Khris Middleton Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Bucks, Celtics Discuss Trade For Middleton, Monroe?

June 23rd, 2016 at 2:23pm CST by Eddie Scarito

2:23pm: Charles F. Gardener of the Journal Sentinel (via Twitter) casts a different view, saying trade talks aren’t currently ongoing in Milwaukee and classifies any pending deals as “possible, but not likely.”

2:21pm: The Celtics are still desperately seeking a star player to add to their roster and are reportedly quite active on the trade front. To this end, Boston has engaged in trade discussions with the Bucks regarding Khris Middleton and Greg Monroe, Gery Woelfel of The Racine Journal Times relayed.

According to Woelfel’s sources, the Bucks and Celtics are exploring a potential deal that would send Middleton and Monroe to Boston in exchange for the No. 16 and No. 23 picks in tonight’s NBA Draft along with another unnamed player. Milwaukee has worked out a number of players who are projected to go in the 16 to 23 range, including guard Denzel Valentine of Michigan State, guard Malachi Richardson of Syracuse, guard Dejounte Murray of Washington and North Carolina power forward Brice Johnson, Woelfel adds.

If Milwaukee is indeed willing to part ways with Middleton it would be reversal from previous reports that stated the swingman was “untouchable.” Middleton, 24, is signed for four more years and is owed a reasonable $55.3MM over that span. In 79 appearances this season he averaged 18.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 36.1 minutes per outing while shooting .444/.396/.888.

The Bucks have shown no such reluctance when it comes to dealing Monroe, with the team reportedly “anxious to move on from him.” Given the Bucks’ overall lack of athleticism, even with the presence of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the lumbering big man was never a good fit in Milwaukee. He has two seasons remaining on his current deal, though, he can choose to opt out next summer. In 79 games for the Bucks Monroe notched averages of 15.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 29.3 minutes per contest. His shooting line was .522/.000/.740.

Stein’s Latest: Celtics, Suns, Hayward, Sixers

June 22nd, 2016 at 8:32am CST by Luke Adams

Earlier this morning, we passed along Marc Stein’s report on the Al Horford sweepstakes, which will feature the Magic, Pistons, and Lakers as suitors. With the draft around the corner and free agency to follow shortly thereafter, the ESPN.com scribe has several more tidbits of interest to pass along, so let’s round them up…

The Celtics are going after several established veterans in trade talks, offering up the No. 3 overall pick as part of their proposed packages. So far though, they have been rebuffed by the Bulls (Jimmy Butler), Jazz (Gordon Hayward), and Bucks (Jabari Parker and Khris Middleton), says Stein.
According to Stein, the Bulls have shown little interest in sending Butler to the Celtics, the Bucks regard Parker and Middleton as “untouchables,” and the Jazz are telling interested teams that Hayward isn’t available. The Suns have also made an effort to pry Hayward from Utah, Stein writes.
The 76ers have been “trying for some time” to make a deal for the Celtics‘ No. 3 pick, offering either Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel as part of that package, but Boston has resisted those pitches, according to Stein. The C’s likely wouldn’t have much interest in Philadelphia’s 24th and 26th overall picks as part of a package, since Boston already has more than enough draft picks this year.
Former Syracuse wing Michael Gbinije may be a late riser in Thursday night’s draft, per Stein, who tweets that Gbinije could come off the board early in the second round or even late in the first.

And-Ones: Walton, Van Gundy, Hawks

June 21st, 2016 at 10:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

At his introductory press conference today, new Lakers coach Luke Walton says now that the NBA Finals are over he is completely focused on the task at hand and is ready to help restore the franchise to its former glory, The Los Angeles Daily News relays. Walton noted the franchise’s exciting young talent, the amount of money the team can afford to spend in free agency and the opportunity to turn things around for a franchise that is coming off some of its worst seasons ever as reasons the post interested and excited him. “The fact that [GM] Mitch [Kupchak] and [VP] Jimmy Buss trusted me to be part of this rebuilding, post-Kobe [Bryant] era means the world to me,” Walton said. “Everything excites me. We have young talented players, we have draft picks, we have $60-70 million in free agency, the greatest fans.”

Walton also added that he doesn’t foresee any issues with him reaching and connecting with the team’s young roster. “Our players are going to like coming into practice every day,” Walton said. “We are going to play a brand of b-ball that the L.A. fans will appreciate. You have to make it fun for them. Basketball is meant to be a game of joy.”

Here’s more from around the NBA:

The Jazz have told interested teams that Gordon Hayward isn’t available and won’t be traded, Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets. The Bucks are also turning away teams calling about Jabari Parker and Khris Middleton, Stein adds.
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy is confident the team will nab a solid player with the No. 18 overall pick, but he doesn’t expect whomever is selected to contribute next season, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. Van Gundy also noted that Detroit’s draft night results won’t alter its approach to free agency this summer. “It’s possible [the draft pick becomes part of the rotation], but we still wouldn’t view them that way at 18, quite honestly,” Van Gundy said. “Nothing that we do Thursday night will change the way we look at free agency. So if we draft a point guard Thursday night, we’ll still be looking at a point guard in free agency. If we draft a true power forward in the draft on Thursday night, we’re still going out looking for one.”
Discussing a possible trade of the Pistons‘ No. 18 pick, Van Gundy told reporters that the team plans on keeping the selection if there is a player available whom they like, Rod Beard of The Detroit News tweets. “The chances are, if there are guys there at 18 that we like, we’ll just go ahead and make our pick,” Van Gundy said.
The Hawks‘ wealth of draft picks over the four years provides the team with ample assets to be active in the trade market on Thursday night, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. “It’s always important to have multiple picks because it gives you the opportunity to explore trades that may take you higher in the draft,” GM Wes Wilcox said. “So, yes, it certainly provides some flexibility that we will explore on draft night. It’s not just in the current draft. We are fortunate to have all of our first-round picks going forward plus one additional. It depends on how to count the second-round picks because some are contingent on other picks being delivered but we essentially have two second-round picks in every draft for the next four years.“

Central Rumors: Cavaliers, Love, Bucks, Pistons

June 21st, 2016 at 2:23pm CST by Luke Adams

After winning a championship, the Cavaliers may not be as inclined to retool their roster as they otherwise might have been, but the team is still expected to listen to any trade inquiries it receives on Kevin Love, according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. Appearing on Zach Lowe’s podcast (hat tip to RealGM.com), Windhorst identified the Celtics as the ideal trade partner for Love, suggesting that the Cavaliers “really like” Avery Bradley and could also ask for Marcus Smart and a draft pick (not the No. 3) if Boston shows interest in making a deal.

While we wait to see if those hypothetical trade talks come to fruition, let’s round up a few more items from out of the Central division…

While plenty of reports have suggested Thursday could be a busy trade night around the NBA, Bucks general manager John Hammond isn’t expecting much movement at the top of the board, telling reporters that “people feel good about this draft” (Twitter link).
Hammond spoke a little more about the Bucks‘ draft and trade options, telling reporters that Milwaukee is targeting three or four players with the No. 10 pick, and hasn’t ruled out a big man at that spot (Twitter links via Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel). Hammond was also asked about rumors that the Celtics may be targeting Khris Middleton, and while he declined to comment on that report, he noted that many Bucks players have “great value around the league” (Twitter links via Gardner).
Wes Washpun (Northern Iowa), Fred VanVleet (Wichita State), Retin Obasohan (Alabama), Marcus Georges-Hunt (Georgia Tech), Cinmeon Bowers (Auburn), and Gracin Bakumanya (Democratic Republic of Congo) participated in a workout for the Bucks today, the team announced in a press release.
The Pistons are hosting Florida State’s Malik Beasley for a workout today, according to David Mayo of MLive.com (Twitter link). Beasley is ranked 17th on Chad Ford’s ESPN big board and 23rd at DraftExpress.com, so he’s a candidate to be on the board when Detroit picks 18th overall.
Rod Beard of The Detroit News doesn’t mention Beasley in his list of five potential targets for the Pistons at No. 18, instead naming Demetrius Jackson (Notre Dame), Denzel Valentine (Michigan State), and Ivica Zubac (Croatia), among others.

Rubio Says GM Told Him He Was Almost Traded

April 6th, 2016 at 2:46pm CST by Chuck Myron

Ricky Rubio says Timberwolves GM Milt Newton told him the team “almost traded” him at the deadline but didn’t because the right offer didn’t come, but Newton dismissed that notion, saying the point guard might have misinterpreted their conversation, as both relayed in interviews with Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. Reports indicated the Wolves engaged in trade talk regarding Rubio before the February deadline with the Bucks and, to a lesser degree, the Knicks. Milwaukee turned down an offer of Rubio and a protected 2016 first-round pick for Khris Middleton, while Minnesota rejected a counterproposal of Michael Carter-Williams for Rubio, according to Zach Lowe of ESPN.com.

“When the GM comes to you and says that’s what happened, it hurts, but you’ve got to be professional,” Rubio said. “You’ve been here all your career and thinking they were supporting you. At some point, they weren’t. But I’m professional. I’m going to give it my all. I love playing basketball and every time I step on the court I want to win.”

Newton told Krawczynski he would try to communicate more often with Rubio and said he’s already sought the point guard’s input on possible moves. The GM, to whom the Wolves have committed through at least the summer, called Rubio “extremely valuable to the organization,” as Krawczynski notes.

“I told him we’ve never, ever called another team to trade you, but it is my job to listen,” Newton said. “I even shared that with his agent. I never told him we almost traded you, because we didn’t almost trade him.”

Bucks Notes: Howard, Antetokounmpo, Knight

March 31st, 2016 at 4:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

If the Bucks are looking to make a splash in free agency for the second straight summer, Dwight Howard could be the player to target, writes Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post. The Rockets’ center has expressed his intention to turn down a player option for next season worth $23.282MM and seek a maximum contract starting at about $30MM. Milwaukee was among the teams that expressed interest in acquiring him before last month’s trade deadline, and Howard said he was intrigued by the possibility. Bontemps believes Howard would be the kind of defensive anchor that Greg Monroe failed to become after he signed with the Bucks last offseason. Depending where the salary cap is set, Milwaukee could have more than $20MM to spend if it doesn’t re-sign Jerryd Bayless, Greivis Vasquez and O.J. Mayo.

There’s more news out of Milwaukee:

Giannis Antetokounmpo could be in line for a maximum contract extension over the summer, Bontemps writes in the same piece. Coach Jason Kidd recently anointed Antetokounmpo as the Bucks’ starting point guard for next season, and the franchise could reward him with a max deal. At age 21, the third-year pro has blossomed in Milwaukee, averaging 18.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.9 blocks per game since the All-Star break.
The Bucks had to make a choice last season between giving a long-term contract to Khris Middleton or Brandon Knight, according to Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee shipped Knight to Phoenix in a three-team trade in February of 2015 and re-signed Middleton at $70MM over five years. “We had a good time while we played,” said Knight, who on Wednesday returned to Milwaukee for his first game there since the deal. “I think we [the Bucks] were just scratching the surface. Who knows where we could have went to?”
Wednesday marked the first game for Vasquez since November 27th, Gardner notes in a separate story. The backup point guard had surgery on his right ankle in December and was sidelined for 58 games. “You miss that many games, and the coach gives you an opportunity to play the game that you love, it means a lot to me,” Vasquez said. “It also shows what a class act this franchise is, because they’ve been with me the whole time.” Vasquez is headed toward free agency after earning $6.6MM this season.

Eastern Rumors: Bucks, Bosh, Lawson, Dedmon

March 5th, 2016 at 9:49pm CST by Arthur Hill

Bucks owner Wes Edens denies rumors of dissension within the ownership group, which also consists of principal owners Marc Lasry and Jamie Dinan, writes Charles F. Gardner of The Journal-Sentinel. Milwaukee has been among this season’s most disappointing teams, carrying a 26-36 record after last year’s playoff appearance. Regardless, Edens insists that ownership believes in Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker as the foundation for its future. “It’s definitely disappointing where we are; that’s the bad news,” Edens said. “The good news is, especially since the All-Star break, you look at the team of Giannis and Jabari and Khris, and others of course, and it’s not hard to imagine what this thing could really turn into.”

Edens added that no trades were given serious consideration before last month’s deadline and that any decision on a contract extension for coach Jason Kidd will be made after the season. “We can’t change what happened but we can improve on what’s going to happen,” Edens said. “That’s for the off season. Jason has been a big part of our involvement with the Bucks since we became owners, and I expect him to be a big part of our involvement with it going forward.”

There’s more news from the Eastern Conference:

Heat center/forward Chris Bosh held a workout today and tweeted encouraging news about his health. “Feeling good! Feeling great!” he wrote as questions continue to linger about his availability for the rest of the season. Bosh hasn’t played since he missed the All-Star Game with a calf strain that was later reported to be a blood clot. Bosh is rumored to be on blood-thinning medication, just as he was last year for a blood clot in his lungs, though neither the condition nor the medication has been confirmed by him or the team.
Point guard Ty Lawson is expected to sign with the Pacers on Monday and be in uniform for that night’s game, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Lawson agreed to sign with Indiana after the Rockets waived him Monday in a buyout agreement.
The Magic have assigned Dewayne Dedmon to the Erie Bayhawks of the D-League, the team announced today. The fourth-year center is averaging 3.4 points and 3.1 rebounds in 38 games with Orlando.

Central Notes: Middleton, Lue, Carter-Williams

March 4th, 2016 at 8:11pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Bucks turned down a proposed trade deadline swap with the Timberwolves that would have sent Khris Middleton to Minnesota and brought point guard Ricky Rubio to Milwaukee, a deal the team was wise to nix, Zach Lowe of ESPN.com opines. The scribe cites Middleton’s versatility, solid production and reasonable contract as reason why the Bucks were smart to hold onto the swingman. The Wolves even offered to sweeten the deal with the inclusion of a protected 2016 first-round pick, but the Bucks, who never seriously entertained trading Middleton, declined that offer as well, Lowe notes. The Bucks did submit a counterproposal to the Wolves, offering Michael Carter-Williams in exchange for Rubio, a swap that Minnesota quickly shot down, Lowe adds.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

The Cavaliers have gone 12-6 thus far under Tyronn Lue and despite a few bumps along the way, LeBron James is pleased with the job the new coach has done since replacing the fired David Blatt, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes. “I think he’s done a great job,” James said of Lue. “He’s even-keel as well. He just wants us to get better every single day and not waste an opportunity. Continue to focus on what needs to be done, the job at hand, and if we do that we’re going to give ourselves a great chance to win. He gets on us when we’re not doing our job and when we’re not doing it to the capabilities that we’re capable of doing it at, so that’s when he’s on us. And he stays on us.”
Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy openly expressed his appreciation of the Spurs and how that franchise is able to maintain a championship-caliber roster while not running afoul of the salary cap, David Mayo of MLive.com relays. “There’s no question when you don’t have to pay guys market value it’s pretty easy to build depth,” Van Gundy said. “The salary cap is hard on most of us trying to build depth. But with them, when they’ve got Tim Duncan playing below market value, Tony Parker playing below market value, Manu Ginobili playing below market value, David West playing below market value, when those guys all give up money, well, then it’s easy to add other people and allow you to go out and do what you need to do to build depth. They’ve done a great job of that.“

Eastern Notes: Morris, Teague, Middleton, ‘Melo

February 22nd, 2016 at 12:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

Ex-Suns coach Jeff Hornacek gave one of the most positive reviews about Markieff Morris that the Wizards encountered when they asked around the league about Markieff Morris prior to last week’s trade, sources told TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip for NBA.com. Wizards coach Randy Wittman said he only heard “rave reviews,” while Marcin Gortat and Jared Dudley, former teammates of Morris who are now on the Wizards, told the front office that Morris wouldn’t be a problem, as Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post details. See more from the Eastern Conference as the ramifications of the trade deadline continue:

The Bucks reportedly had at least passing interest in Jeff Teague, but they weren’t willing to part with Khris Middleton to get a deal done, league sources told Aldridge for the same piece. Milwaukee reportedly held tight to Middleton in talks about Ricky Rubio, too. The Hawks were trying to score both a starter and a first-round pick in would-be trades involving Teague, sources told USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt last week (Twitter link).
Meanwhile, the Pelicans were the team that clung to one of their players in their talks with the Bucks, as the conversation between those teams involving Greg Monroe fell apart when New Orleans refused to give up Jrue Holiday, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Several teams think that if the Knicks don’t make much progress in their rebuilding by the middle of July, Carmelo Anthony would be willing to waive his no-trade clause, Deveney writes in the same piece. The Knicks spoke with the Rockets about Ty Lawson before the trade deadline, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
The retention of Dwyane Wade and Hassan Whiteside this summer would almost assuredly mean the end to Luol Deng‘s time with the Heat, observes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, who writes in his mailbag column. Front office executives around the league were led to believe that Deng was available on the trade market before last week’s deadline, as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt noted (on Twitter).

Central Notes: Rubio, Forman, Harris

February 18th, 2016 at 9:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Bulls held off on making any major trade deadline moves because no offers significant enough to improve the team materialized, according to GM Gar Forman, K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune relays. “We understand the frustrations. Up to this point, it has been a disappointing year,” Forman said. “We all realize — from ownership to the front office to the players to the coaching staff — we haven’t done as well as we thought we would do. We hold ourselves accountable that we haven’t met expectations. With that said, we certainly were not in any type of panic mode. We looked at the big picture. Obviously, the injuries that we’ve had have hurt. But that’s not the only reason. … We explored heavily and were very, very active with talks with a lot of teams. There wasn’t something we felt … significant enough to do something right now.”

Here’s the latest from the Central Division:

The Pistons believe that Tobias Harris is still on the rise as a player and that he will be able to help the franchise in a variety of ways, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. “The interesting thing is being able to look at what he was doing this season but going back to our free-agent preparation for the summer and the review of last year’s performance,” GM Jeff Bower told Langlois. “We feel that showed us a player with a variety of skills that can help a team in numerous ways. We also think that his play and the projection of his performance over the next five years is on a steady incline based on what we’re seeing and think he has a lot of room to grow as a player. We really like that this is a move that can be looked at as a long-term move as well as one that will fit with our core group of players and we’ll be able to keep them together due to contract certainty. Those are all pieces that were pretty important.”
The protected first round pick the Cavaliers sent to the Trail Blazers as part of the Channing Frye trade will become two second round picks if it is not conveyed in 2018 or 2019, Erik Gunderson of The Columbian relays (on Twitter).
The Bulls never attempted to trade power forward Pau Gasol, though the team did receive numerous inquiries about his availability, Forman insists, as Nick Friedell of ESPN.com notes (Twitter links). Forman also indicated that the team still hopes to re-sign center Joakim Noah, who will become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, Friedell adds.
Cavs GM David Griffin noted that the team had a deal in place with Frye when he was a free agent in 2014, but Cleveland couldn’t make the numbers work because it needed all of its cap space to sign LeBron James, Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal tweets.
The Bucks made several attempts to pry point guard Ricky Rubio away from the Wolves but balked when Minnesota requested shooting guard Khris Middleton in return, Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports (Twitter link).