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Southwest Notes: Murphy, Williamson, Brooks, Tillman

December 2nd, 2023 at 12:05pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Pelicans wing Trey Murphy tore the meniscus in his left knee in September, missing the first 19 games of New Orleans’ season. The injury was a major setback for a player who had increased his scoring average from 5.4 points per game in 2021/22 to 14.5 last season, establishing himself as one of the Pelicans’ key rotation pieces.

Murphy made his 2023 season debut on Friday, immediately picking back up where he left off. He scored 18 points in his return and helped the Pels to a 15-point victory over the Spurs.

“He’s been a big part of our success the last two seasons,” coach Willie Green said, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “We all were rallying for him to get on the floor and get back. It was like he didn’t miss a beat. Now it’s about building that chemistry with everyone on the team.”

The Pelicans, who have dealt with a litany of injuries over the past few seasons, are getting healthier and healthier. The only rotation player currently dealing with a long-term injury is Larry Nance Jr., who is out four-to-six weeks, a far cry from what the injury report has looked like in season’s past.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Pelicans star forward Zion Williamson is expected to play in the team’s Saturday matchup against the Bulls, according to Green (Twitter link via ESPN’s Andrew Lopez). Lopez notes that this would be the first back-to-back Williamson has played this season. The two-time All-Star is averaging 23.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.0 assists this season.
The Rockets entered Friday tied for the fourth-best defense in the league, in large part to wing Dillon Brooks‘ contributions on the floor, according to The Athletic’s Kelly Iko. Iko breaks down Brooks’ unique approach to defense, including the fact that he guards players in an unconventional way — by clapping in their face. “I feel like everyone in the league knows I slap people’s hands on jump shots after the ball’s released,” Brooks told The Athletic. “So it puts a thought in their mind that when I close out, you’re not getting a free shot. When they work out, they’re so used to following through. But when I close out, I like to mix in different things like that.“
Grizzlies center Xavier Tillman played in Memphis’ Friday matchup with the Mavericks (Twitter link via team), playing 21 minutes and helping the Grizzlies to a 14-point win. Tillman had appeared in just one game since Nov. 3, so his return to the lineup is welcome for a Memphis team that won back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Atlantic Notes: Barnes, Maxey, Embiid, Thomas, Porzingis

December 2nd, 2023 at 10:48am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Raptors still appear to be figuring out their identity, trying to navigate their path through player development while simultaneously attempting to win now, according to The Athletic’s Eric Koreen. In order to fully develop budding star Scottie Barnes, Toronto needs to better optimize the lineups it is running, Koreen writes.

Koreen observes Toronto’s lineups with cramped spacing aren’t doing much to advance Barnes’ development. Instead of having the opportunity to kick the ball out to shooters, Barnes is sometimes featured in lineups with multiple players who are not feared from beyond the arc.

Barnes also isn’t yet confident enough to singlehandedly run the floor and lineups that feature him and OG Anunoby as the only starters have struggled, per Koreen. Koreen acknowledges this is more of a roster construction issue than a minute-distribution issue, but suggests changes. Otto Porter Jr. is a player mentioned who could help alleviate spacing issues.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Tyrese Maxey continues to play at a superstar level for the Sixers, averaging 27.0 points and 6.7 assists through his first 18 games. Appearing on NBA Today (YouTube link), ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said Maxey’s development is one of the biggest storylines of the season and speculates that it may just keep Joel Embiid in Philadelphia for the long run. Windhorst says Maxey’s play is keeping the Sixers in title contention despite trading James Harden and because of their play, the chatter from fans and media surrounding Embiid potentially wanting out is dying down.
The Nets are faced with a difficult decision regarding their starting lineup after a strong 26-point return from injury from Cam Thomas, writes the New York Post’s Mark W. Sanchez. Thomas began the season on the bench but was quickly inserted into the starting lineup due to his impressive scoring (26.8 PPG). After missing nine straight games due to injury, he was brought off the bench. But because the Nets’ offense runs through him, they’ll likely look to move him into the starting lineup again, meaning Cameron Johnson, Spencer Dinwiddie or Dorian Finney-Smith are candidates to be benched moving forward, according to Sanchez.
Celtics forward Kristaps Porzingis hasn’t played since Nov. 24 and while he still isn’t practicing, he’s been out on the court, tweets The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. Porzingis’s status remains up in the air for Boston’s in-season tournament quarterfinal on Monday against the Pacers. In 15 games this season, Porzingis has averaged 18.9 points and 6.7 rebounds.

Central Notes: Rales, Cavs, LeVert, Wade, Bogdanovic

December 2nd, 2023 at 9:23am CST by Tristan Tucker

Businessman Steven Rales is expected to become the minority owner of the Pacers, according to a statement from Pacers Sports and Entertainment chairman and owner Herb Simon (Twitter link).

“After considerable discussion, Steven is going to become a minority owner of 20 percent of the franchise pending league approval,” Simon said. “The Simon family is as committed to Indiana today as we have been since we moved here from New York in the 1960s.”

A story from The Athletic’s James Boyd provides background on Rales, a 72-year-old founder of Danaher Corporation, a life sciences organization. Rales is a DePauw University graduate and has “strong Indiana connections.”

Simon originally purchased the Pacers for $10.5MM in 1983 alongside his brother, Mel. According to Forbes estimates, the Pacers are now worth $2.9 billion, ranking 27th of 30 NBA teams. Simon will remain the controlling owner and, according to The Athletic, many believe his son Stephen will succeed him in that role in the future.

We have more from the Central Division:

The Cavaliers lost to the rebuilding Trail Blazers on Thursday, continuing a disappointing start to the season for Cleveland — the team is hovering just above .500 through 19 games at 10-9. According to Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor, the Cavs held a lengthy team meeting after the loss. “We’ve said this since the beginning, we want to be a championship-caliber team. We’re not playing like it,” star guard Donovan Mitchell said. “This is the worst loss of the season. That’s it. Let’s go. We’ll be fine. We’ll fix it.“
The Cavaliers will be shorthanded against the Pistons when the two division rivals square off on Saturday, as guard Caris LeVert has been ruled out with a left knee injury, Fedor reports. There’s no definitive timeline for how long LeVert will be out, but he missed back-to-back games with the same injury in November, Fedor observes. Cleveland also remains without Dean Wade, who is missing his sixth straight game with an ankle injury.
The Pistons listed Bojan Bogdanovic as probable on Friday, meaning he remains on track to make his season debut against the Cavaliers on Saturday, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski. It was previously assumed that Bogdanovic would indeed play on Saturday, but the official status designation all but confirms it. Detroit didn’t win a game in November and is currently amid a 16-game losing streak.

Woj: No Market For Zach LaVine “Right Now”

December 2nd, 2023 at 8:01am CST by Tristan Tucker

There is currently no market league-wide for Bulls star guard Zach LaVine, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on NBA Today (Twitter link). This reporting comes less than a month after the news that both LaVine and Chicago were increasingly open to exploring a trade.

“There is not a market for Zach LaVine right now in the NBA,” Wojnarowski said. “That’s not because Chicago has not tried to find it and [they’re] currently trying to find it.”

Wojnarowski goes on to explain opposing teams’ trepidation with potentially acquiring the two-time All-Star, stating that his contract and production are giving teams pause.

“I think the question for teams is, how much does Zach LaVine impact winning?” Wojnarowski said. “Especially with his salary and a new salary cap where you’re asking yourself, ‘Are we trading for our best player? No. Our second-best player? No. So he’s our third-best player, do we want to pay that kind of money?’”

LaVine has $178.1MM and four years remaining on the five-year contract he signed in 2022. At a remaining average annual salary of $44.5MM, LaVine is under contract through at least 2026, with a player option worth roughly $49MM for the 2026/27 season.

Wojnarowski says the Bulls want to get a decent return for one of their top scorers, but explains that in order for Chicago to get what it wants, teams are going to want to see an uptick in LaVine’s production and impact on winning. Through 20 games, the Bulls are 6-14 and LaVine is averaging 21.0 points per game on 44.3% shooting, both of which are his lowest averages since his first year in Chicago in ’17/18. LaVine has 18 appearances this year but is out for at least one week with a foot issue.

Though LaVine has experienced individual success in Chicago, averaging 25.1 PPG and shooting 38.8% from three (7.1 attempts) over the past five seasons, his team has finished with a winning record just once in his 10 seasons in the league. The Bulls were among the top tier of the Eastern Conference for the first half of the ’21/22 season, but after Lonzo Ball and others suffered injuries, LaVine and the Bulls finished at 46-36 and fell in the first round of the playoffs.

The Bulls acquired LaVine alongside Kris Dunn and Lauri Markkanen in 2017 in exchange for Jimmy Butler and Justin Patton. The Bulls are 194-291 since trading for LaVine. He holds career averages of 20.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists per night.

Of course, as Wojnarowski says, teams are still trying to figure out their identities at this point in the season, and talks will become more substantial across the league when free agents signed in 2023 become trade eligible on Dec. 15 and Jan. 15.

Veteran NBA Wing Terrence Ross Retires

December 1st, 2023 at 10:47pm CST by Rory Maher

Veteran wing Terrence Ross, who played 11 NBA seasons from 2012-23, officially announced his retirement on Friday evening via his podcast (YouTube link).

Ross spent the first four-plus seasons of his career with the Raptors, who selected him eighth overall in the 2012 draft. He was traded to Orlando in 2017 in the deal that sent Serge Ibaka to Toronto and spent parts of seven seasons with the Magic prior to being bought out and waived in February, ultimately signing with the Suns to finish out the 2022/23 season.

The 32-year-old was an unrestricted free agent this past offseason after his deal with Phoenix expired and didn’t end up signing another NBA contract. He confirmed a rumor back in August that he was offered a deal by a Serbian club, but obviously he didn’t accept it.

Ross, who played college ball at Washington and won the 2013 dunk contest, cited injuries and a desire to spend more time with his family as motivating factors in his decision to retire.

Overall, Ross appeared in 733 regular season games, including 187 starts, averaging 11.0 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists while shooting 36.2% from three-point range in 24.5 minutes per night.

After the Magic won their ninth straight game on Friday night, head coach Jamahl Mosley was asked about Ross’ retirement, as Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel relays (via Twitter). Ross sat courtside at the game.

“He just brought such a great joy to this group. … They look up to him, they’re still in chats together,” Mosley said. “I think he’s such a great veteran for our guys with a young group when he was here, it was great to have him.”

Spurs Notes: Wembanyama, Vassell, Sochan

December 1st, 2023 at 9:00pm CST by Rory Maher

Spurs No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama missed his first regular season game on Friday night against the Pelicans. The 7’4″ big man has been dealing with right hip tightness and considers himself “day-to-day,” writes Andrew Lopez of ESPN.

Friday was the second of back-to-back games for San Antonio, which lost to the Hawks on Thursday night. Wembanyama was questionable for that contest, but wound up playing, Lopez notes.

In 18 games (30.0 minutes) in 2023/24, the 19-year-old has put up very impressive counting stats of 19.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 steals and a league-leading 2.7 blocks per night, though like many rookies he has struggled at times with turnovers (3.5) and scoring efficiency (.437/.271/.829 shooting line).

Here are a few more notes on the Spurs, who have lost 13 straight games entering Friday’s contest:

Devin Vassell hasn’t gotten much recognition this season because San Antonio is just 3-15 and ranks last in the Western Conference. But the fourth-year wing is shooting career highs of 58.0% on twos and 41.9% on threes, and the spacing and attention he draws are essential to the team’s offense, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, who says Vassell “increasingly looks like the perfect complementary piece to Wembanyama.”
Vassell has missed five games this season due to an adductor injury, causing the Spurs to place him on a minutes restriction and bring him off the bench of late. He was a reserve again on Friday night, but head coach Gregg Popovich said Vassell will return to the starting lineup in the near future, tweets Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News.
Transitioning to point guard after playing power forward as a rookie last season has been a bumpy adjustment for Jeremy Sochan, but he had his best game of the season on Thursday, McDonald writes for The Express-News (subscriber link). The 20-year-old had a career-high 33 points (on 12-of-14 shooting) while also contributing eight rebounds, six assists and a steal. “It’s a process,” Sochan said. “But as every day goes on, it’s getting easier. I’ve just going to keep going. And if I have the trust of my coaches and my teammates, that’s the most important thing.”

Lauri Markkanen (Hamstring) To Be Reevaluated Next Week

December 1st, 2023 at 7:03pm CST by Rory Maher

Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen will miss his fifth consecutive game on Saturday vs. Portland due to a left hamstring strain.

According to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter links), Markkanen is set to be reevaluated at some point next week, with Utah saying its leading scorer “continues to make progress” from his injury.

A first-time All-Star in 2022/23, Markkanen had a breakout season with the Jazz, winning the Most Improved Player award in the process. He’s off to a strong start in ’23/24 as well, averaging 23.7 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 1.1 SPG and 0.9 BPG on .484/.383/.840 shooting in 15 games (34.1 MPG).

It’s unclear when Markkanen suffered the injury, but he last played on November 22 against the Trail Blazers. The 26-year-old is on a bargain contract relative to his production, as he’ll earn about $35.3MM over the next two season until he hits free agency again in 2025.

After tomorrow’s game, Utah has multiple days off — the team doesn’t play again until next Wednesday.

Guards Jordan Clarkson (thigh) and Kris Dunn (personal reasons) will also be out on Saturday, per Larsen. It will be Clarkson’s second straight missed game, while Dunn will miss his fourth consecutive contest.

The Jazz are currently 6-13, which is the third-worst record in the Western Conference.

Lakers’ Vanderbilt, Hachimura To Return On Saturday

December 1st, 2023 at 6:19pm CST by Rory Maher

Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt will make his 2023/24 season debut on Saturday against Houston, the team announced (Twitter link via Jovan Buha of The Athletic). Vanderbilt has missed the first 20 games of the season with left heel bursitis.

Vanderbilt, 24, was one of two players sent from Utah to Los Angeles at the 2023 trade deadline, along with Malik Beasley (D’Angelo Russell arrived from Minnesota in the same three-team deal). Vanderbilt started 24 of 26 regular season games for the Lakers down the stretch in ’22/23, averaging 7.2 points and 6.7 rebounds in 24.0 minutes per night while shooting 52.9% from the field and 78.4% from the free throw line.

Although he was one of the few Lakers who wasn’t a free agent this past offseason, Vanderbilt still cashed in, agreeing to a four-year, $48MM veteran extension that will keep him under team control through at least the 2026/27 season. He’ll hold a player option for ’27/28.

Los Angeles will also have Rui Hachimura back in the lineup — he’s available after missing the past four games following surgery to repair a nasal fracture.

According to Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group (Twitter link), the Lakers could have a third wing back in action on Saturday, as Cam Reddish is listed as probable. The 24-year-old has missed four of the past five games with a groin strain.

The Lakers are currently 11-9, the No. 7 seed in the West.

Bulls Notes: DeRozan, Options, Dosunmu, Phillips, Williams

December 1st, 2023 at 5:36pm CST by Rory Maher

Chicago figures to be at the center of many trade conversations around the league after a disappointing start has the team sitting with a 6-14 record — 13th in the East — after 20 games.

Along the same lines, scouts and executives Sam Amick of The Athletic has spoken to believe Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan is “very likely” to be traded prior to the February deadline. According to Amick, the Heat and Knicks are teams that appeal to DeRozan, who is on an expiring $28.6MM contract.

DeRozan, 34, was an All-Star each of the past two seasons for Chicago and earned an All-NBA Second Team nod in 2021/22. His numbers are down a bit this season, but he’s still averaging 21.3 PPG, 4.6 APG, 3.2 RPG and 1.0 SPG on .450/.364/.810 shooting in 18 games (35.2 MPG).

Here’s more on the Bulls:

Keith Smith of Spotrac believes the Bulls should tear down their roster and basically start from scratch. Smith takes an in-depth look at Chicago’s assets and salary cap situation, and lists five trade proposals to kick-start a rebuild, though he acknowledges the Bulls are highly unlikely to undergo such a drastic overhaul.
Third-year guard Ayo Dosunmu got his first start of the ’23/24 season in Thursday’s overtime victory over Milwaukee and played well, per K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. Dosunmu, who finished with 14 points (on 6-of-8 shooting), six rebounds, six assists and three steals in 39 minutes, received praise from head coach Billy Donovan. “He was great because his tempo and pace in pick-and-roll was really good. He wasn’t rushed,” Donovan said. “He read the floor. He read the defense. He made really good decisions, not only for himself but he generated shots for other guys. He got Vooch (Nikola Vucevic) a lot of opportunities.” Dosunmu is likely to continue to receive more run with Zach LaVine set to miss the next week due to foot soreness, Johnson adds.
Julian Phillips, a second-round pick who was selected 35th overall in this year’s draft, played a season-high 14 minutes on Thursday with both LaVine and DeRozan (ankle) sidelined, Johnson notes in another story. The 20-year-old small forward missed all three of his field goal attempts, but he played with aggression and had three rebounds and three assists, Johnson writes.
Fourth-year forward Patrick Williams, a restricted free agent in 2024, is starting to turn things around after an extremely slow start, according to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “Patrick has done a good job,” Donovan said. “He’s been more consistent (with) being physical and feeling his presence out there.” Williams is averaging 13.6 PPG and 5.0 RPG on .520/.474/.875 shooting over the past five games, including four starts (31.5 MPG).

Mavericks Notes: Cuban, Adelson, Kidd, Doncic, Exum

December 1st, 2023 at 3:42pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Mark Cuban reportedly has no plans to exit the basketball side of business despite selling a majority stake of the Mavericks to the Adelson family. Appearing on the Brian Windhorst podcast, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon pointed out that the deal is a big win for Cuban, who gets to both cash in on the franchise and maintain some say in basketball operations.

“I don’t know exactly what the language is in the purchase agreement, but one thing I have been told, and the exact word I heard is Cuban will have basketball operations for, quote, ‘forevermore,’” MacMahon said (hat tip to RealGM). “I assume that is agreed to in writing.”

It was reported Tuesday that the Adelson family is in the process of buying a major share in the franchise. Cuban is selling the majority stake to billionaire Miriam Adelson – widow of late businessman Sheldon Adelson – and the Adelson family for a valuation in the range of $3.5 billion. Cuban bought the Mavericks for $285MM in 2000.

We have more from the Mavericks:

Miriam Adelson is one of the richest women in the world and is adding Mavericks owner to a résumé that includes casino mogul, GOP power broker and United States and Israel newspaper owner, as explored by AP’s Ken Ritter. Adelson is selling $2 billion in stock of casino company Las Vegas Sands Corp., but will still be a majority shareholder. The $3.5 billion purchase of the Mavericks would make Adelson one of just a handful of female U.S. professional sports franchise owners. According to Ritter, her net worth of $32 billion makes her the fifth-richest woman in the U.S. and the 35th-richest billionaire in the world. Adelson has spoken highly of Cuban in the past. “A good person with good values, though he is totally opposite of us in his political views,” Adelson said.
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd took issue with the tone of questions he received from reporters following Dallas’s Tuesday game against the Rockets (Twitter link via HoopsHype). “People will read your positive s–t,” Kidd said. “You don’t always have to be negative, right? Like the world’s already negative enough. So let’s see some positive stuff on some positive people that are playing, doing their job on a nightly basis.“
Luka Doncic is missing his first game of the season for the birth of his daughter, Gabriela, who was announced to the world on Friday, according to The Dallas Morning News. Doncic is being designated as out for personal reasons for Friday’s game against the Grizzlies. Guard Dante Exum is also out for personal reasons for that matchup.