Khris Middleton Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Mavericks Notes: Felton, Nowitzki, Matthews, Harris

November 23rd, 2016 at 9:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Clippers point guard Raymond Felton returned to Dallas tonight, and the shorthanded Mavericks may be wishing they had kept him, writes Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. The team is playing without Deron Williams, J.J. Barea and Devin Harris, who have all been sidelined by injuries. Mavs coach Rick Carlisle called it a “franchise decision” to let Felton go, but he clearly misses having the veteran guard. “Felton played great for us, and I wish we would have brought him back,” Carlisle said. “He was a big difference-maker for us last year and probably one of the big reasons we got to the playoffs. You look at the whole year and everything that happened start to finish, Ray was filling in and starting. And we were winning a lot of those games because of what he was giving us. He’s a winner and was an ultimate pro here for two years. And the Clippers are very lucky to have him.” Felton, who got a one-year, minimum-salary deal from L.A., said the Mavericks were always his first choice. “I made it clear where I wanted to be,” he said. “Sometimes, things just don’t work out.”

The Mavericks welcomed Dirk Nowitzki back tonight in a move that should take the burden off some of the other starters, Sefko writes in a separate story. Harrison Barnes is second in the NBA in minutes played at 38.1 per game, and teammate Wesley Matthews is fourth at 36.9. The Mavs are always concerned about Matthews after the torn Achilles he suffered in 2015. “It’s not the injury history, it’s the length of the season,” Carlisle said. “There’s a cumulative effect of guys being out there too much. But there’s no substitute for a warrior like him who is the best perimeter defender we’ve got and hits big shots. His value to our team is unmistakable. I just got to find a little more rest for him, that’s all.”
Sefko suggested the Bucks’ Khris Middleton as a potential trade target if the Mavericks are able to make a playoff push. In a question-and-answer session, the writer said Middleton would be the kind of building block Dallas needs, but added that he had no inside information to suggest that such a deal had been discussed.
The team is hoping Harris will be back in a week to 10 days, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com. Harris hasn’t played yet this season because of a sprained right big toe and he will wear a carbon plate in his shoe for protection.

Central Notes: Middleton, Mirotic, Dunleavy, Pacers

September 29th, 2016 at 9:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Bucks‘ Khris Middleton had successful surgery Wednesday on his ruptured left hamstring, the team announced on its website. Middleton is expected to be out of action for six months following the procedure, which was performed at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. The fifth-year swingman, who signed a five-year, $70MM deal last summer, had his best season in 2015/16, averaging a career-high 18.2 points, 4.2 assists and 1.7 steals in 79 games.

There’s more tonight from the Central Division:

Nikola Mirotic seems to have the edge over Taj Gibson to be the Bulls‘ starting power forward, writes Mark Schanowski of CSNChicago. With the rest of the starting lineup seemingly set, power forward is Chicago’s most interesting position battle of the preseason. Schanowski believes Mirotic’s ability to stretch the floor in an otherwise shaky shooting lineup gives him the edge. Bobby Portis may be squeezed out of minutes unless he can earn time as a backup center.
After being traded from the Bulls to the Cavaliers over the summer, Mike Dunleavy says his new Cleveland teammates have a work ethic far beyond what he saw in Chicago, relays Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. Dunleavy admired the humility the Cavs showed despite their success of the past two seasons and noted that the stars are willing to put in extra practice time. “I’ve been on a lot of teams where guys come and go, show up five minutes before practice and leave right after,” he said. “We have our best players here an hour and a half early and stay an hour and a half late. Quite honestly, that’s kind of new to me.”
New Pacers coach Nate McMillan‘s nine-man rotation is virtually set, which leaves a lot of young players battling for very few minutes, according to Mark Montieth of NBA.com. Jeff Teague, Monta Ellis, Paul George, Thaddeus Young and Myles Turner will start, with Aaron Brooks, Rodney Stuckey, C.J. Miles and Al Jefferson as regular members of the rotation off the bench. McMillan said he will use 10 players per game if someone else shows they deserve to play, which may give hope to Glenn Robinson III, Joseph Young, Georges Niang, Kevin Seraphin, Lavoy Allen, Rakeem Christmas and Jeremy Evans.

Bucks Looking For Help On The Wing

September 21st, 2016 at 9:19pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Bucks are calling other teams to inquire about adding a wing in order to compensate for the loss of Khris Middleton, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). Middleton is expected to miss six months of action after tearing his hamstring.

If Middleton is ruled out for the year, the Bucks could apply for the disabled player exception, which would give them $5.6MM to use in free agency, Bobby Marks of the Vertical adds on Twitter. The team would need a roster spot open if awarded the exception and Marks notes (Twitter link) that the team has 15 guaranteed contracts on the books.

The injury to Middleton is a devastating blow to a team that is looking to drastically improve upon its 33-win campaign. The core of Middleton, Jabari Parker and Giannis Antetokounmpo was supposed to take the next step and elevate the team to contender status. Barring a substantial acquisition, Parker and Antetokounmpo, who recently signed a $100MM extension with the team, will likely be tasked with shouldering a bigger load on both ends of the floor.

Milwaukee signed Matthew Dellavedova and Jason Terry this offseason to bolster its bench unit, but it could be forced to insert one of the two into the starting lineup. Rashad Vaughn is also an internal candidate to see an increased role, but the sophomore didn’t have a particularly productive rookie campaign, so it may be a stretch to pencil him in for major minutes if the team intends on competing for a playoff birth.

Earlier today, we learned that Jabari Brown will join the Bucks for training camp. The team also signed J.J. O’Brien and Orlando Johnson earlier this month and while they all face uphill battles to make the team, opportunity awaits should a member of this trio excel during camp.

What should the Bucks do now that they will be forced to play much of the season without Khris Middleton? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts and opinions. We look forward to what you have to say!

Khris Middleton To Miss Six Months

September 21st, 2016 at 7:13pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Khris Middleton has suffered a torn hamstring and is slated to undergo surgery next week, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports. Middleton is expected to be sidelined for roughly six months, according to the team’s website. The final timetable for his return will be set after the surgery, sources tell Charania.

“We’re obviously disappointed for Khris and our team, but injuries are an unfortunate part of the game,” said Bucks GM John Hammond. “We’ll rely on our overall roster depth to help us while Khris is out for a significant period of the season.”

Milwaukee signed Middleton to a five-year, $70MM deal last offseason. In the first year of the deal, he averaged 18.2 points and 1.7 steals in 79 games. He was drafted by the Pistons with the 39th pick in the 2012 draft before coming to the Bucks in the Brandon Jennings deal.

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.