Andrew Wiggins Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacific Notes: Wiggins, Curry, Warriors, Lakers, M. Brown, Clippers

December 16th, 2022 at 2:21pm CST by Luke Adams

Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins, who has missed the last five games due to a right adductor strain, was cleared on Thursday to resume participating in practices and shootarounds, according to the team (Twitter link).

However, Wiggins will be unavailable for a sixth consecutive game when the Warriors visit Philadelphia on Friday and Draymond Green (right quad contusion) will be out as well, per the NBA’s latest official injury report. Klay Thompson is listed as questionable due to left knee soreness, so Golden State is at risk of being without four starters — Stephen Curry, of course, is expected to miss multiple weeks as a result of a shoulder injury.

As Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter video link) relays, Curry spoke to reporters today about his shoulder and expressed relief that he won’t have to undergo surgery, which might’ve forced him to miss several months. Asked if surgery is a possibility after the season, the Warriors star didn’t rule it out, but said that’s not the plan for now (Twitter links via Slater).

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

With several regulars battling injuries, the Warriors recalled center James Wiseman and rookie guard Ryan Rollins from the G League, the team announced on Thursday in a press release. Neither player has seen much action at the NBA level so far this season, with Wiseman appearing in just one game over the last month while Rollins has played only 43 total minutes since opening night.
The Lakers are unlikely to make a trade during the next two-to-four weeks, Jovan Buha of The Athletic reports within his look at the team’s approach to the deadline. Although the club would like to get a deal done sooner rather than later, it makes sense for Los Angeles to wait out the market in case more sellers emerge.
Kings head coach Mike Brown has been fined $25K by the NBA for “aggressively pursuing and directing profane language” toward a referee, the league announced in a press release. The incident, which resulted in Brown’s ejection, occurred during the third quarter of Sacramento’s win in Toronto on Wednesday.
Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Reggie Jackson, and Luke Kennard were among the Clippers who missed Thursday’s game, but the team is optimistic they’ll all be back soon, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN (Twitter link), who says their absences on Thursday were more about managing prior injuries than dealing with new ones.

Pacific Notes: Fox, Lakers, Wiseman, Suns, Wiggins

December 12th, 2022 at 8:08pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kings star guard De’Aaron Fox practiced on Monday, Jason Anderson of the Sacramento Bee tweets. The Kings have split the two games he’s missed, winning at Cleveland and losing to the Knicks. They’ll continue their six-game road trip with a back-to-back against Philadelphia (Tuesday) and Toronto (Wednesday). Fox is listed as questionable for the game against the Sixers.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

The Lakers got a boost of confidence by winning the last game of their six-game road trip, Dave McMenamin of ESPN writes. They finished the trip 3-3 and now host the Celtics on Tuesday. “We got to try to get as much rest as we can starting from now all the way to Tuesday night because we’re going to need it, because a very good team is coming into our building,” LeBron James said. “But, I like the way we ended the trip.”
James Wiseman posted big numbers after being reassigned to the Santa Cruz Warriors, the G League tweets. Wiseman racked up 24 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks in Santa Cruz’s win on Sunday. The Warriors’ No. 2 overall pick of the 2020 draft made seven previous starts at Santa Cruz before a brief call-up to Golden State.
The Suns aren’t good enough to win a championship the way their roster is currently constructed, Gerald Bourguet of GoPhnx.com opines. Bourguet believes they need more ball-handling, offensive creation, playmaking and size at power forward. It’s unlikely that simply trading Jae Crowder will solve all those issues, he adds.
Andrew Wiggins will miss at least two more games due to an adductor strain, according to ESPN’s Kendra Andrews (Twitter link). The Warriors forward will be reevaluated Thursday after the team’s back-to-back the previous two nights.

Warriors Notes: Wiseman, Wiggins, Kuminga, Curry

December 7th, 2022 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Warriors center James Wiseman is back in the NBA and is eager to show what he learned during nearly three weeks in the G League, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. With Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins all missing tonight’s game at Utah, the team recalled Wiseman to have another player available.

“[Santa Cruz] was fun,” he said. “I’m a hooper. I got to play 25, 28 minutes. That was love right there. I was going out there, working hard, just trying to get better, had so much fun out there. Probably too much fun.”

Playing time has been an issue for Wiseman, who hasn’t made it through a full season since high school, Andrews notes. His college career lasted just three games, he tore his meniscus as a rookie and sat out all of last season with a variety of setbacks.

Wiseman said he focused on “improving in the small areas” during his G League stint. He averaged 15.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.14 blocks with Santa Cruz, and now he wants to take advantage of his next opportunity with the Warriors.

“I’m so much more grateful, more appreciative of this moment now to be able to be back up here,” Wiseman said. “I’m just grateful to be back playing at this level, also, being in a small hotel room the last two weeks not doing nothing, I’m just grateful to be back up here in a big-a– hotel again, be in a great bed again.”

There’s more on the Warriors:

Wiggins’ adductor strain will keep him out at least through Saturday’s game with the Celtics, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. He will be reevaluated before the team leaves on a six-game road trip that starts Tuesday.
Jonathan Kuminga is becoming comfortable with the Warriors’ style of play and is the best bet among the team’s young players to earn a significant rotation role, observes Scott Ostler of The San Francisco Chronicle. “His defense has really been excellent,” coach Steve Kerr said. “He’s guarding some of the tougher players for the opposing team, whether it’s a point guard or a wing. He’s got size (6-foot-7). He’s smart, he’s really starting to figure out how to defend without fouling, and try to bother those ballhandlers. He’s earning minutes, for sure.”
Curry has been selected as Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year, per C.J. Holmes of The San Francisco Chronicle. Curry was recognized by the magazine in 2018 along with the rest of his teammates, but this is his first time winning the honor as an individual.

Western Notes: Wiseman, Conley, Gay, Garza, Davis, Ingram

December 6th, 2022 at 10:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Warriors recalled James Wiseman from their G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, according to a press release tweeted by the team’s PR department. Wiseman averaged 15.6 points, 10.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in seven starts with Santa Cruz. Wiseman struggled during his 11 NBA appearances this season before the team decided to give him a stint in the G League to boost his confidence. He had a minus-24.4 net rating in his 147 NBA minutes.

The No. 2 pick in the 2020 draft, who was assigned to Santa Cruz in mid-November, could jump right back into the rotation. The Warriors won’t have three of their starters when they face Utah on Wednesday. Stephen Curry (left ankle soreness), Draymond Green (left hip tightness) and Andrew Wiggins (right adductor strain) are all listed as out, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. The defending champion are one game ab0ve .500.

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While the Warriors will be depleted, the Jazz could have their starting point guard back in action. Mike Conley is listed as questionable to play, Tony Jones of The Athletic tweets. Conley (knee) has not played since Nov. 19. Rudy Gay, who has been sidelined since Nov. 13 due to a hand injury, is not even on the injury report, so he should be available.
Second-year big man Luka Garza has been recalled from the Iowa Wolves by the Timberwolves, the team’s PR department tweets. Garza, who is on a two-way contract, leads the G League at 29.8 points per game. He racked up 44 points and 15 rebounds against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants on Monday.
Anthony Davis, who left the Lakers’ game on Tuesday early due to flu-like symptoms, has a non-COVID illness, Dave McMenamin of ESPN tweets. Davis battled a fever throughout the day but tried to play through it. No other players are currently sick, according to coach Darvin Ham.
Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram won’t play against Detroit on Wednesday, according to a team press release. Ingram will miss his fifth straight game due to a left great toe contusion.

Injury Updates: Harden, Wiggins, Poole, Grizzlies, Jazz

December 5th, 2022 at 4:04pm CST by Rory Maher

James Harden is on track to return tonight for the Sixers as they face the Rockets in Houston, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. The star guard has been sidelined for a month with a right foot strain, missing 14 games in the process.

“As much as I love basketball, I want to be out there to compete, especially for my teammates,” Harden said. “So this month has been patience, putting the work in, making sure I’m ready to come back and help this team get to where we can get to.”

Head coach Doc Rivers indicated on Sunday that Harden would be on a minutes restriction.

“Hopeful, he’ll be ready for [Monday],” Rivers said. “And if he is, he’ll be in a limited role. But it’s still better to have him than not, if we can have him.”

After winning four of five, the Sixers have dropped two straight games and currently hold a 12-11 record.

Here are some more injury-related updates from around the NBA:

Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins will miss Monday’s contest against the Pacers with right adductor tightness, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Golden State guard Jordan Poole is questionable with an ankle injury, which he suffered on Saturday.
Grizzlies star Ja Morant is doubtful for tonight’s game vs. Miami due to left ankle soreness, Memphis announced (via Twitter). In addition to Morant, injury-replacement starter John Konchar (right toe soreness) and rookie forward Jake LaRavia (left foot soreness) are also doubtful, while All-Defensive big man Jaren Jackson Jr. has been ruled out on the second of a back-to-back for injury management (he had offseason foot surgery and just returned a few weeks ago). On a positive note, second-year wing Ziaire Williams, who has yet to play this season due to right patellar tendinitis, is listed as doubtful instead of out for the first time and was sent to the G League to practice ahead of Monday’s game (Twitter link). Head coach Taylor Jenkins recently said Williams was nearing a return.
Jazz veterans Mike Conley (knee) and Rudy Gay (hand) were full participants in Monday’s practice and both hope to play on Wednesday against Golden State, though they’re still experiencing some pain (All Twitter links via Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune). If Conley returns Wednesday, he’ll likely be on a minutes restriction, tweets ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. The Jazz have missed Conley’s steadying influence, going just 2-6 over the past two weeks without their starting point guard.

Pacific Notes: Warriors, Westbrook, M. Brown, Wall

November 4th, 2022 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors‘ road trip, which began last Saturday in Charlotte, has been a disaster so far. Golden State has dropped consecutive road games to the Hornets, Pistons, Heat, and Magic and is now just 3-6 on the season. Recognizing that something needs to be done to jump-start the defending champions, head coach Steve Kerr said after Thursday’s loss in Orlando that rotation changes are likely coming, according to ESPN’s Kendra Andrews.

“We’ve had nine games now, so we’ve had a decent look at combinations. It’s time to try something different,” Kerr said. “Everybody’s gonna get a chance to play. We’ve got guys who are dying to get on the floor, and we’ve got to find combinations that play. We will look at that as a staff.”

As Andrews points out, the Warriors’ starters haven’t been a problem so far this season — Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, and Kevon Looney have outscored opponents by 60 points during their time on the floor, the best point differential of any five-man group in the NBA. However, things have generally gone downhill when the starters begin to check out of the game.

Kerr and the Warriors will get an opportunity to try to figure things out without their stars available on Friday. As Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter links) relays, the team is resting Curry (right elbow soreness), Thompson (Achilles injury management), Wiggins (left foot soreness), and Green (lower back injury management) on the second night of a back-to-back.

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

Bringing Russell Westbrook off the bench has “undeniably unlocked” the best version of the former MVP, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who argues that the move could even change the course of the Lakers’ season. As Buha tweets, coach Darvin Ham said after Wednesday’s win that one of his goals is to get Westbrook into the conversation for Sixth Man of the Year, which signals that he doesn’t plan to move the point guard back into the starting five anytime soon.
Clippers two-way center Moses Brown had his best game of the season in Wednesday’s win in Houston, racking up 13 points and seven rebounds in just 12 minutes. However, an increased role for Brown may not be a long-term solution to the second unit’s struggles, since head coach Tyronn Lue wants to get more production out of the team’s small, center-less lineups, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times.
Although John Wall is considered one of the Clippers‘ veteran leaders, his situation is different than it was in Houston, when he was a mentor to a very young roster, says Law Murray of The Athletic. “We have so many veteran guys here, so I don’t think they need no mentoring,” Wall said, adding that he’s still willing to help out young players like Brown, Brandon Boston Jr., and Moussa Diabate if they have questions for him.

Pacific Notes: Fox, Crowder, Booker, Klay, Wiggins

October 26th, 2022 at 2:53pm CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on The Draymond Green Show, Kings guard De’Aaron Fox recounted his reaction to the news that Sacramento had traded Tyrese Haliburton to Indiana at last season’s deadline, explaining that he viewed the deal as a strong message from his team.

“For me, it’s like yo, they believe in me,” Fox said, per Ajayi Browne of Slam Online. “But two, it’s like motherf—-r, we just traded somebody who could be a franchise point guard either here or somewhere else. So, you better get on your s–t; you better start winning.”

The Kings received plenty of outside criticism for their decision to trade a rising star like Haliburton in his second NBA season, but Fox is determined to prove that the Kings made the right move by handing him the undisputed reins at point guard.

“Does it add pressure? Yeah, a little bit,” Fox said. “But, at the end of the day, I’ve been trying to get us in the playoffs for years, so it’s a little added pressure. It ain’t hurt anybody.”

Here’s more from around the Pacific:

According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (Twitter video link), Suns forward Jae Crowder pushed back against the idea that he demanded a trade because he was told he wouldn’t be a starter. “I do not want to get into the details just yet,” Crowder said, as Haynes relayed during a TNT appearance. “But it’s definitely not true, the narrative being pushed about me not starting or not, I can honestly say that.”
Asked about his impressions of Devin Booker so far this season, head coach Monty Williams described the Suns‘ star guard as “probably the most complete player in the league right now” (Twitter link via Gerald Bourguet of PHNX Sports). Booker has averaged 32.5 PPG on .530/.480/.882 shooting through four games (38.8 MPG).
Williams’ comments on Booker came after a Suns victory over the Warriors in which sharpshooter Klay Thompson was ejected for the first time in his NBA career. Kendra Andrews of ESPN has the story on the chippy game between two Pacific rivals, Thompson’s first ejection, and Booker’s account of what Klay was saying to him before he left the floor: “They have four rings, repeated over and over.”
In a conversation with Mark Medina of NBA.com, Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins explained that he took a pay cut on his new four-year, $109MM extension with Golden State because he didn’t want to leave a “winning organization” that treats him well. Wiggins’ goal is to eventually join teammates like Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green, and Stephen Curry as “Bay Area legends,” he told Medina: “Hopefully by the time I’m done, people will look at me like that. I just have to keep putting in the work and accomplish what they have accomplished.”

Warriors Notes: Wiggins, Williams, Green, Brown, Kerr, Wiseman

October 24th, 2022 at 10:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Andrew Wiggins, who signed a four-year, $109MM extension before the season, is playing like a star in the early going. He’s averaging 22.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks through the first three games. Warriors coach Steve Kerr believes Wiggins is playing at the top of his game, according to Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area.

“This is the best I’ve ever seen Wiggs,” Kerr said. “He was an All-Star last year, he helped us win a championship and I think he’s used that momentum that he gained a year ago to kind of springboard into this season.”

We have more on the Warriors:

Suns coach Monty Williams was “quietly upset” that JaMychal Green joined the Warriors on a one-year, veteran’s minimum contract, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic tweets. “Why did he go there?” Williams said.
The Warriors topped the Kings 130-125 on Sunday in a coaching matchup featuring Kerr and his former top assistant, Mike Brown. Kerr is thrilled that Brown got another head coaching job, Anthony Slater of The Athletic writes. “He’d always talk about how much he loved this job,” Kerr said. “That’s always what we’d lean on if he didn’t get an interview somewhere. Like, ‘You’ve got a pretty good gig. I’ve got it good. You’ve got it good. We’ll just keep it going.’ But we both felt like he was too talented and too young not to get another chance.”
In a subscriber-only story, Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated speaks to James Wiseman about his comeback from a knee injury that kept him out of action last season. Wiseman is averaging 11 points and six rebounds in 17.7 minutes per game.

Warriors Notes: Green, Thompson, Wiggins, Rotation

October 20th, 2022 at 6:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are being eased into the season but that will change in the near future, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. Thompson had 18 points in 20 minutes and Green added four points, five rebounds and five assists in 25 minutes against the Lakers in the opener. The minutes restrictions on them will be lifted in a couple of weeks, according to Warriors coach Steve Kerr.

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Thompson heard of a report that he planned to retire after two more seasons. He shot that down, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. “There’s a report out there – I have no intention of retiring in 2024. If you write some dumb (stuff) like that, be held accountable,” he said. “That’s crazy. Just because I didn’t play 5-on-5 doesn’t mean I’m gonna retire. That is absurd.” Thompson, whose current contract expires in 2024, was addressing comments made by Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle during a radio interview on KNBR.
Andrew Wiggins has a feeling of contentment after signing a four-year extension, Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic writes. “I feel like here — you know, some people will say like, ‘We’re all just one big family.’ But they don’t really say that here. They just show it,” he said. “You know what I mean? They just show it. Families love to be here because they treat everyone so good, like a top-notch organization. And these guys, everyone wants to win, we’re all on the same page, from top to bottom. We all want to see each other succeed. It gives me peace.”
The Warriors showed their depth with an 11-man rotation in the season opener. It won’t be easy to fit all those players into the rotation throughout the season, Slater notes, but Stephen Curry believes each player can continue to contribute until the postseason. “You have 11 guys that probably deserve the opportunity to play and are going to be key for us to be the team that we want to be throughout the regular season and then identify what the best rotation is come playoff time,” he said.

Warriors Notes: Looney, Myers, Starters, Green

October 17th, 2022 at 11:05pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Warriors starting center Kevon Looney, who signed a three-year contract worth up to $25.5MM to remain in Golden State this summer, hopes to remain with the only NBA team he has ever known for the duration of his career, per Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.

“This is the team I got drafted to,” Looney said on NBC Sports Bay Area’s podcast Dubs Talk last month. “I love living out here. I know the system, I know the players, I know the guys. It’s home for me. This is where I wanted to be. “I’ve had a lot of great vets over the years, and they always told me to stay here as long as possible. The culture like this, it isn’t like that everywhere else. All of that was in the back of my head going into free agency.”

Poole notes that Looney was finally promoted to a starting role with the Warriors during the team’s 2021/22 championship season after spending his first six years in the league as a backup big man. Looney enjoyed one of his best regular seasons last year, appearing in all 82 games for the first time in his career, while averaging 6.0 PPG on 57.1% shooting from the floor, along with 7.3 RPG, and 2.0 APG across 21.1 MPG.

There’s more out of Golden State:

Warriors team president Bob Myers is fully aware that the cost of the team’s roster next season projects to be at least $483MM in player salaries and luxury tax payments, writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “I cannot evaluate what we are going to do next season until we see what happens this season,” Myers said with regard to his team’s future roster-building in a Sunday press conference. “I just know this: There’s a huge commitment to winning. There always has been, and I believe there always will be. I am lucky to be in an [ownership] group that believes that. Their actions prove it.”
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr suggested on Monday that he will have something of a minutes cap for starters Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and Kevon Looney on opening night. As Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area relays (via Twitter), Kerr thinks those players are not quite yet ready to play 30-plus minutes to begin the 2022/23 season. “It’s fine,” Kerr said, adding that the team will rely on its depth this week. “You just adapt and adjust.”
Warriors power forward Draymond Green, who has not been signed to an extension despite the team dishing out lucrative long-term deals for his teammates Jordan Poole and Andrew Wiggins, is a good bet to pick up his $27.6MM player option for the 2023/24 season, posits Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter video link). Wojnarowski initially said Green will “almost assuredly” exercise that option before clarifying that it’s “probably the most likely scenario” based on his projected market.