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New York Notes: Quickley, Knicks, DSJ, Bazley, Dinwiddie, Claxton

October 25th, 2023 at 12:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks had interest in signing Immanuel Quickley to a rookie scale extension prior to Monday’s deadline, but the two sides were too far apart to bridge the gap, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic.

An extension for Quickley would have made him more difficult to trade during the 2023/24 season due to the poison pill provision, but New York wasn’t worried about that, per Katz, since the team doesn’t anticipate any superstars will become available on the trade market before next summer. Presumably, the club would only consider including Quickley in a trade package for that caliber of player.

For his part, Quickley said on Tuesday that he has no concerns about playing out his contract year, and that he won’t let the business side of the game distract from his play on the court, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Post.

“Contract, no contract: I’m here for the season,” Quickley said. “I’m here for the team to try to be the best version that I can each and every day. To try to dominate. That’s why I’m here.”

Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York teams:

Amid the latest round of rumors linking the Knicks to high-profile potential trade targets, head coach Tom Thibodeau said on Tuesday that he’s happy with the group he has, according to Steve Popper of Newsday (subscription required). “That’s for you guys,” Thibodeau said of the trade speculation. “You know, it’s all rumors. That’s part of the NBA now. Obviously, we’re not dealing with any hypotheticals. We love the guys we have. Leon (Rose)‘s job is to survey the league, which he does. He and his staff are on top of everything. So if there’s something at the end of the day that can make the team better we’ll take a look at it. But if not, just keep going forward. We love the guys we have and just focus on our improvement and getting ready to play day by day.”
Nets guard Dennis Smith Jr., who was battling a sprained ankle in the preseason, has been removed from the team’s injury report and should be ready to go for its regular season opener on Wednesday, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post.
Although the Nets are one of two NBA teams with an open two-way slot, they won’t be able to use it to re-sign Darius Bazley, whose four years of NBA experience make him ineligible for a two-way contract, notes Lewis. “I do think Darius Bazley will have a place in this league,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said of the big man, who was in camp with Brooklyn until he was waived last Thursday. “I enjoyed coaching him. He’s still a young dude that can still play in this league and I was able to tell him that face-to-face.”
Speaking to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Spencer Dinwiddie said his expectations this season for the Nets are to “make the playoffs and roll the dice from there and see how far we can take it.” Dinwiddie also expressed confidence in Ben Simmons‘ ability to have a bounce-back season and – perhaps most interestingly – weighed in on what Nic Claxton‘s contract as a 2024 free agent might look like. The Nets guard projected a four-year deal in the range of $70-110MM for Claxton.

Sixers Re-Sign Ricky Council To Two-Way Contract

October 25th, 2023 at 12:12pm CST by Luke Adams

12:12pm: Tubelis has been waived in order to open up a two-way slot for Council, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link).

11:53am: The Sixers have agreed to a new two-way contract with rookie shooting guard Ricky Council, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). The signing is official, per NBA.com’s transaction log.

Council, who played two college seasons at Wichita State before transferring to Arkansas for his junior year in 2022/23, averaged 16.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 34.1 minutes per game (36 games) for the Razorbacks last season. His 27.0% mark on three-point tries left something to be desired, but he was considered one of the top prospects to go undrafted this year.

Following June’s draft, Council quickly latched on with Philadelphia on a two-way deal, playing for the club in Summer League and the preseason before being cut last Friday. The Sixers had to release a two-way player in order to convert Javonte Smart‘s Exhibit 10 deal to a two-way contract.

We don’t know exactly what Philadelphia’s thinking is in waiving Council only to bring him back five days later. However, it’s worth noting that the terms of Terquavion Smith‘s and Azuolas Tubelis‘ two-way deals called for them to have 50% of their full salaries guaranteed if they weren’t waived on or before the first day of the regular season. Council’s previous contract didn’t include those same terms.

It’s possible the Sixers always wanted to retain Council but didn’t want to deny Smith or Tubelis a payday of approximately $205K (each player had already been guaranteed $75K of his $560K two-way salary). Keeping both of those players through opening day on Tuesday ensures they’ll get their salary bumps, which won’t count against Philadelphia’s cap. I’d expect one of them – rather than Smart – was cut to make room for Council, though that hasn’t yet been confirmed.

Lakers Plan To Reduce LeBron James’ Workload

October 25th, 2023 at 10:42am CST by Luke Adams

Lakers star LeBron James played just 29 minutes in the team’s season-opening loss in Denver on Tuesday night, and that relatively modest workload will be a consistent theme for the 38-year-old going forward, head coach Darvin Ham told reporters, including ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

Ham said the plan for the start of the season is to keep James in the range of 28-to-30 minutes per game. He acknowledged that, with input from the team’s trainers and medical staffers, that number could fluctuate as the season progresses, but stressed that managing LeBron’s minutes will be a priority.

“It’s easy with him to get caught up in the emotion of the game and you tend to forget you want to play these long stretches, but in order for him to be as effective as possible, we have to be mindful of the minute output and how long his stretches are,” Ham said.

James said after the game that he’s confident he’ll still be able to make an impact in the minutes he does play and indicated that he’s on board with the team’s plan for him, adding that he wasn’t “surprised or upset” by his playing time on Tuesday.

“Listen, I mean, I always want to be on the floor. Especially when you got an opportunity to win a game or you feel like you can make an impact,” James said. “But this is the system in place and I’m going to follow it.”

LeBron averaged 37.2 minutes per game in 2021/22 and 35.5 MPG in ’22/23, but missed at least 26 games in both seasons due to injuries. It sounds like the goal this year will be to bring down his minutes per game while increasing the number of contests he’s available for.

While it’s certainly not the reason for the move, it’s worth noting that end-of-season awards like All-NBA now have a 65-game minimum requirement — if those rules had been in place in the past, James wouldn’t have been eligible to make an All-NBA team since 2019/20.

James has logged 38.1 minutes per night over the course of 1,422 career regular season games, never averaging fewer than 33.4 MPG in a season (2020/21).

James Harden Reports Back To Sixers

October 25th, 2023 at 10:01am CST by Luke Adams

James Harden, who had been away from the Sixers since October 15, has reported back to the team, according to Adrian Wonjarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

As Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer tweets, Harden is expected to take part in Wednesday’s practice before the 76ers leave for Milwaukee for Thursday’s regular season opener vs. the Bucks. Wojnarowski confirms that’s the case (Twitter link).

Harden, who hasn’t played at all in the preseason and reportedly participated in just one five-on-five scrimmage back on Oct. 7, will have to ramp back up to game shape and won’t be active on Thursday in Milwaukee, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter video link).

Although Harden showed up prepared to travel with the Sixers to Milwaukee, the club will have him remain in Philadelphia to continue his ramp-up process, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and TNT (Twitter link). After facing the Bucks, the 76ers will play in Toronto on Saturday before returning to Philadelphia to host the Trail Blazers on Sunday.

Harden, who asked the Sixers to trade him in June when he picked up his player option for the 2023/24 season, has expressed frustration with the slow pace of the negotiations multiple times in the months since then.

Back in August, he referred to Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey as a “liar” during a promotional event, later explaining to the NBA when the league investigated those comments that the club hadn’t delivered on its assurances that it would trade him “quickly.”

Harden skipped media day and the first day of training camp before reporting to the 76ers this fall. After spending nearly two weeks with the team, he departed last Sunday without an excused absence. However, Philadelphia later said Harden was away due to a personal matter, and there has been no indication that the club fined him for missing practices or its final preseason game.

Now that the regular season is underway, Harden could potentially boost his trade value a little by getting into game shape, showing that he’s fully healthy, and playing like his usual self. We’ll see if that’s the next step in this saga or if there are more surprises on tap before he takes the court this season.

NBA Investigating Suns For Possible Free Agency Gun-Jumping

October 25th, 2023 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has been conducting an investigation into the Suns for potential free agency gun-jumping, reports Marc Stein (via Twitter).

According to Stein, the league’s probe is focused on possible early communication with big man Drew Eubanks, who signed a two-year deal with the team in July. Eubanks’ agreement with Phoenix was reported by Shams Charania of The Athletic at 5:05 pm Central time on June 30, five minutes after free agency officially opened.

A ruling is expected from the NBA soon, according to Stein, who observes that teams found to have jumped the gun with a free agent are typically docked a second-round pick.

At least one team in each of the previous three offeasons has lost a second-rounder due to free agency gun-jumping. The NBA penalized the Bucks in 2020 (for Bogdan Bogdanovic), the Heat and Bulls in 2021 (for Kyle Lowry and Lonzo Ball, respectively), and the Sixers and Knicks in 2022.

Philadelphia was forced to forfeit two future second-round selections for early contact with both P.J. Tucker and Danuel House, while New York gave up a single pick for talking to Jalen Brunson before free agency began.

There were many contract agreements reported in the first hour after free agency opened on June 30, so it’s unclear why the NBA opened an investigation into the Suns’ deal with Eubanks specifically.

Phoenix has traded away all of its own future second-round selections for the next seven years (picks in 2031 and beyond aren’t yet moveable), so if the team is forced to surrender a second-rounder as a result of the league’s findings, it will likely be Denver’s 2024 pick, which the Suns control.

Southwest Notes: Wemby, Tillman, J. Williams, McCollum

October 25th, 2023 at 7:50am CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs are expected to be very cautious with new franchise player Victor Wembanyama during his rookie season. He won’t be impacted by the league’s new player participation policy, which only applies to recent All-Stars and All-NBA players, which will give San Antonio more flexibility to hold him out of certain games if necessary. However, if it were up to him, Wembanyama would play all full 82-game schedule in 2023/24, as Andrew Lopez of ESPN.com details.

“Every game,” Wembanyama said. “If there’s no excessive risk for my health — of course I can’t predict the future — but I want to play every single game.”

The French phenom will open the season as the Spurs’ starting power forward alongside center Zach Collins, and the team has made developing the chemistry between the two big men a priority this month, notes Kelly Iko of The Athletic. The thinking is that Collins is more equipped to handle the physicality associated with the center position and that having him out there will help reduce the wear and tear on Wembanyama. Still, the 19-year-old is prepared for opponents to test his physicality, Lopez writes.

“Everyone has their strength, and being physical [with me] is something I’ve seen my whole life, basically every time I stepped on a court for the last few years,” Wembanyama said. “It’s not something I’m afraid of. Quickness beats physicality when used correctly. It’s really part of the game. I’m used to it.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Xavier Tillman is “probably a leader in the clubhouse” to start at center for the Grizzlies with both Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke sidelined, head coach Taylor Jenkins said on Tuesday, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. The fourth-year big man started 29 games at center last season and Memphis won 18 of them, though his role figures to look a little different this season, as Cole explains.
Jeenathan Williams made a positive impression on Rockets head coach Ime Udoka during training camp and the preseason, which helped him secure a promotion from his camp deal to a two-way contract, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (subscription required). “He is a pretty natural, fluid scorer,” Udoka said. “He is a guy that played well in the G League last year and had a good stint at the end of the year with Portland. … He had a good summer with us as well. A guy that gives us a burst and we feel can play with many different lineups. And since he has come in, he has been one of the better guys with the second and third unit.”
Speaking to Sam Yip of HoopsHype, Pelicans guard CJ McCollum discussed his expectations for the upcoming season, his role as the NBPA president, and why he’s encouraged by what he’s seen from Zion Williamson entering the season.

Community Shootaround: Finals, MVP, Rookie Of The Year Predictions

October 24th, 2023 at 11:59pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

With opening night of the 2023/24 NBA season in the rearview, we at Hoops Rumors decided it was high time to delve into some predictions for how the rest of the year will unfold.

The East’s top two teams by record last year, the Celtics and Bucks, underwent some drastic personnel changes this summer, and have emerged as the two early favorites in Las Vegas. Boston’s new additions are top-lined by ex-Milwaukee All-Defensive guard Jrue Holiday and floor-stretching center Kristaps Porzingis, while the Bucks added superstar point guard Damian Lillard alongside perennial MVP candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The reigning champion Nuggets remain the class of the Western Conference, boasting perhaps the most lethal offensive tandem in the league with superstar center Nikola Jokic and sharpshooting guard Jamal Murray.

Three Western Conference hopefuls who won playoff series last year — the Suns, Lakers, and Warriors — all underwent significant alterations to their own rosters in the hopes of toppling jumbo-sized Denver.

Phoenix offloaded two starters in Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton, and brought in three-time All-Star guard Bradley Beal, veteran big man Jusuf Nurkic, and some fresh depth to complement incumbent All-Stars Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. Paul was eventually re-routed to Golden State, where his veteran presence could help stabilize the turnover-prone Warriors. The Lakers made several tactical below-the-radar signings as they look to build on their surprise Western Conference Finals berth last spring.

Competitive Eastern Conference clubs like the Heat, Knicks, Sixers and Cavaliers seem to be a move or two away from true title contention. The Clippers certainly think they’re still contenders, but given their aging and injury-prone roster, the rest of the basketball world is dubious. Elsewhere in the West, young clubs like the Kings and Thunder hope to take a leap. The Grizzlies, who will be without their best player for the first 25 games of the year and have a frontcourt beset by long-term injuries, face an uphill battle to remain among the conference’s elite teams. When everyone’s available, they certainly have the talent to compete with anyone.

On the MVP front, the usual suspects like Jokic, Antetokounmpo, and the Warriors’ Stephen Curry seem likely to have an opportunity to add even more hardware to their collections (each has two apiece). Reigning MVP Joel Embiid‘s candidacy for a repeat performance may depend on how Philadelphia performs in its conference. Booker’s traction in this conversation may likewise hinge on how his new-look Suns mesh, though early signs are quite encouraging. Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander may have a chance to nab their first such honor. All-NBA Heat swingman Jimmy Butler always seems to miss too much time to earn major consideration, but there’s no question he remains one of the league’s top talents.

The 2024 Rookie of the Year race is looking to be one of the most exciting in a while, fronted by two unique big men and a dynamite scoring guard. Superhuman Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama, the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft, and lanky Oklahoma City big Chet Holmgren, the second pick in 2022 who has yet to make his regular season NBA debut, have already impressed in the preseason. Trail Blazers point guard Scoot Henderson looks to have the green light to score at will on a youth-oriented Portland roster.

Hornets forward Brandon Miller, Rockets guard Amen Thompson, and Pistons forward Ausar Thompson all are angling for a shot at that hardware, too. One caveat: Amen will be dealing with a crowded backcourt in Houston, and may not get as much run as the others.

We want to know what you think. Which clubs will face off in the 2024 Finals? And who will win? Who will earn this year’s MVP award? And which rookie in this starry class will rise above the rest, at least this year?

Take to the comments below with your thoughts!

Bucks Notes: Giannis, Thanasis, Griffin, Ownership

October 24th, 2023 at 10:09pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Although Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo just inked a lucrative contract extension, Milwaukee is still under pressure to deliver a title soon, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic.

The All-NBA forward’s fresh three-season extension, which could be worth up to $186.6MM, will keep him under team control through at least the 2026/27 season. Newly-added All-NBA point guard Damian Lillard has a $63.2MM player option for that year. Antetokounmpo, meanwhile, has a player option for 2027/28.

Nehm notes that team president Jon Horst clearly is striving to deliver Antetokounmpo his second title with the Bucks, pointing to the trade for Lillard as proof that the front office is taking an aggressive team-building approach.

There’s more out of Milwaukee:

Giannis Antetokounmpo credits big brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo, a reserve forward on Milwaukee, with helping to convince him to sign an extension this offseason, Nehm adds (Twitter link). “For me, signing is basically, as I said earlier, it wouldn’t make sense for me to sign it, but then I had a conversation with my family, a.k.a. GM TA [Thanasis], that it would make more sense for me to sign because I’d be able to — first of all, you don’t know what tomorrow holds — but that I’d have eligibility to re-sign in 2026,” Giannis said. “So I just kind of trust his thinking.”
First-year Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin recently unpacked his revamped approach to the club’s defense during an interview with Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Griffin singles out ball pressure, paint protection with lots of help defense, contesting shots, and defensive rebounding as his key tenets.
New Bucks co-owners Jimmy Haslam and Dee Haslam hope to help give the Bucks enough support to win more championships, Owczarski writes in a separate piece. “That desire to win is not just for us, although we’re incredibly competitive, but we also recognize how important it is for these communities to have a winning team,” Dee said. “That gets us excited to be part of that story.”

Mike Brown Talks Kings, Fox, Sabonis, Monk, Murray

October 24th, 2023 at 8:11pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Second-year Kings head coach Mike Brown is aware that the club is heading into the 2023/24 season with serious expectations for the first time in a good long while. As the reigning Coach of the Year tells Mike Scotto of HoopsHype in an extensive new interview, his team is hoping to improve on last season’s 48-34 record. Sacramento did secure the West’s No. 3 seed, but was ousted in a seven-game, first-round playoff slugfest by the Warriors.

“We’re a good team,” Brown said. “We established that narrative with our play last year and our connectivity and work throughout the summer. Now, we’ve got to continue building on that. We’ve got to go from good to great. Our expectations aren’t just to make the playoffs again. We know that’s who we are. Our expectations are to go from good to great and be an NBA champion, just like every other team out there, that’s competing as hard as we feel like we’re going to compete this year.”

The whole conversation is well worth reading in full. Below are just a few key highlights.

On winning his second Coach of the Year award in 2023:

“The reality to me is I have a fantastic staff, and you appreciate their work. At the end of the day, I recognize greatness, and I truly mean that our players stepped up, and everybody in the organization did too. I’m not just talking about my coaching staff. I have at least four or five guys on my staff right now who are ready to be head coaches. I’ve been saying that. I’ve tried to tell people about Jordi Fernandez. Others on my staff are ready to be head coaches right now.”

“I recognize how blessed, fortunate, and lucky I am to have not just a great coaching staff but a great medical staff, and a great performance and conditioning staff. I love the guys in the front office, ticket sales, community relations, and (COO) Matina Kolokotronis. To see the vertical and horizontal levels of trust we have with all the levels in the organization, in my opinion, showed itself in the best possible way with me being named the unanimous Coach of the Year because I know I didn’t do it by myself.”

On the chemistry between All-Stars De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis:

“Those two guys have to continue taking leaps forward, but part of the reason why we brought so many guys back is because I firmly believe in order to have a winning culture at the highest level, you have to have a core of guys that you believe in and are able to play together year after year so that connectivity can grow to an insurmountable level. This is our first year of trying to bring our guys back to establish that core, so that means everybody we bring back has to elevate their game. Keegan Murray, Kevin Huerter and Harrison Barnes all have to elevate their game, especially knowing the way we like to play on both ends of the floor.”

On Malik Monk‘s shot at Sixth Man of the Year honors:

“He has a chance. Malik Monk is one of the most talented guys I’ve been around. He’s not 6-foot-7, but if he was, he’d be All-NBA. He’s that talented. It’s going to be up to him what he wants to be. I thought last year, coming in, his work ethic and his focus were pretty good. Just like how everyone else can help us improve internally to help us become a better team, Malik can, too. His talent level is there. Now, he’s got to be locked in 24/7, 365 days a year, when it comes to hoops. If he is, and he doesn’t take anything for granted, he’s in great shape and locked in by playing every possession, the sky’s the limit for him. He can shoot the three. He’s got a medium (mid-range) game. He’s one of the best I’ve seen in pick-and-rolls.”

On the growth of second-year forward Keegan Murray:

“If you think about it, last year, the way we played with our pace and our body and ball movement, he got a lot of his shots off the catch-and-shoot. Now, we expect Keegan to bring the ball up if he gets a rebound and initiate the offense, be a little selfish, and go get his shot, which you saw a couple of times throughout the preseason and when he played in Kings Summer League action in Sacramento. Not only that, but offensive rebounding. He’s worked hard on his body. Defensively, don’t get bullied… Be able to guard the ball in pick-and-roll situations. These are some areas, like going to get shots off the bounce that Keegan worked on that we’ve been fortunate to see throughout the offseason. Now, we expect him to do that come game time.”

Cavaliers Hiring Dave Joerger As Consultant

October 24th, 2023 at 6:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Longtime NBA coach Dave Joerger is signing on with the Cavaliers as a coaching consultant, sources inform Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Charania adds that, next February, Joerger will also coach Team USA during the club’s upcoming FIBA AmeriCup qualifiers.

Joerger has worked in the NBA proper since 2007, when he joined the Grizzlies as an assistant coach under Marc Iavaroni. He was promoted to a head coaching role ahead of the 2013/14 season. Memphis fired Joerger in 2016, and he quickly moved on to a head gig with the Kings, where he served from 2016-19. Over his six seasons as a head coach, Joerger owns a 245-247 regular season record and a 9-13 playoff mark.

Most recently, Joerger was an assistant coach on the 76ers under Doc Rivers, from 2020-23.

Current Cleveland head coach J.B. Bickerstaff led the Cavs to a 51-31 record and the fourth seed in the East last season. The club was quickly excommunicated from the 2023 playoffs by the lower-seeded Knicks in a five-game first-round series.

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