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Draft Notes: Payton, Embiid, Knicks

June 24th, 2014 at 11:12pm CST by Ryan Raroque

In Jeff Goodman’s latest mock draft for ESPN (Insiders only), Elfrid Payton gets selected by the Timberwolves at No. 13. In response to that projection, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN said that Minnesota doesn’t have any interest in drafting the former Louisiana Lafayette guard with that pick. It probably won’t matter anyway, as Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe hears that Payton has been greatly impressive in workouts and won’t slip past the top 10 on draft night (Twitter links).

With that aside, we’ll keep tabs on this evening’s draft-related news here:

Add Sweden’s Viktor Gaddefors to the list of players that Memphis is bringing in for a second workout on Wednesday, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal.
The Hornets appear primed to add at least one big man with either the 24th or 45th pick in this year’s draft, and Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer lists Mitch McGary and Johnny O’Bryant as potential targets.
Former Florida big man Patric Young is on Phil Jackson’s draft wish list, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman also points out that the Knicks worked out Jahii Carson recently.
Following up Andy Katz’s earlier ESPN report that the Kings have three deals in place regarding their No. 8 pick, ESPN’s Marc Stein identified the Celtics, Suns, and 76ers as the potential trading partners.

Earlier updates:

The Pelicans are making a concerted effort to acquire a first-round pick, tweets NBA.com’s David Aldridge.
According to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, Joel Embiid is strongly in play for the 76ers at No. 3 and the Magic at No. 4; the worst-case scenario is that Embiid won’t fall past the Kings at No. 8 (Twitter link).
The Knicks remain confident that they’ll land a first-round pick and/or a second-round pick in Thursday’s draft, tweets Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.
The Pistons are without a first-round pick this year, but team president/head coach Stan Van Gundy says that one team picking between No. 26 and No. 30 is open to shedding their pick for the best offer. “There’s one team that’s saying “give us your best deal for (our) pick” (Twitter link via Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News).
The Bucks made an unsuccessful attempt to bring in Cleanthony Early for a workout, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.
In another piece, Woelfel notes that the Spurs, Pacers, and Pistons are among the list of teams that brought second-round hopeful Jamil Wilson in for a workout.
The Grizzlies are trying to put together a last minute workout for Glenn Robinson III, Jordan Adams, Joe Harris, and Geron Johnson tomorrow, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN.
Former Duke swingman Rodney Hood participated in a second workout for the Suns, notes Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (Twitter link).

Southeast Notes: LeBron, Wizards, Hornets

June 24th, 2014 at 10:35am CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat granted agent Rich Paul and LeBron James‘ friend and adviser Maverick Carter unprecedented access to the team in the past year, prompting consternation from many within the organization, as Mike Wise of The Washington Post details. We’ll soon find out whether it was worth it for Miami, now that James has decided to opt out of his contract and hit free agency. Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

Wizards “draft and stash” prospect Tomas Satoransky wants the team to sign him before he competes in summer league this year, and he’s also pushing for a larger amount than the team is willing to give, as J. Michael of CSNWashington.com hears. The former 32nd overall pick isn’t bound by the rookie scale, so it would likely take a portion of the mid-level, which Michael says Washington doesn’t want to give up, to give him more than the minimum salary. Ultimately, the Wizards are willing to stand firm and have no intention of trading Satoransky’s rights, according to Michael.
Hornets coach Steve Clifford has indicated a preference for adding size and experience rather than more young perimeter players, as Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer examines.
Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops adds Gary Harris and Scottie Wilbekin to the list of draft prospects working out for the Magic (Twitter link).
Wizards are auditioning Jahii Carson, Dwight Powell, Roscoe Smith, Sean Kilpatrick, Chaz Williams, Richard Solomon, Isaiah Armwood, Maurice Creek, Halil Kanacevic, Devin Oliver and Talib Zanna, the team announced. They’re also giving LaQuinton Ross his second workout, having also taken a look at him two weeks ago.
The Hawks are giving thought to clearing cap space and making a run at Carmelo Anthony, as we passed along earlier.

Draft Notes: Bucks, Parker, Embiid, Hornets

June 16th, 2014 at 1:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bucks aren’t having any trouble getting a look at the top prospects. Milwaukee is reportedly set for a pair of workouts with Andrew Wiggins, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears that Jabari Parker will work out again for the club this week after having done so last week (Twitter link). Joel Embiid was already apparently slated to audition for the club, and GM John Hammond also met with the Kansas big man last week, Ford tweets. The Bucks appear to be the only team with which Wiggins, Parker, Embiid and Dante Exum have all agreed to visit and work out, Ford notes (Twitter link). Here’s more on the draft, now just 10 days away.

Jerami Grant, De’Mon Brooks, Josh Davis, Jarell Eddie and Mike Moser are among the draft prospects showing off for the Hornets today, the team announced via press release.
The Heat are auditioning Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.
Keith Appling, Dave Dudzinski, Markel Starks, Tyler Stone and Jermaine Marshall are showing off for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com notes via Twitter. Marshall will also audition for the Cavs, Sportando reports (via Twitter).
Roscoe Smith has the Raptors and Mavs on his agenda, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv hears (Twitter link).
Richard Harris of NBADraft.net adds the Bulls to the list of teams for which Johnny O’Bryant III has worked out. O’Bryant also has auditions slated with the Rockets, Heat, Hornets, Bucks, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons, Harris reports.
Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic adds the Sixers, Mavs, Rockets and Heat to the list of teams that are getting a look at Jordan Bachynski (Twitter link).
Jahii Carson, Kendrick Perry, Earnest Ross and Alec Brown are all performing for the Rockets, Scotto tweets.
The Lakers are one of more than a dozen teams for which Ronald Roberts Jr. is working out, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
The Warriors are auditioning Eric Moreland, Roberto Nelson and Travis Bader, according to Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter links).

And-Ones: Cavs, Draft, Pelicans, Wolves

June 13th, 2014 at 10:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Cavs coaching search may be down to just three candidates, writes Bob Finnan of The Morning Journal. While some names are still being mentioned, Finnan (hat tip to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders) believes the finalists are Clippers assistant coaches Alvin Gentry and Tyronn Lue and former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach David Blatt.

Here’s more from around the association:

The Nuggets are planning to bring in Tyler Ennis, Zach LaVine, James Young, Clint Capela, Casey Prather and Tarik Black for workouts on Saturday, reports Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (Twitter link).
The Timberwolves tweeted that Adreian Payne, Justin Cobbs, Kyle Anderson, Cory Jefferson, Markel Starks and Jamil Wilson all have workouts scheduled with the team.
Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reports (Twitter link) Russ Smith, Jahii Carson, and Jordan Morgan worked out for the Wolves on Wednesday.
Adi Joseph of USA Today looks at the draft needs of the Pelicans. The team currently doesn’t have any picks, but they are reportedly trying to acquire one. According to the article, the team’s biggest needs are at small forward, center, and point guard.
In a separate article, Joseph looks at the draft needs of the Timberwolves. According to Joseph, the team’s priorities should be at point guard, and both forward spots.
The crew over at Basketball Insiders (video link) analyze the 2014 free agent class and where each player may end up.
In a separate article, the latest mock draft from Basketball Insiders has them split over who will be the first-overall pick–Andrew Wiggins or Joel Embiid.

And-Ones: Salary Cap, Draft, Harris, LaVine

June 12th, 2014 at 10:23pm CST by Eddie Scarito

GMs widely expect next season’s salary cap to wind up even higher than the most recent projection of $63.2MM, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News (Twitter link).

Here’s more from around the league:

It was reported earlier that Spanish league shooting guard Marcus Eriksson is pulling out of this year’s draft. Prior to that announcement Eriksson had a workout scheduled with the Bucks, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link).
NBA.com released their full prospect profile on former Michigan State guard Gary Harris. Harris is a projected lottery pick in this year’s draft.
Zach LaVine is projected to be taken anywhere from late in the lottery to the middle of the first round. NBA.com published their prospect profile for LaVine.
Mark Snyder of The Detroit Free Press adds the Wolves and the Bulls to the list of teams working out Jordan Morgan, and also reveals that Russ Smith, Jahii Carson, Sean Kilpatrick and Jordan McRae auditioned Wednesday for the Wolves, too.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Kerr, Fernandez, Draft

June 12th, 2014 at 9:27pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Money wasn’t the issue for Steve Kerr when he chose the Warriors over the Knicks, as Howard Beck of Bleacher Report hears that New York would have met whatever salary demand he made, as Beck said on the Knickerblogger Podcast. Robert Silverman of KnickerBlogger.net provides the transcription.

Eastern Rumors: Heat, Stephenson, Draft

June 3rd, 2014 at 2:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Chris Bosh made comments in March that seemed to indicate that he knew LeBron James would remain with the Heat for next season, but Dwyane Wade said Monday that the team’s trio of stars haven’t spoken with each other about this summer’s free agency. Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press has that and more, including the latest from Bosh, who reiterated his own plans, once more making his intention to stay with the Heat clear.

“I want to come back. That’s OK to say, I think,” Bosh said. “I can’t speak for anything else and I don’t want to take away from the subject at hand, but I like it here. It’s Miami. Enough said. People are dying to get here.”

While we wait to see if James and Wade are just as enthusiastic about Miami as Bosh is, here’s the latest from around the Eastern Conference:

Lance Stephenson‘s agent, Alberto Ebanks, is hopeful that he and the Pacers will reach agreement on a new deal this summer, as Ebanks tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Still, Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird said Monday that while he wants Stephenson back, he added that the team will set a price point for the shooting guard and won’t exceed it, Zagoria notes.
K.J. McDaniels, Jabari Brown, Drew Crawford, Lamar Patterson and Scottie Wilbekin are among the prospects scheduled to work out for the Hornets on Wednesday, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Wilbekin returns for a second time after performing for the team Monday as part of a group that included Justin Cobbs, Langston Hall, Sean Kilpatrick and Ian Miller, as Bonnell also notes. (All Twitter links).
An ankle injury scrubbed Jahii Carson‘s scheduled audition for the Raptors today, observes Holly MacKenzie of Sportsnet (Twitter link).

Draft Notes: Jazz, Gordon, Ennis, Napier

June 3rd, 2014 at 8:41am CST by Chuck Myron

The Jazz aren’t looking at potential replacements for Gordon Hayward in the draft because the team is confident the soon-to-be restricted free agent will be back with Utah next season. That’s what Jazz vice president of player personnel Walt Perrin told reporters, including Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. It jibes with longstanding mutual interest between Hayward and the team, with a nod to the inherent control that clubs have over restricted free agents, but it also demonstrates the link between the draft and free agency. Both are on the horizon, so here’s the latest on the draft as prospects demonstrate what they can do for teams:

Monday’s Kings audition for Aaron Gordon didn’t really amount to a workout in the team’s eyes, notes Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter links). The power forward simply took a few shots and met with owner Vivek Ranadive and GM Pete D’Alessandro, according to Jones.
Tyler Ennis will work out for the Hawks, Hornets and Nuggets, notes Jonathan Santiago of Cowbell Kingdom.
Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds Shabazz Napier to the list of those working out for the Suns (Twitter link).
P.J. Hairston will perform for the Sixers next week, agent Juan Murrow tells Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Daily News.
Russ Smith, Nick Johnson, Jahii Carson and Sam Dower are among the players showing off for the Raptors today, the team announced (on Twitter).
Artem Klimenko is working out for the Mavs, Heat and Clippers, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com.

Draft Notes: Vonleh, Stauskas, McDermott, Harris

May 30th, 2014 at 11:57am CST by Chuck Myron

Indiana big man Noah Vonleh looked impressive in a workout this week, and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds the Magic to the list of teams auditioning the potential top-five pick (Twitter link). There’s news on a few other projected lottery selections among the latest on the draft:

Nik Stauskas will work out for the Lakers and Celtics, Goodman reports, adding that the same two teams are on Doug McDermott‘s agenda (Twitter links).
Gary Harris will show off for the Suns and Lakers, a source tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
Adreian Payne is set to audition for the Celtics, Suns and Jazz, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
The Hawks worked out Nick Johnson on Thursday, notes Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Jahii Carson, Justin Cobbs, Cory Jefferson, Artem Klimenko and Akil Mitchell are all performing for the Bucks today, the team announced (on Twitter).
The Suns will audition Lamar Patterson today, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Phoenix is also getting a look at De’Mon Brooks, according to agent Keith Kreiter (Twitter link).
The Sixers worked out Patterson, Semaj Christon, Devon Saddler, Casey Prather and Langston Galloway, reports Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Daily News. The Pacers had a look at Galloway, Jabari Brown, Markel Starks and C.J. Wilcox, as Tynes also writes.
The Celtics and Bulls will audition Kadeem Batts, Sportando’s David Pick tweets.

Draft Rumors: Exum, Warren, Young

May 28th, 2014 at 12:14pm CST by Chuck Myron

The allure of Dante Exum is prompting the Sixers to think about trading Michael Carter-Williams, and it appears as though Exum will indeed be available when Philadelphia picks third overall next month. Exum isn’t in the mix for the Cavs at No. 1 overall, and while the Bucks are high on him, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com writes in an Insider-only piece, the uncertain future of GM John Hammond and his staff makes it less likely the point guard ends up in Milwaukee. Here’s more draft-related news:

Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds the Hawks and Suns to the list of teams that have workouts scheduled with T.J. Warren (Twitter link).
Patric Young is performing for the Suns today and will work out for the Spurs on Friday, Goodman tweets.
Dwight Powell is auditioning for the Thunder today and will do so for the Suns and Wolves later this week, Goodman reports (on Twitter).
The Hawks worked out Jahii Carson, as the Arizona State sophomore revealed on Twitter (hat tip to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). He’s auditioning for the Suns today, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. He’ll join Isaiah Austin, whom the Suns are also working out today, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
Khem Birch worked out for the Sixers on Monday and will do so for the Heat next week, according to Goodman (Twitter link).
Ronald Roberts Jr. will show off for the Raptors, Sixers and Pistons this week, reports Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Daily News.
Javon McCrea is working out with the Bulls today and the Sixers and Raptors next week, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv has learned (Twitter link).