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Central Notes: Rubio, Washington, Cunningham, Thompson

August 14th, 2023 at 12:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ricky Rubio‘s decision to take time away from basketball and focus on his mental health leaves the Cavaliers with an uncertain situation at backup point guard, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in a mailbag column. Rubio didn’t offer any indication of how long he might be inactive, so there’s no way of knowing if he’ll be available when training camp opens in seven weeks or when the season starts in late October.

There’s no urgency for Cleveland to make a roster move, Fedor adds. The Cavs signed free agent Ty Jerome in the belief that he can handle a larger role than he had with Golden State, and Donovan Mitchell, Caris LeVert and two-way player Craig Porter Jr. are all capable of running the offense for short stretches. Fedor points out that there aren’t any strong options remaining in free agency, but Kendrick Nunn, Michael Carter-Williams, George Hill, Ish Smith, and D.J. Augustin are among the players still available.

General manager Mike Gansey scheduled a trip to Malaga, Spain, this summer to visit with Rubio and watch the Spanish World Cup team in action, according to Fedor. However, Rubio left training camp before Gansey arrived, so he devoted the trip to scouting instead.

There’s more from the Central Division:

The Cavaliers have expressed interest in P.J. Washington and may be “lurking” as his standoff with the Hornets continues, Fedor adds. He notes that Cleveland was able to take advantage of a similar situation in a sign-and-trade with Lauri Markkanen two years ago by offering a contract beyond what the Bulls were willing to pay. Fedor states that Rubio and Dean Wade would be enough to match salary if Washington would accept about $15MM per year, but he’s not sure if that and a few second-round picks would satisfy Charlotte.
Cade Cunningham is the only untouchable player on the Pistons‘ roster, James L. Edwards III of The Athletic writes in his annual evaluation of the team’s most valuable assets. Even though he missed most of last season after shin surgery, Cunningham is still viewed around the league as a potential superstar, according to Edwards. Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren and rookie Ausar Thompson follow Cunningham on Edwards’ list.
Overtime Elite general manager Gerald Wilkins believes Thompson has a bright NBA future, per Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. Wilkins offered a glowing recommendation to Jarrett Jack, a new member of the Pistons‘ coaching staff under Monty Williams. “He would ask me things like what are his strengths, what are his weaknesses, how can I get him the ball,” Wilkins said. “I would just tell him, ‘Just put him on the floor. Just put him in the game. They are basketball players, Ausar and Amen. They’re basketball players. You put him on the floor and a lot of good things are going to happen.’”

World Cup Notes: Towns, Team USA, Barrett, Doncic

August 14th, 2023 at 10:41am CST by Arthur Hill

Karl-Anthony Towns‘ decision to represent the Dominican Republic in the FIBA World Cup is a way to honor his late mother, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, a Dominican native, died from COVID during the early stages of the pandemic. She helped to inspire the commitment from Towns, who hasn’t played in an international tournament for more than a decade.

“There was a lot that went into the decision,” the Timberwolves‘ forward/center said. “The timing is right. I didn’t put as much stress on my body this last season because of the (calf) injury. I’m feeling great now, I’m 100% and feeling like myself again. It’s a perfect time to work on some things in my game. And with my mom’s passing, I felt an urgency to do it.”

The Dominican team won’t have Al Horford or Chris Duarte, but Towns’ presence will give them a chance of advancing. They’ll start out in pool play with Italy, Angola and the Philippines, which will host the Americas region when the tournament begins August 26.

Towns is also hoping to use the World Cup as a springboard to a better season with Minnesota. He missed 51 straight games with the calf issue, and his late-season return wasn’t enough to help the team get past the first round of the playoffs.

“The (Wolves were) very supportive when I came to them to talk about playing,” Towns said. “There’s a lot of commitment to get better this season, and for all of us this will be a head start.”

There’s more on the World Cup:

Team USA got its first taste of adversity in Sunday’s game against the top-ranked Spanish team in Malaga, notes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. The Americans faced a rabid crowd as Spain erased a 10-point halftime deficit to take the lead in the third quarter. “Atmosphere is contagious,” Mikal Bridges said. “And that’s funny. I was talking to my teammates about playing in the national championship, playing in the finals is just a different type of atmosphere. And this is like one thing that you dream of, and we aren’t even in the stadium in the Philippines (for the World Cup). But even coming here and being in Spain, this is ridiculous, man. I’m happy I’m a part of this, happy I’m going through this.”
While Jalen Brunson made all nine of his shots from the field as the U.S. pulled out a victory, Knicks teammate RJ Barrett scored 31 points in Canada’s overtime win over Germany in the finals of the DBB SuperCup tournament, per Christian Arnold of The New York Post. “(Shai Gilgeous-Alexander), (Kelly Olynyk) and the guys are out there making it easy for me to do my thing, but it’s been a lot of fun,” Barrett said.
Luka Doncic told reporters, including Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops, that he feels he has something to prove after Slovenia’s early exit in last year’s EuroBasket. “I disappointed my team. I let my whole country down. It was my fault,” Doncic said. “I’ll be back. I will always play for Slovenia if I am not injured.”

Tacko Fall To Sign With Another Team In China

August 14th, 2023 at 9:15am CST by Arthur Hill

Free agent center Tacko Fall will spend another year in China, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Charania reports that Fall will sign with the Nanjing Monkey Kings after playing last season for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers.

Despite his towering 7’6″ frame, Fall hasn’t been able to establish himself in the NBA. He played 26 combined games in two years with the Celtics, then 11 games for the Cavaliers, but he’s been out of the league since Cleveland waived him in January of 2022. He finished that season in the G League before heading overseas.

Fall joined the Bucks’ Summer League team this year in the hopes of getting another NBA opportunity. In five games in Las Vegas, he averaged 6.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 13.1 minutes per contest.

In an interview with Charania, Fall talks about how basketball is played in China compared to the NBA.

“They play very physical, especially when you’re an import,” he said. “Everything is focused on you. So I used to joke, I used to be on the phone with some of my friends like, ‘I’m getting guarded here like I’m Steph Curry.’ Because they’d literally be with you from one sideline to the other.”

James Harden: “Daryl Morey Is A Liar”

August 14th, 2023 at 7:51am CST by Arthur Hill

James Harden has fired the first salvo in his battle with Sixers management, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (video link). Harden, who’s on a marketing tour for Adidas, blasted president of basketball operations Daryl Morey during an event in China and vowed never to play for him again.

“Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of,” Harden told the crowd. “Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of.”

Harden and Morey have a long working relationship, dating back to when Morey brought him to Houston as general manager of the Rockets in a 2012 trade. Morey was thrilled to reacquire Harden in a 2022 deal, driving to the airport to pick him up when he arrived in Philadelphia.

Things began to sour as Harden approached the deadline for his decision on a $35.6MM option for 2023/24. After signing for well below market value last summer to help the Sixers build up their roster, Harden was expecting a generous, long-term offer from the team. However, once Houston elected not to pursue him, Harden didn’t have another bidder and he wasn’t happy with what Morey and the 76ers were offering.

Instead of testing free agency, Harden picked up the option in late June and demanded to be traded. The Clippers were reportedly his first choice, but Philadelphia and L.A. weren’t able to make much progress in trade talks.

The situation has been quiet for several weeks, but it heated up Saturday night when the Sixers leaked a report to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that they have ceased trade talks involving Harden. Harden’s camp responded by stating that his decision to leave the organization is firm and he’s prepared to hold out of training camp if he’s not traded.

Harden is set to become a free agent next summer, but he risks that status if he chooses not to report to the Sixers, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). Under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, a player withholding services from his team for more than 30 days “shall be deemed not to have “complet[ed] his Player Contract by rendering the playing services called for thereunder.” That means Harden couldn’t sign with another team in 2024 without the Sixers’ consent.

As several writers have noted, Harden has a history of making things uncomfortable after submitting trade requests in Houston and Brooklyn. He appears to be pursuing the same strategy with Philadelphia, and today’s comments could be the start of a long, bitter standoff.

And-Ones: Cunningham, Jones, Flagg, Macura, Wade

August 13th, 2023 at 8:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons guard Cade Cunningham tops the list of potential breakout candidates for the upcoming season, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. Cunningham, who missed most of last season with a shin injury, dazzled while playing this month for the USA Select Team.

Wizards guard Tyus Jones, who has a chance to start after serving as a backup with the Timberwolves and Grizzlies, and Trail Blazers second-year wing Shaedon Sharpe, who put up big numbers late last season, are among the other players who make Cowley’s list.

We have more news from around the basketball world:

Cooper Flagg’s decision to reclassify makes a significant impact on the 2025 draft, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. The 2025 draft wasn’t considered particularly strong, so with Flagg eligible to be taken that season, that group now has more star power. Despite his unorthodox game built around defense and passing, rather than scoring prowess, Flagg is the early favorite to be the top pick of that draft.
J.P. Macura is signing with Happy Casa Brindisi of Italy, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (Twitter link). Macura made three cameo appearances in the NBA — two games with the Hornets in 2018/19 and one with the Cavaliers the following season. Macura has played the last two seasons in Italy after a one-year stop in Turkey.
Dwyane Wade, who was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame on Saturday, wasn’t a slam dunk to be selected by the Heat in the lottery in 2003, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel notes. Team president Pat Riley said the club was in need of a big but when Toronto took Chris Bosh, Wade slipped to Miami’s pick at No. 5 overall.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround: Bulls’ Offseason

August 13th, 2023 at 6:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

There was quite a bit of speculation what the Bulls would do this summer, given their lack of progress the last couple of seasons despite making major trades and free agent signings.

Following four straight losing seasons, the Bulls got knocked out of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs in 2022. Last season, they had a losing record but qualified for the play-in tournament. After knocking out the Raptors, Chicago got bounced by eventual conference champion Miami.

Fans who were hoping for major changes or a full rebuild were disappointed. Chicago trudged along this summer by re-signing a number of its own free agents and adding a couple of role players.

Center Nikola Vucevic was re-signed on a three-year contract. Ditto for guards Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu. Backup center Andre Drummond opted in to the final year of his contract.

They made a couple of under-the-radar free signings in Jevon Carter, who will compete for the starting point guard job with Lonzo Ball out for the season, and backup forward Torrey Craig.

Barring an unexpected blockbuster move, Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan and Patrick Williams will return to their respective starting spots.

Perhaps familiarity and continuity will help Chicago take the next step. Perhaps Carter, a backup in Milwaukee, will form a solid point guard duo with Alex Caruso. Perhaps this will be the season Williams lives up to his draft status.

That brings us to today’s topic: How do you feel about the Bulls’ offseason approach? Did they do the right thing by essentially staying the course and tweaking the roster or should they have made significant changes?

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

Sixers Sign Javonte Smart To Exhibit 10 Contract

August 13th, 2023 at 3:26pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

AUGUST 13: The signing is now official, per a Sixers press release.

AUGUST 12: The Sixers are signing free agent point guard Javonte Smart to an Exhibit 10 training camp contract, sources inform Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski notes, Smart was previously signed to two-way contracts with the Heat and Bucks during the 2021/22 season. He spent ’22/23 playing for the Pelicans’ NBA G League affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron.

The 6’4″ point guard out of LSU appeared in a grand total of 17 games during his stints with Milwaukee and Miami. He posted averages of 3.0 PPG, 1.4 RPG and 0.9 APG.

Across 57 games in two G League seasons with the the Squadron and the Heat’s NBAGL affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Smart boasts averages of 16.9 PPG (on .427/.360/.939 shooting), 3.1 APG, 2.8 RPG and 0.9 SPG.

It could be an uphill battle for Smart to make Philadelphia’s roster, given that the team has all three of its two-way spots filled and has 14 of its 15 standard roster spots occupied.

Assuming Smart is ultimately cut during training camp but gets rostered with the Sixers’ G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats, he could earn a bonus that would pay him up to $75K — assuming he spends 60 or more days with Delaware.

Atlantic Notes: Dinwiddie, Brown, Tatum

August 13th, 2023 at 3:17pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Nets have a decision to make on their extension-eligible starting point guard Spencer Dinwiddie, notes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Injury-prone Ben Simmons has technically also become extension-eligible, but given how difficult it has been to find minutes for Simmons on the roster, Lewis doubts Brooklyn would be interested in extending the former All-Star.

Dinwiddie is currently earning $20.4MM in the last season of a lucrative three-year deal. Lewis notes that the 30-year-old’s veteran leadership and play-making remains valuable, and speculates that it might behoove team GM Sean Marks to re-sign him to a deal comparable to his current three-year, $54MM contract before he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Celtics All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum reflected on his All-NBA teammate Jaylen Brown‘s massive new five-year contract extension that could be worth as much as $304MM, per Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “Much deserved, it was a no-brainer,” Tatum told Washburn. “So I’m happy for him and his family. It’s life changing. It’s a big deal. I’m happy we’re going to have him for however much longer we’ve got him for. I’m happy about that.” Brown averaged 26.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.5 APG, and 1.1 SPG across 67 contests with Boston last season. He and Tatum have been the centerpieces of a team that has appeared in four Conference Finals across its last six seasons, and one NBA Finals.
Washburn notes that, in the 2024 offseason, Tatum himself will become eligible for his own five-year super-max contract extension that would make him even higher paid than Brown. Washburn considers it inevitable that the Celtics will tender him an extension offer, given his standing on the team and in the league, but it’s not at the front of Tatum’s mind. “Nah, I don’t think about nothing of that,” Tatum said. “It’s one day at a time.”
In case you missed it, Sixers point guard James Harden reportedly does not intend to suit up for Philadelphia as he awaits a trade. The former All-Star opted into the final year of his current deal with the team in an effort to force a trade, rather than signing with another club in free agency this summer.

Warriors To Work Out Glenn Robinson III

August 13th, 2023 at 1:39pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Warriors are set to hold a private workout for longtime NBA wing Glenn Robinson III, sources tell Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).

Were he to sign on with Golden State, it would mark Robinson’s second stint with the team. A seven-year vet out of Michigan, he previously spent a portion of the 2019/20 season with the Warriors.

That Golden State team provided a unique opportunity for playing time for the 6’6″ swingman, as starting shooting guard Klay Thompson was out the entire season with a torn ACL and starting point guard Stephen Curry was sidelined for all but five games due to a hand injury.

Robinson played 48 games for the Warriors that year, starting all of them. Across those contests, he averaged careers highs of 12.9 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 1.8 APG and 0.9 SPG, across 31.6 MPG. He was eventually flipped to the Sixers midway through the season.

Since being selected by the Timberwolves with the No. 40 pick in 2014, Robinson has also suited up for the Pacers, Pistons and most recently the Kings in 2020/21. He hasn’t played professionally since then. Robinson is a career 37.3% three-point shooter, albeit on a relatively modest 1.7 attempts a night. The 29-year-old could theoretically help spread the floor for the Warriors, while offering solid defense on the other end in spot minutes.

A return to the Warriors this season could also provide him with a real minutes opportunity off the bench, as the 2023/24 iteration of Golden State could still use some veteran wings with size behind starters Thompson and Andrew Wiggins. Third-year wings Moses Moody and Jonathan Kuminga struggled to earn significant rotation time last season.

Golden State currently has 13 players inked to its standard 15-man roster.

Northwest Notes: Yurtseven, Edwards, Thunder, Simons

August 13th, 2023 at 12:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Omer Yurtseven tells Semih Tuna of Eurohoops that he received interest from two Turkish teams before deciding to sign with the Jazz last month. The 25-year-old center, who spent his first two seasons with Miami, said he wants to try to establish himself in the NBA before giving consideration to playing in his native country.

“Fenerbahce and Anadolu Efes were interested,” Yurtseven said. “Fenerbahce is my home, and I also love Erdem Can, my former coach, but even if I wanted to come here towards the end of my career, now is not the time.”

Yurtseven, who is spending this summer with the Turkish national team, became an unrestricted free agent when the Heat opted not to give him a qualifying offer. He had a promising rookie year, but was limited to nine games last season after undergoing ankle surgery. He’s happy to get a chance to start over in Utah.

“Having coach Will Hardy at Utah Jazz, playing with Europeans in significant positions, and being a young team, I couldn’t see any negatives, so it was an easy choice among my top three preferences,” Yurtseven said.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Anthony Edwards believes the Timberwolves would been much better if not for a calf injury that forced Karl-Anthony Towns to miss most of the season, per Sam Yip of HoopsHype. “I think if we get KAT for a whole season, we’ll be all right,” Edwards said. He added that the trade for Mike Conley in February brought a much-needed veteran presence to the team and expressed delight that Minnesota was able to reach an extension with Naz Reid.
In a mailbag column, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman projects the Thunder‘s 15-man roster for opening night. Mussatto expects Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Jack White, TyTy Washington and Victor Oladipo to all be waived at some point.
Anfernee Simons expressed support for Trail Blazers teammate Damian Lillard to Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian (Twitter link). Asked what it would be like to lose his mentor in a potential trade, Simons responded, “A lot of people ask me that question all the time, obviously, like what’s going on with Dame. I say, ‘They say he asked for a trade, he asked for a trade.’ That was it. Obviously, me and Dame have a close relationship. I’m always going to support him no matter what.”