Jake Layman Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Raptors, Knicks, Draft

June 6th, 2016 at 10:13am CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics are extremely unlikely to use all eight picks they hold in this year’s NBA draft, but the fact that they have all those picks, including five in the second round, means Boston will be diligent about evaluating all sorts of prospects. The club is hosting 12 players for pre-draft workouts today, and the two six-man groups feature a handful of less recognizable names. Here’s the full list of the participants, per Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com (Twitter link): Isaia Cordinier (France), Perry Ellis (Kansas), Nick Faust (Long Beach State), Pascal Siakam (New Mexico State), Jarrod Uthoff (Iowa), Guerschon Yabusele (France), Kellen Dunham (Butler), Roosevelt Jones (Butler), Hunter Mickelson (Kansas), Dyshawn Pierre (Dayton), Tanner Plomb (Army), and Jordan Sakho (Spain).

Here’s more from around the Atlantic, including details on another team hosting a pre-draft workout today:

The Raptors will have an individual workout for Gonzaga big man Domantas Sabonis today, as Sportsnet’s Michael Grange tweets. Toronto will also be hosting a six-player workout that features Winston Shepard (San Diego State), Jake Layman (Maryland), Damian Jones (Vanderbilt), Diamond Stone (Maryland), and Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV). Brandon Austin, whose workout with the Raptors was previously reported, is also participating today.
In a weekend mailbag, Doug Smith of The Toronto Star tackles several Raptors-related questions, discussing potential outside free agent targets and predicting the odds of Toronto’s own free agents returning.
During an appearance on WFAN, new Knicks head coach Jeff Hornacek confirmed that he’ll make the final call on his assistant coaches, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com. Kurt Rambis remains under consideration for one of the spots on Hornacek’s staff.
If the Celtics get a chance to make a pitch to Kevin Durant in free agency, they should play the history card, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (video link), who says Boston could give Durant the opportunity to be the next star in a long line of greats that includes Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, and many more.

Draft Workouts: Jazz, English, Pacers, Pistons

May 31st, 2016 at 8:19pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz, armed with four picks in this year’s draft, are doing plenty of due diligence in the weeks leading up to June 23rd, and will bring in six more prospects for workouts tomorrow. According to the team (via Twitter), the following players will participate in that workout: Bryn Forbes (Michigan State), Max Landis (IPFW), Trevor Cooney (Syracuse), Shawn Long (Louisiana-Lafayette), Kenny Gaines (Georgia), and Pascal Siakam (New Mexico State).

Utah is hardly the only NBA team bringing in prospects for pre-draft workouts, so let’s round up a few more updates from around the league…

Former Iona guard A.J. English has a pair of workouts for Eastern Conference teams lined up this week, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv, who writes that English will get a look from the Wizards on Wednesday and the Knicks on Thursday.
Thon Maker‘s previously-reported workout with the Pacers will take place on Wednesday, and the seven-footer will be joined by five other players, according to Zagoria (Twitter link). Jake Layman (Maryland), Retin Obasohan (Alabama), Shavon Shields (Nebraska), Fred VanVleet (Wichita State), and Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV) will also participate in the workout.
Zagoria provides a couple more workout updates, tweeting that Manhattan’s Jermaine Lawrence will work out for the Warriors on June 6th, while his college teammate Shane Richards works out for the Nets on Wednesday.
Yogi Ferrell (Indiana), Ron Baker (Wichita State), Derrick Jones (UNLV), Thomas Walkup (Stephen F. Austin), and Marcus Paige (UNC) worked out for the Pistons on Tuesday, tweets Vincent Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. Ferrell’s participation had been previously reported. Meanwhile, per Ellis (Twitter link), Tobias Harris‘ brother Tyler Harris also was a part of Detroit’s workout — the younger Harris played college ball for N.C. State, Providence, and Auburn.

Draft Workouts: Nuggets, Suns, Clippers, Jazz

May 24th, 2016 at 4:14pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets are well-armed heading into this year’s draft, holding three picks in the top 20 and another two in the second round. With so many selections under team control, Denver figures to take a closer look at a wide variety of prospects in the next few weeks. The team announced today in a press release that they’re bringing in the following six players for a Wednesday workout: Vanderbilt guard Wade Baldwin, Providence forward Ben Bentil, Virginia forward Anthony Gill, UNLV forward Derrick Jones, Colorado-Mesa center Ryan Stephan, and California guard Tyrone Wallace.

Denver is hardly the only NBA team with a full workout schedule, so let’s round up several more updates…

The Suns are conducting workouts with six forward prospects on Tuesday, and announced the full list of participants, via Twitter. Jaron Blossomgame (Clemson), Shaq Goodwin (Memphis), Jake Layman (Maryland), Taurean Prince (Baylor), Pascal Siakam (New Mexico State), and Jarrod Uthoff (Iowa) are working out for Phoenix.
In addition to A.J. English, whose scheduled workout was previously reported, the Clippers will take a closer look at Gary Payton II, Malcolm Brogdon, Danuel House, Marshall Plumlee, and Josh Scott on Wednesday, tweets Dan Woike of The Orange County Register.
The Jazz will also hold a six-player workout on Wednesday, with four guards and two big men taking part. According to the team (via Twitter), Georgia Tech’s Marcus Georges-Hunt, Gonzaga’s Eric McClellan, Notre Dame’s Demetrius Jackson, UNC’s Marcus Paige, Virginia’s Mike Tobey, and Australian Thon Maker will be in attendance for that workout.
Former St. Joe’s wing DeAndre’ Bembry was among the players to work out for the Hawks on Tuesday, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
Alex Kirshner of Testudo Times adds the Nets and Mavericks to the list of teams that have recently worked out Maryland junior power forward Robert Carter.
The Celtics will work out Weber State’s Joel Bolomboy a week from Wednesday, sources tell A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (via Twitter).

Celtics Notes: Ainge, Olynyk, Draft Workouts

May 18th, 2016 at 10:45am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics were unable to jump ahead of the Sixers and Lakers to snag the No. 1 overall pick in Tuesday night’s NBA draft lottery and the team will draft third as a result. With Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram likely to be off the board when Boston picks, team executive Danny Ainge indicated that he doesn’t know who the team will look to select, Mike Petraglia of WEEI 93.7 FM relays. “We don’t know that yet. We’ll obviously explore that,” Ainge said. “We’re in the middle of that process right now of figuring out who’s in the draft and who’s the best fit for us. We’ll also probably get some calls for that pick I’m guessing, so there’ll be discussion of that too. But right now we’re really in the mode of preparing for the draft.”

Regarding the talent level of the second-tier of players in this year’s draft, Ainge told reporters, “Last year at this time I think everybody saw that [talent drop-off] and it sort of changed between what everybody thought at this time and what happened in the draft. So it’s still too early. There’s still a lot of evaluation. When you’re looking and evaluating in some cases 18 and 19-year-old kids there’s a lot that changes between the end of their college careers and the draft, so I wouldn’t say anything is in stone in how the draft order is gonna go. We’ll just evaluate them all and see how it falls.”

Here’s more out of Boston:

Center Kelly Olynyk underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair damage to his right shoulder, and though the Celtics didn’t announce a timetable for the big man to return to action, Ainge estimates Olynyk will be out for approximately five months, Petraglia relays in a separate article. A recovery time of that duration would mean Olynyk could return during the preseason and potentially be available to start the 2016/17 campaign.
The Celtics are hosting two group workouts today that will include 12 players, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com relays (Twitter link). Displaying their wares for Boston will be Abdul-Malik Abu (NC State), Trevon Bluiett (Xavier), Nigel Hayes (Wisconsin), Malik Pope (San Diego State), Zhou Qi (China), James Webb III (Boise State), DeAndre Bembry (St. Joseph’s), Malcolm Brogdon (Virginia), Josh Hart (Villanova), Jake Layman (Maryland), Abdel Nader (Iowas State) and Taurean Prince (Baylor), Forsberg notes.
Former Louisiana-Lafayette center Shawn Long has a workout scheduled with the Celtics on June 9th, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe tweets.

Pistons Draft Notes: Jackson, Maker, Ellenson

May 15th, 2016 at 12:00pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Demetrius Jackson and Wade Baldwin head the list of point guards that might be available with the Pistons’ first-round pick, Keith Langlois of Pistons.com reports. They are seeking a backup to Reggie Jackson and could find that player with the No. 18 overall pick, Langlois continues. At 5’9”, Tyler Ulis might be too small for the Pistons’ tastes but the 6’1” Jackson or 6’3” Baldwin would be prime candidates to fill that need, according to Langlois. That duo expressed excitement after interviewing with the Pistons’ brass at the combine, Langlois adds. Selecting a point guard is certainly a strong possibility but they could also deal the pick, according to David Mayo of MLive.com. The Pistons dealt a non-lottery pick to the Rockets at the trade deadline, only to void the deal because of concerns over power forward Donatas Motiejunas‘ back.

In other news regarding the Pistons:

Thon Maker interviewed with the Pistons and they may be intrigued enough by the 7-foot power forward to draft him if he slips to the second round, Mayo writes in a separate piece. GM Jeff Bower has said that the team would be willing to select a high-ceiling big man and Maker, who is making a preps-to-pros jump, projects as a range-shooting power forward with ball-handling skills, Mayo continues. Detroit has the No. 49 overall pick in addition to its first-rounder.
Power forward Henry Ellenson did not interview with the club but it would be delighted if he dropped out of the lottery and into their lap, Mayo relays in his latest combine story. Ellenson is the type of stretch four the Pistons covet, even though Ellenson shot just 28.8% from long range at Marquette in his only college season, Mayo continues. “I think I’m just a mismatch problem,” he told Mayo. “So whatever that night gives me, I feel comfortable playing all over.”
Shooting guards Malik Beasley and Josh Hart, combo guard Malik Newman, power forward Jake Layman and center Stephen Zimmerman and Ulis are among the players the Pistons interviewed at the combine, Mayo tweets.

Central Notes: Harris, Jackson, Beasley

May 13th, 2016 at 7:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons executive/coach Stan Van Gundy said he considers the team’s trade deadline acquisition of combo forward Tobias Harris from the Magic better than signing a big name free agent this summer, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com relays. “The question for us was: He’s 23 years old with a contract that is descending over the next couple years, and can we do better than that in free agency? And for us, the answer was, ‘Not even close.’” Van Gundy told Lowe. “It’s a bird in the hand. We’re not desperate to get a player, and we don’t have to overpay to just meet the [salary floor]. We got a good, young player locked in for the next three years. A lot of people want shorter contracts. For us, young players on longer contracts is a good way to go.”

Here’s more from out of the NBA’s Central Division:

The Bucks have interviewed Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Malik Beasley (Florida State) and Deyonta Davis (Michigan State) at the NBA Draft combine this week, Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times relays (via Twitter).
Jackson is also scheduled to sit down with representatives from the Bulls this weekend, with the player adding that he believes Chicago will look to select a guard in the first round this June, Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago tweets.
The Pistons interviewed Stephen Zimmerman (UNLV) and Caris LeVert (Michigan), Keith Langlois of NBA.com notes (Twitter links). LeVert is expected to remain in a walking boot for another month as he recovers from a lower left leg injury and won’t be able to work out for teams leading up to the draft, Rod Beard of The Detroit News tweets.
Other players interviewed this week by the Pistons include: Beasley, Josh Hart (Villanova), Malik Newman (Mississippi State), Jake Layman (Maryland), Wade Baldwin (Vanderbilt) and Tyler Ulis (Kentucky), David Mayo of MLive tweets.
Maryland sophomore point guard Melo Trimble has workouts scheduled for next week with the Bucks, Pacers and Sixers, Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv relays (on Twitter).

Atlantic Notes: Ainge, Colangelo, Draft

May 13th, 2016 at 2:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Celtics would at least debate the idea of trading the pick Brooklyn owes them even if it winds up No. 1 after the lottery, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said in an appearance on ESPN2 Thursday, notes Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com. Still, Ainge knows he can’t over-reach and burn the team’s assets, as Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald relays. “I understand that,” Ainge said. “Look, we just want to spend our capital wisely. That’s all I’m saying. And we’ll try to do that. But sometimes you have to wait and you can’t do it when you want to do it. But we wanted to do it last [offseason]. We wanted to do it at the trade deadline. And now this summer, we want to do it. And I feel like the summer’s a better time than [the] trade deadline to do it, so I’m optimistic and I’m hopeful.”

See more from the Atlantic Division:

Sixers president of basketball operations Bryan Colangelo expressed a willingness to consider trading a top-five pick if the team ends up with two, as Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com observes following his conversation with the new team exec. Philadelphia, which has a 26.9% chance of landing the No. 1 pick, also gets the Lakers pick if it falls out of the top three. “I think you should always be a little proactive, just in determining what your best course of action is,” Colangelo said. “You don’t want to leave anything on the table. If there was an opportunity to do something and you didn’t know that or realize it because you didn’t make a phone call, then that’s your fault. But I think we’ll explore everything in every regard, and that’s the good news about having the kind of flexibility and the number of assets that we have.”
Maryland small forward Jake Layman and Louisville center Chinanu Onuaku will work out for the Celtics, notes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (Twitter link).
The Sixers interviewed Syracuse’s Malachi Richardson and Kentucky’s Tyler Ulis, and Ulis plans to work out for Philadelphia, too, as Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com relays (Twitter links). Oregon State’s Gary Payton II is also on the Sixers interview list, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Regardless of whether a reported four-year, $4.5MM offer is in the works, the Knicks want draft-and-stash prospect Guillermo Hernangomez on their roster next season, reports international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). Agent Andy Miller dismissed the report of the offer, though New York can’t formally present a contract to Hernangomez until July.

And-Ones: Pope, Kidd, Casey

April 13th, 2016 at 10:26pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri noted that coach Dwane Casey‘s job was safe regardless of how the team performs in the playoffs, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports relays (via Twitter). “He’s been phenomenal, I think,” Ujiri said of Casey. “Whether it’s reading games, or adjustments and just growth overall as a coach. To be honest, everybody makes such a big deal about, like okay if we don’t go past the first round what’s going to happen? Coach Casey deserves to be the coach, that’s 100% and I stand by that. He deserves to be our coach in the future because he’s put in the work to bring winning to our program. Players have responded well and it’s translated a little bit. We hope that it translates to the playoffs and I’m very hopeful that it will because he’s a defensive-minded coach. I think he’s been tremendous for us.”

Here’s more from around the league:

San Diego State sophomore small forward Malik Pope intends to test the waters and declare for the 2016 NBA draft, the University announced. Pope, who is the No. 25 overall sophomore according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and the No. 46 overall player according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, won’t hire an agent which will allow him to return to school should he withdraw prior to the May 25th deadline. “Malik Pope, with our consultation and approval, has submitted his name to the NBA for the upcoming draft, but will not hire an agent, allowing himself the opportunity to return to San Diego State,” coach Steve Fisher said. “With the rule change, it is a great opportunity for Malik to get workouts and evaluations from NBA personnel. Together, we will monitor his progress.”
Bucks coach Jason Kidd dismissed the rumors that say his job may be in jeopardy and said he wanted to remain in Milwaukee for the long-term, Matt Velazquez of The Journal Sentinel tweets. The coach, who still has one season remaining on his deal, said he doesn’t plan on broaching the subject of a contract extension this summer, Charles F. Gardner of The Journal Sentinel relays (via Twitter).
Oklahoma senior power forward Ryan Spangler has hired agent Keith Kreiter of Edge Sports to represent him, international journalist David Pick reports (via Twitter).
Potential 2016 second-rounder Jake Layman has signed with Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets. The senior power forward from Maryland averaged 11.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in 35 appearances on the season for the Terrapins.

Jake Layman To Stay Out Of Draft

April 9th, 2015 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

Maryland junior small forward Jake Layman will pass up a strong chance to become a second-round pick this year and stay with the Terrapins for 2015/16, a source tells Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. Layman is the No. 36 prospect for 2015 in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress rankings, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com has him 52nd. Multiple NBA executives told Goodman that Layman would have been selected somewhere between 25th and 45th.

The 21-year-old put up 12.5 points and 5.8 rebounds in 30.1 minutes per game this season while continuing to improve his outside shot. He knocked down 37.8% of his three-pointers this year and is at 35.0% for his college career. Layman made two of three attempts from behind the arc in Maryland’s round of 32 loss to West Virginia in the NCAA Tournament, but he otherwise had a quiet March, averaging just 7.5 PPG combined in the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments.

NBA personnel will hope that the 6’9 Layman adds strength and a better ability to create his own shot in the year to come, as Ford notes in his profile. Scouts will surely keep a close eye on Maryland in 2015/16, with freshman point guard Melo Trimble, another second-round prospect for this year, also returning to the school, and high school recruit Diamond Stone, No. 4 on Givony’s 2016 mock draft, joining the team.