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And-Ones: G League, Allen, Harden, Icons

January 10th, 2021 at 3:58pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The G League draft will be held on Monday at 1 PM ET, Adam Zagoria of The New York Times tweets. Michael Beasley, Mario Chalmers, Shabazz Muhammad, Quincy Pondexter, Lance Stephenson and Allonzo Trier are among the NBA veterans who will be eligible for the draft, Tim MacMahon of ESPN tweets. The full list of draft eligible players can be found here. The G League season will begin in Orlando next month.

We have more news from around the basketball world:

  • Former Knicks player Kadeem Allen has departed JL Bourg, according to the French club’s Twitter feed. Allen agreed to join the French team over the summer. The 53rd overall pick of the 2017 draft, Allen had been on a two-way contract with New York before being cut earlier in the summer. In two seasons with the Knicks, Allen saw limited action, averaging 8.2 PPG and 3.3 APG in 29 total games (18.4 MPG).
  • What are the pros and cons for each Eastern Conference contender to acquire James Harden? ESPN’s Insiders take a closer look at what each of those teams might have to surrender in order to trade for the former Most Valuable Player and whether Harden would be a good fit.
  • Which current players are the biggest icons for their franchise? Eric Koreen of The Athletic uses a numerical system to rank those players, with Stephen Curry of the Warriors coming out on top.
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Southeast Notes: Heat, Harden, Bradley, Richards, Anthony

January 6th, 2021 at 6:48pm CST by Luke Adams

When they were exploring a possible James Harden trade before the start of the season, the Heat were open to including “a couple” of their young players and their 2025 first-round pick in a package for the star guard, says Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. However, the Rockets‘ asking price was significantly higher.

According to Jackson, even if the Heat had offered Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson, Precious Achiuwa, KZ Okpala, and first-round picks in 2025 and 2027 (along with Andre Iguodala and Kelly Olynyk for salary-matching purposes), it’s not clear that would have been enough to satisfy the Rockets.

The Heat reportedly pulled out of Harden discussions on December 21. Jackson writes that team president Pat Riley thinks highly of Harden, but would only be willing to make a deal for the Rockets star at “a price that’s palatable to him and the organization.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

  • Avery Bradley‘s defense has been as strong as advertised, and he’s also making an impact on offense in his first season with the Heat, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Bradley’s play in the early going has impressed his teammates, as well as head coach Erik Spoelstra. “Avery is a guy that can play in any system,” Spoelstra said. “As long as it’s a contending team, he fits. He’s a really good basketball player. He’s a winner. And he’s a two-way player, a legit two-way player.”
  • Rookie Hornets center Nick Richards has been ruled inactive for today’s game against the Hawks due to the NBA’s COVID-19 protocols, the team announced (via Twitter). It’s not clear how long those protocols will keep Richards out of action, but it shouldn’t have an impact on Charlotte’s rotation, as he has logged just 11 total minutes so far this season.
  • The Magic have a spotty player development over the last decade, having set the franchise back years by failing to get the most out of the likes of Victor Oladipo, Tobias Harris, and others, according Josh Robbins of The Athletic, who examines how the team is looking to avoid repeating those failures with 2020 first-rounder Cole Anthony.
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Rockets Notes: Wood, Harden, McLemore, Martin, House, More

January 5th, 2021 at 3:48pm CST by Luke Adams

New Rockets center Christian Wood has been a revelation on offense in Houston so far, but in order to maximize his overall impact, he needs to become a more consistently reliable rim protector, as Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes.

“For us to be a great defense, it’s all about protection in the paint, protecting that rim,” Eric Gordon said on Monday. “If guards come down and they have to think about scoring over Christian Wood, that’s gonna help us.”

According to Iko, rebounding is also an area the Rockets will need to improve. When the team was playing micro-ball last season, its poor rebounding numbers were understandable, but those struggles have carried over to the early part of 2020/21, even with Wood and other big men now part of the rotation. Houston currently ranks 29th in rebounding percentage.

Here’s more on the Rockets:

  • While James Harden has made it clear that he wants to be traded out of Houston, he still has to prove what sort of sacrifices he’s willing to make if he wants to win a championship, writes Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated. Some executives who spoke to Beck were skeptical that the former MVP would readily change his playing style to help a new team. “James is like Allen Iverson: He wants to win his way and put up historical numbers while he’s winning,” one veteran Eastern Conference executive said. “I would never question their desire to win, but they all want to win on their terms.”
  • Ben McLemore and KJ Martin, who were self-isolating after reportedly testing positive for COVID-19, have returned to the team but are focusing on improving their conditioning and aren’t traveling to Indiana for Wednesday’s game, says Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Danuel House, who continues to be nagged by a sore back, also won’t be with the club for that game.
  • In a separate article for The Houston Chronicle, Feigen takes a look at the strong start Sterling Brown has enjoyed after signing with the Rockets as a free agent in November.
  • Kelly Iko and Tim Cato of The Athletic revisit Stephen Silas‘ days as an assistant coach with the Mavericks and explore how that position helped prepare him for his first head coaching job in Houston.
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Southeast Notes: Bonga, Dunn, Bogdanovic, Herro, Robinson

January 1st, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards forward Isaac Bonga got benched on Thursday after starting the first four games and coach Scott Brooks said it was simply a numbers game, Kevin Brown of NBC Sports Washington writes. With Rui Hachimura returning from an eye injury and reclaiming his usual spot in the lineup, Brooks had to choose between Bonga and Troy Brown as the backup. He chose Brown. “We’re trying to find minutes for Troy (Brown Jr.) and Bonga, and (Thursday) it was Troy, but who knows who it will be (Friday) night,” Brooks said.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

  • Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce said he had promising reports regarding guard Kris Dunn‘s arthroscopic right ankle surgery on Tuesday, according to Sarah Spencer of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Dunn is wearing a walking boot and will be re-evaluated in two weeks. The former Bull has yet to make his Atlanta debut. “It sounds as if everything went well, as well as the surgery can go, and he’s staying here at the hotel,” Pierce said. “But he’s post-op and laying low.”
  • Hawks free agent acquisition Bogdan Bogdanovic has averaged 15.3 PPG on 42.9% shooting from deep but Pierce says his value goes beyond perimeter shooting, Spencer writes in a separate story. “He hasn’t had any bad games,” Pierce said. “Bad games aren’t ‘make or miss.’ He’s taking those shots, I’ll live with them…. I trust his work. I’ve been praising the fact that he’s probably our hardest post-practice worker.”
  • Would the combination of Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson be enough to satisfy the Rockets in a potential deal with the Heat for James Harden? Not even close, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets. Houston wants “significantly more than that” for Harden, sources inform Jackson.
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Latest On James Harden

December 31st, 2020 at 9:07am CST by Luke Adams

In his latest look at the James Harden situation, Brian Windhorst of ESPN lists the Sixers, Nets, Heat, Celtics, and Raptors among the teams that have at least placed “courtesy calls” to the Rockets about the former MVP.

And while the Bucks reportedly don’t have interest in pursuing Harden, they did have an internal conversation about the possibility and ran it by Giannis Antetokounmpo before coming to that decision, Windhorst notes.

The Harden trade talk that dominated NBA headlines during the preseason has died down to some extent now that the season is underway and the 31-year-old is suiting up for the Rockets, but Windhorst believes it’s just a matter of time before a team convinces itself that Harden is the missing piece for a championship and pulls the trigger on a deal, like Toronto did for Kawhi Leonard in 2018.

Here’s more on Harden:

  • Although the Nuggets have been linked to Harden directly, they’re also interested in potentially getting involved in a multi-team trade involving the star guard even if they don’t end up with him, according to Windhorst.
  • Sam Amick of The Athletic wonders if the loss of scoring depth caused by Spencer Dinwiddie‘s ACL injury may motivate the Nets to push harder to acquire Harden. Of course, as we discussed earlier this week, Dinwiddie’s injury also diminishes the value of a player who likely would be part of any package the Nets offer.
  • Within that same Athletic article, Amick examines where things stand for the other teams linked to Harden, writing that the Sixers remain content to continue evaluating their current roster under Doc Rivers before making any major changes, while the Bucks don’t view Harden as a fit for their culture. Amick also evaluates the Heat, Nuggets, Trail Blazers, and Raptors, but doesn’t suggest that there’s traction on any front.
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Rockets Notes: Harden, Dinwiddie, Tucker, Silas

December 29th, 2020 at 9:51am CST by Luke Adams

Spencer Dinwiddie‘s partial ACL tear further reduces the odds of the Nets and Rockets working out a trade involving James Harden this season, in the view of Matt Young of The Houston Chronicle, who notes that Dinwiddie and his $11.5MM salary likely would’ve been a key part of any package Brooklyn could put together.

Dinwiddie’s injury doesn’t mean he can’t be traded, but it significantly diminishes his value, since he can reach free agency in 2021 and may not play another game on his current contract. Still, ESPN’s Zach Lowe suggested during his Monday episode of The Lowe Post that the Dinwiddie injury doesn’t really change the Nets’ and Rockets’ outlook for Harden, since the two teams had made no progress toward a deal anyway.

“Spencer Dinwiddie’s health did not make or break the Nets’ ability to get James Harden,” Lowe said, per RealGM. “It’s unclear to me, frankly, if those teams have had anything resembling a serious conversation about James Harden. Let’s make that clear. I don’t sense that there’s been hardly any traction there at all. And maybe the way the Nets started had them thinking ‘Why are we messing with this?'”

Here’s more on Harden and the Rockets:

  • Harden, who has averaged 39.0 PPG and 12.5 APG on .595/.500/.920 shooting in his first two games of the season, has provided the Rockets with a reminder of why it doesn’t make sense to trade him for “50 or 60 cents on the dollar,” writes Kelly Iko of The Athletic.
  • The Rockets will remain shorthanded on players until Wednesday and haven’t been able to conduct a full practice in about a week, but P.J. Tucker doesn’t think the team should view that as excuse for a slow start, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. “It’s our jobs to play basketball. This happens,” Tucker said. “Guys go down with injuries, guys go down for being sick, guys go down for family issues. You miss guys all the time. It just makes it next man up. It’s an opportunity to go out and play.”
  • Stephen Silas reportedly wasn’t Harden’s first choice when the Rockets were searching for a new head coach this offseason, and his hiring may have even contributed to the former MVP’s decision to request a trade. However, Harden likes what he has seen from Silas so far, as Mark Medina of USA Today writes. “He did a great job,” Harden said of his new coach after the team’s first game on Saturday. “Very confident, knew what he was drawing up and knew where to put his guys at.”
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Sixers’ Daryl Morey Fined By NBA For Tampering Violation

December 28th, 2020 at 1:13pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has fined Sixers president of basketball operations Daryl Morey $50K for a violation of the league’s anti-tampering rules, according to a press release.

As the league explained in its announcement, the fine is a response to a December 20 Twitter post about James Harden that Morey has since deleted.

As captured by Bleacher Report, Morey tweeted last Sunday about the one-year anniversary of Harden breaking the Rockets‘ franchise record for total assists. He shared an “On This Day” memory of a post from December 20, 2019 celebrating the achievement before removing it several minutes later.

Morey told the NBA that the tweet was an inadvertent post from an automated app, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). However, he’ll still be responsible for paying a $50K fine, a strong signal that the league isn’t letting anything slide when it comes to its efforts to crack down on tampering.

The fact that the Sixers are reportedly one of Harden’s preferred trade destinations likely played a part in the NBA’s decision.

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Southwest Notes: Harden, Pelicans, Powell, White

December 26th, 2020 at 7:40pm CST by Arthur Hill

Headlines about James Harden in recent weeks have been focused on trade possibilities, COVID-19 protocols, and high-profile partying, but the Rockets star insists he’s focused on the new season, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Houston will be the last team to start its season tonight after Wednesday’s scheduled opener was postponed because the Rockets didn’t have the NBA minimum of eight available players.

“We got a good opportunity,” Harden said. “Starting my 12th year in this league. I’m excited for it. … To get out here playing, never want to take playing basketball for granted. So, I’m excited for tonight’s game.”

The Rockets haven’t played a game since the preseason ended nine days ago and they haven’t practiced since Tuesday because so many players are sidelined for coronavirus-related reasons. Harden acknowledges the challenge of trying to compete with half a roster.

“We’re missing three players in our rotation that play heavy minutes for our team, that are big pieces for our team,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for guys to step up and play big minutes. We’ve been training for it. We’re ready for it.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • The Pelicans are just two games into their season and depth already looks like an issue, observes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. New coach Stan Van Gundy used his top seven players for 227 of the 240 minutes in Friday’s loss to Miami. “I haven’t given anybody a chance,” he admitted after the game. “That’s on me.”
  • Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle is excited to have center/power forward Dwight Powell available again after he underwent Achilles tendon surgery in January, tweets Dwain Price of Mavs.com. Powell played a combined 41 minutes in Dallas’ first two games. “I just know that for a 6’10” guy that went through that situation he’s done a remarkable job with rehab and all those kinds of things,” Carlisle said. “He’s an amazing guy.”
  • Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told reporters tonight that guard Derrick White is making progress with rehab work and “should return soon” after having offseason toe surgery, according to Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). White signed a four-year extension earlier this week.
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Nets Notes: Allen, Durant, Harden

December 26th, 2020 at 1:55pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Nets center Jarrett Allen didn’t receive a rookie scale contract extension prior to Monday’s deadline in part because of luxury tax concerns. However, head coach Steve Nash believes Allen will get rewarded handsomely down the line, according to Chris Milholen of NetsDaily. “He’s got a bright future,” Nash said. “He is going to have a big contract whenever the time is and we are just trying to figure out who we are as a team.” Brooklyn can make Allen a restricted free agent next summer by extending him a $5.66MM qualifying offer.

We have more on the Nets:

  • Kevin Durant has played like an All-Star in his first two games since returning from a ruptured Achilles tendon. It’s still too early to know the long-term impact of the injury, Alex Schiffer of The Athletic notes. Nash warns against any knee-jerk reactions. “He looks like Kevin, he plays like Kevin, but I don’t want to start making expectations of him until he gets going and gets some games and some rhythm under his belt and adapts to playing three in four nights and playing almost every other night for a stretch,” Nash said.
  • In the short run, Durant has been everything the franchise hoped when it signed him to a max deal, Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post writes. Durant had 29 points in 33 minutes against the Celtics on Christmas Day and the Nets can expect to have the best player on the floor most nights with him in the lineup.
  • Nash talks regularly with GM Sean Marks, but the subject of a potential James Harden deal hasn’t come up, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. The disgruntled Rockets star initially said he wanted to be traded to Brooklyn but subsequently expanded his wish list. “I haven’t had any conversations about him,” Nash said. “So, you know, we definitely work in close proximity. I haven’t any conversations or any alerts, so maybe that says it all.”
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Southwest Notes: Harden, Cauley-Stein, Richardson, Popovich

December 25th, 2020 at 8:50pm CST by Dana Gauruder

NBA commissioner Adam Silver explained during an ESPN appearance that Rockets star James Harden didn’t face a suspension for violating COVID-19 protocols because the NBA didn’t want to set that harsh a precedent to start the season, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Harden was fined $50K after an NBA investigation found that Harden violated protocols when he attended an indoor party of 15 or more people.

“The precedent is that discipline gets ratcheted up,” Silver said. “It’s Christmas. It was a first offense.”

Silver said, adding “in a way he got lucky.” If the Rockets’ first game had not been postponed, Harden would have been docked one game’s pay, Feigen adds. Harden is expected to make his season debut on Saturday.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

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