Kendrick Nunn Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Ariza, Nunn, Nuggets, D’Antoni

December 6th, 2021 at 8:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lakers forward Trevor Ariza participated in a live action scrimmage for the first time since ankle surgery, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin tweets. Coach Frank Vogel indicated Ariza is not experiencing pain but is still strengthening the ankle, so there’s no timetable for his return. Ariza signed a veteran’s minimum contract during the offseason and was expected to be a prominent contributor but he has yet to make his season debut.

We have more from the Western Conference:

Lakers backup guard Kendrick Nunn (right knee bone bruise) isn’t expected to make his season debut this month, McMenamin adds in another tweet. Nunn signed a two-year free-agent deal in August. He averaged 14.6 points, 2.6 assists and 29.5 minutes in 56 games with the Heat last season.
The addition of Davon Reed under the hardship exception pushed the Nuggets a little bit closer to the luxury tax line, John Hollinger of The Athletic notes. Reed’s contract adds another $100K to the cap, nudging them just $1.2MM below the tax line. That doesn’t include $1.7MM in unlikely incentives for Jeff Green, JaMychal Green and Will Barton. However, the tax concerns make it unlikely the franchise will utilize disabled player exceptions for Michael Porter Jr. and PJ Dozier.
Mike D’Antoni, currently an advisor to first-year Pelicans coach Willie Green, still has some interest in being a head coach, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports. D’Antoni, who lives in Texas, attended his first Pelicans game this season in Houston on Sunday. He was an assistant to the Nets’ Steve Nash last season.

Lakers Notes: James, Kanter, Davis, Nunn

November 21st, 2021 at 8:49pm CST by JD Shaw

Lakers superstar LeBron James offered his thoughts about the comments recently made by Celtics big man Enes Kanter, addressing the ongoing feud between the two after Saturday’s game.

Kanter recently called out James on social media, writing, “Money over Morals for the “King.” Sad and disgusting how these athletes pretend they care about social justice. They really do “shut up & dribble” when Big Boss says so. Did you educate yourself about the slave labor that made your shoes or is that not part of your research?”

When asked about the post, James noted that he typically doesn’t bother engaging. But, as mentioned previously, this isn’t the first time the pair has had an issue, which includes a face-to-face altercation during a game back in 2017.

“I think if you know me, you know I don’t give too many people my energy,” James explained, as relayed by Analis Bailey of USA TODAY. “He’s definitely not someone I would give my energy to. He’s trying to use my name to create an opportunity for himself. I definitely won’t comment too much on that.

“He’s always had a word or two to say in my direction, and as a man, if you’ve got an issue with somebody, you really come up to him. He had his opportunity tonight. I seen him in the hallway, and he walked right by me.”

There’s more out of Los Angeles:

It’s apparent the club can’t win without LeBron, Kyle Goon of the Orange County Register writes. In the seven games that James has played this season, the Lakers are 4-3. Without him, the team is 4-6.
The team has committed to Anthony Davis at center, but the defensive kinks must be worked out by committee, Goon writes for the Orange County Register. Starting Davis at center allows the Lakers to improve its offensive spacing, but it reduces the team’s size in the frontcourt. The club must now determine its starters alongside Russell Westbrook, James and Davis.
Backup point guard Kendrick Nunn (right knee bone bruise) isn’t expected to return anytime soon, Goon tweets. Nunn signed a free-agent deal to join the organization back in August. He averaged 14.6 points, 2.6 assists and 29.5 minutes in 56 games with the Heat last season.

Lakers Notes: LeBron, Horton-Tucker, Nunn, Offseason Moves

November 18th, 2021 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers’ roster isn’t constructed to withstand prolonged absences from star forward LeBron James, Dylan Hernandez writes in a column for The Los Angeles Times. With James still sidelined on Wednesday, the Lakers lost in Milwaukee to drop to 8-8 on the season, including 4-6 in games without LeBron available.

When the Lakers acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, it was viewed in part as an insurance policy after James and Anthony Davis missed time due to injuries in 2020/21. The thinking was that if one of the Lakers’ two returning stars went down for an extended period, the club would now have a third star in Westbrook to help carry the load. However, Westbrook has been inconsistent during his first month as a Laker, raising the stakes of LeBron’s return, writes Hernandez.

Fortunately for L.A., it sounds as if James should be back very soon. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier this week that there’s “growing optimism” the 36-year-old will be able to play on Friday in Boston.

That’s not a lock, however. While James said on Wednesday that he hopes to return vs. the Celtics, head coach Frank Vogel is still referring to him as day-to-day and sources told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that there’s only a “50-50” chance he’ll be available on Friday.

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Since returning from his thumb injury, Lakers guard Talen Horton-Tucker has started all three games and is making a strong case to remain in the starting five, writes Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group. Horton-Tucker had perhaps his best game yet on Wednesday, with 25 points and 12 rebounds. “Sometimes scoring off the bench is what you need,” Vogel said of Horton-Tucker. “But he’s playing as good as anybody from a standpoint of both sides of the ball. What he’s given to us on defense and what he’s given to us on offense. So he’s been terrific in his first few games back and he’ll have a big role. He’s definitely made a case (to continue starting).”
Third-year guard Kendrick Nunn, who has yet to debut for the Lakers after signing a two-year, $10MM deal in August, isn’t with the team on its current road trip, tweets Bill Oram of The Athletic. Nunn continues to do rehab work on the bone bruise in his right knee.
The Lakers’ slow start has made it easier to second-guess Rob Pelinka‘s summer roster moves, Oram says in a story for The Athletic. According to various reports, L.A. had a chance to trade for DeMar DeRozan or Buddy Hield and to re-sign Alex Caruso, but passed on those opportunities. Acquiring Westbrook closed the door on the DeRozan and Hield scenarios, but re-signing Caruso was simply a matter of how far into the tax the organization was willing to go.

Heat Notes: Morris, Haslem, Strus, Herro

November 10th, 2021 at 5:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

With a couple of days to cool down following Monday’s incident in Denver, Heat players are hoping to put the skirmish behind them, writes Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Nuggets center Nikola Jokic was suspended for one game for striking Markieff Morris in the back following a hard foul late in Monday’s contest. Morris was fined $50K for the initial hit, while teammate Jimmy Butler received a $30K fine for “attempting to escalate” the conflict.

Morris suffered whiplash and has been ruled out of tonight’s game against the Lakers, Chiang adds. He was at the team’s shootout this morning, but didn’t participate and left for a doctor’s appointment without speaking to reporters.

“Obviously in a situation like that, alpha males and reactions take over,” said team captain Udonis Haslem. “A couple of days later, we all want what’s best for everybody. I don’t think Jokic is a bad guy. I actually love him as a basketball player and I love him as a person. I think he’s a really good guy. I think emotions just got the best of everybody.”

There’s more on the Heat:

Max Strus will miss his fifth straight game tonight with a sprained left knee, Chiang adds. Strus was initially listed as probable, but woke up with pain in the knee today following a workout Tuesday. “He had a really good day of work yesterday,” coach Erik Spoelstra said. “He’s definitely making progress and I think he needs a little bit more time.”
Tonight will mark Miami’s first meeting with Kendrick Nunn since he signed with the Lakers in free agency, notes Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. The Heat decided to rescind their qualifying offer to Nunn because of luxury tax concerns, but Spoelstra said he enjoyed the two years they spent together. “He surprised everybody in the league,” Spoelstra said. “He really contributed and helped us win at a high level. And he got better as a basketball player. And he developed a relationship with some that I know will continue. I’m a big fan of K-Nunn.”
The offseason addition of Kyle Lowry is one obvious reason for the Heat‘s 7-3 start, but Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer identifies a few more. One is the resurgence of Tyler Herro, who is back to being the dangerous offensive threat he was after the NBA’s restart in 2020. He’s averaging 20.3 PPG and has become a more efficient scorer in his third season.

Kendrick Nunn To Miss Multiple Weeks With Bone Bruise

October 21st, 2021 at 5:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Lakers guard Kendrick Nunn has been diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right knee and he’ll be out multiple weeks, coach Frank Vogel told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin and other members after Thursday’s practice (Twitter link).

Nunn dealt with an ankle sprain in the same leg during training camp, though the club was hopeful he’d be back by opening night. He had an MRI on the knee after experiencing some soreness and it revealed the bruise. He’ll be re-evaluated in about two or three weeks, according to Vogel.

Nunn signed a two-year contract with Los Angeles after Miami pulled its qualifying offer to him, making him an unrestricted free agent in August. Nunn reportedly turned down more money from the Knicks and other suitors in order to join the Lakers. Nunn was projected to be Russell Westbrook‘s primary backup at the point, along with seeing some minutes at the shooting guard spot.

His absence will thrust veteran Rajon Rondo into the backup point guard role and newly-acquired Avery Bradley could also see action there. Wayne Ellington has been ruled out of Friday’s game against Phoenix with a hamstring injury, McMenamin adds.

Injury Notes: Diakite, P. Williams, C. White, Zion, Lakers

October 14th, 2021 at 9:04am CST by Luke Adams

Thunder forward Mamadi Diakite has been diagnosed with a left hip fracture and has been ruled out indefinitely, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (Twitter links). Diakite sustained the injury during Sunday’s preseason game against Milwaukee, Mussatto adds.

It’s an unfortunate turn of events for Diakite, who was claimed off waivers by the Thunder last month and was trying to prove he deserved a spot on the regular season roster. Only $100K of Diakite’s minimum-salary contract is guaranteed, making him a potential casualty of a roster crunch.

Although the Thunder haven’t revealed their plans for their 15-man regular season roster, they’re carrying 13 players on guaranteed contracts, and Kenrich Williams is a lock for the roster despite his non-guaranteed salary. That leaves just one available 15-man spot — if Diakite’s injury takes him out of the running, Gabriel Deck and D.J. Wilson would likely be the top contenders for it.

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

Bulls forward Patrick Williams appears to be nearing a return. He participated fully in Wednesday’s practice and said his injured ankle “feels good,” per Darnell Mayberry of The Athletic (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Bulls guard Coby White, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, still isn’t close to being cleared for contact. Head coach Billy Donovan said on Wednesday the team is about three or four weeks away from determining the next step in White’s rehab process (Twitter link via Cody Westerlund of 670TheScore.com).
Pelicans head of basketball operations David Griffin said last month he thought Zion Williamson, who underwent offseason foot surgery, would be ready for opening night. However, head coach Willie Green confirmed on Monday that Williamson still isn’t running or participating in team activities, according to William Guillory of The Athletic, who says Zion’s uncertain status leaves New Orleans in limbo with the regular season around the corner.
Lakers head coach Frank Vogel is hopeful that Malik Monk (groin) and Kendrick Nunn (ankle) will be ready to go by opening night, per Kyle Goon of The Southern California News Group (Twitter links). However, veteran guard Wayne Ellington is dealing with a hamstring strain that makes him more of a question mark for the start of the season.

Lakers Notes: Centers, Monk, Two-Ways, Brown, Queen

October 4th, 2021 at 12:49pm CST by Luke Adams

With Anthony Davis expected to see more action at the center spot this season, it remains to be seen how much playing time former All-NBA big men Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan will get at the five for the Lakers. However, as Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times writes, Jordan isn’t overly concerned about how many minutes he’ll play.

“That’s the blessing of it, having a lot of different lineups that you can use. And I think each game is gonna have a say on what we do,” Jordan said on Saturday. “We can be rolling with a huge lineup. And, you know, we’ll win with that. And some games may need us to go small. And I think that at this point of my career, of all of our careers, you know, at the end of the day, ultimately, we just want to be able to win and be able to achieve something as a collective.”

Howard, who played a career-low 17.3 minutes per contest last season in Philadelphia, shares Jordan’s philosophy.

“Leave the ego at the door, leave it at home when you wake up,” Howard said of his role. “There’s no need to have it. We all represent this emblem that’s behind me, this Laker logo. We understand that, and it’s whatever the team needs to win.”

Here’s more on the Lakers:

Malik Monk‘s impressive preseason debut on Sunday further complicates an already-crowded battle for playing time at shooting guard, according to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, who observes that the Lakers will have to find time at the two for Monk, Wayne Ellington, Talen Horton-Tucker, Kent Bazemore, and Kendrick Nunn. Nunn has generally played point guard, but may not see much action there if Russell Westbrook plays big minutes and Rajon Rondo has a regular role, Buha notes.
Cameron Oliver, Mac McClung, Chaundee Brown, and Trevelin Queen are the camp invitees currently in the mix for the Lakers’ second two-way contract slot, but the team could end up going outside of the organization to fill that spot, as Buta writes in the same story. “We’re gonna see how the preseason plays out,” head coach Frank Vogel said. “See who all is available, both the guys that are here, or who are around the league, guys that might get cut, and we’ll make a decision closer to opening night.”
If the Lakers do convert one of their current camp invitees to a two-way contract, Brown and Queen may be the frontrunners, says Buha. Both of those players are wings, which might be the Lakers’ biggest need.

Lakers Notes: Russ-LeBron, Nunn, AD, Reaves

September 28th, 2021 at 10:05pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Pricey new Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook expressed confidence in his fit alongside LeBron James, one of the most ball-dominant teammates with whom the very ball-dominant Westbrook has ever played. The decorated 6’3″ vet also made it clear that Los Angeles is heading into the 2021/22 season with title expectations.

“LeBron out of anybody else, he knows what it takes to win a championship,” Westbrook said during the team’s Media Day on Tuesday, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN. “And that’s the ultimate goal. So anything along the way … we cannot get distracted, cannot get deterred from our ultimate goal.”

The Lakers will be Westbrook’s fourth team in four years, following stints with the Thunder in 2018/19, the Rockets in 2019/20, and the Wizards in 2020/21. Last year, Westbrook was not named to the All-Star team during a relatively healthy season for the first time since 2009/10. His backcourt mate Bradley Beal was the lone Wizards player to earn that honor in 2021.

Though he averaged 22.2 PPG, a league-leading 11.7 APG, and 11.5 RPG (his fourth triple-double in five seasons), Westbrook was relatively inefficient as a shooter during his Wizards tenure. Westbrook posted a shooting line of .439/.315/.656. The Lakers are hoping that the 2017 MVP, 32, can help expedite their offense and relieve 36-year-old LeBron James of his playmaking burden, especially during the regular season.

“He ups our pace right away,” James raved about his new teammate. “He’s always in the top five as far as pace. Whatever team is what he with, so being able to get out and being able to get out on the break and be able to try to get some early buckets before the defense is set. That creates that. But also he’s just a flat-out playmaker. I think what a lot of people don’t talk about in his game is how unbelievable of a passer he is. Everyone sees the rebounds, everyone sees the scoring and things of that nature, but his passing, his ability to make guys around him better, that does not get talked about a lot.”

There’s more out of Los Angeles:

New Lakers guard Kendrick Nunn has joined many of his L.A. teammates on the decorated roster of Klutch Sports clients, McMenamin reports (via Twitter). Nunn, who faced off against the Lakers in the 2020 Finals as a rookie on the Heat, signed a two-year, $10MM deal with Los Angeles this summer. After going undrafted out of Oakland in 2018, the 6’2″ point guard carved out a role for himself on a veteran-laden Miami squad in the 2019/20 season, and was named to the All-Rookie First Team in 2020. Nunn averaged 15.0 PPG, 3.0 APG, 2.9 APG and 0.9 SPG during his two seasons with the Heat. The 26-year-old boasts an impressive career shooting line of .458/.364/.881.
Lakers All-Star big man Anthony Davis acknowledged during the team’s Media Day that he has had conversations with head coach Frank Vogel about finally becoming the club’s starting center, per Mark Medina of USA Today (Twitter video link). Los Angeles rebuilt its frontcourt rotation around Davis during the offseason, adding veteran former All-Star centers DeAndre Jordan and Dwight Howard on minimum deals. “That was discussed and I expect to play center,” Davis said. “Obviously there’s times where Dwight or DJ might get the start at center depending on games, but for the most part, I think the plan is to go with me playing center.” In the past, Davis has preferred to start at the power forward position. He has shared the floor alongside a variety of veteran centers while with the Lakers, though Los Angeles found its most success in the 2020 playoffs with Davis at the center position.
Further details have emerged concerning the new contract of Lakers guard Austin Reaves, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (via Twitter). Smith reports that the deal is a two-year contract at the league minimum. Reaves has a partial guarantee of $100K for the 2021/22 season, and his full first-year salary will become guaranteed on January 10, 2022. The second year of the agreement is fully non-guaranteed. The 6’5″ rookie, 23, went undrafted out of Oklahoma this summer.

Lakers Notes: Anthony, LeBron, Nunn, Coaching Staff

September 15th, 2021 at 6:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

Carmelo Anthony was hoping to return to the Trail Blazers this summer before LeBron James urged him to join the Lakers, writes Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. Appearing on Haynes’ “Posted Up” podcast, Anthony said he was waiting to see if Portland was interested in bringing him back when James reached out to him. Anthony spent the last two years with the Blazers, but said management didn’t contact him about a return.

“No, not the way I thought. But honestly, I wasn’t expecting it,” he said. “… Not to say Portland did anything wrong, but I was sitting around because I’m a loyal person. I didn’t want to leave (Damian Lillard) and CJ (McCollum) and those guys. But I know the business.”

In addition to his long friendship with James, Anthony chose the Lakers because he sees the team as his best hope to cap off his career with a championship. He told Haynes that several other organizations expressed interest, which felt good after being out of the league two years ago.

“New York was always there, always a story,” Anthony said. “I told my son when he made it to high school, I’d be there. Philly, I didn’t get a chance to converse with Philly, but there was interest. New Orleans had interest. It felt good to see that again and being a part of teams being interested in me when 18-20 months again, it was nobody.”

There’s more from L.A.:

James has played fewer minutes per game each season since 2016/17, and Jovan Buha of The Athletic expects that trend to continue this year. James will turn 37 in December and the Lakers will be try to be careful with him to avoid the kind of long-term injury he had last season.
Of all the players the Lakers added in free agency, Kendrick Nunn was probably the most surprising, Buha adds in the same piece. The former Heat guard signed for the taxpayer mid-level exception, and Buha speculates that he could have gotten a better offer from another team. Buha also questions whether Nunn will get the playing time he’s used to with Russell Westbrook handling most of the minutes at point guard.
The Lakers have officially announced the additions of David Fizdale and John Lucas III as assistant coaches (Twitter link). Both hires were previously reported.

Southeast Notes: Nunn, Rozier, Wagner, Garnett

August 21st, 2021 at 5:37pm CST by Arthur Hill

New NBPA president CJ McCollum is unhappy with how the Heat handled Kendrick Nunn during free agency. On August 3, Miami pulled its qualifying offer for Nunn, making him an unrestricted free agent. Appearing on a podcast with Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, McCollum charged that the Heat made the decision after most teams with cap space had already allocated their free agent money (hat tip to Brad Sullivan of Heat Nation).

“The Kendrick Nunn situation,” McCollum said. “He was gonna be a free agent. They basically waited until the money dried up, right? You correct me if I’m wrong. Have you (Wojnarowski) seen this happening in the league and not being discussed at all? Where they talk about players forcing their way out, player movement. But then what about the manipulation that goes into some of these situations where teams are waiting for the market to dry up before they release a player’s rights.”

Nunn wound up signing a two-year, $10MM contract with the Lakers that includes a player option for the second season. L.A. used its taxpayer mid-level exception for the deal.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Terry Rozier‘s four-year extension with the Hornets is an indication of the weakness of next summer’s free agent class, writes Dan Devine of The Ringer. Several big names that could have been on the market in 2022 have already signed extensions, and Charlotte doesn’t have a strong history of attracting free agents. Devine points out that Rozier’s new contract, which could be worth more than $96MM, only ranks 19th among NBA guards, which is in line with his recent production. It also provides some continuity for a team that lost Devonte’ Graham, Cody Zeller and Malik Monk.
The Magic got what they expected from Franz Wagner during Summer League, according to Josh Cohen of NBA.com. The No. 8 pick averaged 8.0 points and 3.8 rebounds in four games and showed good instincts that make up for his limited athleticism.
Assistant coach Marlon Garnett has left the Hawks‘ staff to join the Hornets, tweets Chris Kirschner of The Athletic.