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Southeast Notes: Kuzma, Carter, Sheppard, Bridges

October 7th, 2023 at 10:59am CST by Tristan Tucker

When asked to address the Wizards‘ issues in recent seasons, Kyle Kuzma often spoke about how the team wasn’t “playing winning basketball,” writes The Washington Post’s Ava Wallace. Having won a championship in 2021 with the Lakers, Kuzma is now part of an organization that is making winning secondary to building a top-notch organization, according to Wallace.

That’s why it was intriguing to see Kuzma re-up with Washington this offseason. Wallace writes that while money was a factor – he can earn up to $102MM over four years – Kuzma’s communication with the front office and a chance to be a No. 1 on a team were the primary reasons for coming back.

“I’ve said it before: I want to have a chance to lead people and really have a lasting impact on an organization, and this was the best opportunity for me to do that,” Kuzma said.

Jordan Poole quickly moved to try to help convince Kuzma to stay after arriving in a June trade, according to Wallace, who says Poole valued Kuzma and realized the duo could grow together.

“You feel it — the authenticity, the knowledge, the basketball knowledge, his experience,” Poole said. “Being able to have a running mate like that is huge, especially when we have a new group, new front office, new coaches. As long as you think the right way and have the right perspective, everything else will kind of just fall in place.”

Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. feels Kuzma and Poole have “bought in” to the rebuild, according to Wallace. Kuzma averaged 21.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists last season and will embark on his seventh season in the league and third with Washington.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Wendell Carter Jr. has had a solid stint with the Magic, but he’s hoping to take things to the next level, as Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel details. Carter is attempting to improve his play-making and shooting in 2023/24, according to Beede, and he’s sometimes been taking over 1,000 shots per day in practice. “His jumper definitely looks cleaner,” Magic forward Paolo Banchero said. “It looks like he’s shooting it more comfortably; less hesitation and letting it rip. It’s been going in.”
Despite not playing last year after pleading no contest to felony domestic violence in November, Miles Bridges is back with the Hornets and, according to his teammates and coaches, is in game shape, as Roderick Boone writes. “Yeah, it’s been great,” Hornets wing Gordon Hayward said. “Honestly, it’s like he never left, the way he’s fit in just because he knows a lot of the same stuff that we are doing, and he’s going to bring so much versatility to us.“
While former general manager Tommy Sheppard is out of the picture for the Wizards, his philosophies on defense, pace and attention to detail still ring true, as The Athletic’s Josh Robbins lays out. “You get to the end of the season, and if there’s still questions [about how to play defense], if there’s still confusion or anything, then maybe sometimes you either have to simplify or really go back and say, ‘How much accountability [was there] throughout the year to get us to this point?” Sheppard said in April. “Are we still doing some of the same things?” The Wizards are focusing on using this season as a building block for something bigger, but Robbins opines that if Bilal Coulibaly, Deni Avdija and others don’t make individual strides, it will have been a wasted year.

Trail Blazers Ready To Move On From Damian Lillard Era

October 7th, 2023 at 9:34am CST by Tristan Tucker

After an 11-year partnership between Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers, the two sides moved on this offseason with a trade that sent one of the franchise’s all-time best players to the Bucks. Now, following years of attempts to compete, Portland looks completely different, with players like Scoot Henderson, Deandre Ayton and Shaedon Sharpe heading up its young core.

While Lillard occupied most of the spotlight, general manager Joe Cronin made plenty of headlines during the time in which Lillard’s request seemed in limbo, The Washington Post’s Ben Golliver writes. Media members and fans alike drew different conclusions regarding Cronin, Golliver details, with some accusing Cronin of not sending Lillard to his then-preferred destination of Miami “out of spite” and others calling him a “liar” for drafting Henderson instead of trading the draft pick for a contender. To add fuel to the fire, Lillard didn’t thank Cronin in his lengthy farewell letter to Portland.

“[Lillard] and I went through it this summer,” Cronin said. “It wasn’t always amicable and perfect. To be omitted from that [letter], I didn’t take as anything more than it being a hard summer that we had both gone through. I wasn’t one to be thanked at that moment. … Our directions didn’t line up. Things didn’t work out. We had pure intentions in our desire to build a winner around him. We were just unable to pull it off. I don’t think that was a lie. We just couldn’t get it done.”

One of the most overlooked aspects of the Lillard trade is how it affected local marketing, Golliver explains. Season ticket holders had to make decisions to renew or not and promoters had to make the decision on which players on the team to highlight. Even before Lillard was traded, the Blazers began to turn the page, Golliver writes, moving to feature Henderson and the young core and removing Lillard entirely from promo material.

“We really need to move on,” Trail Blazers president of business operations Dewayne Hankins said in a Zoom call. “We’ve got great young talent. We’re not like other rebuilding teams who don’t have a strong core of young players. It’s time to turn the page.”

Fans came around to Lillard’s exit, according to Golliver, and season ticket holders renewed at a 93% rate, up six percentage points last year.

“We wanted to honor Dame’s trade request,” Hankins said. “If we promote him, are we being true to our fans? That was the moment when we started saying that this was a new era. It’s really hard to lose a legend like Damian whose number will go in the rafters as soon as possible. At the same time, I think we’re prepared. Our next step is getting our fans to fall in love with these guys.”

Even though Cronin didn’t trade Lillard to the Heat, he believes he did right by the star guard by sending him to a contender, according to Golliver. Hankins said his staff is still mulling the right way to honor the guard, Golliver writes, including the possibility of a statue outside Portland’s arena, Moda Center.

“We’ve retired a lot of numbers,” Hankins said. “We’ve had the conversation: Is there another level of honor that we need to create for him?”

The Blazers still have work to do in completing their rebuild, but they’re as high as possible on Henderson, Anfernee Simons and Sharpe taking the reins left by Lillard at the guard spot, according to Golliver. I highly recommend reading Golliver’s piece in full, as there’s some fascinating perspective and quotes from high-ranking Blazers officials inside.

Sixers Notes: Morey, Harden, Embiid, Training Camp

October 7th, 2023 at 8:22am CST by Tristan Tucker

Following the Damian Lillard and Jrue Holiday trades, all eyes turned toward James Harden as the next potential star trade before the season. However, Gina Mizell of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes that Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey won’t rush into any sort of deal involving the star guard, regardless of any potential pushback from Harden, even if that means keeping him into the season.

Mizell writes that Morey isn’t going to be pressured into making a move for the sake of making the trade despite other Eastern Conference rivals adding big pieces like Lillard and Holiday. Morey and the Sixers took a similar approach with Ben Simmons two years ago, holding him all the way until the trade deadline so that they could find the most suitable deal.

While outsiders in Philly are antsy to move on from the 10-time All-Star, Mizell writes that the belief inside the organization is that a move to make a trade now, even if it would end any potential distraction, is too reckless to justify. Mizell explains that sources on both sides are taking things day-by-day, even if that means leaving the door open for Harden to make things uncomfortable leading into the season, something he hasn’t done up to this point.

Morey is unlikely to allow Harden to force his hand, Mizell writes, because head coach Nick Nurse could always bench Harden and start Tyrese Maxey as the team’s lead ball-handler. Several other factors play into a potential decision by the Sixers to hold Harden until the deadline, according to Mizell, including the star guard potentially rescinding his trade request, better prospective trades popping up as the season goes on, and not wanting to take a step back during their window of contention, especially coming off Joel Embiid‘s MVP year.

We have more from the Sixers:

Harden was a full participant in Philadelphia’s final training camp practice at Colorado State on Friday for the first time since he re-joined the team on Tuesday, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps writes. However, his status for the Sixers’ preseason opener against the Celtics on Sunday is still uncertain, according to Bontemps, who says Nurse’s rotations are still fluid for the first preseason action for the Sixers.
Embiid reiterated to reporters on Thursday that Harden’s presence for the Sixers was not a distraction, stating that the team’s focus is on learning and installing Nurse’s schemes, Bontemps writes. “As a team, we’re just focused on what we’ve got to learn, and learn as soon as possible,” Embiid said. “We don’t have a lot of time. We want to win, and that’s the goal.“
While the Harden situation is drawing plenty of attention, there are a handful of other storylines flying under the radar during Philadelphia’s camp. Maxey, in particular, is drawing rave reviews from Nurse, who’s becoming increasingly impressed by the guard’s outside shot and ability to create space, according to PHLY Sports’ Derek Bodner. Bodner also writes that the Sixers’ ball movement has been improved in camp.

Central Notes: Lillard, Griffin, Morris, Thompson, Ball

October 6th, 2023 at 10:00pm CST by Rory Maher

Point guard Damian Lillard is beginning to find his niche with the Bucks, writes Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. While Lillard plans to do “a lot of listening” as he grows accustomed to a new environment, he says he’s already giving the younger players advice.

“I’ve just been coming in, introducing myself,” he said. “And I’m interacting with different guys so they can see, I’m not on ‘superstar time.’ And I think as I earn the respect of my teammates and everybody else, they respect what I say after that.

“But if something comes up that I’ve had (experience with), or something that I’ve, that I recognize is what’s in the best interest, I’m not afraid to be the person to say it. I’m not a guy that is going to hold back or second-guess what I have to say because I know that what I have to say comes from a good place at all time.”

New head coach Adrian Griffin is making an imprint as well, according to Goodwill, particularly on the defensive end.

“One of the messages to the team, if you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready,” Griffin said. “We want to be physical now so when the playoffs come you don’t have to be you know, talk about this good physical that’s gonna be part of our DNA.”

Here’s more from the Central:

Pistons guard Monte Morris, who was acquired from Washington in the offseason, says he’s embracing the opportunity to become a vocal leader for a young Detroit team, per Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. “That’s going to be a good challenge for me because it’s going to be one of the first times in my career where that’s going to be something they’re going to be looking for from me,” Morris said. “To be a voice. With my resume and the experience I have been able to have in my career so far – being me, playing the right way, bring energy, trying to be as consistent as possible every day. Have fun with it. But (being) vocal is going to be my biggest challenge. I’m ready for it.”
Head coach Monty Williams believes No. 5 overall pick Ausar Thompson has a chance to make an immediate impact for the Pistons, as Langlois tweets. “We think he’s going to be phenomenal and we think he’s going to be an integral part of our team,” Williams said. “And there’s a chance that could happen right away.”
Bulls guard Lonzo Ball hasn’t played since January 2021 and will miss the entire 2023/24 season following a third knee surgery. However, he’s optimistic that he’ll return to an NBA court in the future, he tells Jamal Collier of ESPN. “After the other surgeries, this one has definitely gone the best as far as (the) recovery process,” Ball said. “The last two rehab processes I had, I was getting better and then it just hit a standstill and it started going down. And I haven’t hit that yet.”

Pacific Notes: McGruder, Vincent, Nurkic, Sabonis

October 6th, 2023 at 8:45pm CST by Rory Maher

Veteran wing Rodney McGruder has entered the NBA’s concussion protocol and will be sidelined for the Warriors‘ first preseason game against the Lakers on Saturday, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

McGruder, 32, is on a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 deal for training camp and has a “real shot” to make the regular season roster, according to Slater. McGruder averaged 5.7 points while shooting 42.3% from three-point range last season for the Pistons.

Here’s more from the Pacific:

Gabe Vincent was the main external free agent addition for the Lakers, who signed the 27-year-old guard to a three-year, $33MM contract. Vincent tells Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times (subscriber link) that he’s ready for his new role in one of the league’s biggest markets. “The game changes, the game evolves, you have to adapt,” he said. “You change teams, you change situations, you have to adapt. I think that’s very much part of surviving in this league, being able to adapt.”
Suns center Jusuf Nurkic was recently traded to Phoenix from Portland, and he’s enjoying his time playing with the “Big 3” of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (subscriber link). “It’s kind of crazy when you think about it,” Nurkic said. “The spacing and everything is so big. It’s really fun to be out there.” The Bosnian big man will make $54.4MM over the next three seasons.
The Kings renegotiated and extended Domantas Sabonis‘ contract this offseason, adding four more years onto his deal, which is now worth nearly $204MM in total guaranteed money. According to Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee, the All-NBA center cited the Kings’ fans and his partnership with De’Aaron Fox as key reasons for why he was “more than happy” to sign a long-term deal. “Having a dynamic guard like that, a superstar who can do everything, offense and defense, it means everything,” Sabonis said of Fox. “You guys saw it last year, and for me as a big to play with someone like that makes life so much easier.”

Atlantic Notes: Achiuwa, Raptors, Claxton, Thomas, Knicks

October 6th, 2023 at 7:10pm CST by Rory Maher

Raptors big man Precious Achiuwa suffered a left groin strain in training camp and will miss Sunday’s preseason opener, per the team (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca). The 24-year-old will be reevaluated next week.

We’ll have to wait for more information on the severity of the injury, but it’s a disappointing development for Achiuwa, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension until October 23.

The forward/center averaged 9.2 PPG and 6.0 RPG on .485/.269/.702 shooting in 55 games (20.7 MPG) in 2022/23. Hopefully the groin strain is minor and doesn’t negatively impact his fourth season.

Here’s more from the Atlantic:

The Raptors‘ success — both now and going forward — depends on the development of Scottie Barnes and his relationship with new head coach Darko Rajakovic, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Rajakovic said Toronto is going to lean into Barnes’ play-making ability, but the team knows he needs to improve in other areas as well. As Grange writes, the two have clicked since they first met. “I feel like we’re gonna be on a long ride together,” Barnes said of Rajakovic. “We’re going to make amazing things happen.”
Nets center Nic Claxton, who is on an expiring $9.6MM contract, is embracing high expectations following a breakout fourth season, writes Dan Martin of The New York Post. Claxton averaged career highs in virtually every statistical category in 2022/23 and has put on muscle for ’23/24. “We have a lot of guys here that if we win collectively, they have things that they can prove,” Spencer Dinwiddie said Thursday. “The thing I’d love to see most is Nic get his $100 million (contract), because I’ve seen him come in the league.”
While Claxton is looking to improve upon his already-strong performance from last season for the Nets, the fate of third-year guard Cam Thomas is much less certain, per NetsDaily.com. Head coach Jacque Vaughn says the team won’t be relying on isolation scoring this season, which is Thomas’ greatest strength. “He does have a skill of being able to play isolation basketball and get a bucket. That’s proven,” said Vaughn. “I don’t think we can play isolation basketball and win basketball games on a consistent basis. I think this team is built around the versatility and the depth of the team, and we’ll have to use all that, while also agreeing and notifying the rest of the group that there are some individuals who (are) going to have the basketball in their hands and they have a talent. (Thomas) has a talent that’s going to be used on both ends of the floor, and that’s what he’s going to be asked of.”
The Knicks improved their depth by trading for Josh Hart last season (he signed an extension this offseason after picking up his player option) and signing Donte DiVincenzo in free agency. However, as Fred Katz writes for The Athletic, there are only so many minutes to go around. How Hart, DiVincenzo, RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Quentin Grimes perform defensively might determine who among that group will be closing on a given night, according to Katz.

Nets Sign, Waive Trey McGowens, Kameron Hankerson

October 6th, 2023 at 6:45pm CST by Luke Adams

6:45pm: McGowens and Hankerson have been waived, according to the official transactions log at NBA.com. The Nets’ roster now stands at 18 players under contract.

9:29am: The Nets have signed a pair of free agent guards, adding Trey McGowens and Kameron Hankerson to their training camp roster, the team announced today.

While details of the two deals aren’t known, they’re almost certainly Exhibit 10 contracts, aimed at getting McGowens and Hankerson some bonus money (up to $75K) if they report to the Long Island Nets in the G League after being waived by Brooklyn.

Both McGowens and Hankerson played for Long Island last season.

McGowens, who went undrafted out of Nebraska in 2022, came off the bench in 23 regular season games for the NBAGL club, averaging 3.7 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 10.3 minutes per night. He’s the older brother of Hornets rookie Bryce McGowens.

Hankerson, appearing in 44 total regular season and Showcase Cup contests for Long Island, registered 6.9 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 1.2 APG in 16.3 MPG, with a shooting line of .431/.339/.857. He previously spent a couple seasons playing in Germany after going undrafted out of Green Bay in 2020.

Brooklyn now has 20 players under contract, one off the 21-man preseason limit.

Southeast Notes: Heat, Herro, Wizards, Okongwu

October 6th, 2023 at 5:27pm CST by Rory Maher

Kyle Lowry said earlier this week that he expects to be the Heat‘s starting point guard in 2023/24 after finishing last season as a reserve. But will he actually reclaim his old job?

According to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald, while head coach Erik Spoelstra was complimentary of Lowry on Friday, he remained noncommittal about who will start at point, noting that a couple other players have been getting practice reps as well.

“Kyle, obviously, is our decorated champion,” Spoelstra said. “So playing on those words, he’s one of the great quarterbacks and quarterback minds in this league and he’s critical to what we do. (Josh Richardson) has been playing some there, just trying to get him re-acclimated to a little more of the role that he played with us previously. And Dru Smith is quietly or not so quietly had a very good camp. He’s improved considerably.”

Richardson has played for five different teams over four seasons since Miami traded him away in the Jimmy Butler blockbuster in 2019. He returned to the Heat this summer on a two-year, minimum-salary deal. Smith, meanwhile is a second-year guard on a two-way deal. He split last season with Miami and Brooklyn.

Here are a few more notes from the Southeast Division:

In an interview with Couper Moorhead of Heat.com, Tyler Herro said he realizes he can’t do anything about being involved in trade rumors, but he’s out to prove he’s valuable in ’23/24. “It’s funny, but everyone has their opinion,” he said. “The only people that really know are the ones in the front offices making the trades and ultimately deciding whose value is what. I feel like I’m pretty damn valuable. I don’t know. I feel like I’m valuable as hell. At the end of the day, I’m going to show that this season and hopefully by the end of the season I’m going to be in the same boat as Bam (Adebayo).“
After ranking 17th in the NBA in pace last season, the Wizards plan to deploy a more up-tempo offense in 2023/24. Players are excited about the change, writes Chase Hughes of Monumental Sports Network. “Oh my God, it’s going to be amazing… It’s going to be really fun and it’s going to be fun to watch,” said forward Kyle Kuzma.
The Hawks are working with fourth-year center Onyeka Okongwu to expand his offensive arsenal, as Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays (subscriber link). “Some of the things that he’s working on, whether it’s a corner three or dribble handoff, taking the ball and driving, there’s some situations he’s in, they’re new to him, but he’s also very capable in those situations,” head coach Quin Snyder said. “I mean, when you see him, drive baseline, throw a left-hand pass along the baseline, he can do that stuff. It’s just got to become instinctive and that takes time but he’s putting in the work.” Okongwu is eligible for a rookie scale extension until October 23, the day before the regular season begins.

And-Ones: Embiid, Olympics, Bronny, Abu Dhabi

October 6th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Team USA head coach Steve Kerr said on Thursday that he “couldn’t be happier” when he heard from executive director Grant Hill that Joel Embiid has committed to play for the U.S. in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The Kerr-led USA Basketball squad that finished in fourth place and missed out on a medal at this year’s World Cup was thin up front, lacking the size to match up with some of the bigger, more physical teams in the tournament. Embiid should certainly help address that issue.

As Joey Linn of Sports Illustrated writes, French forward Nicolas Batum told reporters on Thursday that he wasn’t surprised about Embiid committing to the U.S. over France (or his native Cameroon). He even admitted that, “as a basketball fan,” it could be “amazing” to see Embiid playing alongside some of the other Team USA stars. Still, he joked that he didn’t need to see FIBA’s No. 1 ranked team add even more talent.

“As an opponent it’s like, ‘You didn’t need that much. You got plenty already, so you need to bring Embiid?'” Batum said with a smile. “But hey, good for them. It’s going to be an interesting tournament anyway, so we’ll see.”

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

Speaking to reporters this week, LeBron James provided a positive update on his son Bronny James, who suffered cardiac arrest during a July workout. The 19-year-old USC prospect is “doing extremely well” and still plans to play for the Trojans at some point this season, according to LeBron. Myron Medcalf of ESPN.com has the story and the quotes.
In a conversation with Chris Hine of The Star Tribune about the league’s decision to hold a pair of preseason games in Abu Dhabi, deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said he believes the NBA’s values of diversity, inclusion, and equity travel with the league. “We demonstrate that through our actions. We have a female referee (Ashley Moyer-Gleich) on the court (in Thursday’s game),” Tatum said. “I think that will send a message here to have a female referee on the court refereeing an NBA game here in the Middle East and Abu Dhabi. The way that we operate, we bring our values with us.”
Kevin Pelton of ESPN (Insider link) has unveiled his win total projections for all 30 NBA teams. There are a few surprises among those projections, particularly in the West, where Pelton’s top two teams are the Grizzlies and Timberwolves. The Lakers and Clippers are all the way down at Nos. 8 and 10 in the conference, respectively.

Southwest Notes: Z. Williams, Adams, Mavs, Vassell

October 6th, 2023 at 3:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Following a promising rookie season in 2021/22, Ziaire Williams battled injuries and was limited to just 37 games in ’22/23 — and he was inconsistent when he did play, with his shooting percentages dropping across the board. That down year would seemingly make him a long shot to crack the Grizzlies‘ starting five this fall, but he’s making a case for that open lineup spot with his defensive play in training camp, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal.

“I talked to him after practice about how he’s doing a great job in situations using his length, using his mobility,” head coach Taylor Jenkins said earlier this week. “His attention to detail has been spot-on right now defensively.”

According to Cole, making an All-Defensive team and being named Most Improved Player are among Williams’ lofty goals for the season. While those accolades may ultimately prove out of reach, he’s determined to avoid a repeat of last season, telling reporters that he worked hard this summer and is now stronger and weighs more than at any other time in his playing career.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Coming off a right knee injury, Grizzlies center Steven Adams was a full participant in scrimmages on Thursday and showed no ill effects of his long recovery process, per Cole of The Commercial Appeal. “He’s looked great,” teammate Luke Kennard said. “He’s done everything. Every drill, all the scrimmages and he’s been dominant down low. He looks good to me.”
Although Jason Kidd has trended to trust veterans over young players in the past, Tim Cato of The Athletic believes the Mavericks‘ head coach may have a longer leash with Dereck Lively II and Olivier-Maxence Prosper, two defensive-minded rookies who will know not to try to do too much on offense.
Devin Vassell isn’t a perfect player, but based on the improvements he has made since entering the league and the rising NBA salary cap, he’s worth the five-year, $135MM+ contract extension the Spurs signed him to this week, says Sam Vecenie of The Athletic. As Vecenie points out, by the end of the deal, Vecenie should be earning approximately 15% of the cap, which is about what players like Myles Turner, Bruce Brown, and Mikal Bridges are currently making.