Clint Capela

Draft Notes: Clippers, Vonleh, Hornets, Hairston

The Clippers are interested in trading up from pick No. 28, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Shelburne’s piece centers on a profile of former University of Colorado guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who can’t work out because he’s still recovering from a torn ACL. Dinwiddie’s nonetheless had meetings with the Bucks, Wizards, Bulls and Celtics, and he’s scheduled interviews and physicals with the Clippers, Heat, Hawks and Thunder, according to Shelburne. The ESPN scribe also says that he’ll interview and take a physical for the Jazz, advancing an earlier report that he was set to interview with the team. Here’s more on the draft:

  • Julius Randle is set to work out for the Jazz tomorrow, tweets Utah’s radio announcer David Locke.
  • Marcus Smart and Elfrid Payton are expected to work out for the Lakers on Friday for the second time, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports Spears advises his readers to “keep an eye” on Payton (via Twitter) in light of the second workout.
  • Nik Stauskas is expected in for his first workout with the Lakers, who have struggled to get Stauskas in, tweets Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times.
  • Rodney Hood had to sit out most of his Hornets workout today due to illness, reports Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer.
  • Gary Harris and Zach LaVine will work out for the Hornets tomorrow, tweets Bonnell, who adds Charlotte’s other new workout appointees in a separate tweet: Rion Brown; Ronald Roberts Jr.; and Markel Brown, who missed an earlier workout due to travel issues.
  • The Rockets worked out Shabazz Napier, Xavier Thames, Patric Young, Nick Russell, and Kadeem Coleby, tweets Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops.
  • Sim Bhullar, Earnest Ross, Ian Chiles, Cameron Clark, Philipp Neumann, and Jordan Bachynski will work out for the Wizards tomorrow, tweets J. Michael of CSNWashington.com.

Earlier updates:

  • Noah Vonleh will work out for the Sixers on Thursday, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
  • Elfrid Payton, Josh Huestis, James Bell and Jordan Clarkson are the previously unreported prospects performing for the Hornets today, as Chris Littmann of The Sporting News tweets.
  • P.J. Hairston will audition for the Hawks, as he tells Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, who also reports that Hairston will show off for the Grizzlies, Lakers and Bulls (Twitter links).
  • Kyle Anderson will work out for the Suns, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, as well as the Grizzlies, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter links). A previous report indicated that the Suns were set to audition Anderson a week ago, so this appears to be his second workout with Phoenix.
  • Anderson will also perform for the Bulls, as will Clint Capela and DeAndre Daniels, Zagoria tweets.
  • Jordan Adams, Devyn Marble, Sean Kilpatrick, C.J. Wilcox and Jarnell Stokes are working out for the Raptors today, the team announced. A report from last month indicated that Stokes had already worked out for Toronto, but given that the dispatch came in the middle of the draft combine, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was actually an interview between Stokes and the club, rather than a workout.
  • The Wizards are auditioning Semaj Christon, Nick Johnson, Deonte Burton, Alec Brown and Khem Birch today, according to Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops (on Twitter).

NBA Draft Withdrawal Deadline Updates

Monday was the deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA draft, and the league has announced the list of those who’ve pulled out. The deadline applied mostly to prospects from overseas, since any collegian who takes his name out of consideration at this point isn’t be able to return to NCAA competition. Mychal Ammons of South Alabama is the only U.S.-based player who withdrew, but he’d already signed a deal with an overseas club.

Yesterday’s reports identified several of the prospects taking their names out of the draft, as well as some high-profile players staying in, and we’ve added the previously unreported names of those pulling out to the top of the list below. For the complete register of early entrants denoting those who’ve withdrawn, click here.

Withdrawing from the draft

  • Ammons, Berkay Candan, Tomas Dimsa, Marko Ramljak, Alejandro SuarezDevon Van Oostrum are all out of the draft, the NBA announced.
  • Joonas Caven has pulled out of the draft, agent K.C. Callero tells Givony (Twitter link).
  • Matias Bortolin is withdrawing from the draft, his agent tells Sportando (Twitter link).
  • Ilja Gromovs will exit the draft, too, agent Arturs Kalnitis says to Givony (Twitter link).
  • Mateusz Ponitka has removed his name from draft consideration, Givony tweets.
  • Moussa Diagne and Guillem Vives will take their names out of the draft, agent Herb Ruboy says to Givony (Twitter link).
  • Rasmus Larsen has decided to exit the draft, as agent Doug Neustadt informs Givony (Twitter link).
  • OKK Spars Sarajevo teammates Nedim Buza and Adin Vrabac have decided to pull out of the draft, agent Alexander Raskovic tweets.
  • Lefteris Bochoridis has withdrawn from the draft, a source tells Shams Charania of RealGM.

Remaining in the draft

  • Jokic isn’t the only prospect to flip-flop today.  Damien Inglis changed his mind and has decided to keep his name in the draft, agent Pedja Materic tells Jonthan Givony of DraftExpress (via Twitter).
  • Raznatovic, Saric’s agent, took to Twitter to confirm that his client will remain in the draft (hat tip to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
  • Nikola Jokic has changed his mind and will remain in the draft after all, Raznatovic tweets (hat tip to Chad Ford of ESPN.com).
  • Dario Saric will stay in the draft, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link).
  • Vasilije Micic remains in the draft, agent Misko Raznatovic tweets.
  • Clint Capela will keep his name in this year’s draft, agent Bouna Ndiaye tells Givony (Twitter link).

And-Ones: Cavs, Draft, Pelicans, Wolves

The Cavs coaching search may be down to just three candidates, writes Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal. While some names are still being mentioned, Finnan (hat tip to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders) believes the finalists are Clippers assistant coaches Alvin Gentry and Tyronn Lue and former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach David Blatt.

Here’s more from around the association:

  • The Nuggets are planning to bring in Tyler Ennis, Zach LaVine, James Young, Clint Capela, Casey Prather and Tarik Black for workouts on Saturday, reports Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (Twitter link).
  • The Timberwolves tweeted that Adreian Payne, Justin Cobbs, Kyle Anderson, Cory Jefferson, Markel Starks and Jamil Wilson all have workouts scheduled with the team.
  • Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reports (Twitter link) Russ Smith, Jahii Carson, and Jordan Morgan worked out for the Wolves on Wednesday.
  • Adi Joseph of USA Today looks at the draft needs of the Pelicans. The team currently doesn’t have any picks, but they are reportedly trying to acquire one. According to the article, the team’s biggest needs are at small forward, center, and point guard.
  • In a separate article, Joseph looks at the draft needs of the Timberwolves. According to Joseph, the team’s priorities should be at point guard, and both forward spots.
  • The crew over at Basketball Insiders (video link) analyze the 2014 free agent class and where each player may end up.
  • In a separate article, the latest mock draft from Basketball Insiders has them split over who will be the first-overall pick–Andrew Wiggins or Joel Embiid.

Draft Rumors: Randle, Magic, Eriksson, Capela

Julius Randle and his family deny that there’s anything wrong with his right foot, in spite of a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports that the potential top-five pick will likely require surgery. Randle issued his denial in a pair of tweets, while his mother and godfather spoke with Kyle Tucker of The Courier-Journal and Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv, respectively. The procedure would force Randle to miss six to eight weeks but allow him to start training camp on time, according to Wojnarowski. Wojnarowski’s original report indicated that the surgery wouldn’t affect his draft stock, but later said via Twitter that it was “an issue,” echoing what an NBA executive told Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com, who suggests the injury could indeed affect his stock. NBA teams are worried that putting off surgery will lead to major problems in the future, Wojnarowski tweets. There’s more on Randle amid our latest on the draft:

  • The Celtics, who pick sixth, say Randle has “full clearance” as far as they’re concerned, tweets Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe.
  • Tucker’s report adds the Magic to the teams auditioning Randle.
  • Spanish league shooting guard Marcus Eriksson is pulling out of this year’s draft, agent Andy Miller tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).  Eriksson is No. 80 in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress prospect rankings, but Chad Ford of ESPN.com doesn’t have him ranked. There have been no reports of Eriksson setting up interviews or workouts with teams.
  • Clint Capela is the leading name in a Raptors workout today that also includes LaQuinton Ross, Jamil Wilson and Markel Brown, the team announced (on Twitter).
  • Brown has worked out for the Thunder, a source tells Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Slater also passes along an earlier report from Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that Kyle Anderson worked out for the team, and another report from Jeremy Rauch of Fox 19 in Cincinnati that adds the Thunder, Heat and Bulls to the list of teams auditioning Semaj Christon (Twitter links).
  • Zach LaVine is among the prospects who’ll show off for the Celtics on Friday, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. The Celtics are auditioning Luke Hancock and Geron Johnson on top of previously reported names today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com reveals via Twitter.

Draft Rumors: Embiid, Wiggins, Gordon, Suns

Chris Mannix of SI.com hears from sources who maintain their belief that the Cavs are deciding between Joel Embiid and Andrew Wiggins, as Mannix writes in his latest mock draft. The Sixers hope that Embiid and Jabari Parker go with the first two picks, since they covet Wiggins, as Mannix hears. There’s more from Mannix amid our latest look at the draft:

  • Danny Ainge is “locked in” on Aaron Gordon at No. 6 for the Celtics, several sources tell Mannix, who nonetheless points to the distinct possibility that Ainge will trade the pick.
  • The Suns are shopping the 27th overall pick, rival executives tell Mannix.
  • The Wolves are listening to offers for the 13th overall selection, but they aren’t actively seeking deals, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
  • Clint Capela, Eric Moreland, Victor Rudd and Akeem Williams are the previously unreported names on the list of players working out for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com details.
  • The Raptors are auditioning Deonte Burton and Niels Giffey today among others we’d already heard about, the team announced.
  • Chaz Williams has the Warriors, Bucks, and Cavs on his workout agenda, as he tells Daniel Malone of MassLive.
  • It appears as though Devyn Marble has set up another workout for the Bucks today after having to call off last week’s plans, as he tweeted that he would be auditioning for Milwaukee today after performing for the Spurs on Tuesday (hat tip to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).

Draft Notes: McRae, Hood, Young, Suns, Smart

Earlier today, our own Zach Links (Twitter links) spoke with Tennesee guard Jordan McRae who told Hoops Rumors that he has worked out for the HeatPistons, and 76ers in addition to his previously reported audition with the Bulls.  Still on the docket for McRae are workouts with the Bucks, Raptors, Mavericks, Wizards, Pacers, and Rockets.  In total, McRae says he has “about nine” workouts to go, so there should be even more clubs on the horizon for him (link).  DraftExpress currently has McRae pegged to go to Toronto at No. 59 in their mock draft.  Here’s the latest draft news from around the league..

  • Rodney Hood, James Young, Zach LaVine, and Clint Capela are among those working out for the Suns today whom we hadn’t previously heard about. Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic has the details (Twitter links).
  • Marcus Smart says he’ll work out a second time for the Magic, tweets Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com.
  • The Knicks will audition Patric Young, as Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com hears (Twitter link). They brought Markel Starks in for a look this weekend, reports Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link).
  • Orlando Sanchez has already shown off for Kings, and he’ll also do so for Pacers, as Josh Newman of SNY.tv chronicles.
  • The Bucks brought Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Cameron Clark, Josh Huestis, Melvin Johnson, Ovie Soko, and Fuquan Edwin in for auditions today, the team announced.  Our own Zach Links interviewed Huestis in April as a part of our Prospect Profile series.
  • Edwin also has the Suns on his agenda, and he’s already worked out for the Spurs, Sixers, Kings and Clippers, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel adds the Knicks and Sixers to the list of teams for which Antetokounmpo auditioned (Twitter link).
  • Bryce Cotton is headed for a workout with the Mavs on Wednesday, tweets Kevin McNamara of the Providence Journal.
  • DeAndre Kane, Jake Odum, Jakarr Sampson, and Okaro White are among those performing for the Grizzlies today, as Michael Cohen of The Commercial Appeal details in a subscription-only piece.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

Clint Capela Declares For Draft

One of the top European talents appears to be on his way to the NBA, as Clint Capela has officially entered the draft, his French team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). The French league power forward is No. 18 in Chad Ford’s ESPN.com prospect rankings, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress has him at No. 19.

Capela is 6’11” with a wingspan of 7’4.5″ that helps him defensively and on the boards. He averaged 7.0 rebounds in 20.9 minutes per game for Elan Chalon in France, though he isn’t a featured player on offense, scoring 9.7 points on 6.4 shots per game. The native of Switzerland spent nearly half the season coming off the bench.

An NBA team would have to pay $500K to buy him out of his French contract, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reported earlier this month, though that probably wouldn’t be a stumbling block. It wouldn’t come out of his rookie scale salary, since it’s less than the Excluded International Player Payment Amount specified in the collective bargaining agreement.

And-Ones: Knicks, Wolves, Draft

The Knicks won tonight but their playoff chances took a hit when the Hawks also were victorious, reducing their magic number to clinch a playoff spot to one. New York has had its share of issues this season, but the one that sunk the team the most was the trade for Andrea Bargnani, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Besides acquiring his large and difficult to trade contract, the team could have potentially used the 2016 first rounder they gave up for Bargnani in a deal for the Raptors Kyle Lowry, writes Berman.

More from around the league:

  • The Timberwolves plan to trade for help this offseason, but according to owner Glen Taylor, it won’t be a “big trade”, tweets Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
  • The crew at Basketball Insiders take at look at what steps are needed to fix the Wolves.
  • The NBA Players Association has formed a brand new search committee to ensure they have a new executive director in place by the start of the 2014/15 season, writes Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
  • Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports believes that the 2014 freshman class might be better than this year’s highly touted group.
  • The next international draft sensation from Switzerland could be Clint Capela, writes Spears. DraftExpress.com has Capela ranked as the 14th-best prospect in this year’s draft. He’s projected as a first-round prospect in the 20-30 range, but he could improve his standing at the Hoop Summit, opines Spears.
  • Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Video) breaks down draft prospect Dante Exum.
  • Xavier Henry‘s surgeries on his left wrist and right knee were successful the Lakers announced. Henry is a free agent after the season ends.

Odds & Ends: Silver, Nets, Hill, Draft

We’re 11 days into Adam Silver’s reign as NBA commissioner, and if no one’s noticed much of a difference from before, that’s by design, as Silver tells Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press.

“I’m not coming in with a five-point plan,” Silver said. “I’m not an outsider coming into the league. I’ve been part of this league for a long time and if there was something that I thought should’ve been done markedly different than the way it’s done now, I think David and I would have pushed each other to do it.”

Here’s more from Silver’s status-quo league:

  • A source puts the chances of the Nets making a trade between now and the deadline at less than 10%, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). That echoes what we heard from Grantland’s Zach Lowe earlier today.
  • Grant Hill is still drawing NBA interest during his first year of retirement, but the 41-year-old tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that he’s definitely not making a comeback.
  • The top 10 prospects are unchanged on the latest Insider-only draft board from Chad Ford of ESPN.com, though Swiss power forward Clint Capela jumps to No. 20 from outside the top 30.
  • Wizards camp invitee Xavier Silas has signed with a team in Argentina, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The deal includes an escape clause that will allow him to ink an NBA deal at any point this season.
  • Udonis Haslem has never played for an NBA team other than the Heat, and the 11th-year vet doesn’t intend for that to ever change, as he tells Bleacher Report’s Ethan Skolnick. Haslem has a $4.62MM player option for next season.