Dwight Powell Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southeast Notes: Horford, Hawks, Powell, Batum

May 8th, 2016 at 9:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Al Horford will be among the most popular free agents this summer, but he didn’t sound ready to leave Atlanta after the Hawks were eliminated today, relays Chris Vivlamore of the Journal-Constitution. “My main priority tomorrow is to meet with the team and the coaches one last time [for the season] and go from there and figure out how we can be a better group,” Horford said. The Hawks are planning to offer Horford a maximum contract, and several other teams are expected to bid on him. The nine-year veteran made $12MM this season but could more than double that amount in free agency.

The Hawks are the only team Horford has played for, and he has developed a strong attachment to Atlanta. “I’ve set up here with my family,” he said. “We all live here. We live here in the summer. We live here year-round. I’m very grateful for all the people here. They have taken me in from the very first day, even though I was a [Florida] Gator. They loved me. I really love the city.”

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The Hawks need “major change and major improvement,” starting with a go-to scorer who can carry the team late in games, writes Jeff Schultz of The Journal-Constitution. Schultz says Paul Millsap disappeared too often in the playoffs, and Horford isn’t strong enough in the paint or reliable enough outside to be a dependable scorer. The writer adds that Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder are too inconsistent, while Kyle Korver is headed toward reserve status and Kent Bazemore may be leaving as a free agent.
The Wizards would have drafted Dwight Powell in 2014 and may take another shot at the Dallas big man in free agency, according to J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic. Washington was one pick away from landing Powell when he went at No. 45 to the Hornets. The Wizards sold their pick to the Lakers after he was taken. Powell, who earned $845K this season, will be a restricted free agent and could fill a backup role in Washington.
Small forward Nicolas Batum plans to make the Hornets his top priority when free agency arrives, as the The A ssociated Press relays. Batum, who has played one season in Charlotte after being traded from Portland, is encouraged by the team’s potential. “I want to talk to [the Hornets] first, for sure,” Batum said. “July 1st will be a crazy day, but will Charlotte be my first call? Yes.” Hornets starters Courtney Lee, Marvin Williams and Al Jefferson will also be unrestricted free agents, and reserve point guard Jeremy Lin is expected to opt out.

Western Notes: Harrell, Foye, Burke

March 29th, 2016 at 7:06pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Rockets rookie power forward Montrezl Harrell has been suspended five games without pay by the NBA D-League for shoving a referee to the floor in the midst of an altercation with another player during Rio Grande Valley’s contest on Saturday night, Howard Beck of Bleacher Report relays (on Twitter). The suspension will cost Harrell approximately $45K in salary and Houston will shave roughly $34K off its luxury tax bill as a result, notes Bobby Marks of The Vertical (Twitter link). Harrell will not be eligible to be recalled from the D-League by the Rockets until the suspension is completed.

Here’s more from out West:

The Thunder sent Denver $1,169,559 as part of the trade that landed Randy Foye in Oklahoma City, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (via Twitter).
The Mavericks have been struggling on the defensive end and coach Rick Carlisle plans on using Dwight Powell and Justin Anderson, the team’s youngest players, as starters the rest of the way to help provide a spark, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. “Well, if you’re having an energy problem and you’re having a problem defending, then you need to get more energetic and better defenders in the game,” Carlisle said. “You’ve got to make the point, and I felt right now we’ve got to make the point that anything other than your best effort and your best energy is unacceptable. These two guys are going to go hard unconditionally, and they delivered tonight. … You know, you’re going to see some of these guys going forward. There’s no question about it.”
When the Jazz traded two draft picks to the Wolves in exchange for the rights to Trey Burke, the team thought it was a coup, but nearly three years later it would appear Minnesota came out on top in that transaction, Mike Sorensen of The Deseret News writes. Both players Minnesota acquired (Gorgui Dieng and Shabazz Muhammad) have been productive, while Burke is stuck in a reserve role despite the run of backcourt injuries Utah has endured this season, Sorensen notes. Burke admits he wonders what his career would be like if he had gone to the Wolves, the scribe adds. “I think about it every time I play against them — it motivates me,” Burke said. “That’s one of the teams I play really well against. It’s just motivation, that’s how it’s been my whole life, the underdog who’s overlooked.”

And-Ones: Wolves, Joe Johnson, Rockets, Mavs

February 25th, 2016 at 2:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Timberwolves are at a “standstill” in talks with Grizzlies minority-share owner Steve Kaplan about a potential deal that would see Kaplan and his partners take 30% of the Minnesota franchise, Wolves owner Glen Taylor told Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. The sides can’t proceed until Kaplan sells his stake in the Grizzlies, Taylor said to Zgoda, and Memphis principal owner Robert Pera isn’t making it easy, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (on Twitter). The deal had reportedly been on track to be complete by the end of this month, but Taylor, who remains optimistic it will ultimately get done, said it will probably take months, not weeks, Zgoda relays. That arrangement would reportedly involve Taylor eventually ceding control of the Wolves to Kaplan, but Taylor plans to remain the primary owner for another few years, Krawczynski tweets. See more from around the NBA:

New Nets GM Sean Marks essentially confirmed the reported buyout talks with Joe Johnson today in an appearance on the “Joe & Evan” show on CBS New York radio (Twitter transcription via Devin Kharpertian of The Brooklyn Game). Marks said the team would talk to Johnson to see “what he really wants to do,” adding that he thinks the 15th-year veteran has “deserved the right” to go to a playoff team if he wants.
The relationship between James Harden and soon-to-be free agent Dwight Howard is nuanced, but the idea of tension between the Rockets stars is overblown, as Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com examines.
The Mavericks didn’t really receive trade offers of picks likely to fall in the middle of the first-round for Dwight Powell and Justin Anderson, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com (Twitter link). That conflicts with an earlier report.

Texas Notes: Howard, Foye, Powell, Anderson

February 19th, 2016 at 10:00am CST by Chuck Myron

The Mavericks and Bulls were among the teams the Rockets spoke to about Dwight Howard in the days leading up to Thursday’s trade deadline, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com, reiterating earlier reports that Houston talked with the Hawks, Celtics, Hornets, Heat and Bucks. The Rockets held out for one “frontline player” and a first-round pick in return, sources told Stein, though it’s not entirely clear whether he means “frontline” as in “frontcourt” or as in “of importance.” GM Daryl Morey provided a hint, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle relays.

“It was going to have to take something significant to make us look at anything and even then we probably wouldn’t have,” Morey said in part.

Morey also said that he believes in the combo of Howard and James Harden and was never close to trading Howard, Feigen notes, but according to Chris Mannix of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports, the Rockets understand that Howard and Harden are simply a poor fit on the court. The Rockets and other teams had considerable differences about what a Howard trade would look like, even though executives around the league believe Howard is a better scorer than his numbers in Houston show, Mannix writes. See more from the Texas Triangle:

The Mavericks had some level of interest in Randy Foye before the Nuggets traded him to the Thunder instead Thursday, but the Mavs weren’t going to offer either Devin Harris or Raymond Felton for him, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
The Mavs are always looking for another shooter, president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said, according to Sefko, who indicates in the same piece that the team wouldn’t mind signing a big man, either, as the post-deadline buyout market develops.
Teams offered picks likely to fall in the middle of the first-round to the Mavs for Dwight Powell and Justin Anderson, a source tells Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). Presumably that means each of them would have netted that sort of pick individually, and not the two of them as a package.
Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News wouldn’t be surprised to see the Spurs replace former assistant GM Sean Marks with Spurs D-League GM Brian Pauga, also noting that ex-Spurs executive Danny Ferry has been hanging around the team of late (Twitter links). Young made his remarks on the evening before the Nets hired Marks as their GM.

Southwest Notes: Morey, Williams, McGee, Gentry

November 23rd, 2015 at 3:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

It’s up to the players to pull the Rockets out of the malaise that cost former coach Kevin McHale his job, according to GM Daryl Morey, but Morey acknowledges to TNT’s David Aldridge that some of the fault lies at his own desk, as Aldridge relays in his Morning Tip column for NBA.com.

“Except for Dwight Howard, there really isn’t anybody on the roster playing well, and those are all my decisions,” Morey said. “I can’t hide from that.”

The Rockets won their first game after switching from McHale to interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff but lost both of their games since, and they’re tied with the Kings at 5-9 for 12th place in the Western Conference. See more from the Southwest Division:

Chandler Parsons doesn’t understand why Deron Williams has a reputation as a negative locker room force, citing evidence of the opposite to Jake Fischer of SI.com. Wesley Matthews observes a positive attitude from Williams in the face of challenges, like the erosion of his game, a change Williams acknowledges, as Fischer adds. “My days of scoring 20 and 10 are over. I know that,” said Williams, who gave up nearly $16MM to buy his way off the Nets before signing with the Mavericks for $11MM over two years.
The return of JaVale McGee puts the squeeze on the minutes of early-season revelation Dwight Powell, notes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. The Mavs have until January 7th to decide whether to pay McGee his full salary of $1.27MM or waive him and pay only his $750K partial guarantee.
Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry was satisfied as the lead assistant for the Warriors last season and didn’t think he’d end up with another head coaching job until New Orleans came calling, observes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. “I was not going to take a job just to have a job as a head coach unless it was a situation that I thought was going to give you an opportunity to win and win big and compete for a championship,” Gentry said. “I really didn’t have any desire just to take another NBA job.”

Western Notes: Powell, Aldridge, Knight

November 18th, 2015 at 10:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The strong play of Dwight Powell for the Mavericks has given the franchise some enduring benefit from last season’s trade for Rajon Rondo, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. Powell has worked extremely hard to develop his game, something that hasn’t gone unnoticed or unappreciated by his teammates, MacMahon adds. “The kid basically sleeps in the gym,” Mavs power forward Dirk Nowitzki told reporters. “He never goes home. It seems like every time I come in, he’s in there working, either lifting or running or shooting. He just wants to get better all the time. Now that he’s got some playing time, he’s still working harder than everybody else.” The 24-year-old is averaging 10.5 points and 8.1 rebounds thus far this season, well above his career numbers of 5.2 PPG and 3.5 RPG.

Here’s more from the West:

The Suns‘ decision to acquire Brandon Knight from the Bucks last season is finally starting to pay off, with Knight playing some of the best basketball of his young career as he and Eric Bledsoe mesh perfectly together, writes Tom Ziller of SB Nation in his analysis of Phoenix’s backcourt duo.
The Spurs have recalled Jonathon Simmons from their D-League affiliate in Austin, the team announced via press release. Simmons notched 17 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in one contest on his assignment.
LaMarcus Aldridge remains happy with his decision to join the Spurs over the offseason, and he is pleased with his relationship with coach Gregg Popovich thus far, Ananth Pandian of CBSSports.com writes. “He’s very particular as far as basketball, you know, doing things right,” Aldridge said about his new coach. “But as soon as the game is over, he’s on to a different thing, making sure we are good as human beings. I think that’s a really good balance. He doesn’t burn you out. He’s not always basketball, basketball, basketball. He actually gives you the time to be free.”
It’s the play and “aloofness” of James Harden that’s frustrated Rockets teammates, Jeff Zillgitt and Sam Amick of USA Today write, clarifying Zillgitt’s earlier tweet that Harden’s “style” had created tension.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Batum, Mavs, Celtics

November 15th, 2015 at 10:30pm CST by Will Joseph

Although he was initially shocked by the June trade that sent him from the Blazers to the Hornets, Nicolas Batum said he has embraced his new role with his new team and doesn’t harbor any ill will toward Portland, Jason Quick of CSNNW.com details. Batum, who was with Portland for seven seasons, scored 33 points Sunday in the Hornets’ win against the Blazers. “Why should I be angry? It wasn’t an anger game,” Batum said. “I respect them so much. They gave me my chance, when I was a rookie, 19 years old. They trade me because they think it’s the right thing to do, and I understand that. So now, I move on.’’

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Dwight Powell and Raymond Felton were both “throw-ins” who helped the Mavs acquire Rajon Rondo and Tyson Chandler in respective deals, but it’s Powell and Felton who are still with Dallas and playing as if they were the cornerstones of the trades, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News opines. Felton has started several games this season and Powell is averaging 10.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, Sefko adds.
The Celtics have moved rookies Terry Rozier and Jordan Mickey along with 2014 first-rounder James Young back and forth from the D-League as a way to get the young players more experience, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe examines. The assignments should not be considered demotions, Washburn writes, because it is the team’s way of tutoring these players. While Boston’s young players are racking up minutes in the D-League, other rookies around the league are just riding the bench, Washburn adds.
Tara Greco resigned this week from her role as NBPA communications director, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports reports (via Twitter).

Mavs Waive Maurice Ndour

October 26th, 2015 at 2:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:53pm: Mavs owner Mark Cuban confirmed the move to Charania, calling it “a really tough decision.” Charania indicates the decision came to down to keeping Ndour and Salah Mejri, who has a fully guaranteed rookie minimum salary but no guaranteed salary beyond that. A stress reaction that Ndour suffered in his left leg that has him out indefinitely weighed heavily in the team’s thinking, Charania writes.

2:10pm: The Mavericks are releasing Maurice Ndour, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). A league source told Charania the move has already taken place, though the Mavs have yet to make a formal announcement. The subtraction of Ndour leaves the Mavs with 15 players, the regular season roster limit. That includes Dwight Powell, who has a non-guaranteed salary, and JaVale McGee, who’s salary is partially guaranteed, so presumably this signals that both have made the opening night roster. Presuming that’s the case, Powell earns a full guarantee on his one-year veteran’s minimum salary of more than $845K, while McGee’s partial guarantee jumps from $500K to $750K.

Ndour’s salary of $525,094 for this season, $1 more than the rookie minimum, is fully guaranteed, and his deal also included a partial guarantee of $437K for 2016/17, as Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reported. All of that stays on the books for Dallas unless he clears waivers.

The undrafted power forward out of Ohio University impressed while with the Knicks for summer league, and while the Knicks reportedly tried to get him to back out of his deal with the Mavericks, but that effort was to no avail. Ndour, 22, averaged 4.8 points in 22.8 minutes per game across four preseason appearances with Dallas.

Southwest Notes: Capela, Papanikolaou, Powell

April 4th, 2015 at 7:34pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rockets rookie center Clint Capela is getting personalized instruction from Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon, reports Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Capela, the 25th pick in last year’s NBA draft, has spent most of the season in the D-League and has seen little NBA action until recently. But the Rockets think Olajuwon, the NBA’s career leader in blocked shots, can give him a greater presence on the defensive end. “I can be effective on blocked shots on the weak side,” Capela said. “I can be more active. I think he will help me for sure. He is always at the game here. He saw me play the last game. He saw my game, how I play. Today he told me how I can be more helpful for the team. I’m sure it will help.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

The Rockets‘ Kostas Papanikolaou is getting closer to returning from a sprained ankle, according to Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle. Papanikolaou, who has been sidelined since hurting the ankle in warmups prior to a February 23rd game, hopes he can be ready to play next week. He is set to make more than $4.6MM next season, but his contract is non-guaranteed if he is waived before September 28th.
Tyson Chandler should be the Mavericks‘ top priority in free agency, opines RIck Gosselin of The Dallas Morning News in his weekly chat. Dallas will have eight free agents this summer, but Gosselin says a skilled rebounder is a necessity on a team filled with shooters, and the Mavericks learned how hard it is to replace Chandler the last time they let him go.
The Mavericks have recalled Dwight Powell from the D-League, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. Powell has appeared in eight games for the Texas Legends, averaging 28.3 points and 9.4 rebounds.

And-Ones: Temple, Powell, Vucevic

April 3rd, 2015 at 10:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Unlike Orlando’s past star big men such as Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard, Nikola Vucevic is determined to be a member of the Magic for his entire career, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel writes. “Yeah. I’m here for the long haul,” Vucevic said. “I love it here. I really love the city. I’ve improved a lot as a player. I’d love to stay here for a long time and make something special happen. If it takes years, it takes years. I ain’t going anywhere.” The big man will have a few years before his loyalty to Orlando will be tested since his current deal runs through the 2018/19 season.

Here’s more from around the league:

Wizards swingman Garrett Temple began running and participating in drills this week and said he is at 80% strength, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post notes. Temple, who strained his right hamstring back on March 9th, was projected to be out approximately four to six weeks, putting his return date within the original prediction.
The Mavericks have re-assigned center Dwight Powell to the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com tweets. This will be Powell’s 13th trek of the season to the D-League.
The 2015 NCAA tournament is winding down and only four teams remain standing. Chris Mannix of SI.com looks at the draft prospects who have the most to gain from standout performances in the Final Four and beyond. Mannix’s list includes Justise Winslow (Duke), Willie Cauley-Stein (Kentucky), Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin), and Devin Booker (Kentucky).