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Latest On Nets, Kyrie Irving, D’Angelo Russell

June 25th, 2019 at 10:17am CST by Luke Adams

For several weeks, many of the NBA’s most plugged-in reporters have penciled in the Nets as Kyrie Irving‘s probable landing spot, and that still appears true, sources around the league tell ESPN’s Zach Lowe. Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (video link) conveys a similar sentiment, suggesting that – of the two New York teams – the Nets are the significant favorites over the Knicks for Irving.

However, as Lowe notes, the Nets’ preference has long been to pair Irving with a second star, with Kevin Durant widely assumed to be that second star. Now that Durant is set to miss 2019/20 due to an Achilles tear and his free agency intentions remain uncertain, Brooklyn must weigh whether Irving would be worth a substantial investment on his own, Lowe writes.

Irving’s projected maximum salary ($32.7MM) is more than $5MM higher than Russell’s ($27.25MM), but he’s also the better player, and most executives who spoke to Lowe agree that Kyrie is the better value if both players get max deals — even taking into account his potential to shake up the Nets’ locker room. However, if Russell’s new deal comes in at a few million below the max, those execs aren’t quite as sure that Brooklyn should opt for Kyrie over D-Lo, according to Lowe.

Here’s more from Lowe on the Nets and Russell:

The Suns are in the market for a point guard and Devin Booker has advocated for Russell, who is a close friend. However, Lowe hears that “other voices within the Suns” may not be as enthusiastic about pursuing Russell.
Sources tell Lowe that there’s “at least a kernel of truth” to rumors of the Lakers‘ potential interest in a Russell reunion. L.A. still has a lot to sort out though, Lowe cautions. The Knicks, meanwhile, are likely to pursue shorter-term deals if they strike out on this year’s elite free agents, meaning they likely wouldn’t be a suitor for Russell, says Lowe.
If the Nets don’t end up landing Irving or Durant, re-signing Russell and adding a second-tier free agent like Tobias Harris would be another potential path for the franchise. However, Lowe writes that Brooklyn won’t want to risk locking itself into a “pretty good” roster and is more likely to swing for the fences.
Lowe’s prediction: If Irving wants to come, the Nets will sign him with or without Durant, and will figure out the rest later.

Knicks Notes: Free Agency, Fine, Iguodala, Kings Trade

June 24th, 2019 at 6:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Knicks are hoping to land at least one of the marquee free agents — Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard or Kyrie Irving — but if they come up short, they won’t eat up their cap space with multi-year contracts, Ian Begley of SNY TV reports. They don’t want to take on a bad contract in order to accumulate more assets. It’s uncertain if they’d trade for a player with a big contract in his walk year.

Instead, they will most likely sign free agents to one-year deals, much like the Lakers did last summer after LeBron James committed to them, in order to retain cap flexibility. The New York Daily News’ Stefan Bondy reiterates that sentiment, adding that the Knicks could shift gears and go after Anthony Davis, DeMar DeRozan, Draymond Green, Ben Simmons and Pascal Siakam next summer.

We have more on the Knicks:

The team was fined $50K by the league for violating rules regarding equal access for media, according to a league press release. The Knicks did not allow Bondy access to their post-draft press conference on Friday while allowing all other credentialed media who cover the team to attend. The organization has agreed to comply with media access rules in the future.
Warriors forward Andre Iguodala took a jab at the organization and its pursuit of major free agents, including his teammate Durant, Ethan Sears of the New York Post relays. In an interview with CNBC, Iguodala said, “Nobody’s gonna sign with the Knicks, sorry.”
The Knicks gave up $1MM in cash along with the No. 55 pick to the Kings on Thursday, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets. New York moved up to the No. 47 spot and chose University of Michigan forward Ignas Brazdeikis. The Kings selected Virginia’s Kyle Guy.

Nets Exploring Possibility Of Signing DeAndre Jordan

June 24th, 2019 at 1:29pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets are exploring the feasibility of signing free agent center DeAndre Jordan this summer, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link).

As Stein explains, Jordan is good friends with Kevin Durant, one of Brooklyn’s top free agent targets, and the Nets would like to add Jordan in the hopes that it would help entice Durant to Brooklyn along with Kyrie Irving.

If the Nets were to sign Durant and Irving to maximum-salary contracts, it would almost certainly leave the club with only the room exception available for free agents. That exception is projected to be worth $4.76MM, and it’s not clear if that will be enough to sign Jordan, who earned nearly $23MM last season.

The Nets aren’t the only ones who believe that the presence of Jordan might be attractive to Durant — their cross-town rivals, the Knicks, acquired Jordan in their Kristaps Porzingis blockbuster in February and didn’t buy out Jordan along with Enes Kanter and Wesley Matthews, viewing the veteran big man as a potential teammate for KD in 2019/20. New York has continued to show interest in re-signing Jordan, depending on how the team’s offseason plays out, per Stein (Twitter link).

While he’s not the perennial Defensive Player of the Year contender he once was, Jordan has appeal beyond his friendship with Durant. As Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News observes (via Twitter), Brooklyn didn’t have the big bodies to match up inside with the likes of Joel Embiid last season and got crushed by Philadelphia’s size and physicality in the playoffs. Acquiring a center like Jordan would help address that issue.

Atlantic Notes: Harris, Green, Nets, Knicks

June 23rd, 2019 at 5:31pm CST by JD Shaw

With free agency set to open in just one week, star forward Tobias Harris is planning to conduct meetings across the country in his first two days on the open market, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (Twitter link).

Harris, who’s expected to command a maximum-salary deal, will be one of the most coveted players at his position. He’ll take meetings on the East Coast on the evening of June 30 and West Coast on July 1, Bondy adds.

Harris is coming off a season where he averaged 20 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per contest, appearing in 82 games with the Clippers and 76ers. Philadelphia acquired him in a trade shortly before the February 7 deadline.

In addition to Harris, an eight-year NBA veteran, the Sixers are also expected to pursue new contracts with free agents Jimmy Butler, J.J. Redick and James Ennis at the start of free agency.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division tonight:

Raptors free agent Danny Green believes the percentage of Kawhi Leonard re-signing with the team is higher than him leaving, Julia Kreuz of Sportsnet relays. Leonard will be forced to make a difficult decision in free agency, potentially between the Raptors and his hometown Clippers. “The city, the fans have done their job, the organization’s done their job. it’s going to be a hard place to turn down,” Green said. “[You] have a great team and have a city, people, fans that love you and are willing to give you damn near everything. And a condo… and some food… and a plane… and dessert after that, who knows. They give you everything, the world, and then some.”
The Nets have a secret weapon in their pursuit of Kevin Durant, writes Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Brooklyn employs Dr. Martin O’Malley as the team’s orthopedic specialist, with O’Malley operating on Durant’s torn Achilles’ Tendon earlier this month and broken foot roughly four years ago. It’s widely believed Durant is upset with the medical care he received from Golden State during the NBA Finals, according to Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher.
Unless the Knicks manage to sign a major free-agent this offseason, the team will continue to ask its fans to exercise patience as it builds around a young core that now features third overall pick R.J. Barrett, Adam Zagoria of Forbes writes. “We laid out a plan when [GM] Scott [Perry] came on board and then [coach] David [Fizdale] joined us that we were going to build this team the right way,” Knicks president Steve Mills said. “We were going to draft well and we were going to be diligent about how we built this team, and not take any shortcuts.”

Knicks Notes: Durant, Wilkes, Draft, Cavanaugh

June 22nd, 2019 at 7:14pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Knicks will do their homework on Kevin Durant before committing to a max offer, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. The team will request access to Durant’s medical records and will evaluate his long-term chances for a full recovery from the ruptured Achilles he suffered in the NBA Finals.

New York’s front office recognizes that Durant will be 32 by the time he can play again in 2020/21 and may be dealing with a “load management” situation that will limit both the number of games he can play and his minutes in each one.

Sources tell Berman that the Knicks believe they’re still in the running for Kawhi Leonard, even though he seems more likely to stay in Toronto or go to one of the Los Angeles teams, and Kyrie Irving, who is rumored to be headed to Brooklyn.

There’s more from New York City:

After agreeing to sign UCLA forward Kris Wilkes to a two-way contract, GM Scott Perry said the team never expected him to be available, Berman relays in a separate story. Wilkes was projected as a second-round pick after leading the Bruins in scoring at 17.4 points per game. “Kind of surprised (Wilkes) didn’t get drafted, similar to Allonzo Trier last year,’’ Perry said. “Winning player, can score, 6-8, highly rated player coming out of high school. Exciting to add him to our mix and see how we can develop him.”
The Knicks were convinced about taking R.J. Barrett with the No. 3 pick, even though they worked out Darius Garland and Coby White shortly before the draft, relays Ian Begley of SNY.TV. Perry explained that the team was taking advantage of having the players in town. “You want to get a chance to see as many prospects as you can,” he said. “Learn more about them, learn their stories. Also further evaluate, you dot your final I’s and crossing the final T’s. So that’s what went into our thinking.”
Tyler Cavanaugh, who spent this season on a two-way contract with the Jazz, will join the Knicks’ Summer League team, tweets Eric Woodyard of The Deseret News. The 25-year-old power forward got into just 11 NBA games during the year, spending most of his time in the G League. He played 39 games for the Hawks in 2017/18, starting on a two-way deal before earning a standard contract.

Atlantic Notes: Leonard, Nets, Horford, Barrett, Raptors

June 22nd, 2019 at 9:20am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Raptors’ pitch to Kawhi Leonard to remain with the organization is still being discussed but is near completion, GM Bobby Webster told the Toronto Star’s Doug Smith and other media members. “There’s definitely more (things to be done),” Webster said. “As you can imagine, there are a ton of thoughts and ideas.” Aside from the financial implications — the Raptors can offer their superstar a five-year deal worth nearly $190MM while other suitors can give him a four-year, $140.6MM contract — the organization is expected to emphasize its championship pedigree, the medical staff that earned Leonard’s trust, and a chance to keep winning in familiar surroundings, Smith adds.

We have more from around the Atlantic Division:

The Nets have continued to clear cap room to sign two high-level free agents and there’s an expectation that this summer will be transformational for the Nets, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Draft-night trades cleared $2MM more in cap room, moving the team within $2MM of landing some combination of Leonard, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. GM Sean Marks indicated that going after big fish in free agency is the next logical leap for the franchise.
Al Horford would be a “no-brainer” free agent target for the Sixers if they don’t re-sign both Tobias Harris and Jimmy Butler, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Horford would be a natural fit at power forward alongside Joel Embiid and could play center in games that the oft-injured Embiid sits out, Pompey notes. Horford will decline his $30.1MM player option with the Celtics and pursue a multi-year contract in free agency.
There were mixed views on R.J. Barrett within the Knicks organization but GM Scott Perry was determined to draft the Duke freshman with the No. 3 pick, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. Barrett made a strong impression during a June 10 visit with the Knicks. “When we bring guys in, we allowed them to spend time with the front-office staff, coaching and medical staff. It became apparent he was going to be an excellent fit from a culture standpoint,” Perry said. “He did nice things on the court when he worked with coaches. He reaffirmed what we had seen during the college season. … We were comfortable remaining in the draft position at 3.”
The Raptors had some discussions about moving into the late first round or early second round of the draft but weren’t willing to give up future assets, Blake Murphy of The Athletic tweets.

Woj’s Latest: Durant, Kawhi, Vucevic

June 21st, 2019 at 12:56am CST by Luke Adams

Besides breaking news of trades on ESPN’s 2019 NBA draft telecast on Thursday night – as well as breaking picks on Twitter before they were announced – Adrian Wojnarowski also provided some updates on a few notable free agents during ESPN’s draft coverage.

Here are the highlights from Woj:

The Warriors, Nets, Knicks, and Clippers will all be “significant considerations” for Kevin Durant in free agency this summer, according to Wojnarowski. “One thing I’m told is he is really focused on making his decision independently of anyone else and that includes Kyrie Irving,” Woj said of Durant, per RealGM. “He’s at a point in his career where he’s going to decide really essentially on a four-year deal elsewhere or a five-year deal with Golden State, where he’s going to spend the rest of his prime.”
While the Raptors and Clippers are still considered the frontrunners to sign Kawhi Leonard, Wojnarowski hears that Leonard may take free agents meetings with the Knicks and perhaps the Nets and Sixers as well (Twitter link via Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com).
If the Magic don’t reach a new deal with free agent center Nikola Vucevic once he reaches the open market, the Celtics and Lakers are two candidates to pursue the big man, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link via Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype). Both Boston and L.A. project to have cap room available, and the C’s expect to lose starting center Al Horford.

Draft-Night Rumors: Cavs, Suns, Wolves, Nets, Knicks

June 20th, 2019 at 7:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Cavaliers remain active in trade discussions, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who reports (via Twitter) that Cleveland is exploring deals involving J.R. Smith‘s expiring contract in addition to possible trades of the No. 5 pick. Barring a trade, Cleveland remains focused on Darius Garland at No. 5, Woj adds (via Twitter).

Here a few more draft-night rumors worth rounding up:

According to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link), the Suns felt that the ability to land a starting power forward trumped the opportunity to draft a developmental point guard at No. 6, which is why they made their trade with the Timberwolves for Dario Saric. Phoenix plans on rolling with Tyler Johnson and a free agent signing at the point guard spot, Gambadoro adds.
The Timberwolves have engaged in multiple conversations about that No. 6 pick since agreeing to acquire it from the Suns, league sources tell Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Two high-ranking sources have told Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link) that the Nets remain “very interested” in signing Kyrie Irving with or without Kevin Durant. Lewis had previously reported that Brooklyn was weighing whether to sign Irving if the team couldn’t get Durant too.
Things could change, but for now it looks like Frank Ntilikina may not be traded tonight by the Knicks, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday.

Warriors May Offer Durant ‘Delayed Sign-And-Trade’

June 20th, 2019 at 12:04pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors are considering a “delayed sign-and-trade” arrangement with Kevin Durant that would let him maximize his earnings and allow him to be traded once his ruptured Achilles is fully healed, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said this morning on “Get Up!” (video link)

Durant can lock in a five-year, $220MM contract by re-signing with Golden State, about $57MM more that he would earn in a four-year deal with anyone else.

“Let him rehab and then work with him to be traded,” Windhorst explained. “Potentially to New York, potentially to somewhere else. Be their way to sort of take care of him monetarily after what he just went through and also protect the franchise to get some assets. If that happens, the Knicks would be in tremendous position to get back into it because they’re going to have these young assets plus cap space.”

Windhorst called it “a last-ditch” effort on the Warriors’ part to avoid losing Durant in free agency with no return. He admits it would take a strong level of trust on Durant’s part to agree to such a deal, but adds that the Warriors have promised to help facilitate a trade to wherever he wants to go.

New York Notes: Barrett, Durant, Bol, Bazley

June 19th, 2019 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Family considerations are part of the reason R.J. Barrett wants to be drafted by the Knicks tomorrow, relays Marc Berman of The New York Post. At a press conference today, Barrett explained that his grandfather was a huge Knicks fan, his mother is from Brooklyn and his father played at St. John’s.

It appears Barrett will get his wish, unless someone leapfrogs New York and makes a deal with Memphis for the No. 2 pick. He has turned down requests for a workout with the Grizzlies, saying he prefers to play for the Knicks.

“My agent and I and my parents, we just decided not to (work out for Memphis),’’ Barrett said. “Not really anything wrong with Memphis. New York is just more where I wanted to be.”

Ja Morant ranks slightly higher on the Knicks’ board, but the team will be content to stay put at No. 3 and take Barrett if that’s how the draft works out, a source tells Berman.

There’s more from New York on the eve of the draft:

While the Knicks have clarity about their draft situation, free agency looks very different, notes Frank Isola of The Athletic. He cites league sources who believe Kevin Durant is headed to New York, even if Kyrie Irving winds up in Brooklyn. However, Isola is skeptical after hearing months of rumors that they want to play together. He adds that Durant’s Achilles surgery last week was performed by an orthopedic surgeon who formerly worked for the Knicks but is now with the Nets.
The Nets attended a private workout for Oregon center Bol Bol last week, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.TV. Brooklyn has the 27th pick and would probably have to move up for Bol, but the foot injury he suffered in college make his draft range unpredictable.
Darius Bazley is a name to watch if he’s still on the board for the Nets‘ selection, according to Brian Lewis of The New York Post. The 6’10” forward didn’t play college basketball after committing to Syracuse, but he has been impressive in workouts. Lewis mentions Stanford’s KZ Okpala, Auburn’s Chuma Okeke, USC’s Kevin Porter, Arizona State’s Luguentz Dort and Croatian Luka Samanic as other possibilities at No. 27.