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Pacers Notes: Nembhard, McConnell, Mathurin, Turner, Toppin, Walker, Freeman

December 2nd, 2024 at 3:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers fell to 9-12 on Sunday with a 15-point loss in Memphis, but Andrew Nembhard‘s return from a right knee issue was a positive development for the club. As Dustin Dopirak writes for The Indianapolis Star, Nembhard’s solid play on a minutes limit provided a reminder of what Indiana was missing when he was sidelined for 12 games.

The third-year guard scored 14 points to go along with four assists and two steals in just 15 minutes of action. He was a team-high +5 on the night, making him the only Indiana starter with a positive plus/minus rating. Nembhard played eight minutes in the first quarter as the Pacers built an early 45-28 lead over the Grizzlies.

“He’s a big reason we got off to the start that we did,” head coach Rick Carlisle said. “Defensively, he was really solid. Offensively, he made plays, had a couple layups, a couple threes. He just knows how to play. He knows how to play with (Tyrese Haliburton). It’s obvious that we missed him.”

With Nembhard out, opposing defenses have increasingly keyed on Haliburton, sending double-teams his way and guarding him with increased physicality. Haliburton is optimistic that the return of a talented play-maker and shooter like Nembhard will put the Pacers in a better position to attack those defensive schemes.

“Good to have him back, of course, he’s a big part of what we do here,” Haliburton said. “Good to see him healthy and looking forward to having his minutes growing going forward. … They’re doing a lot of denying. I’m sure a lot of teams are going to follow this blueprint moving forward. We just have to be solution-based and figure out what that is, how to attack it the right way. I thought in the first quarter we did.”

Here’s more on the Pacers:

  • Indiana guards T.J. McConnell and Bennedict Mathurin have drawn “significant” trade interest from potential suitors over the years, but the Pacers have consistently rebuffed those inquiries, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who notes that McConnell has been an important veteran leader and Mathurin is still viewed as having All-Star upside. After knocking off some rust to open the season, Mathurin, 22, has averaged 20.0 points and 7.6 rebounds per game with a .478/.438/.863 shooting line in his last 17 appearances (16 starts).
  • While teams across the NBA have long coveted center Myles Turner, there’s a belief that Indiana wants to re-sign him, Scotto writes. The Pacers won’t be able to extend Turner before he reaches unrestricted free agency in 2025, but will control his Bird rights at that time, allowing them to go as high as they need to.
  • There’s a belief around the league that the Pacers could eventually move either Obi Toppin or Jarace Walker, since the two power forwards are playing relatively limited roles behind starting power forward Pascal Siakam, Scotto says. Despite some early-season injuries to starters, Toppin is averaging just 20.0 minutes per game while Walker is playing 17.8 MPG.
  • Two-way player Enrique Freeman is a candidate to have his contract converted to a standard deal after the trade deadline, league sources tell Scotto. Freeman has played a relatively modest role so far, while Quenton Jackson has been the more notable two-way standout for the Pacers this fall. In order to promote either one, Indiana would need to make room on a 15-man roster that is currently full. That could be achieved by making a two-for-one trade or by cutting a player.
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Central Notes: Giannis, Stewart, Ball, Pacers, Furphy

November 14th, 2024 at 2:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo erupted for an NBA season-high 59 points in Wednesday’s overtime victory over Detroit, writes Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Antetokounmpo was efficient from all over the court, going 21-of-34 from the field, 1-of-2 from three-point range, and 16-of-17 from the foul line. He also contributed 14 rebounds, seven assists, three blocks and two steals, becoming the first player in league history to finish with that stat line.

“His handprint was all over the game,” Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said. “When you think about having the scoring off the floor that we had – no Dame (Damian Lillard), no Khris Middleton, no Bobby Portis, no Ryan (Rollins) so we’re down to one living point guard on our team – and for him to do that and for us to score 127 points, though he got half of them almost, every basket was needed.”

Center Brook Lopez, who had also had his best game of the early portion of the season (29 points, eight rebounds, five blocks, three steals), struggled to find words to describe Antetokounmpo’s impact, according to Eric Nehm of The Athletic.

“I’m not well versed enough in the English language, or unfortunately any other language, to find new ways to describe Giannis’ brilliance,” Lopez said. “Just to be able to watch it and be a part of it for as long as I’ve been here, these seven years now, to see the way he was tonight, I’m still seeing new stuff. And it’s just, it’s so special.

“So I’m just going to cherish it, night in and night out, but just let it inspire me too because his drive — you mentioned all the scoring he does — but he doesn’t care about that. Obviously, he can take us on his back and win games for us, but it’s just the way he goes about it. He’s not about the stats. He’s just about winning and that’s something the whole team gets behind.”

Here’s more from the Central:

  • Pistons big man Isaiah Stewart was ejected in the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss to Milwaukee following a Flagrant 2 foul on Antetokounmpo, notes Owczarski of The Journal Sentinel. The Bucks star initiated contact with Stewart to create space, then spun baseline for a dunk attempt when Stewart pulled him down by the jersey with both hands. “I’ve been in that position many times in my life,” Antetokounmpo said of the play. “I have two older brothers that, you know, push me on the floor, play, be tough on me, especially Thanasis. I’ve been so many times hit. So, it doesn’t really faze me anymore. It doesn’t really faze me. All I could think about was get up and try to make two free throws. At the same time, it’s a dangerous play. That’s not a basketball play. I think the ref did a great job of making the right call.”
  • Bulls guard Lonzo Ball, who is recuperating from a right wrist sprain, has progressed to doing dribbling and shooting drills in recent days and hopes to return on Sunday vs. Houston, per Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times. However, head coach Billy Donovan suggested that target date might be a little too optimistic. “I don’t know if that’s realistic,” Donovan said. “That’s what he was shooting for. We’re not ruling that out, but a lot of that is going to depend on how he progresses in those areas. When he starts shooting threes, how does that respond? They’re going to make him do some things live in guarding the ball to see how it feels when all of a sudden he’s hand-checking a guy. We haven’t gotten to those places yet, but those are markers he needs to get through, hurdles he needs to get through before he can take the next step in terms of getting on the floor.”
  • With James Wiseman and Isaiah Jackson sidelined by long-term injuries (torn Achilles tendons) and Aaron Nesmith (left ankle) and Andrew Nembhard (left knee) out multiple weeks, the Pacers have turned to their two-way players and rookies for rotation minutes, as Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star writes. Two-way players Quenton Jackson and Enrique Freeman (he’s also a rookie, selected No. 50 overall in June’s draft) have received some run off the bench, as has No. 35 overall pick Johnny Furphy, who scored a career-best seven points in nine minutes in Wednesday’s loss to Orlando. “He’s a very good player off movement,” head coach Rick Carlisle said of Furphy, per Dopirak. “He’s a great runner at that size. He’s deceptively tough. He gave us some really good minutes in the first half. … You can see why we’re excited about him for the future and really right now too. That’s a pretty high culture game and he went in there and played well.”
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Contract Details: Mykhailiuk, Eubanks, Swider, Two-Ways

August 12th, 2024 at 10:45am CST by Luke Adams

The four-year contract that veteran swingman Svi Mykhailiuk signed with the Jazz only includes $3.5MM in guaranteed money, Hoops Rumors has learned — that $3.5MM is the salary Mykhailiuk will earn in 2024/25.

The second and third years of Mykhailiuk’s deal, worth $3.675MM and $3.85MM respectively, are non-guaranteed, as is his $4.025MM team option for the 2027/28 season. The 27-year-old could earn up to a total of $15.05MM if he plays out the entire contract, but $11.55MM of that money is non-guaranteed.

June 30 represents Mykhailiuk’s annual salary guarantee date, so the Jazz would have to waive him by June 30, 2025 to avoid being on the hook for his full ’25/26 salary. That deadline also applies to each of the following two seasons.

Here are more details on recently signed contracts from around the NBA:

  • Drew Eubanks will earn a $5MM guaranteed salary from the Jazz this season, with a $4.75MM non-guaranteed salary for 2025/26, Hoops Rumors has learned. Both Mykahiliuk and Eubanks were signed using a portion of Utah’s leftover cap room.
  • Cole Swider‘s one-year, non-guaranteed contract with the Pacers is worth the minimum salary and includes Exhibit 9 language, Hoops Rumors has learned. It doesn’t feature Exhibit 10 language, which suggests the plan probably isn’t for Swider to join Indiana’s G League team if he’s waived during training camp. The third-year forward vie for a spot on the Pacers’ 15-man regular season roster.
  • The two-way contracts recently signed by Enrique Freeman with the Pacers and Anzejs Pasecniks with the Bucks are each one-year deals, so both players will be eligible for restricted free agency in 2025.
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Pacers Sign Enrique Freeman To Two-Way Deal

August 8th, 2024 at 1:55pm CST by Rory Maher

1:55pm: Freeman’s two-way deal is now official, the Pacers announced in a press release. Cole Swider‘s non-guaranteed standard contract is also official, per the team.

12:40pm: The Pacers are signing Enrique Freeman to a two-way contract, sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Freeman was the No. 50 overall pick of June’s draft.

Freeman is a native of Cleveland, Ohio, who played five years of college basketball at Akron, where he had highly decorated career. The 24-year-old forward made the MAC All-Defensive team four consecutive times, was a three-time All-Conference honoree, was MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2021/22 and the conference’s Player of the Year in ’23/24.

As a senior last season for the Zips, Freeman averaged 18.6 points, 12.9 rebounds and 1.7 blocks on .584/.370/.728 shooting in 35 games (32.5 minutes per contest).

Freeman had been one of a handful of 2024 draft picks who remained unsigned. Now that he’s inking a two-way deal, that list is down to three players: Duke big man Kyle Filipowski, the No. 32 pick (Jazz); Serbian guard Nikola Djurisic, the No. 43 pick (Hawks) who recently underwent surgery for a broken foot; and Dutch big man Quinten Post, the No. 52 pick (Warriors) who played college basketball at Mississippi State and Boston College.

As for Indiana, Freeman will fill the team’s third and final two-way spot, with guards Quenton Jackson and Tristen Newton also on two-way contracts.

The Pacers still have a two-way qualifying offer out to Oscar Tshiebwe as well, but since two-way deals can be swapped in and out and don’t count against the salary cap, they could potentially release him if he accepts the QO and isn’t in their long-term plans. Newton and Freeman’s roster spots are probably a little more secure than Jackson’s since they were just selected in the second round (Newton was the No. 49 pick).

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Ten 2024 Draft Picks Have Yet To Sign NBA Contracts

July 24th, 2024 at 7:44am CST by Luke Adams

Of the 58 players who were selected in last month’s draft, 48 have signed their first NBA contracts since the start of July. As our tracker shows, the breakdown is as follows:

That leaves 10 players from the 2024 draft class who have yet to sign with their respective NBA teams. Here are those players:

  1. Utah Jazz: Kyle Filipowski, F/C, Duke
  2. San Antonio Spurs: Juan Nunez, G, Ratiopharm Ulm
  3. Atlanta Hawks: Nikola Djurisic, G, Mega Basket
  4. San Antonio Spurs: Harrison Ingram, F, UNC
  5. Indiana Pacers: Tristen Newton, G, UConn
  6. Indiana Pacers: Enrique Freeman, F, Akron
  7. Dallas Mavericks: Melvin Ajinca, G, Saint-Quentin
  8. Golden State Warriors: Quinten Post, C, Boston College
  9. Boston Celtics: Anton Watson, F, Gonzaga
  10. New York Knicks: Kevin McCullar, G/F, Kansas

Of these 10 players, one has already signed a non-NBA contract — French team ASVEL Basket announced earlier this week that it has added Ajinca to its roster, so it appears he’ll become a draft-and-stash prospect, spending at least one season overseas before joining the Mavericks.

That’s likely the path Nunez will follow as well. While nothing is official yet, a report earlier this month stated that the Spanish point guard is expected to sign with Barcelona on a deal that will give him an NBA out during the 2025 offseason. The Spurs haven’t been operating as if they expect Nunez to be on their roster next season, having filled their 15-man roster with players on standard contracts.

Djurisic is the other international prospect in this group and his plans for 2024/25 remain unclear. He fractured his left foot during Summer League play and the injury is expected to sideline him until at least late September, putting him behind schedule in his offseason workouts.

The Hawks don’t appear to have room on their 15-man roster for Djurisic at this point (they have 15 players on guaranteed deals, plus Bruno Fernando on a non-guaranteed contract), though they do have a two-way slot open. We’ll see if the plan is to have Djurisic take that spot or if he’ll continue playing overseas for another season.

The Jazz have space on their 15-man roster for Filipowski and I expect him to sign a three- or four-year contract sooner or later. Completing that move would cut into Utah’s cap room a little, so the club will likely handle its other offseason business to make sure it doesn’t need that room for other purposes — Filipowski can be signed using the second-round exception whether team salary is over or under the cap. The Jazz also have yet to formally finalize reported deals with Drew Eubanks and Johnny Juzang, which is another sign they’re keeping all options open with their cap room.

The other six unsigned second-rounders – Ingram, Newton, Freeman, Post, Watson, and McCullar – all look to me like obvious candidates for two-way contracts. As we detailed on Tuesday, the Spurs, Pacers, and Knicks each have multiple open two-way slots, while the Celtics have one open spot, so there’s nothing standing in the way of their draftees filling those openings.

It’s worth noting that Indiana has two-way qualifying offers on the table for two players (Quenton Jackson and Oscar Tshiebwe), so there won’t be room for those two guys and Newton and Freeman on two-way deals. With 14 players on standard contracts, the Pacers could give one of those four players a 15-man spot if they want to retain all of them.

The Warriors, meanwhile, don’t currently have an open two-way slot for Post. One of their two-way players – Pat Spencer – is a carry-over from last season, so his grip on a two-way spot might be weaker than more recent signees like Reece Beekman and Daeqwon Plowden, but Spencer had a strong Summer League showing, so I’m not necessarily assuming Post will take his spot.

For what it’s worth, Post was born and raised in the Netherlands before playing college basketball in the U.S., so spending a season in Europe wouldn’t be a total curveball for him. Still, at age 24, he’s probably NBA-ready. A standard contract isn’t an option for Post for now, since the Warriors are right up against their first-apron hard cap and can’t afford to sign a 15th man. That could change if they make a trade, but for now, his best hope of opening the season with Golden State would be for the team to waive one of its two-way players.

While it’s rare for U.S.-born players to be stashed overseas, it’s not unheard of, so that’s also a possibility for some of the other unsigned players from the back half of the second round.

Another potential option would be signing a G League contract that allows the player’s NBA team to retain his rights while not dedicating an 18-man regular season roster spot to him. There’s often at least one player per draft class who takes that route. Mojave King did it in 2023, Gui Santos did it in 2022, and two Nets draftees (RaiQuan Gray and Marcus Zegarowski) did it in 2021. McCullar, a late pick who is still recovering from a knee injury he sustained at Kansas, might be a candidate for this path.

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Atlantic Notes: Porzingis, Celtics, Knicks, Nets

June 25th, 2024 at 10:42am CST by Luke Adams

Injured Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis is expected to undergo surgery on his left leg injury in the coming days, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link via Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston).

Porzingis told ESPN after the NBA Finals ended last week that his injury – a torn retinaculum and dislocated posterior tibialis tendon – would require surgery, so this news doesn’t come as a surprise. However, as the Celtics explain in their announcement, the star center had hoped to put off surgery until after Latvia’s Olympic qualifying tournament — and potentially its trip to Paris. That won’t be possible, as Porzingis is unable to play through the injury at the level required for Olympic competition, per the team.

The Celtics are expected to provide updates on Porzingis’ recovery timeline after the surgery is completed. Latvia, meanwhile, will look to claim a spot in the 12-team men’s basketball Olympic tournament without Porzingis available. In order to clinch an Olympic berth, the Latvians will need to win a six-team qualifying tournament over Georgia, Brazil, Cameroon, Montenegro, and the Philippines. That tournament will take place from July 2-7 in Riga, Latvia.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

  • Revisiting the Celtics‘ series of trades from last year, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer reports that Boston still would have traded away Marcus Smart during the 2023 offseason even if its initial deal for Porzingis – which involved sending Malcolm Brogdon to the Clippers – hadn’t fallen through. According to O’Connor, if that Brogdon trade had been completed, the Celtics intended to send Smart to the Grizzlies in a separate deal for Tyus Jones and the two draft picks Boston got in the final Porzingis trade. In that scenario, the C’s may not have been in position to acquire Jrue Holiday later in the offseason.
  • Indiana center Kel’el Ware, Akron forward Enrique Freeman, and San Francisco forward Jonathan Mogbo are among the prospects who have worked out for the Knicks recently, per Ian Begley of SNY.tv. New York currently holds the 24th and 25th overall picks in the first round on Wednesday, along with No. 38 on Thursday.
  • Fred Katz and Andrew Schlecht of The Athletic spoke to an Eastern Conference executive about several possible draft options for the Knicks, evaluating the pros and cons of Ryan Dunn, Kyshawn George, DaRon Holmes II, and Mogbo, among others.
  • The NBA’s Board of Governors has voted to approve the sale of 15% of the Nets‘ parent company (BSE Global) to billionaire Julia Koch and her family, according to Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico. For more details on the Kochs buying into the Nets, you can read our full story here.
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Celtics Notes: Porzingis, Game 5, Van Gundy, Draft

June 17th, 2024 at 11:13am CST by Luke Adams

Kristaps Porzingis, who hasn’t played in either of the past two games of the NBA Finals due to a “rare” leg injury, is listed as questionable to play in Game 5. While it’s possible he’s active for Monday’s contest, like he was on Friday, Shams Charania of The Athletic said during an appearance on FanDuel’s Run it Back show (Twitter video link) that the big man seems unlikely to play a significant role.

“Right before Game 4, what I was told is that they would only utilize Kristaps Porzingis in situational appearances,” Charania said. “When you’re guarding the inbound, if you need to shoot a free throw, when you need to defend the rim on a lob threat with (little) time left on a possession. I would expect the same here in Game 5. … He’s just not there from a physical perspective.”

Celtics big man Xavier Tillman, who has seen some action in Games 3 and 4 with Porzingis unavailable, suggested during his media availability on Sunday that his frontcourt teammate is far from 100%.

“When we go through our practices, he’s doing some stuff, but you can still tell he’s very uncomfortable,” Tillman said (Twitter video link via Noa Dalzell of Celtics Blog). Asked if there’s been any noticeable improvements in recent days since Porzingis was diagnosed with the injury following Game 2, Tillman replied, “It’s been pretty much the same.”

Here’s more on the Celtics:

  • As Sam Amick of The Athletic details, Jayson Tatum spoke on Sunday about head coach Joe Mazzulla‘s efforts to have his team carry a positive mindset into its second potential close-out game on Monday. “Joe did a great job today of reminding us that it’s OK to smile during wars,” Tatum said. “It’s OK to have fun during high-pressure moments. We would love to win tomorrow, more than anything. But if it doesn’t happen, it’s not the end of the world. We have more opportunities. So just setting that (mindset) of ‘Don’t surrender to that idea that we have to win tomorrow.’ We would love to, absolutely. But Game 5 is the biggest game of the season because it’s the next game on the schedule. So (it’s) going with that mindset and just have fun. That’s really what we talked about today. Get back to having fun and being a team and how special we are and the team that got us here.”
  • Jeff Van Gundy joined the Celtics as a senior consultant last fall after being fired by ESPN and enduring a series of hardships in his personal life, including a death in the family, he revealed during an appearance on The Mark Jackson Show (hat tip to Brian Robb of MassLive.com). Given that context, Van Gundy appreciated the way that the franchise “embraced and welcomed” him. “I was really in an awkward place in life, not really knowing where I was going or what my purpose was, or how I’d be with this new group of people where I didn’t know anyone,” Van Gundy said. “It’s been one of the most rejuvenating things I’ve ever gone through. Brad Stevens and Joe Mazzulla threw me a lifeline.”
  • The Celtics hosted a pre-draft workout over the weekend that featured Ryan Dunn (Virginia), Justin Edwards (Kentucky), Enrique Freeman (Akron), and Judah Mintz (Syraucse), tweets Adam Zagoria of NJ.com. Boston controls the 30th and 54th overall picks in this year’s draft, while those four prospects rank between 31st (Edwards) and 78th (Mintz) on ESPN’s big board for 2024.
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Northwest Notes: Williams, Blazers, Wolves, Hayward

June 4th, 2024 at 7:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

As Bulls forward Patrick Williams heads into restricted free agency, look for the Thunder to make a run at him, The Athletic’s Darnell Mayberry reports. A league source tells Mayberry that Oklahoma City has “great interest” in the 22-year-old.

Williams, who has failed to live up to his draft billing as the No. 4 pick in 2020, would give the Thunder more size at power forward. Oklahoma City’s stash of draft picks could entice Chicago to negotiate a sign-and-trade with the Thunder. Williams was limited to 43 games this season due to a foot injury.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • The Trail Blazers hosted six draft prospects on Tuesday — Daniss Jenkins (St. John’s), Dillon Jones (Weber State), Spencer Jones (Stanford), Jared McCain (Duke), Noah Penda (JA Vichy-Clermont) and Armel Traore (Ada Blois), Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report tweets. Out of that group, McCain is the most highly regarded by draft pundits. The point guard is currently rated No. 15 overall on ESPN’s Best Available list. Portland controls the seventh and 14th overall picks, along with No. 34 and No. 40.
  • The Timberwolves were also busy evaluating draft prospects on Tuesday, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter link). Sy Chatman (Buffalo), Enrique Freeman (Akron), Pelle Larsson (Arizona), KJ Simpson (Colorado), Justin Webster (UNLV) and Moses Wood (Washington) visited Minnesota’s practice facility. Larsson (No. 44), a shooting guard, is the highest-ranked prospect among that group on ESPN’s list.
  • In his latest player report card, The Oklahoman’s Joe Mussatto evaluates the forgettable half-season that Gordon Hayward spent with the Thunder. Hayward is headed to unrestricted free agency and Mussatto opines that the forward might be looking at veteran’s minimum offers the remainder of his career.
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Draft Notes: Combine, Mocks, Holland, Trade Rumors, Osobor

May 13th, 2024 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Boogie Ellis (USC), Isaac Jones (Washington State), Jesse Edwards (West Virginia), Nae’Qwan Tomlin (Memphis), and Enrique Freeman (Akron) are among the prospects who stood out at the G League Elite Camp over the weekend and earned invitations to participate in the NBA’s combine this week, according to a series of tweets from Jonathan Givony of ESPN. The G League officially confirmed Givony’s reporting (Twitter link).

The combine got underway in Chicago on Monday, with all participants taking part in shooting drills and undergoing strength, agility, and performance testing.

Language in the NBA’s new Collective Bargaining Agreement requires all prospects to participate in those aspects of the combine, though they’re still permitted to opt out of this week’s scrimmages. Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report (Twitter link) identifies several of the fringe first-rounders who have decided to pass on scrimmaging, including Kyshawn George (Miami), Carlton Carrington (Pittsburgh), Kevin McCullar (Kansas), and Johnny Furphy (Kansas), among many others.

As Chase Hughes of Monumental Sports Network tweets, prospects whose international teams’ seasons haven’t ended are permitted to miss the combine, but those players – including Zaccharie Risacher of JL Bourg and Nikola Topic (Crvena Zvezda) – will be required to complete “pre-draft activities” at a later date.

Here are several more draft-related notes:

  • Wasserman, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer, and Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com updated their 2024 mock drafts following the conclusion of Sunday’s lottery to reflect the new order. All three mocks have the Hawks using the No. 1 overall pick on French big man Alexandre Sarr.
  • John Hollinger of The Athletic has shared his rankings of the top 20 prospects in the 2024 draft class, with plenty of choices that deviate from the consensus. Hollinger has G League Ignite guard Ron Holland at No. 1, with Sarr at No. 5 and Risacher (ESPN’s top prospect) all the way down at No. 13.
  • Zach Lowe of ESPN (Insider link) and Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports, two of the media members who were in the draft lottery drawing room on Sunday, share some behind-the-scenes observations from the event and consider what’s next for the teams most impacted by Sunday’s results. Sources tell Lowe that the Rockets (No. 3) and Grizzlies (No. 9) are expected to be among the teams that explore trade possibilities with their picks, though both teams could ultimately end up hanging onto their lottery selections. Meanwhile, Wizards general manager Will Dawkins told Fischer that he thinks “there are multiple All-Stars in this class.” Washington holds the No. 2 pick.
  • Coming off his junior year at Utah State, forward Great Osobor is testing the NBA draft waters, but it sounds like he’ll end up transferring to a new school for his senior year. According to Givony, Osobor has an NIL deal in place with Washington worth $2MM, which is the most lucrative known deal in college basketball this season.
  • A series of ESPN’s NBA reporters explore the biggest questions facing every lottery team.
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44 Prospects Invited To G League Elite Camp

May 4th, 2024 at 11:57am CST by Tristan Tucker

Forty-four prospects for the 2024 NBA draft were invited to the NBA’s G League Elite Camp, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link).

The list of players is as follows:

The field of draft prospects scrimmage for two days in Chicago starting on May 11 ahead of the NBA’s annual draft combine. If players perform well enough, they’re often promoted to the larger combine immediately following the G League Elite Camp. Typically, at least a half dozen players move on.

While the combine usually focuses on the top-ranked players in each draft class, the G League Elite Camp offers opportunity to prospects further down boards who are more likely to go undrafted. Of the 44 names invited to the G League Elite Camp, only 16 rank among ESPN’s top 100 prospects. No prospect ranks higher than No. 48 (Onyenso) on ESPN’s board.

Nine of ESPN’s top 100 prospects have not been invited to Chicago for either event: Armel Traore (France), Zacharie Perrin (France), Andrija Jelavic (Croatia), Yannick Kraag (Netherlands), Tre Mitchell (Kentucky), Ilias Kamardine (France), Dylan Disu (Texas), Riley Minix (Morehead State) and Jonas Aidoo (Tennessee). According to Givony (Twitter link), the NBA might not announce the official list until Monday, so there’s a chance it’s amended.

The G League Elite Camp will give invitees who declared for the draft as early entrants an opportunity to see where they stand ahead of the draft withdrawal deadline on May 29. Not all of the players who participate in this event will remain in the draft pool.

Last year, future NBA players like Hornets forward Leaky Black, Pistons forward Tosan Evbuomwan, Mavericks forward Alex Fudge, Celtics guard Drew Peterson and Nets guard Jaylen Martin all participated in the event. Other recent notable alums of the event include Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado and Clippers guard Terance Mann.

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