Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Jokic, Nuggets, Gobert, Thunder

May 10th, 2023 at 2:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Superstar center Nikola Jokic had another huge game on Tuesday as the Nuggets took a 3-2 lead in their series with Phoenix, racking up 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists for his fourth triple-double of the playoffs. Jokic’s 10th career postseason triple-double moved him ahead of Wilt Chamberlain for the most triple-doubles by a center in NBA playoff history, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

Discussing Jokic’s historic performance after the game, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone made light of the in-season discourse surrounding his center’s triple-doubles, joking that he “must be stat-padding.” Malone also made sure to stress how much the franchise appreciates Jokic and his “incredible” performance.

“He makes everyone around him better,” Malone said. “Never gets rattled. ‘Cool Hand Luke.’ And we’re just so thankful that he’s a Denver Nugget.”

Between Games 4 and 5, Jokic was hit with a $25K fine for a brief sideline incident involving Suns owner Mat Ishbia, but Jokic and Ishbia had a friendly exchange prior to Game 5 and clearly don’t have any bad blood, notes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. During a TNT interview after Tuesday’s win, Jokic was asked about that pregame interaction with Ishbia and joked that he was trying to see if the Suns owner would pay his fine (Twitter link via Youngmisuk).

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

As great as Jokic has been against Phoenix, the contributions of the Nuggets‘ role players – starting with a pair of veterans acquired last summer – shouldn’t be overlooked, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (subscription required). Bruce Brown‘s 25 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope‘s strong defense on Devin Booker helped Denver secure a Game 5 victory.
While fans in Minnesota were upset about Jaden McDaniels‘ absence from this year’s All-Defensive teams, the bigger concern for the Timberwolves is that Rudy Gobert‘s play this past season didn’t earn the three-time Defensive Player of the Year a single vote, says Michael Rand of The Star Tribune. It remains to be seen whether Gobert was more affected by health issues than he let on his year or whether his decline has begun, Rand writes.
Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman believes it’s unlikely that the Thunder dip into their stash of future draft picks to make a trade for a core player this offseason. In Mussatto’s view, head of basketball operations Sam Presti is more likely to use his draft assets to make sure he gets the player(s) he wants in this year’s draft, like he did when he traded three protected first-rounders for the No. 11 pick in the 2022 draft.

Suns Notes: Booker, CP3, Durant, Craig, Ayton

May 10th, 2023 at 7:50am CST by Luke Adams

Suns guard Devin Booker was a human torch in Games 3 and 4 of the team’s second round series vs. Denver, pouring in a total of 83 points on 34-of-43 (79.1%) shooting in a pair of home victories. But he looked human in Game 5 on Tuesday, writes Doug Haller of The Athletic, making just 8-of-19 shots en route to 28 points.

Booker, who has played at least 40 minutes in every one of the Suns’ 10 playoff games so far, dismissed the idea that the workload – and the Denver altitude – was negatively impacting him, per Haller. He also shrugged off an awkward-looking fall where he seemed to roll his ankle.

While head coach Monty Williams has expressed a desire to manage Booker’s minutes to some extent, he suggested on Tuesday that the Nuggets’ defense was probably more to blame than fatigue for his star guard’s dip in shooting efficiency.

“They ran two or three guys at Kevin (Durant) and Book tonight,” Williams said. “That means other guys got to be able to knock down shots. I thought Terrence (Ross) hit a few, but we just didn’t get enough production on the back side of our offense to help Kevin and Book.”

Here’s more on the Suns:

Facing a 3-2 deficit, Phoenix would love to have starting point guard Chris Paul (groin) back for an elimination game on Thursday. Asked last night by Tim MacMahon of ESPN (Twitter link) about the possibility of returning for Game 6, Paul replied, “We’ll see. I’m trying to.”
As MacMahon details at ESPN.com, Durant downplayed a brief on-court altercation that occurred during the third quarter of Tuesday’s game when Nikola Jokic and Bruce Brown approached the Suns’ huddle. Brown and Durant, who shoved Jokic away from Phoenix’s bench (video link), received double technicals for the incident, which didn’t escalate any further. “It wasn’t anything serious,” Durant said. “They were excited. They was up big, and we were trying to draw some stuff up. And you know how that goes. I don’t think it was nothing.”
Suns forward Torrey Craig published a cryptic tweet after Tuesday’s loss, posting a graphic that reads, “Understand that not everything is meant to be understood.” It’s probably safe to assume that Craig’s tweet has something to do with his declining role — after starting all five games of Phoenix’s first-round series, he has fallen out of the rotation in round two, playing fewer than eight total minutes in the last three contests.
Deandre Ayton took a hard hit to his ribs during the first quarter of Tuesday’s loss (video link) and was clearly in pain later in the night, wearing a bandage over his lower right rib cage as he spoke to reporters, writes Dana Scott of The Arizona Republic. However, Ayton remained in the game and is confident the injury won’t be an issue on Thursday. “I won’t feel this at all. The adrenaline will definitely carry me,” he said. “We’re very confident. At the end of the day, our fans are gonna make sure that we do the right thing and just make sure that we handle business at home.”

Suns Notes: Paul, Shamet, Ayton, Jokic, Durant, Williams, Ishbia

May 8th, 2023 at 10:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns have ruled out Chris Paul for Game 5 of the team’s second-round series against the Nuggets on Tuesday, ESPN’s news services relay. Paul has already missed the last two games after suffering a groin injury in Game 2.

Although these types of injuries normally take weeks to heal, there’s a possibility that Paul will return for the Suns in Game 6, Shams Charania said on Fan Duel TV (Twitter link). “I think the window for him to return from that groin strain is Game 6, potentially,” Charania said.

We have more from the Suns:

Guard Landry Shamet and center Deandre Ayton shrugged off criticism and made major contributions in Game 4, Gerald Bourguet of GoPhnx.com notes. Shamet had 19 points in 30 minutes off the bench, more points than the Nuggets’ entire bench produced. Shamet had only 14 points in the first seven playoff games. Ayton’s numbers were modest but he found ways to impact the game. “I thought he came out in that fourth quarter and made some huge defensive plays for us,” Kevin Durant said of Ayton.
How do the Suns feel about Nikola Jokic only getting fined after his sideline incident with new owner Mat Ishbia? Durant is happy that a potential suspension didn’t overshadow a pivotal contest, according to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. “Glad none of that can get in the way,” he said. “We can just focus on basketball.” Coach Monty Williams feels the same way. “I just heard about the decision and that’s that,” he said. “I’m focused on us playing better, making the adjustments that we need to make. Being better at things we need to be better in. That’s my mindset. I don’t want to give energy and time to something that I can’t control. I’m good with it.”
Regarding the same incident, Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler wonders why Ishbia didn’t receive some disciplinary action from the league for holding the ball away from Jokic. Keeler suggests Ishbia should pay Jokic’s fine or that he also should get docked $25K.

Nikola Jokic Fined $25K; No Suspension

May 8th, 2023 at 4:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic won’t be suspended for a pivotal Game 5 of their playoff series against the Suns on Tuesday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets. Rather, Jokic will be fined $25K by the league.

A tweet from the league confirms the fine.

There were questions whether Jokic would have to sit out a game due to the Game 4 incident along the sidelines involving new Suns owner Mat Ishbia on Sunday night.

Suns forward Josh Okogie dove into the crowd for a loose ball that bounced into the hands of Ishbia. Jokic then tried to take the ball from Ishbia, who was slow to give it up. The Nuggets center made contact with him after the ball came free and Ishbia fell backward. Jokic was assessed a technical foul during the late second quarter altercation.

One fan was removed from his seat for making contact with the Nuggets big man, while Ishbia remained in his seat after the incident.

Denver can breathe a sigh of relief that its franchise player won’t miss Game 5 with the series tied at 2-2. He is averaging 30.8 points, 13.1 rebounds and 9.2 assists this postseason, including a 53-point explosion in the Game 4 loss.

Suns Notes: Booker, Durant, Ayton, Shamet, Ishbia

May 8th, 2023 at 10:58am CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns have been able to even up their second-round playoff series behind phenomenal shot-making from Devin Booker, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Booker was 14-of-18 from the field in Sunday’s Game 4 victory after hitting 20-of-25 Friday night. MacMahon notes that the 331 points Booker has scored so far in the playoffs are the most by anyone through nine games since Michael Jordan 33 years ago.

“I know the spots where I’m supposed to be aggressive and where I’m supposed to make ’em pay,” Booker said. “I talked about transition earlier and just trying to get out and play fast, so they can’t set their defense and set their double-team. I don’t usually get open shots. So this is a new thing with having (Kevin Durant‘s) gravity on the floor.”

Sunday also marked the best game of the series for Durant, who delivered 36 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Injuries limited him to eight regular season games after he joined the Suns in February, so he’s still adjusting to his new teammates.

“To be honest, we’re still learning each other, learning which plays work for both of us, which plays work for our team as well,” Durant told reporters. “But at the core of it, it’s just all about playing ball and getting to your spots and just playing aggressive. I think we both do that. Book is always comfortable out there in any spot on the floor, and I feel like I’m the same way. The more reps we get, the better we going to get.”

There’s more from Phoenix:

Deandre Ayton tried to put aside the controversy that arose after he was pulled from Game 3 with 4:57 left to play (video link from Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic). After being limited to four points Friday night, Ayton responded with eight points and eight rebounds in 27 minutes Sunday. “I know everybody seen me getting checked out late (in Game 3),” he said. “I don’t blame coach (Monty Williams). You’re trying to win.”
Landry Shamet scored 19 points Sunday and played 30 minutes, the most of any Phoenix reserve. He admitted being upset with his limited role in the playoffs and the criticism the team’s bench has received (video link).
Suns owner Mat Ishbia said there’s no need for the league to take further action following a sideline incident with Nikola Jokic in Game 4. “Suspending or fining anyone over last nights incident would not be right,” Ishbia tweeted. “I have a lot of respect for Jokic and don’t want to see anything like that.”

Nuggets Await Word On Possible Fine, Suspension For Nikola Jokic

May 8th, 2023 at 7:57am CST by Arthur Hill

An odd play late in the second quarter of Sunday’s Nuggets-Suns game could swing the outcome of the series, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

Phoenix guard Josh Okogie dove out of bounds while trying to save the basketball and landed near a courtside seat occupied by team owner Mat Ishbia, who wound up with the ball in his hands. While Ishbia was checking on his player, Nikola Jokic attempted to grab the ball from him to create a potential 5-on-4 advantage for Denver with Okogie still down.

The ball was knocked backward into the crowd, and as Jokic asked another fan to throw it to him, his left forearm made contact with Ishbia’s chest, causing him to fall backward into his seat (video link). Jokic was given a technical foul on the play, and although the NBA office didn’t comment Sunday night, Youngmisuk said the league will likely review the incident to determine if a fine or suspension is warranted.

“One of the fans (Ishbia) was holding the ball, Jokic came to get the ball, grabbed it away from the fan,” referee Tony Brothers said in the pool report after the game. “Then after that, he deliberately gave him a shove and pushed him down, so he was issued an unsportsmanlike technical foul. … There was some engagement, so I deemed the technical foul the appropriate penalty.”

Brothers said Jokic wasn’t ejected because he “didn’t just run over and hit a fan.”

Jokic explained his view of what happened in his post-game meeting with reporters, saying he was trying to get the ball to start the next play. He also didn’t seem to realize that it was Ishbia who was holding it.

“(Brothers) told me I was elbowing the fan,” Jokic said. “But the fan put the hand on me first. So I thought the league’s supposed to protect us or whatever, but maybe I’m wrong, so we will see.”

He also questioned why he might be subject to a fine or suspension.

“But his hands (were) on me,” Jokic said. “So (the NBA) is not going to protect me? They’re going to protect the fan? Not me as a person; I’m talking about as a player.”

Ishbia, who finalized his purchase of the team in February, told an Associated Press reporter at halftime that he was “fine,” Youngmisuk relays, and he was in his seat when the second half began.

The incident overshadowed another outstanding performance from Jokic, who had a career-high 53 points and 11 assists even though the Suns pulled out a win to knot the series at 2-2. According to Youngmisuk, he’s the first player in league history to average a 40-point triple-double while shooting 60% from the floor over two playoff games.

Sam Vecenie of The Athletic blames Ishbia for escalating the incident and says a suspension for Jokic would be an “extreme overreaction” by the NBA. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said he would be “stunned” if Jokic is suspended, adding, “I don’t think there’s an appetite here for that to happen.” (Twitter link)

Northwest Notes: Holmgren, Timberwolves, Malone, Nuggets

May 7th, 2023 at 3:37pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Thunder big man Chet Holmgren continues to rehabilitate from two surgeries related to the Lisfranc right foot injury he suffered last year, writes Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.

As Mussatto notes, Oklahoma City has indicated Holmgren may play for the Thunder’s 2023 Summer League team, and anticipates he will be able to suit up in time for the 2023/24 season. Mussatto collected a variety of quotes from Holmgren’s Thunder colleagues about their teammate, who missed his entire rookie season after being drafted second overall.

“Chet is a great competitor,” rookie Jaylin Williams raved. “We played against each other in college and then we played against each other when we first got here, and we always talk about the college game, smack talking to each other.”

“Off the court, he’s a really good kid,” All-Star point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Then on the court, competitor. The kid wants to be good. I think that’s the biggest thing. Like he wants to be really good and he wants to prove himself to the world. That fire in him is impressive. It’s impressive. I think because of that he’s going to be a heck of a basketball player.”

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

Following a very active 2022 offseason, Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune believes that the Timberwolves should operate more patiently this summer. Souhan notes that Minnesota has been plagued by wild swings from management in recent years and says the team needs to avoid repeating that behavior in the 2023 offseason.
Nuggets head coach Michael Malone wants to make sure that Suns All-Star shooting guard Devin Booker has a harder time scoring, writes Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post. Booker poured in 47 points on 20-of-25 shooting from the floor in Phoenix’s 121-114 Game 3 victory over Denver. “He’s going to score,” Malone acknowledged. “The sheer volume of shots he’s going to take, he’s going to score… But we can’t allow him to go 80% from the field when he goes 20 of 25. Being into him, being more physical, more aggressive, showing him more of a crowd, hopefully that doesn’t allow him to start off with 18 points and shooting into a big basket the rest of the night.”
After winning the first two games of their second round series vs. Phoenix at home, the Nuggets regressed to cough up a Game 3 loss on the road, writes Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. “I think we were just a little bit slow,” All-NBA center Nikola Jokic said. “I don’t want to say, sleepy, but they were making the first move and we were reacting.”

Pacific Notes: Craig, Murray, Vanderbilt, Curry, Warriors

May 7th, 2023 at 2:03pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Suns swingman Torrey Craig unpacked how his team has been approaching its defense of his former Nuggets teammate Jamal Murray in the two teams’ ongoing playoff series, Dana Scott of The Arizona Republic writes.

“Jamal’s a skilled player, man,” Craig remarked. “He’s really crafty with different finishes, and his jumpshot and his ability to get to the rim and mid-range and 3s… Just be physical with him. Crowd him. Don’t let him get to his spots easy because he’s one of those guys if let him get in the groove, he can get it going.”

Thus far in the series, Murray is averaging 25.3 PPG on .426/.280/.917 shooting splits, along with 7.3 APG, 5.0 RPG, and 1.0 SPG. Denver leads 2-1.

There’s more out of the Pacific Division:

Versatile Lakers power forward Jarred Vanderbilt has thus far seemed up for the challenge of defending Warriors All-Star point guard Stephen Curry in their playoff series matchup, writes Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “He’s a tough cover,” Vanderbilt said of Curry. “We have a lot of bodies to throw at him. Starting with me, Dennis (Schröder), I think everyone did a great job of chasing him around kind of wearing him down and making it hard for him… That is my calling on the team. I like those matchups. Those challenges. That is what I’m here to do,”
The Warriors, trailing the lower-seeded Lakers 2-1 in their second-round playoff series, are striving to figure out how to improve, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “You got to be more poised than we were,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s easier in a regular season to respond to a tough stretch. Everything is magnified in the playoffs. So a tough stretch can turn into a longer stretch … we let our foot off the gas and the Lakers took advantage of that.”
Following a 127-97 blowout loss to Los Angeles on Saturday, Tim Kawakami of The Athletic wonders if the Warriors‘ inconsistency this season could be coming back to haunt them in these playoffs for good. Kawakami believes that Golden State is still capable of greatness, but points the team’s lackluster 11-30 road record as an indicator that it has had its struggles this year.

Suns Notes: Ayton, Landale, Paul, Ross

May 6th, 2023 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Deandre Ayton‘s teammates rose to his defense following his poor outing in Friday’s Game 3, writes Duane Rankin 0f The Arizona Republic. Even though the Suns picked up their first win in the series with Denver, Ayton turned in his worst game of the playoffs, shooting 2-of-6 from the floor and scoring just four points in 25 minutes.

Ayton was pulled from the game with 4:57 remaining, bringing back memories of last season when coach Monty Williams benched him during a Game 7 loss to Dallas. Ayton signed an offer sheet with the Pacers over the summer that Phoenix quickly matched, and he revealed at training camp that he didn’t talk to Williams at all during the offseason.

Ayton was visibly angry about being subbed out Friday night and didn’t speak to the media after the game, according to Rankin, but he remained supportive of his teammates and offered advice to backup center Jock Landale on how to guard Nikola Jokic. Landale was among Ayton’s most vocal defenders after Saturday’s practice (video link).

“If you watch when me and (Bismack Biyombo) are in the game and we do something well, DA is the first dude off that bench to stand up and clap, and that speaks volumes about his character, but people seem to totally forget about that,” Landale said. “That’s been something that DA has stood on all year and he’s continued to do that for other players around him, especially myself and Biz, is encourage us at times he’s not having the best night and he’s allowed to not have a great night.”

There’s more from Phoenix:

Williams’ decision to pull Ayton was partially influenced by Landale’s effectiveness, Rankin adds. In 22 minutes, he made all three of his shots, collected nine rebounds and made several plays to help Phoenix hold off a Nuggets’ comeback. “Jock was giving us great energy,” Williams said. “I thought his pressure on the rim, just in transition, opened up a ton of lanes for all of our guys to attack the paint tonight in transition and then he just scrapped. You couldn’t point out anything that he did from a high-level skill perspective, but he just scrapped and even when he was guarding (Jamal) Murray or guarding the smalls, he just competed.”
As expected, Chris Paul has been ruled out for Sunday’s Game 4, Rankin adds in another Arizona Republic story. The veteran point guard was a very limited participant in today’s practice as he tries to work his way back from a left groin strain.
Terrence Ross was thrilled to be part of the rotation for the first time since the playoffs began (video link from Rankin). Ross had five points in nearly 14 minutes as Williams looked for more scoring off his bench.

And-Ones: NBA Media Rights, Kuzma, Poeltl, Blanks

May 6th, 2023 at 2:54pm CST by Luke Adams

Analysts at JPMorgan recently issued a report stating that the exponential growth of sports media rights is unsustainable in the long term, according to Mike Ozanian of Forbes, but the NBA remains on track to do extremely well on its next deal. The league’s nine-year, $24 billion agreement with its current partners expires in 2025 and the NBA will reportedly look to double or triple that amount on its next rights contract.

With some regional sports networks around the country struggling to make payments to teams, the NBA’s next media deal may lean more heavily on broadcast television and/or streaming platforms, creating alternatives for teams when their current agreements with RSNs expires, per Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic explores the same topic, citing a source with knowledge of the situation who says the NBA would like to get more games on broadcast television and fewer on cable in its next media rights deal. Vorkunov confirms that NBC has displayed interest in getting the NBA back and adds that several streamers – led by Amazon and Apple – are believed to have interest in broadcasting NBA games.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

After previously breaking down this summer’s free agent market for guards, Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report shifts his focus to 2023’s free agent wings and big men. Pincus suggests this year’s crop of wings isn’t especially deep and that most of the market’s top players – such as Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma – are far more likely to stay put than to change teams. Within his story on bigs, Pincus says multiple sources view the Raptors as a “lock” to re-sign Jakob Poeltl.
John Hollinger of The Athletic shines a spotlight on the minimum-salary players who are making a difference for playoff teams, including Lakers guard Austin Reaves, Suns forward Josh Okogie, and Heat guard Gabe Vincent, among others. Those players will all be free agents this summer and are in position to receive significant raises.
Lance Blanks, a former NBA player for the Pistons and Timberwolves, died on Wednesday at age 56, per The Detroit News. After retiring as a player, Blanks worked as a scout with the Spurs, then was later hired by the Cavaliers as an assistant general manager and by the Suns as their GM. Most recently, he served in a scouting role for the Clippers. “Lance was a light for all those who knew him,” former Pistons star Joe Dumars said in a statement. “It’s been a privilege to have called him one of my closest friends. I’m eternally grateful for all the support he has shown me throughout the years.” Mike Finger of The San Antonio Express-News has more on Blanks’ passing.