Phoenix Suns Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Team USA Notes: Curry, LeBron, Durant, Haliburton, Banchero

August 13th, 2024 at 7:27pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Could some of the gold-medal winners from Team USA pair up in the future on an NBA team? Sam Amick of The Athletic explores that topic, noting that superstar-laden teams are sometimes born out of their bonding experiences with USA Basketball.

A LeBron James–Stephen Curry pairing seems unlikely now that LeBron’s son is on the Lakers roster and Curry would like to finish his career with the Warriors. Could Golden State eventually wind up with Durant-Curry reunion or a Devin Booker–Curry backcourt? Suns owner Mat Ishbia has squashed talk of trading his stars but Amick speculates that could change if Phoenix flops in the postseason again.

We have more USA Basketball-related news:

If Kevin Durant wants to play for Team USA in Los Angeles, team officials would like to have him back, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst (hat tip to Zach Bachar of Bleacher Report). “I would not rule out KD playing, and I talked with Team USA officials, and they would give him a provisional yes right now,” Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective. Durant has already set the Olympic record with four gold medals in men’s basketball. Durant, who averaged 13.8 points and 3.2 rebounds in Paris off the bench, will be 39 in 2028.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton hopes to retain his spot on Team USA in future Olympics, according to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. He informed managing director Grant Hill that he’d welcome an invite to the Los Angeles Games. “I’ve told Grant — I’ve said it many times — I want to represent USA Basketball for as long as I can,” Haliburton said. He was essentially the 12th man on this year’s squad, averaging 8.8 minutes in three appearances. He was dealing with a minor leg injury during the tournament.
Magic forward Paolo Banchero, a member of USA’s last World Cup team, was under serious consideration for the Paris Olympics, according to Joe Vardon of The Athletic. He’s a player Hill wants to feature in future Olympics. In the same piece, Vardon speculates which players from this year’s gold medal squad might be back for 2028.

Western Notes: Durant, Holmgren, Williams, Wolves, Grizzlies

August 13th, 2024 at 5:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kevin Durant admits that retirement has crossed his mind, the Suns superstar revealed on the latest episode of TV One’s “Raising Fame” (hat tip to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic).

“As I get older in the league and the league is getting younger, I tend to think about retirement more,” the Suns forward said. “… Should I stop thinking about it? What is that? But it creeps in my mind for sure.”

Durant, 35, remains one of the league’s most productive players — he averaged 27.1 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game last season. He has also battled his share of injuries in recent years, though he was durable enough to start 75 regular-season games for the Suns in the 2023/24 season. Durant is entering the third year of his four-year, $194.2MM contract.

Durant has been in the league since 2007, when he was the second overall pick of the draft.

We have more from the Western Conference:

With the Olympics still fresh on everyone’s mind, will a couple of Thunder players represent Team USA in 2028? Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman explores that question in his latest mailbag. Lorenzi speculates that Chet Holmgren has a strong chance to be on that 12-man U.S. roster, noting that his skill set translates well to the international game. He’s a shot-blocker and rim protector who stretches out defenses with his range at the offensive end. Jalen Williams could also be in the mix as a combo wing if his game continues to develop as expected.
The Timberwolves and the WNBA’s Lynx have agreed to a multiyear corporate sponsorship deal with Sezzle Inc., which includes a jersey patch sponsorship, according to Nick Williams of the Star Tribune. Terms of the sponsorship deal were not disclosed but those sponsorship deals around the league are expected to average $10MM for the upcoming season. The Wolves, according to Williams, are expected to earn near the average via their sponsorship.
The Grizzlies, who were overwhelmed by injuries to key players last season, didn’t do much this offseason beyond drafting two-time National Player of the Year Zach Edey to fill their void in the middle and re-signing Luke Kennard on a one-year deal. They also hired six new assistant coaches. Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal gives the front office high marks for its approach to this offseason.

And-Ones: Toscano-Anderson, 2024 Draft Class, Durant, FAs

August 13th, 2024 at 12:25pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran swingman Juan Toscano-Anderson, who appeared in 11 games with Sacramento last season and spent much of the year playing for the Mexico City Capitanes, will be part of the G League United roster that plays a pair of exhibition games against Mega Basket in September (Twitter link).

In past years, the G League Ignite participated in those exhibition contests against international clubs — the most notable games occurred in 2022 when Scoot Henderson and the Ignite matched up against Victor Wembanyama and Metropolitans 92. However, with the Ignite no longer active, the NBAGL will put together an All-Star team of sorts for this year’s event.

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

Asked during an appearance on Podcast P with Paul George about No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher and the rest of the prospects selected near the top of his year’s draft, Hawks guard Trae Young suggested that there may not be any franchise players in the 2024 class. “Some guys might surprise us, but a lot of us look at them as role players,” Young said (hat tip to Clutch Points). “… Whether it’s Reed (Sheppard), who is going to be a hell of an NBA player or Alex (Sarr), who didn’t play well in Summer League, but is going to be a hell of an NBA player, a lot of these guys could be just role players, so I feel like the GMs this year were all probably just trying to figure out who is going to be the best role player for their team.”
Suns star Kevin Durant has become a minority stakeholder in the French soccer club Paris Saint-Germain, according to an announcement from his investment firm Boardroom (Twitter link). Sources with knowledge of the deal tell Peter Rutzler and Shams Charania of The Athletic that Durant and Boardroom bought a “single digit millions” shareholding in the club. Durant visited with the team while he was in France for the Olympics.
Who are the top free agents still available? Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report considers that question, ranking Cavaliers restricted free agent Isaac Okoro atop his list, followed by Markelle Fultz, Lonnie Walker, Cedi Osman, and Justin Holiday. Okoro, Fultz, and Osman are the only players from our June list of this summer’s top 50 free agents who are still seeking new deals.

Taliaferro Named Director Of Scouting

August 12th, 2024 at 9:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Suns are hiring Oronde Taliaferro as their director of scouting, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets. Taliaferro, who is expected to focus on college scouting, was previously a scout for the Nets.

Knicks/Celtics, Wolves/Lakers To Play On Opening Night

August 12th, 2024 at 12:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA’s opening night schedule will feature home games for the league’s two most accomplished franchises, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that the Celtics will host the Knicks in the early game, while the Lakers will host the Timberwolves in the late game.

The Celtics, who won their record 18th NBA title in June, will receive their championship rings on opening night, which will take place on Tuesday, October 22. That game will be the first for the new-look Knicks, featuring Mikal Bridges.

The game between the Lakers and Timberwolves will feature several stars who participated in Saturday’s gold medal game in Paris, including LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Lakers and Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert of the Wolves.

Both games will air on TNT Sports, which will be distributing NBA games for one final year in 2024/25, assuming their lawsuit against the league doesn’t result in a new broadcast rights deal that begins in ’25/26.

The full regular schedule for the 2024/25 NBA season is expected to be released later this week, according to Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. In the meantime, here are a few more notable matchups, courtesy of Charania:

The new-look Sixers, led by former MVP Joel Embiid, reigning Most Improved Player Tyrese Maxey, and free agent addition Paul George, will host the Bucks on October 23 to open their regular season (Twitter link).
The first regular season game at the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood will be played on October 23, when the Clippers host the Suns (Twitter link).
Klay Thompson and the Mavericks will visit the Warriors on November 12 in Thompson’s first trip back to the Bay Area (Twitter link). That will also be the first game of the in-season tournament (NBA Cup) for both Dallas and Golden State (Twitter link).
The NBA Finals rematches between the Celtics and Mavericks will take place on January 25 in Dallas and February 6 in Boston (Twitter link).
In case you missed it, 2024’s Christmas Day matchups were reported last week.

Team USA Notes: Durant, Holiday, Brown, Tatum, Embiid

August 9th, 2024 at 6:01pm CST by Luke Adams

Team USA will make a lineup change for its gold medal game on Saturday vs. France, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who says that Suns forward Kevin Durant will be inserted into the starting five, with Celtics guard Jrue Holiday expected to make the move to the bench.

Durant missed all of Team USA’s exhibition contests leading up to the Olympics due to a calf strain, or else he might have been a starter from day one. Despite not getting any game reps in before the Olympics, Durant has been one of the team’s most-used players and top scorers in France, averaging 13.6 points in 20.5 minutes per contest and posting a white-hot shooting line of .579/.611/.929.

The French team’s frontcourt is its biggest strength, with Victor Wembanyama, Guerschon Yabusele, and Mathias Lessort playing key roles in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Rudy Gobert is also in that mix, though he’s banged up and has played a limited role in the knockout round. Adding Durant to the starting five will put the U.S. squad in a better position to match up with France’s size.

Here’s more on Team USA ahead of Saturday’s gold medal game:

USA Basketball managing director Grant Hill spoke to Joe Vardon of The Athletic and Rachel Nichols on the All The Smoke podcast (YouTube link) about the process of building the U.S. roster and his areas of concern entering the tournament. In his conversation with Nichols, Hill discussed the omission of Jaylen Brown from the 12-man squad, indicating that the Celtics wing will receive consideration for the 2028 team in Los Angeles despite the public criticism Brown offered last month. “He’ll be a candidate if he wants in ’28,” Hill said (Twitter video link). “One thing I’ve learned is you can’t take anything personal. My objective is to win.”
After Celtics forward Jayson Tatum was a DNP-CD for the second time in the Olympics in Thursday’s comeback win over Serbia, head coach Steve Kerr explained that it’s hard to find playing time for 11 players in a 40-minute game, per Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “It’s not about anything Jayson is doing or not doing,” Kerr said. “It’s just about combinations and the way that group has played together, the way Kevin has filled in since he came back from his injury. It’s just a math problem more than anything.” While it’s a small sample size, Tatum’s .389 FG% in Olympic play is the worst among U.S. players.
Sam Amick and Joe Vardon of The Athletic take a look at the Joel Embiid subplot that will play a part in Saturday’s final, given that the former NBA MVP chose to play for United States over France in these Olympics. Embiid fully anticipates a cool reception from the home crowd in Paris. “They’re going to boo me,” he said with a smile. “I’m going to go back at them and tell ’em to suck it. And so it’s going to be fun.”

Christmas Day Games Include Sixers-Celtics, Lakers-Warriors

August 8th, 2024 at 9:20pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The NBA’s leaked slate of Christmas Day games will feature several heavy hitters.

Sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) that, as usual, five games will be broadcast, highlighted by a marquee matchup between two longtime Eastern Conference foes, the revamped Sixers and the Celtics. Boston, the reigning league champion, will host.

The schedule will be rounded out by several clashes between starry clubs, from veteran-laden squads to young up-and-comers. The Spurs will travel to Madison Square Garden to play the Knicks. A Western Conference Finals rematch is also on the docket, as the Mavericks will host the Timberwolves.

The newly Klay Thompson-less Warriors will host the Lakers, and the Nuggets will travel to Phoenix to face the retooled Suns.

Philadelphia almost completely overhauled its roster around incumbent All-Stars Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The new additions are headlined by nine-time All-Star combo forward Paul George, who departed the Clippers to sign a four-year, maximum-salary deal with the Sixers. Philadelphia also signed seasoned free agents like forward Caleb Martin, center Andre Drummond, and shooting guard Eric Gordon while bringing back wing Kelly Oubre Jr.

The Celtics retained all of their own key players after going 64-18 in the regular season and 16-3 in the playoffs. A pair of new extensions for All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum and All-Defensive Team guard Derrick White highlighted the team’s transactions, though longer-term uncertainty looms as owner Wyc Grousbeck is looking to sell the franchise.

Led by Defensive Player of the Year and impending Olympic medalist Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs figure to improve on their paltry 21-61 record in 2023/24. The team signed 12-time All-Star point guard Chris Paul to a one-year deal this summer, and traded for veteran combo forward Harrison Barnes. San Antonio also used its No. 4 pick in the lottery on NCAA championship-winning UConn guard Stephon Castle, the 2023/24 Big East Freshman of the Year.

The Knicks, meanwhile traded for former All-Defensive small forward Mikal Bridges this summer to maximize their ability to switch on the wing. The team also re-signed free agent forward OG Anunoby to a long-term contract and free agent center/power forward Precious Achiuwa to a shorter-term deal, inked All-NBA point guard Jalen Brunson to a contract extension, and brought aboard veteran point guard Cameron Payne for extra depth.

Fresh off its first NBA Finals appearance with star guards Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, Dallas added future Hall of Famer Thompson away from the Warriors as part of a sign-and-trade, while also acquiring young guard Quentin Grimes from the Pistons. Dallas also signed free agent wing Naji Marshall to a three-year deal.

After winning their first (two) playoff series in 20 years this spring, the Timberwolves traded for the draft rights to No. 8 pick Rob Dillingham and retained several of their own free agents.

While Golden State did lose out on Thompson, the Warriors quickly pivoted on the perimeter, signing free agent guard De’Anthony Melton and signing-and-trading for free agent wings Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield. The team is hoping to rebound from a finish as the West’s No. 10 seed and a quick play-in tournament exit.

Denver let free agent starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walk in free agency and brought in reserve guard Russell Westbrook.

The Suns hired title-winning head coach Mike Budenholzer and signed Tyus Jones to a steal of a veteran’s minimum contract. Phoenix also brought back several of its own free agents, including wings Josh Okogie and Royce O’Neale and Damion Lee. The team also inked free agents Mason Plumlee and Monte Morris to minimum-salary contracts.

The most questionable omission from all this Christmas scheduling is clearly the Thunder, who claimed the West’s No. 1 overall seed last season and added ex-Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein via a lucrative three-year, $87MM deal. Oklahoma City also dealt guard Josh Giddey – who fell out of the starting lineup in the playoffs – to Chicago for All-Defensive wing Alex Caruso.

With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander having finished as the MVP runner-up last year and young pieces Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams set to develop, the Thunder look poised to contend for the West’s top seed once again.

Knicks Notes: Center Options, Wing Depth, Brunson, Randle

August 7th, 2024 at 9:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

Even if Mitchell Robinson can manage to avoid serious injury this season, he may not be the center the Knicks want on the court once they reach the playoffs, John Hollinger and Fred Katz of the Athletic write in a discussion about the team. Hollinger notes that while Robinson’s skills as a rim protector and offensive rebounder are valuable, New York was at its best with the pick-and-roll game and switchable defense of Isaiah Hartenstein, who signed with Oklahoma City in free agency.

Although he doesn’t expect the Knicks to add another center before training camp, Hollinger believes trade options will become available as the season wears on. He suggests the Suns‘ Jusuf Nurkic as a possibility if Phoenix gets off to a disappointing start or the Trail Blazers’ Robert Williams III, who may be a third-stringer in Portland behind Deandre Ayton and lottery pick Donovan Clingan. Larry Nance Jr., who was recently traded to the Hawks and has an $11MM expiring salary, could also be considered.

Another option that Hollinger and Katz discuss is experimenting with Julius Randle at center. Katz states that coach Tom Thibodeau has resisted using Randle as a small-ball five, but New York’s strong perimeter defense can make up for the lack of a shot-blocker.

There’s more on the Knicks:

Wing depth has become New York’s best attribute since the trade for Mikal Bridges, Hollinger states in the same piece. He cites Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo as “automatic starters” for most teams, while the Knicks also have Miles McBride to handle minutes at two guard. Hollinger expresses concern about backup point guard, where McBride hasn’t shown an ability to create offense, Cameron Payne is with his fourth team in a little over a year and second-round pick Tyler Kolek isn’t likely to play much as a rookie.
Jalen Brunson has been selected as captain for the upcoming season, the Knicks announced (via Twitter). Brunson, who recently signed a four-year, $156.5MM extension that’s well below his market value, becomes the 36th captain in team history and the first since Lance Thomas during the 2018/19 season. “Jalen is a natural born leader, and I am confident he will continue to represent our organization, fans, city and his teammates with the same heart, grit and class he has displayed each and every day since he came to New York,” team president Leon Rose said.
The Knicks should work out an extension with Randle before the start of the season as a reward for his role in turning around the franchise, David Vertsberger contends in an SNY column. Randle is eligible for a new deal that could be worth up to $181.5MM over four years.

Suns Announce Mike Budenholzer’s Coaching Staff

August 6th, 2024 at 1:44pm CST by Luke Adams

The Suns have issued a press release formally announcing their coaching staff for the 2024/25 season under new head coach Mike Budenholzer.

As is typically the case, most of these hires were reported earlier in the summer, but the Suns waited until now to officially confirm them all at once.

Here are Budenholzer’s assistants:

Chad Forcier, who has worked as an NBA assistant in Detroit, Indiana, San Antonio, Orlando, Memphis, Milwaukee, and Utah since 2001, winning titles with the Spurs (2014) and Bucks (2021).
David Fizdale, formerly the head coach of the Grizzlies and Knicks, who was first hired as an assistant by the Suns in 2023 and decided to remain with the team following its head coaching change.
Vince Legarza, who worked under Budenholzer in both Atlanta and Milwaukee and also served as an assistant coach in Utah from 2019-22.
Mike Hopkins, a longtime assistant coach under Jim Boeheim at Syracuse and the head coach at the University of Washington from 2017-24.
Brent Barry, a former NBA sharpshooter, TNT analyst, and front office executive. He was most recently the Spurs’ vice president of basketball operations and the Austin Spurs’ general manager.
James Posey, who won titles with the Heat and Celtics as a player and has served as an assistant coach in Cleveland and Washington since his retirement.
Schuyler Rimmer, who won a championship with Budenholzer in 2021 as a Bucks player development assistant and also worked under Budenholzer in Atlanta. He has been a Lakers assistant for the past two seasons.

Fizdale is the lone holdover from Frank Vogel‘s 2023/24 staff.

Pacific Notes: Jones, Durant, Podziemski, Christie

August 2nd, 2024 at 4:15pm CST by Luke Adams

While Tyus Jones surely expected to sign for more than the veteran’s minimum when he first reached free agency on July 1, he’s thrilled about his new opportunity in Phoenix despite settling for a one-year, $3MM deal. As Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic writes, Jones raved during his introductory media session this week about what he views as an ideal fit with the Suns.

“I’m excited. I’m ready for the opportunity, ready to seize it, but for me, again, going back to the fit. I felt like the fit was perfect,” Jones said. “I’m ready for the season to be here already. I know we got some time, but I just want to hoop. I want to get out there with the guys, build our camaraderie, build our chemistry and ultimately compete for a championship. That’s our end goal.”

Jones told reporters that the Suns did a “great job” recruiting him and that the strength of the roster helped convince him to sign in Phoenix. He’s looking forward to serving as a facilitator within a high-powered offense led by Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal.

“Just trying to make their job easy,” Jones said of his role. “Last year, I know Book, Brad had to do a lot of playing the one, kind of facilitating, orchestrating the offense. The fact that they can do that, but what they really do is put the ball in the basket and so I know it’s going to be up to me to put them in the right spots. Put KD in the right spots, put Book in the right spots, put Brad in the right spot, everybody.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

It’s unclear if Durant will receive the one-year, $59.7MM extension he’s eligible for before the regular season begins, but Suns CEO Josh Bartelstein tells Rankin that the relationship between the star forward and the organization is in a great place. “The most important thing is Kevin loves being here and we love having Kevin here,” Bartelstein said. “… I talk to (Durant’s manager) Rich Kleiman, who works with Kevin, all the time. Conversations are great not just on extension stuff, but on all things that have been going on.”
Appearing on The Dinner Table podcast, Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski made it clear he’s not bothered by the fact that his name has popped up in trade rumors this summer. In fact, he thinks it’s “fun” to see the discourse on whether or not he should be included in an offer for Jazz star Lauri Markkanen, as Will Simonds of NBC Sports Bay Area relays. “No one likes to admit it, but everybody sees … the good and the bad,” Podziemski said. “For me, I think the bad can just be used as motivation. Obviously, my name has been in the Markkanen trade a lot, so if the trade doesn’t go through and I’m still here, to have a good second year and be like, ‘Good thing we didn’t trade him,’ would be cool for me.”
The Lakers are counting on third-year guard Max Christie to become a more significant part of their rotation as he begins a new four-year, $32MM contract, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic. In particular, Christie expects to match up on defense with opponents’ top wing or backcourt scorers and has been working this offseason on building up his stamina in preparation for those assignments. “When you’re guarding the best player, all the actions are being run for him,” Christie said. “You’re running through screens, so that’s tiring. It’s hard. And then, especially if you’re chasing shooters … it’s fatiguing. … I want to keep growing my game, obviously defensively, looking ahead to next season.”