Jeremy Lamb Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Notes: Lamb, Robinson, Boylen, Robinson

February 27th, 2020 at 5:32pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Pacers aren’t interested in re-signing swingman Lance Stephenson despite Jeremy Lamb‘s season-ending injury, according to Scott Agness of The Athletic. Stephenson is seeking to return to the league and would welcome a reunion, Agness adds. Aaron Holiday, Justin Holiday, Edmond Sumner and Doug McDermott could all see additional playing time to make up for Lamb’s absence.

We have more from around the Eastern Conference:

Glenn Robinson III isn’t quite sure why the Sixers wanted him, as he told Spencer Davies of Basketball Insiders. Robinson was acquired from the Warriors in a deadline deal. “When you come here and your role’s not really explained or you don’t know what’s going on with the trade — it’s not like it was a trade where you come in and immediately have an impact,” Robinson said. “It’s a little different, so… this team is full of wings, full of guys who can play. So really, I don’t really understand it.” Robinson has an expiring contract after signing for the veteran’s minimum with Golden State last summer.
Jim Boylen’s chances of remaining head coach of the Bulls beyond this season rest upon whom the front office hires, as K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports explains. The Bulls plan to restructure the front office and there will be at least one new prominent hire in basketball operations, Johnson continues. While it’s unknown whether the newcomer would determine Boylen’s future, the ability to make that decision would likely be a priority for most attractive candidates, Johnson adds.
Shooting guard Jerome Robinson hit a big 3-point shot for the Wizards against the Nets this week as he continues to take advantage of his opportunities, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes. Acquired in a three-team deadline deal from the Clippers, Robinson is averaging 5.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 1.3 APG in 17.6 MPG in seven games with Washington. Robinson, the 13th pick of the 2018 draft, has a $3.7MM guaranteed salary for next season with a $5.3MM team option for the 2021/22 campaign.

Jeremy Lamb Out For Season With Torn ACL, Meniscus

February 24th, 2020 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Pacers wing Jeremy Lamb, who left Sunday’s game in Toronto with a knee injury, has been diagnosed with a torn left ACL, a torn meniscus, and a lateral femoral condylar fracture, the team announced today in a press release. Lamb will undergo surgery and will miss the rest of the 2019/20 season.

The injury occurred when Lamb went up for a dunk attempt in the second quarter. Raptors guard Terence Davis met him at the rim in an attempt to block the shot and Lamb landed awkwardly on his left leg. After the game, he referred to the play as a “freak accident” (Twitter link via Scott Agness of The Athletic).

The diagnosis is a devastating blow for the Pacers and for Lamb, who had been playing a key role for the team in his first season in Indiana. In 46 games (42 starts), the 27-year-old averaged 12.5 PPG and 4.3 RPG with a .451/.335/.836 shooting line in 28.1 minutes per contest.

The Pacers do have Victor Oladipo back in their lineup now, and Oladipo figures to play many of the minutes that belonged to Lamb during the first half of the season. Justin Holiday, Aaron Holiday, T.J. McConnell, and even Edmond Sumner are among the other players who could be relied upon more heavily with Lamb no longer an option.

Given the serious nature of Lamb’s injury, he’s unlikely to be ready for the start of the 2020/21 season. Although the Pacers haven’t offered a recovery timeline beyond ruling him out for this season, they’ll likely play it safe with the veteran swingman, who is under contract with the team through 2021/22. I’d be surprised if we see him back in Indiana’s lineup before 2021.

The Pacers aren’t eligible to apply for a disabled player exception to replace Lamb this season, since the deadline to apply for a DPE was January 15.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pacers Notes: Oladipo, Lamb, McConnell, George

January 25th, 2020 at 7:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Pacers‘ G League affiliate played an important role in preparing Victor Oladipo for his expected season debut, writes Scott Agness of The Athletic. Oladipo has made eight trips to Fort Wayne over the past two months to practice with the Mad Ants as he comes back from a ruptured right quad tendon. With the Pacers on a road trip, the G League team visited their practice facility this week to work with Oladipo.

“Anytime that an All-Star like Vic wants to play and practice with your guys, you’re going to let him,” Mad Ants coach Steve Gansey said. “Our Mad Ant guys are going to be watching him, and they’re going to look at every move that he does. Vic has been talking to a lot of our guys and trying to help them and give them pointers, both offensively and defensively and off the court. It’s been great for our guys just as much as Vic needs it.”

Gansey has been in frequent contact with Pacers coach Nate McMillan, providing updates on Oladipo’s progress. The latest step has been getting him used to traps as he brings the ball up court.

“This was the best I’ve seen Vic since we’ve had him in practice,” Gansey said of the time in Indianapolis. “We had three straight days where you just saw a different athleticism out there that you can really tell that he’s coming back here pretty soon and really pushing himself.”

There’s more Pacers news to pass along:

Jeremy Lamb has been starting in Oladipo’s place, but McMillan won’t hesitate to pull him on a bad shooting night, observers J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star. Lamb, who has been mired in a shooting slump, sat out the entire fourth quarter of a comeback win in Denver this week. “I went scoreless. That hasn’t happened in a while,” Lamb said. “It still feels the same, score or not score. When you lose, you got to figure out how to just find ways to get better. Last game I had zero points but we won. It’s a lot easier to deal with that.”
T.J. McConnell has taken over the starting point guard duties while Malcolm Brogdon is sidelined with a concussion, Michael notes in a separate story. The former Sixer has been a valuable addition for Indiana after signing a two-year deal over the summer. Only the first season is guaranteed, but Michael states that the second one is considered a lock to be picked up.
In an interview with Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype, president of basketball operations Kevin Pritchard and general manager Chad Buchanan talk about what they look for in a player, the challenges that face a small-market team and the difficulty of trading Paul George in 2017. “We really thought that there was going to be 29 teams throwing the kitchen sink at us,” Pritchard said. “But at the end of the day, the number of teams that were after Paul was very small. I think there were just two offers that were real offers.”

Central Notes: Brogdon, Lamb, Satoransky, Gafford

November 7th, 2019 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to Ben Golliver of The Washington Post, Bucks general manager Jon Horst said that he was “pained” by the loss of Malcolm Brogdon this summer. However, Horst insisted that Milwaukee wasn’t forced into doing anything it didn’t want to do with Brogdon, who was a restricted free agent and could’ve been retained rather than sent to the Pacers in a sign-and-trade.

“I don’t feel like we were forced to do anything that we didn’t want to,” Horst said. “We made a trade with Tony Snell that freed us up to match any offers. We have an ownership group that has allowed us to do whatever we need to do [financially]. The decision on Malcolm really came down to what we thought we could get in return. Do we want to pay for what we think his market could be or do we want to see if we could get something that helps us now and going forward?”

On the surface, the Bucks’ decision not to bring back Brogdon does look financially motivated, as the team almost certainly would’ve ended up in luxury-tax territory if it re-signed the RFA guard. Whether or not that was the case, Horst views the trade with the Pacers – which netted multiple draft picks, including a first-rounder – as one that could end up being a win-win deal.

“I don’t think it’s said enough in the NBA that it’s possible for both parties to win,” Horst said. “It’s possible that we could be a better team without Malcolm. It’s possible that he could be a better player in Indiana. It’s possible that we could both do a great trade. Early on, it looks like that.”

Here’s more from around the Central:

While Brogdon has been the Pacers‘ most productive offseason addition so far, Jeremy Lamb hasn’t been too far behind. J. Michael of The Indianapolis Star explores how the team has benefited from signing Lamb, who has provided scoring, ball-handling, and length.
The Bulls had their best game of the season on Wednesday as they blew out Atlanta in a performance keyed by Tomas Satoransky, who recorded 27 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds. Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago examines Satoransky’s work on both sides of the ball to show how the veteran guard is proving his value to his new team.
Second-round rookie Daniel Gafford is anxiously awaiting the opportunity to play regular minutes for the Bulls, as Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times writes. “I’m always at the end of the bench, trying to be the loudest at the end of the bench,” said Gafford, who has logged just six total minutes so far. “I’m always trying to bring energy to the floor for the guys that are out there playing. At the same time, it’s eating me up inside. I just want to be out there to try to do whatever I can to help the team get a win.”

Central Notes: Oladipo, Anthony, Young, Blatt

August 19th, 2019 at 8:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Victor Oladipo is sure the Pacers will make the playoffs due to the additions of Malcolm Brogdon, T.J. Warren and Jeremy Lamb, among others, as he told J. Michael of the Indianapolis Star.

“I feel like we got some great additions. We got a chance to be really special. I feel like the league is wide open,” the Pacers’ guard said. “I was excited for the opportunity to play with (Brogdon). I know what type of player he is, the level that he plays on and has been playing on the last couple of years from Milwaukee. To have him as an addition is pretty big for us.”

Oladipo is working his way back from a quad injury and it’s uncertain whether he’ll be ready by the time the Pacers open training camp. “I’m not sure yet,” he told Mark Monteith of the team’s website.

We have more from the Central Division:

Adding free agent Carmelo Anthony to the mix never made any sense for the Pistons, as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press explains in his latest mailbag. Anthony’s game is predicated on isolation plays and that doesn’t fit the Pistons’ system. He’s also spent most of his time at power forward in recent seasons and the Pistons already signed Markieff Morris, a better defender, to back up Blake Griffin. They also added another veteran forward, Michael Beasley, to compete for a roster spot, Ellis adds.
Thaddeus Young is a quality finisher and that will help boost the Bulls’ offense, according to Mark Strotman of NBC Sports Chicago. Young shot 67.9% from inside three feet for the Pacers last season, while Chicago ranked 28th in the NBA in field goal percentage inside five feet, making just 58% of its attempts, Strotman notes. Young jumped teams on a three-year, $41MM pact early in the free agent season.
Former Cavaliers coach David Blatt is battling multiple sclerosis but plans to continue coaching, according to an Associated Press report. He’s currently the coach of the Greek team Olympiacos Piraeus. “I am a coach and my job is to lead and teach and inspire a lot of people,” Blatt wrote in the statement. “Not being as agile or active doesn’t affect my ability to do those things.”

Pacers Add Malcolm Brogdon, Jeremy Lamb

June 30th, 2019 at 5:35pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 7: Both deals are now finalized, with the Pacers formally announcing the addition of Lamb today. The Brogdon sign-and-trade was confirmed on Saturday.

JUNE 30: The Pacers have reached a pair of deals to add two noteworthy free agents to their roster. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter), the team has struck an agreement to acquire Malcolm Brogdon and will sign Jeremy Lamb to a three-year, $31.5MM contract.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that the Pacers are signing Brogdon to a four-year, $85MM deal and will acquire him via sign-and-trade to ensure that the Bucks don’t match the offer. Milwaukee will receive a first-round pick and a pair of future second-rounders, per Woj. All four years of Brogdon’s deal are guaranteed, adds David Aldridge of The Athletic (via Twitter).

The additions of Brogdon and Lamb represent an interesting pivot for the Pacers, who had reportedly hoped to re-sign Bojan Bogdanovic, and appeared to be on track to add Ricky Rubio to replace departed point guards Darren Collison and Cory Joseph. Instead, Bogdanovic will head to the Jazz on a four-year deal, while Rubio agreed to sign a three-year contract with the Suns.

It’s probably not fair to characterize Brogdon and Lamb as fallback options though. Brogdon was viewed as one of this year’s top restricted free agents after recording 15.6 PPG, 4.5 RPG, and 3.2 APG with an impressive .505/.426/.928 shooting line in 2018/19. As for Lamb, he was Charlotte’s second-best scorer behind Kemba Walker, averaging 15.3 PPG and 5.5 RPG on .440/.348/.888 shooting for the Hornets.

The duo will join a backcourt that will feature a healthy Victor Oladipo at some point during the 2019/20 season (though likely not by opening night). The Pacers still project to have about $5MM in cap room after agreeing to their deals with Brogdon and Lamb, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

Gery Woelfel of Woelfel’s Press Box first reported (via Twitter) that the Bucks were working on a sign-and-trade involving Brogdon. Milwaukee reached deals to bring back Khris Middleton and Brook Lopez and is reportedly working on trying to bring back George Hill as well. Additionally, sending Brogdon to Indiana will generate a traded player exception for the Bucks, which will be worth half of Brogdon’s first-year salary.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rockets Eyeing Danny Green, Jeremy Lamb, Others

June 26th, 2019 at 8:43am CST by Luke Adams

While Jimmy Butler is the Rockets‘ “dream addition,” the team has its eye on a number of other potential targets in free agency, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic.

A source with knowledge of the Rockets’ plans tells Amick that Danny Green, Jeremy Lamb, Al-Farouq Aminu, DeAndre Jordan, Brook Lopez, and Kevon Looney are among the veteran free agents that have piqued the club’s interest.

General manager Daryl Morey has indicated that the Rockets would like to add a third star to complement James Harden and Chris Paul, whose supposedly “unsalvageable” relationship was referred to as “fake news” by P.J. Tucker within Amick’s story. Multiple reports have identified Butler as the team’s most likely target.

However, there are a number of roadblocks standing in the way of acquiring Butler — the Sixers would have to agree to a sign-and-trade, a third team would likely have to be involved due to Base Year Compensation rules, and Houston’s ability to fill out a roster around Harden, Paul, and Butler would be extremely limited due to a hard cap. And, of course, Butler would have to want to go to Houston badly enough to try to make it all work.

If the Rockets strike out on Butler, they’re more likely to simply operate as an over-the-cap team and make use of the mid-level exception to add another rotation player to their core. Depending on the club’s proximity to the tax apron, that mid-level could either be worth about $9.25MM (full) or $5.71MM (taxpayer).

That’s where the free agents listed above would come in to play, though even some of those guys – including Green, Lamb, and Lopez – may be out of reach with the mid-level (especially the taxpayer MLE) unless they’re willing to take a bit of a discount. All the players named by Amick will be unrestricted free agents this summer.

Hornets Notes: Luxury Tax, Kemba, Lamb, Rookies

June 21st, 2019 at 11:43am CST by Luke Adams

With more than $94MM in guaranteed salaries on their books for the 2019/20 season, without taking into account a potential maximum-salary contract ($32.7MM) for Kemba Walker, the Hornets look like a potential taxpayer for next year. However, speaking early Friday morning to reporters, including Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer, president of basketball operations Mitch Kupchak made it sound as if being in the tax isn’t an option for the franchise.

“I would not anticipate that is something we would look to do,” Kupchak said of paying the tax. “There are ways to increase (the distance from the luxury-tax threshold). It’s important we address that as soon as possible. Everybody needs to get on and plan.”

As Bonnell observes, there are multiple paths the Hornets could take to stay out of the tax. They have a handful of highly-paid veterans on expiring contracts, so waiving-and-stretching a player like Bismack Biyombo ($17MM) could be one option. The team could also try trading someone like Marvin Williams ($15MM).

Of course, not re-signing key free agents like Walker and Jeremy Lamb is also a possibility, though I expect the team to do all it can to retain Kemba. Lamb may receive an offer in the neighborhood of $12MM per year from another club, Bonnell writes.

Here’s more on the Hornets:

Re-signing Walker would have a domino effect on what the Hornets could do with the rest of their roster, Kupchak acknowledged (via Bonnell): “You’re talking about a substantial contract that goes out many years. When that happens, it creates some financial inflexibility that you have to deal with We have to be mindful of a Kemba contract, should we be lucky enough to re-sign him. There could be limitations (on other roster moves), absolutely.”
Kupchak recently indicated that the Hornets are probably unlikely to use their $7.8MM trade exception from last summer’s Dwight Howard trade due to tax concerns, tweets Bonnell. That exception expires on July 6.
The Hornets plan on having all three of the rookies they drafted on Thursday – PJ Washington, Cody Martin, and Jalen McDaniels – spend time in the G League in 2019/20, Kupchak said (per Bonnell).
In a column for The Charlotte Observer, Bonnell explores how much added pressure the Lakers’ trade for Anthony Davis and interest in Kemba Walker will put on the Hornets.

Jazz Notes: Workouts, Reed, G League, Free Agency

June 7th, 2019 at 5:17pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz will hold two workout sessions for draft prospects on Saturday, Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. The first group will include guards Frankie Ferrari (San Francisco), Makai Mason (Baylor), wings Rayjon Tucker (Arkansas Little-Rock) and Vic Law (Northwestern) and big men Darel Poirier (France) and Kenny Wooten (Oregon).

The afternoon session will include guards Jeremiah Martin (Memphis) and Jordan Bone (Tennessee), wings Charlie Brown (St. Joseph) and Paul Eboua (Cameroon) and big men Luka Samanic (Croatia) and Daniel Gafford (Arkansas).

Utah possesses the No. 23 and 53 picks in this year’s draft.

We have more on the Jazz:

Center Willie Reed, who played for the team’s G League franchise in Salt Lake City last season, was among 30 free agent invitees to participate in the team’s annual mini-camp this week, Eric Woodyard of the Deseret News reports. Reed averaged 20.1 PPG and 11.2 RPG before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury in January. Reed, 29, has played for four other franchises and appeared in 152 NBA games.
Farmington City is lobbying the Jazz to relocate its G League team to Station Park once the Stars’ lease with Salt Lake Community College expires, Patrick Carr of the Standard-Examiner reports. The construction of a 5,000-seat, multi-use arena is part of the pitch, Carr adds.
Darren Collison, Patrick Beverley, Danny Green, Jeremy Lamb and Reggie Bullock are some of the middle-tier free agents the Jazz might pursue, Walden writes.
The Jazz brought in six guard/wing prospects on Tuesday, the team’s PR department tweets. That group included Terence Davis (Ole Miss), Aubrey Dawkins (UCF), Robert Franks (Washington State), Ahmed Hill (Virginia Tech), Eric Paschall (Villanova) and Jordan Varnado (Troy).

Hornets Notes: Batum, Walker, Offseason Plans

April 19th, 2019 at 6:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Hornets coach James Borrego isn’t sure how Nicolas Batum fits into his plans for next season, Borrego admits to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Batum was placed in a variety of roles but had another disappointing season and was briefly benched by Borrego. The team’s highest-paid player has two years and $52.5MM remaining on his contract, making him virtually untradeable unless Charlotte sweetens the pot with a first-round pick or young player. Bonnell suggests making Batum a utility player where he sees minutes at shooting guard, small forward and power forward.

We have more on the Hornets:

Unrestricted free agent Kemba Walker was unhappy that an attempt to acquire veteran center Marc Gasol from Memphis before the February trade deadline fell through, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (hat tip to NBC Sports’ Dan Feldman). The outline of the proposed deal would have sent out center Bismack Biyombo, forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and a protected first-round pick for Gasol. Memphis instead chose to make a deal with playoff-bound Toronto.
If Walker re-signs with the club, Jeremy Lamb will likely be a cap casualty, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks points out in his offseason preview. Getting a commitment from Walker would push Charlotte past the luxury tax threshold. Re-signing Lamb for a conservative estimate of $11MM in the first year would trigger an approximate $27.5MM in additional luxury tax penalties. The team also has to make some hard decisions on non-guaranteed contracts, including Tony Parker‘s deal. The Hornets are unlikely to give forward Frank Kaminsky a $4.5MM qualifying offer before the June 30 deadline, Marks adds.
Walker’s chances of returning are pegged at 30% by Bonnell in his player-by-player breakdown of the roster. Those odds will rise only if GM Mitch Kupchak can pull off a blockbuster deal before free agency to entice Walker to stay.