Pacific Notes: Porter, Clippers, Lakers, Suns, O’Neale

The Clippers‘ decision to sign Kevin Porter Jr. to a two-year contract is “in no way (meant to) downplay, diminish or condone domestic violence,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank told Law Murray of The Athletic on Monday.

Porter reached a plea agreement of a third-degree reckless assault misdemeanor in January after having been originally charged last fall with felony counts of assault and strangulation following an altercation with his former girlfriend in New York. He may still face discipline from the NBA, which is investigating the case.

Frank said Porter and the team will “abide by” any decision the league makes and told Murray that the Clippers had an independent specialist evaluate the guard before deciding to bring him aboard.

“He’s had an offseason personal-development plan that he’s been committed to,” Frank said. “And then, based on our specialist recommendation, he’ll have an offseason and off-the-court personal-development plan that he’ll be held accountable to. With that being said … we thought, hey, look, positive change is possible, and here’s an opportunity for him.

“… We take these allegations very, very seriously. With that being said, we’re going to lean on people who are experts in the field to be able to advise us — whether it’s Kevin or anyone else — is worthy of a second opportunity and why. And we’ll just kind of look at every case and every individual on a case-by-case circumstance. But we’re very aware and respectful to the sensitivities that come with, you know, these allegations. And like I said, that’s why we’ve invested a lot in terms of making sure that there’s a personal-development plan where there’s a high level of accountability.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

  • Examining what has been a quiet offseason for the Lakers, Jovan Buha of The Athletic says the team is expected to continue to remain patient as it considers possible roster moves. The Lakers will likely make a consolidation trade at some point to potentially open up a roster spot and/or more room below the second tax apron, sources tell Buha, but that may happen until closer to the start of the season.
  • The Suns still have some work to do to fill out their coaching staff ahead of Mike Budenholzer‘s first season in Phoenix, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. As Rankin details, former NBA big man Pero Antic – who played for Budenholzer in Atlanta and is working with the Suns’ Summer League roster, is one possible candidate for an assistant role.
  • After signing a new four-year contract to remain with the team, Royce O’Neale said he thinks the Suns have “an opportunity to do something special” next season, which made it an easy decision for him to stay in Phoenix, according to Rankin. The Suns dealt with a series of injuries last season and made some major roster changes before and during the season, including adding O’Neale at the trade deadline. The hope is that more continuity will help make a difference in 2024/25. “We’ll have a whole complete year to build some team chemistry and everything, get acclimated and hit the ground running and do a lot of special things,” O’Neale said.

Patrick Beverley Plans To Sign With Hapoel Tel Aviv

Veteran NBA guard Patrick Beverley is headed back overseas, announcing via his podcast’s Twitter account that he intends to sign with Hapoel Tel Aviv in Israel.

“They gave me everything I asked for,” Beverley said of the Israeli team. “… I couldn’t refuse.”

Beverley, who turned 36 last Friday, began his professional career by playing in Ukraine, Greece, and Russia from 2008-12, so he’s no stranger to international basketball. However, he has been in the NBA for the past 12 seasons, appearing in 666 total regular season games with the Rockets, Clippers, Timberwolves, Lakers, Bulls, Sixers, and Bucks during that time.

Known for his defensive tenacity, Beverley holds career averages of 8.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.4 assists in 26.6 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .413/.371/.760.

While his fiery personality can sometimes be an asset, Beverley’s 2023/24 season ended on a sour note due to a sideline outburst — he repeatedly threw a basketball at Pacers fans in Indiana during the waning moments of the Bucks’ season, at one point hitting an unsuspecting female fan in the side of the head.

The incident resulted in a police investigation and a four-game suspension, which Beverley would have had to serve at the start of the 2024/25 season if he had signed with an NBA team this summer.

Instead, the former Arkansas standout will cross the Atlantic, joining a Hapoel Tel Aviv squad that also recently signed NBA veteran Ish Wainright. The team finished second in the Israeli Basketball Premier League standings in 2023/24 with a 21-8 record, losing the best-of-three championship series to Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Warriors Sign Daeqwon Plowden To Two-Way Deal

7:17pm: The signing is official, the team tweets.


11:31am: Free agent guard Daeqwon Plowden has agreed to sign a two-way contract with the Warriors, agent Drew Kelso tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Plowden, who went undrafted out of Bowling Green in 2022, has spent his first two professional seasons in the G League, playing for the Birmingham Squadron in 2022/23 and the Osceola Magic in ’23/24.

In 49 Showcase Cup and regular season outings for Osceola last season, he averaged 11.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 25.5 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .472/.397/.797.

The 6’6″ wing has made his case for a spot on Golden State’s 18-man regular season roster this month with his performance for the Warriors’ Summer League teams in California and Las Vegas. In five total Summer League games (24.2 MPG), Plowden has averaged 16.6 PPG on .537/.481/.706 shooting.

As our tracker shows, Plowden is poised to fill the Warriors’ only open two-way slot. Pat Spencer and Reece Beekman currently occupy the other two spots. Spencer is a carryover from last season’s roster – his two-way contract, signed in February, included a second year – so if Golden State wants to create a two-way opening for second-round pick Quinten Post, he might be the odd man out.

Former NBA Forward Joe Bryant Dies At Age 69

Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, the father of longtime Lakers star and Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant, has passed away at age 69, according to Mike Sielski of The Philadelphia Inquirer, who says the former NBA forward recently suffered a massive stroke.

Bryant was the No. 14 overall pick in the 1975 draft and spent the next eight seasons in the league, appearing in 606 total regular season games for the Sixers, Clippers, and Rockets.

He averaged 8.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 21.2 minutes per contest over the course of his NBA career before spending another eight seasons in Italy.

A former star at La Salle University, Bryant spent several years as an assistant coach at his alma mater after he retired as a player. He also served as the head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA and coached in a variety of non-NBA men’s leagues around the world from 2003-15.

Joe’s son Kobe died in a helicopter crash in January 2020.

Our condolences go out to Joe’s family and friends.

Thunder Officially Sign Alex Ducas To Two-Way Contract

As expected, the Thunder have signed undrafted rookie free agent Alex Ducas to a two-way contract, the team announced today in a press release. The agreement between the two sides was first reported shortly after the draft concluded last month.

Ducas spent all five of his college seasons at Saint Mary’s. In 34 games in 2023/24, the 6’6″ Australian sharpshooter averaged 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 28.1 minutes per contest while knocking down 43.8% of his three-point attempts.

Ducas ranked 32nd on ESPN’s list of the draft-eligible players who weren’t among the 58 selected in June.

All three of the Thunder’s two-way slots are now filled. In addition to Ducas, the team is carrying Adam Flagler and Ajay Mitchell on two-way deals.

Oklahoma City also has 14 players on standard contracts (13 fully guaranteed) and has reportedly agreed to sign Malevy Leons and Buddy Boeheim to Exhibit 10 deals.

Western Notes: Markkanen, Warriors, Podziemski, Strawther, Holmes, Clippers

After sharing some reporting on Monday about the trade talks between the Warriors and Jazz concerning star forward Lauri Markkanen, Shams Charania of The Athletic appeared on SiriusXM NBA Radio later in the day to provide some additional insight into where things stand between the two Western Conference clubs.

“I don’t think (the Jazz) want to move Lauri Markkanen,” Charania said (Twitter video link; hat tip to Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports Bay Area). “But if the Golden State Warriors put in a Brandin Podziemski and – from what I’m told – three first-round picks, three or four unprotected pick swaps, three or four second-round picks…”

Asked at that point if Jonathan Kuminga is a player the Jazz are seriously pursuing in their discussions with the Warriors, Charania’s downplayed the forward’s importance in getting a deal done, suggesting that Kuminga – who is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason – isn’t as high a priority for Utah as Podziemski is.

“From everything I’ve been told, the Jazz are more focused on Brandin Podziemski and his inclusion in the deal (and) all the picks being in the deal,” Charania said. “And I think from the Warriors’ perspective, (if) it’s Podziemski, then there’s not all the picks, and if it’s all the picks, then there’s not going to be a Podziemski.

“… Both sides are kind of entrenched right now at where they’re at. (I’m not) saying nothing is going to change. Only time will tell. But I think the Jazz are very comfortable with extending Lauri Markkanen, and at that point you’ll see more suitors potentially as well in on him — not just teams that feel like, ‘OK, we’ll be able to re-sign him.”

As we’ve previously outlined, Markkanen becomes eligible on August 6 for a renegotiation and extension. If the Jazz extend him on that day, he would become trade-eligible on February 6 – the day of the 2025 trade deadline – whereas if he were to sign an extension on August 7 or later, he would be ineligible to be dealt until the 2025 offseason.

Here’s more from around the West:

  • Tim Kawakami of The Athletic takes a look at where things stand for the Warriors after an eventful few weeks, noting that – with Klay Thompson and Chris Paul gone – Podziemski could have a chance to become the starting shooting guard and Stephen Curry‘s primary backup at point guard. As Kawakami observes, given the significant role the 21-year-old may play in Golden State going forward, it’s no surprise the team would prefer to keep him out of an offer for Markkanen.
  • Despite dealing with a sore right ankle, second-year Nuggets forward Julian Strawther has been a Summer League standout, averaging 28.5 PPG with a .409 3PT% in two games in Las Vegas. Strawther averaged just 10.9 MPG across 50 appearances as a rookie, but teammate Peyton Watson is optimistic that the 2023 first-rounder will play a larger role in 2024/25. “He obviously has a gift shooting the rock,” Watson told Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. “He’s a big-time shooter. That’s gonna be big for us this coming year. I’m super excited for him. He already showed flashes of what he can do this season, and he’s had some big games for us already. So I expect him to have plenty more, and I can’t wait to play a lot more with him.”
  • The Nuggets confirmed in a brief announcement on Monday that rookie forward DaRon Holmes has undergone a surgical repair of his right Achilles tendon. The team didn’t provide a specific recovery timeline for Holmes, but the expectation is that he’ll miss the entire 2024/25 season after tearing his Achilles in his Summer League debut.
  • The Clippers will return to Seattle for a third consecutive preseason, having announced on Monday in a press release that they’ll host the Trail Blazers on October 11 at Climate Pledge Arena.

Knicks’ Dolan Rips NBA’s Media Deal, Revenue Sharing Policies

Knicks owner James Dolan sent a letter to the NBA’s Board of Governors blasting the league’s new $74.6 billion media rights deal and renewing his criticisms of the league’s revenue sharing policies, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The new media rights deal has expanded to include three national partners instead of two and is expected to significantly increase the number of nationally televised games, reducing the number of available games for regional sports networks and cutting into the revenue generated by those local broadcasts.

“The increased number of exclusive and non-exclusive games means that national partners would have the ability to air nearly half of the regular season and all postseason games,” Dolan wrote in his letter, per Wojnarowski. “This reduction in available games for RSNs risks rendering the entire RSN model unviable. The inclusion of streaming partners in the proposal (e.g., Amazon Prime Video, Peacock) allows fans in all NBA markets to bypass their RSN to watch certain games in their local market. The proposal offers no local protections for RSNs.”

As Wojnarowski details, the NBA has also reportedly proposed that the league office receive an 8% cut of the revenue from that media deal, as opposed to 0.5% under the previous agreement. That would work out to about $6 billion over 11 seasons, beginning in 2025/26. Dolan said there has been no “sufficient justification” for that exponential increase.

“(There is no) transparency into how (the NBA) arrived at the sum, how these fees will be allocated or to what extent the league will utilize this purported revenue growth to incur new and incremental costs and further expand the league’s ever growing expense level,” Dolan wrote.

Dolan has long had an adversarial relationship with the league office and commissioner Adam Silver. He stepped down from his positions on the NBA’s influential advisory/finance and media committees last year, with reporting at the time indicating that the Knicks owner had been “increasingly critical” of Silver and the NBA on a number of issues.

The Knicks questioned Silver’s impartiality when they filed suit against the Raptors last year, arguing that the court system ought to rule on a dispute between the two teams due to Silver’s allegedly tight relationship with Raptors governor Larry Tanenbaum.

Dolan, who has also been a critic of the NBA’s revenue sharing system over the years, argued in his letter to the Board of Governors that the new TV deal will hurt local team sponsors and partners, since the visibility those sponsors receive in locally televised games won’t be afforded to them in national broadcasts. He added that “pride of ownership” is being sacrificed and that the league is becoming a “one size fits all, characterless organization” by taking away agency from its individual teams.

“The NBA has made the move to an NFL model — de-emphasizing and de-powering the local market,” Dolan wrote. “Soon, your only revenue concern will be the sale of tickets and what color next year’s jersey will be. Don’t worry, because due to revenue pooling, you are guaranteed to be neither a success nor a failure. Of course, to get there, the league must take down the successful franchises and redistribute to the less successful. This new media deal goes a long way to accomplishing that goal.”

The NBA’s Board of Governors is reportedly set to meet on Tuesday in Las Vegas. Dolan, who has declined to attend those meetings since stepping down from the league’s committees last year, wrote in his letter that he believes the Knicks’ concerns are “shared by many of our counterparts across the league.”

Nets Notes: Hayes, Johnson, Marks

The Nets attended a Monday workout in Las Vegas for guard Killian Hayes, Erik Slater of Clutch Points tweets.

Hayes, a 2020 lottery pick, was waived by the Pistons after the trade deadline last season and has remained a free agent. He averaged 6.9 points and 4.9 assists in 42 games last season but shooting woes led to him losing his starting spot before he was cut loose. Hayes has shot 38.2% from the field in his career and 27.7% on 3-point tries.

We have more on the Nets:

  • Cameron Johnson is entering the second year of a four-year, $94.5MM contract. In the wake of the Mikal Bridges trade, Johnson is uncertain about the front office’s plans for him, stating to the New York Post’s Brian Lewis that he’s “still trying to figure it out.” If the Nets retain him, Johnson says he’s excited by the youthful roster. “I think we have a pretty good group in Brooklyn that we can really start to grow something,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of talent in the building. … If I’m staying in Brooklyn, then I’m all-in, excited to play, excited to grow this group, and that’s where my head’s at right now.”
  • Management plans to stay below the tax line until the Nets becomes competitive again. “Us not being in the tax this year was by design,” general manager Sean Marks said, per Lucas Kaplan of NetsDaily.com. “We don’t plan on being in there, and we’ll kept that future flexibility and make sure when it’s the right time, we’ve got an ownership group, like Joe (Tsai), who has shown the capacity to go in and pay tax when we’re competitors, when we’re really gonna contend for a championship. So that in our back pocket is vital, too.”
  • In case you missed it, the Nets made re-signing Nic Claxton a priority this offseason and believe he could become the league’s premier defender. Get the details here.

Pelicans Notes: Matkovic, Theis, Hawkins, Missi

Center Karlo Matkovic signed a three-year minimum contract with the Pelicans on Sunday and expressed his joy to the New Orleans Times-Picayune’s Christian Clark.

“It’s really a big thing for me,” Matkovic said. “Happy for it. Excited. Can’t wait to get back to New Orleans to work with the guys. Excited for the new season, pretty much. Happy.”

He may have been a little overexcited, as he committed seven turnovers in Summer League action against the Magic. On the positive side, Matkovic contributed 10 points, four rebounds and five assists.

We have more from the Pelicans:

  • In the same story, Clark speculates that veteran Daniel Theis could start at center on opening night. Theis was signed to a one-year deal last week. Yves Missi (the 21st pick in last month’s draft), Matkovic, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl are New Orleans’ other options at center.
  • The Pelicans allowed their opponents to score 114.3 points per 100 possessions when Jordan Hawkins played last season, according to Clark, which limited Hawkins’ playing time. The 14th overall pick last year out of UConn, Hawkins admits he needs to improve defensively to receive an expanded role. “Definitely the defensive end,” Hawkins said. “I think that’s what held me back a little bit. Not being able to guard. So I think my big focus is going to be on guarding. Trying to guard wings. Trying to get bigger. Shooting. Being a 40% three-point shooter for our team. We have guys who can penetrate, get to the hoop. I just have to be able to knock shots down.”
  • Executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin gushed about Missi’s potential during the broadcast of the club’s Summer League opener (hat tip to Dylan Sanders of Pelicans Scoop). “Athletically, he’s going to be in the top one half of one percent at his position, but also as a human being he’s exactly who we want to be,” Griffin said. “You can see he can defend in space. Everything that makes him raw is something we can address, but everything that he brings is innately something really special.”