Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Wolves, Towns, Lakers, Redick, Ingram, G. Allen

June 4th, 2024 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Discussing the Timberwolves‘ ownership situation during the latest episode of the Hoop Collective podcast (YouTube link), ESPN’s Tim MacMahon said there’s a perception around the league that if Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore assume majority control of the franchise, “payroll’s getting slashed.” However, his colleague Brian Windhorst disagrees with that notion.

“Let me just say this: I don’t believe it’s going to get slashed,” Windhorst said (hat tip to RealGM). “I believe if (A-Rod and Lore) get the team by the fall, which I am skeptical of for various reasons, but if they get the team by the fall, I don’t think they’re cracking this team in pieces to save money. I think because one thing about the team, they have instantaneous equity, they can borrow it against it like that.”

While Windhorst doesn’t expect payroll to decline drastically if Rodriguez and Lore take over majority control from longtime owner Glen Taylor, he does think the new owners may not be attached to Karl-Anthony Towns as Taylor has been to this point.

“I do not think they would tear the team apart. However, I do think that there’s a possibility if the ownership change took place that Karl Towns’ role would be reevaluated,” Windhorst said.

After MacMahon stated more frankly that Towns would likely find himself “on the trade block” in that scenario, ESPN’s Tim Bontemps pointed out that exploring trade scenarios involving the big man doesn’t necessarily mean he’d be moved, since his super-max contract, which includes a $49MM+ cap hit for 2024/25, will make it difficult for Minnesota to find a suitable deal.

“(That’s) why I believe he’s not going anywhere,” Windhorst said. “Because trading him and getting equal return is going to be next to impossible.”

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

In another segment of the Hoop Collective podcast, Windhorst suggested that the Lakers have been sending the message that they’re still early in the process of their head coaching search, but that the noise surrounding J.J. Redick‘s candidacy has been loud. “I have some people saying, ‘This is J.J. Redick’s job’ that I trust,” Windhorst said (hat tip to RealGM). “I have some people saying this is a process that is not complete. I suspect I know something, but I am just going to tell you that there’s multiple streams of information. James Borrego has had multiple meetings with the Lakers. I do think that he is a viable candidate for sure, but I think J.J. Redick is a very strong candidate. And he also is calling the (NBA) Finals for our network on ABC and ESPN. So it is what it is.”
While there’s a widespread belief that the Pelicans will gauge the trade market for Brandon Ingram this summer, William Guillory of The Athletic makes the case that keeping the former All-Star forward is the right move for New Orleans, arguing that it would be hard to find a deal involving Ingram that makes the team better than the 49-win version from this past season.
Having signed a contract extension in April, veteran wing Grayson Allen won’t become trade-eligible until October. But what sort of deal could the Suns make if they were willing to part with Allen in the fall or at next year’s trade deadline? Gerald Bouguet of PHNX Sports attempts to answer that question, generating 15 potential trade scenarios involving Allen.

Suns Expected To Retain Royce O’Neale

June 3rd, 2024 at 3:43pm CST by Rory Maher

Suns forward Royce O’Neale is expected to remain with Phoenix this offseason, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his Hoop Collective podcast.

“They’re going to re-sign Royce O’Neale,” Windhorst said, per RealGM. “That’s going to get done.”

O’Neale, who turns 31 years old on Wednesday, was acquired from Brooklyn in a three-team trade ahead of the February deadline. He appeared in 79 regular season games with the Nets and Suns, averaging 7.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 37.0% from three-point range in 24.7 minutes per contest.

A former Baylor Bear who started his professional career in Europe, O’Neale has been a solid 3-and-D player for several seasons now. He spent his first five NBA seasons with Utah before being traded to Brooklyn a couple years ago.

Most impending free agents technically can’t negotiate with their current teams until the NBA Finals end later this month. That doesn’t apply to O’Neale, however, because he’s also eligible for a veteran extension.

O’Neale earned $9.5MM in 2023/24 and will likely be in line for a raise. The Suns project to be well over the highly restrictive second tax apron next season and have limited flexibility in how they can build out their team, but they have O’Neale’s Bird rights, meaning they can go over the cap to re-sign him up to his maximum salary.

As long as ownership is willing to foot the bill, Phoenix is actually incentivized to increase O’Neale’s salary in order to have a larger contract for matching purposes — the Suns won’t be able to aggregate salaries in trades due to being over the second tax apron.

Stein’s Latest: Thibodeau, Williams, Ham, Van Gundy

June 2nd, 2024 at 3:42pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Following four seasons of relative success with the Knicks, head coach Tom Thibodeau is expected to sign a long-term contract extension to stay with the club “at the market rate,” sources inform veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein (Substack link).

Stein pegs that tally at $10MM per year. The Kings reportedly re-signed Mike Brown to a contract extension that can be worth up to that annual sum with incentives.

Thibodeau has brought New York to the playoffs in three of his four years with the franchise, posting a cumulative regular season record of 175-143 and a 14-15 playoff mark in that time. New York has twice advanced to the second round of the postseason during Thibodeau’s tenure.

Here’s more from Stein:

Just one season removed from signing a six-year contract worth nearly $80MM, Pistons head coach Monty Williams already could be skating on thin ice. He led the team to a 14-68 run in 2023/24, low-lighted by a single-season NBA record of 28 straight defeats. The team has already moved on from the GM who hired him, Troy Weaver, as new team president Trajan Langdon looks to right the ship.
According to Stein, former Lakers head coach Darvin Ham was offered a job as an assistant under freshly hired Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer, under whom Ham served with both the Bucks and Hawks, but he passed on that opportunity. A previously report indicated that the Warriors may have gauged Ham’s interest in a similar role. Ham, who still has two years remaining on his Los Angeles deal, led the club to a 90-74 regular season record and consecutive playoff appearances, peaking during his debut season as a head coach in 2022/23. Following a midseason turnaround, Ham guided the Lakers to a Western Conference Finals appearance as a No. 7 seed last spring.
Jeff Van Gundy, currently a senior consultant to the Celtics, could join head coach Joe Mazzulla‘s staff as his lead assistant now that Charles Lee is departing for the Hornets in 2024/25. Stein says there has been “curiosity circulating in coaching circles” about that possibility. Prior to his decades-long career as an ESPN and ABC broadcaster, Van Gundy served as a head coach in New York and Houston. He coached the Knicks from 1996-2001, and led the Rockets from 2003-07, boasting an overall record of 430-318 in the regular season and 44-44 in the playoffs.

Pacific Notes: Warriors, Phelps, Suns, Lakers, Clippers

June 1st, 2024 at 8:20am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors are making an addition to their front office, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link), who reports that the team is hiring Jon Phelps as its cap strategist and team counsel.

Phelps has long been a member of the Pistons‘ front office, having held a number of different roles with the team since 2014, as Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press tweets. His most recent title in Detroit was senior director of basketball strategy.

As Slater observes, Phelps will fill the hole in the Warriors’ front office that was created when Onsi Saleh left the organization earlier this spring to become an assistant general manager in Atlanta. Saleh’s position in Golden State had been VP of basketball strategy and team counsel.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

While the Suns could use some additional play-making, they don’t need to add a traditional starting point guard to their roster this summer, according to Gerald Bouguet of PHNX Sports. As Bourguet outlines, it would be extremely difficult to find a player who fits that bill anyway, given the team’s limited resources and the fact that there are bigger needs elsewhere on the roster.
Bill Plaschke of The Los Angeles Times makes the case against the Lakers using either of their two draft picks on Bronny James, arguing that it would be a “insanity” to take LeBron James‘ son at No. 17 and “pandering” to use the No. 55 pick on him. In Plaschke’s view, the Lakers would only be drafting Bronny as further incentive for LeBron to re-sign, which isn’t fair to the 19-year-old.
While it happened a year later than initially expected, it was good to see the Clippers putting their money where their mouth is by extending head coach Tyronn Lue, writes Law Murray of The Athletic, noting that the team can now shift its attention to its major roster decisions. Paul George will be the focus of the offseason in L.A., but the team also has important calls to make on free agent guards James Harden and Russell Westbrook and may look to extend center Ivica Zubac, as Murray details.

Suns To Hire Chad Forcier, Chaisson Allen As Assistant Coaches

May 31st, 2024 at 9:23pm CST by Rory Maher

The Suns plan to hire a couple of assistant coaches to join new head coach Mike Budenholzer‘s staff.

League sources tell Sarah Todd of The Deseret News that Phoenix will hire Jazz assistant Chad Forcier to work with his longtime colleague. Forcier and Budenholzer coached together in San Antonio before Budenholzer became a head coach and then Forcier spent four years on Budenholzer’s staff in Milwaukee, according to Todd.

In addition to Forcier, the Jazz lost assistant Lamar Skeeter to Charlotte this offseason. Utah plans to promote people from within the organization instead of hiring new coaches, Todd reports. In particular, Sean Sheldon will be promoted to a front-of-bench role.

Phoenix will also be hiring Chaisson Allen as an assistant, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (via Twitter).

Allen was a highly regarded college player for Northeastern and spent five seasons playing internationally before transitioning to coaching. He has mostly coached in the G League, including a two-year stint as head coach of the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s affiliate. He’s another person Budenholzer is familiar with, since their time with the Bucks overlapped.

David Fizdale and Vince Legarza will reportedly be assistant coaches under Budenholzer as well.

New York Notes: Nets, Tsai, Brunson, Knicks, Randle

May 31st, 2024 at 6:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets have formally announced Jordi Fernandez‘s coaching staff for the 2024/25 season, officially confirming (via Twitter) that previously reported names like Steve Hetzel, Juwan Howard, and Jay Hernandez will be among the assistants flanking the first-time head coach.

Hernandez is a carryover from last season’s staff, as are Adam Caporn, Ryan Forehan-Kelly, Corey Vinson, and Travis Bader. Besides Hetzel and Howard, the newcomers include Deividas Dulkys and Connor Griffin, whose hirings were also previously reported.

Here’s more on the NBA’s two New York-based teams, starting with Brooklyn:

The Nets don’t publicly share the names of the prospects they’re working out during the pre-draft process, but as NetsDaily relays, a few names are being reported. For instance, Rick Pitino tweeted earlier this month that St. John’s guard Daniss Jenkins “killed” his workout with Brooklyn, while Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reported on Thursday (via Twitter) that the Nets are among the teams that have worked out Adelaide 36ers wing Trentyn Flowers, who has also gotten a look from the Wizards, Bucks, Kings, Rockets, and Spurs, and has workouts on tap with the Lakers, Suns, Hornets, Jazz, Bulls, and Celtics.
While New York City has a history of bombastic sports team owners, Joe Tsai of the Nets has made it clear he doesn’t intend to be one of them, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “My first principle is don’t treat yourself too seriously. Don’t become the face of the franchise, because it’s not about you,” Tsai said recently. “Fans don’t care about you: They care about the players. They care about the star players. … You work for the fans. So you have to come in with that mindset, especially when you own a major sports team in a major city. It’s an institution. It’s not about you. It’s something that’s much much bigger than you and I feel like I’m a custodian of the team.”
Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (subscription required) takes a closer look at Jalen Brunson‘s contract situation, writing that while the Knicks’ point guard may ultimately be willing to sign an extension this offseason, he’d likely be in better position to maximize his long-term earnings if he waits until 2025.
Fred Katz and Seth Partnow of The Athletic recently discussed the Knicks‘ offseason. According to Partnow, various analytics models had Isaiah Hartenstein‘s 2023/24 season valued in the range of $28-35MM. The 26-year-old center made $9.25MM this season and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. New York only holds his Early Bird rights, which means it will be somewhat limited (four years, $72.5MM) in what it can offer him. A recent report said people around the league think Hartenstein could receive $20-25MM annually on his next deal, and potentially losing him would certainly dampen Partnow’s view of the Knicks. Katz and Partnow also discuss the pros and cons of Julius Randle and ways in which the Knicks can improve next season, among other topics.
Speaking of Randle, the injured All-Star forward said he’s recovering well from shoulder surgery, though he still isn’t doing on-court work yet, per Bondy of The New York Post. One of New York’s main offseason questions is what to do with Randle, who is eligible for a lucrative extension this summer. For his part, the 29-year-old said he wants to stay long-term. “Yeah, I’ve always said from the very beginning I would love to be here in New York and I would love to continue to add on to what the guys did in the playoffs,” said Randle, who can also become a free agent in 2025. “I feel like that was my personal — biggest personal goal, or I’d say team goal in a sense, was when I got here is to be able to build and compete and to be at the point where we’re at now, where it’s an actual possibility (to win a championship). So really, that’s what my focus is, doing whatever I can to make sure I get healthy and get back and make sure I’m ready whenever we start playing again and contribute to winning. That’s really all my focus is and that stuff always in my career has taken care of itself.”

Rory Maher contributed to this post.

David Fizdale To Remain With Suns As Assistant Coach

May 29th, 2024 at 9:35am CST by Luke Adams

After the Suns made a head coaching change this spring, dismissing Frank Vogel and hiring Mike Budenholzer, the team had been expected to fully revamp its coaching staff. However, one of Vogel’s top assistants will remain with the organization in a “prominent” role on Budenholzer’s staff, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that David Fizdale is returning to Phoenix.

Fizdale is a longtime NBA assistant who has also had multiple stints as a head coach. He spent time on the Warriors’ and Hawks’ staffs from 2003-08 before working as an assistant under Erik Spoelstra from 2008-16 in Miami, where he won a pair of championships with the Heat.

Fizdale was subsequently hired as the Grizzlies’ head coach in 2016, but lasted just one full season in Memphis before being fired during the first half of the 2017/18 season. His next head coaching stint followed the same trajectory, as he spent one full season with the Knicks in ’18/19 before being let go 22 games into his second season.

Fizdale worked under Vogel with the Lakers in 2021/22, but left the team when Vogel was dismissed in ’22 and spent the ’22/23 season in Utah’s front office. When Vogel was hired by the Suns in 2023/24, Fizdale rejoined him as an assistant, but Vogel’s stint in Phoenix lasted just a single season, leaving Fizdale’s future with the franchise uncertain.

Reports at the time of Budenholzer’s hiring indicated that Fizdale would be offered a position in the Suns’ front office but that he wasn’t expected to accept that offer. Fizdale also reportedly received interest from the Bulls as they revamped Billy Donovan‘s staff, but it seems he has opted to remain on the sidelines in Phoenix under a new head coach.

A report earlier this week stated that Phoenix was hiring former Bucks assistant Vince Legarza but that the team was having a “tough time” filling out Budenholzer’s new coaching staff.

Bronny James To Remain In 2024 NBA Draft

May 29th, 2024 at 6:49am CST by Luke Adams

As expected, Bronny James, the son of longtime NBA superstar LeBron James, will keep his name in the 2024 NBA draft pool, forgoing his remaining NCAA eligibility, agent Rich Paul confirmed to Adrian Wojnarowski and Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

The deadline for NCAA early entrants who are testing the draft waters to withdraw from the pool and retain their college eligibility is 11:59 pm Eastern on Wednesday. While several players have pulled out in recent days in order to return to school, Bronny won’t be among them after having improved his draft stock at this month’s combine and a recent pro day.

Bronny, who suffered cardiac arrest last July, was eventually cleared to return to the court and suited up in 25 games for USC as a freshman. However, he averaged just 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 19.3 minutes per game, with a .366/.267/.676 shooting line.

That underwhelming performance in his first college season hurt Bronny’s draft stock, but it has rebounded as of late, with Givony suggesting that the 19-year-old has risen from fringe prospect to draftable prospect. The 6’2″ guard now ranks 54th overall on ESPN’s big board after displaying his explosiveness and an improved three-point shot during the pre-draft process.

Although LeBron has previously expressed a desire to play with his son, Paul has repeatedly stressed in recent weeks that the primary goal is to get Bronny into the best possible developmental situation, not on the same roster as his father. The veteran agent has also stated that the younger James won’t sign a two-way contract.

“The Lakers need to look at Bronny like everyone else,” Paul told ESPN. “If they value him enough and he’s there, that’s great. If it’s not the Lakers, that’s great. I won’t be mad if it’s not. It’s obvious that people hear the conversation around the dad and son playing together, but that’s not our focus. If it happens organically, great. I’m not building on that.

“I’m not putting unrealistic expectations on Bronny. He’s far from a finished product. But he has a hell of start. He’s positioned well. … I don’t see him not getting drafted, but if it got to a point where the situations didn’t make sense and we needed to go undrafted, that’s fine.”

Shams Charania of The Athletic reported last week that at least 10 teams have invited Bronny to participate in private pre-draft workouts, but Paul is expected to pass on a number of those invites — the Lakers and Suns are the only teams confirmed to have secured workouts with his client. Phoenix holds the No. 22 pick in next month’s draft, while L.A. will pick at No. 55 and possibly No. 17 as well, if the Pelicans opt to defer the Lakers’ first-rounder they control until 2025.

Paul told ESPN that he’s still in the process of figuring out whose interest is real and whose isn’t as he considers potential workouts for Bronny.

Pacific Notes: Legarza, Nurkic, Clippers’ Offseason

May 28th, 2024 at 10:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns have added Vince Legarza as an assistant coach, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports.

Legarza has a history with new head coach Mike Budenholzer. He was an assistant in Milwaukee in Budenholzer’s final season there in 2022/23 but wasn’t retained when the Bucks hired Adrian Griffin as their new head coach going into this past season.

Legarza was an assistant with the Jazz for four seasons (2018-22) and a player development coach with the Timberwolves for three seasons (2015-18).

The Suns didn’t retain any assistants from Frank Vogel’s staff and are having a tough time filling out a new coaching staff, Rankin adds.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

With severe cap limitations, Jusuf Nurkic may be the Suns’ most likely trade candidate, according to Gerald Bourguet of GoPhnx.com. Nurkic has two years left on his four-year, $70MM contract. By attaching draft assets, Bourguet writes, the Suns might be able to find an upgrade at his position. Bourguet explores 20 potential trade ideas involving Nurkic.
In his first mailbag since the beginning of the season, The Athletic’s Law Murray answers a number of questions involving the Clippers. Among the topics are free agency, Kawhi Leonard‘s health, James Harden‘s free agency, whether Joshua Primo could return, and the usage of the team’s younger players going forward.
In case you missed it, J.J. Redick has some prominent assistants in mind if he gets the Lakers’ head coaching job.

Pacers Notes: Game 4, Haliburton, Nembhard, McConnell

May 27th, 2024 at 11:57am CST by Arthur Hill

The Pacers can’t stand the thought of watching another team celebrate an Eastern Conference title on their home court, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. That will add to Indiana’s motivation for Monday’s game against the Celtics in the face of a seemingly insurmountable 3-0 deficit. Players and coaches understand they face long odds to win the series, but they’re focused on taking Game 4 to give themselves a chance.

“The important thing for us is to learn, to be resilient and stay in this fight and find a way to extend the series,” coach Rick Carlisle said. “We want to keep playing. We want to get back on that plane and go back to Boston.”

Even though Boston has won the first three games, it hasn’t been a one-sided series so far. Two critical turnovers late in Game 1 cost the Pacers a chance to win the series opener, and they led by eight points with 2:38 remaining in Game 3 before letting it slip away.

“There are a lot of correctable things that we’ve got to get better,” Carlisle said. “There are some mistakes defensively that are fixable and some things offensively that we have to do better. We did a lot of things very very well. We led for a great majority of the game. There certainly are positives. So we always show our guys things that need to be corrected but also always show our guys the things we do well and that we need to continue to do well.”

There’s more from Indiana:

Despite a weekend report that Tyrese Haliburton may miss the rest of the series due to an injured left hamstring, no decision has been announced on his status for tonight. Carlisle refused to provide an update on Haliburton when meeting with reporters on Sunday, Dopirak adds, but he said he’s comfortable with T.J. McConnell or Andrew Nembhard running the offense. “(Nembhard’s) played plenty of point guard for us,” Carlisle said. “There have been stretches when Ty’s been unable to play both last year and this year. He has experience there. Guys who put the work in and are prepared tend to have more confidence because they’ve done the work. He’s one of those guys, and our team really as a group, we have really conscientious guys who are great workers who love to compete.”
The Suns inquired about McConnell during the season, sources tell Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, but the Pacers weren’t – and aren’t – interested in moving their backup point guard. McConnell is a valuable member of Indiana’s bench, and he has one year left on a team-friendly contract that will pay him $9.3MM next season. “He’s one of the heartbeats of that team,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla said. “He just makes winning plays. He’s really good at the end of quarters, which is a way that teams can keep momentum, start momentum, chip away at momentum.”
Nembhard sparked the Pacers’ offense with 32 points and nine assists in Game 3, but he committed a costly turnover when Jrue Holiday took the ball from him with just under 10 seconds remaining (video link). Holiday slipped on the play, notes Khari Thompson of The Boston Globe, but he was able to recover in time to poke the ball out of Nembhard’s hands. “I tried to get a shot up and he got in front of me. I lost the ball, slipped, turnover,” Nembhard said.