Ja Morant Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Grizzlies Notes: Jackson, Morant, Edey, Bane, Williams

November 15th, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

After winning over 50 games in back-to-back seasons, the Grizzlies were decimated by injuries in 2023/24 and finished with a 27-55 record. As demoralizing as that season was, the team was able to find some silver linings. One was the offensive emergence of big man Jaren Jackson Jr., the only starter to remain relatively healthy — his 30.4% usage rate in ’23/24 dwarfed his previous career high.

“It was just a huge opportunity,” Jackson told Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “I haven’t ever been put in a position to be that offensively free in probably my life. Just getting those experiences, I can take that to any year that I have going forward.”

“Last year was a huge boost in his growth offensively,” head coach Taylor Jenkins added. “It was definitely an unintended opportunity, obviously as unfortunate as last season was, but his development was one of the brightest spots I could see.”

Jackson has carried those offensive strides over to ’24/25, matching his career-high 22.5 points per game through his first 10 outings and scoring much more efficiently (.547 FG%, .392 3PT%) than he did a year ago (.444/.320).

Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant, meanwhile, served a 25-game suspension to start the season, then was active for just nine games before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury that kept him out of action for the next 10 months. Obviously, that wasn’t an ideal outcome for the rising star, but he believes the experience could benefit him in the long run.

“I’d say it was for the better,” Morant said, per MacMahon. “It allowed me to lock in mentally, focus more. I was able to be around my family a lot during my recovery process, being able to travel, feel human again, go to my AAU teams’ games, watch them win, watch the joy that they have being out there playing. It had me itching to get back on the floor.”

Here’s more on the Grizzlies:

Morant is still on crutches and is considered week-to-week as he recovers from a right hip subluxation and pelvic muscle strains, according to Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal, who spoke to sports medicine specialist and orthopedic surgeon Michael Gerhardt about Morant’s diagnosis and potential recovery timeline. “Based on what the reports are, I’d say it could be anywhere from three-to-six weeks for a return to play,” Gerhardt said, noting that the injury is an uncommon one for basketball players.
Ahead of this year’s draft, some teams didn’t have Zach Edey on their first-round boards, sources tell MacMahon. However, the Grizzlies were happy to select him with the No. 9 overall pick and made him a day-one starter. Edey has come off the bench in Memphis’ past three games, but Jenkins said that move wasn’t meant to be a demotion for the rookie and that it was designed to let the team evaluate different lineup combinations. Mark Medina of Athlon Sports has more on the Grizzlies’ belief in Edey and the early stages of his NBA career.
Vince Williams (left tibial stress reaction), who has yet to make his season debut, isn’t the only injured Grizzlies player who is close to returning. Desmond Bane (right oblique strain) is also listed as questionable to play on Friday in Golden State after missing Memphis’ past seven games, tweets Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com. Both Williams and Bane participated in today’s shootaround and their availability vs. the Warriors will be determined after pregame workouts, Wallace adds.

Ja Morant Week-To-Week With Hip Injury

November 9th, 2024 at 4:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

Ja Morant has suffered a posterior hip subluxation (without dislocation) along with multiple associated Grade 1 pelvic muscle strains, the Grizzlies announced (via Twitter). His status is considered week-to-week.

The announcement states that Morant was injured in the third quarter of Wednesday’s game against the Lakers. He was “destabilized” in midair, causing him to fall into “extreme right hip flexion.”

Morant had to leave that game in the third quarter after a hard landing on an attempted alley-oop, per Damichael Cole of The Commercial Appeal. He sat out Friday’s win over Washington and was seen using crutches, Cole adds.

Cole notes that this is Morant’s third injury issue since the start of training camp. He had a mild ankle sprain during the preseason and missed an earlier regular season game with soreness in his right thigh.

Morant is off to a strong start after a 25-game suspension and a shoulder injury wiped out virtually his entire 2023/24 season. He’s averaging 20.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 9.1 assists in eight games, and Memphis is 5-3 with him in the lineup.

Scotty Pippen Jr. made his first start of the season Friday night and figures to remain in that role while Morant is sidelined. He posted a triple-double with 11 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes.

Injury Notes: Raptors, Zion, Morant, Melton, Vassell

November 8th, 2024 at 5:57pm CST by Luke Adams

Raptors rookie Ja’Kobe Walter, who missed the preseason and the first five games of the regular season with a sprained right AC joint, has re-sprained that joint and will be reevaluated in a week, tweets Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca.

It’s not all bad news on the injury front for Toronto though. Rookie forward Jonathan Mogbo is listed as probable to play on Saturday after exiting Wednesday’s game with a hip pointer, while starting point guard Immanuel Quickley has been upgraded to questionable after missing the last eight games with a pelvic contusion (Twitter link via Murphy).

There’s optimism Quickley will be back in action this weekend, either on Saturday vs. the Clippers or Sunday vs. the Lakers, tweets Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Pelicans star Zion Williamson was ruled out for Friday’s game against Orlando about 90 minutes before tip-off (Twitter link via the team). As Christian Clark of NOLA.com notes (via Twitter), Williamson has now missed three of the team’s past four games with three different injury designations. He was sidelined by right hamstring tightness on Sunday, right thigh soreness on Monday, and left hamstring tightness today. With Zion out, the injury-plagued Pelicans are running out a starting lineup of Jose Alvarado, Brandon Boston, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, and Yves Missi alongside Brandon Ingram, tweets Clark.
After leaving Wednesday’s win due to hip and hamstring discomfort, Grizzlies star Ja Morant will miss Friday’s contest vs. Washington due to right hip soreness. The point guard will undergo more imaging on Saturday to assess the severity of his injury and determine a return timeline, head coach Taylor Jenkins told reporters today (Twitter link via Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com).
Warriors guard De’Anthony Melton, who has missed five consecutive games due to a low back strain, has been cleared to return for Friday’s showdown vs. the 9-0 Cavaliers, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic (Twitter link). Draymond Green (right knee contusion) and Brandin Podziemski (illness) will also be available for Golden State, giving the team a fully healthy roster (Twitter link via Slater).
As expected, Devin Vassell remains on track to make his season debut for the Spurs on Saturday after nine games while recovering from foot surgery. The team has listed him as probable to play vs. Utah, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link).

Southwest Notes: Whitmore, Green, Sengun, Morant, Zion, Paul

November 7th, 2024 at 8:48pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Rockets are assigning last year’s No. 20 overall pick Cam Whitmore to their G League affiliate, Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan Feigen reports (Twitter link).

Whitmore played a significant role for the Rockets in the second half of last season. In total, he appeared in 47 games (two starts) as a rookie and averaged an impressive 12.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per contest while shooting 35.9% from three on 4.7 attempts per game.

Whitmore began this season in the rotation, averaging 7.3 PPG in 13.6 MPG across the team’s first four games. However, with the second-year forward shooting just 38.7% from the field and not making a three-pointer until his fifth game, he fell out of the rotation and received a DNP-CD on Monday, then only received late-game minutes in a 27-point blowout on Wednesday.

Rookie Reed Sheppard‘s playing time has increased a bit as Whitmore’s has decreased, so he appears to be continuing to build a role in the rotation. It’s unclear what Houston’s exact plan with Whitmore is, but the Rockets’ hope is that he’ll find his shot in the G League, like he did last year when he made 38.9% of 10.1 three-point attempts per game with the development team.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

The Rockets awarded Jalen Green with a three-year, $106MM extension before the season, which came on the heels of a strong second half last season. Now, it looks as though the 2021 No. 2 overall pick is building on last season’s breakout, having averaged 22.6 points per game with a .382 3PT% through eight games this fall. With both he and 2021 classmate Alperen Sengun (No. 16 overall) having agreed to big extensions last month, Green has lofty expectations for the pair, Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes. “I love playing with [Sengun],” Green said. “We’ve had our ups and downs, I’ve played terrible, he’s been good the whole season — it was really me who was trying to find myself from a whole new system standpoint. The games that we won and both of us scored well, those are the games that will come when it’s playoff season. You see how [Nikola] Jokic and Jamal Murray are — I’m not saying we’re like them but they compare [Sengun] to Jokic all the time. So why can’t I be something similar to Jamal? Not saying I want to be, but someone that can get off too. It’s a two-man threat every night.“
Grizzlies star Ja Morant missed almost all of last season due to suspension and injury, but he’s back now and helping push Memphis toward being more competitive than it was last year. Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic writes that even though the Western Conference landscape has changed since Morant was last fully healthy, he still has the utmost belief in his team. “Still confident,” the point guard said. “Two years ago passed. I don’t even know who won the championship two years ago … Two years ago don’t matter. Last year don’t matter either. So all we can focus on is now, and that’s getting our wins and handling our business. Confidence never left.“
Zion Williamson returned to action for the Pelicans on Wednesday after missing two games, then suffered another brief injury scare in the second quarter, Christian Clark of NOLA.com writes. Williamson exited early in the second quarter before returning after halftime. He finished with 29 points and should be fine moving forward.
Trey Murphy is close to returning for the Pelicans after suffering a multi-week hamstring injury in October. According to Clark (Twitter link), Murphy was upgraded to doubtful for Friday’s game against the Magic. While it sounds like he’ll likely miss that game, it appears as though his return isn’t far off.
The Spurs brought in Chris Paul this offseason to serve as a veteran leader and mentor for their young players, including Victor Wembanyama. Paul spoke about his role with Sportskeeda’s Mark Medina (Twitter link). “You have to show guys that you can hoop,” Paul said. “I don’t go in there and try to be nobody’s coach and nobody’s daddy. First and foremost, I hoop.“

Grizzlies Notes: Huff, Jenkins, Morant, Edey

October 28th, 2024 at 10:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins said Jay Huff earned his promotion by delivering when called upon, Jenkins said in the pregame press conference on Monday. Huff had his two-way deal converted into a standard four-year contract on Monday.

“He took full advantage of his opportunity. Once he signed here, he was a participant [in the] offseason workouts with his teammates, and then at the start of the season, we learned a lot,” Jenkins said. “Obviously, we had studied him in college and his first couple of years in the NBA, but he’s more dynamic than I remember. The way he can run the floor [and] obviously his shooting has been a great addition to this group, especially at the four or five position. Some versatility there offensively, the principles that we’re talking about, how he moves without the ball. I think he’s picked up on that great.

“… And then defensively, he’s still learning our system, things that we need to do to deploy him. But I think he was Defensive Player of the Year in the G League last year. … This guy has said multiple times that he’ll accept any role, and it’s great to see that he got rewarded for that, because that just adds to the depth that we need for the season.”

We have more on the Grizzlies:

Huff’s contract includes two guaranteed years with partial guarantees for the third season and a fourth-year team option, The Athletic’s John Hollinger tweets. That option would be partially guaranteed if it’s exercised.
Ja Morant missed Monday’s game due to right thigh soreness, the team’s PR department tweets. Morant averaged 20.7 points and 7.3 assists in the first three games after playing just nine times last season due to a suspension and shoulder surgery.
Zach Edey was touted as a potential Rookie of the Year but he’s off to a slow start. Edey is still adjusting to the NBA pace, he told Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “We didn’t really get up and down too much at Purdue,” Edey said. “We were more in the half court, slow the pace down. But it’s just basketball. You just have to adjust.”

Southwest Notes: Alvarado, Pelicans, Morant, Edey, Adams, Rockets

October 26th, 2024 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

With Dejounte Murray sidelined for at least four-to-six weeks, the Pelicans will be counting on recently extended guard Jose Alvarado to move up the depth chart and take on a bigger role this fall, writes Rod Walker of NOLA.com.

“Jose’s gotta step up big time for us,” head coach Willie Green said. “We all love Jose and we know he brings it night in and night out and we know he’s going to step right up to the plate and get it done for us.”

Alvarado played 13 minutes on Friday in New Orleans’ first game without Murray and contributed four assists and three steals, but also went scoreless and committed four turnovers. He’ll likely see more minutes in the days and weeks to come, but the Pelicans leaned more heavily on guards CJ McCollum (40 minutes) and Jordan Hawkins (29 minutes) to complete a comeback win over Portland on Friday.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

After missing most of last season due to a shoulder injury, Ja Morant looks fully healthy this fall, but only played 28 minutes in Wednesday’s opener and 24 on Friday. Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins, noting that Morant sat out three of five preseason games, said the team is still getting its star point guard up to full speed during a stretch of six games in nine days, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “We’re working with him and the medical team about how we want to deploy him over this stretch right now,” Jenkins said. “Obviously he was out for a portion of preseason, so getting his game legs and conditioning right.”
At the conclusion of the Grizzlies‘ loss to the Rockets on Friday, rookie Zach Edey met Steven Adams at halfcourt and spent more than two minutes talking to the former Grizzlies center. Edey, referring to the conversation as “big man stuff,” declined to go into specifics after the game, but said he welcomed the opportunity to get some advice from a player whose game he admires. “That’s somebody I’ve been watching for a while,” Edey said, according to Cole. “So everything he’s telling me, I’m listening to.”
The combination of Amen Thompson and Tari Eason on the second unit helped provide the shut-down defense the Rockets needed to pull away from Memphis in the second half of Friday’s game. As Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle details, the defensive potential of that Thompson/Eason duo off the bench is something that excites the team. “We always talk about what we can do defensively and how we’re going to be special if we’re locked in,” Eason said. “We just gave each other that look and talked with (head coach) Ime (Udoka) and knew we had to turn it up a notch.” Houston outscored the Grizzlies 25-11 in the 7:20 the two wings played together in the second half.

Western Notes: Warriors, Davis, Morant, Pelicans

October 24th, 2024 at 9:40am CST by Dana Gauruder

Most coaches stick with a nine- or 10-man rotation. Warriors coach Steve Kerr feels he has so many bench options, he can use a dozen players during the course of a game.

That was on display on opening night, as Golden State blew out Portland. Early in the second quarter, 12 players had already seen the floor.

“This is as deep of a team as I’ve ever coached, and we’ve got to lean into that,” Kerr said, per ESPN’s Kendra Andrews. “I’ve never played 12 before, but we’re going to do it. I was thinking, well, maybe I’ll just play 10 and we’ll have to tell two of these guys that they’re going to sit. But I just couldn’t justify that.”

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JJ Redick‘s plans to feature Anthony Davis in his Lakers offense was on display opening night against Minnesota, The Athletic’s Sam Amick writes. Signed through the 2027/28 season, Davis racked up 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and a steal. He also attempted 23 shots on which he wasn’t fouled. “I think it’s a good first step of seeing how (Redick) wants me to play and how he wants me to be that hub and to orchestrate the offense, in a sense,” he said.
Ja Morant was limited to nine games last season due to a suspension and a shoulder injury. He came back strong in the Grizzlies’ opener, contributing 22 points, 10 assists and five rebounds in 28 minutes against Utah. “My job as a point guard is to control the game,” said Morant, per The Associated Press. “I hate if I let the other team’s point guard control the game. Whatever I can do to make sure it’s in our favor, I try to do.”
It was an ominous start for the Pelicans, as Zion Williamson sat out with an illness against Chicago and Dejounte Murray broke his hand. Trey Murphy was already out with a hamstring strain. “Guys are ready for more opportunities whenever they may come,” CJ McCollum told William Guillory of The Athletic. “… It’s unfortunate that injuries are part of the game, but they happen sometimes. That’s why you need depth on your roster to compete in an 82-game season.”

Southwest Notes: Popovich, Lawson, Murphy, Morant, Jackson Jr.

October 14th, 2024 at 7:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich has put his players, particularly the less experienced ones, on notice. The longtime coach will be much less forgiving of mistakes this season, he told Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News.

“I think if anything it’s a little less tolerance,” he said. “We have been since the beginning (of training camp) … a little bit more disciplined in the sense of accountability, knowing that mistakes happen too often – (telling players) ‘You need to understand that by now.'”

Tre Jones believes it’s natural for Popovich to take that approach as expectations rise.

“A lot of us didn’t have a lot of those experiences we went through the last couple of years,” Jones said, “but now that we’ve had them and now that we’ve brought in guys that are helping us learn those things as well, you can’t make those same mistakes over and over again. There’s no room for that, if we want to win.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

A.J. Lawson said he’s benefited significantly in Mavericks training camp, working alongside stars Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson, he told Grant Afseth of Sportskeeda.com. “Every day you learn something new with these guys,” Lawson said. “They’re great at what they do—Kyrie is one of the best ball-handlers, Luka is one of the best players, and Klay is one of the best shooters. Having these guys on the same team is a lot to learn from. I can take shooting techniques from Klay, ball-handling and decision-making from Kai, and learn how to run the floor with Luka. There’s so much opportunity as a wing player like me, and I’m excited for this season.” Lawson signed a two-way contract with Dallas over the weekend shortly after he was waived by the club from his standard deal.
It has been another rough preseason for the Pelicans’ Trey Murphy. He was sidelined at the beginning of last season with a left knee injury. Now, he’s dealing with a right hamstring strain that will keep him out of action at the start of this season. “Very tough,” Murphy told Christian Clark of the New Orleans Times Picayune. “Not starting the season again hurts me a lot. Doing everything I can summer-wise to be prepared for a season and having that happen really sucks. But just looking at it with perspective, it could be a lot worse. Good thing it’s an NBA season. I’ll be there for the majority of it.” Murphy will be a restricted free agent next summer unless he signs a rookie scale extension by Oct. 21.
Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are being held out of the rest of the preseason due to minor ailments. Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins wants his stars to make the best of training camp in other ways. “I actually talked to both of those guys about being fully invested in all the practice reps and using their voices,” Jenkins said, per Michael Wallace of GrindCityMedia.com. “I want them to get mental reps, whether it’s through film sessions or their teammates’ film feedback that they’re getting. They’ve been ever present, so we’re going to make the most of the situation over the next week-plus. And thankfully, they’re going to be ready for opening night.”

Southwest Notes: Hawkins, Morant, Kawamura, Flynn, CP3, Wemby

October 9th, 2024 at 12:49pm CST by Luke Adams

Although Jordan Hawkins made just 38.2% of his shots from the floor as a rookie, he knocked down a respectable 36.6% of his three-point tries and was a regular part of the Pelicans‘ rotation for much of the season. The team believes Hawkins has more to contribute in 2024/25, with head coach Willie Green giving him the green light to fire away from beyond the arc and teammate Zion Williamson stating that the second-year wing “can bring a lot to this team,” per Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

“He’s special, man,” Green said. “The force and speed he comes off of plays with. His gravity creates a domino effect. We want to incorporate him in our offense. Sometimes we are playing through him.”

Hawkins’ shooting ability made him the 14th overall pick in the 2023 draft and helped him stay on the floor in his rookie year, but he knows he has to perform more consistently on the other end of the court to earn a consistent bump in minutes in year two, as Clark relays.

“I think the defensive end, I’ve trended on the way up since last year,” Hawkins said. “I’m doing a lot more things I’m comfortable with. I know the rotations, the NBA defense. It’s different from the college defense.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Ja Morant, who tweaked his ankle during Monday’s preseason opener, has formally been diagnosed with a “mild’ sprain, according to Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins, who said he expects his starting point guard to be ready for opening night (Twitter link via Chris Herrington of Daily Memphian). Still, the team will take a cautious approach, so it remains to be seen whether Morant will play in any of Memphis’ four remaining preseason contests.
Grizzlies camp invitee Yuki Kawamura, a 5’8″ Japanese guard, has earned praise from his teammates for his competitiveness and fearlessness, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. While Kawamura won’t make the standard roster, there’s a chance his Exhibit 10 contract could be converted into a two-way deal if the club creates a two-way opening by promoting Scotty Pippen Jr. to the standard roster, Cole adds. “He’s fierce, he’s a competitor and he loves the game of basketball,” Luke Kennard said. “I like what I’ve seen from him for sure. He’s talented. He’s going to make a lot of money playing the game.”
Malachi Flynn isn’t one of the 15 Spurs players with a guaranteed contract for 2024/25 and isn’t eligible for a two-way deal, but he has made a positive impression on head coach Gregg Popovich over the past week, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. “He’s had a good camp,” Popovich said after Flynn racked up nine points, two assists, and two steals in eight minutes in Monday’s preseason opener. “He’s a tough nut. He shoots the heck out of the ball. He takes no prisoners. He works very hard. With the limited time he had, I thought he did well.”
Chris Paul will make his Spurs debut and reigning Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama will make his 2024/25 debut on Wednesday vs. Orlando, notes Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com.

Southwest Notes: Morant, Zion, Pelicans, Mavericks

October 8th, 2024 at 8:31am CST by Luke Adams

Playing on Monday for the first time since January 5, Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant looked like he was rounding into top form in his 18 minutes of action vs. Dallas , contributing 13 points, four rebounds, and three assists in the team’s preseason opener.

However, Morant briefly exited the game and went to the locker room in the first half after turning his ankle, then appeared to have issues with the same ankle after returning before checking out of the game for good in the second half.

Speaking to reporters after the Grizzlies’ win, head coach Taylor Jenkins referred to the first half injury as a “minor tweak” and added that Morant experienced a little discomfort trying to push off the ankle in the second half, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link). According to Jenkins, Morant will be evaluated in the coming days, but his removal from the game was mostly precautionary.

For his part, Morant downplayed the issue in his own post-game media session, telling reporters that he’s “all good” and pointing out that he was able to walk fine (Twitter link via Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com).

While it doesn’t sound at this point like the minor ankle injury will affect Morant’s availability for the Grizzlies’ regular season opener in a couple weeks, it’s worth keeping a close eye on the star guard after a season in which he was limited to just nine games due to a suspension and a shoulder injury. Memphis’ ability to bounce back in 2024/25 will hinge in large part on his ability to stay on the court.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Morant and Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, the top two picks in the 2019 draft, each have a pair of All-Star nods under their belts but have had stop-and-start ascents to stardom due to health issues and – in the case of the Grizzlies guard – off-court behavior, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. Vardon considers what heights the two young stars could still reach and explores their potential importance to USA Basketball, which could lose a handful of longtime stars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant by the next Olympics.
In a pair of stories for NOLA.com, Christian Clark highlights Williamson’s impressive preseason debut vs. Orlando on Monday and writes that the Pelicans believe they have the personnel necessary to finally reach their longtime goal of averaging 40 three-point attempts per game this season. It’s a lofty objective, given that only one team (Boston) cracked the 40-attempt threshold last season and New Orleans ranked 24th with 32.6 per game. “It’s manageable for the lineups we have out there,” reserve sharpshooter Matt Ryan said. “We are going to have so much shooting. So much guard and wing play.”
The Mavericks aren’t stressing the loss of reserve guard Dante Exum to a wrist injury, according to Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News, who notes that Spencer Dinwiddie and head coach Jason Kidd were among those to laud the backcourt depth on the roster. Dinwiddie – who called this iteration of the Mavs “the most talented team I’ve been on” – and Jaden Hardy are expected to get more opportunities with Exum out.
Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal (Substack link) and Curtis (Dallas Morning News subscriber link) each shared their takeaways from the Mavericks‘ training camp, discussing Klay Thompson‘s smooth integration, the impressive two-way versatility displayed by newcomer Naji Marshall, and Dereck Lively showing the potential to take another big step forward in his second NBA season.