Bogdan Bogdanovic Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Olympic Notes: Lillard, Green, Canada, Serbia, Italy

June 15th, 2021 at 10:35am CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard and Warriors forward/center Draymond Green are among the first players to commit to Team USA ahead of the Tokyo Olympics, sources tell Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic.

Team USA figures to bring more than a dozen players to its initial camp this summer before paring down the roster to 12 for Tokyo, so Lillard’s and Green’s commitments don’t guarantee that they’ll be part of the final Olympic roster. However, it seems safe to assume that spots on the 12-man squad will be reserved for the two stars as long as they remain healthy and committed.

Green won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics, while Lillard has yet to play for Team USA in a major international tournament. Green and Lillard are two of the 57 names listed as part of USA Basketball’s initial player pool in March, though as we noted last week, many of the players on that list seem unlikely to participate for a variety of reasons, including injuries.

Here are a few more updates from around the international basketball world:

Team Canada’s preliminary roster for the Olympic qualifying tournament later this month included 14 current NBA players. However, according to Blake Murphy of The Athletic and Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter links), at least three of those NBA players – Pacers forward Oshae Brissett, Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks, and Celtics center Tristan Thompson – now aren’t expected to participate.
The Serbian national team is preparing for the possibility of being without several key players for this month’s qualifying tournament, according to a MozzartSport report (hat tip to Sportando). Hawks swingman Bogdan Bogdanovic and reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets are among the players considered unlikely to be available for the OQT in Belgrade.
Longtime NBA shooting guard Marco Belinelli announced that he won’t be part of the Italian team attempting to earn an Olympic berth at this month’s qualifying tournament in Belgrade, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Belinelli, who is now playing for Virtus Bologna, wants to rest to make sure he’s 100% healthy for next season.

Hawks Notes: Roster, Hunter, Bogdanovic, McMillan

June 8th, 2021 at 1:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks‘ decision to load up on players who excel at dribbling, passing and shooting has helped them turn into an instant contender, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Appearing in the playoffs for the first time since 2017, Atlanta had too much offense for the Knicks to handle in their first-round matchup, then surprised the Sixers in Game 1 of the conference semifinals.

The Hawks began their turnaround by drafting Trae Young in 2018. They have steadily built the offense around him, with deadly shooters like Danilo Gallinari and Bogdan Bogdanovic among their offseason additions. Atlanta set a franchise record by making 20 three-pointers in Sunday’s win at Philadelphia.

“That’s something we do. We have a lot of guys who can shoot the ball,” Kevin Huerter said. “When we get the ball moving side-to-side and not take the first shot on possessions, we’re a team that is capable of hitting 20 a game. I hope we don’t need to hit 20 moving forward in the series, but anytime you shoot like that, you give yourself a really good chance to win.”

There’s more from Atlanta:

One of the impressive things about Sunday’s victory is that it came without De’Andre Hunter, the team’s best perimeter defender, Kirschner adds. Hunter was ruled out after experiencing pain in his right knee, which was operated on in February to fix a partially torn meniscus. Hunter has felt on-and-off soreness in the knee since the surgery. He was able to do some shooting Monday and is considered a game-time decision for Game 2, Kirschner tweets.
After three seasons in Sacramento, Bogdanovic is thrilled to finally be in the NBA playoff spotlight, notes Paolo Uggetti of The Ringer. Bogdanovic earned a reputation as a big-game player in Europe before coming to the United States. “Here, he had to perform under pressure all the time,” said Maurizio Gherardini, general manager of Bogdanovic’s former Fenerbahce team. “But he likes that sort of pressure. … He was not afraid of that kind of responsibility on his shoulders.”
Young said in a recent radio interview that he expects Nate McMillan to be installed as the team’s permanent head coach, but isn’t surprised an announcement hasn’t been made yet, relays Tim Daniels of Bleacher Report. Counting the playoffs, McMillan is 32-12 since becoming interim coach. “It’s just the timing. We’re in the playoffs, it’s the end of the season,” Young said. “I don’t think it’s something they want to take away from the team right now. I mean, obviously, he’s done a great job with helping us turn this around, so I’d be surprised if he’s not with us next year.”

Southeast Notes: Capela, Bogdanovic, Brooks, Carter Jr.

June 1st, 2021 at 9:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Hawks center Clint Capela ripped the Knicks for getting chippier ever since Atlanta asserted control in their first-round series, Andrew Lopez of ESPN relays. “I don’t know if they’re physical, but they are trying to play physical,” Capela said. “I feel like if they were really physical, I think we’d have more problems than what we have.”

Capela, who said the Hawks are coming to Madison Square Garden on Wednesday to “win this game again and send you on vacation,” also took a shot at the Knicks for being considered a team that plays hard every night. “We play hard because we’re playing the right way and we win games that way,” the Hawks’ big man said. “When you’re playing hard because that’s your last solution, I don’t take that as a ‘playing hard’ team.”

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The Knicks have discovered how much more potent the Hawks are with Bogdan Bogdanovic in the lineup, Zach Braziller of the New York Post notes. Bogdanovic, who signed a four-year contract with Atlanta as a restricted free agent in the offseason, is averaging 15.8 PPG, 6.5 RPG and 3.5 APG in the first four games of the series. “What Bogey has done for us this season, we want to give him more (responsibility),” coach Nate McMillan said. “So I’ve been able to change the rotation, allow Bogey to really play with the basketball a little bit more.”
After the latest incident involving an unruly fan, Wizards coach Scott Brooks urged potential troublemakers to stay home, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. A fan ran onto the court in Game 4 between the Sixers and Wizards and was tackled by security. “There’s great fans in Boston and New York and Philly and D.C., Utah. But there’s some that just need to, you know what, stay home,” he said. “Your thinking is barbaric. Stay home. We don’t need you. We don’t need your dollars. Just stay home. Get away from us.” The fan will be banned from the arena and criminal charges are being pursued against him.
Wendell Carter Jr. brought a physical presence and energy to the Magic frontcourt after being acquired in the Nikola Vucevic trade with the Bulls, Roy Parry of the Orlando Sentinel writes. He averaged 11.7 PPG and 8.8 RPG in 22 games with Orlando.

Southeast Notes: Westbrook, Wizards, McMillan, Heat

May 27th, 2021 at 10:32am CST by Luke Adams

It was a rough night for Russell Westbrook in Philadelphia on Wednesday. The Wizards guard left the blowout loss in the fourth quarter after injuring his right ankle, then had popcorn dumped on him by fan as he limped toward the locker room. Addressing the incident after the game, Westbrook called on the NBA to better protect its players with fans now permitted back in arenas, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes.

“To be completely honest, this s–t is getting out of hand, especially for me. The amount of disrespect, the amount of fans just doing whatever the f–k they want to do — it’s just out of pocket,” Westbrook said. “There are certain things that cross the line. Any other setting … a guy were to come up on the street and pour popcorn on my head, you know what happens. … In these arenas, you got to start protecting the players. We’ll see what the NBA does.”

The Sixers announced today in a press release that the fan who poured popcorn on Westbrook has had his season ticket membership revoked and will be banned indefinitely from attending events at Wells Fargo Center. While that’s a good first step, it’ll be interesting to see if the league takes any further action.

LeBron James (via Twitter) echoed Westbrook’s call for the NBA to protect its players, and the incident in Philadelphia isn’t the only one involving fans this week. A Knick fan appeared to spit on Hawks guard Trae Young on Wednesday (link via Bleacher Report), and Jason Quick of The Athletic notes (via Twitter) that multiple Trail Blazers players took issue with some Nuggets fans as the team was leaving the court in Game 2.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

Westbrook’s impressive play in the second half of the season was crucial in propelling the Wizards into the playoffs, but the team will need more from him in this series in order to have a chance at upsetting Philadelphia, writes Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. First and foremost, the Wizards will need Westbrook healthy — his status remain up in the air after Wednesday’s ankle injury.
Hawks head coach Nate McMillan found his rotation decisions under the spotlight following Wednesday’s loss, but he said he was happy with his game plan, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. “Our starters played 35-plus minutes. That’s a lot of minutes for those guys,” McMillan said. “Trae plays 35. Bogi (Bogdan Bogdanovic) plays 35. Clint (Capela) is at 36. That’s a lot of minutes for starters. … I thought we got a little gassed in that first half. I think we have to give those guys a little breather. They’re not going to be able to play 40-48 minutes.”
Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley was aware that his club probably needed more firepower to have a chance to return to the NBA Finals this year, says Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. However, Riley was unable to land Kyle Lowry at the deadline and his acquisition of Victor Oladipo didn’t work out, which could contribute to an early postseason exit for the defending Eastern champs.
With the Heat trailing the Bucks 2-0, Anthony Chiang and Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald explore whether a frontcourt pairing of Bam Adebayo and second-half addition Dewayne Dedmon might be a viable solution to counter Milwaukee’s size.

Hawks Notes: McMillan, Young, Capela, Shooting

May 5th, 2021 at 10:30am CST by Luke Adams

After starting the season with a 14-20 record, the Hawks have gone 22-10 since Nate McMillan took over as the team’s head coach. The role McMillan has played in turning around Atlanta’s season hasn’t been lost on leading scorer Trae Young, who appeared on Adrian Wojnarowski’s Woj Pod this week and praised the Hawks’ head coach for “connecting with the players.”

Asked about McMillan’s potential future with the team, Young said he’d be surprised if the interim coach isn’t retained beyond 2020/21.

“I couldn’t see a scenario where he’s not back with us,” Young said. “The way we’re winning right now. If we go into the playoffs and do really well, it’s hard to see him not back next year. At the end of the day it’s not up to me, but as a player, I don’t see why he wouldn’t be back.”

While Young is right that the decision won’t ultimately be up to him, Hawks management will likely take the All-Star guard’s opinion into account when they determine what’s next for McMillan, who looks like a pretty safe bet to have his interim label removed.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

In an in-depth profile, Zach Lowe of ESPN examines the growth of Hawks center Clint Capela, who has gone from a rookie the Rockets initially viewed as a draft-and-stash prospect to the anchor of Atlanta’s defense and a legitimate Defensive Player of the Year candidate.
Within his story on Capela, Lowe cites sources who say the Hawks discussed the possibility of trading for Andre Drummond and Steven Adams before ultimately acquiring Capela from Houston a year ago. Atlanta believed that elements of Capela’s pick-and-roll game with James Harden would work for Trae Young, Lowe notes.
After finishing dead-last in three-point percentage a year ago, the Hawks prioritized shooting in the offseason when they signed Bogdan Bogdanovic and Danilo Gallinari to lucrative multiyear deals, and those moves have helped make the Hawks a playoff team, writes Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Bogdanovic (42.0% on threes) and Gallinari (41.6%) have been two of the club’s most reliable marksmen in 2020/21.

Hawks Notes: Dunn, Huerter, Goodwin, Bogdanovic

April 27th, 2021 at 1:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

After being sidelined by injuries for the past 15 months, Kris Dunn returned to the court Monday in his debut with the Hawks, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Dunn, one of the league’s best perimeter defenders, sprained his MCL in January of 2020, the first of a series of injuries that have kept him out of action. An MRI in November showed cartilage disruption in his knee, and then pain in his right ankle and lower back began in December. He has spent the last four months rehabbing from arthroscopic surgery.

“I just felt like different things just kept happening,” Dunn said. “My initial injury was my knee. I felt like I was on the verge of getting better there, then the ankle situation happened. I felt like I was on the verge of getting better there (with my ankle), then the knee kept (having issues), it was just back and forth trying to get back the alignment right. It was a long process. Every emotion you can think of, I went through during that 15 months. But I have a great support system in the organization, my teammates, the coaching staff, everybody kept belief in me, and deep down inside, I’m going to just keep working. I did, and I’m happy I did it.”

Dunn played 13 minutes Monday night and will remain on a minutes restriction for a while. He signed a two-year deal with the Hawks during the offseason that includes a $5MM player option for next season.

There’s more from Atlanta:

Kevin Huerter will undergo an MRI today on his sprained left shoulder, tweets Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Huerter suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Monday’s loss in Detroit.
Also injured last night was guard Brandon Goodwin, who left the game with an ankle impingement, Spencer adds (via Twitter). An X-ray taken after the game was negative, and the team said his status will be updated “as appropriate.” Goodwin offered his own update, tweeting, “Ankle good.”
The return of Bogdan Bogdanovic has helped Nate McMillan turn around the Hawks since taking over for Lloyd Price, writes Kevin Pelton of ESPN (Insider link). In McMillan’s first game as interim coach, Bogdanovic returned from an avulsion fracture in his right knee — since then, he has been on the court for most of the minutes without Trae Young.

Southeast Notes: Avdija, Young, Huerter, Dedmon

April 23rd, 2021 at 9:56pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Wizards never really found out what rookie Deni Avdija could add as a secondary playmaker in his rookie season, Fred Katz of The Athletic writes. Avdija’s rookie campaign was cut short by a right fibular hairline fracture.

Avdija didn’t have many ball-handling opportunities starting alongside Wizards stars Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook. Avdija ascended in last year’s draft as a top-10 selection due to his passing skills, but Washington didn’t get a full picture of what the Israeli forward could produce long-term in that area as the team heads into a crucial offseason, Katz adds.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The Grade 2 ankle sprain that Trae Young is dealing with typically takes about two-to-four weeks to heal, says Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. The high-scoring Hawks point guard suffered the injury against the Knicks on Wednesday. Spencer consulted Dr. Kenneth Jung, an orthopedic foot and ankle surgeon, to come up with a projected recovery period for Young.
Even though the Hawks spent a lot of money to bring in sharpshooter Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kevin Huerter felt he could slide into a variety of roles. Huerter spoke to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic about how his season has gone. “I’ve been in the starting lineup. I’ve been out of the starting lineup,” he said. “My minutes have been up and down. You go into the day and treat it the same. You’re always ready and available. You have to have that approach.” Huerter is eligible for a rookie scale extension prior to the start of next season.
Dewayne Dedmon has given a nice boost to the Heat‘s frontcourt since he signed with them earlier this month, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald notes. The 31-year-old center is averaging 7.8 PPG and 6.0 RPG in 13.8 MPG while appearing in four contests.

Eastern Notes: Butler, Pistons, Bogdanovic, Oladipo

April 4th, 2021 at 7:52pm CST by JD Shaw

Heat star Jimmy Butler is appreciative of his teammates’ “disciplined gambles” on defense, Khobi Price details for The Sun Sentinel. Miami most recently defeated Cleveland for its fourth straight victory, winning the contest 115-101 and forcing 15 turnovers.

“I love that we got some guys who’ll gamble,” Butler said, “so I won’t be the only one getting in trouble when I miss an assignment.”

In addition to Butler, the Heat also have defensive-minded players Victor Oladipo, Trevor Ariza and Andre Iguodala on their roster. All three are known for getting in the passing lanes or stripping ball-handlers, which often leads to easy points in transition.

Since Oladipo debuted with Miami, head coach Erik Spoelstra has rolled with a starting lineup of Oladipo, Duncan Robinson, Butler, Ariza, and Bam Adebayo to turn the heat up (no pun intended) defensively.

Here are some other notes from the Eastern Conference:

Keith Langlois of Pistons.com shared 24 thoughts on the present and future of the Pistons, who currently own the third-worst record in the league at 14-35. Detroit most recently suffered a 125-81 defeat to the Knicks and will visit the Thunder (20-29) on Monday.
Chris Kirschner of The Athletic recently published a Q&A with Hawks wing Bogdan Bogdanovic, who discussed his role with the team, changes under Nate McMillan, and more. Bogdanovic has poured in 76 points over his last three games, shooting 29-for-52 (56%) from the floor. “I’m just being more aggressive and I feel like we’ve started to build chemistry between us,” Bogdanovic said. “When you really look into it, we’ve only played a couple of games together. It hasn’t been many. Since I got hurt, having the restriction minutes off and now that I’ve been off of it, it’s been fun.”
Heat guard Victor Oladipo admitted that the major leg injury he suffered in 2019 isn’t fully behind him, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel tweets. “One leg is stronger than the other,” he explained. “So I have some hypertrophy in one leg than the other. So working my way back and finding my balance is something I’m continuing to work at.” Oladipo underwent surgery just over two years ago on a ruptured quad tendon.

Fischer’s Latest: Graham, Hornets, Mavs, Fournier, Knicks, More

March 22nd, 2021 at 11:57am CST by Luke Adams

While it remains unclear how LaMelo Ball‘s wrist injury will affect the potential availability of fellow Hornets guard Devonte’ Graham, some people around the league were already skeptical that Charlotte would trade Graham this week, writes Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

“They’ll try to keep him, and they’re willing to pay,” one assistant general manager said of Graham, who is eligible for restricted free agency this summer. Team executives polled by Fischer estimated that it may cost about $13-16MM annually on a four-year deal for the Hornets to re-sign Graham.

Ball’s injury may make the Hornets less likely to address their center position with a one-year stopgap, but it shouldn’t discourage them from remaining on the lookout for a long-term solution, per ESPN’s Zach Lowe.

Both Fischer and Lowe reiterate that Pacers center Myles Turner is high on Charlotte’s wish list, which has been previously reported. Fischer also identifies Grizzlies big man Gorgui Dieng as a potential target for the Hornets and says Charlotte has also called the Lakers asking about Montrezl Harrell.

Here’s more from Fischer:

The Mavericks have been the “loudest rumored team” for Magic guard Evan Fournier, according to Fischer, who says that one possible package would consist of James Johnson and a pair of second-round picks.
The Hawks are worth keeping an eye on as a possible Victor Oladipo landing spot, says Fischer, adding that the team has made Bogdan Bogdanovic and Cam Reddish available.
The Knicks have signaled interest in using their $15MM in cap room to accommodate a three-team deal, per Fischer. Some people within the team’s front office are against the idea of surrendering any draft assets for a player who could be signed this summer.
Fischer adds the Rockets, Pacers, and Bulls to the list of teams that have looked into a possible acquisition of Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie. Miami, Detroit, and Toronto have previously been cited as possibilities for Dinwiddie.
Although the Pelicans and Bulls had some earlier discussions centered around Lauri Markkanen and Lonzo Ball, those talks haven’t seemed substantial, sources tell Fischer.

Hawks Rumors: Smart, Bogdanovic, Collins, Hunter, Ball

March 22nd, 2021 at 9:09am CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have expressed interest in Celtics guard Marcus Smart, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic. Smart, who is one of the NBA’s stronger perimeter defenders, would be a nice fit in Atlanta’s backcourt alongside Trae Young, but Boston’s appetite for trading Smart is unclear.

At 21-21, the Celtics have had a disappointing season, but they’re still a playoff team and Smart plays a key role for the club. Boston likely won’t simply trade him for picks or prospects, so any deal that sends him to Atlanta would likely have to include a player like John Collins or Bogdan Bogdanovic, as Jared Weiss and Sam Amick of The Athletic write.

Speaking of Bogdanovic, in addition to drawing interest from the Celtics, he’s being eyed by a few other teams as well. Charania adds the Warriors to the list of players with interest in Bogdanovic, while Weiss and Amick say the Clippers are also on that list.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

League sources with knowledge of the Hawks’ Collins trade discussions tell Weiss and Amick that there’s a “significant gulf” in how much Atlanta values the big man and how much teams are willing to give up for him. The fact that the Hawks only offered in the range of $90MM in extension talks last offseason has created the impression they wouldn’t go any higher than that this summer when Collins reaches restricted free agency, which isn’t the case.
According to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, the Hawks’ initial response to the Celtics‘ inquiries on Collins was to try to build a deal around Jaylen Brown, which was a non-starter for Boston.
ESPN’s Zach Lowe estimates that the odds of a Collins trade this week are only about 30%, given how highly the Hawks value him and how badly they want to make the postseason. It would be difficult for the club to find a fair deal without taking a step back in the short term.
Hawks wing De’Andre Hunter may return to action as soon as Monday night, sources tell Charania. Hunter has been sidelined since January 29 after undergoing meniscus surgery.
Charania confirms that the Hawks are among the teams expected to pursue Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball, which was first reported by Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer on Sunday.