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West Draft Workouts: Jazz, T-Wolves, Blazers, Suns

June 4th, 2018 at 5:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

UCLA point guard Aaron Holiday and Duke guard Grayson Allen were among the first-round prospects that the Jazz evaluated on Monday, according to a team tweet. Holiday is ranked No. 17 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony on his latest Top 100 prospects list, while Allen checks in at No. 30. Creighton’s Khyri Thomas (No. 27), Villanova’s Jalen Brunson (No. 34), Louisville’s Ray Spalding (No. 52) and San Diego State’s Malik Pope were the other prospects who visited Utah.

We have some other draft workouts involving Western Conference clubs to pass along:

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Suns Hiring Joe Prunty As Lead Assistant

June 4th, 2018 at 12:48pm CST by Luke Adams

A former NBA head coach will become the new lead assistant on Igor Kokoskov‘s staff in Phoenix, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports that the Suns have agreed to a deal with Joe Prunty to fill that role.

A veteran NBA assistant who has worked for the Spurs, Mavericks, Trail Blazers, Cavaliers, and Nets, Prunty was the lead assistant on Jason Kidd‘s staff in Milwaukee. When the Bucks fired Kidd halfway through the 2017/18 season, Prunty took over as the club’s interim head coach.

After leading the Bucks to a playoff berth and a first-round exit, Prunty received consideration for the permanent head coaching job in Milwaukee, and was one of the many candidates interviewed by the franchise. However, the team ultimately decided on Mike Budenholzer, leaving Prunty looking for work elsewhere.

A report in May indicated that the Suns were expected to hire Mike Woodson as the new lead assistant on Kokoskov’s staff, but no deal had been formally reached at that time. It’s unclear whether Woodson, a former Knicks head coach and Clippers assistant, still fits into Phoenix’s plans, or whether he’ll land with another team now that Prunty is poised to become Kokoskov’s right-hand man.

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Suns Exploring Options With 16th Pick

June 2nd, 2018 at 10:59am CST by marksuleymanov
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Draft Notes: M. Bridges, Pinson, Farrell, Rowsey

June 1st, 2018 at 11:02am CST by Arthur Hill

With the deadline passing for underclassmen to withdraw from the NBA draft, pre-draft workouts are taking on a new level of importance. Here are a few notes to pass on as the draft looms 20 days from now:

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Knicks To Host Trae Young For Private Workout

May 31st, 2018 at 3:18pm CST by Luke Adams

Oklahoma guard Trae Young has elected to grant the Knicks a private workout, a source tells Marc Berman of The New York Post. Young, who intends to work out for “a handful” of clubs, is still figuring out his schedule, so the date of the workout remains unclear, per Berman.

Young, widely viewed as a top-eight prospect, isn’t expected to be on the board when the Knicks pick at No. 9. Even if he’s available, he may not be the first choice for a New York club with multiple point guards already on the roster and a more glaring need on the wing. Still, Young is very much on the Knicks’ radar due to his high upside, sources tell Berman.

According to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com (Twitter link), the Suns, Kings, Hawks, Grizzlies, Knicks, and Sixers have already “passed through” Oklahoma to talk to staff and faculty about Young. The Cavaliers have also been in touch with the program about Young, Zagoria adds.

In Jonathan Givony’s latest mock draft for ESPN.com, he has Young coming off the board at No. 6 to Orlando, writing that the 19-year-old is a “highly skilled scorer and passer with unlimited range on his jump shot and tremendous instincts in the pick-and-roll.”

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Draft Decisions: McDaniels, Cody & Caleb Martin

May 30th, 2018 at 11:06pm CST by Arthur Hill

Forward Jalen McDaniels will return to San Diego State for his sophomore season, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN. McDaniels is part of a crop of late decision makers who waited until shortly before tonight’s deadline of 11:59pm Eastern to announce whether they are staying in the draft.

“After thoughtful consideration with my family and coaching staff, I have decided to return to San Diego State for my sophomore year.” McDaniels posted on Twitter. “I’m looking forward to furthering my education and returning to the NCAA Tournament. Go Aztecs!”

McDaniels averaged 10.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in his first year at San Diego State. He held workouts with Cavaliers, Clippers, Timberwolves, Jazz, Warriors, Celtics, Nets, Hawks, Bucks, Spurs and Bulls, according to Mark Zeigler of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

In another significant last-minute decision, Nevada stars Cody Martin and Caleb Martin will both return to school, tweets Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. Cody is ranked 90th and Caleb is 91st in the list of top 100 prospects compiled by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, but Jeff Goodman of ESPN suggests the Wolf Pack could be a top 10 team next season with both staying (Twitter link).

There’s also news to pass along on pre-draft workouts:

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Hawks, Suns Interested In Michael Beasley?

May 29th, 2018 at 3:24pm CST by Luke Adams

3:24pm: John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 disputes the notion that the Suns have any interest in a reunion with Beasley, tweeting that the report is just a case of an agent pushing his client.

8:23am: As Michael Beasley‘s one-year contract with the Knicks nears its expiration date, multiple teams are believed to be eyeing the veteran forward, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. A source tells Berman that the Hawks and Suns have interest in Beasley, who is expected to be pursued by at least five teams when he reaches free agency in July.

Beasley, 29, enjoyed one of his most productive NBA seasons in 2017/18, averaging 13.2 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 74 games (30 starts) for the Knicks. His .507 FG% and .395 3PT% were also well above his career rates.

According to Berman, Beasley is a fan of new Knicks head coach David Fizdale, whose time as an assistant in Miami overlapped with Beasley’s stint with the Heat. However, New York only has Non-Bird rights on the former second overall pick, limiting the team’s ability to offer him a raise — the Knicks would likely have to use their mid-level exception to sign Beasley.

“He definitely wants to come back to New York and play for Fizdale,” a source close to Beasley told Berman. “Fizdale is another plus. But it’s still a business.”

A source suggests to Berman that if the Knicks were to offer Beasley their full MLE, even for just one year, it “may be satisfactory.” I’d be pretty surprised if Beasley – who remains a defensive liability – receives a salary exceeding $8MM, but a one-year contract along those lines could make some sense for the Knicks, who will be without Kristaps Porzingis in the frontcourt to start the 2018/19 season.

New York isn’t expected to pursue top free agents this summer, and re-signing Beasley to a one-year deal would allow him to gain Early Bird rights for the summer of 2019. That would allow the club to make a longer-term decision on him a year from now, when the front office will have a clearer sense of how its cap room should be used.

Still, with the Hawks and Suns among the teams expected to kick the tires on Beasley this summer, and no guarantee that the Knicks won’t use their MLE on another player (or players), a return to New York is far from a lock.

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Draft Workouts: Jazz, Warriors, Knicks, Suns

May 28th, 2018 at 5:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz worked out Shake Milton (SMU), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall), Theo Pinson (North Carolina), Omari Spellman (Villanova), Thomas Wilder (Western Michigan) and Elijah Stewart (USC) on Monday, according to team’s Twitter feed. Milton, a borderline first-round guard prospect ranked No. 34 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, headlined that group.

The Jazz will host six more prospects on Tuesday — Kameron Chatman (Detroit), Sedrick Barefield (Utah), Kenneth Ogbe (Utah Valley), Dayon Goodman (Westminster), Tyler Rawson (Utah) and Ryan Richardson (Weber State) (Twitter links).

We have more draft workout news:

  • Wichita State’s Landry Shamet worked out for the Warriors on Sunday, Adam Zagoria of Zagsblog.com tweets. The point guard is ranked No. 42 by Givony.
  • Syracuse swingman Tyus Battle, rated No. 32 by Givony, worked out for the Knicks on Friday, Zagoria reports in another tweet. Small forward Brian Bowen, who was ineligible to play college ball last season, worked out for New York the same day and the Lakers on Sunday.
  • The Suns brought in UCLA’s Aaron Holiday and Anfernee Simons, who spent a post-grad year at IMG Academy, and four other prospects on Monday, the team tweets. Holiday is rated No. 17 by Givony while Simons is ranked No. 21. Hamidou Diallo (Kentucky), Tony Carr (Penn State), Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk (Kansas) and Bruce Brown (Miami, Fla.) joined them.
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Draft Notes: Huell, Rose, Pipkins, Caroline

May 26th, 2018 at 5:05pm CST by Arthur Hill

With the deadline to withdraw from the draft coming on Wednesday, several players have reached their final decisions. Among them is Miami forward Dewan Huell, who will return to school for his junior season, writes Jordan McPherson of The Miami Herald.

Huell, who made a formal announcement on Twitter earlier today, averaged 11.4 points and 6.7 rebounds in 32 games this season. “I’m really excited to get back to work with my brothers so we can accomplish more than ever during the 2018-19 season,” he wrote.

Huell doesn’t appear in the list of top 100 prospects compiled by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and would have been a long shot to be drafted.

There’s more draft-related news to pass along:

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McDonough: Suns ‘Overwhelmingly Likely’ To Keep No. 1 Pick

May 25th, 2018 at 8:36pm CST by marksuleymanov

While nothing has been officially ruled out, Suns‘ general manager Ryan McDonough said it is “overwhelmingly likely” that the team keeps the first overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Scott Bordow of Arizona Central Sports writes.

“There’s a very small grouping of players we’d consider trading it for,” McDonough said of the No. 1 pick. “It would have to be a proven young star player with multiple years on his contract or multiple years of team control. Once you start whittling down the list, that list probably shrinks to a handful of players, if not fewer players than that, so I think the overwhelming likelihood is that we keep the pick.”

We relayed last week that Phoenix is considering a “handful” of options in the draft. Arizona’s Deandre Ayton is the likely first overall pick and has been heavily rumored to be the Suns’ choice. However, international star Luka Doncic and Marvin Bagley III have also been mentioned as possibilities. Doncic has a relationship with the team’s new head coach, Igor Kokoskov.

“It is difficult and I think people are jumping to conclusions as far as [thinking] there’s only one or two guys in the mix for us,” general manager McDonough said in an interview with ESPN. “There are more than that. There are a handful of guys.”

If the Suns are comfortable with several of the perceived top choices, McDonough can follow in the footsteps of the Celtics last season. Boston traded down from the top pick to No. 3, using it to select Jayson Tatum. Markelle Fultz went to the Sixers first overall.

Barring a change of heart, however, it is widely expected that the Suns keep the No. 1 selection, with Ayton viewed as the frontrunner to head to Phoenix.

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