Ja’Kobe Walter Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Nets Veterans, Wilson, Brunson, Embiid, Sixers, Barnes, More

November 21st, 2024 at 11:04pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Multiple Nets veterans have been in outside trade talks since their arrival to the team. Cameron Johnson, Bojan Bogdanovic, Ben Simmons, Dennis Schröder and Dorian Finney-Smith are among the players who have been in rumors for some time and on Tuesday, fourth-year guard Cam Thomas even joined them in such talks.

Still, several players are having career years for a team that’s been surprisingly competitive at 6-9 entering Thursday. Johnson in particular exploded for 34 points on Tuesday, Net Income at NetsDaily writes.

“All three of us have been traded before. It’s not something that we’re worried about,” Johnson said about why he, Finney-Smith and Schröder are playing well. “There’s a lot of speculation about a lot of things, all of our whole careers, my whole career, speculation about this, speculation about that. You hear a lot of outside noise. There’s no sense in letting it bother you. There’s no sense in letting it get to you. Let the future be the future. Control what you can control now.

“The other thing is, we enjoy our group, playing together. I think we are a group that gets along well with each other, and that’s important. So as long as we’re together, we’re gonna fight for wins, and we’re gonna enjoy representing Brooklyn. And whatever the future holds, it holds.”

Johnson’s been happy with how the organization has handled him during his time there, according to Net Income. While the plan is still to select a cornerstone in the upcoming draft and Johnson is more likely than not be traded, he’s making an impact alongside the other vets.

“Honestly, he’s just been hooping,” teammate Trendon Watford. “I’m not surprised by it. Cam’s a great player, so I’m not surprised by it at all. Last year was last year. He obviously heard all the noise and took it with a grain of salt and came back. And now he’s doing what we know CJ can do.”

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With Thomas missing Tuesday’s game against the Hornets with a minor injury, second-year forward Jalen Wilson stepped up, according to Andrew Crane of the New York Post. Wilson scored a team-high 17 points in the Nets win while making a career-high five three-pointers. Wilson holds a team option for next season and could see his role increase if some of the veterans are traded at or before the trade deadline.
Jalen Brunson didn’t offer an official comment on the NBA’s investigation surrounding his father’s — Rick Brunson — promotion to lead assistant on the Knicks‘ coaching staff. However, according to the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy, he had a message for anyone questioning his father’s coaching credentials. “He’s more than qualified for that position,” Jalen Brunson said. “He’s a person who has been around the NBA for a long time, who has been around [Tom Thibodeau] for longer than he’s been around the NBA. I think he understands the business, I think he understands the game, I think he understands the head coach. So he’s more than qualified. Look at the way he’s taught me and raised me and how I’ve seen him impact others in all different levels of basketball — high school, college, pros.“
Following a report Thursday morning indicated Joel Embiid wasn’t happy that a Sixers team-only meeting was leaked, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer writes in a guest post on Marc Stein’s Substack that Embiid was “going to be furious” and that he wanted to try and find the leak. Fischer adds that Tyrese Maxey getting involved and holding Embiid accountable is a silver lining to the situation. Tobias Harris used to serve as a veteran voice and leader for the Sixers, so finding it elsewhere now that Harris is in Detroit was imperative to fixing the season.
According to Fischer, Embiid has preferred to hold some level of control over what the Sixers‘ injury report lists him with and how it’s reported.
Raptors star Scottie Barnes played Thursday for the first time in nearly a month. Following reporting that he would be on a minutes restriction, Barnes ended the night with 17 points in 27 minutes played. The Raptors did not start a traditional point guard, opting for Barnes over Davion Mitchell, who moved to the bench. Mitchell being moved to the second unit meant Ochai Agbaji maintained his starting role, TSN’s Josh Lewenberg reports (Twitter link). Barnes hadn’t played since Oct. 28, missing 11 games.
Ja’Kobe Walter, who missed the last six games for the Raptors, was available to play, Sportsnet.ca’s Blake Murphy tweets. The 2024 19th overall pick also missed some time at the beginning of the season due to injury.

Raptors Notes: Barnes, Brown, Walter, Olynyk, Poeltl, More

November 20th, 2024 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Raptors star Scottie Barnes, who has been out since October due to an orbital bone fracture, appears to be nearing a return. The All-Star forward has been cleared for contact and was a full participant in practice on Wednesday, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (Twitter link), who says it sounds like Barnes will be listed as questionable to play vs. Minnesota on Thursday.

Although Barnes’ right eye is still red, he told reporters that he’s no longer feeling pain in the eye like he was in the days after the injury. His plan is to wear protective goggles as a precaution, which he admitted is “going to take some getting used to” (Twitter link via Lewenberg).

Two more injured Raptors players fully participated in practice on Wednesday too, according to Lewenberg (Twitter link), though he says Bruce Brown (knee) and Ja’Kobe Walter (shoulder) will require longer ramp-up periods than Barnes. That’s especially true for Brown, who has been on the shelf since undergoing knee surgery in September.

Kelly Olynyk (back) and Immanuel Quickley (elbow) remain sidelined for Toronto, but Olynyk was a limited participant in practice on Wednesday, Lewenberg adds.

We have more on the Raptors:

While Toronto’s decision to trade a lightly protected 2024 first-round pick in a package for Jakob Poeltl at the 2023 deadline looks like a mistake in retrospect, that’s certainly no fault of the veteran center, who has been playing some of the best basketball of his career as of late, writes Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. Poeltl is averaging career highs in points (17.1) and rebounds (11.9) per game this season and has been more of a threat on offense than he showed in his first eight NBA seasons. “I mean, maybe there’s a little bit of a mindset change with me personally, but I think, more than anything, the reason why I feel like I’m getting more opportunities is just within the flow of our offense, our guys are finding me,” he said. “There are situations when I’m catching in rhythm because I’m getting a couple of easy ones.”
Within the same Sportsnet.ca story, Grange notes that Poeltl’s strong play this fall could boost his value as a trade chip, but suggests the Raptors might be better off keeping the big man. As Grange explains, a healthy version of the current roster, perhaps with another prospect added via the 2025 draft lottery, has a chance to be competitive sooner rather than later.
Despite their 3-12 start, the Raptors can’t be too upset about how the first month of the season has played out, as Grange and Lewenberg detail in a pair of stories. The vibes in the locker room are still positive, individual players – including 2023 lottery pick Gradey Dick – are making positive strides, the team has been competitive in most of its losses, and they seem to be buying into the way that head coach Darko Rajakovic wants to play.
While RJ Barrett‘s shooting percentages are down so far this season (.422 FG%, .338 3PT%), the forward’s passing ability has been a pleasant surprise, writes Eric Koreen of The Athletic. With primary play-makers Quickley and Barnes battling injuries, Barrett is averaging 6.5 assists, well above his career rate coming into this season (2.9 APG).
Eugene Omoruyi, who appeared in 87 total NBA games for four teams from 2021-24, has signed a G League contract and has been acquired off waivers by the Raptors 905, Toronto’s NBAGL affiliate. As Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca tweets, Omoruyi – who grew up near Toronto – opted to join the G League in the hopes that he could land with his hometown team. The 6’7″ forward has averaged 5.7 points and 2.3 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game with the Mavericks, Thunder, Pistons, and Wizards since going undrafted out of Oregon in 2021.

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).

Raptors Notes: Agbaji, Mitchell, Walter, Mogbo, DeRozan

November 7th, 2024 at 10:12pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Raptors acquired Ochai Agbaji alongside Kelly Olynyk at last season’s trade deadline, and he’s looking like a steal while he blossoms in his third season in the league, Sportsnet.ca’s Michael Grange writes. In nine games (seven starts), Agbaji is averaging 13.0 points and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 56.8% from the field and 42.4% on three-pointers. He’s impressing as a two-way option on the wing.

“He’s been really good for us on defense. I’d say that’s his biggest strength, his activity there, his versatility there,” teammate Jakob Poeltl said. “He’s filling a kind of little-bit-of-everything role on offence for us, where he’s doing a lot of good cutting, spacing the corners for threes and stuff like that. Being aggressive in the fast break. So, yeah, we need more of that.”

According to Grange, the Raptors liked Agbaji in the 2022 draft, but he was selected 14th overall and Toronto didn’t control its own first-round pick. Equipped at last season’s trade deadline with the projected No. 31 overall pick in 2025 from the OG Anunoby trade, Toronto was prepared to give up the draft capital necessary (No. 29 overall) to acquire Olynyk and take a shot on Agbaji.

Agbaji’s current scoring average is more than double what he posted last season and Grange writes that he put in a ton of work this offseason in mini-camps and alongside Gradey Dick.

“Everyone had their own path,” Agbaji said. “Some guys figure it out in two minutes, some people it’s two years, three years or even longer. But I feel like the work I put in this off-season has prepared me for this moment and the work I continuously put in is for the rest of my career, really. This is just the starting point, and I’m going to try and keep it going and stay focused on what I need to do every single night to get myself to that level I’m capable of playing.”

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Davion Mitchell‘s ultimate fit with the Raptors is still yet to be determined, but he’s making the most of his opportunities so far, Grange writes in a separate story. Acquired in a trade that sent Jalen McDaniels to Sacramento, Mitchell has been one of the team’s more productive players through the early part of the season. He has started the past eight games with Immanuel Quickley out, averaging 10.0 PPG and 6.3 APG. Once is Quickley back – and with rookie Jamal Shead impressing early on – it’s unclear what Mitchell’s role will look like, Grange writes, but the fourth-year guard has graded out as the best perimeter defender in the league so far this fall.
Both Ja’Kobe Walter and Jonathan Mogbo, the Nos. 19 and 31 overall picks in this year’s draft, respectively, exited the Raptors’ Wednesday game against the Kings with injuries. Walter re-aggravated the shoulder injury that caused him to miss training camp and the first five games of the season, with leaves him with a day-to-day designation, Grange details in the same piece. Mogbo suffered a hip pointer, and the duration of his injury is unclear.
Despite an awkward ending to his Raptors tenure that saw him traded to the Spurs in 2018, Kings forward DeMar DeRozan still feels a strong bond with the franchise, The Athletic’s Eric Koreen writes. “I just feel like it, I’m embedded there — it’s a second-nature thing,” DeRozan said. “Anything the Raptors need [from] me, I feel like I’m an extension of that family for the rest of my life.“

Injury Notes: Curry, Melton, Wiggins, Raptors, Clarkson, More

November 1st, 2024 at 7:13pm CST by Luke Adams

Warriors guards Stephen Curry (left peroneal strain) and De’Anthony Melton (strained lower back) have been ruled out for Saturday’s contest against Houston, the team announced today (via Twitter), and Melton will remain sidelined for at least two games beyond that before being reevaluated a week from now.

However, the injury news from Golden State isn’t all bad. As Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets, Curry has been cleared to participate in parts of Friday night’s practice and will be reevaluated on Sunday, so it’s possible he could return to action as soon as Monday vs. Washington.

Additionally, forward Andrew Wiggins is on track to suit up on Saturday after missing two games due to a low back strain. He’ll be immediately reinserted into the starting lineup upon returning, according to head coach Steve Kerr (Twitter link via Slater).

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

After missing the first five games of his rookie season, Raptors first-round pick Ja’Kobe Walter was cleared to make his NBA debut on Friday vs. the Lakers, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Elsewhere on the Raptors injury front, forward Scottie Barnes (orbital fracture) has a doctor’s appointment on Monday, which could help determine the treatment plan for his injury, while big man Kelly Olynyk (back/lumbar strain) is still at least a “couple more weeks” away from playing, per head coach Darko Rajakovic (Twitter links via Lewenberg). Guard Immanuel Quickley (pelvic contusion) isn’t far off from returning, but he remains out on Friday and will likely miss Saturday’s game vs. Sacramento too, tweets Lewenberg.
Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson has been diagnosed with left plantar fasciitis and will be reevaluated in a week, the team announced today (via Twitter). Collin Sexton, who figures to play an increased role with Clarkson out, suffered a left fourth finger distal interphalangeal (DIP) joint avulsion fracture on Thursday but will attempt to play through the injury, according to the Jazz.
Hornets center Mark Williams is doing a “good amount of individual work,” per head coach Charles Lee, but he hasn’t been cleared for full team drills or scrimmages yet, writes Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer. Williams has yet to play this season due to a sprained tendon in his left foot.
Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt, who is recovering from offseason surgeries on both feet, has experienced some “minor discomfort,” but that’s a normal part of the recovery process, head coach J.J. Redick told reporters on Friday (Twitter link via Jovan Buha of The Athletic). Redick added that Vanderbilt is “progressing” but that his return isn’t imminent. “We’ll have another update in a week or so,” he said.

Injury Notes: Pelicans, Kings, Raptors, Adams, Collier

October 24th, 2024 at 3:20pm CST by Rory Maher

He technically wasn’t injured, but Pelicans star Zion Williamson sat out Wednesday’s season-opening victory over Chicago due to an illness. There’s optimism Willliamson will be ready for Friday’s contest in Portland after he practiced on Thursday, according to Rod Walker of The Times-Picayune (Twitter links).

“Looks like he’s good to go,” head coach Willie Green said.

In a press release (Twitter link), the Pelicans also provided injury updates on Trey Murphy (right hamstring strain) and Dejounte Murray, who fractured his left hand last night.

The team said Murray is out indefinitely, with further updates to come when appropriate, while Murphy has made good progress in his recovery and will begin conditioning work. Murphy, who signed a four-year, $112MM rookie scale extension earlier this week, will be reevaluated in two weeks.

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

Kevin Huerter (shoulder surgery) and Trey Lyles (left groin strain) missed the entire preseason for the Kings, but both veterans were full practice participants on Tuesday and Wednesday and will be active for Thursday’s season opener vs. Minnesota, writes James Ham of The Kings Beat. Neither player will be on a minutes restriction, according to head coach Mike Brown, who confirmed Huerter will start at shooting guard.
Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley sustained a pelvic contusion in Wednesday’s loss to Cleveland and did not practice on Thursday, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. Both Quickley and RJ Barrett (shoulder) are doubtful for Friday’s contest vs. Philadelphia, while Kelly Olynyk (back), Ja’Kobe Walter (shoulder) and Bruce Brown (knee) remain out (Twitter link via Lewenberg).
Rockets center Steven Adams, who missed all of last season with a right knee injury, was initially listed as questionable for Wednesday’s loss to Charlotte due to knee injury recovery and a left calf strain and wound up sitting out. Head coach Ime Udoka referred to Adams as “day-to-day, game-to-game” on Thursday afternoon, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
Jazz rookie Isaiah Collier (right hamstring strain) has been cleared for on-court work, but he’ll miss at least 10 more days, which is when he’ll be reevaluated, the team announced (Twitter link via Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune). The former USC guard was the No. 29 overall pick of June’s draft.

Atlantic Notes: Raptors Injuries, Raptors Schedule, Mazzulla, McCain

October 22nd, 2024 at 8:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Raptors have listed RJ Barrett, Kelly Olynyk, Ja’Kobe Walter, and Bruce Brown as out for their season opener against Cleveland on Wednesday, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet tweets.

Barrett is making progress in his recovery from shoulder injury. He was a limited participant in practice on Tuesday but still hasn’t been cleared for contact, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (Twitter links). Olynyk is dealing with back stiffness, while Walter and Brown are recovering from shoulder and knee injuries, respectively.

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The Raptors have acknowledged this will be a rebuilding season but that doesn’t mean they have to be boring, Eric Koreen of The Athletic writes. The Raptors plan to push the pace and play an entertaining brand of basketball but their early schedule is brutal, Koreen notes. In its first 25 games, Toronto will have 22 matchups against teams that finished better .500 in 2023/24.
Joe Mazzulla had a blunt and somewhat amusing response to questions about the pressure to repeat as champions. “It’s not pressure,” said the Celtics coach, per ESPN News Services. “There’s nothing anyone in this circle can do to me that’s going to impact my identity and who I am as a person or a coach. We’re either going to win or we’re not, and 40 years from now, none of you are invited to my funeral and that’s it.”
Sixers first-rounder Jared McCain averaged 12.8 points and shot 37.9% on 3-pointers in five preseason games but he’s unlikely to find many minutes on a win-now team. McCain plans to work hard and deal with whatever’s thrown at him in his rookie campaign, he told Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. McCain will be available for Philadelphia’s opener on Wednesday despite suffering bruised lungs during a preseason game last week. He’s not listed on the injury report, Pompey tweets.

Injury Notes: Jackson, Grizzlies, Sixers, Raptors, Bufkin

October 21st, 2024 at 4:00pm CST by Rory Maher

Grizzlies big man Jaren Jackson Jr. will be sidelined for Wednesday’s regular season opener vs. Utah but head coach Taylor Jenkins said there’s a chance he could suit up later this week, as Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal relays. Jackson was diagnosed with a low-grade hamstring strain at the beginning of October.

“Hamstring’s in a good spot, he’s been progressing well,” Jenkins said. “We’re going to be cautious, have him get a little more five-on-five in the next couple of days and probably trend more towards later in the week when he’ll return.”

Jackson has two years and about $48.7MM remaining on his contract. He was eligible to sign an extension worth $103MM over three years prior to Monday night’s deadline, but he’ll revisit a potential new deal in the offseason, sources tell ESPN’s Bobby Marks. That outcome was always considered likely, as the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year could earn far more money in 2025 than he can right now — he’d be eligible for a super-max extension if he wins DPOY, MVP or make an All-NBA team in 2024/25.

Jenkins also provided injury updates on Luke Kennard (foot soreness), Vince Williams (shin stress reaction), GG Jackson (foot surgery) and Cam Spencer (ankle sprain), Cole adds. Kennard will be sidelined for the first week of the season, Williams and Spencer are “still a couple of weeks away,” and Jackson will be reevaluated in late November.

Here are some more injury notes from around the NBA:

Joel Embiid (knee management) and Jared McCain (pulmonary contusion) were able to go through all of the Sixers‘ practice on Monday aside from 5-on-5 scrimmaging, tweets Derek Bodner of PHLY Sports. Free agent addition Paul George, who sustained a hyperextended left knee in preseason action, did not practice but will be reevaluated on Tuesday, per head coach Nick Nurse.
Raptors wings RJ Barrett and Ja’Kobe Walter practiced on Monday, but the team didn’t do any contact work, per Eric Koreen of The Athletic (Twitter link). Head coach Darko Rajakovic called Barrett day-to-day, while Walter is considered seven-to-10 days behind his veteran teammate. Both players are dealing with sprained AC joints in their right shoulders.
Second-year guard Kobe Bufkin suffered a right shoulder injury in Saturday’s practice and is undergoing testing to determine the severity of the injury, the Hawks announced (via Twitter). It’s unclear at this time how long Bufkin will be out, but he’ll be sidelined for Wednesday’s regular season opener, per the team. Bufkin was limited to just 17 games as a rookie last season due to toe and finger injuries.

Atlantic Notes: McCain, Yabusele, Raptors Injuries, Shead, Walker

October 17th, 2024 at 10:46pm CST by Tristan Tucker

Promising Sixers rookie guard Jared McCain took a hard fall late in the fourth quarter of Philadelphia’s Wednesday preseason game against the Nets. He was down for a while, according to ESPN’s Tim Bontemps (Twitter link), but he was able to get up under his own power.

Head coach Nick Nurse said McCain went to the hospital to be evaluated and the Sixers announced he’d be checked for a concussion, according to Bontemps.

McCain was reevaluated on Thursday afternoon and was diagnosed with a pulmonary contusion, but has not displayed symptoms consistent with a concussion (Twitter link via NBA insider Chris B. Haynes). McCain is out for Friday’s preseason finale against the Magic and will continue to be evaluated daily.

Missing McCain for any time is a blow for the Sixers, but avoiding a concussion is good news for the young guard. He’s been a preseason revelation for the team, averaging 12.8 points and shooting 37.9% on 5.8 three-point attempts per game.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Sixers forward Guerschon Yabusele made headlines in the Olympics after playing well for the French national team, then parlayed that performance into a contract with Philadelphia, his first since the 2018/19 season. Andscape’s Marc J. Spears details Yabusele’s return to the league in a recent feature. “My advice is just work hard, never give up and make your dream come true. If you want it, you’re going to have to go get it,” Yabusele said.
Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley went through a full practice on Thursday for the first time since the start of training camp, Josh Lewenerg of TSN reports (Twitter link). Quickly is questionable for the team’s Friday preseason finale against Brooklyn. According to Sportsnet.ca’s Michael Grange (Twitter link), the guard is still sporting a brace on his thumb. Meanwhile, RJ Barrett is still recovering from shoulder surgery and will not travel for the preseason finale. The hope for Barrett is that he’s ready for the start of the regular season, but there are no guarantees. Ja’Kobe Walter is dealing with the same shoulder injury as Barrett but he’s about 10 days ahead in the recovery process, according to Lewenberg (Twitter links). Walter has yet to be cleared for contact.
With Quickley soon to return and Davion Mitchell and Jamal Shead both playing well in the preseason, it’s possible the Raptors could roll with three point guards in their regular season rotation. However, according to Lewenberg (Twitter link), Darko Rajakovic‘s comments suggest Shead may start the season as the third-stringer, not part of the regular rotation. “I think it’s amazing that we have three point guards, and in practice you could see that everybody is pushing each other,” the Raptors’ head coach said. “Davion is making Quickley better. Jamal is making Davion better. They’re really, really competing and every team wishes for that. When you have more players competing for the same spot, it makes everybody better.”
With the Celtics cutting all their non-guaranteed camp invitees except for Lonnie Walker, it puts the seventh-year guard in the spotlight ahead of final cuts. Souichi Terada of MassLive believes Boston will ultimately waive Walker, since keeping him for the season would cost upward of $10MM in additional tax penalties due to the team’s position against the second apron. The Celtics have also opted to keep that 15th roster spot open to start the season in recent years.
Earlier this offseason, former Knicks manager of coaching analytics Nick Restifo left for the Hawks to be their director of basketball research. According to Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link), the Knicks hired CB Garrett, previously with the Bucks, to replace him.

Raptors Notes: Rebuild, Ujiri, Rogers, Barnes, Walter

October 1st, 2024 at 5:29pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Many NBA executives won’t admit their team is in rebuild mode. Not Raptors president Masai Ujiri. He stated the obvious at Raptors media day.

“I would use the word rebuilding. That’s the right word,” Ujiri said, per Michael Grange of Sportsnet. “I think we have a clear path now going forward. … I think we set a path (when) we went into the draft last year and got a couple of young players and we want to continue to grow and build this team around Scottie (Barnes), who is 23 years old. … So, yes, in sports, you always want to be competitive, and you play to win. We’re going to play to win. But it is a rebuilding team. I think everybody sees that loud and clear.”

Even players like Jakob Poeltl know that the franchise is looking toward the future, rather than the upcoming season.

“We’re all aware of the situation. We had a massive change in the team since the middle of last season. So we know that we’re starting somewhere in the beginning,” Poeltl said. “We’re definitely capable of winning some games (but) I know that’s not the main focus for us … this has to be a long-term project. I think we all know, we’re not going to go attack the championship this year. It makes no sense for us to try to win every single game as much as we can and sacrifice development in terms of that.”

We have more on the Raptors:

Speaking of Barnes, he’s currently not with the team, but Toronto fans can relax. He’s attending to a personal matter and will rejoin the team later this week, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet tweets.
Rogers Communications chairperson Edward Rogers, whose company is assuming majority control of the Raptors, reportedly opposed Ujiri’s five-year contract in 2021, but Ujiri said any tension between him and Rogers has long since vanished, according to The Athletic’s Eric Koreen. “Every time something comes up: (MLSE doesn’t bid for a team in the) WNBA, ‘Whoa, it’s Masai versus Edward.’ Any small thing that comes — clear that,” Ujiri said. “There’s nothing. There’s zero. Zero going on. OK? They’ve treated me well. I will keep going like that till we (cannot). For me, that’s my job. Guess what: I know I’m going to be judged on the way I do this job. And that’s that’s the way we’re going to be judged — on what happens on the basketball court.”
First-round pick Ja’Kobe Walter provided a positive update on his right shoulder sprain that he suffered in September, according to Murphy. “I get out of the sling (Tuesday), and then I’ll start my rehab, work on my movement stuff. So I should be back pretty soon,” he said. “Probably won’t be doing anything on-court for this next week-and-a-half, for sure. But still, I’ll be doing my strength and mobility work during that time. I should probably be back in, like, three weeks.” Walter said he’ll try to use training camp as a learning experience. “I can look at it a different way. I can work on my left hand. I can watch a lot more film,” he said. “I can still learn in a lot of different ways, and get better, that they’re not doing while they’re training, I can still be doing something else that they’re not doing.”