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Southwest Notes: Kidd, Gillespie, Valanciunas, Pelicans Vaccinations

October 23rd, 2021 at 9:27am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Mavericks’ Jason Kidd calls himself a “different coach” than the one who flamed out in Brooklyn and Milwaukee, Joe Vardon of The Athletic writes. Kidd says he’s more relaxed and a better communicator than he was in his previous stops. He also knows a big part of his current job is to get the best out of franchise player Luka Doncic.

“I think there’s trust and respect from Day 1, because I played that position,” Kidd said. “I am not as good as he is, but I can help him. My job is to help him. He’s 22 years old, he has been a pro for a long time, but again I am trying to make the game as easy as possible for him.”

We have more from the Southwest Division:

  • Former Raptors big man Freddie Gillespie is rejoining the Grizzlies’ G League team, Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweets. The Raptors waived Gillespie 10 days ago. Gillespie, who went undrafted out of Baylor in 2020, averaged a double-double (10.5 PPG, 10.3 RPG) with 2.3 BPG in 15 games (27.8 MPG) for the Memphis Hustle in the G League’s Orlando bubble.
  • Jonas Valanciunas got the maximum amount possible in his extension with the Pelicans and it also includes a trade kicker, Keith Smith of Spotrac tweets. He’ll receive $14.7MM next season and $15.435MM in 2023/24 with no options or incentives. The trade bonus is the lesser of $1MM or 15%.
  • A couple of the Pelicans are not fully vaccinated but that will change soon, Andrew Lopez of ESPN tweets. Coach Willie Green says every player has received at least one shot and they will be fully vaccinated in a week or two when two players receive their second dose.
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Southwest Notes: Morant, Zion, Valanciunas, Rockets

October 21st, 2021 at 11:13am CST by Luke Adams

Don’t count on Grizzlies guard Ja Morant joining the list of NBA stars who have become disgruntled with their circumstances and sought a way out, writes Joe Vardon of The Athletic. As Vardon details, Morant is thrilled with his situation in Memphis, and all signs point to him signing a long-term maximum-salary extension once he becomes eligible in the summer of 2022.

“I love everything about it,” Morant said of playing for the Grizzlies and living in Memphis. “I feel like this is my home, from the front office down, the fans, the community. Everybody brought me in and made me feel like family, and me and my family couldn’t ask for anything better.”

Morant – who advocated for the Grizzlies to extend Jaren Jackson Jr. this offseason, per Vardon – believes the Grizzlies already have enough talent to become a viable championship contender. And the young point guard is looking forward to competing for a title in Memphis rather than jumping ship to do so elsewhere.

“Me, I’m not a big fan on the leaving,” Morant said.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

  • Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report takes a deep dive into the Zion Williamson situation in New Orleans, noting that teams around the NBA will be keeping a close eye on the Pelicans‘ relationship with their star forward. Williamson’s weight and his reaction to potentially playing on a minutes limit when he returns from his foot injury will be worth monitoring, according to Fischer, who notes that the star forward “reached north of 300 pounds” during the offseason and bristled in his rookie year at playing in limited bursts following his return from a knee injury.
  • After signing a two-year contract extension with the Pelicans on Wednesday, center Jonas Valanciunas explained why he was willing to commit to the team before playing in a regular season game, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. “From a coaching standpoint, they understand me and what I do,” Valanciunas said. “My teammates, good teammates. They welcomed me. The organization was great talking to me and helping me out. They made it seem like I’ve been here a long time. I wanted to come back.”
  • Ahead of their regular season opener, the youthful Rockets were enthusiastic about embracing the challenge ahead, per Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Following a blowout loss in Minnesota on Wednesday, they have a better sense of what that challenge entails, Feigen writes. “It’s the NBA. It’s grown men,” rookie Jalen Green said of the physicality he experienced in his regular season debut. “I’m 19 years old. It’s not high school any more. It’s the real league, a man’s league.”
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Pelicans Sign Jonas Valanciunas To Two-Year Extension

October 20th, 2021 at 6:54pm CST by Luke Adams

6:54pm: The Pelicans have officially announced their new deal with Valanciunas, confirming the extension in a press release.

“We’re delighted to be able to continue our relationship with Jonas,” executive VP of basketball operations David Griffin said in a statement. “His deep desire to remain here and his connection to his team, his coaches and the organization represents everything we want to build towards.”

11:19am: The Pelicans and center Jonas Valanciunas have reached an agreement on an extension that will lock him up through the 2023/24 season, agents Aaron Mintz, Mitch Nathan and Drew Morrison of CAA tell Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link).

According to Lopez, Valanciunas’ two-year extension will be worth $30.1MM. The big man is under contract for $14MM in 2021/22, so he’s now on track to earn $44.1MM over the next three seasons. Because he had been on an expiring deal, Valanciunas was extension-eligible beyond the October 18 deadline that applied to certain other veterans.

Valanciunas averaged a double-double in each of his last two seasons in Memphis, establishing new career highs in 2020/21 with 17.1 PPG and 12.5 RPG in 62 games (28.3 MPG). The 29-year-old isn’t an elite rim protector and doesn’t shoot many three-pointers, but holds his own on defense and can knock down mid-range jumpers.

The Grizzlies dealt Valanciunas to New Orleans in an offseason trade that sent Eric Bledsoe and Steven Adams to Memphis. Having recently acquired Valanciunas, the Pelicans faced extend-and-trade limits in their contract negotiations, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. They couldn’t offer the former No. 5 overall pick more than a 5% raise on this year’s $14MM salary and couldn’t tack more than two years onto his expiring contract.

Those limits would’ve lifted by the end of the year, but Valanciunas opted for security now rather than waiting to see if he could get a more lucrative deal later in the season or as a free agent in 2022.

This is the second consecutive year in which the Pelicans have traded for a veteran center and then signed him to an extension before seeing him take the court alongside star forward Zion Williamson. The organization will be hoping its commitment to Valanciunas works out better than last year’s deal with Adams did.

As Marks observes (via Twitter), Tomas Satoransky is now the only Pelicans (besides two-way players) who isn’t under contract through at least the 2022/23 season.

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Pelicans Notes: Hayes, Alexander-Walker, Valanciunas, Rotation Battles

October 8th, 2021 at 8:33pm CST by Rory Maher

Pelicans coach Willie Green seems to envision an expanded role for third-year center Jaxson Hayes.

“I think Jaxson is going to be huge for us this season,” Green said, according to Christian Clark of NOLA.com.

Hayes has been in and out of the Pelicans’ rotation the past two seasons, showcasing rare athleticism for a big man, but questionable decision making. Clark notes that Hayes added muscle over the offseason, bulking up to 235 pounds from his listed weight of 220 last season. He’s also been working on his jump shot, and Clark says teammate Nickeil Alexander-Walker has taken notice.

“It’s amazing how fast he is and how fast he gets up and down the floor,” Alexander-Walker said of Hayes. “Athletic. Shooting the ball really well. Added that to his game.”

Clark adds that in an effort to put his legal troubles behind him, Hayes has been spending more time with family. His father, Jonathan, an ex-NFL player and coach, has temporarily moved in with Jaxson to provide stability and guidance.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

  • Alexander-Walker has matured his game in multiple ways this offseason, writes William Guillory of The Athletic in an excellent interview feature. Alexander-Walker says he’s changed his mental approach to cope with the ups and downs of life in the NBA: “You have to take everything and break it down. You’ve got to take it day-by-day. I got in trouble when I was trying to fast-forward my way through the process. It’s easy to get caught in that tornado, and you don’t know where it’s going to take you. But I had to learn about staying in the moment. Not getting caught up in anything that’s not about where are we right now. Beating yourself up over a bad shooting night isn’t how you get better. It’s about staying consistent in your process regardless of what comes at you.“
  • Likely starting center Jonas Valanciunas has looked engaged thus far in the preseason, Clark writes in another piece. Clark notes the Pelicans lacked a mean streak and veteran leadership last season, and believes Valanciunas could help fill that void.
  • Guillory explored the team’s depth chart battles in another recent article. He believes that a supersized starting lineup of Alexander-Walker, Trey Murphy, Brandon Ingram, Zion Williamson, and Valanciunas could be the team’s best bet for a combination of offense and defense, but thinks that offseason addition Devonte’ Graham will ultimately start alongside Alexander-Walker. He also thinks that Kira Lewis should have the upper hand over Tomas Satoransky for backup point guard duty, although admits that it could change from game to game. Hayes suffered a sprained ankle on Monday, according to Guillory, who believes that if Hayes is unavailable for the regular season opener, rookie Herb Jones will act as backup center due to his strong defensive play.
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Pelicans Notes: Hart, Offseason Moves, Murphy, Summer League

August 19th, 2021 at 1:21pm CST by Luke Adams

Josh Hart‘s new three-year deal with the Pelicans includes some unique terms, according to ESPN’s Will Guillory and Bobby Marks (Twitter links). In an Instagram video, Marks provides a more in-depth breakdown of the agreement.

After earning a guaranteed $12MM salary in year one, Hart will have a $12.96MM non-guaranteed salary in year two, says Guillory. If the Pelicans want to avoid paying Hart that salary, they’ll have to waive him by June 25, meaning he’d get a head-start on finding a new team in free agency.

If Hart plays out the first two years of his deal, his $12.96MM salary for 2023/24 would be non-guaranteed as well, but he also has a player option for that third year. It would essentially be a mutual option for Hart and the Pelicans. He’d have until June 24 to decide whether to exercise or decline his player option, then – if he opts in – New Orleans would have until June 25 to decide whether to guarantee his salary.

Here’s more on the Pelicans:

  • Scouts and executives polled by Tim Bontemps of ESPN were critical of the Pelicans’ offseason, questioning the team’s decision to replace Lonzo Ball with Devonte’ Graham. “They’re a sinking ship and reaching for a life preserver that just isn’t going to help,” one Western Conference executive said. “I don’t understand how (Jonas Valanciunas) is going to fit. I don’t understand how Devonte’ is worth what they paid. It’s just weird.”
  • Sam Vecenie of The Athletic loved what he saw from the Pelicans and Trey Murphy at Las Vegas Summer League, noting that he talked to two separate scouts who thought Murphy was the best rookie in Vegas. Vecenie referred to New Orleans’ Summer League team as “juggernaut” on the defensive end, singling out Murphy, Naji Marshall, Herb Jones, and Kira Lewis for their performances.
  • Murphy was one of seven players named to the All-Summer League First Team, per the NBA, as he joined co-MVPs Davion Mitchell and Cameron Thomas, among others.
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Pelicans Officially Acquire Valanciunas, Graham In Three-Team Trade

August 7th, 2021 at 9:28am CST by Luke Adams

The Pelicans have officially announced a pair of previously–reported trades, having combined their acquisitions of center Jonas Valanciunas and point guard Devonte’ Graham into a single transaction involving both the Grizzlies and Hornets. Memphis and Charlotte have put out press releases as well.

The details of the three-team deal are as follows:

  • To Pelicans:
    • Valanciunas (from Grizzlies)
    • Graham (sign-and-trade; from Hornets)
    • The draft rights to Trey Murphy (No. 17 pick; from Grizzlies)
    • The draft rights to Brandon Boston (No. 51 pick; from Grizzlies)
      • Note: Boston will be rerouted to the Clippers in a subsequent trade.
  • To Grizzlies:
    • Eric Bledsoe (from Pelicans)
    • Steven Adams (from Pelicans)
    • The draft rights to Ziaire Williams (No. 10 pick; from Pelicans)
    • The draft rights to Jared Butler (No. 40 pick; from Pelicans)
      • Note: Butler will be rerouted to the Jazz in a subsequent trade.
    • The Lakers’ 2022 first-round pick (top-10 protected; from Pelicans)
  • To Hornets:
    • Wesley Iwundu (from Pelicans)
    • The Pelicans’ 2022 first-round pick (top-14 protected; from Pelicans)
      • Note: If the Pelicans’ 2022 first-rounder falls in the top 14, the Hornets will instead receive New Orleans’ 2022 and 2024 second-round picks, per Rod Boone of SI.com.
    • Cash (from Pelicans)
    • The draft rights to Tyler Harvey (from Grizzlies)

The details of the three-team trade essentially line up with what was previously reported, with two new pieces added — Iwundu going from New Orleans to Charlotte and Harvey’s draft rights going from Memphis to Charlotte. Harvey was presumably only included to ensure that the Grizzlies and Hornets were “touching,” since otherwise Memphis would only have been exchanging assets with the Pelicans.

Looping their sign-and-trade acquisition of Graham into the trade suggests the Pelicans will operate over the cap, using Bledsoe’s and Adams’ outgoing salaries in order to match both Valanciunas and Graham instead of signing Graham into cap space.

As Bobby Marks of ESPN notes (via Twitter), it also allows New Orleans to generate a $17MM+ trade exception in the deal. Only Bledsoe’s and Iwundu’s outgoing salaries are needed for matching purposes to take on Valanciunas and Graham, meaning the Pelicans’ new TPE is worth Adams’ salary ($17,073,171).

Graham reportedly signed a four-year, $47MM contract with the Pelicans as part of the trade. He and Tomas Satoransky appear set to play the majority of the minutes at point guard in New Orleans, barring further roster changes. The team is sending Lonzo Ball to Chicago in a separate sign-and-trade deal.

Graham made just 37.7% of his field goal attempts in 2020/21, but his three-point mark was a very respectable 37.5%. In addition to his ability to make threes, Graham is an above-average play-maker (6.5 APG over the last two seasons) and a respectable defender.

Swapping out Adams for Valanciunas should allow the Pelicans to improve their frontcourt spacing. Valanciunas isn’t exactly a long-distance marksman, but has a solid mid-range game and will shoot the occasional three-pointer, which should create more room for Zion Williamson to operate. The former No. 5 overall pick averaged an impressive 17.1 PPG and 12.5 RPG with a .592/.368/.773 shooting line in 62 games (28.3 MPG) this past season.

From the Grizzlies’ perspective, the deal was a way to improve their draft assets in both 2021 and 2022 as a result of their willingness to take on Adams’ and Bledsoe’s pricey contracts. The team moved up from No. 17 to No. 10 to snag Williams, and later flipped the No. 40 pick (Butler) to Utah in a separate trade to move up to No. 30 for Santi Aldama.

[RELATED: 2021 NBA Offseason Trades]

The Hornets, meanwhile, decided to move on from Graham and got a protected first-round pick from New Orleans in exchange for waiving their right to match an offer sheet for the restricted free agent. Iwundu’s guaranteed $1.82MM salary for 2021/22 will eat up a small amount of Charlotte’s cap room, but the team will still have enough flexibility to complete its signing of Kelly Oubre to a two-year deal in the range of $12-13MM per year.

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Windhorst’s Latest: Grizzlies, Kings, Pelicans, CP3, Siakam, Simmons

July 30th, 2021 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Before they agreed to a deal with the Pelicans that sent Jonas Valanciunas to New Orleans and the No. 10 pick to Memphis, the Grizzlies made it “pretty far down the road” in talks with the Kings about a similar trade, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on his latest Hoop Collective podcast.

According to Windhorst, the deal the Grizzlies and Kings discussed would’ve involved Marvin Bagley III and the No. 9 pick going to Memphis, with Valanciunas heading to Sacramento. It’s not clear what other pieces were included in those discussions.

Here are a few more items of note from Windhorst’s podcast:

  • Kyle Lowry has frequently been cited as the Pelicans‘ top point guard target in free agency, but the team would also be interested in making a run at Chris Paul, believing his connection to former Phoenix assistant Willie Green could help sell him on a return to New Orleans, says Windhorst. However, according to Windhorst, the feeling around the NBA is that Paul will ultimately stick with the Suns.
  • Discussing the Raptors‘ decision to select forward Scottie Barnes with the No. 4 pick, Windhorst suggested that Toronto has “offered Pascal Siakam around” this offseason. An earlier report indicated that some teams believe the Raptors will become more inclined to pursue a Siakam trade with Barnes in the fold.
  • Confirming some other reports that have surfaced in recent days, Windhorst says the Sixers‘ asking price in Ben Simmons talks has been extremely high. Windhorst’s take on the offers he has heard about: “(They’ve been) so aggressive and outlandish that it makes you walk away saying, ‘They’re not really trying to trade him.'”
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More On Grizzlies/Pelicans Trade

July 26th, 2021 at 5:52pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The Grizzlies and Pelicans made a significant splash today, agreeing to the first trade of NBA draft week. As we previously relayed, Memphis will ship center Jonas Valanciunas and the Nos. 17 and 51 selections in the 2021 draft to New Orleans for center Steven Adams, guard Eric Bledsoe, the Nos. 10 and 40 picks, plus the Lakers’ top-10 protected 2022 first-round pick.

The top-10 protected 2022 Lakers pick will become two second-rounders if it doesn’t convey in next year’s draft, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The protection was previously reported, but the two second-rounders element was not.

It appears that the Grizzlies may not be done dealing, as they look to continue to build their roster around promising point guard Ja Morant and intriguing big man Jaren Jackson Jr. Morant led the Grizzlies to their first playoff appearance since the 2016/17 season this year. Memphis fell 4-1 in the first round to the Jazz.

According to Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer (Twitter link), the Grizzlies may be looking to move up even higher in the lottery ahead of Thursday’s draft. Memphis could be trying to add NBA G League Ignite forward Jonathan Kuminga or Connecticut guard James Bouknight, per O’Connor.

Jonathan Givony of ESPN adds (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies also auditioned Arkansas guard Moses Moody during a private Los Angeles work out last week, apparently expecting to move into the lottery even at the time. Givony adds (Twitter link) that Michigan forward Franz Wagner, projected to be selected as high as the No. 7 pick, could be a potential Grizzlies target. Adelaide point guard Josh Giddey is another apparent prospect for Memphis, as previously noted.

New Grizzlies guard Bledsoe, who had a down season during his lone year with the Pelicans, is not anticipated to remain in Memphis next season, tweets Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

It is not at present clear if Bledsoe, a two-time All-Defensive Team selection, will be traded or will be waived (and possibly stretched). The Grizzlies would most likely need to attach assets in any trade of Bledsoe.

Luke Adams contributed to this report.

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Grizzlies, Pelicans Finalizing Deal To Swap Valanciunas, Adams, Bledsoe, Picks

July 26th, 2021 at 3:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies and Pelicans are finalizing a trade that will involve several players and draft picks, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

As Wojnarowski reports, the deal will send Jonas Valanciunas and the Nos. 17 and 51 picks to New Orleans in exchange for Steven Adams, Eric Bledsoe, the Nos. 10 and 40 picks, and the Lakers’ 2022 first-round pick. The Pelicans will add top-10 protection to that ’22 first-rounder, per Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

The trade, our second of the offseason and the first of draft week, is a fascinating move for two Southwest teams looking to make the playoffs in 2022.

The Pelicans had been considered highly likely to trade at least one of Adams or Bledsoe, both of whom are on pricey contracts and weren’t viewed as part of the team’s long-term future. Rather than just moving one of the two, they’ll send both to Memphis, creating significant cap flexibility for this year’s free agent period.

Bledsoe ($18.13MM) and Adams ($17.07MM) will earn a combined $35MM+ in 2021/22, while Valanciunas is on the books for just $14MM. Valanciunas is also entering a contract year, whereas Adams has one more guaranteed season left in ’22/23 and Bledsoe has a partial guarantee, so the Pelicans won’t just be opening up cap room this summer — they’ll create future flexibility as well.

Swapping out Adams for Valanciunas should allow the Pelicans to improve their frontcourt spacing. Valanciunas isn’t exactly a long-distance marksman, but has a solid mid-range game and will shoot the occasional three-pointer, which should create more room for Zion Williamson to operate. The former No. 5 overall pick averaged an impressive 17.1 PPG and 12.5 RPG with a .592/.368/.773 shooting line in 62 games (28.3 MPG) this past season.

Moving Bledsoe’s contract also puts the Pelicans in position to either bring back restricted free agent Lonzo Ball or pursue another point guard in free agency. As Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets, New Orleans could create up to about $36MM in cap space by letting Ball and Josh Hart walk, or approximately $25MM in space by retaining Hart’s cap hold and letting go of Ball. Kyle Lowry is rumored to be among the Pelicans’ potential free agent targets.

As for the Grizzlies, they’ll presumably decline Justise Winslow‘s $13MM team option in order to create the cap room necessary to take on Adams and Bledsoe once the new league year begins in August, Marks notes (via Twitter).

While Adams and Bledsoe didn’t have great seasons in New Orleans, they’ve both been productive in the past and are bounce-back candidates in Memphis if the fit is better. Adams posted 7.6 PPG and 8.9 RPG in 58 games (27.7 MPG) in 2020/21, while Bledsoe put up 12.2 PPG, 3.8 APG, and 3.4 RPG on .421/.341/.687 shooting in 71 games (29.7 MPG).

The Grizzlies also significantly improve their draft assets in the swap, moving up seven spots in the first round and 11 spots in the second while also adding an extra first-round pick for next year. They’re now in position to have three first-rounders in next year’s draft, since they also hold Utah’s top-six protected first-rounder.

Jonathan Givony of ESPN and Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report (Twitter links) have both heard that Australian guard Josh Giddey is the player the Grizzlies are targeting with the No. 10 pick.

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Rosters Announced For Olympic Qualifying Tournaments

June 28th, 2021 at 9:16am CST by Luke Adams

Four qualifying tournaments to determine the final four teams in the men’s basketball pool at the Tokyo Olympics are set to tip off on Tuesday. In advance of the Olympic qualifiers, the 24 teams involved have officially set their 12-man rosters, according to a press release from FIBA.

More than two dozen current NBA players are participating in the tournament, and 11 of the 24 teams competing for Olympic spots have at least one current NBA players on their respective rosters. Of those clubs, Team Canada has the biggest contingent of NBA players — eight of the 12 players on Nick Nurse‘s squad finished the season on an NBA roster. Turkey is next with four NBA players.

The four qualifying tournaments will take place in Serbia, Lithuania, Croatia, and Canada. Only the winner of each six-team group will advance to Tokyo. Those four winners will join Japan, Nigeria, Argentina, Iran, France, Spain, Australia, and the U.S. in the 12-team Olympic tournament.

The teams that move onto the Olympics may tweak their rosters for Tokyo, depending on the availability of certain players. For instance, if Greece were to win its qualifying tournament, perhaps Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo – who remains active in the playoffs for now – would make an effort to join the team in Tokyo next month.

Here are the NBA players on the OQT rosters:

Belgrade, Serbia

Kaunas, Lithuania

Split, Croatia

Victoria, Canada

There are also many former NBA players among the 24 rosters, including Mario Hezonja (Croatia), Milos Teodosic (Serbia), Jan Vesely (Czech Republic), Timofey Mozgov (Russia), and Anthony Bennett (Canada).

To view the full rosters, be sure to visit FIBA’s official site and click through to each team from there.

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