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World Cup Notes: Fontecchio, Jackson Jr., Zagars, Canada

September 4th, 2023 at 9:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Simone Fontecchio won’t be prominent on many NBA game plans but he’s certainly a major focus for Team USA coach Steve Kerr and his staff in preparations for the quarterfinal match with Italy on Tuesday.

The second-year Jazz forward leads Italy in the tournament at 18.4 points per game. He’s also Italy’s second-leading rebounder at 6.6 per game. He had a 30-point outing against Serbia.

“I’m really happy when I can help my team. I can help my team in a lot of ways – even if I score 0 points,” he said in a story posted on FIBA’s website. “I can play defense, I can get rebounds, I can pass the ball. This team doesn’t need me to score 30, but when I do it of course I am really happy. It’s just the cherry on top. It’s certainly one of the best nights I’ve had in the national team.”

We have more from the World Cup:

Team USA center Jaren Jackson Jr. has gotten into early foul trouble in three of the team’s five games. He knows he must be smarter, given the club’s lack of options at the position, according to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer. “Different rules, different hand positions at different times they call,” Jackson said. “You can be more physical, but you can’t at certain times. You just gotta be super, super careful. You have to understand you’re very, very valuable.”
The best non-NBA player in the tournament is Latvia’s point man, Arturs Zagars, John Hollinger of The Athletic opines. The 23-year-old has been set back during his career by multiple injuries. He has displayed superior distribution skills in the World Cup and has been comfortable shooting FIBA threes off the dribble. He played in the Lithuanian domestic league last season. Spain point guard Juan Nunez is the top draft prospect in the tournament, Hollinger adds.
Canada’s win over Spain on Sunday was validation for a national team that has often come up short on the world stage, Michael Grange of Sportsnet notes. Canada’s win clinched an Olympic berth and set up a quarterfinal match against Luka Doncic and Slovenia on Wednesday.

Grizzlies Notes: Harrison, Aldama, Jackson Jr., Jenkins

September 4th, 2023 at 7:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grizzlies signed guard Shaquille Harrison to a one-year contract and he could be a factor in the early going with Ja Morant serving his suspension, Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal notes. Under the terms of the CBA, any player suspended more than six games will be put on the team’s suspended list after five. That will open a roster spot, and that’s where Harrison could add more depth. He can play either guard spot and has plenty of experience after passing through six other NBA organizations.

We have more from the Grizzlies:

Santi Aldama had a big game for Spain when his national team was eliminated in the FIBA World Cup by Canada, Cole writes. The big man poured in 20 points, though he only grabbed two rebounds in Canada’s three-point win. Jaren Jackson Jr. was plagued by foul trouble trying to check former Grizzlies teammate and Lithuanian national team center Jonas Valanciunas in Team USA’s six-point loss on Sunday.
In a subscriber-only story, Cole opines that coach Taylor Jenkins’ future with the organization hinges on its performance in the postseason. The Grizzlies were bounced in the first round by the Lakers this past season after losing to the Warriors in the conference semifinals the previous year.
As we previously noted, the Grizzlies already have a full roster going into training camp. Even if Harrison’s contract isn’t guaranteed, the Grizzlies will have to trim two players with guaranteed deals by opening night.

Community Shootaround: Magic Backcourt

September 4th, 2023 at 6:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rookie of the Year award winner Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner could be one of the league’s top forward combinations for years to come. Wendell Carter Jrr. has a stranglehold on the starting center job.

The mystery for the Magic is how their backcourt will shake out. They’re loaded with high draft picks at the guard positions and coach Jamahl Mosley will have some tough decisions regarding his rotation, particularly at the point.

Markelle Fultz is the favorite to be the starter at the point. He appeared in 60 regular season games last season and started them all, averaging 14.0 points and 5.7 assists per night.

Cole Anthony saw extensive playing time, mostly off the bench. He averaged 13.0 points and 3.9 assists in 60 games during his third NBA season.

The Magic invested the sixth pick in a loaded draft on Arkansas’ Anthony Black. The one-and-done college player averaged 12.8 points and 3.9 assists — along with 2.1 steals — for the Razorbacks last season. It stands to reason that Black will get some immediate playing time, given his draft status.

Then there’s Jalen Suggs, the No. 5 pick of the 2021 draft. Suggs had a stellar college career at Gonzaga but his first two NBA seasons haven’t been memorable. He’s been nagged by injuries, though he still started 19 of the 53 games he played last season. Suggs averaged 9.9 PPG and 2.9 APG and will be entering a pivotal season in his NBA career. He’ll come to training camp with plenty to prove and perhaps a chip on his shoulder.

Orlando also invested a lottery pick this summer on Jett Howard. He played one season at Michigan for his father, Juwan Howard, and ran the point for the Wolverines. He averaged 14.2 points in his lone college campaign.

Gary Harris remains the likely starter at shooting guard but it’s not a given. Harris has been a steady, if unspectacular, performer during his NBA career. He started 42 of 48 games last season but only averaged 8.3 points.

Another Michigan product, Caleb Houstan, could be a bigger factor in his second NBA season. Houstan was a high second-round pick in 2022 and made 51 appearances off the bench.

Veteran Joe Ingles, a free agent acquisition, is likely to back up at the forward spots but he could play some minutes at the off-guard spot.

A couple of natural point guards could share the court, but it’s quite a puzzle for Mosley.

That brings us to our topic of the day: How do you think the Magic’s backcourt will shake out? Who will start and who will be the main reserves?

Please take to the comments section to weigh in on this topic. We look forward to your input.

Only One Team Has Used Its Entire Non-Taxpayer MLE In 2023/24

September 4th, 2023 at 4:01pm CST by Rory Maher

There are three forms of the mid-level exception: the room exception, the full/non-taxpayer MLE, and the taxpayer MLE. All three have different values and can be used to sign players to contracts of different lengths.

Our focus today is specifically on the non-taxpayer version of the mid-level exception, which is a bit of a misnomer. Though its name suggests otherwise, using the non-taxpayer MLE doesn’t mean a team can’t or won’t be above the tax line ($165,294,000) at seasons end; it simply means the team’s total salary can’t surpass the first tax “apron” ($172,346,000).

As our Luke Adams previously detailed, the non-taxpayer MLE is the primary tool for over-the-cap teams to sign free agents. It runs for up to four years with 5% annual raises and a starting salary worth up to $12,405,000.

Interestingly, while many teams have used a portion of the non-taxpayer MLE, only the Raptors have gone through the entire $12,405,000 this summer — they used it to sign veteran guard Dennis Schröder to a two-year deal in free agency. Schröder is currently competing at the 2023 World Cup, leading Germany to an unblemished 5-0 record and a berth in the quarterfinals.

The Knicks (Donte DiVincenzo), Lakers (Gabe Vincent), Timberwolves (Shake Milton and Nickeil Alexander-Walker) and Cavaliers (Georges Niang) have all used a major portion of the MLE. They’re all unlikely to use the remaining amount they control due to the relatively modest amounts they have available, as well as their luxury tax situations.

The same is true of the Bulls, who are right at the tax line and used $6.2MM of their MLE to sign Jevon Carter. The Pelicans only used $1.8MM of their MLE (on E.J. Liddell), but they’re projected to be over the tax at the moment, so they’re unlikely to use more of the MLE unless they make a major salary-shedding trade.

The Mavericks (Dante Exum and Seth Curry) have used $7MM of their MLE, and they technically have enough breathing room below the tax to use more of it. However, their roster is nearly full, so it’s unclear if they actually will.

The Hawks, Nets, Hornets, Grizzlies, Trail Blazers and Wizards haven’t used any of their non-taxpayer MLEs. Some are more likely to use it than others, but it’s technically still available.

And-Ones: In-Season Tournament, Kalaitzakis, Raduljica

September 4th, 2023 at 2:12pm CST by Rory Maher

Sarah Todd of The Deseret News believes the NBA’s new in-season tournament will be a boon for what is typically a ho-hum portion of the regular season. According to Todd, players will be motivated by the glory of winning, being pictured with the NBA Cup, and the chance to earn $500K.

As Todd notes, while $500K may not be a huge sum for the league’s highest-paid players, it’s only $60K shy of what players on two-way deals will make over a full season, and it would be a significant reward for those on rookie deals and minimum-salary contracts. It might take a year or two for fans to buy-in, but the in-season tournament should make the regular season more fun, Todd opines.

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

EuroLeague team Panathinaikos has parted ways with Georgios Kalaitzakis, as Eurohoops.net relays. The final pick of the 2021 draft, Kalaitzakis played 13 NBA games in 2021/22 — his rookie season — with the Bucks and Thunder, though he spent much of that campaign in the G League. He returned to Panathinaikos last summer, marking his second stint with the Greek club.
Former NBA center Miroslav Raduljica has left Serbia’s Crvena Zvezda by mutual agreement, per Eurohoops. The 35-year-old will be signing with Greek side Marousi B.C., sources confirm to Eurohoops. Raduljica, who played 53 games with the Bucks and Wolves from 2013-15, has had a lengthy international career and was formerly the captain of Serbia’s national team, winning silver medals at three different tournaments (2009 EuroBasket, 2014 World Cup, and 2016 Olympics).
In case you missed it, we passed along several World Cup notes this morning.

Javonte Cooke To Sign Exhibit 10 Deal With Timberwolves

September 4th, 2023 at 12:38pm CST by Rory Maher

Free agent Javonte Cooke is signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Timberwolves, agent Jerry Dianis tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Cooke, 24, went undrafted last year out of Winston-Salem State. As Scotto notes, the 6’6″ guard spent his first professional season playing for Minnesota’s NBA G League affiliate, the Iowa Wolves.

In 25 regular season games (20.3 MPG) with Iowa in 2022/23, including five starts, Cooke averaged 8.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG and 1.6 APG on .424/.308/.773 shooting splits.

Given his relatively modest contributions, it’s highly likely that Cooke will be waived by Minnesota before the ’23/24 season starts. In that scenario, if he spends at least 60 days with Iowa, he could earn a bonus of up to $75K.

As our roster count tracker shows, the Timberwolves currently have 14 players on guaranteed standard contracts and a pair of players on two-way deals, along with a two-way qualifying offer out to restricted free agent Matt Ryan. Since they’re below the offseason maximum of 21 players under contract, they won’t have to make another roster move to sign Cooke.

Clippers Notes: Lue, Leonard, George, Westbrook, Plumlee, Coffey

September 4th, 2023 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

After battling injuries for much of last season, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George should be fully healthy for the beginning of training camp, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said in an appearance on Chris Haynes and Marc Stein’s #thisleague UNCUT podcast.

“They’re both on track to be 100% by the time training camp starts, and that’s what we need,” Lue said. “You know, our best players will be healthy, and we’ve just been in an unfortunate situation where our two best players (haven’t had) a full season together the last three years and that’s been tough on us.”

The Clippers thought they were ready to compete for a title when they signed Leonard and traded for George during the 2019 offseason, but bad luck with injuries has prevented them from making a serious run. Returning from an ACL injury, Leonard was limited to 52 games last season, then tore his meniscus during a first-round playoff series. George appeared in 56 games and missed the playoffs entirely due to a sprained right knee.

Lue also indicated that he doesn’t plan to do as much load management with his two stars this season.

“We have to, like I say, start respecting the regular season and giving our fans what they want to see and playing hard every single night, putting our best product on the floor,” he said. “And you know, our guys are ready to do that this year.”

There’s more on the Clippers:

On the same podcast, Lue said he’s looking forward to coaching Russell Westbrook for an entire season after the veteran guard re-signed this summer. Lue revealed that Westbrook and Mason Plumlee both had other options, but they wanted to say in L.A. “That just says a lot about the Clippers organization and what we’re trying to build there,” Lue added. “They both could have went other places for more money, but they like what we’re doing with the Clippers.”
Appearing recently on Stephen A. Smith’s podcast, George ranked the Clippers second in the West behind the defending champion Nuggets. “I’m gonna give Denver their credit,” George said. “They’re the champions until beaten. If healthy, we got one of the biggest chances to win it, if healthy.”
Amir Coffey has been charged with one count of carrying a loaded firearm and one count of carrying a concealed firearm, according to TMZ Sports. Coffey was arrested in late July following a traffic stop in Hollywood. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for later this month.

World Cup Notes: Brooks, Motiejunas, F. Wagner, Naturalized Players

September 4th, 2023 at 10:41am CST by Arthur Hill

After a difficult season with the Grizzlies, Dillon Brooks feels rejuvenated by his World Cup experience, writes Antonis Stroggylakis of Eurohoops. Brooks has moved past the acrimonious ending of his time in Memphis and is enjoying a summer that has included an $86MM contract with the Rockets and a chance to lead Canada to new heights in international competition.

Brooks had 22 points and five rebounds while playing his usual disruptive defense in Sunday’s win over Spain, moving Canada into the quarterfinal round and wrapping up a spot in the Olympics. The Canadians trailed by 12 points entering the fourth quarter, but Brooks hit three three-pointers during a rally in the must-win game.

“Coming off a tough year with my old squad, it was great having a refresh with Canadian blood,” Brooks said. “Guys who believe in me. Guys who trust in me.”

Reaching the Olympics is a life-long dream for Canadian teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, whose mother, Charmaine Gilgeous, competed for Antigua and Barbuda in the 400 meters during the 1992 games, Stroggylakis adds.

“In my whole life I knew what’s like going to the Olympics because of that,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And I know the best athletes are there.”

There’s more from the World Cup:

Former NBA big man Donatas Motiejunas tells Aris Barkis of Eurohoops that beating Team USA on Sunday compares to Lithuania’s last victory over the Americans in the 2004 Olympics. “I was a kid at that time, I was 14 years old so I remember watching the game and it was something spectacular,” he said. “Like I said from the first day we are here to bring joy to our people, to our basketball and I know how crazy it’s right now in Lithuania. And I really loved that we, as a team, can bring this joy to our people.”
Germany reached the quarterfinals without Magic forward Franz Wagner, who suffered a sprained ankle in the opening game, and it appears his status for Wednesday’s contest against Latvia won’t be decided until shortly before game time, per Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops. Wagner is considered day to day, but he hasn’t been active since the injury. “He had no team practice yet. We’re gonna have to see what his situation is tomorrow, and the medical staff will make a decision on Wednesday,” Germany head coach Gordon Herbert told reporters. “We go day by day; we have to see how his ankle feels in the morning, see if he’s able tomorrow or not, and we go from there. It’s a process. He wants to play, but he’s pretty frustrated and disappointed he can’t play.”
Along with Mavericks star Luka Doncic, one of Slovenia’s most important players has been center Mike Tobey, who obtained a passport in advance of the 2020 Olympic qualifying tournament, Milanti adds in another piece. Tobey believes naturalized players will have an increased impact in international basketball. “I understand both sides of the rule,” he said. “For me, I think it helps make teams competitive. I’m sure in the future the national teams will do it more because sometimes teams are really just a piece away. Slovenia shows it’s just adding one person in the position they don’t have as many big guys in this generation. I think it can make a big difference, and help small countries compete.”

Heat Notes: Herro, Adebayo, Butler, Haslem

September 4th, 2023 at 9:20am CST by Arthur Hill

If the Heat can’t trade for Damian Lillard before the season begins, Tyler Herro may be the best option as the starting point guard, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Herro has been a shooting guard throughout his career, but he could be the most effective choice to replace Gabe Vincent, who signed with the Lakers this summer.

Giving point guard duties to Herro would allow Miami to keep Kyle Lowry in a reserve role, where he thrived at the end of last season and in the playoffs. At age 37, Lowry may be best suited for limited minutes rather than being counted on to handle the starting job again.

Winderman points out that Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo can help facilitate the offense, so Herro wouldn’t need to become a traditional point guard. He adds that if the experiment doesn’t work, the Heat could look for another option during the season, such as free agent Goran Dragic.

There’s more from Miami:

Team USA could use another big man like Adebayo during the World Cup, but he’s probably better off with a summer of rest, Winderman states in another piece. Training camps will open three weeks after the end of the tournament, which is why a lot of veteran players decided not to participate. Winderman wonders whether Adebayo will be more eager to return to international competition in the 2024 Olympics.
Butler’s tendency to sit out regular season games may prevent him from being considered for postseason awards, Winderman adds. Players are now required to participate in at least 65 games to be eligible, and Butler hasn’t reached that number since the 2018/19 season.
Butler refused to answer a question about Team USA’s loss in the World Cup when approached by a journalist Sunday at the U.S. Open, according to a BasketNews story. Butler thought he was being asked for a photo when Sasa Ozmo of SportKlub Srbija introduced himself, and he quickly ended the conversation when he heard the question. “I don’t care about the World Cup,” Butler responded.
The Miami Marlins will honor longtime Heat forward Udonis Haslem at their September 7 game, the team announced on Twitter. Haslem will get a one-day contract with the MLB club, which will hold “UD Night” at the ballpark.

Team USA Notes: First Loss, Banchero, Brunson, Bridges

September 4th, 2023 at 8:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Former Team USA coach Gregg Popovich used to talk about “appropriate fear,” which is what current coach Steve Kerr said his team should be feeling after losing to Lithuania on Sunday, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. After going unbeaten through exhibition play and the first four games of the tournament, the Americans now understand they’re not invincible as they enter the quarterfinals.

“It makes it real,” Austin Reaves said. “Obviously, now, it’s (win) or go home. We see the reactions. We obviously know that everybody wants to beat us in particular. We see the joy that they get from that. That taste in your mouth, it don’t feel good.”

Although the U.S. remains favored to win the tournament, it will have to play significantly better for that to happen. Sunday’s loss came after a close call Friday against Montenegro in which Team USA had to stage a late rally to pull out a victory.

Reynolds notes that Kerr has been through this experience twice before as a member of Popovich’s staff. The U.S. dropped its first game against France in the last Olympics, but didn’t lose again on the way to a gold medal. In the 2019 World Cup, the team lost in the quarterfinals and wound up finishing seventh.

“Every player that plays for USA Basketball, they have to recognize what they’re up against and it’s not enough for us to just tell them. They’ve got to feel it,” Kerr said. “I think they’ve felt it in the last couple games.”

There’s more on Team USA:

Tuesday’s matchup with Italy will be especially significant for Paolo Banchero, Reynolds adds. With an Italian father and an American mother, Banchero had a choice of representing either nation, but he chose the U.S. because that’s who his mom once played for. “I’ll treat it like any other game,” he said.
Jalen Brunson is accepting blame for the troubling pattern of slow starts, per Aris Barkas of Eurohoops. Lithuania dominated the early part of Sunday’s contest, building a 31-12 lead after one quarter. “They executed their game plan and we just started too slow. We played way better in the second half and we waited too long to come to play,” Brunson said. “That’s on me, I have to come ready to play, I have to have everyone else ready to play. Respect to them, they played great.”
Mikal Bridges vows that the U.S. squad will be more focused for the rest of the tournament, Barkas adds in a separate story. “We just have to be ready for the next one, add more fuel to the fire,” he said. “We are not getting sent home. We just have to keep playing with our talent, we have to keep our guys out there.”