Deandre Ayton Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Suns ‘Not Counting On’ Kevin Durant?

July 15th, 2022 at 8:49am CST by Arthur Hill

The Suns‘ decision to match Indiana’s offer sheet for Deandre Ayton may take them out of the bidding for Kevin Durant, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst suggests on his latest Hoop Collective podcast (hat tip to Real GM).

Ayton can’t be traded until January 15 and will have veto power over any deal for the next year. He was believed to be an important part of any package that Phoenix might offer the Nets for Durant.

“I think they have, and by the way they’re not alone… How do I want to put this? I think the position they’re taking is that they’ve made their offer for Kevin Durant. And their offer is their offer. And it’s not an offer that the Nets are interested in,” Windhorst said. “I’m not even sure the Suns can put together an offer that the Nets would be interested in by themselves. I think this is where the other teams are as well.”

Windhorst added that the Durant trade market is stagnant right now because all the interested teams are unwilling to come anywhere near Brooklyn’s asking price. He adds that the Pacers were trying to take advantage of the situation, gambling that Phoenix would either let Ayton go or agree to a sign-and-trade.

Although the Suns declined to offer Ayton a max extension when he was eligible, they were willing to bring him back under the terms of Indiana’s offer, possibly with an eye toward trading him later on.

“This is them partially saying ‘We’re not counting on Kevin Durant. We have a 64-win team. This is going to take us into the tax,'” Windhorst added.

Windhorst stated that the Suns should now be considered a longer shot to acquire Durant, although he doesn’t eliminate them entirely. He reported that the latest offer from Phoenix doesn’t include Mikal Bridges or the team’s full complement of future first-rounders and pick swaps.

The developments in Phoenix could affect Durant’s desire to join the Suns, ESPN’s Nick Friedell said in an appearance on “Get Up” this morning (video link). He adds that the Nets are hoping Durant might become more willing to start the season in Brooklyn and see how things work out.

Central Notes: Ayton, Nesmith, Pacers, Ivey, Pistons

July 14th, 2022 at 12:40pm CST by Rory Maher

On a Tuesday appearance on 107.5 The Fan, ESPN’s Bobby Marks detailed a couple ways the Pacers can create enough cap space to sign Suns center Deandre Ayton, the top restricted free agent on the market, to a maximum-salary offer sheet. Indiana is currently about $26.4MM under the cap, but needs to get to $31MM to sign Ayton to a max deal.

“You’d have to waive a (non-guaranteed) player like Duane Washington Jr. and then you’d have to either make a trade or you would have to use the waive and stretch provision on a couple players, maybe the couple players you got in the Celtics trade,” Marks said, per James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star. “The challenge becomes if Phoenix matches (an offer sheet for Ayton), you can’t go back and take back those waivers. So you run the risk of losing three players to waivers on an offer sheet that likely would get matched.”

Marks believes the Suns would match the deal so they wouldn’t lose Ayton for nothing, even though he wouldn’t be trade-eligible for several months. As Boyd details, the three players Marks was referring to that came from the Celtics are Juwan Morgan, Nik Stauskas and Malik Fitts.

Boyd says Goga Bitadze might be a player the Pacers could deal away to give Ayton the offer sheet — Bitadze will make $4.765MM next season. However, as Boyd points out, the Pacers haven’t signed a restricted free agent to an offer sheet since 2013, and it was a very modest deal, relatively, for Chris Copeland.

A more viable alternative for Indiana to land Ayton might be a sign-and-trade for Myles Turner, which has been the subject of multiple rumors, but Marks wondered if Turner alone would be enough for Phoenix.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Aaron Nesmith, another player in the trade with Boston that sent Malcolm Brogdon to the Celtics, said he was “completely caught off guard” when he heard the news, but the Pacers had their eye on him for a while and he’ll get a bigger opportunity with Indiana, writes Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files. Indiana’s brass told Nesmith to focus on honing a specific skill set. “To play free, be a good 3-and-D guy and I could be a top-notch 3-and-D guy in this league, so that’s the focus,” Nesmith said, per Agness. “That’s what we’re going to work for and that’s what I’m going to become.”
The Pacers announced that they’re withholding first-rounder Bennedict Mathurin for the remainder of Las Vegas Summer League due to a sore left big toe. He was the No. 6 pick of last month’s draft. Second-year players Terry Taylor and Isaiah Jackson will also be out. Summer League ends on July 17, so I’m sure it’s just for precautionary reasons.
Jaden Ivey, the No. 5 pick of the draft, showed the Pistons flashes of his enormous upside in his brief Summer League action before suffering a sprained ankle, writes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. Cade Cunningham, Detroit’s No. 1 overall pick last year, said on a recent NBA TV appearance that he was looking forward to playing with his new backcourt partner. “Definitely excited to play with him,” Cunningham said. “He’s so talented, brings so much to the team. Just the way he plays the game, trying to play the right way, trying to play for his teammates, spread the ball. It’s all exciting. Being able to take the court with him is exciting and it’s coming soon. I’m excited, man.”

Pacers Continue To Eye Deandre Ayton

July 11th, 2022 at 1:18pm CST by Luke Adams

It has been nearly 11 full days since the NBA’s 2022 free agent period opened, and Suns restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton still doesn’t have a new deal in place. However, it’s possible that will change soon.

Sources told Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic over the weekend that the Pacers are “seriously” interested in Ayton. Indiana’s interest in the former No. 1 overall pick has been reported repeatedly in recent weeks, but it’s notable that the team’s interest hasn’t waned — the Pacers are one of just two teams in the NBA (along with the Spurs) that have the cap flexibility necessary to make Ayton a significant offer.

According to Marc Stein (Twitter link), there’s “great interest” among league insiders in Las Vegas about whether the Pacers will move forward with what Stein refers to as a “widely anticipated” offer sheet for Ayton. Appearing on ESPN’s Get Up (video link) on Monday, Brian Windhorst also expressed a belief that Indiana is on the verge of making a play for the young center.

“We believe that the Indiana Pacers are very close to giving Deandre Ayton an offer sheet or executing a sign-and-trade,” Windhorst said. “The Pacers had to do some business over the weekend and complete the Malcolm Brogdon trade. That is now on the verge of happening and that is opening enough cap space to almost give Deandre Ayton the max contract he is looking for. We could see something with the Pacers and Ayton as early as today.”

As James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star writes, while the Pacers and Celtics announced their trade on Saturday, Brogdon still technically has to pass his physical before the deal is officially irreversible. At that point, Indiana will have approximately $26.4MM in cap room.

Ayton’s maximum salary is about $30.9MM, so Indiana would have to waive-and-stretch multiple players or trade someone to open up a max-salary slot. The team could also present Ayton with an offer sheet that’s a little below the max, but it’s not clear whether he’d be willing to sign such an offer. And of course, the lower the starting salary in an offer sheet, the more likely the Suns are to match it.

A sign-and-trade deal in which Indiana sends out a player or two could potentially get everyone what they want — Ayton could get his max salary, the Pacers could get their man without having to worry about an offer sheet being matched, and the Suns could avoid losing their former top pick for nothing. Myles Turner would be the most obvious trade candidate in that scenario.

However, signing-and-trading Ayton to Indiana would deprive Phoenix of one of its top assets for a potential Kevin Durant trade, so the Suns will likely drive a hard bargain with the Pacers, knowing that if they don’t get a sign-and-trade offer they like, they could simply match any offer sheet Ayton signs.

Still, that may not be an ideal outcome for the Suns, who reportedly aren’t enthusiastic about paying Ayton max money. Additionally, if they were to match an offer sheet, the Suns wouldn’t be able to trade Ayton until January 15, and even then, any deal this season would require his consent.

With so many variables in play, every involved party will have to weigh its options carefully before moving forward. But it sounds like we could get action on the Ayton front sooner rather than later.

Trade/FA Rumors: Mitchell, Durant, Ayton, Pacers

July 7th, 2022 at 10:23am CST by Luke Adams

After reporting on The Hoop Collective (video link) earlier this week that Donovan Mitchell inquired about the Jazz‘s plan following the team’s trades of Rudy Gobert and Royce O’Neale, Brian Windhorst said during an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up on Thursday that the star guard is not believed to be on the verge of asking for a trade (video link).

“After the Gobert trade, there was a belief that maybe Mitchell would be next, and maybe at some point he will be,” Windhorst said. “But for now the Jazz are telling people they don’t intend to trade him, and on Mitchell’s side, he’s going to stand pat. He’s not going to force any action right now.”

Reports at the time of the Gobert trade indicated that the Jazz planned to retool their roster around Mitchell, while subsequent reporting suggested teams still believed the 25-year-old could be had for the right price. If Mitchell doesn’t express any desire to leave Utah, it seems very unlikely that the Jazz will move him this offseason.

Here are a few more trade and free agency rumors from around the NBA:

Although ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski still believes a Kevin Durant trade is likely to happen, he said during an appearance on NBA Today (video link) that it’s “absolutely” possible the former MVP could end up remaining with the Nets into the fall. “Brooklyn, they don’t have to take a deal that they don’t want to do. They don’t have to talk themselves into a deal,” Wojnarowski said. “At the same time, Kevin Durant, as he looks at the situation, could he look at it differently over time? That’s certainly a possibility.” Wojnarowski explained that he believes Durant could have second thoughts about his trade request if his potential new team would have to gut its roster to trade for him.
During an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up on Thursday (video link), Windhorst said the Durant sweepstakes may not be creating the frenzy the Nets had hoped for. “When the Nets put him on the market, I think they thought there was going to be a tremendous bidding war,” Windhorst said. “And while there’s a lot of interest, from what I can tell that bidding war isn’t really hot right now. The teams have made their offers and they don’t really feel the need to increase them.”
According to Windhorst, the return Utah received in the Gobert trade has complicated the Durant negotiations: “The Nets responded (to the Gobert trade) by saying, ‘The price for Durant just went higher,’ and the rest of the league is kind of saying, ‘We don’t think so. We don’t want to pay that price. We didn’t like that trade,'” Windhorst acknowledged that talks could heat up when team executives gather at Las Vegas for Summer League starting this week.
John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link) believes we may see action on the Deandre Ayton front before the end of the week, adding that he has heard “rumblings” about the possibility of the Pacers signing the Suns‘ restricted free agent center to an offer sheet.

Pacific Notes: Ayton, Lundberg, Lakers, Wiseman

July 6th, 2022 at 6:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

The market for Suns center Deandre Ayton has slowed in the wake of Kevin Durant‘s trade request, but ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski expects it to pick up soon. Appearing on “NBA Today” (video link), Wojnarowski said Durant’s availability affects the few teams with remaining cap room as well as teams that might be considering a sign-and-trade deal for Ayton.

He added that the “worst-case scenario” for Phoenix is that somebody will give Ayton a maximum offer sheet, which the Suns will have to decide whether or not to match. If Ayton’s offer is matched, it will be a full year before he’s eligible to be traded again.

Phoenix, of course, is one of the teams Durant reportedly wants to join, and the details of an Ayton trade could affect what the Suns can offer to the Nets. Wojnarowski said the Durant situation has “complicated the timing” of Ayton’s free agency process.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Gabriel Lundberg, who ended the season on a two-way contract, returned to Denmark rather than play in Summer League because the Suns wouldn’t offer him any guarantees, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “I didn’t want to risk playing in the Summer League without having some kind of security,” said Lundberg, who appeared in four games after joining the team in March. “They didn’t want to give me that, so I went home. I can’t risk getting injured without having a deal. My family depends on me to provide for them.” Lundberg hasn’t signed a new contract overseas yet, but said he has received multiple offers.
As the Lakers discuss a potential Kyrie Irving trade with the Nets, they’ve also checked on Rockets guard Eric Gordon and Pacers guard Buddy Hield, Wojnarowski said on “NBA Today” (Twitter link). Both are former clients of general manager Rob Pelinka, and L.A. came close to trading for Hield last summer before deciding to pursue Russell Westbrook.
Warriors center James Wiseman isn’t expected to play in Friday’s game, but the team plans to use him at some point during Las Vegas Summer League, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Wiseman, who missed the entire season due to right knee issues, participated in a 5-on-5 scrimmage Tuesday. Jonathan Kuminga joined the team today and is also expected to see some game action (Twitter link).

Jazz Trade Rudy Gobert To Timberwolves

July 6th, 2022 at 12:22pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: Gobert has officially been traded from Utah to Minnesota, the Timberwolves confirmed today in a press release.

JULY 1: The Jazz are trading three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

According to Wojnarowski (all Twitter links), the Jazz will receive Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Leandro Bolmaro, 2022 first-round pick Walker Kessler, and four future first-rounders in the deal.

Minnesota will send Utah unprotected first-round picks in 2023, 2025, and 2027, along with a top-five protected 2029 first-round pick and the right to swap first-rounders in 2026, reports Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link).

A major shake-up had been expected in Utah this spring and Gobert has been mentioned in trade rumors since the Jazz were eliminated from the postseason. On top of that, the Wolves were rumored to be in the market for a rim-protecting center to play alongside Karl-Anthony Towns, and had been linked to Gobert.

Still, the fact that the two division rivals were able to agree to terms on this blockbuster deal comes as a major surprise. It represents a huge home-run swing by new Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly and incoming owners Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez, and is the first significant roster move made by Jazz CEO Danny Ainge.

The move will cost the Timberwolves a good amount of their depth, but will create a loaded starting five. Towns and Gobert figure to be joined by point guard D’Angelo Russell, rising star Anthony Edwards, and one of Kyle Anderson, Taurean Prince, or Jaden McDaniels.

The Wolves will have Gobert under contract for several years — he’s owed a guaranteed $123MM over the next three seasons and has a $46.7MM player option for 2025/26.

Minnesota currently projects to be about $9.5MM below this season’s luxury tax line, with 11 players on their books, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

Meanwhile, of the players headed to Utah in this trade, only Kessler will have guaranteed money on his contract beyond 2022/23. Beverley is on an expiring contract, while Beasley, Vanderbilt, and Bolmaro all have team options for ’23/24.

The Jazz are currently $11MM below this year’s tax line for 13 players and should have significant cap flexibility in future seasons, says Marks.

Having also acquired a first-round pick from Brooklyn this week in exchange for Royce O’Neale, the Jazz are now loaded with draft assets and plan to retool their roster around Donovan Mitchell going forward, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link). Tony Jones of The Athletic confirms (via Twitter) that the team has no plans to trade Mitchell.

There could be an opportunity for the Jazz to turn around and immediately flip some of the picks they’ve accumulated for an impact player who will complement Mitchell.

For instance, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 reports (via Twitter) that Utah has some interest in exploring a sign-and-trade deal for Suns restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton, and Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer confirms (via Twitter) that the Wolves, Jazz, and Suns had discussed some three-team scenarios.

After seeing multiple unprotected first-round picks change hands this week in deals involving Gobert and Dejounte Murray, it’s safe to say the Nets’ asking price for Kevin Durant will be astronomical. Brooklyn is said to be seeking a “historical haul” for the former MVP.

Fischer’s Latest: Ayton, Durant, S. Barnes, Kyrie

July 6th, 2022 at 10:16am CST by Luke Adams

Deandre Ayton appears to have been the free agent most directly affected by the ongoing Kevin Durant sweepstakes, writes Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

As Fischer outlines, Ayton’s restricted free agency has been stalled in part because he could theoretically be an outgoing piece in a Suns deal for Durant and also because teams with interest in both players – including Toronto – won’t want to give up assets in a sign-and-trade for Ayton before seeing what happens with Durant.

According to Fischer, the Pacers and Raptors have been the teams most frequently linked to Ayton, with the Jazz described as a less likely destination for the young center. The Pacers and Spurs are the only teams that have the cap flexibility necessary to realistically extend an offer sheet to Ayton. It’s unclear whether he’d rather try to pursue a deal with one of them or wait for a possible sign-and-trade opportunity to a team closer to contention, Fischer says.

One hypothetical scenario is a multi-team trade that sends Durant to Phoenix; Ayton to Indiana in a sign-and-trade; and Myles Turner, multiple Suns wings, and draft capital to Brooklyn. However, Fischer hears from sources that such a package is unlikely to meet the Nets’ high asking price for Durant.

Here’s more from Fischer:

League personnel have begun to discuss the possibility of the Nets simply hanging onto Durant and Kyrie Irving into the regular season, according to Fischer. “Rudy Gobert getting traded for an arm, a leg and two mountains is helping their cause. There’s no way the Nets will ever trade Kevin Durant for anything less than what Rudy Gobert got Utah,” a Western Conference executive told Fischer. “If nothing comes, I can see them saying (to the players), ‘We just all have to come back.’ If I’m them, I just try to string this out as long as possible.”
As has been previously reported, there’s skepticism that the Suns will be able to build a package that appeals to the Nets without getting at least one more team involved. “Deandre Ayton, Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and five picks still isn’t enough to me for KD,” one GM said to Bleacher Report.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation tell Fischer that the Raptors remain unwilling to part with Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes.
Fischer’s league sources “strongly discounted” the idea that either the Mavericks or Sixers is a serious suitor for Irving. The Lakers remain Brooklyn’s most obvious trade partner for Kyrie, but there’s a sense that they may need to involve a third team to meet the Nets‘ asking price — a package of Russell Westbrook and draft assets wouldn’t maximize Brooklyn’s chances of contending in the short term, Fischer explains.

Pacific Notes: Suns, Ayton, Lakers, Swider, Kings

July 3rd, 2022 at 8:02pm CST by JD Shaw

With JaVale McGee and Aaron Holiday headed elsewhere and Elfrid Payton not expected to return, the Suns‘ additions of Josh Okogie, Damion Lee, and Jock Landale will help replenish their depth, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. According to Gambadoro, Phoenix is done adding role players for the time being, though the club could still bring back free agent forward Ish Wainwright.

As for the Suns’ bigger-business items, there was no movement as of Sunday morning on the Kevin Durant front, according to Gambadoro, who tweets that Phoenix remains interested but doesn’t want to gut its roster.

Additionally, Gambadoro confirms (via Twitter) that the Suns and Jazz have had a discussion about restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton, who was previously linked to Utah. However, Gambadoro isn’t sure how far that conversation went and notes that many teams aren’t looking to spend big money on a center at the moment.

Here are some other notes from the Pacific:

The Lakers still have glaring issues despite making some free-agency additions, Jovan Buha of The Athletic opines. Buha writes that Los Angeles could use more shooting and size. The team has has signed Damian Jones, Troy Brown Jr. and Juan Toscano-Anderson in free agency so far, and agreed to a deal with Lonnie Walker.
Cole Swider‘s two-way contract with the Lakers covers two seasons, per Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). Swider, who went undrafted last month after spending three seasons at Villanova and one season at Syracuse, averaged 13.9 points per game last year, shooting 41% from deep.
Jazz head video coordinator Charles Allen is leaving Utah for a job with the Kings, tweets Tony Jones of The Athletic. According to Jones, Allen will be Sacramento’s head video coordinator and a special assistant to new head coach Mike Brown.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Kevin Durant Rumors: Raptors, Pelicans, Suns, Heat

July 2nd, 2022 at 1:20pm CST by Luke Adams

After ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggested on Friday that Toronto is “lurking” as a team to watch in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca writes today that the Raptors believe they can put together the best package for Durant that the Nets are likely to receive.

Grange describes the Raptors as “optimistic” rather than “confident,” noting that there’s a sense Durant is at least open to the idea of playing in Toronto, even if the team is not atop his wish list.

However, Grange cautions that the Nets may not agree with the Raptors’ assessment that they can offer the best package for Durant. Additionally, Grange’s story suggests Toronto has remained opposed to making reigning Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes available so far.

While the Raptors have all their future draft picks and have several solid veterans on good contracts – including All-Stars Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam, as well as OG Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. – it’s unclear if they’d be able to make a deal for Durant without putting Barnes on the table.

“That’s the billion-dollar question,” one source said to Grange.

Here’s more on Durant:

In the latest episode of ESPN’s Hoop Collective podcast (video link), Tim Bontemps said he believes “Toronto thinks it’s in the game” in the Durant sweepstakes, while Brian Windhorst said he still considers the Suns the favorites, since it’s rare for superstar players not to end up where they want to go.
Windhorst (video link) has heard that the Pelicans view head coach Willie Green – an assistant in Golden State during Durant’s Warriors years – as an asset in the chase for the former MVP. As Windhorst explains, the hope would be that if the Nets like what the Pelicans have to offer, Green would get the opportunity to sell Durant on New Orleans.
With New Orleans being mentioned as a possible Durant landing spot, Scott Kushner of NOLA.com wonders whether or not the Pelicans should seriously pursue the 34-year-old.
Within his latest look at the Durant situation, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype confirms that the Nets would want more than Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges in a trade with the Suns and says that any Heat package built around Tyler Herro “wouldn’t scratch the surface of what the Nets want.”
Brooklyn is seeking teams’ best assets, Scotto writes, including All-Stars, rising young players, and “substantial” unprotected draft picks and swaps.

Latest On Kevin Durant

July 1st, 2022 at 6:11pm CST by Luke Adams

After speaking to “a couple” NBA general managers, Marc J. Spears of ESPN (video link via Talkin NBA) outlined during an appearance on NBA Today what sort of return the Nets are seeking as they explore the trade market for Kevin Durant.

“A young or future All-Star,” Spears said, “lots of picks, the ability to swap picks, and another starter.”

Spears went on to say that Durant “might not have as much control of the situation as one would think,” not only because he has four years left on his contract but because there are so many teams involved in the bidding. According to Spears, about half the league’s clubs remain interested.

Here’s more on Durant:

Sam Amick of The Athletic explains that Phoenix is Durant’s preferred destination in part because of his close relationship with Monty Williams, who was an assistant for the Thunder in 2015/16. The bond between the two men grew deeper after Williams’ wife was killed in a car accident in February 2016, Amick writes.
While Phoenix may be atop Durant’s wish list, Amick has gotten the sense that the Nets would want something more – or something “different” – than a Suns package headlined by Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges. Cameron Johnson is a player who might help move the needle for the Nets, Amick adds. However, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link) suggests that any deal between the Suns and Nets would likely see Phoenix giving up the maximum amount of first-round picks (four) and pick swaps (three).
The Heat are also on Durant’s wish list, but Amick says the former MVP would only want to play on a Miami team that features Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Kyle Lowry. Amick is understandably skeptical that a package centered around Tyler Herro would gain any momentum.
The Nets have been “emboldened” by the returns in the Rudy Gobert and Dejounte Murray trades, which both included multiple unprotected first-round picks, Adrian Wojnarowski said during an appearance on ESPN’s televised NBA Free Agency Special on Friday evening. Wojnarowski added that he doesn’t believe the Nets are in any rush to make a deal, since they want to fully assess all their options.
Wojnarowski also said during ESPN’s NBA Free Agency Special (video link) that he believes the Raptors are “lurking” as a possible suitor for Durant, given their combination of players and draft picks, as well as their track record for making this sort of deal (for Kawhi Leonard in 2018).