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And-Ones: WNBA, Wade, Two-Way Candidates

January 14th, 2020 at 2:05pm CST by Luke Adams

The WNBA and its players union have reached a landmark labor deal, announcing the tentative eight-year agreement today, as Doug Feinberg of The Associated Press outlines.

The new Collective Bargaining Agreement will increase the average and maximum salaries for players while enhancing standards and benefits related to travel and maternity leave. The deal, which has been approved by players and still must be ratified by owners, includes a 50-50 revenue sharing split beginning in 2021.

“I call it historic,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said. “The CBA guarantees substantial (financial) increases. The way we are paying these players is different than the past. … The top couple players are tripling (in pay) where they were. Other players are making $200-300K. The average will be over $130K. Everyone gets an increase here.”

The WNBA is also introducing a mid-season competition called the Commissioner’s Cup, per Mechelle Voepel of ESPNW. The event could be a mini-preview of what’s to come in the NBA, where commissioner Adam Silver has pushed the idea of an in-season tournament.

“We will designate Cup games the first half of the season leading into the Olympic break this year,” Engelbert said. “And then [for] the two teams with the best records, we will have a final in August as our first game back to re-launch the season. In 2020, the cash prizes will be more moderate, but in 2021, we’re going to step them up as we seek sponsors.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

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Heat Notes: Culture, Wade, Butler, Jones

December 21st, 2019 at 12:29pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Michael Lee of The Athletic takes a look at the infamous Heat culture that has Miami off to a red-hot 21-8 start this season, surprising many. The Heat are the No. 3 seed in the East. Their mix of savvy veterans like Jimmy Butler and Goran Dragic and fast-developing youth has been stellar. The roster is decorated with diverse players sporting the ability to switch across multiple positions and handle the rock.

17-year Heat lifer Udonis Haslem credits Miami’s front office, captained by team president Pat Riley, with putting together their impressive depth. “They do a great job of digging down and getting these diamonds in the rough,” Haslem raved. “You know it’s not always draft picks. It’s not always free agency. Sometimes, it’s getting your hands dirty, getting in the mud and going to the G League, picking up a guy that’s been waived from another team, doing your homework, getting an undrafted [player].” 

Here’s more out of Miami:

  • Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald unpacks an extensive recent Dwyane Wade conversation with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes on their new Showtime video podcast All The Smoke. Wade touched on the Heat’s recent drama with oft-suspended wing Dion Waiters. “It’s unfortunate what’s going on with him,” Wade told Barnes and Jackson. “The kid loves to hoop. What we’re seeing right now is now that the game was taken away from him, he doesn’t know how to deal with it.” Wade also discussed a desire to return to the Heat one day in an organizational capacity. “I would love to migrate back to the organization as I figure out what my life is going to be about and continue to give back to that city as they gave to me for so many years,” he said during the podcast.
  • Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel observes that 30 year-old Jimmy Butler‘s “odometer” as an All-NBA talent puts the current Heat in conflict with their supposed 2021 free agency plan. The team only has $60MM committed to their books during a summer when talents like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Bradley Beal, Victor Oladipo, Jrue Holiday, and, yes, LeBron James could all become available.
  • The return of Goran Dragic to the Heat’s bench unit could serve as a boon for developing small forward Derrick Jones, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald details. “Goran gets downhill, makes my guy guard him and he just puts the ball in the air and lets me do the rest,” Jones observed. The athletic fourth-year swingman has been one of the team’s best wing defenders in limited minutes, and has now developed an outside shooting game, averaging 34.6% from deep this season. When guard Justise Winslow returns to the lineup from his back injury, Jackson opines that coach Erik Spoelstra should expand his rotation to 10 players to accommodate the improving Jones.
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And-Ones: Wade, China, Stoudemire, Contracts

October 23rd, 2019 at 11:04am CST by Luke Adams

Six months after retiring as a player, Dwyane Wade is employed in a new capacity. According to an official press release (via NBA.com), Wade has reached a multiyear, multi-platform agreement with WarnerMedia, and will become a basketball commentator for TNT this season.

In addition to appearing on the network’s NBA broadcasts, Wade will make studio appearances during Turner Sports’ and CBS Sports’ NCAA tournament coverage later in the season.

“I’m thrilled and grateful to be joining the WarnerMedia family with many exciting opportunities ahead,” Wade said in a statement. “I have great respect for TNT’s team of analysts and their longstanding commitment to quality sports coverage. After sixteen seasons in the NBA, I look forward to connecting with my fans in this new role and bringing my own perspective to the game I love.”

Here’s more from around the NBA and the rest of the basketball world:

  • Chinese state television didn’t air the NBA’s opening-night games on Tuesday, while Chinese streaming partner Tencent only showed the Lakers/Clippers game, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and Brian Windhorst. CCTV typically shows the league’s opening-night doubleheader, but Tuesday’s decision is a signal that the ongoing NBA/China controversy is far from settled. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said earlier this week that the league has “no choice but to engage” China, as Ben Cohen of The Wall Street Journal details.
  • Speaking of China, former NBA All-Star Amar’e Stoudemire has signed the Fujian Sturgeons of the Chinese Basketball Assocation, according to reports from Roi Cohen of Sport5 and Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (Twitter links).
  • ESPN’s Bobby Marks provides some financial details on the rookie scale extensions signed on Monday, outlining (via Twitter) exactly how much bonus money is included in five of those deals. Marks also identifies four players who will receive increased partial guarantees as a result of remaining under contract with their respective teams through Wednesday (Twitter link). Those players are Christian Wood (Pistons), Jordan McRae (Wizards), Kendrick Nunn (Heat), and Trey Burke (Sixers).
  • In a conversation with Max Resetar of SLAM, good friends Karl-Anthony Towns, Devin Booker, and D’Angelo Russell joked about eventually teaming up. “When we’re all on the same team—I ain’t gonna tell you which team because I don’t know—we’re gonna do this again,” Russell said of the joint interview. While we probably shouldn’t assume the trio is destined to form a Big Three down the road, it’s worth noting that both Towns and Booker tried to recruit Russell to their respective teams when he was a free agent this summer.
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And-Ones: Maker, Wade, CBA, Thompson, Robinson

October 18th, 2019 at 9:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Makur Maker, ranked No. 10 by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony in the 2020 high school class, is exploring his eligibility for next June’s draft, according to Givony. The NBA Players Association is assisting Makur and believes he’ll be declared eligible due to the fact he’ll turn 19 in November, Givony adds. He’s also in his fifth year of high school at Pacific Academy in Irvine, California, as the 6’11’ Maker was two credits short of receiving a high school diploma from his previous school. He’s the cousin of Pistons big man Thon Maker.

We have more from around the basketball world:

  • Italy’s Olimpia Milano was interested in signing Dwyane Wade, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia. Team president Leo Dell’Orco revealed that the franchise considered making a run at the retired NBA star before settling on another former NBA veteran, Luis Scola. “This summer we wanted to sign an important NBA player,” he said. “We were interested in Dwyane Wade but we took some time (and chose Scola).”
  • The Chinese Basketball Association has increased its restrictions on foreign players, Carchia relays in a separate story. Among the changes is a rule that only two foreign players can be on the roster for each game and they can’t be on the court at the same time. The CBA has also imposed a salary cap but it only applies to Chinese players, according to another note from Carchia.
  • Former NBA forward Jason Thompson is returning to the Chinese league and will replace Angel Delgado on the Beijing Royal Fighters, according to a Sportando report. Thompson spent last season with Fenerbahce D Istanbul. In 36 games with Fenerbahce, Thompson averaged 5.0 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 16.0 MPG. Thompson played in China during the 2016/17 season after averaging 8.9 PPG and 6.6 RPG in 588 career NBA games. Delgado had to leave China for personal matters.
  • Another former NBA forward, Thomas Robinson, reached an agreement with the CBA’s Sichuan Blue Whales, Sportando relays.  Robinson spent last season with Beijing, averaging 21.9 PPG and 13.6 RPG. The 2012 lottery pick last played in the NBA during the 2016/17 season, when he saw action in 48 games with the Lakers.
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Lakers Notes: Davis, Wade, Howard, Rondo

September 8th, 2019 at 7:08pm CST by JD Shaw

Entering his first season with the Lakers and eighth season in the league, Anthony Davis is focused on expanding his game by improving a key part of the modern player’s arsenal: Three-point shooting.

The Lakers ranked 20th in three-point makes last season with 847, shooting 33.3% from deep on the campaign. Only the Suns managed to shoot at a worse clip, finishing at 32.9%.

“This summer I improved the most on my 3-ball. I wanted to be able to stretch the floor,” Davis said, according to Joey Ramirez of NBA.com.  “As a big, the game is definitely going that way now. … I for sure want to get that [percentage] in the high 30s. By me doing that I’ll be able to help the Lakers as much as possible … and hopefully win a championship.”

Davis, who made just three three-pointers in his first three NBA seasons, shot 48-of-145 (33%) from deep last season with New Orleans in 56 games.

Los Angeles struck a major trade to acquire Davis in June, sending away Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Brandon Ingram, the 2019 No. 4 pick, a 2021 first-round pick, the right to swap picks in 2023 and a first-round pick in 2024 for his services.

Here’s more on the Lakers:

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L.A. Notes: George, Leonard, Howard, Wade

September 8th, 2019 at 12:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The health of the Clippers‘ two new stars will determine how much success they’ll have this season, writes Jovan Buha of The Athletic. The more immediate concern involves Paul George, who is recovering from surgery in June to fix a small labrum tear in his left shoulder.

George will likely miss all of October, according to Buha, and whenever he returns he will need time to rediscover his shooting rhythm and blend his talents with his new teammates. Buha considers the Clippers to be just “fringe contenders” until George is 100% and warns that they may get off to a disappointing start.

The concern with Kawhi Leonard is load management, which is something the Raptors happily agreed to last season to keep him fresh for the playoffs. Leonard played just 60 regular season games last year, and his availability will play a large role in where the Clippers finish in the standings.

There’s more today from Los Angeles:

  • The addition of two elite players should mean a smaller role for Lou Williams, Boha suggests in the same story. He will still provide a spark off the bench, but won’t have the same control over the offense when George and Leonard are both active. Buha also states that Williams’ defensive liabilities could mean Landry Shamet or Patrick Beverley might take some of his late-game minutes.
  • Shane Rhodes of Basketball Insiders examines whether adding Dwight Howard to their roster is worth the risk for the Lakers. L.A. reached out to Howard after DeMarcus Cousins was lost with an ACL injury, but Rhodes notes that Howard’s track record since 2013 doesn’t inspire confidence. Because of the roster turnover in the past two seasons, Rhodes doubts that the Lakers have the locker room cohesion to handle any problems that Howard may cause.
  • Dwyane Wade isn’t actively planning a comeback, but he tells Arash Markazi of The Los Angeles Times that he’ll be working out with LeBron James at the Lakers‘ training facility and at Staples Center. James and Wade have been close friends since they entered the league, and their sons are now high school teammates. “You’re definitely going to see me out there,” Wade said. “I’ll be there early to work out with LeBron before the game starts. I just want to stay around it and be as involved as I can.”
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Dwyane Wade On Playing Again: “Never Say Never”

September 7th, 2019 at 12:06pm CST by marksuleymanov

After a highly publicized and emotional farewell tour last season, Heat legend Dwyane Wade hung up his sneakers to retire from the NBA. Since the conclusion of last season, the possibility of Wade returning to play has lingered.

Wade, 37, was still productive in his final season, averaging 15.0 PPG and 4.0 RPG in 72 games (two starts) for the Heat. While promoting the new NBA 2K20 video game, which he graces the cover of for the Legend Edition, Wade addressed the possibility of coming out of retirement like Michael Jordan did (Twitter link).

“I don’t know, I think these young players are way too fast and way too athletic for me,” Wade said. “You never say never, but I don’t think so.”

Wade already teased that if he came out of retirement, it’d be to join the Heat and Miami’s big offseason acquisition, Jimmy Butler. For now, however, Wade will remain retired.

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Heat Notes: Draft, Ellington, Langford

June 17th, 2019 at 9:53pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Should the Heat enter the sweepstakes for the No. 4 overall pick? Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel believes it depends on the cost.

The scribe isn’t a fan of the team sending away Justise Winslow, Josh Richardson, or Bam Adebayo in a deal, though if a trade was structured around one of their player-friendly contracts, such as Dion Waiters or James Johnson, an additional player and the No. 13, moving up would make more sense.

Here’s more from Miami:

  • The Heat could use Wayne Ellington back, but luxury tax concerns may put him out of the team’s price range, Winderman notes in the same piece. Miami began last season with great depth in the backcourt but that’s no longer the case after the team sent Ellington, Rodney McGruder, and Tyler Johnson away and watched Dwyane Wade retire.
  • Romeo Langford (Indiana) met with the Heat today, Evan Daniels of 247 Sports tweets. Langford’s busy day also includes a meeting with the Pelicans. He has previously visited Cleveland, Atlanta, and Minnesota.
  • The Heat also worked out Sekou Doumbouya (France), according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). Doumbouya is expected to go in the lottery.
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Southeast Notes: Heat, Walker, Hornets

April 14th, 2019 at 6:51pm CST by JD Shaw

The Heat missed the playoffs for the third time in the past five years this spring, heading into the offseason with more questions about their roster than answers.

The steady decline in playing time for Hassan Whiteside, potential position change for Justise Winslow and important draft in June are among Miami’s biggest factors to address, and that’s without including Goran Dragic‘s player option decision or Dion Waiters‘ major weight loss goal.

“I would like to continue to grow within that point guard role [next season], but I don’t want the narrative to be between me and Goran, us fighting for that position,” Winslow said, as relayed by David Furones of the Sun Sentinel.

Winslow started at point guard with Dragic sidelined for part of the season, then failed to find a defined role upon his return.

“We’re both unselfish guys, and I’ve learned so much from him. If James Harden and Chris Paul can play together, then I think me and Goran can play together.”

Miami has a strong coaching staff and front office regime capable of turning the ship around, but the absence of future Hall-of-Famer Dwyane Wade will surely leave a void. The team will look to regroup in the offseason with hopes of contending for the playoffs next year.

“The time without him was different, but I think we showed ourselves that we’re capable,” Heat guard Josh Richardson said of Wade. “We’re all wiser, better basketball players, so I’m excited to see how this summer and everything plays out.”

There’s more today from the Southeast Division:

  • The Heat could benefit from waiting one year before striking in free agency, Ira Winderman writes in his mailbag for the Sun Sentinel. Aside from lacking cap space (unless Whiteside and Dragic opt out), Miami could use next season to further develop the likes of Richardson, Winslow, Bam Adebayo and Derrick Jones Jr. before placing a major focus on the open market.
  • Frank Urbina of HoopsHype examines the potential landing spots for Hornets guard Kemba Walker, who’s set to enter unrestricted free agency in July. Along with the Hornets, Walker has been linked to the Knicks, Mavericks and Pacers throughout the season. “I have no feeling right now, I don’t know,” Walker said of his impending decision, according to ESPN. “Honestly, I don’t know what to expect. I guess it’s a lot of different emotions bottled up into one. I’m not sure. I don’t know.”
  • The Hornets must show Walker how they’re going to win next season and beyond if they hope to re-sign him this summer, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes. “I want to win; I want to win,” Walker said during his player interviews. When asked what the Hornets need to do in order to keep him, Walker replied, “They know,” according to Bonnell.
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Southeast Notes: Green, Wade, Young, Heat

April 5th, 2019 at 9:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jeff Green has played for six teams since the 2014/15 season and he’d like to stay put for a change. The veteran forward said he “would love to come back” to the Wizards, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington tweets. Green is averaging 12.3 PPG, 4.0 RPG and 1.8 APG for Washington. Green, 32, signed a one-year, minimum-salary contract with the Wizards last summer and will be an unrestricted free agent once again.

We have more from around the Southeast Division:

  • Heat guard Dwyane Wade said he’ll probably need a therapist after he retires at the end of the season, as he told Rachel Nichols of ESPN. “It is going to be a big change. This is what I know, like, my life has been this,” he said. “I told my wife I need to do therapy and we need to do a little bit. I was always against someone that don’t know me telling me how to live my life or giving me instructions. But I need someone to talk to about it. Because it is a big change.”
  • Hawks point guard Trae Young hopes that voters look at the body of work when deciding the Rookie of the Year award, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today reports. Luka Doncic looked like the runaway victor but Young’s strong second half has made it a much closer race. “This is a season-long award,” Young said. “Early on, everybody was saying (Doncic) was Rookie of the Year and deservedly so. He was playing really well, and I wasn’t playing the best. I was still playing well. In the second half, it’s flipped. … If you do a full-season look, it’s definitely closer than some people think.”
  • The Heat need to add another player to the roster by Sunday to get back to 14 on the 15-player roster, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel points out. They might even add two players and could convert the two-way contracts of Duncan Robinson and Yante Maten to standard contracts to make them playoff eligible. However, that would also boost their qualifying offers from $50K to $1.4MM apiece, Winderman notes.
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