Devin Booker Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacific Notes: Booker, Bender, Gilgeous-Alexander, Lakers

October 4th, 2018 at 9:56am CST by Arthur Hill

Devin Booker is making rapid progress in his recovery from surgery on his right hand last month, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. The Suns‘ leading scorer was shooting with his right hand on Wednesday after having his splint removed. He had an operation September 10 to fix the fifth metacarpophalangeal joint on the hand.

However, Booker still hasn’t been cleared for contact and Phoenix isn’t sure if he’ll be ready in time for the season opener.

“We’re just following the steps,” said coach Igor Kokoskov. “That’s not my jurisdiction. I know nothing about when it comes to medical science. The medical staff, we have one of the best in the league. They’re going to tell us when the next steps are. We’re going to follow those steps being disciplined and wait for him to make the recovery and to play.”

There’s more this morning from the Pacific Division:

Dragan Bender‘s poor play continued in Wednesday’s exhibition game against New Zealand, Rankin adds in a separate story. The Suns didn’t use Bender until the fourth quarter and he committed a couple of costly mistakes, fouling a player shooting a 3-pointer and mishandling a pass. Richaun Holmes, who was acquired from the Sixers in an offseason deal, got more minutes than Bender did.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a serious candidate for playing time in the Clippers‘ crowded backcourt, writes Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. The rookie made a quick impact off the bench in the preseason opener with 10 points, four steals and four assists in 24 minutes of a win over Sydney. He was L.A.’s only young player to see significant time in the game. “I thought in the first half he was fantastic,” coach Doc Rivers said. “I thought in the second half he was still catching his breath from the first half. Good lesson for him because they don’t back off, teams keep coming.”
The Lakers aren’t a lock for the playoffs despite adding LeBron James, cautions Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. He predicts L.A. will fail to reach the postseason, citing the number of good teams in the Western Conference, the Lakers’ shortcomings at center, defensive issues, injury concerns involving James and the possibility that some veterans will be unhappy with their playing time.

Contract Notes: Jokic, Gordon, Nurkic, Jazz

October 2nd, 2018 at 10:37am CST by Luke Adams

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic didn’t technically sign a maximum-salary contract when he re-upped with the club this summer, but he can increase his 2018/19 earnings to the maximum if he helps lead Denver to postseason success.

As ESPN’s Bobby Marks details (subscription required), Jokic is one of several NBA players with incentives in their contracts for the coming season. In Jokic’s case, he’s currently about $862K shy of his maximum salary, but he can earn $431K if the Nuggets advance to the playoffs, and another $431K if they win in the first round.

Here are a few more details from Marks on this season’s incentives and bonuses:

Aaron Gordon has a potential path to an All-Star nod in an Eastern Conference that lost more top talent this offseason. Gordon’s new contract with the Magic calls for a $500K bonus if he’s named an All-Star, per Marks. He could also further increase his earnings by being named to the All-NBA and All-Defense teams at season’s end.
Jusuf Nurkic can earn an extra $1.25MM this season if he appears in 70 games and the Trail Blazers crack the 50-win threshold, according to Marks. Nurkic played in 79 games last season, but because Portland only had 49 wins, this incentive is considered unlikely and doesn’t currently count against Nurkic’s cap hit.
Davis Bertans has to meet several criteria in order to earn a $250K bonus on his new contract with the Spurs — the veteran forward must play in 70 games, make 165 three-pointers, and average 6.5 defensive rebounds per 36 minutes, as Marks details.
Dante Exum, Raul Neto, and Derrick Favors all have incentives on their new deals with the Jazz, with a focus on games played — they all must appear in at least 67 games to start earning their bonuses. Favors, in particular, has plenty riding on his performance, as he can earn $2.8MM in incentives. Of those incentives, $900K are considered likely and already count against his cap charge.
Marks also notes that several players will have a chance to become eligible for super-max contracts with their current clubs if they make All-NBA teams this season. That list includes Anthony Davis (Pelicans), Draymond Green (Warriors), Klay Thompson (Warriors), Damian Lillard (Trail Blazers), and Kemba Walker (Hornets). Additionally, Devin Booker‘s new extension with the Suns would start at 27.5% of the cap if he’s named to the All-NBA Third Team, 28.5% if he’s named to the Second Team, and 30% for First Team.

Pacific Notes: Kings, Lakers, Booker, Labissiere

September 30th, 2018 at 7:18pm CST by JD Shaw

The Kings have made two additions to their basketball operations staff, according to James Ham of NBC Sports.

Adam Filippi has joined the team as the Director of Pro Scouting. He most recently served as the Director of Global Scouting with the Hornets, and will be based out of Los Angeles covering the Southeast Region.

Sacramento also hired Anthony Darmiento as the Assistant Performance Coach. Darmiento will work alongside Head Performance & Strength Coach Ramsey Nijem this season, and holds experience in similar roles with USA Volleyball, USA Water Polo and the USA Olympic Committee.

There’s more out of the Pacific division:

Kings third-year forward Skal Labissiere says he’s more explosive, quicker and faster after bulking up this offseason, as detailed by Noel Harris of The Sacramento Bee.
Devin Booker has focused on improving his left-hand skills since undergoing surgery, writes Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. Booker had the procedure in his right hand on September 10. “It’s a time I actually have to use it,” Booker said. “I never expected to actually have to use it.”
The Lakers envision playing a brand of positionless basketball this season, Joey Ramirez of Lakers.com relays.“We want to be a positionless team,” LeBron James said. “There’s gonna be times when we’re all playing different positions. I think that’s going to be the benefit of our ball club.”

Injury Updates: Porzingis, Booker, Cousins, Neto

September 24th, 2018 at 2:11pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kristaps Porzingis offered an update on his condition at the Knicks‘ Media Day, but there’s still no timetable for him to start playing again, relays the Associated Press.

Porzingis has been doing some light running, but not sprinting, as he continues to recover from a torn ACL he suffered in February. The Knicks are being cautious with the rehab process and don’t want him to return to action until they are sure he is fully ready.

Porzingis adds that he isn’t concerned about getting a contract extension done quickly. He will have to wait until next summer for an extension if a deal isn’t reached before the start of the season.

There’s more injury news to pass along:

Devin Booker got sutures removed from his right hand last week and is using a splint during workouts, Suns GM Ryan McDonough said today, per Gina Mizell of The Athletic (Twitter link). The team is still hoping Booker can be ready for opening night.
The Warriors plan to re-evaluate free agent addition DeMarcus Cousins again in four weeks, tweets Mark Medina of The San Jose Mercury News. Team president Bob Myers is happy with the progress Cousins has made, saying, “We won’t rush him. But we also won’t hold him back.”
Jazz guard Raul Neto has been diagnosed with a right hamstring injury and will be re-evaluated in two weeks, according to a tweet from the team.
Hawks guard Justin Anderson is still recovering from surgery in late June to address recurring tibial stress syndrome in his left leg and won’t be ready for the start of training camp, the team announced on its website. Dewayne Dedmon will also be held out as he recovers from an avulsion fracture in his left ankle. He is in his second week of weight-bearing rehab work. Daniel Hamilton is taking a non-surgical approach to a torn rotator cuff and his progress will be reviewed in a week. Jeremy Lin has recovered from the ruptured patella tendon that caused him to miss nearly all of last season and will start camp with limited restrictions. Rookie Omari Spellman has soft tissue inflammation in his left shin and will be held out for the next seven to 10 days.

Western Notes: Suns, McCollum, Jazz, Middleton

September 24th, 2018 at 8:52am CST by Luke Adams

The Suns used a portion of their room exception to sign De’Anthony Melton to his first NBA contract, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link). Without using that exception, Phoenix would only have been able to offer Melton a first-year salary of $838K. Instead, the Suns were able to bump that figure to $949K. They still have $3.5MM of their room exception available.

Meanwhile, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders indicates (via Twitter) that while Devin Booker‘s new extension with the Suns is projected to start at 25% of the cap in 2019/20, there are triggers in the deal that could push that figure higher. Pincus isn’t sure of the specific details, but reports that Booker could get 27.5%, 28.5%, or 30% of the cap if he meets certain criteria. I’d guess that those criteria are related to whether he earns spots on the first, second, or third All-NBA teams.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

C.J. McCollum is often the subject of trade speculation, but the Trail Blazers guard tells Michael Scotto of The Athletic that he’d welcome a long-term stay in Portland. “I’m forever grateful for the opportunities they’ve given me and would love to be a Blazer for life,” McCollum said.
While it may be a little early to start speculating about 2019’s free agent period, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune suggests (via Twitter) that Bucks wing Khris Middleton is a player the Jazz like a lot. With Ricky Rubio, Alec Burks, and others on expiring deals this season, Utah could have plenty of cap flexibility next summer.
As Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com details, Jahlil Okafor said there were a “multitude of reasons” for him to sign with the Pelicans, calling the decision a “no-brainer.” Keith Smith of RealGM.com (Twitter link) hears that New Orleans was comfortable with waiving Emeka Okafor in part due to how good Jahlil has looked. “He’s in amazing shape, and he’s going hard on both ends too,” Smith’s source said. “Seems like he really gets it now.”
The Timberwolves recently announced some additions and promotions on their coaching staff, including Pat Zipfel as an advance scout and Malik Allen and Larry Greer as assistant coaches (link via Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune).

Pacific Notes: Booker, Labissiere, Kuzma

September 12th, 2018 at 4:04pm CST by Austin Kent

The Suns have had a tough go of it over the course of the past three seasons. Now that they finally boast an intriguing young core, however, things may have hit a minor snag. Greg Moore of the Arizona Republic wonders if Devin Booker‘s hand injury could spoil Phoenix’s season.

While there’s no guarantee that Booker even misses regular season time recovering from hand surgery, it’s a distinct possibility. In any event, the up-and-coming Suns star will miss training camp and preseason, that could mean it won’t be until part-way through the 2018-19 campaign that he starts building chemistry with vaunted No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton.

As Gina Mizell of The Athletic writes in a similar piece speculating about the impact Booker’s absence will have, she notes that the Suns could even begin the season without a clear-cut point guard on the roster.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

There’s no shortage of intriguing big men on the Kings roster but one oft-forgotten frontcourt project is Skal Labissiere. Kyle Ramos of the team’s official site writes that this offseason has been 22-year-old’s best since entering the NBA in 2016.
A much-improved physique will put Lakers sophomore Kyle Kuzma in position to break out in 2018-19, Frank Urbina of Hoops Hype writes. The forward was a surprise success as a rookie last year and will look to make further progress after gaining strength in his shoulder and back.
There are plenty of things to like about what the Lakers did this offseason and projections for how they’ll fare in 2018-19 vary wildly. One question, James Blancarte of Basketball Insiders wonders, is whether or not the franchise will be able to resist the urge to shake up the roster with a trade if things don’t begin as expected in Los Angeles.

Devin Booker Undergoes Surgery, Out Six Weeks

September 10th, 2018 at 5:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Suns shooting guard Devin Booker underwent surgery on Monday to repair his broken right hand and will require approximately six weeks to recover, the team announced in a press release.

With Phoenix’s regular-season opener scheduled for October 17 against the Mavericks, Booker is unlikely to be available at the start of the campaign. The second or third week of the schedule is a more reasonable target.

Technically, Booker had fifth metacarpophalangeal joint in his right hand fixed by Dr. Steven Shin in Los Angeles.

Booker initially injured the hand last March, causing him to miss the final 12 games of the 2017/18 season. It’s uncertain why Booker waited until the brink of training camp to get the hand repaired.

Booker, who inked a five-year contract extension this summer for an estimated $158MM, averaged a team-high 24.9 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 4.7 APG in his third season, though he only played 54 games due to injuries.

Unless they swing a deal before opening night, the Suns will have an unimposing assortment of options at the guard spots until Booker returns. Phoenix has been hunting for a point guard since it dealt Brandon Knight to the Rockets.

The Suns have Elie Okobo, Shaquille Harrison and Isaiah Canaan competing for the point guard job until further notice. Rookie Mikal Bridges, Troy Daniels, Davon Reed and two-way George King are potential fill-ins for Booker at shooting guard.

Devin Booker To Undergo Hand Surgery, Out Indefinitely

September 9th, 2018 at 7:59pm CST by Austin Kent

7:59pm: Booker’s procedure will take place on Monday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets and the team will have a better idea of the guard’s availability for the regular season then.

6:58pm: According to John Gambadoro of 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station, Suns guard Devin Booker will be out indefinitely as he undergoes surgery on his hand.

While no set timetable has been revealed, it’s likely that the 21-year-old misses the start of training camp.

For those keeping track at home, Booker initially injured the hand last March and it caused him to miss the final 12 games of the 2017/18 season. There’s no indication at this point as to why the guard elected to wait until September to make the decision to go under the knife.

Booker, the prolific combo guard charged with leading the franchise’s rebuild, will hit the sidelines just weeks after the club dealt Brandon Knight to the Rockets, creating a vacancy at point guard.

The Suns, who are said to be on the hunt for guards, will need to address the dearth of playmakers sooner than later if it looks like Booker’s injury could stretch into the regular season.

Booker inked a five-year contract extension this summer for an estimated $158MM.

Pacific Notes: Stephenson, Teodosic, Boban, Booker

September 1st, 2018 at 9:45am CST by marksuleymanov

When LeBron James joined the Lakers, several other seasoned veterans followed suit. While Los Angeles was not able to lure another high-priced free agent alongside James, the team did sign experienced players who all fill specific roles.

Longtime Indiana Pacer Lance Stephenson, a noted on-court nemesis of James, was one of the first players to sign. Speaking a party to say farewell to Indianapolis, Stephenson told The Indianapolis Star that he did not personally hear from James but was aware of his interest.

“Magic (Johnson) called me and he told me LeBron was interested, very interested in me,” Stephenson said.

Stephenson, 27, is coming off a year in which he played all 82 games for the first time in his career. He averaged 9.2 PPG and 5.2 RPG for Indiana off the bench while providing his usual hard-nosed yet quirky style of play.

“Give me a few hours to make this decision,” Stephenson said he told Johnson. “I decided to go there and, hopefully, we will win a lot of games and have fun.”

Check out more Pacific Division notes below:

Clippers players Milos Teodosic and Boban Marjanovic have decided not to join the Serbian national team for September’s FIBA World Cup qualifiers, head coach Sasha Djordjevic confirmed to Novosti.rs (via Sportando).
The Clippers‘ quest for a new arena took a positive step forward on Friday, as lawmakers approved a bill that would streamline the process, Mirjam Swanson of The Orange County Register writes.
Suns guard Devin Booker is off to a strong start in his career and he only sees better things ahead. Speaking to a group of 300 kids at a youth camp, Booker said that he feels the playoffs are within reach, given the team’s acquisitions and young talent, Greg Moore of the AZCentral.com writes. “I want to build my own legacy here in Phoenix,” Booker said. “I feel like I’m off to a pretty good start. Just gotta keep going. Turn these losses into wins and make the playoffs and go from there.”

Western Notes: Nunnally, Booker, Brooks, Powell, Okafor

August 12th, 2018 at 7:25pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Euroleague sharpshooter James Nunnally has no doubt he can make an impact with the Timberwolves, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reports. Nunnally, who made 55.4% of his threes while playing for Fenerbahçe of Turkey last season, signed a two-year deal with Minnesota. “I’m ready to get out there and play and take advantage of every opportunity that comes,” the 6’7” Nunnally said. “I know this team needs three-point shooting and wants to pick up the pace of play this year. I know that I can bring that and help in that aspect.” Nunnally’s minimum deal has a $350K guarantee, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.

We have more from the Western Conference:

Devin Booker may be just 21 years old but he needs to assume a leadership role with the Suns, Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic opines. Booker must set a standard for players such as top pick Deandre Ayton and 2017 lottery pick Josh Jackson to follow after signing a max contract extension, Somers adds.
Grizzlies’ second-year guard Dillon Brooks sees himself growing into a leadership role and plans to start laying those seeds during the upcoming season, as he told Peter Edmiston of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. “For me, as a future leader, I need to connect with every single player somehow, someway, so you can get the best out of them,” Brooks said.
Dwight Powell needs to continue to grab rebounds in bunches, as he did toward the end of last season, in order to solidify his spot in the Mavericks’ rotation, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. It’s unlikely he’ll start, so he needs to be tough around the boards to stand out among a frontcourt reserve corps that includes Salah Mejri, Maxi Kleber and Dorian Finney-Smith, Sefko adds.
Only $50K of Jahlil Okafor‘s two-year contract with the Pelicans is guaranteed, Pincus reveals in another tweet. The second year is a team option but just a little over $54K is guaranteed even if it’s exercised, Pincus adds. The signing became official on Thursday.