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Nets Notes: Simmons, Whitehead, Walker, Defense

November 18th, 2023 at 6:38pm CST by Rory Maher

While Ben Simmons‘ latest injury — a nerve impingement in his lower left back — isn’t believed to be nearly as serious as the multiple herniated disks that required surgery last year, the fact that he’s still having back issues is obviously concerning.

Brian Lewis of The New York Post spoke to Dr. Neel Anand, an orthopedic spine surgeon based in Los Angeles, to get a better understanding of Simmons’ injury. According to Anand, the question to ask isn’t whether or not Simmons will have ongoing back issues — it’s how often he might have flare-ups like the one he seems to be experiencing now.

“Again, low back. All that means is this disk is not great. Once you’ve had a disk problem, whether it be a tear, a disk herniation — which is what he had before — that disk is not normal anymore, so it’s not unusual to get another tear or a small thing that flares up again,” Anand told The Post. “The question is, is this new episode another major disk herniation, or just a little flare-up which can be settled down?

“It’s like your car tire. You get a tire, you patch the hole and you’re fine and you drive your car. That tire could blow up again, get another tear, or it could run another 10 years. That’s the issue; that tire is not normal anymore. You patched the tire; that’s all you’ve done. And that’s what the surgery we do for micro decompression — which is what he probably had — is. But the actual disk is not the same anymore. So you can get other tears.

“What’s important is the MRI didn’t show a large disk herniation pushing on his nerves or something big. … [Reports say] he doesn’t need surgery, so based on that I’m going to assume he does not have a big disk herniation. He’s got a small tear that’s flared up. Anti-inflammatories settle it down 90-95 percent of the time. Now, can it happen again? That’s a $1 million question. The answer’s yes; the question is when? Nobody can predict. [Or] he could play for years. Nobody can predict that.”

Here’s more on the Nets:

First-round pick Dariq Whitehead is a former top high school recruit who dealt with a foot injury that required a second surgery prior to the draft. He’s now playing for Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate in Long Island as he continues to regain his conditioning. Speaking to Jordan Greene of NetsDaily.com, Whitehead said he’s “getting closer to where I need to be.” “I’m currently getting my legs where they need to be and my explosiveness is getting back as well,” he said. “When you’re out for six months you sort of lose your bounce a little bit. Now, I’m trying to get my first step back so I can get back to my regular self and hopefully be able to play above the rim soon.”
Lonnie Walker signed a one-year, minimum salary contract with the Nets as unrestricted free agent over the summer. To this point, he has been an absolute bargain, stepping up while Simmons and leading scorer Cam Thomas are out with injuries, per Lewis of The New York Post. “He’s just continuing to make plays for us on both ends of the floor,” said head coach Jacque Vaughn. “He’s flying around on the defensive end of the floor, which we need. And then offensively, you see his ability to attack the rim.” Through 11 games (21.6 MPG), Walker is averaging a career-best 15.7 PPG on an excellent .508/.439/.769 shooting line.
According to Lewis of The New York Post (subscriber link), Brooklyn theoretically has a roster that could put together one of the better defenses in the league, with two former Defensive Player of the Year runner-ups in Simmons (2021) and Mikal Bridges (2022), along with a strong back-line anchor in Nic Claxton. But the Nets currently have the NBA’s 23rd-ranked defense, with injuries to Simmons and Claxton playing a factor in that poor figure. As Lewis writes, the coaches want the team to take more risks to force more turnovers, which the Nets haven’t been doing to this point — they’re last in the league in opponent turnovers.

Blazers’ Ish Wainright Out 4-6 Weeks With Knee Sprain

November 18th, 2023 at 4:49pm CST by Rory Maher

Trail Blazers forward Ish Wainright is expected to miss four-to-six weeks after being diagnosed with a sprained MCL in his left knee, the team announced in a press release. An MRI revealed the injury.

Wainright, 29, was cut by the Suns just before the 2023/24 season started, as Phoenix was facing a roster crunch. Portland claimed his non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract off the waiver wire.

A former Baylor Bear who went undrafted in 2017, Wainright played professionally overseas before making it to the NBA in 2021. He appeared in 60 games for the Suns last season, averaging 4.2 points and 2.3 rebounds in 15.3 minutes per night. His shooting line was .370/.329/.839.

Wainright was sidelined for Portland’s first eight games due to a right calf strain — the fact that he was injured again so soon after returning from that injury is an unfortunate development. He has made two appearances thus far for the Blazers, playing five total minutes.

Since Wainright hasn’t been a rotation regular, his absence won’t necessarily impact other players receiving minutes, but it will make the Blazers even more shorthanded — they’re already playing without Scoot Henderson (ankle), Anfernee Simons (right thumb surgery) and Malcolm Brogdon, who missed his fourth straight game on Friday due to a hamstring injury.

Wizards Notes: Poole, Jones, Gallinari, Coulibaly, Shamet

November 18th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Wizards guard Jordan Poole, who is off to an inconsistent start with his new team, had his worst game of the season on Friday, scoring just eight points on 2-of-11 shooting and committing five turnovers in a 21-point loss to New York. His scoring average for the season is at 15.5 PPG on .392/.278/.813 shooting, well below the marks he posted during his last two seasons in Golden State.

After the loss, Tyus Jones said that he and the rest of the Wizards are trying to make sure that Poole stays positive, and expressed confidence that things will turn around before long for his backcourt partner.

“I think he’s probably putting a little too much pressure on himself,” Jones said (Twitter video link via Hoop District). “But it comes from a place of caring and wanting to be great and wanting to succeed, wanting to play well for not only himself but for his teammates, for the city, for the organization. It’ll work itself out. He’ll be good.”

Veteran forward Kyle Kuzma took to Twitter to voice his agreement with Jones’ assessment, responding to his teammate’s quotes with the “100” emoji.

Here’s more out of D.C.:

Speaking to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Jones said he’s trying to make the Wizards’ front office “look good” for acquiring him and giving him an opportunity to be a starting point guard for the first time in his career. He also said he’s trying not to focus on his 2024 free agency as he plays out a contract year. “I like where I’m at. I like what we have here in D.C.,” Jones said. “I like the future and what this could be. I want to be a part of that. I’m looking forward to doing so.”
Scotto also spoke to Danilo Gallinari about the veteran forward’s desire to represent Italy in the 2024 Olympics and how much longer he’d like to continue his NBA career. “As long as my legs are underneath me, I want to play,” the 35-year-old said. “When you love basketball so much, in your head, you want to play until you’re 70, but of course your legs are not going to be there. As long as my legs are there, my mind is always going to be ready to go and be competitive. I just need my legs, and I’ll be good.”
Rookie forward Bilal Coulibaly has impressed the Wizards with his defensive effort this season and passed another big test this week when he held his own against Luka Doncic in Wednesday’s loss to Dallas, per Chase Hughes and Bijan Todd of Monumental Sports Network.
In a separate story, Hughes takes a look at what Landry Shamet – acquired from Phoenix in the summer’s Bradley Beal blockbuster – has brought to the Wizards, noting that his quick release has added a new element to the club’s second unit.

And-Ones: Diallo, T. Cook, J. Green, Expansion, More

November 18th, 2023 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Former NBA big man Cheick Diallo, who opened this season playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Miami’s G League affiliate, intends to return to Kyoto Hannaryz, the Japanese team he played for in 2022/23, according to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com (Twitter link).

Diallo appeared in 180 NBA games from 2016-20, but has bounced around since then, playing in the G League and multiple international leagues, returning to the NBA for just three contests in 2021/22.

In other international basketball news, former NBA forward Tyler Cook has signed with Spanish club Joventut Badalona, per a press release from the team. Cook played in a total of 65 games for five different NBA teams between 2019-22, but wasn’t in the league at all last season. He played in the G League in 2022/23 and had a brief stint in Australia this fall.

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

Former NBA forward Johnny Green, who made four All-Star appearances between 1959-71, including three for the Knicks, has passed away at age 89, according to Richard Goldstein of The New York Times. Known as Jumpin’ Johnny, Green was a college star at Michigan State before recording over 12,000 points and 9,000 rebounds in the NBA.
Asked during an appearance on Sportsnet’s The Raptors Show (Twitter video link) about comments he made recently referencing the idea of expansion to a Canadian city like Montreal or Vancouver, commissioner Adam Silver stressed that the NBA has received interest from those markets but isn’t prepared to seriously explore the possibility yet. “It’s not an active discussion right now,” Silver said.
The early returns for the NBA’s first ever in-season tournament “have been pretty positive,” Silver said during that same radio appearance (Twitter video link). In addition to seeing a significant jump in television ratings for tournament games, Silver is encouraged by the buy-in from people around the NBA. “The players are really into it, and the coaches and teams have been very engaged and excited about it,” Silver said. “That’s what’s most important and what will ultimately translate into the most interest from the fans.”
Sam Amick, Josh Robbins, and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic take stock of the best and worst of the NBA’s first few weeks, identifying the Mavericks, Rockets, and Timberwolves as the teams that have most outperformed expectations and the Lakers, Clippers, and Bucks as a few that have underwhelmed.

Central Notes: LeVert, Bulls, Haliburton, King

November 18th, 2023 at 2:21pm CST by Luke Adams

After moving him in and out of the starting lineup last season, the Cavaliers are hoping to keep Caris LeVert‘s role more consistent in 2023/24, says Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (subscriber link). The veteran wing got one start early in the season when both Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell were unavailable, but has come off the bench in his other 10 appearances, including in games when just one of Garland or Mitchell is out — the plan is for that to continue going forward.

“I’m comfortable starting, coming off the bench, whatever,” LeVert told Fedor. “But I think for us this season, the goal was kind of to keep me in the same. Obviously, if Don and D.G. are out, I would probably start. But I think just for me in terms of getting my rhythm, we kind of discussed that it would be better for me to have one role — to come off the bench all season.”

No longer sharing the court as often with the team’s most ball-dominant guards, LeVert has bumped his scoring average to 18.0 points per game and his usage rate to 24.4% so far this season. Both marks are the highest they’ve been since he arrived in Cleveland. While we’re only a few weeks into the season, his play as a reserve has made LeVert a popular early pick for the Sixth Man of the Year award, an honor he’d like to earn.

“Of course, I want to win it. Of course I do,” LeVert told Fedor. “If I’m going to come off the bench, I want to be the best at it. That’s something that would be cool. But I think that is a team award more than anything else. If our team performs well, I think we will have a lot of people who get rewarded because of that. I’m just trying to play a good team game.”

Here’s more from around the Central:

K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago checks in on where things stand for the struggling Bulls, citing sources who say management still isn’t prepared to launch an all-out rebuild, despite at least one report suggesting that could be in the cards. According to Johnson, the front office has “full autonomy” on its roster decisions, with ownership not attempting to influence the team’s direction.
After signing a five-year, maximum-salary extension with the Pacers in July, Tyrese Haliburton has shown so far this season why he was worthy of such an investment, averaging 24.7 points and a league-leading 12.5 assists per game with a scorching-hot .528/.436/.932 shooting line. As Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic writes, Indiana has played at the second-fastest pace in the league this season and Haliburton appreciates that the team has built its offensive system around the way he likes to play. “Teams don’t want to run with us. Nobody. I don’t care who it is. Nobody wants to run with us,” Haliburton said. “I’m relatively young, but that’s just the way I play basketball, and this organization has done a great job of allowing me to spread who I am throughout the organization and how I play throughout the organization.”
Pacers second-round pick Mojave King was originally expected to be a draft-and-stash prospect who played overseas this season, but the 6’5″ shooting guard ultimately decided to sign a G League contract and join the Indiana Mad Ants, the Pacers’ affiliate. King, who is recovering from a foot injury, spoke to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files about why he decided to go that route, noting that he liked the team he spent with the G League Ignite last season.

Injury Notes: Alvarado, Lyles, Mitchell, Beal, Hornets

November 18th, 2023 at 1:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado is getting “really close” to making his season debut, head coach Willie Green said on Friday, per Christian Clark of NOLA.com (Twitter link). Alvarado, who has been sidelined for the first few weeks of the season due to a right ankle sprain, missed Friday’s in-season tournament game against Denver but has been upgraded to questionable for Saturday’s contest vs. Minnesota, per the team (Twitter link).

While Alvarado has a chance to return on Saturday, forward Zion Williamson will be getting the night off on the second night of a back-to-back set, according to the Pelicans. Williamson’s designation is “rest,” so it sounds like there’s no new injury there — it’s just a matter of the team being cautious.

Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:

Kings forward Trey Lyles tells Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee that he expects to make his season debut at some point during the team’s current road trip, which continues on Sunday in Dallas and wraps up next Friday in Minnesota. Lyles has been unavailable so far this fall due to a calf injury, but has progressed to 3-on-3 work and says he feels “great,” adding that he’s mostly focused now on improving his conditioning.
While it doesn’t appear to be a cause for any significant concern at this point, Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell missed a second game on Friday due to a right hamstring issue. Mitchell also sat out on October 28 due to right hamstring soreness, notes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
Suns guard Bradley Beal was listed as probable to play on Wednesday before being downgraded to out and then ruled out for at least three weeks due to a low back strain. Head coach Frank Vogel explained on Friday that Beal turned out not to be back to 100% when he made his season debut and playing in games was impeding his recovery process. “We want to put this thing behind him,” Vogel said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link). “Playing in the games was slowing down his progress for really trying to put this behind him. We don’t want to do the ‘play a game, be out a game, play a game, be out a game.'”
The Hornets continue to be beset by injuries, as big man Nick Richards left Friday’s game due to concussion-like symptoms and has now been placed in the concussion protocol and ruled out for Saturday’s contest, per the team (Twitter link). In other Hornets injury news, Terry Rozier, who is sidelined due to a left groin issue, has yet to resume practicing, notes Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).

Northwest Notes: Gobert, Camara, Fontecchio, Kessler, Kamagate

November 18th, 2023 at 12:06pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, like Klay Thompson and Jaden McDaniels, was fined $25K for his role in an altercation early in a game between Minnesota and Golden State that ended with Draymond Green ejected and later suspended. However, according to The Star Tribune’s Chris Hine, Gobert wasn’t satisfied with the league’s ruling and said this week that he planned to appeal his fine.

“You know every situation is different, but to me that was more than just a reaction,” Gobert said. “That was a personal attack. Me being fined when I chose to, when I was being a peacemaker and I chose to keep my hands up while I was being assaulted, is shameful. Shameful. And I’m gonna appeal that fine.”

Immediately following Tuesday’s fracas, Gobert called Green out.

“Clown behavior, and I’m proud of myself for being the bigger man again and again,” Gobert said after the altercation. “And yeah, [Green] doesn’t even deserve me putting my hands on him. My team needed me tonight. I did whatever I could to keep my cool and then show that I wasn’t making the situation worse, and I do hope that the league is going to do what needs to be done, because that’s just clown behavior. Not much to say. It’s clown behavior.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

The 3-9 Trail Blazers have been searching for more physicality, size and rebounding in their starting lineup and may have found it in second-round rookie Toumani Camara, according to OregonLive’s Aaron Fentress. Camara has started the past three games for Portland, replacing Matisse Thybulle. While Portland lost all three games, Camara’s impressive rookie season is continuing. In his three starts, he’s averaging 6.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.0 blocks. “Tou is going to be who he is going to be no matter if he’s starting or not,” head coach Chauncey Billups said. “He’s going to be the same guy. He’s going to scrap, he’s going to claw, he’s going to rebound. He’s going to protect the rim a little. He’s going to always be who he is.“
Simone Fontecchio feels more comfortable with the Jazz in his second season with the team, even if the minutes haven’t come yet, according to The Deseret News’ Sarah Todd. Fontecchio had been bouncing around international rosters, along with playing for the Italian national team, before joining the Jazz. The fact that Utah had other international players that Fontecchio could relate to was huge for his acclimation. “He has an ability to really stay ready,” coach Will Hardy said. “Whether he plays a ton of minutes or whether he plays zero. Obviously his threat of shooting is is great for us. But I’m more excited about all the the other things that he does — crashing the glass, changing things on the floor, he is a great cutter, and he really has a toughness about him that I think our team needs.“
Jazz center Walker Kessler is out for around two weeks with a UCL injury that usually requires Tommy John surgery. UCL injuries in basketball are a bit rare, but it’s a positive sign Kessler was diagnosed with a sprain and not a tear, according to The Salt Lake Tribune’s Eric Walden. Walden broke down the injury with a doctor, concluding that ligament isn’t used often in basketball, and the injury shouldn’t be worrisome.
The Nuggets selected Ismael Kamagate with the 46th overall pick in the 2022 NBA draft. He’s currently playing his first EuroLeague season with Milan and got to play with the Nuggets in Summer League this past season, averaging 6.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks across four starts. Though he admitted to Eurohoops.net that playing in the NBA is his dream, he’s willing to be patient. “We just have to not rush the process, because that’s how to can lose yourself. Take your time, do what you can do. In the team, everybody can do everything. You have to master what you do better, and that’s what I learned this summer,” Kamagate said.

Pacific Notes: Harden, Westbrook, Mann, Booker, Green

November 18th, 2023 at 10:34am CST by Tristan Tucker

The Clippers picked up their first win since acquiring James Harden, beating the Rockets on Friday on a game-winning shot from the 10-time All-Star. According to ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk, the win goes beyond simply snapping a win streak, as it shows Harden is becoming more comfortable in his new home.

“I’m getting real close,” Harden said. “I’m getting close to myself every game I feel like I’m improving.”

The win also showed a glimpse of what the Clippers can be when they’re at full strength, with Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Harden all having their fair share of moments. On top of that, their victory comes off the heels of Russell Westbrook approaching coach Tyronn Lue about coming off the bench to help stabilize the team.

“He wanted to do that, which [is] an ultimate sacrifice for a guy of his caliber,” Lue said. “For things he’s done in this league, the things he’s done for this team. So shout-out to Russ for wanting to do that. It’s a huge part of what we’ve talked about, just sacrificing wanting to win at a high level.”

Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times further explored Westbrook’s move to the bench, writing that the lineup change is here to stay. Westbrook finished with just 17 minutes played, his fewest since joining the team. Norman Powell, P.J. Tucker and Daniel Theis, the latter of whom made his Clippers debut, also joined Westbrook off the bench. According to Greif, his teammates didn’t know about the change until he walked onto the practice court on Friday in the white jerseys worn by reserves.

“We just got to get him used to it and get him accustomed to doing that, and it’s tough, it’s tough to go from starting to off the bench or from off the bench to starting, especially with the caliber player that he is,” Lue said. “So we just got to get him comfortable, make sure we got the right guys on the floor with him.”

We have more from the Pacific Division:

Lue put Clippers guard Terance Mann in the starting lineup over Westbrook instead of other options like Tucker. He explained the decision on Friday. “We kind of went back and forth with T-Mann and P.J, but I think T-Mann can take the responsibility of guarding point guards every night … you can kind of put him on those guys to start the games and so we don’t have to wear PG and Kawhi down to start the games every single night,” Lue said (Twitter link via Justin Russo). “And so that’s why it kind of made sense to us.“
Suns superstar guard Devin Booker is averaging a career-high 10.3 assists through his first four games, including a single-game career high of 15 on Friday against the Jazz. Even though the sample size is small, he’s looking much more comfortable as a distributor. His previous career-best average was 6.8 in 2018/19. The Suns brass is talking about him like a point guard. “He’s our most vocal guy,” head coach Frank Vogel said (Twitter link via PHNX Suns). “He’s really taken the reins of that this year with this team, and even more so on the floor as the point guard running the show.“
Warriors forward Draymond Green was suspended after engaging in a physical confrontation with Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, and the last couple times Green has been involved in drama, frustrations in the locker room were tangible, according to The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson II. However, his teammates are completely behind him this time, knowing he’s looking out for them on the court. The events that led to Green’s suspension began with Klay Thompson and Jaden McDaniels getting into an altercation with Green later stepping in. “We’ve got his back,” Gary Payton II said. “And we gon’ hold him down until he gets back.” According to Thompson, Green apologized to his team and knows he took it too far.

Bulls Notes: Caruso, Rumors, LaVine, Donovan

November 18th, 2023 at 9:38am CST by Tristan Tucker

Bulls guard Alex Caruso drew his first start of the season on Friday against the Magic, replacing Torrey Craig, who originally took over for Patrick Williams. According to NBC Sports Chicago’s K.C. Johnson, Caruso will start for the foreseeable future.

“It does put you in a different situation because you’re not playing him for almost 12 straight minutes. I have to take a look at that combination of guys and what that looks like,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “You’re taking a guy that’s your energy guy and he’s going 12 minutes without playing. I have to manage his minutes.”

Caruso played 23 minutes, having left play briefly to have his fingers taped after diving for a loose ball. He finished with 18 points, two blocks, and two steals while knocking down four of his five three-point attempts.

“This is probably the most unattached to results that I’ve been in my life basketball-wise as far as shots going in or out,” Caruso said. “And that’s probably why I’m making most of them. There’s a part of me that doesn’t care. If I’m open, I shoot it. I’m playing basketball, competing to win. If it’s the right shot, take it. Trust the work. I worked really hard this summer and this preseason and during the season. There’s no reason not to shoot them.”

We have more from the Bulls:

While Zach LaVine rumors have spread like wildfire since it was reported Tuesday that both sides were open to exploring a trade, Donovan doesn’t see them as a distraction for his locker room, according to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. “As a coach, you get a feel on some of those things when there’s talk or when there’s chatter,” Donovan said. “I have not sensed any of that stuff at all. I just have a hard time believing that our guys are going to get wrapped up in someone’s social-media account.” Cowley writes that it helps the Bulls to have veterans like Caruso, Andre Drummond and DeMar DeRozan, who have been subject to trade rumors before.
For what it’s worth, DeRozan also doesn’t believe the Bulls’ locker room will be impacted by LaVine rumors. “It won’t,” DeRozan said of any potential effects (relayed by NBC Sports Chicago via Twitter). “You play in this league long enough, that’s something you have to deal with. If it’s not personally, it’s with a teammate. … It’s not preschool, we’re all grown men. We understand what comes with the territory when you sign up for it.“
There are several suitors with some level of expressed interest in LaVine, and The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie explores which teams make the most sense. In his view, LaVine will fetch more in a trade than what the Sixers got for James Harden, but less than what the Trail Blazers received for Jrue Holiday. The Heat, Sixers and Lakers are among the most-reported teams that could pursue LaVine, but Vecenie only sees the Lakers out of that grouping as a logical trade partner. The Jazz, Magic, Raptors and Pistons also deserve consideration to put together a package, per Vecenie, who identifies Orlando as favorite on-court fit for LaVine.
Coaches of struggling teams usually catch flak from fans, and Donovan is no exception as the head of the 4-9 Bulls, according to The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry. However, Mayberry suggests LaVine’s comments following Friday’s game are indicative of the star guard turning up the heat on his coach. “I mean, the players are doing everything they can,” LaVine said. “I know everybody’s trying to do the best they can. We’ve just got to figure out something that works.” This isn’t the first time reports of tensions between the two parties have percolated, though these have been refuted.

Heat Notes: Jaquez, Martin, LaVine, Hampton

November 18th, 2023 at 8:07am CST by Tristan Tucker

Rookie Jaime Jaquez has immediately become a rotation player for the surging Heat, playing the fifth-most minutes and recording the fifth-highest scoring total for Miami thus far. In his first NBA season, Jaquez has also already becoming a late-game staple for Miami during its seven-game winning streak, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald writes.

The UCLA product has played the full fourth quarter in each of the Heat’s past five victories. He ranks third entering Saturday in minutes played in the fourth quarter among rookies across the league, behind only Bilal Coulibaly and Toumani Camara, who both play for rebuilding teams.

“All of those things that you need to win on the road and that you would like to develop out of your team, those are his strengths,” Head coach Erik Spoelstra said of Jaquez. “The grit, the perseverance, the mental and the emotional stability. He’s learning things, but he typically doesn’t make the same mistake twice. So these experiences in the fourth quarter are like exponential 10x opportunities for him.”

Jaquez is averaging 9.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 49.5% from the floor. Chiang observes that the youngster’s defense has been impressive, and he’s already drawing defensive assignments on the likes of Anthony Edwards, Jayson Tatum, Trae Young and LeBron James.

“I just learned and felt like this is where I belong,” Jaquez said. “This is where I want to be at, in the NBA. I feel like I can play. There’s a lot of things I still need to learn, but I felt comfortable out there and I felt like I’m ready to play and that I belong in this league.”

We have more from the Heat:

Miami got reinforcements in their last game, with Caleb Martin returning to the lineup. Martin was on a minutes restriction, according to Chiang, but he’s feeling like himself again after missing the previous 10 games. “I thought he fit in great,” Spoelstra said. “I don’t think he tried to overdo those 12 minutes. We had a pretty good understanding of what it would look like. He just fits in very seamlessly with how we’ve been playing and that’s on both ends of the court.” With Martin healthy, the Heat went with a bench lineup of Jaquez, Martin, Josh Richardson and Kevin Love — Thomas Bryant and Dru Smith were out of the rotation.
The Heat are rumored to be one of the teams that both could have interest in Bulls star Zach LaVine and that could appeal to him. However, in a mailbag for The Herald, Chiang questions whether LaVine makes sense for Miami. As Chiang notes, the Bulls guard is owed $40+MM in each of the next three seasons, as well as owning a player option worth just under $50MM in 2026/27. Additionally, the fit could be questionable alongside Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro. Chiang points to Alex Caruso as someone who makes more sense on the court for Miami. However, there’s no indication he’ll be available for trade and even if he is, it would probably require at least one first-round pick, which Chiang is skeptical the Heat would offer.
Heat two-way guard R.J. Hampton is expected to be out an extended period of time with a knee injury, according to Ira Winderman of South Florida’s Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). It’s currently unclear just how much time Hampton will miss, but it’s an obvious setback for a former first-round pick who looked impressive in training camp. Hampton, 22, has appeared in just one game with the Heat so far this year, but averaged 8.5 points and 4.0 assists in two preseason games.

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