Jalen Brunson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trade Rumors: Finney-Smith, Gordon, Fournier, Holmes, Herro

March 22nd, 2021 at 10:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Teams have checked in on Mavericks forward Dorian Finney-Smith, though it’s uncertain if he’s available, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets. His recent uptick in play, plus his very affordable contract ($4MM this season and next), has increased interest in him.

As Townsend explains (Twitter link), if the Mavericks want to make a run at a player like Aaron Gordon, Norman Powell or John Collins, Finney-Smith would likely have to be included in any deal, along with perhaps Jalen Brunson and draft picks. However, Dallas can’t offer a first-rounder earlier than 2025, which makes it difficult for it to make a major move.

We have more on the trade front:

The Celtics are considered the frontrunners to acquire Gordon, multiple sources told The Action Network’s Matt Moore. The Magic are expected to continue to take offers up until Thursday’s deadline. The Nuggets, Trail Blazers and Mavericks are also in the running but Boston has offered two first-round picks and the other contenders for Gordon haven’t done that. It’s assumed there will be some protections on those picks. Evan Fournier could also go to Boston in a separate deal. The Celtics would send a player — the Magic prefer Marcus Smart — and the two picks, using their $28.5MM traded player exception as part of the deal.
Richaun Holmes has become a top trade target for multiple teams, ESPN’s Jordan Schultz tweets. It would take a sizable offer to pry him away from the Kings, Schultz adds. H0lmes has expressed his contentment with his current team. He had 17 points and 16 rebounds against Cleveland on Monday.
While the Heat could make a major move, they appear unwilling to part with Tyler Herro, according to another Schultz tweet. Miami considers Herro an essential part of the future and is a favorite of team president Pat Riley, so Schultz would be shocked if the second-year guard is moved.

Mavericks Expect Three Players To Return From Protocols

January 26th, 2021 at 1:58pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Mavericks may have three players back from NBA health and safety protocols in time for Wednesday’s game at Utah, according to Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News.

Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Dwight Powell are all listed as questionable for the game after spending nearly three weeks in quarantine. However, Maxi Kleber is still in the protocols and won’t accompany the team to Salt Lake City.

“It’s great having them back on the floor … it’s three of our best defenders.” coach Rick Carlisle told Townsend (Twitter link). “I think we’ll have all three of them available.”

Finney-Smith, Richardson and Jalen Brunson all remained in Denver after a January 7 game due to coronavirus concerns. Finney-Smith and Richardson both tested positive for COVID-19, and all three spent more than a week in Denver. Positive tests were confirmed later for Powell and Kleber.

Brunson never got the virus, but he said it was difficult to be quarantined for so long, which resulted in missing four games.

“I don’t recommend taking 10 days off from playing a game,” he said, “but sometimes you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.”

Quartet Of Mavericks Players Have COVID-19

January 11th, 2021 at 4:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks have four players with confirmed cases of COVID-19, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets. A pair of rotation players tested positive on Monday, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon and Zach Lowe (Twitter link).

None of the players who have tested positive have been named publicly due to privacy issues. Mavericks veterans Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Jalen Brunson were self-isolating as of Friday, and Maxi Kleber joined that list over the weekend.

The NBA postponed Monday’s game between the Mavericks and Pelicans due to issues related to COVID-19 and the Mavericks’ game at Charlotte on Wednesday could also be in jeopardy.

Due to contact tracing, the Mavericks and the NBA could not say with certainty that Dallas would have at least eight non-infected/bodily healthy players for Monday’s game, Townsend notes in another tweet.

According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link), Dallas can file for a hardship exception on each of the four players that tested positive, even though none of the players have missed three consecutive games. The normal procedure to request the exception is to have four players miss three consecutive games and be out two additional weeks.

Several other teams, including the Heat, Celtics and Sixers, have been dealing with major personnel issues due to the coronavirus. The league’s Board of Governors is meeting on Tuesday to discuss potential changes to the protocols that have been in place this season.

Mavs’ Richardson, Finney-Smith, Brunson Placed Under Quarantine

January 8th, 2021 at 7:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

7:39pm: Josh Richardson, Dorian Finney-Smith and Jalen Brunson are the players under quarantine, Charania tweets.

5:11pm: A Mavericks player has tested positive for the coronavirus and two other players have been placed under quarantine for seven days due to contract tracing, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

A source within the organization confirmed Charania’s report, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets.

The other two players have thus far tested negative and are expected to remain so, according to Charania, but the trio remained in Denver while the rest of the team flew back to Dallas. The Mavericks wrapped up a three-game trip in Denver on Thursday.

The names of the players haven’t been revealed but there will be more clarity when the team issues an injury report prior to its next game. The Mavericks have a home game against Orlando on Saturday.

In recent days, the Celtics and Sixers have revealed COVID-19 issues. Boston’s Robert Williams had a positive test and two others were deemed close contacts. Philadelphia is expected to be without numerous players due to contact tracing after Seth Curry tested positive.

Mavs Notes: Richardson, Brunson, Powell, Crowder, Barea

December 2nd, 2020 at 2:16pm CST by Luke Adams

We heard prior to the offseason that the Mavericks would be prioritizing adding toughness to their roster this fall, and head coach Rick Carlisle confirmed as much this week, telling reporters that the club sought players with an “edge” (Twitter link via Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News). The Mavs view Josh Richardson as one player who fits that bill.

“I don’t really take well to my brothers being messed with,” the former Sixer said on Tuesday when asked about the toughness he brings to the club (Twitter link via Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News).

Beyond his willingness to play with an “edge,” Richardson also appealed to the Mavs for a handful of other reasons, as Carlisle explained.

“He’s a high-level defensive player, which is something that we needed,” said the Mavs’ head coach (Twitter link via Townsend). “We’ve been looking for a guy who can guard point guards and add scoring off the ball. … He’s a guy from afar who I’ve always thought would be a great fit with Luka Doncic.”

Here’s more on the Mavs:

After missing the end of last season due to a shoulder injury, reserve point guard Jalen Brunson said on Wednesday that he’s “100%” and ready to go, tweets Caplan.
Dwight Powell (Achilles) said on Wednesday that he’s also a “full go” for the 2020/21 season. As Tim MacMahon of ESPN notes (via Twitter), Powell will likely open the year as the Mavericks’ starting center with Kristaps Porzingis sidelined.
During an appearance on Burns & Gambo in on Arizona Sports 98.7 (audio link via Nick Angstadt of Locked on Mavs), Jae Crowder said that he turned down more money from the Mavericks to sign with the Suns, since he envisions a bigger role for himself in Phoenix. It’s not clear if Dallas was offering Crowder – who signed a three-year, $29MM deal – more money in 2020/21 or more money overall. The latter seems unlikely, since the Mavs appear to be preserving their 2021 cap room, but they would’ve needed to sign-and-trade for Crowder to top the Suns’ mid-level offer.
Carlisle said on Tuesday that the Mavericks wanted to bring back J.J. Barea due to his experience, leadership, and ability to command respect in the locker room (Twitter link via Caplan).
In case you missed it, Doncic became the first player to have a rookie scale team option for the 2021/22 season exercised.

Southwest Notes: Grizzlies, Harden, Howard, MKG, Brunson

July 16th, 2020 at 12:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies will enter the NBA’s restart with a healthier roster than they’ve had all season, creating what Michael Wallace of Grizzlies.com refers to as a “welcome dilemma” for Taylor Jenkins. Memphis has already exceeded expectations this year despite dealing with some injuries — now the team will have added depth to allow Jenkins to try to find even more effective lineup combinations.

“We’re sorting through different combinations, but not trying to lose the lineups that were successful for us to this point,” the Grizzlies’ head coach said. “We’re going to have some really tough decisions to make, but that only means you have some great depth. We’re built on competing. We’re always prepared to have 17 guys ready to go at any given moment.”

Besides having Justise Winslow – acquired at the trade deadline – available for the first time this summer, the Grizzlies will also have Jaren Jackson Jr. and Brandon Clarke back in their lineup. Jackson had missed the team’s nine games leading up to the hiatus in March, while Clarke had been out for eight games.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

James Harden, whose arrival at the Walt Disney World campus was delayed, is expected to practice with the Rockets for the first time on Thursday, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. The club is still waiting on Russell Westbrook and Luc Mbah a Moute.
French club ASVEL Basket announced today in a press release that it has finalized a two-year deal with swingman William Howard. It’s an unusual update, since Howard technically remains on a two-way contract with the Rockets — at least for now. Presumably, Howard is on track to join ASVEL Basket when his current deal expires.
Mavericks forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had yet to join the team at the Disney campus as of Wednesday evening, tweets Tim MacMahon of ESPN. Head coach Rick Carlisle didn’t offer any specifics on Kidd-Gilchrist’s absence: “We’re working to get him here logistically and we hope that it happens soon.”
With injuries to Jalen Brunson and Courtney Lee affecting the Mavericks‘ backcourt rotation, the team may lean more heavily on Delon Wright when play resumes, writes Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com. Speaking of Brunson, he isn’t with the club in Orlando and won’t play this summer, having remained in Dallas for rehab purposes, Carlisle confirmed today (Twitter links via Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News).

Western Notes: Thompson, Miller, Brunson, Williamson

June 8th, 2020 at 8:44pm CST by Dana Gauruder

It’s been nearly a year since Warriors guard Klay Thompson suffered a torn ACL in his left knee during last year’s Finals. However, GM Bob Myers isn’t sure if Thompson can be listed as fully recovered until he tests the knee in 1-on-1 and 2-on-2 situations, Mark Medina of USA Today tweets. Myers added, “He’s recovering fine; he hasn’t had any setback.”

Myers is also unsure whether the Warriors will be big players in the free agent and trade markets this summer, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets. “Depending on the economics, we have to be pragmatic and smart…I have no idea what the future holds, but we have an ownership group that’s aggressive and pushes the limits,” Myers said.

We have more from the Western Conference:

It’s possible Pelicans forward Darius Miller could return to action this summer after suffering a torn right Achilles tendon last August, ESPN’s Andrew Lopez tweets. Miller has continued his rehab throughout quarantine and his status will be determined during the team’s training camp prior to heading to Orlando. If he can’t go, a two-way player will likely fill his roster spot, Lopez adds.
The Mavericks still don’t plan on guard Jalen Brunson returning this season, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets. Brunson underwent right shoulder surgery this same week that play was halted. He hasn’t played since February 22.
A Florida judge ruled last week that Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson must answer questions regarding alleged benefits he received before and during his one season at Duke, Mark Schlabach of ESPN reports. Williamson is being sued for $100MM for alleged breach of a marketing agreement. A Florida appeals court subsequently granted a temporary stay and paused proceedings in the lawsuit from Prime Sports Marketing and company president Gina Ford, whose attorneys must respond within 10 days, according to an Associated Press report.

Southwest Notes: Grizzlies, Brunson, Mavs, Pelicans

May 7th, 2020 at 9:47am CST by Luke Adams

Before transitioning back into a media role with The Athletic, John Hollinger held a high-level position in the Grizzlies‘ basketball operations department for seven years, providing input on many key roster decisions during that stretch. Although Hollinger says he doesn’t spend much time contemplating “what-if” scenarios, he admits that he still thinks about the possibility of Memphis drafting Nikola Jokic back in 2014.

Looking back on the 2014 draft today at The Athletic, Hollinger concedes the Grizzlies weren’t eyeing Jokic with their No. 22 pick in the first round, but points to the No. 35 selection – which Memphis acquired from Utah – as a spot where Jokic would have made sense.

According to Hollinger, Jokic was ranked atop the Grizzlies’ list of draft-and-stash possibilities when the No. 35 pick arrived, but the team had Jarnell Stokes – who could potentially contribute right away – rated higher on its overall board.

Revisiting the pick now, Hollinger notes that the decision to select Stokes rather than Jokic – who was taken by the Nuggets at No. 41 – created something of a ripple effect of missed opportunities for the Grizzlies. Because Stokes occupied a spot on the 15-man roster, the team ended up waiving Hassan Whiteside that fall, despite an impressive training camp. If Memphis had stashed Jokic instead of drafting Stokes, the club may have kept Whiteside out of camp with that final roster spot.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Appearing recently on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson said his rehab from a shoulder injury is “definitely going well,” but that he’s still a ways off from being able to suit up and play. “As much as I would want to, as much as I would try my hardest to force them to let me play (if the season resumes in June), I don’t think it would be a possibility,” Brunson said, per The Dallas Morning News.
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is holding off reopening the team’s practice facility for the time being, suggesting to Brian Dameris and Mark Followill on their 77 Minutes in Heaven podcast that an inability to test players and staffers for COVID-19 is a roadblock (Twitter link via Tim MacMahon of ESPN). “I just don’t think the risk is worth the reward,” Cuban said, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who tweets that other teams share the Mavs’ concerns about not being able to test asymptomatic players entering their gyms.
The Pelicans aren’t reopening their facility this week and may not do so next week either, tweets Andrew Lopez of ESPN. A source tells Lopez that May 18 may be a target date for the club. We heard on Wednesday that the Rockets are also circling May 18 as their reopening date.

Southwest Notes: Brunson, Rivero, Poeltl, Pelicans

April 12th, 2020 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson tells Callie Caplan of The Dallas Morning News that the NBA’s hiatus convinced him to have surgery to fix a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Brunson underwent the operation March 13, two days after the league shut down over coronavirus concerns. He was hoping to wait until after the season to address the shoulder, but the break gave him a reason to get it done right away.

“I truly was trying to get back and trying to finish the season out,” Brunson said. “But also in the back of my mind, I wasn’t putting surgery off and saying it wasn’t a possibility. The morning of the day the NBA shut down, we were talking about when I could get it done if I wanted to get it done — just hypothetically — and then that night is when everything started happening, so we said ‘Hey, let’s get it done ASAP.’ We didn’t know how long this was going to be, how long it was going to take.”

Brunson was averaging 8.2 PPG in his second NBA season before the injury sidelined him in late February. He’s rehabbing at home, but doesn’t expect to return this season no matter what happens when the league resumes play.

“As of right now, I think it’s ruled out,” Brunson said. “I think we’re just planning on next year’s training camp. That’s if everything is going along schedule. But as of right now, I’m just focusing on rehab and getting back to full strength.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

The Mavericks are keeping an eye on Cuban prospect Jasiel Rivero, relays Dario Skerletic of Sportando from an original report by Chema de Lucas. The 27-year-old forward is averaging more than 9 points and 5 rebounds per game in the Champions League.
Spurs center Jakob Poeltl believes he has fully recovered from a right MCL strain that sidelined him for five days before the shutdown began, according to News4SanAntonio. Poeltl talked about his condition in an interview with Austria’s Die Presse, saying he believes he’ll be able to return whenever games resume. “Although I have no experience with knee injuries, I expect that I will have no problems if the season continues,” Poeltl said.
Executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin thinks the culture change he wanted to bring in his first season with the Pelicans has been successful, writes Jim Eichenhofer of NBA.com. “It’s fairly clear we’ve got really, really good, high-character humans here,” Griffin said. “The culture has changed a great deal for the better. I think players love being a part of what we’re building.”
The Pelicans have expressed interest in guard Elijah Bryant of Maccabi Tel Aviv, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Bryant, who turns 25 next week, played in Summer League the past two years with the Bucks and Sixers.

Western Notes: Ball, Brunson, Mitchell, Klay

March 26th, 2020 at 1:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball has parted ways with Creative Artists Agency, a source tells Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Melissa Rohlin of SI.com had reported earlier in the month that Ball was leaving CAA.

Ball originally cut ties with agent Harrison Gaines and joined CAA in April 2019, so he ended up spending less than a year with the agency. It’s not clear why he has opted for another change — it’s possible that the departure of veteran CAA agent Leon Rose for a role with the Knicks played a part in Ball’s decision, though the Pelicans guard was reportedly represented by Steven Heumann and Aaron Mintz.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Mavericks guard Jalen Brunson underwent shoulder surgery shortly after the league suspended its season earlier this month. Although Brunson may have a few months to recover, head coach Rick Carlisle said the 23-year-old won’t play again this season, even if the 2019/20 campaign runs well into the summer, per Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News (Twitter link).
Within a Jazz mailbag, Tony Jones of The Athletic expresses confidence that Donovan Mitchell will sign a maximum-salary rookie scale extension before the 2020/21 season begins. Mitchell, who will be extension-eligible for the first time this offseason, would become a restricted free agent in 2021 if he doesn’t re-up with Utah before then.
During an appearance on Dell and Sonya Curry’s podcast Raising Fame, Klay Thompson‘s father Mychal Thompson talked about the respect that his son has for Warriors teammate Stephen Curry, as Josh Shrock of NBC Sports Bay Area relays. “He has said it to me in private that he loves playing with Steph and he wants to retire as a Warrior after another 10 years,” the elder Thompson said.