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Southwest Notes: Vassell, DeRozan, Tucker, Pelicans, Redick, Bledsoe

December 14th, 2020 at 7:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Spurs swingman DeMar DeRozan is helping to teach rookie Devin Vassell the nuances of the NBA game, Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News writes. Vassell was selected with the 11th overall pick in the draft and also plays on the wing. “A lot of times, even in practice, he comes to me and asks questions,” DeRozan said. “That’s big for a young guy to to be able to come to our vets and just ask questions, ask what he is doing wrong, what he can do better.” Vassell had 12 points, six rebounds and three steals in 24 minutes during his preseason debut.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

Seeking an extension, Rockets forward P.J. Tucker says he wants to go “where I am wanted,” Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets. Tucker promises to “do my job” even if the club doesn’t offer him an extension. Tucker, who will make approximately $7.97MM this season, will enter unrestricted free agency next summer.
The Pelicans’ acquisition of center Steven Adams from the Thunder and subsequent decision to give him an extension was a head-scratcher, John Hollinger of The Athletic opines. They could have instead acquired a better shooter in Al Horford or re-signed Derrick Favors. They also would have been better off holding onto George Hill, rather than dealing him in the same multi-team trade involving Denver and Oklahoma City, Hollinger contends. Hill is a better shooter than Eric Bledsoe and New Orleans also has enough depth at the point, Hollinger adds.
Bledsoe will have to pass a series of tests before he can rejoin the Pelicans, coach Stan Van Gundy told The Athletic’s Will Guillory and other media members (Twitter link). Bledsoe left the market due to a personal matter and missed a COVID-19 test. J.J. Redick was held out of the team’s preseason game on Monday due to contact tracing.

Pelicans Notes: Ball, Bledsoe, Adams, Holiday, Ingram, Williamson

November 30th, 2020 at 8:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pelicans won’t be choosing between Lonzo Ball and recently-acquired Eric Bledsoe as their starting point guard, according to executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin. New Orleans’ top executive envisions that they’ll form the starting backcourt, Andrew Lopez of ESPN tweets. The Pelicans had a similar setup last season, when Ball and Jrue Holiday shared ballhandling duties. The Pelicans acquired Bledsoe from the Bucks and center Steven Adams from the Thunder, along with draft picks, in a four-team deal that sent Holiday to Milwaukee.

New head coach Stan Van Gundy said that Griffin has prioritized toughness and competitiveness at a very high level, and Bledsoe and Adams fit that mold, Scott Kushner of the New Orleans Times Picayune tweets.

Griffin and Van Gundy dropped some interesting tidbits during their Monday press conference:

Griffin had pursued Adams for a very long time, according to Kushner (Twitter link). Griffin was impressed with Adams since meeting him prior to the 2013 draft. Adams, who was selected with the No. 12 pick that year, received a two-year, $35MM extension as part of the four-team deal.
The front office wanted to do right by Holiday by trading him to a title contender, Lopez notes (Twitter link). Griffin said Holiday’s career timeline to compete for a championship differed somewhat from the Pelicans’ timeline.
Brandon Ingram‘s five-year contract doesn’t include a player option, Lopez adds in another tweet, but there is a trade bonus. Ingram officially signed the $158.25MM contract on Monday.
Zion Williamson will not have any restrictions heading into training camp, according to Van Gundy. The coach anticipates the early days of camp will look different because they haven’t played as much pickup due to COVID-19 restrictions and a short offseason (Twitter link).
The team’s disappointing showing in the Orlando restart convinced Griffin the team needed more “elite competitors” and didn’t have “enough of a work ethic identity,” Kushner relays (Twitter link).

Bucks Rumors: Bogdanovic, Giannis, Oladipo, DiVincenzo, More

November 25th, 2020 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

Bogdan Bogdanovic was considered Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s preferred target for the Bucks in free agency, according to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, who says that Thanasis Antetokounmpo had been in contact with Bogdanovic for months as the brothers attempted to lure the swingman to Milwaukee.

As Fischer explains, Giannis admires Bogdanovic’s “toughness and swagger” and considers him someone you could “go to war with in the postseason.” As a result, the Bucks pursued Bogdanovic aggressively, discussing sign-and-trade scenarios with the Kings in the hopes of effectively taking the RFA-to-be off the market before last Friday by agreeing to a deal with Sacramento.

Early discussions between the Kings and Bucks included Eric Bledsoe, according to Fischer, who points out that sending Bledsoe’s $16.9MM contract to Sacramento would have made it simple for Milwaukee to meet Bogdanovic’s asking price of $18MM per year. However, the Kings insisted on Donte DiVincenzo‘s inclusion on any deal and Bledsoe’s salary was required for Milwaukee’s Jrue Holiday acquisition.

After they struck a deal for Holiday, the Bucks reached a tentative agreement with the Kings, but Bogdanovic’s camp insists it never discussed the particulars of a contract agreement with Milwaukee, per Fischer. Bogdanovic even phoned the Antetokounmpo brothers to reiterate that point, Fischer adds.

When at least one rival team filed a formal complaint about the fact that the Kings had seemingly lined up a deal for Bogdanovic days before the start of free agency, the NBA launched an investigation and essentially took Milwaukee off the table as a destination for the 28-year-old due to the risk that the league would block the deal, says Fischer.

Now, the Bucks will have to hope that their failed pursuit of Bogdanovic doesn’t cause Giannis to pass on their super-max offer. According to Fischer, the franchise had been very confident about the odds of reaching an agreement with Antetokounmpo, but there has been a “categorical step back in that confidence” since the Bogdanovic debacle. That doesn’t mean an agreement won’t be reached — just that the Bucks aren’t as sure about it as they once were.

Here’s more on the Bucks from Fischer’s article, which is packed with interesting details:

The Bucks and Pacers had conversations about a possible trade for Victor Oladipo, Fischer confirms, adding that a package of DiVincenzo, George Hill, and the No. 24 pick was discussed at one point. Like the Kings did, the Pacers insisted on DiVincenzo being included in any offer.
DiVincenzo ultimately remained in Milwaukee and the Bucks are still “bullish” on his potential, writes Fischer. They were willing to move him for Bogdanovic because the RFA was considered a “necessary target in line with Antetokounmpo’s wishes.”
Before the Bucks struck a deal for Holiday, the Hawks discussed a package that included the No. 6 pick, Kevin Huerter, and Dewayne Dedmon, says Fischer.

Four-Team Jrue Holiday, Steven Adams Trade Officially Complete

November 24th, 2020 at 9:15am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans, Thunder, Bucks, and Nuggets have officially completed the four-team trade that will send Jrue Holiday to Milwaukee and Steven Adams to New Orleans, the Pelicans announced today in a press release.

In total, the mega-deal involves 10 players, five draft picks, and two future pick swaps. The trade breaks down as follows:

Bucks acquire Holiday and the draft rights to Sam Merrill (No. 60 pick; from Pelicans).
Pelicans acquire Adams, Eric Bledsoe, the Bucks’ 2025 first-round pick (unprotected), the Bucks’ 2027 first-round pick (unprotected), and the right to swap first-round picks with the Bucks in 2024 and 2026.
Thunder acquire George Hill, Darius Miller, Kenrich Williams (sign-and-trade), Josh Gray (sign-and-trade), Zylan Cheatham (sign-and-trade), the Nuggets’ 2023 first-round pick (top-14 protected), the Wizards’ 2023 second-round pick (from Pelicans), and the Hornets’ 2024 second-round pick (from Pelicans).
Nuggets acquire the draft rights to RJ Hampton (No. 24 pick; from Bucks).

The deal began when the Bucks and Pelicans reached an agreement on a trade sending Holiday to Milwaukee last week. From there, the Thunder got involved when New Orleans agreed to flip Hill to Oklahoma City in a trade for Adams.

A draft-night deal between the Nuggets and Pelicans that involved the Nuggets’ 2023 first-rounder and the Bucks’ No. 24 pick (sent to New Orleans as part of the original Holiday agreement) was folded in to make it a four-team trade when the Pels agreed to flip Denver’s ’23 pick to OKC as part of the Adams package.

As cap expert Albert Nahmad has pointed out (via Twitter), it’s an intricate, complex transaction that had to make use of a slew of CBA rules. The Pelicans, who are signing Adams to a two-year extension as part of the trade, needed to sign-and-trade Williams, Gray, and Cheatham to Oklahoma City and guarantee most or all of Miller’s $7MM salary in order to abide by salary-matching rules.

Meanwhile, Adams gets a trade bonus worth a little over $2MM as part of the deal, while the Thunder create the largest trade exception in NBA history, worth $27.5MM, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

Unfortunately, as Nahmad observes (via Twitter), Oklahoma City will likely have to use that massive TPE immediately to accommodate the acquisition of Al Horford. Still, as John Hollinger of The Athletic writes, the Thunder should come out of their series of transactions with a handful of usable trade exceptions, including one worth $15.4MM.

A full breakdown of this offseason’s trades – including the ones not yet made official – can be found right here.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pelicans To Trade Jrue Holiday To Bucks

November 17th, 2020 at 9:39am CST by Luke Adams

NOVEMBER 17, 9:39am: ESPN’s Bobby Marks has the details on the picks headed to New Orleans in the trade, reporting (via Twitter) that in addition to this year’s No. 24 pick, the Bucks will also give up their unprotected first-rounders in 2025 and 2027. The Pelicans will have the right to swap first-rounders with Milwaukee in 2024 and 2026.

In order to ensure the 2025 and 2027 picks are freed up and don’t violate the Stepien rule, the Bucks are sending a future second-round pick to the Cavaliers, who were owed Milwaukee’s 2022 first-round pick. In exchange, the Cavs will agree to lift the top-10 protection on that first-rounder, ensuring it changes hands in ’22, per Marks (Twitter link).

Milwaukee will also receive the No. 60 pick in Wednesday’s draft as part of the deal, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN. That pick was originally the Bucks’ own, but was one of the second-rounders they sent to New Orleans in 2019 for Nikola Mirotic. Now they’ll have it back.

That pick will help the Bucks fill out their roster on the cheap, since a rookie drafted in the second round can likely to be signed to a minimum salary that will only count for $898,310 against the cap and tax.

There are conflicting reports on whether the Bucks will also receive the No. 42 pick in this year’s draft from New Orleans. Eric Nehm of The Athletic reported (via Twitter) that the pick is part of the deal, while Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link) has been told that Milwaukee is only receiving No. 60.

NOVEMBER 16, 10:33pm: The Bucks have reached a deal to acquire standout guard Jrue Holiday from the Pelicans, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that New Orleans will receive Eric Bledsoe, George Hill, and draft compensation in return.

That draft compensation is substantial — the Pelicans will receive three future first-round picks from Milwaukee, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). One of those three selections is this year’s No. 24 pick, tweets David Aldridge of The Athletic. New Orleans will also acquire a pair of future draft pick swaps in the deal, per Charania (Twitter link).

Holiday, 30, is coming off a 2019/20 season in which he averaged 19.1 PPG, 6.7 APG, 4.8 RPG, and 1.6 SPG with a shooting line of .455/.353/.709 in 61 games (34.7 MPG) for New Orleans. Although he didn’t earn a spot on one of this season’s All-Defensive teams, he has done so twice in the past and is widely considered one of the NBA’s best perimeter defenders.

Acquiring Holiday is an all-in move for the Bucks and general manager Jon Horst, who are trying to convince two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo to sign a super-max contract extension to remain with the team long-term. Antetokounmpo has repeatedly stated that he’s interesting in staying in Milwaukee as long as he believes the club is capable of winning a title.

Upgrading their backcourt by acquiring Holiday should make the Bucks – who have posted the league’s best regular season record in each of the last two seasons – an even more formidable title threat. However, the acquisition cost is significant, particularly given Holiday’s contract situation.

The 30-year-old’s deal will pay him $25.9MM in 2020/21 and includes a $26.8MM player option for ’21/22, meaning he can reach free agency a year from now. While Antetokounmpo and Holiday are both eligible to hit the open market and sign elsewhere in 2021, it sounds like the Bucks are betting heavily on their ability to lock up both players to new deals.

On that note, Marc Stein of The New York Times tweets that the last couple weeks have been “filled with chatter” about the possibility that Antetokounmpo will sign his super-max offer this offseason. Milwaukee’s willingness to give up so many future assets seems to reflect the team’s optimism, Stein observes.

Holiday’s age and contract situation prompted the Pelicans to explore the trade market in search of a deal this offseason, as president of basketball operations David Griffin looked to acquire pieces that better line up with the timeline of the club’s young core, led by Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram.

While the Pelicans were reportedly willing to hang onto Holiday if a favorable deal didn’t materialize, a return of three first-round picks and two pick swaps was too appealing to turn down. Having landed a substantial haul in last year’s Anthony Davis trade as well, New Orleans now has five extra first-round picks in future seasons, as well as three pick swaps.

It remains to be seen whether Bledsoe and Hill – both veterans in their 30s who probably aren’t part of the Pelicans’ long-term plans – will spend the season in New Orleans or if the team will look to flip one or both players in subsequent deals.

Bledsoe, a strong defender whose offensive limitations have hurt the Bucks in the last two postseasons, averaged 14.9 PPG, 5.4 APG, and 4.6 RPG on .475/.344/.790 shooting in 61 games (27.0 MPG) in 2019/20. He has three years and about $54MM left on his contract, though his 2022/23 salary ($19.4MM) is mostly non-guaranteed.

Hill, meanwhile, was a reliable rotation player in Milwaukee, averaging 9.4 PPG, 3.1 APG, and 3.0 RPG on .516/.460/.842 in 59 games (21.5 MPG) last season. The 34-year-old has a guaranteed $9.6MM salary in ’20/21 with a lightly guaranteed $10MM salary for ’21/22.

With Holiday off the market, teams like the Nuggets and Nets, who were linked to the veteran guard, will have to look elsewhere for a potential upgrade on the wing.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Lakers Explored Trade For Eric Bledsoe

November 15th, 2020 at 3:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers looked into a trade for Bucks guard Eric Bledsoe prior to their agreed-upon deal for Dennis Schroder, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets.

The Lakers are giving up the 28th pick in Wednesday’s draft and guard Danny Green to the Thunder in return for Schroder, who could be the defending champions’ lead point guard or sixth man.

Bledsoe could have filled the same role for the Lakers but he’s coming off a disappointing season and has multiple years left on his deal. Bledsoe will make nearly $17MM next season and $18.1MM in 2021/22. He has a non-guaranteed $19.4MM salary for the 2022/23 season, the final year of his extension.

Milwaukee has reportedly been trying to shed Bledsoe’s contract in order to upgrade its roster after its disappointing playoff performance. Bledsoe averaged 14.9 PPG, his lowest since the 2012/13 campaign, and 5.4 APG in 61 regular-season starts. He was then held to 11.7 PPG on 38.8% shooting during the playoffs.

O’Connor’s Latest: Bucks, Mavs, LaVine, Gordon, More

November 12th, 2020 at 1:23pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks are active in trade discussions and have offered point guard Eric Bledsoe to multiple teams, league sources tell Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. As the Bucks look to upgrade their roster around reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and standout forward Khris Middleton, it sounds like they’re focusing on two-way forwards with defensive versatility — according to O’Connor, the club is pursuing Rockets veterans Robert Covington and P.J. Tucker.

O’Connor’s latest mock draft at The Ringer includes plenty of interesting tidbits, including a couple we’ve already passed along. Here are a few more highlights:

Multiple teams, including the Mavericks, have contacted the Bulls this offseason to inquire on Zach LaVine‘s availability, says O’Connor. It’s not clear if Chicago would have any interest in moving its leading scorer.
League sources tell The Ringer that the Magic have made efforts to move up into the lottery by attaching Aaron Gordon to their No. 15 selection.
O’Connor writes that the Suns are “hoping” to use their No. 10 pick in a trade for Chris Paul. That would seemingly contradict an earlier report that suggested Phoenix probably wouldn’t that pick in an offer for the Thunder point guard.
Executives around the NBA are fairly confident that Deni Avdija won’t fall past Cleveland at No. 5, according to O’Connor, who is the latest to report that the Cavaliers are high on the Israeli wing.
There has been increasing buzz surrounding Serbian forward Aleksej Pokusevski, with execs around the league increasingly believing that he’ll be a lottery pick, per O’Connor.
Oregon guard Payton Pritchard is receiving interest from multiple teams near the end of the first round, sources tell O’Connor. One of those sources thinks Pritchard may even have a promise.

Central Notes: Donovan, Bucks, Oladipo, Thomas

October 10th, 2020 at 3:32pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Bulls head coach Billy Donovan will greatly help the Chicago’s young roster, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times opines. In Donovan, the Bulls finally have a coach who will work to factor in the strengths of his players as he game-plans, as opposed to striving to make players conform to his system. Former Bulls head coaches Fred Hoiberg and Jim Boylen both struggled to fit their players into their preferred offensive systems.

“[O]ne of the things I’ve always felt is important when you’re building out different things offensively is I think you’ve got to spend time with players to hear how they want to be used,” Donovan said recently of the coaching philosophy he brings to the Bulls. “And then you build out how you want to play from there.’’

There’s more out of the Central Division:

Eric Nehm of The Athletic brainstorms potential routes through which the Bucks can upgrade their point guard position. Currently, 30-year-old starting point guard Eric Bledsoe, a two-time All-Defensive Team inclusion with Milwaukee, is earning $16.9MM and is with the team through the 2022/23 season. His contract for the final year is only partially guaranteed. Bledsoe’s limitations as an offensive creator hamper his fit with the Bucks. Backup point guard George Hill is earning $9.6MM through 2021/22, though the 2021/22 season is only partially guaranteed. Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday is weighed as a trade option were the Bucks to flip Bledsoe and other pieces, while D.J. Augustin and Jeff Teague are considered as viable biannual exception signings.
The Pacers front office has recently spoken a couple times with star guard Victor Oladipo, J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star tweets. Last week, there were rumblings that Oladipo, a free agent in 2021 and a two-time All-Star with Indiana, would be amenable to a trade.
As we previously relayed, Khyri Thomas impressed Pistons coach Dwane Casey during Detroit’s recent mini-camp team practices. After undergoing a foot surgery last fall, Thomas was limited to just playing in eight games of the 2019/20 season.

Bucks Rumors: CP3, Giannis, Bledsoe, More

September 16th, 2020 at 12:07pm CST by Luke Adams

While a potential Bucks trade for Chris Paul has been the subject of much speculation since Milwaukee was eliminated from the postseason last week, it’s not a foregone conclusion that the club will pursue such a deal. According to Sam Amick and Eric Nehm of The Athletic, sources with knowledge of Bucks ownership’s thinking say it’s “highly unlikely” that the team will seriously go after the Thunder point guard.

As Amick and Nehm explain, the exorbitant cost of Paul’s contract ($41.4MM in 2020/21, with a $44.2MM player option for ’21/22) is one factor working against a trade. There also may be concerns about bringing a strong personality like CP3’s onto a roster that already has a superstar leader in Giannis Antetokounmpo, according to The Athletic’s duo. All indications are that Milwaukee would prefer to look elsewhere for upgrades, per Amick and Nehm.

Here’s more on the Bucks from The Athletic’s latest report:

The reported three-hour lunch meeting between Antetokounmpo and Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry last Friday also included Bucks senior VP Alex Lasry (Marc’s son), Giannis’ brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo, and their agent Alex Saratsis, league sources tell Amick and Nehm. According to The Athletic, all parties left that meeting “in good spirits and with a sense of synergy.”
While Antetokounmpo’s future remains unknown, a source with knowledge of the Bucks’ perspective tells Amick and Nehm that they’ve long had confidence that the reigning MVP will ultimately sign a super-max contract to stay with the franchise.
The Bucks were more concerned about their outside shooting issues in the playoffs than about the defense the Heat employed against Antetokounmpo, per The Athletic. That’s one reason why Eric Bledsoe – who has made just 22.9% of his three-pointers during the last two postseasons – could find himself on the trade block this offseason.
Head coach Mike Budenholzer had been prepared to significantly increase Antetokounmpo’s workload for Game 4 against Miami (and beyond) if he had stayed healthy, according to Amick and Nehm. Based on how the series played out, Budenholzer may be more open to a minutes bump for his stars earlier in next year’s postseason.

Bucks Rumors: Budenholzer, Bledsoe, Giannis

September 10th, 2020 at 10:00am CST by Luke Adams

Despite leading the Bucks to the NBA’s best regular-season record in each of the last two seasons, head coach Mike Budenholzer has faced criticism in the playoffs after losses to the Raptors in 2019 and Heat in 2020. In each series, there were concerns that Budenholzer was slow to make adjustments when things weren’t working and was reluctant to lean more heavily on his star players for big minutes.

According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Budenholzer’s job is safe heading into the 2020/21 season. Still, Charania stresses that there’s an understanding across the Bucks’ leadership group that “everyone must learn from this season and be better.” It’s probably a safe bet that Budenholzer’s seat will get a whole lot hotter in 2021 if the team’s next postseason run closely resembles the last two.

Here’s more on the Bucks from Charania:

According to Charania, there’s an expectation among rival executives that the Bucks will focus this offseason on acquiring a play-maker and adding more shooting to the roster as they look to complement reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. Chris Paul has already been cited multiple times as one possible target, but Milwaukee figures to explore many options on the trade market and in free agency.
Starting point guard Eric Bledsoe is considered likely to become a potential trade candidate this offseason, sources tell Charania. Bledsoe, who made the All-Defensive Second Team this season, has two fully guaranteed years left on his contract at $17.5MM annually. The final year of his deal in 2022/23 is only partially guaranteed ($3.9MM of $19.4MM).
Charania confirms that the Bucks intend to put a five-year, super-max contract extension offer on the table for Antetokounmpo as soon as the 2020/21 league year begins, which could happen in November. The value of that offer remains up in the air, since the starting salary will depend on where the ’21/22 cap lands.