’re with you, it changes things,” Damian Lillard said. “… I think (Wednesday), for our team, it was just a step in that direction where we kind of — we were with each other, so I’m not saying that’s going to make us the world’s greatest, but it was a step in the right direction.”

Kings Sign Juan Toscano-Anderson

DECEMBER 15: The Kings have officially signed Toscano-Anderson, tweets Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. His contract is non-guaranteed, per James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter link).


DECEMBER 14: The Kings are signing Juan Toscano-Anderson to a one-year deal, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Toscano-Anderson, 30, had stints with the Warriors, Lakers and Jazz and will now fill Sacramento’s final open roster spot after impressing with the G League’s Mexico City Capitanes.

In 11 Showcase Cup games with the Capitanes, Toscano-Anderson averaged 19.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks. He holds career averages of 4.3 PPG, 3.1 RPG and 1.9 APG in 191 career NBA appearances (37 starts).

Toscano-Anderson worked out with the Warriors this offseason, but ultimately didn’t come away with a deal of any sort. However, Andscape’s Marc J. Spears tweets Kings head coach Mike Brown had strong interest in bringing Toscano-Anderson to training camp this offseason, though that never materialized.

As The Sacramento Bee’s Jason Anderson notes (Twitter link), Brown and Toscano-Anderson have familiarity with each other. Toscano-Anderson played for the Warriors for three seasons while Brown was lead assistant, and the duo won a championship together in 2021/22.

The Kings opened up a spot on their 15-man roster last month when they waived Filip Petrusev, who they acquired for cash after he was sent to the Clippers in the James Harden blockbuster. After surveying its options, Sacramento landed on signing Toscano-Anderson.

Anderson notes in a piece detailing the move that the Kings needed to address their wing depth after experiencing matchup difficulties in recent losses to the Pelicans and Clippers, and signing the Marquette product should help with those issues.

It’s unclear how much playing time Toscano-Anderson will receive right away but its possible the veteran could make an immediate impact on the rotation. Players like Keon Ellis, Jalen Slawson, Colby Jones and Kessler Edwards make up Sacramento’s forward and wing depth on the deep bench.