Jayson Tatum Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jayson Tatum Questions Super-Max Qualification Process

February 18th, 2022 at 10:05am CST by Luke Adams

When Jayson Tatum signed a maximum-salary rookie scale extension with the Celtics in 2020, the deal included a “Rose Rule” clause that allowed him to increase the potential overall value of the contract. Tatum’s starting salary on his extension in 2021/22 would be 30% of the cap if he made an All-NBA team in 2021, or 25% of the cap if he didn’t.

If Tatum had earned an All-NBA spot last season, his five-year contract would’ve been worth $195.6MM. However, he narrowly missed out, receiving the most votes of an player who didn’t make the cut (and more votes than one player who did, at another position). As a result, his five-year deal is worth $163MM.

Appearing on J.J. Redick’s The Old Man and The Three podcast (video clip), Tatum questioned the process that cost him more than $32MM, explaining that he became frustrated reading articles and listening to podcasts where media members made and explained their All-NBA selections.

“I specifically remember one (voter) saying, ‘I’m not a fan of his shot selection, so I just couldn’t put him on my All-NBA ballot,'” Tatum said. “And I was baffled. The fact that somebody could have thought and basically cost someone $30 million dollars… Forget about me, say the next rookie extension guys that come in. I think that has to change.

“Because there’s no criteria set for the voters on who should they vote for. It’s all opinion-based. There’s no, like, ‘He should have to play this many games’ or ‘They should be in the playoffs’ or ‘Average this many points.’ It’s all, ‘Well, I like this guy a little bit more’ or certain things like that, and I think there’s just a little too much on the line for that.”

The NBA’s Rose Rule allows players coming off their rookie scale contracts to qualify for a maximum salary worth 30% of the cap instead of 25%, while the Designated Veteran rule allows players with more years of NBA experience to qualify for a max worth 35% of the cap instead of 30%. These rules are what we refer to when we talk about a player qualifying for a “super-max” contract.

In each case, the player must make an All-NBA team (or win a Defensive Player of the Year award) in either the most recent season or in two of the three most recent seasons in order to be eligible for the higher maximum salary.

Tatum made the All-NBA team in his third NBA season in 2019/20, then signed his rookie scale extension prior to his fourth season. However, because his extension didn’t go into effect until his fifth year in the NBA, he needed to make an All-NBA team again in year four in order to qualify for the “super-max.” That didn’t happen.

In his conversation with Redick, Tatum acknowledged that having to “settle” for $163MM instead of $195.6MM shouldn’t earn him any sympathy and insisted he’s not upset specifically about that.

“I think the narrative was, ‘Jayson didn’t make All-NBA, he loses $30 million,'” Tatum said. “And from that headline, nobody’s going to feel bad for me. I still got $175 million, nobody’s going to feel bad, and I don’t want anybody to feel bad about the money part. My lifestyle hasn’t changed, it’s not about that.

“I think just as the results came out and I looked at how people voted, what went into the media members’ process of voting, that was the frustrating part.”

LeBron Chooses Giannis, Curry In All-Star Draft; Durant Picks Embiid, Morant

February 10th, 2022 at 7:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

After James Harden was traded away from the Nets on Thursday, former teammate Kevin Durant opted not to pick him in the All-Star draft conducted on Thursday night. Harden was the last player chosen by LeBron James for Team LeBron, as the league announced (via Twitter).

LeBron’s starters, besides himself, are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Jokic.

Durant, who won’t play in the All-Star Game at Cleveland due to his knee injury, chose Joel Embiid, Ja Morant, Jayson Tatum, Trae Young and Andrew Wiggins as Team Durant’s starters.

James selected Luka Doncic as his top reserve. His guard-heavy team also features Darius Garland, Chris Paul, Jimmy Butler, Donovan Mitchell, Fred VanVleet and Harden.

Team Durant’s bench includes Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Towns, Zach LaVine, Dejounte Murray, Khris Middleton, LaMelo Ball and Rudy Gobert.

Thus, numerous teammates will be on opposing clubs for the All-Star game, including the Jazz’s Gobert and Mitchell and the Suns’ Paul and Booker.

The game will be played February 20 in Cleveland.

LaMelo Ball, Dejounte Murray Named All-Star Replacements

February 7th, 2022 at 3:16pm CST by Luke Adams

Hornets guard LaMelo Ball will replace injured Nets forward Kevin Durant in the All-Star Game, while Spurs guard Dejounte Murray will take the place of injured Warriors forward Draymond Green, the NBA announced today in a press release. Commissioner Adam Silver named Ball and Murray as replacement players.

Previous reported had indicated that Durant (MCL sprain) and Green (back/disc) would miss the All-Star Game in Cleveland on February 20 due to their respective injuries, so it comes as no surprise that a pair of replacements have been added to the 12-man rosters for the event. There’s no indication at this point that any other All-Stars will have to miss the game, though that could change in the next couple weeks.

Ball has averaged 19.6 PPG, 7.5 APG, and 7.1 RPG in 47 games (32.1 MPG) this season for the Hornets. He beat out a handful of worthy candidates – including teammate Miles Bridges, Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, Bucks guard Jrue Holiday, Celtics wing Jaylen Brown, Pacers center Domantas Sabonis, and Raptors forward Pascal Siakam – to be named Durant’s replacement.

Like Ball, Murray has filled up the box score this season in a breakout season in San Antonio. He has put up 19.6 PPG, 9.2 APG, and 8.4 RPG with a league-leading 2.1 SPG in 47 games (34.4 MPG). Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, Lakers big man Anthony Davis, and Suns forward Mikal Bridges were among the other candidates to be named Green’s replacement.

Since Durant was a starter, Celtics forward Jayson Tatum has been moved into the starting lineup, per the league. Tatum was the next-highest vote-getter among Eastern Conference frontcourt players.

Durant is still one of the two All-Star captains, along with LeBron James, and will be responsible for drafting his All-Star roster.

Garland, VanVleet Make All-Star Team For First Time

February 3rd, 2022 at 6:43pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cavaliers guard Darius Garland and Raptors guard Fred VanVleet were chosen for the All-Star Game for the first time in their respective careers. They were named, along with a handful of other players, to the Eastern Conference All-Star reserve pool on Thursday, per the NBA (Twitter link).

Garland is averaging 19.8 PPG and 8.2 APG for the surprising Cavaliers. VanVleet has posted averages of 21.5 PPG and 7.0 APG this season.

The list of Eastern Conference reserves also includes the Nets’ James Harden, the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum, the Bulls’ Zach LaVine, the Bucks’ Khris Middleton and the Heat‘s Jimmy Butler. The reserves were chosen by the league’s coaches.

Garland will be playing in front of his home fans in Cleveland on February 20.

The pool of Eastern Conference starters was announced a week ago. Sixers center Joel Embiid, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Nets forward Kevin Durant are the frontcourt starters, while the backcourt players in the starter pool are DeMar DeRozan (Bulls) and Trae Young (Hawks).

Atlantic Notes: Tatum, Raptors, Barnes, Robinson

January 22nd, 2022 at 10:35am CST by Dana Gauruder

Jayson Tatum is exasperated by his shooting slump and the Celtics are suffering along with him, Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes. In the first year of a five-year, $163MM extension, Tatum has missed his last 20 three-point attempts. His last miss contributed to a late collapse against Portland on Friday.

“It hurts,” he said. “It bothers you, as it should. But you can’t go back in time. It’s just get back in the gym, watch some film, learn from your mistakes, and try to improve on them.”

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Raptors intend to be buyers on the trade market, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. Ideally, they’d like to add a player, or players, that fit their short- and long-term plans without breaking up their core. Otherwise, they’d be willing to trade future assets, such as first- or second-round picks, to address immediate needs and improve their prospects for this season.
The Raptors want rookie Scottie Barnes to be more assertive on the offensive end, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star writes. He did that on Friday, scoring a season-high 27 points. “I just think that Scottie’s a good player who can score, I think he needs to just make sure he stays in that mindset of being aggressive,” coach Nick Nurse said. “I’m just trying to get him to be ultra-aggressive. That’s it. I don’t want him to have those lulls where he’s not looking to score or not touching the ball or finding the ball.”
The Knicks have lost three straight but coach Tom Thibodeau sees growth from center Mitchell Robinson, who had 17 points and 15 rebounds against New Orleans on Thursday, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Robinson will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. “I think he’s become very effective with dribble-handoffs,” the Knicks coach said. “I love the way he’s finishing. And then putting the pressure on the rim, that’s always been a gift. And you throw it near the rim, he’s got great hands. He’s going to get it and finish. You just continue to grow.”

Atlantic Notes: Irving, Brown, Tatum, Walker, Reddish

January 17th, 2022 at 6:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kevin Durant‘s knee injury, which is expected to keep him out four-to-six weeks, won’t change Kyrie Irving‘s mind about receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, Adam Zagoria of Forbes.com writes.

“Kev’s gonna heal, Kev’s gonna be OK,” Irving said on Monday after the Nets lost in Cleveland. “And we’re going to have to deal with that as his teammates, but in terms of where I am with my life outside of this, I stay rooted in my decision and that’s just what it is.”

Irving will continue to be limited to road games unless he gets vaccinated. He suggests that will remain the case the rest of the way.

“I’ve made my decision and I’m standing by it…I stay rooted in what I believe in,” Irving said.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

The Celtics will approach the trade deadline with the intent of building around their two best players, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (video link). He said Marcus Smart, Dennis Schröder and some young players are available and Boston would like to find another play-maker or wing player. “(The Celtics’ approach) is to build around Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, not to break those two up,” Wojnarowski said. “The hard part for Boston is what are the other tradeable assets they want to move on from? They don’t want to trade Robert Williams, their young center. That’s a player they see at the center of what they’re doing moving forward.”
Kemba Walker missed his ninth straight game Monday due to a sore knee. Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau doesn’t want him back until Walker is confident he can play on a regular basis. “The big thing regarding Kemba is I want him to feel as good as possible and a player like him in the situation he is in, I want him to trust where he is with his body,’ Thibodeau said. “When he’s ready, he’s ready. He’ll let us know. We trust him. What I don’t want [is] to get into a situation where it’s on-off, on-off.”
Cam Reddish has yet to make his Knicks debut due to a sprained ankle, but the newly-acquired forward believes he can blossom in New York, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. “I feel like I can be a star,” Reddish said. “I feel like I could be a legit star. That’s what I’m working to be. It’s pretty simple.”

Celtics Notes: Tatum, Brown, Nesmith, Hernangomez

January 11th, 2022 at 12:52pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jaylen Brown said over the weekend that he wants to continue playing alongside Jayson Tatum with the Celtics, and now Tatum has echoed those sentiments, writes Souichi Terada of MassLive. Brown and Tatum are among the best young duos in the league, combining to score 49.7 PPG over the first half of the season. However, Boston’s record is around .500 for the second straight year and there’s been some outcry from fans and the media to trade one of them.

“We both want to be here and both want to figure it out,” Tatum said. “There’s not many players in the league like JB. The grass ain’t always greener and we’ve had some great stretches. And I think this year hasn’t been what we expected, but I think in the long run it will be good for us.”

Tatum said he talked with Brown about their fit together after the Celtics let a big lead get away in a loss to the Knicks last week. Losing big leads has been a recurring problem in Boston, and Tatum admitted that the players are still adjusting in their first season under coach Ime Udoka.

“We have to figure some things, but I think the most important thing is we both want it extremely bad,” Tatum said. “We want to try to figure it out together. So for us, it’s just being on the same page I think is extremely important, just knowing that we have each other’s back and we are going to give it all we got to try to figure this out.”

There’s more from Boston:

The Celtics should concentrate on building around their two stars, rather than trying to split them up, Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated states in a mailbag column. Mannix doesn’t see any players currently on the trade market who would represent equal value for either Brown or Tatum.
Aaron Nesmith welcomed his trip to the G League after being out of action for so long, per Taylor Snow of NBA.com. The second-year small forward spent time in the health and safety protocols, and his only appearance since December 22 was six minutes in Saturday’s game. “It’s just fun to be able to play the game of basketball no matter where it is,” Nesmith said after returning from the G League assignment. “Just being able to go out there and play freely and just kind of get back into a rhythm a little bit, it’s always fun and always a good experience.”
Juancho Hernangomez will be an offseason target for Real Madrid, according to Antigoni Zachari of EuroHoops. His $6.6MM contract for next season is non-guaranteed until June 30, so he’s a candidate to be cut before then.

And-Ones: Exum, Thomas, Doncic, Tatum, Yabusele

January 10th, 2022 at 8:11pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former NBA guard Dante Exum plans to return to the NBA when his three-month contract with Barcelona expires, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Exum is averaging just 4.4 PPG in the EuroLeague after signing with the Spanish team early last month.

Exum was waived by the Rockets during training camp. He signed a three-year deal with Houston in September but the contract was non-guaranteed and Houston had 15 other players with guaranteed deals.

We have more from around the basketball world:

Khyri Thomas has officially signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv, according to a team press release. A report surfaced over the weekend that Maccabi was interested in the former NBA guard. Thomas, a 2018 second-round pick, played in Spain last month before suffering an injury. He saw action in five games with Houston last season and came off the bench in 34 games for Detroit during the previous two seasons.
Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum remain the two players under 25 years old that NBA talent evaluators would want to build their teams around, according to an annual poll conducted by Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype. Ja Morant, LaMelo Ball and Trae Young round out the top five.
Guerschon Yabusele has agreed to a contract extension with Real Madrid, according to a team press release. The three-year extension runs through June 2025. Yabusele, a first-round pick by the Celtics in 2016, last appeared in the NBA during the 2018/19 season when he saw action in 41 games for Boston.

Charania’s Latest: Collins, Simmons, Celtics, Pacers, Wall, Cavs

January 10th, 2022 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

Hawks big man John Collins has grown increasingly frustrated with his role in Atlanta, multiple sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic. Although Collins signed a five-year, $125MM contract with the team in the offseason, his usage rate and scoring average (17.5 PPG) are the lowest they’ve been since he was a rookie in 2017/18.

According to Charania, Collins has challenged his Hawks teammates in the locker room multiple times this season, encouraging them to play team basketball. He has “felt his voice go unheard,” Charania adds.

Although Charania doesn’t explicitly state that Collins is a candidate to be traded before this year’s deadline, he notes that the Hawks are a team to watch in the Ben Simmons sweepstakes, echoing a Friday report from Marc Stein. If Atlanta is willing to make Collins available, it would certainly increase the number of trade possibilities open to the team.

Here’s more from Charania:

Besides Atlanta, the Kings, Trail Blazers, Timberwolves, and Pacers are among the clubs still in the mix for Simmons, according to Charania, who says the Sixers don’t appear any closer to moving the Defensive Player of the Year runner-up than they were prior to the season. Philadelphia hasn’t been fining Simmons, since he has been participating in training sessions and team meetings and continues to meet with mental health specialists, per Charania.
The Celtics have continued to convey to rival teams that they want to build around Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown rather than trading one of them, sources tell Charania.
The Pacers are having trade discussions about Myles Turner and Caris LeVert, with Turner drawing interest from the Mavericks, Knicks, Lakers, and Hornets, while the Cavaliers remain interested in LeVert, according to Charania. Rival executives tell The Athletic that Indiana values Domantas Sabonis very highly and seems less likely to move him.
Teams would be interested in Rockets guard John Wall if he reaches the open market, but a trade remains very unlikely and Houston still doesn’t appear to have interest in a buyout, Charania writes.
As the Cavaliers consider possible backcourt upgrades, building a deal around Ricky Rubio‘s expiring contract and draft assets is a possibility, says Charania.

Atlantic Notes: Brown, Udoka, Simmons Trade, Nets

January 9th, 2022 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

There has been speculation that the Celtics may need to break up the duo of Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, but Brown believes they can be successful together, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. After posting his first career triple-double in Saturday’s win over the Knicks, Brown addressed the sentiment that Boston should trade one of its stars.

“I think we can play together,” he said. “We have played together well for the majority of our career and things like that. The last year or so hasn’t gone as expected, but I think a lot of the adversity that we’re kind of going through now is going to help us grow and get better in the future.”

The Celtics have been successful when their top two scorers are on the court together, Bontemps notes, outscoring opponents by 4.6 points per 100 possessions. However, the team is in the midst of a second consecutive subpar season, tied for 10th in the East at 19-21.

“I know that people are tired of hearing that, but a lot of learning and growth is still taking place,” Brown said. “I’m getting better as a basketball player. Jayson’s getting better as a basketball player and trying to put our guys in position to make them look good. It’s tougher than it looks. So we just gotta continue to get better, make the right plays, trust ourselves, trust our teammates, trust our coaching staff, and let the chips fall where they may.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

First-year coach Ime Udoka questioned the Celtics‘ “mental toughness” after they squandered a 25-point lead in a loss to the Knicks on Thursday, Bontemps states in a separate story. It was the fourth time this season that Boston has lost after holding a lead of 19 points or more. “It’s a turnover here, a bad shot here, a missed defensive assignment here, and several missed rebounds tonight,” Udoka said. “So it’s a lot of different things. And then, like I said, a calming presence to slow it down and get us what we want is really what you need at that point. And sometimes we all get caught up in it.”
The Kings may be willing to give up De’Aaron Fox or Tyrese Haliburton to get Ben Simmons, but the Sixers‘ interest in either player is limited, according to Kyle Neubeck of The Philly Voice. Tyrese Maxey has solved Philadelphia’s need for a point guard, so any deal involving Fox would have to be a three-team trade, Neubeck states, and the Sixers don’t view Haliburton as a strong enough return for Simmons.
The Nets are searching for answers after dropping four of their last five games to fall out of first place in the East, per Brian Lewis of The New York Post. “There’s a few common threads,” coach Steve Nash said. “We’re not into the ball. We’re not combative enough to start games. We’re not clean enough with our communication at the level of the ball. There’s not enough of a presence. We can do better in transition as well getting organized. It’s fundamental stuff that’s taken a dip since we all got back together. We can see it clearly. We have to work at it now. We have to take it to heart and we have to rebuild.”