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Southeast Notes: Riley, Whiteside, M. Williams, Carter

November 10th, 2018 at 5:16pm CST by Arthur Hill

Heat president Pat Riley told his players just before the season started that he was pulling out of trade talks with the Timberwolves involving Jimmy Butler, according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Riley held a team meeting October 14 in which he acknowledged that negotiations had been going on and apologized to players whose names became public in trade rumors. That was just days after the teams nearly completed a deal that would have sent a package that included Josh Richardson and a protected first-round pick to Minnesota. However, Riley didn’t guarantee that negotiations with the Wolves wouldn’t resume.

Today’s trade that sent Butler to the Sixers eliminates that as a possibility. With about $130MM in salary, Miami is hovering above the $123.7MM luxury tax threshold and would face a $9.7MM tax payment if the team can’t trim $6.3MM by the end of the season. Riley said Thursday that the team isn’t currently active on the trade market, but tax concerns may change that before the February deadline.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

  • Heat center Hassan Whiteside, who has reportedly been on the trade block for several months, is “changing his mindset to be great,” teammate Bam Adebayo tells Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Whiteside posted his best game in a long time Wednesday with 29 points, 20 rebounds and nine blocked shots. “I think a lot of people had written me off,” Whiteside said. “That’s fine. I don’t need anybody’s justification. But I feel like if I do those things for myself, it’ll put me in the conversation of being an All-Star, being defensive player of the year.”
  • Marvin Williams says the players were thrilled this summer when they learned that Tony Parker was leaving the Spurs to join the Hornets as a free agent, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. Parker brought championship experience to Charlotte, having won four titles in San Antonio. “He’s so willing to teach everyone and he’s very patient with all of us,” Williams said. “He’s obviously been in certain situations that a lot of us haven’t been able to experience yet, so that knowledge and that wisdom really helps us.”
  • Williams believes the way the game has changed in recent years has helped the Hawks‘ Vince Carter stay productive at age 41, relays Brendan Marks of The Charlotte Observer. Carter still displays his vertical leap on occasion, but he has prolonged his career with a deadly jump shot. “As the league has evolved, he’s almost benefited from it because he still can guard multiple positions, and he can still really shoot the lights out,” Williams said.
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Latest On Jimmy Butler Trade To Philadelphia

November 10th, 2018 at 2:51pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves and Sixers agreed on Saturday to one of the biggest trades in recent years. Jimmy Butler is headed to Philadelphia, while Dario Saric and Robert Covington headline the package that Minnesota is receiving.

We have more news to pass along on this blockbuster:

  • Butler had shown an interest in Philadelphia long before Saturday. Butler scheduled a free agent meeting with the Sixers  in 2015, when they were still in the early stages of building a contender, before he re-signed with the Bulls, Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated tweets.
  • If Butler agrees to a max contract with Philadelphia, Markelle Fultz‘s long-term prospects with the organization would be in serious doubt, Zach Lowe of ESPN tweets. There are plenty of other questions regarding how Fultz fits with core group that Philadelphia has assembled and the team’s brass will closely monitor how all the personalities mesh, Lowe adds. The top 2017 pick is averaging just 8.9 PPG and 3.6 APG  in 24.3 MPG and will now have to compete with another All-Star for touches.
  • Minnesota avoided sending Butler to a Western Conference contender, one of the goals it set in trade talks involving the disgruntled swingman, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN notes (Twitter link). The Rockets had been mentioned prominently as a possible destination but even a package of four future first-round picks couldn’t entice the Timberwolves to send him to a conference rival. The Sixers became the most viable trade partner once the Heat pulled Josh Richardson out of trade discussions, Wojnarowski adds.
  • The Sixers were prepared to offer a similar package to the Spurs to acquire Kawhi Leonard this summer, Fischer reports in another tweet. Philadelphia was willing to give up Saric, Covington and a first-rounder to San Antonio before the Spurs opted to deal Leonard to the Raptors. The Spurs’ decision to decline the Sixers’ offer thus far seems like a wise move, considering Saric’s early shooting slump (30% from long range), Jabari Young of The Athletic tweets. Toronto’s package, with DeMar DeRozan as the centerpiece, has helped San Antonio get off to a 6-4 start despite a rash of injuries.
  • Buyout candidates will be even more intrigued to join the Sixers for the stretch run, Alex Kennedy of Hoops Hype tweets. Ersan Ilyasova and Marco Belinelli joined Philadelphia in that fashion last season, Kennedy adds, and the incentive for players seeking a ring to hop on Philadelphia’s bandwagon has dramatically increased.
  • The Timberwolves considered three offers from different teams before picking the Sixers’ package, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets.
  • Philadelphia will likely move J.J. Redick back into the starting lineup because his 3-point shooting will be needed on the first unit, Keith Smith of RealGM tweets.
  • The earliest that Butler could make his Sixers debut, once the trade is finalized, is Wednesday against the Magic, Wojnarowski adds in another tweet.
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Jimmy Butler Talks Trade Request, Minutes Restriction, Negativity

November 10th, 2018 at 9:00am CST by marksuleymanov

The Timberwolves are fresh off a 0-5 road trip, which dropped their season record to 4-9. The franchise seems to be in disarray as its top players are either struggling or embroiled in trade rumors. That starts and ends with Jimmy Butler.

Nearly two months since Butler’s trade request went public, he continues to suit up for a struggling Minnesota team that occupies 13th place in the Western Conference. Whether it’s the Heat, Clippers or Rockets, Butler has yet to be dealt despite the reported trade talks. At this juncture, he is a polarizing figure — playing when he wants and how he wants — for a struggling team.

In a wide-ranging, candid interview with Sam Amick of The Athletic (subscription required), Butler addressed the team’s recent struggles, his trade request,  reports of his personal minutes restrictions and more.

You can check out some of the interview’s highlights below.

On hating to lose:

“I absolutely hate, hate to f*****g lose, and the way that we go about things sometimes isn’t the right way, myself included, and a lot of other people as well. I just think that, man, whenever you win, everything takes care of itself. But we’ve got to figure out a way to do that, man. No matter what, all I want to do is win. I don’t care what anybody says, any media outlet, anybody says as a person, the one thing they can’t say is that I don’t want to win.”

On whether he’s focused on being traded:

“Like I said, I don’t focus on it. I really don’t. If it happens, if something happens, something happens. If it don’t, I’ve still got to go out there and prove that I can hang with the best of them. That’s what I do every time I take the floor. I dap somebody up, and it’s like, ‘Yo, let’s battle tonight.'”

On whether or not negative backlash impacts him:

“Hell no. For what? I know who I am. These guys know who I am. If you know me, then you know the truth. If you don’t, then you write something for people to read. That’s why I laugh at everything that somebody tells me, ‘Did you read this? Did you read that?’ No, I don’t read it. Why don’t I read it? I don’t even have the time to read it, but if I did I wouldn’t because if you didn’t talk to me to write something, you’re just making stuff up. You’re going by what you think, what you’re assuming. I leave it at that. Read it. Believe what you want. But at the end of the day, if you’ve got a real question then just come up and ask me and see who I am as a person.”

On if he agreed to play a certain amount of minutes:

“Once again, nobody talked to me about nothing. That’s just stuff that’s being written. I haven’t talked about minutes with nobody. I just go out there and I just play. I get lost in the game, and I want to win, and I don’t even realize that it turns into 41. I wouldn’t realize if it was 48 because I’m just out there and I’m competing.”

On his prior comments that he shouldn’t have to play excessive minutes:

“Yeah, we’ve got f*****g guys who can play. We’ve got to instill confidence in everybody. I think my confidence is high enough. I want all my guys to be successful, man. I want all these guys to play. Is that a convo (with Thibodeau) that I’ve got to have? Yeah, and then everybody wants to talk about how the m**********r’s not healthy [he said of himself]. Well G**damn, we’re playing 41, 43, 44 (minutes per game), it takes a toll on top of all the work that I do that don’t nobody even see. We’ll fix it. We’ll do something. We’ll talk.”

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Wolves Plan To Keep Occasionally Resting Butler

November 9th, 2018 at 1:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Jimmy Butler is expected to play for the Timberwolves tonight in Sacramento, but the team will continue to mix in occasional games of “scheduled rest” for the All-NBA swingman going forward as part of a jointly agreed-upon plan, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).

When Butler sat out last Wednesday’s game against Utah, reports indicated that it was related to his push for a trade. However, the Timberwolves cited “general soreness” and “precautionary rest” to explain his absence for that contest, as well as Sunday’s game in Portland, denying that had anything to do with his trade request.

Sources tell Stein (Twitter link) that the Timberwolves and Butler initially agreed to establish a “loose limit” of about 32 minutes per game coming into the season for the 29-year-old. With his minutes limited to some extent, Butler would get a chance to ease back in after missing training camp and the Wolves could minimize his injury risk as they sought a trade.

However, Butler has played at least 35 minutes in seven of his nine games so far, including 43 against the Lakers on Wednesday. With the competitive Butler and head coach Tom Thibodeau – who has historically given heavy minutes to his starters – apparently having trouble sticking to that initial plan, the rest games will provide the team another way to attempt to minimize Butler’s injury risk, Stein explains (Twitter link).

It’s not clear if the games Butler misses will follow any specific pattern. It’s safe to assume that back-to-backs are worth watching, but Minnesota will play on consecutive nights only once before December 30 — the Wolves visit Brooklyn on November 23 and host the Bulls on November 24.

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NBA Super-Max Candidates To Watch In 2018/19

November 9th, 2018 at 12:05pm CST by Luke Adams

The Designated Veteran Extension, as we explain our glossary entry on the subject, is a relatively new addition to the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. It allows players with 7-9 years of experience, who would normally qualify for a maximum starting salary of 30% of the cap, to qualify for a “super-max” contract that starts at 35% of the cap, a level normally reserved players with 10+ years of experience.

A player who has seven or eight years of NBA service with one or two years left on his contract becomes eligible for a Designated Veteran Extension if he meets the required performance criteria and hasn’t been traded since his first four years in the league. A Designated Veteran contract can also be signed by a player who is technically a free agent if he has eight or nine years of service and meets the required criteria.

The performance criteria is as follows (only one of the following must be true):

  • The player was named to an All-NBA team in the most recent season, or in two of the last three seasons.
  • The player was named the NBA MVP in any of the three most recent seasons.
  • The player was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in the most recent season, or in two of the last three seasons.

With those criteria in mind, it’s worth keeping an eye on several players who could qualify for a super-max veteran contract with their play this season. Let’s dive in and examine a few of those guys…

Players who already qualify for a super-max contract:

Davis can’t yet sign a Designated Veteran Extension, but his All-NBA appearances over the last two seasons have ensured that he’ll qualify, even if he somehow doesn’t earn another All-NBA nod in 2018/19.

As of next July, the Pelicans will be able to offer Davis a contract extension that tacks an additional five years onto his $27.09MM salary for 2019/20. Based on the NBA’s latest cap projection for 2020/21 ($118MM), that five-year extension would be worth a staggering $239.54MM.

Players who could qualify for a super-max contract by meeting the criteria in 2018/19:

Technically, any player who earns an All-NBA spot in 2018/19 and meets the contract criteria can qualify for a super-max, but the players listed above are probably the only legitimately viable candidates. And even in this group, guys like Beal and Drummond are a real stretch — if they were to improbably make an All-NBA team, their clubs still probably wouldn’t put Designated Veteran Extension offers on the table, since they’re not bona fide superstars.

Thompson and Walker will both be unrestricted free agents in 2019, so if they meet the DVE criteria, they’d be eligible for five-year contracts with their respective teams worth up to a projected $221.27MM. Lillard and Green are still under contract for at least one more year beyond this season, but they’d qualify for super-max extensions if they meet the criteria — Lillard could get an extra four years, while Green could get five.

A team can only give Designated Veteran Extensions to two players, so the Warriors wouldn’t be able to offer both Thompson and Green super-max contracts, since Stephen Curry already has one. On the plus side, Kevin Durant won’t figure into this equation for Golden State, since he has 10+ years of experience. A deal starting at 35% of the cap for Durant wouldn’t count toward the Dubs’ super-max limit.

Finally, while Antetokounmpo can qualify for a super-max by earning All-NBA honors this season, he wouldn’t actually be able to sign such a deal until 2020, since he’ll only have six years of experience at the end of the 2018/19 campaign. Essentially, he’d be in the same spot that Anthony Davis is in now.

Players who can no longer qualify for a super-max contract because they were traded:

Butler, Irving, and Leonard are probably more worthy of a super-max investment than most of the players in the above group, but they no longer qualify because they were traded while on their second contracts — Butler from the Bulls, Irving from the Cavaliers, and Leonard from the Spurs. They’ll need to reach 10 years of NBA experience before qualifying for a starting salary worth up to 35% of the cap.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Injury Updates: Powell, Butler, Muscala, White

November 7th, 2018 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

It sounds like Raptors swingman Norman Powell will be sidelined for an extended period, as Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets. Powell, who suffered a subluxation (partial dislocation) of his left shoulder in Monday’s win over Utah, currently has his arm in a sling and will undergo further tests once the team is back in Toronto.

In an official press release issued this afternoon, the Raptors didn’t offer a timeline for Powell’s recovery, announcing that he’ll be out indefinitely. However, head coach Nick Nurse told reporters today that the 25-year-old will likely be on the shelf for “weeks,” with ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggesting (via Twitter) that it could be four to six weeks.

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

  • Jimmy Butler, the subject of ongoing trade rumors and speculation, “should be a go” for the Timberwolves tonight against the Lakers, head coach Tom Thibodeau said today (Twitter link via ESPN’s Brian Windhorst). Butler has missed two of Minnesota’s last four games due to “general soreness” and “precautionary rest.”
  • The Sixers continue to have trouble getting all their new rotation players healthy at the same time. Wilson Chandler is back in action now, but Mike Muscala will miss at least the next week after breaking his nose in a practice on Tuesday, per the team (link via Chris Mannix of SI.com).
  • A trio of injured players are just about ready to make their 2018/19 debuts. Spurs point guard Derrick White will be available to play tonight (Twitter link via Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News), as will Kings wing Bogdan Bogdanovic (Twitter link via James Ham of NBC Sports California). Meanwhile, Nets forward DeMarre Carroll may play as soon as Friday in Denver (link via Brian Lewis of The New York Post).
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Charania’s Latest: Butler, Grizzlies, Dirk, Kemba

November 7th, 2018 at 11:56am CST by Luke Adams

No resolution appears imminent on the Jimmy Butler front, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports that the Timberwolves “never” showed any willingness to accept the Rockets‘ previously reported offer of Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss, and four first-round draft picks. Accepting a package that featured a pair of probable non-rotation players and a handful of picks with uncertain conditions was a “non-starter” for Tom Thibodeau, league sources tell Charania. Charania also reaffirms something we’ve heard within the last week or two, writing that there’s a belief around the NBA that the Heat and/or Sixers could re-engage the Timberwolves at some point on Butler.

Charania’s latest article for The Athletic includes several other noteworthy tidbits, so we’ll round up the highlights below…

  • The Grizzlies, who have an open spot on their 15-man roster, are prioritizing signing a veteran center to fill that opening, sources tell Charania.
  • Mavericks big man Dirk Nowitzki is hoping to make his 2018/19 debut in about three weeks, per Charania. Nowitzki continues to recover from ankle surgery.
  • Teams that asked about Kemba Walker during the offseason were told that the Hornets are committed to contending for the playoffs and view Walker as the face of their franchise, league sources tell Charania. Team owner Michael Jordan has a “strong desire” to re-sign Walker when he reaches free agency in 2019, Charania adds.
  • The Hawks have been reluctant to move Dewayne Dedmon to this point, according to Charania. However, with his free agency approaching in 2019, teams are expected to ask Atlanta about Dedmon’s availability leading up to this season’s trade deadline.
  • Before Kawhi Leonard was traded to Toronto in July, the Nuggets were “on the periphery” late into the Leonard sweepstakes, but opted to hang onto their young core, says Charania. That decision has paid off so far this season, with Denver off to a 9-1 start.
  • The NBA’s lone remaining restricted free agency, Patrick McCaw, remains in discussions with multiple teams, including the Warriors, Charania reports.
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Wolves Notes: Butler, Towns, Wiggins, Rose

November 7th, 2018 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers, who hosted the Timberwolves on Monday, were reportedly on Jimmy Butler‘s list of preferred destinations when he requested a trade in September, and the Lakers, who will face Minnesota tonight, have also been identified as a potential suitor for the 2019 free-agent-to-be. However, Butler was in no mood to answer questions about a possible future in Los Angeles this week, as Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com relays.

“No, I’m in Minnesota for the time being,” Butler said after Monday’s loss. “I’ll enjoy the sunshine for a couple days, and then if we go back there, we go back there.”

Butler also turned away inquiries on whether or not he’d even play in the game against the Lakers on Wednesday. The All-NBA swingman has only appeared in two of the Wolves’ last four contests, missing games against Utah and Portland due to what the team referred to as “general soreness” and “precautionary rest.” He’s listed as questionable for tonight.

Here’s more on Minnesota:

  • With Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau under fire for his handling of the Butler situation, Michael Rand of The Star Tribune revisits all of Thibodeau’s major personnel moves during his time in Minnesota, assigning each a grade. Karl-Anthony Towns‘ rookie scale extension received the highest marks of any transaction Thibodeau has overseen.
  • Speaking of Towns, Chris Herring of ESPN.com explored whether he and Andrew Wiggins are strong enough franchise cornerstones to make the Wolves a legit contender in the West once Butler departs.
  • Although he has started two of his last three outings for the Wolves, including last Wednesday’s 50-point game, Derrick Rose recently suggested that he’s aiming to win the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award this season, as Nick Fridell of ESPN.com writes. Rose, who has come off the bench in eight of his 10 games, is averaging 17.4 PPG, 4.6 APG, and 3.5 RPG.
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Atlantic Notes: Russell, Hayward, Sixers

November 4th, 2018 at 7:25pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

As the Nets continue developing their young players, Brian Lewis of The New York Post has identified a key development of the season so far in D’Angelo Russell‘s lack of crunch-time minutes.

As Lewis points out, Russell sat out the last 5:42 of regulation and the entire overtime in the Nets’ win over the Pistons, logged just 1:31 in the fourth quarter on Oct. 24 against the Cavaliers, and never got off the bench in the fourth quarter of the season opener. That is all in addition to Russell not seeing a single minute in the fourth quarter of the Nets’ loss to the Rockets on Friday.

It’s no secret that Russell struggles on defense, but it’s more of a result of the depth on the roster and coach Kenny Atkinson’s focus on riding the hot hands and playing lineups based on match-ups. In fact, every Nets starter other than Caris LeVert has sat an entire or essentially all of a fourth quarter this season.

The key might be for Atkinson to figure out a way to get Russell on the floor alongside Spencer Dinwiddie and LeVert, a trio that has not had success up until this point.

There are still plenty of opportunities left for Russell to make plays when it matters most, but this trend is one to keep an eye on as Russell approaches restricted free agency and the Nets look to make a marquee signing this summer.

There’s more from the Atlantic division:

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Jimmy Butler Doesn’t Believe He’s A Distraction

November 3rd, 2018 at 7:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jimmy Butler stressed team unity in an interview with Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports and said he doesn’t think he’s taking that away from the Timberwolves.

It has been more than six weeks since Butler issued his trade request, and he continues to pressure Minnesota’s front office to make a deal. There have been reports of unorthodox behavior since then, including challenging teammates and management at his first practice, but Butler insists that nothing has affected the bond in the locker room.

“They can write whatever they want, they can say whatever they want and I can address it the way that I want to,” he said after Friday’s loss at Golden State. “But at the end of the day, I go to war with my guys. Those are my guys. We’re out there trying to win. Nothing is going to come between us. I’m going to play the right way, do what I do, and they know that. They know that.”

The latest Butler-related incident was his decision to skip Wednesday’s game due to “general soreness and precautionary rest.” While it was viewed at first as another possible ploy to force the team into a trade, Butler was back on the court yesterday.

The Wolves have back-to-back road games tomorrow against the Trail Blazers and Monday against the Clippers, and Butler told Nick Friedell of ESPN that he hasn’t decided whether he will play in both.

“I let them know,” Butler said. “They don’t know how my body feels. So if I’m nicked up, then you can count on that. I don’t know. We’ll see how it goes. I don’t know what we plan on doing tomorrow. Obviously, I got to get some treatment along with a lot of other guys. But we’ll see whenever Sunday and Monday gets here.”

[UPDATE: Butler won’t play on Sunday]

Minnesota is continuing to listen to trade offers for Butler, with the Rockets and Heat considered to be the most aggressive and the Sixers and Lakers also believed to be in the running. Coach and president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau has reportedly been sending mixed messages to interested teams, leading some to believe that the Wolves haven’t gotten serious yet about completing a deal.

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