Dalano Banton Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Filipowski, George, Collier, D. Jones, Doncic, Vezenkov, Blazers

November 18th, 2024 at 11:29am CST by Tristan Tucker

Rookie center Kyle Filipowski‘s play continues to be one of the brightest spots of the Jazz‘s season so far, Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune writes. After claiming a starting role last week, Filipowski continues to pass test after test against some of the NBA’s best.

Filipowski is being targeted defensively in his rookie season, but he has responded admirably and recorded three steals against the Kings on Saturday.

“I guess that’s how it is for rookies, especially rookies that stand up to that sort of thing,” Filipowski said. “I gotta pull my big boy pants on, you know, and not back down from that challenge.”

The No. 32 pick in this year’s draft is averaging 7.9 points and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 55.2% from the field. In his past five games, including three starts, he has increased those averages to 12.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists per contest.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Keyonte George was benched in the second half of the Jazz‘s Sunday game against Los Angeles, Larsen writes in a separate story. Coach Will Hardy was clear about his reasoning after the game: “I wasn’t happy with Keyonte’s defense in the first half. Keyonte knows how much I believe in him, but sometimes you have to make changes in the moment to reinforce your point.” George played with the second unit and ended up playing the final 19 minutes of the game. He didn’t seem to be phased by the change after the game, Larsen writes. “Urgency levels should be at an all-time high no matter what — but we’re all humans,” George said. “I don’t know if you have a boss, but if they say you should take a break, when you come back you’re going to be on your Ps and Qs.” He’ll need to continue to improve on his decision-making, Larsen opines.
In George’s place, rookie guard Isaiah Collier started the second half and established career highs in minutes (26) and assists (8). Larsen writes in the same piece that Collier has been the Jazz‘s only true point guard and while he’s only getting to his own shot by beating the opposition in fast break situations (he’s shooting 11.1% from three), he’s helping the offense by taking care of the ball. “We know who our scorers are, we know where the ball needs to go,” Collier said. “Doing those little things, it definitely helped us int he second half.” The No. 29 overall pick in 2024 is averaging 4.3 PPG and 2.7 APG this year.
Thunder No. 26 overall pick Dillon Jones set career highs in points (12), minutes (15) and assists (3) on Sunday in a loss to Dallas. The Weber State product made all but one of his six shot attempts. Superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had nothing but praise for the first-round rookie, according to the Thunder’s Nick Gallo (Twitter link). “He’s getting his feet work, getting more comfortable… He’s doing a great job,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “He’s keeping his head. He’s getting better. That’s all you can ask for.“
The Nuggets were close to trading up for Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic in the 2018 draft, former Denver Post writer Mike Singer said on Brian Windhorst’s Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to RealGM). “The Nuggets knew that Vlade Divac was not particularly high on Luka Doncic,” Singer, now an employee of the Nuggets, said. “And they had designs on pairing Nikola Jokic with Luka Doncic. On draft night in 2018, they tried. There was a call placed. There was a proposal and the Nuggets attempted to get the No. 2 pick for Gary Harris and two first round picks was what I was told. You can roll your eyes at that price tag, but look in retrospect. The Kings ended up taking Marvin Bagley with the No. 2 pick. I’m not saying this trade was imminent. All I’m saying is this trade was discussed and considered because the Nuggets knew Vlade Divac was not particularly high on Luka Doncic and they tried to exploit it.”
The Nuggets also previously tried to acquire Sasha Vezenkov in 2016, the former Kings forward said in a podcast, per a report from Eurohoops.net. “Jokic called me back in 2016, way before he became a three-time MVP,” Vezenkov said. “Back then, he wasn’t a superstar. He told me the Nuggets wanted me. They were signing European players. But I hesitated. I was an insecure 20-year-old. After playing in Europe, they lost interest. I don’t think about it a lot, but I often wonder what could have been.” Vezenkov made his NBA debut last year for Sacramento, but he was traded and then bought out in the offseason as he decided to head back overseas.
After a 45-point loss last week, the Trail Blazers restored good vibes by winning three in a row, Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report writes. Shaedon Sharpe has 65 points in his last two games, rookie Donovan Clingan is standing out, and bench players like Dalano Banton have played well during the streak.

Blazers Notes: Williams, Rebuild, Banton, G League Moves

November 6th, 2024 at 9:22am CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers center Robert Williams was available to suit up on Monday for the first time in nearly a year, having recovered from last season’s knee surgery and a hamstring injury he sustained during training camp. His last appearance in an NBA game occurred on November 5, 2023.

However, Williams didn’t get off the bench in New Orleans as Portland leaned on Deandre Ayton and Donovan Clingan to man the middle — the duo combined for 23 points, 16 rebounds, and three blocks in their 48 minutes of action.

While it’s unclear whether Williams will crack Portland’s rotation going forward, it’s a safe bet he won’t play in both ends of a back-to-back set anytime soon, tweets Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report.

Highkin predicts Williams will be active on Thursday in San Antonio and, if he sees any action in that game, would be held out of Friday’s contest in Minnesota.

Here’s more on the Blazers:

The Thunder’s incredibly successful rebuild in recent years serves as an aspirational model for the Trail Blazers to try to emulate, writes Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian (subscription required). However, Fentress acknowledges that Portland’s apparent lack of a potential franchise player to build around puts them a step behind the 2020-22 Thunder, who won just 46 games across two seasons but were led a budding superstar in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Traded from Boston to Portland in a salary-dump deal in February, swingman Dalano Banton made an impact down the stretch last season, had his team option picked up, and has now had 50% of his 2024/25 salary guaranteed. Banton continued to show on Monday that he deserves his spot on the Blazers’ roster, scoring 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting, all in the fourth quarter, to help the team secure a win over the Pelicans. “I wasn’t expecting that,” Billups told reporters, including Fentress (subscription required). “But he’s one of those types of guys that when he gets a rhythm, he’s a really tough cover with his size and his skill set, his handle, and things like that. So, I was just happy to see him get going. I thought he fueled us.”
The Trail Blazers’ G League affiliate, the Rip City Remix, has reacquired forward Alex Reese after he was waived by the Thunder, per the NBAGL transaction log. Reese suited up for the Remix last season and the team still controlled his returning rights.
The Remix also made a trade with the Windy City Bulls this week, acquiring the returning rights to former NBAers Frank Jackson and Daniel Oturu along with a 2025 international draft pick in exchange for the rights to center David Muoka (Twitter link). Muoka is the only one of those three players who is currently on a G League contract — Jackson and Oturu are playing in France and Turkey, respectively.

Raptors Push Back Bruno Fernando’s Guarantee Date

October 25th, 2024 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract that Bruno Fernando signed with the Raptors in August initially included language stating that it would become fully guaranteed if the big man wasn’t waived on or before the first day of the regular season.

However, according to Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter links), the Raptors and Fernando agreed to amend his one-year deal when he made the opening-night roster. Rather than becoming guaranteed, the contract will remain non-guaranteed until the league-wide salary guarantee deadline in January.

If the terms of the deal had remained unchanged, Fernando would have locked in a $2,425,403 salary, while Toronto would have been on the hook for his full $2,087,519 cap hit.

Instead, the 26-year-old will earn $13,939 for every day he’s on the roster, with his full salary and cap hit becoming guaranteed if he remains under contract through at least January 7.

The Raptors had some leverage, since they could have waived Fernando if he hadn’t agreed to amend his contract, leaving him without even a partial guarantee. Now the team will have some flexibility in the first half with that 15th roster spot.

This sort of agreement is nothing new for Fernando, who began the offseason with Atlanta on a deal that called for his 2024/25 salary to become guaranteed if he wasn’t waived by June 29. He and the Hawks reached an agreement to move that date back to July 10, then pushed it back again to August 1. Atlanta waived him on July 30.

Fernando served as Jakob Poeltl‘s primary backup center in the first game of Toronto’s season on Wednesday, recording six points and seven rebounds in 15 minutes of action.

As our list of early salary guarantee dates shows, Fernando was the only player on a contract that called for his salary to become fully guaranteed if he made a regular season roster. However, Dalano Banton (Trail Blazers), Keon Johnson (Nets), and Jalen Wilson (Nets) had deals assuring them of partial guarantees for remaining under contract through opening night.

We’ll give it another day or two before updating our tracker to see if any reports trickle in indicating that one or more of those players amended their contracts like Fernando did, but for now our assumption is that Banton, Johnson, and Wilson locked in their respective partial guarantees.

Northwest Notes: Bates-Diop, Banton, Clingan, Murray, Westbrook

October 19th, 2024 at 5:51pm CST by Luke Adams

As our roster count page shows, the Timberwolves are the only one of the NBA’s 30 teams whose roster is not ready for the regular season after a busy day of transactions. Minnesota is still carrying 16 players on standard contracts, whereas the other 29 clubs have 15 or fewer players on standard deals.

The Wolves don’t need to finalize their opening night roster until Monday evening, but an absence at practice on Saturday provided a pretty strong hint about which direction they’re leaning, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, who tweets that forward Keita Bates-Diop wasn’t in attendance and appears to be the odd man out.

Nothing’s official yet, but Bates-Diop was a throw-in for salary-matching purposes in the Karl-Anthony Towns blockbuster, so it makes sense that he’s not in Minnesota’s plans. Removing him from the roster would allow the club to hang onto PJ Dozier, whose salary is partially guaranteed.

Still, since Bates-Diop’s $2,654,644 salary for 2024/25 is fully guaranteed, the Wolves are likely reluctant to simply waive him and eat that money, especially given how far over the luxury tax line they are. They may continue trying up until Monday’s deadline to find a taker for Bates-Diop on the trade market — they’d probably have to attach a second-round pick to make a deal.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Trail Blazers guard Dalano Banton is expected to make the team’s opening night roster, tweets Sean Highkin of the Rose Garden Report. Barring a last-minute surprise, Banton will see his partial guarantee increase from $217,533 to $1,098,485 as a result of starting the season with the team. The other half of his $2,196,970 salary would become guaranteed if he remains under contract beyond January 7.
Trail Blazers lottery pick Donovan Clingan had a big night in his first start of the preseason on Friday, Highkin writes for his Rose Garden Report Substack. The rookie center, who isn’t expected to play big minutes in a crowded Blazers frontcourt, racked up 14 points, four blocks, and an eye-popping 20 rebounds (10 offensive) in just 24 minutes of action, with Portland outscoring Utah by 30 points during that time. Head coach Chauncey Billups said Clingan is still adjusting to the speed of the NBA game, but praised the big man’s rebounding and rim protection. “Those two things, he’ll be pretty elite at,” Billups said. “He’ll only get better.”
Jamal Murray‘s performance in Thursday’s preseason finale likely calmed some nerves in Denver, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. After dealing with some knee pain and shooting just 32% from the floor through three preseason appearances, the Nuggets guard poured in 25 points in 29 minutes in Thursday’s victory, showing that he’s ready for the regular season after a tough 2024 postseason and Olympic Games.
In a column for The Denver Post, Sean Keeler examines what Denver is hoping to get this season from free agent addition Russell Westbrook, suggesting that the former MVP can be an important “agitator” for the Nuggets and help them play with more of an edge.

Trail Blazers Waive Devonte’ Graham

October 17th, 2024 at 3:19pm CST by Rory Maher

The Trail Blazers have waived veteran guard Devonte’ Graham, the team confirmed in a press release (Twitter link). Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian was first to report the move.

Assuming he goes unclaimed, Graham will become an unrestricted free agent on Saturday.

Graham signed a non-guaranteed Exhibit 9 contract with Portland in August in the hope of making the regular season roster. He was competing with Dalano Banton for the 15th and final standard roster spot — Graham being released drastically improves Banton’s odds of making the team.

The news doesn’t come as a surprise, but it was still a key roster battle to monitor. Banton impressed the Blazers down the stretch of last season, and they picked up their 2024/25 team option on his contract at the end of June, giving him a partial guarantee of $217,533, with the remainder of his $2,196,970 salary still non-guaranteed. If Banton makes the opening night roster, his partial guarantee will increase to $1,098,485.

A former second-round pick (No. 34 overall in 2018) who played four years of college ball at Kansas, Graham had some productive seasons with Charlotte in his first few NBA seasons, including averaging 18.2 points, 7.5 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.0 steal per contest in 63 games in ’19/20 (35.1 MPG).

However, the six-year veteran only appeared in 23 games for San Antonio last season, averaging a career-low 13.6 minutes, and was traded to the Hornets in July in a salary dump. Charlotte promptly waived him before his full $12,650,000 salary became guaranteed, but Graham will still be paid his $2.85MM partial guarantee, with the Hornets carrying that figure as a dead-money cap hit.

Portland’s roster could be ready for the regular season, though there’s still time to make some minor additions for G League purposes. The team now has 18 players under contract, with 15 players on standard deals and all three of its two-way slots filled.

Blazers Notes: Reath, Williams, Backcourt, Graham, Banton

October 9th, 2024 at 10:40pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Trail Blazers backup center Duop Reath remains a potentially integral part of Portland’s crowded big man rotation, writes Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.

The 6’11” big man is the only rostered Blazers center who’s a proficient three-point shooter. During his rookie season in 2023/24, the 28-year-old stepped up in the absence of an injured Robert Williams III, assuming primary reserve duties behind starter Deandre Ayton.

Across 68 contests (20 starts), Reath averaged 9.1 points on .461/.359/.742 shooting splits, along with 3.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.6 blocks and 0.5 steals per night. His 35.9% long range conversion rate arrived on 3.6 attempts, pretty good for a guy playing just 17.9 minutes per game.

Though Williams is injured again, the former All-Defensive Second Teamer will likely still leapfrog Reath when healthy, as Portland no doubt hopes to find a new trade home for him at some point. Former Connecticut standout Donovan Clingan, the Trail Blazers’ prized lottery draft pick this summer, seems likely to earn some run, too.

“That’s the benefit of the team,” Reath said of the Portland centers’ various skill sets. “Everybody’s good at what they’re good at. (Clingan) is huge. Great rim protector. You’ve got me, who can stretch the floor a little bit. Everybody is just different. So, coach can use whatever he needs that game, that day.”

There’s more out of Portland:

Speaking of Williams, the 6’9″ vet recently supplied an update on his Grade 1 left hamstring strain, suffered last week in a practice. As Fentress writes in another Oregonian story, Williams is projected to return in two weeks, meaning he should be available around the start of the Trail Blazers’ season. He suited up for just six games last year, before undergoing a season-ending knee surgery in November. Fentress reports that Williams is taking part in some of the Trail Blazers’ training camp activities, though he is currently avoiding the tougher drills. “I feel good,” Williams said. “Working out a little bit more. Ramping up a little bit more.”
Fourth-year Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups is bullish on the team’s depth at the guard position, too, Fentress adds in a different article. Expected starting shooting guard Shaedon Sharpe sustained a shoulder separation and is set to miss the next four-to-six weeks, but Billups expects backups Scoot Henderson, Dalano Banton and training camp signee Devonte’ Graham to step up admirably. Anfernee Simons will be temporarily moved back to a shooting guard role on the squad while Sharpe recuperates.
According to Fentress, in the absence of Sharpe, both Banton and Graham are expected to start the year with Portland. Banton is on a partially guaranteed deal, while Graham’s contract is non-guaranteed. “He’s just such a hooper,” Billups said of Banton. “He’s just such a good basketball player.” In order to hang onto both Banton and Graham into the regular season, Portland would have to trade or waive a player with a guaranteed contract. Fentress doesn’t specify who might be the odd man out.
In case you missed it, Billups is still wrapping his head around his impending enshrinement into the Hall of Fame this week.

Blazers Exercising 2024/25 Team Option On Dalano Banton

June 29th, 2024 at 9:40am CST by Rory Maher

The Trail Blazers are exercising their 2024/25 team option on Dalano Banton, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

As our team option decision tracker shows, Banton is slated to make a $2,196,970 next season. However, that figure is non-guaranteed. Now that his option has been picked up, his deal is partially guaranteed for $217,533, with multiple trigger dates to follow.

A report back in April said Portland was expected to pick up its option on Banton’s contract, so the move doesn’t come as a surprise.

The 46th pick of the 2021 draft, Banton was traded to Portland from Boston in a salary-dump move ahead of the February deadline. In part due to injuries, Banton received extended playing time down the stretch of the ’23/24 season for the Blazers, averaging 16.7 PPG, 4.8 RPG and 3.9 APG in 30 games, including eight starts (29.2 MPG).

While those counting stats are impressive, the 24-year-old struggled with scoring efficiency, posting a .408/.311/.780 shooting line over that span. That slash line is quite similar to his career mark (.409/.289/.729) — working to improve those percentages will be a key for Banton moving forward.

Still, obviously the Blazers were impressed enough with the 6’9″ guard to exercise their option on his deal. Despite being a former second-round pick, Banton has only played on standard contracts to this point in his career. The Toronto native spent his first two seasons with his hometown Raptors.

Northwest Notes: Wolves Ownership, Banton, Williams, Jazz

April 14th, 2024 at 1:45pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The 56-25 Timberwolves, battling for the No. 1 seed in the West, have emerged as one of the best teams in the league this season. But Minnesota’s fraught ownership situation has suddenly taken center stage in the club’s best season over the last 20 years, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

As the Wolves look to advance beyond the first round of the postseason for just the second time ever, the grievance between majority owner Glen Taylor and minority owners Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore has uncomfortably remained persistent. The two sides seem destined for mediation or arbitration, and Krawcyznski believes their very public dispute could linger far beyond the end of the 2024 postseason.

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

Trail Blazers point guard Dalano Banton is doing the most to maximize his play with Portland, per Libaan Osman of The Toronto Star. “I think everyone wants the chance to show what they can do and make a name for themselves,” Banton said. “I just looked at it that way. I know I’ve been sitting on the bench for three years in this league, I know that time was of the essence in my third year.” Osman notes that Portland is expected to exercise its $2.2MM team option on Banton’s contract. Thanks to injuries to many of the Trail Blazers guards who are ahead of him in the team’s rotation, Banton has been averaging 16.7 PPG on .418/.339/.777 shooting in his 29 games with the team, along with 4.8 RPG, 3.5 APG and 0.9 SPG.
Center Robert Williams III played just six contests with the Trail Blazers before tearing his right knee ligament in November, which required a season-ending surgery. He spoke with reporters this week for the first time since then, writes Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report. “It was pretty tough,” Williams said. “But it was eye-opening. I got a chance to work on stuff while I was put down for a minute.”
The rebuilding Jazz have been immersed in something of a half-hearted tank since Danny Ainge began offloading Utah’s franchise cornerstones, but the team hasn’t always been making the right decisions with its personnel-building thus far, opines Gordon Monson of The Salt Lake Tribune.

Northwest Notes: Murray, Edwards, Holiday, Hayward, Banton

April 10th, 2024 at 1:47pm CST by Luke Adams

A Northwest division showdown in Denver on Wednesday night will go a long way toward determining which team controls the No. 1 seed in this year’s Western Conference playoffs. The Nuggets and Timberwolves will enter the evening with matching 55-24 records and only three games left to play.

Both teams will be on the second end of a back-to-back set. On Tuesday, the Nuggets picked up a 16-point win in Utah, with Jamal Murray scoring 28 points in just 27 minutes of action in his second game back following a seven-game injury absence. Murray is still on a minutes restriction, but looked fresh in the fourth quarter when Denver needed him most, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post.

“Seven games off will do that for you,” Murray told reporters in his post-game media session. “So I feel good. It’s just good to get a flow out there. It’s more conditioning. Your breathing and muscle fatigue throughout the game. … Felt good, comfortable and just ready to play.”

Meanwhile, in Minnesota, the Timberwolves kept pace in the race for No. 1 by registering a 130-121 victory over Washington. It was a memorable night for Anthony Edwards, who scored a career-high 51 points while also dishing seven assists. After the win, Edwards credited head coach Chris Finch for making sure he didn’t let up against one of the NBA’s worst teams.

“He put me in the office two, three days ago and said, ‘Look man, we’ve got this Washington game, and we need to win it, need to come ready to play and you can’t treat it like any other game,'” Edwards said (story via ESPN).

The Timberwolves hold the tiebreaker edge over the Nuggets, so if they can pick up a win tonight, their magic number for the top seed in the West will be down to just one.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Although Nuggets head coach Michael Malone was noncommittal on Tuesday when asked if Justin Holiday will be part of his playoff rotation, he indicated he would be comfortable leaning on the veteran swingman, Durando writes for The Denver Post. “I trust him 100%,” Malone said. “He’s a veteran. He’s been around the league for a long time, and he’s proven in the one year with us, he’s proven himself to be trustworthy. Disciplined. Stays ready. Makes open shots. Guards. He’s done everything that’s been asked of him. For a while, he was a guy that would play if there was an injury, and then for the last month or so he’s been a rotation player for us.”
The Thunder likely envisioned Gordon Hayward being part of their playoff rotation when they acquired him from Charlotte in February, but it has been a rough adjustment period for the veteran forward, who has averaged just 4.5 points in 16.5 minutes per game in his 23 appearances since the trade. As Joel Lorenzi of The Oklahoman writes, Hayward is still trying to get comfortable in his new reduced role. “Obviously would be probably better if I was here at the beginning of the year with everybody,” Hayward said. “Every team across the league will tell you that midseason trades are difficult to get everybody adjusted to everybody. Gotta work with what you’re given.”
After the Raptors declined to issue him a qualifying offer last June and the Celtics didn’t find room in the rotation for him in the first half of the season, Dalano Banton‘s NBA future appeared tenuous. However, as Jared Weiss of The Athletic details, Banton has enjoyed a career renaissance with the Trail Blazers, averaging 16.3 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 3.5 APG in 28 games (28.5 MPG) since being sent to Portland in a salary-dump deal at the trade deadline. The Blazers hold a minimum-salary team option for 2024/25 on Banton, who says he “learned a lot” as a reserve in Boston earlier this season.

Raptors Notes: Boucher, Olynyk, Poeltl, Quickley, Banton

March 10th, 2024 at 12:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Entering Thursday’s contest in Phoenix, Raptors big man Chris Boucher hadn’t played more than 12 minutes in a game since January. However, he scored 11 points in nearly 24 minutes of action vs. the Suns, and after Toronto quickly fell behind by double-digits in the opening minutes in Portland on Saturday, another opportunity emerged for Boucher, who helped lead a fourth-quarter comeback that sent the game to overtime

Although the Raptors ultimately lost the game, Boucher finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots in a season-high 31 minutes. Speaking to reporters later in the night, Boucher said that head coach Darko Rajavkoic has been open with him as his minutes have fluctuated this season, adding that he understands why his role hasn’t been consistent.

“We talk. He knows me and knows what I can bring and all,” Boucher said, per Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. “Sometimes things don’t go the way you want. The team’s had a lot of changes and I got caught in the middle. I know they know what I’m able to do, and everyone knows that I can change the game and all. I don’t think anyone thinks I can’t play, it’s about more than me.”

Boucher is under contract with the Raptors for one more season beyond this one, with a $10.81MM guaranteed salary for 2024/25. However, it’s possible – especially following last month’s acquisition of Kelly Olynyk – that he’ll emerge as a trade candidate this summer.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

From a team-building perspective, the Raptors might prefer that their top two centers – Jakob Poeltl and Olynyk – were a little younger, but having those two veterans under contract for at least the next two seasons gives the club some certainty and stability at the position, according to Eric Koreen of The Athletic, who notes that the team will be able to focus its efforts and resources on upgrading other positions.
In a separate story for The Athletic, Koreen highlights Immanuel Quickley‘s recent strong play, writing that the guard is increasing his price tag ahead of restricted free agency. In nine games since the All-Star break, Quickley is averaging 21.8 points, 8.1 assists, and 6.1 rebounds per contest while making 43.0% of his three-point attempts.
Former Raptor Dalano Banton helped lead the Blazers to a victory on Saturday, racking up 25 points in 42 minutes against his old team. As Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca tweets, one of Masai Ujiri‘s gripes about the previous coaching staff was that it didn’t do enough to develop its young players, including Banton. With that in mind, it was a little surprising that Toronto didn’t do more last summer to retain Banton – who could have been a restricted free agent if the Raptors had given him a qualifying offer – in order to see how he might’ve developed under Rajakovic, Lewenberg observes.