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Bradley Beal Enters Protocols, Olympic Status Uncertain

July 14th, 2021 at 7:19pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Team USA and Wizards guard Bradley Beal has entered the health and safety protocols in Las Vegas, placing his participation in the Tokyo Olympics in jeopardy, Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press tweets.

There is nothing definitive about that at this point regarding Beal’s status for Tokyo, Reynolds adds.

It would obviously be a major blow for USA Basketball if the high-scoring All-Star is ruled out of the Olympics. The team has already struggled during exhibition play in Las Vegas, dropping two of its first three games. Beal scored a team-high 17 points in a 108-80 win over Argentina on Tuesday. He has started all three of the squad’s games in Las Vegas.

Team USA’s quest for gold begins in just 11 days.

It’s also uncertain who would be called upon to replace Beal or any other player, if needed. It was suggested after the Spurs’ Keldon Johnson, Cavaliers’ Darius Garland and Pistons’ Saddiq Bey were promoted from the Select Team to join Team USA in exhibition play that they would be considered as potential replacement players.

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Olympic Notes: Johnson, Garland, Bey, Durant, Satoransky

July 10th, 2021 at 11:04am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Spurs’ Keldon Johnson, Cavaliers’ Darius Garland and Pistons’ Saddiq Bey will move up from the U.S. Select Team and play for Team USA in exhibition games, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

The trio will fill in for Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton, who will join Team USA after the Finals. Johnson, Garland and Bey would be candidates to join Team USA for the Olympics if any players have to bow out.

Exhibition games in Las Vegas will begin on Saturday with a matchup against Nigeria.

We have more on the Olympics:

  • Select Team members Cameron Reynolds, Josh Magette, John Jenkins and Dakota Mathias will remain in Las Vegas and will be available for exhibition games, Brian Windhorst of ESPN writes. The pool of Select Team players has been reduced by injuries and COVID-19 protocols. Timberwolves big man Naz Reid suffered a minor injury in Thursday’s practice, Windhorst adds.
  • Nets superstar Kevin Durant will look to collect his third gold medal in Tokyo and he’s energized by that possibility, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “I committed to USA Basketball when I was coming out of college,” Durant said. “And every chance that I can get that I’m healthy and my mind is in the right place to play basketball, I’m going to go out there and play. Finished the year off healthy, the regular season and the playoffs, so I felt it’d be cool to get a kickstart on next season by getting in shape a little earlier in the summer with Team USA.”
  • Bulls guard Zach LaVine will be facing backcourt partner Tomas Satoransky in Group A play and he’s looking forward to the matchup, Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago relays. Satoransky will play for the Czech Republic, which is in Team USA’s Group along with Iran and France. “I’m looking forward to playing them and having some bragging rights,” LaVine said good-naturedly. “Hopefully, we really kick their butt.”
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Roster Announced For U.S. Select Team

July 1st, 2021 at 12:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

The roster has been released for the U.S. Select Team, which will help Team USA prepare for the Olympics, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Select Team, which will practice with and scrimmage against the national team during the upcoming training camp in Las Vegas, is made up mostly of first- and second-year NBA players. It will be coached by Erik Spoelstra of the Heat.

Making up the roster are:

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Olympic Notes: Spain, Simmons, Nigeria, Turkey, Garland

June 23rd, 2021 at 11:26am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran center Pau Gasol, who has represented Spain in four Olympic tournaments so far, remains on track to be part of the team in Tokyo, per an Associated Press report. Gasol was one of 18 players included on Spain’s preliminary roster for the Tokyo games, joining his brother – Lakers center Marc Gasol – and Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio.

Timberwolves forward Juan Hernangomez, Pelicans big man Willy Hernangomez, and projected first-round pick Usman Garuba are among the other notable names on Spain’s preliminary roster, according to The Associated Press.

Here’s more on the Tokyo Olympics:

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Eastern Notes: Garland, Huerter, Dragić, KD

June 21st, 2021 at 10:12pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Cavaliers guard Darius Garland exhibited significant growth in his second NBA season, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, and his ceiling rose accordingly. “I think he can be an All-Star,” assistant coach Greg Buckner told head coach J.B. Bickerstaff during the club’s abbreviated 2020 training camp. “You don’t throw that out too many times, but there wasn’t anything he couldn’t do on offense. The talent is there. I think he’s going to be great. He’s going to be special. He’s one of those guys that can really take you far in the playoffs down the road.”

“He’s super talented,” said assistant coach J.J. Outlaw of the Cavaliers guard, who saw his output develop across the board during the 2020/21 season. “He has really, really good court vision, which is one of the reasons all of his teammates love playing with him. I feel good about where he is. I feel good about the work he’s put in.”

There’s more out of the Eastern Conference:

  • Hawks reserve shooting guard Kevin Huerter, the No. 19 pick out of Maryland in 2018, carved out a starring role in a critical Game 7 series during Atlanta’s second-round series against the Sixers, per Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Huerter, eligible for a contract extension during the 2021 offseason, put up 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting to help get the team through to the Eastern Finals. “We’ve all seen his skillset he possesses and how he plays the game, mentally and cerebrally,” Hawks power forward John Collins said. “But it’s really about confidence for Kev. It’s grown.”
  • The Heat will have to decide whether or not to pick up the $19.5MM team option on the contract of longtime point guard Goran Dragić for the 2021/22 season, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Though Dragić was a key part of the team’s surprising run to the 2020 NBA Finals, he regressed during his age-34 season in 2020/21, and the Heat, led by 2020 All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, were swept out of the first round of the 2021 playoffs. Winderman contends that declining the option could help the Heat carve out space for further roster improvements.
  • It was recently revealed that Nets All-Star forward Kevin Durant intends to suit up for Team USA during the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Though that choice may appear strange, given the fact that health problems have limited Durant to appearing in just 35 of a possible 144 regular season games during his first two seasons with Brooklyn, Ian O’Connor of the New York Post posits that Durant’s clear hunger for a third Olympic gold medal should encourage Nets fans that he continues to pine for more championship hardware.
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Central Notes: Markkanen, Bulls, Windler, Garland

May 3rd, 2021 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lauri Markkanen hasn’t been in the Bulls’ starting lineup since March, but the power forward doesn’t consider himself a second-unit player, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago tweets. “I still believe I’m a starter in this league,” he said. Markkanen is headed to free agency — the Bulls will have to extend him a $9MM qualifying offer to make him a restricted free agent.

We have more from the Central Division:

  • The Bulls trailed the Wizards by three games for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference entering Monday’s action. However, coach Billy Donovan said that holding out key players and going into tank mode hasn’t been discussed with executive VP of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas, Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. “No, I haven’t had any conversations like that,” Donovan said.
  • Dylan Windler‘s latest injury will probably prevent him from playing in the Summer League, but the Cavaliers swingman could be cleared by the start of next season. That’s the conclusion of medical professionals contacted by The Athletic’s Kelsey Russo regarding Windler’s left knee surgery. He went under the knife last month to address ongoing patellar tendinopathy concerns. The typical recovery time for that type of surgery is about four months for an elite-level athlete, Russo was told.
  • The Cavaliers are listing seven players as out for Tuesday’s game, including Darius Garland, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. Cleveland has been granted a hardship exception due to its injury issues.
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Central Notes: Cavaliers, Brissett, Diakite, Bulls

April 22nd, 2021 at 6:16pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Promising young Cavaliers guards Collin Sexton and Darius Garland are showing signs that they can be an effective long-term pairing, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Together, the 6’1″ teammates comprise a somewhat undersized back court, but can compensate for that with high-level playmaking and scoring. The two players were top-10 picks in consecutive drafts.

“It’s really fun to play with Collin,” Garland said of his Cavaliers teammate. “It’s cool being out there with him and seeing all the stuff that he can do with the ball and even without the ball. He’s gonna go get it regardless. Anytime we need a bucket, we’re gonna go to him. Like I said, he’s gonna play hard for 48 minutes, he’s gonna do what he do.”

There’s more out of the Central Division:

  • The Pacers used their mid-level exception to give newly-extended forward Oshae Brissett a $757K salary for 2021/22, about three times what his minimum would have been, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Instagram video).
  • The Bucks applied the rest of their own mid-level exception, about $160K, to give power forward Mamadi Diakite a three-year deal, per Marks (Instagram video). The agreement also includes a $100K partial guarantee for the 2021/22 season.
  • The Bulls, currently the No. 12 seed in the East by percentage points despite fielding two 2021 All-Stars in Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic, could see their offseason recruiting pitches impacted if they can’t at least crack the play-in tournament this season, writes K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago. The Bulls are 5-10 since trading two future top four-protected draft picks and former No. 7 selection Wendell Carter Jr. in a package for Vucevic. Chicago would need to nab the No. 10 seed to make the play-in tournament this season.
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Central Notes: Windler, Garland, Sexton, Teague, Markkanen

March 30th, 2021 at 10:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers swingman Dylan Windler has been experiencing knee pain recently and will undergo further evaluation in the next few days, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets. Windler, a late 2019 first-round pick, didn’t play at all last season due to injury. He’s seen action in 31 games this season off the bench, averaging 5.2 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 1.1 APG in 16.5 MPG.

Windler suffered a hand fracture in the season opener, which kept him out of action for nearly a month. The Cavs picked up their $2,239,200 third year option on the 24-year-old in December.

We have more on the Central Division:

  • Utah’s backcourt of Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell provides a blueprint of how the Cavaliers’ backcourt Darius Garland and Collin Sexton might eventually work, Fedor writes.  Thus far, it’s been a work in progress. In 821 minutes with Sexton and Garland, the Cavs have an offensive rating of 106.4 and a defensive rating of 115.5, for an overall net rating of -9.1, Fedor notes. However, it’s tough to fully evaluate the effectiveness of the backcourt pairing due to a lack of continuity in the frontcourt, mainly due to injuries, Fedor adds.
  • Jeff Teague will have a much different role with the Bucks than he did in Atlanta with Mike Budenholzer as his head coach, Eric Nehm of The Athletic notes. Milwaukee simply needs him to be a competent backup point guard for 10-15 minutes in postseason games. Teague has agreed to join the Bucks after being waived by the Magic.
  • Lauri Markkanen has been relegated to the second unit with the addition of Nikola Vucevic but the Bulls’ big man doesn’t want to be considered a backup, K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago writes. Markkanen will be a restricted free agent this summer, if Chicago extends a qualifying offer in excess of $9MM. “I know I’m a starter in this league but I’m going to play my role,” he said.
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Cavaliers Notes: Love, Nance, Cook, Garland

March 13th, 2021 at 4:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Love only played 10 minutes Friday night, but the veteran Cavaliers forward told Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com it was a huge relief just to be back on the court. Love missed more than two months with a calf injury that resulted from being kicked in the back of the leg during a preseason game. He’s on a minutes restriction, with coach J.B. Bickerstaff and team doctors deciding to limit him to five minutes in each half for his first game.

“I don’t want to speak hyperbole or take it over the top, but this is probably the most mentally taxing — not the most physically taxing injury — but the most mentally taxing for me for sure,” Love said. “It was really a struggle ‘cause it’s who I am. I’m a basketball player first and foremost and I’ve loved this game for so long. Just playing basketball, that’s what I love to do. It’s so much a part of me. When you have it taken away from you and you feel like there’s not much you can do after working so damn hard, that can be really disheartening and a tough hurdle to overcome.”

Love reaggravated the injury in a December 27 game and didn’t receive clearance to resume basketball-related activities until early February. He was able to practice with the team on February 18, but pain following that session delayed his return even further. The Cavaliers opted to rest him through the All-Star break to give him more time to recover.

“Now I’m just hoping these next couple weeks I’ll get the wind underneath me, I’ll get to start feeling like myself again and I won’t be as sore,” Love said. “A lot of that calf pain has subsided, so I’m hoping a lot more of my lift will come back in the meantime.”

There’s more on the Cavs:

  • Cleveland also welcomed back Larry Nance Jr., who missed 12 games after having surgery on his left hand, writes Kelsey Russo of The Athletic. Nance was among the league leaders in steals and deflections before the injury. “I know Larry has been wanting to play for some weeks now,” said Collin Sexton. “… And he said he was a little bit winded out there running down the court the first five times, but it’s definitely good to have him out there.”
  • Reports that Quinn Cook was signing a 10-day contract surfaced Wednesday night, but the Cavaliers delayed the move until Friday so they could get maximum value out of the deal, Fedor states in a separate piece. Cook, who scored 13 points in 17 minutes in his debut, will be with Cleveland for six games during that 10-day stretch.
  • Darius Garland, who suffered a groin strain in the final game of the first half, wasn’t ready to return Friday as Cleveland kicked off the second half of its season, Fedor notes in another story.
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Cavaliers, Pistons Among Definite Deadline Sellers

March 4th, 2021 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

Because there’s now a potential path to the postseason for the top 10 teams in each NBA conference (via the new play-in tournament), it’s taking longer this season for clear sellers to emerge on the trade market, writes Shams Charania of The Athletic.

“Most teams are still in the playoff chase, which makes everyone bunched together and the trade market less active,” a high-ranking team official told The Athletic.

However, as Charania reports, at least two teams at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings look like definite sellers, according to rival teams. The 13th-seeded Cavaliers and the 15th-seeded Pistons appear to be open for business.

Cleveland’s most obvious trade candidate is Andre Drummond, who has been pulled from the rotation as the team looks to find a taker for him. According to Charania, there have been some exploratory calls on Drummond, with the Bulls among the teams to express some interest, but there’s still skepticism that the Cavs will find an appealing deal for the big man, who has an unwieldy $28.75MM cap hit.

Drummond isn’t the only Cavalier on the trade block. The club has also been open to discussing JaVale McGee, Cedi Osman, and Taurean Prince, according to Charania, who hears that multiple teams have inquired on the Cavs’ wing players. Collin Sexton, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Isaac Okoro are viewed as the club’s core pieces and are presumably off-limits.

Like the Cavs, the Pistons have an expensive big man who is sitting out as the team attempts to move him. However, Blake Griffin, who is making more than Drummond ($36.8MM) and has another guaranteed year left on his contract, will be even harder to trade. Sources tell Charania and James Edwards III of The Athletic that Detroit will likely work toward a buyout with Griffin.

Veteran shooting guard Wayne Ellington is expected to draw interest from contenders on the trade market and should be a far more valuable trade chip than Griffin, given his affordable minimum salary and his strong production in 2020/21 (10.6 PPG, .435 3PT%).

According to Edwards, combo guard Delon Wright and big man Mason Plumlee have also registered interest from rival teams, but both players are under contract beyond this season, so the Pistons won’t necessarily feel compelled to move them. As Edwards explains, while Detroit will be a deadline seller, the sense around the league is that GM Troy Weaver won’t be as aggressive this month as he was during his first offseason on the job, when he remade nearly the entire roster.

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