Kris Dunn Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Kings Acquire Tristan Thompson In Three-Way Deal

August 7th, 2021 at 4:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

AUGUST 7: The three-team trade is now official, the Kings, Celtics, and Hawks all announced today in press releases.

The 2023 second-round pick that the Hawks are sending to Boston originally belonged to the Trail Blazers and was shipped to Atlanta by the Clippers in the Lou Williams trade in March, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link).

JULY 30: The Celtics are trading veteran big man Tristan Thompson to the Hawks for guard Kris Dunn, forward Bruno Fernando and a 2023 second-rounder, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.

However, Thompson isn’t staying with the Hawks. He’s being forwarded to the Kings, with guard Delon Wright going to Atlanta.

All the players in the three-way deal have expiring contracts. Thompson will make $9.7MM next season, while Dunn will secure just over $5MM and Fernando will collect $1.8MM. Wright will make approximately $8.5MM next season.

The move pushes the Celtics another $3MM below the luxury tax threshold, Bobby Marks of ESPN tweets. Dunn had a player option on his contract and opted in earlier this week, which made the trade viable.

After nine seasons in Cleveland, Thompson played in 54 regular-season games with the Celtics, including 43 starts. He averaged 7.6 PPG and 8.1 RPG.

Dunn’s lone season in Atlanta was a washout due to an ankle injury. He only appeared in four regular-season games, but does give the Celtics another option for their backcourt rotation with Kemba Walker getting traded this offseason.

Fernando, an early second-round pick in 2019, appeared in 89 regular-season games during his first two years in the league.

Thompson gives the Kings some frontcourt insurance with Richaun Holmes entering free agency.

Wright averaged 10.0 PPG and 3.6 APG in 27 games with Sacramento after being acquired from Detroit at the trade deadline. Wright can play either guard spot and will likely slide into a backup role with Atlanta.

Celtics Rumors: Green, Gay, Bradley, Olynyk, Dunn, Fournier

August 1st, 2021 at 7:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Celtics prefer to use their mid-level exception to go after an experienced veteran player who can bring size and shooting to the team, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Former Celtic Jeff Green is thought to be one of Boston’s primary targets, Himmelsbach reports.

The Celtics aren’t far from the tax line and may be limited to the taxpayer portion of the mid-level exception this offseason, since using the non-taxpayer version would hard-cap the club for the rest of the 2021/22 league year. The taxpayer MLE is expected to be worth about $5.9MM, which should be enough to make a competitive offer for Green.

Here’s more on the Celtics:

Rudy Gay, Avery Bradley, and Kelly Olynyk are among the other free agents the Celtics may pursue, a league source tells Himmelsbach. Himmelsbach also confirms the club’s previously-reported interest in Patty Mills.
League sources tell Himmelsbach that the Celtics will likely try to flip Kris Dunn, who is being sent from Atlanta to Boston in a not-yet-official trade.
Himmelsbach also confirms that the Celtics are losing confidence in their ability to re-sign Evan Fournier in free agency. The acquisition of Josh Richardson was viewed as a contingency for the possibility of Fournier landing elsewhere.
Former UConn star Jalen Adams worked out for the Celtics earlier this week, according to Jay King of The Athletic (Twitter link). Adams has played in the G League and in France since going undrafted in 2019.

Celtics Rumors: Richardson Trade, Fournier, Thompson, Parker

July 31st, 2021 at 1:39pm CST by Eli Cohen

The Celtics may have been quiet on draft night, but they’re making noise now. After agreeing to trade Tristan Thompson for the Hawks’ Kris Dunn and Bruno Fernando and sending Moses Brown to the Mavericks for Josh Richardson, the Celtics have given themselves some extra flexibility from both a financial and roster perspective, writes The Athletic’s Jared Weiss.

Evan Fournier‘s market seems to be in the range of $12-$20MM per year, according to Weiss, who points out that dealing for Richardson affords the Celtics the option of walking away if the bidding war gets too rich for them. It sounds like that’s a very realistic possibility, as Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald hears from a source that Boston is unwilling to meet Fournier’s asking price of $80MM over four years.

“It’s not looking good,” Murphy’s source said of the Celtics’ negotiations with Fournier.

Meanwhile, there’s no guarantee that the Celtics will hang onto Dunn, according to Weiss, who says the former lottery pick could be flipped again. Weiss suggests that two viable options for dealing Dunn could be to the Cavaliers – along with one of the Celtics’ young players – in a deal for Larry Nance Jr., or to the Pelicans – with Marcus Smart – in a Lonzo Ball sign-and-trade.

We have more rumors on the Celtics:

According to Weiss, while Thompson was beloved by teammates, he butted heads with the coaching staff and the organization throughout the year and was widely expected to be moved this offseason.
In the same piece, Weiss cites The Athletic’s Danny Leroux, who explains that the Celtics now project to be about $4.36MM below the tax line if Jabari Parker (who has a non-guaranteed contract) is waived.
The Celtics wanted to send more guaranteed money to the Mavericks in the Josh Richardson deal, but Dallas initially didn’t want to take any money back, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac. Moses Brown was the compromise found, given the low guarantee on his deal ($500K).
Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated tweets that the Celtics’ front office, especially Brad Stevens, has long been a fan of Richardson, who will be looking to get back on track in Boston after a down year in Dallas.

Hawks’ Kris Dunn To Exercise Player Option

July 27th, 2021 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Kris Dunn is opting into his contract for next season, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link), who hears from sources that the Hawks guard will pick up his 2021/22 option, worth just over $5MM.

The Hawks signed Dunn last offseason, envisioning him as a player who could share the backcourt with Trae Young and provide stout perimeter defense. However, injury woes derailed Dunn’s first year in Atlanta, as he was sidelined for most of the season while he recovered from ankle surgery.

Dunn made his Hawks debut in late April and ultimately appeared in just four regular season games and five playoff games, primarily in garbage time. In 2019/20, as a Bull, Dunn averaged 7.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 3.4 APG, and 2.0 SPG in 51 contests (24.9 MPG).

Although Dunn is now under contract with the Hawks for next season, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be on the club’s opening-night roster in the fall. Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link) suggests it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Dunn and his expiring $5MM contract traded during the offseason.

With Dunn’s decision in, we’re still awaiting word on six more player option decisions around the NBA, as our tracker shows.

Hawks Notes: McMillan, Offseason, Reddish, Collins, Young

May 20th, 2021 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Praising the job that interim head coach Nate McMillan has done since replacing Lloyd Pierce on the Hawks‘ sidelines, general manager Travis Schlenk said that McMillan has been especially adept at tweaking the team’s plays to fit specific players’ skills and has been “unbelievably consistent with his messaging,” writes Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

While it seems like a given that McMillan will be offered Atlanta’s head coaching job on a permanent basis, Schlenk said he has yet to have that conversation with the veteran coach, as Spencer relays.

“Obviously he’s done a great job, I’ve said that publicly. I’ve told Nate that, but our stance is still the same,” Schlenk said. “We’re going to let the season play out and then once the season plays out, we’ll sit down and have conversations. But to this point, short of me telling him he’s doing a great job, we haven’t had any more in-depth conversations.

“That’s quite frankly the way Nate likes it and wants to do it as well. We’re obviously extremely pleased with the job he has done; I have no problem saying that… But we haven’t had any conversations.”

Here’s more on the Hawks:

Asked about the possibility of bringing back largely the same roster for next season, Schlenk said he wouldn’t be opposed to that, though he acknowledged that a few changes could be coming, according to Spencer. “Every free agency, draft, we’ll add players through the draft, we have two picks this year. And then free agency and the trade season,” Schlenk said. “But listen, if this same group came back, it wouldn’t bother me at all. But we’ll have to see how the draft and free agency play out.”
Cam Reddish (right Achilles soreness) is able to conduct unrestricted individual workouts and is participating in team practices on a limited basis, according to the Hawks, who said the swingman will be reassessed in 10-14 days. Reddish isn’t expected to have a real role even if he’s able to return before the Hawks’ playoff run ends, but Schlenk said the plan is to have him play for Atlanta’s Summer League squad in August, as Spencer details.
Asked about the Hawks’ top offseason priorities, Schlenk identified John Collins‘ restricted free agency and the team’s two draft picks as the most important matters to sort out, according to Spencer. The Hawks’ GM also mentioned Lou Williams‘ unrestricted free agency and Kris Dunn‘s player option decision as issues to address.
Trae Young will likely receive a new deal from the Hawks this summer, but Schlenk was noncommittal when asked about the players who are eligible for rookie scale extensions. “To be honest, I haven’t even really talked with any of (Young’s) people yet about any of that stuff,” Schlenk said, per Spencer. “Kevin (Huerter) and Trae are eligible. We’ll certainly look to talk to their groups at the appropriate time.”

Hawks Notes: Dunn, Huerter, Goodwin, Bogdanovic

April 27th, 2021 at 1:27pm CST by Arthur Hill

After being sidelined by injuries for the past 15 months, Kris Dunn returned to the court Monday in his debut with the Hawks, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Dunn, one of the league’s best perimeter defenders, sprained his MCL in January of 2020, the first of a series of injuries that have kept him out of action. An MRI in November showed cartilage disruption in his knee, and then pain in his right ankle and lower back began in December. He has spent the last four months rehabbing from arthroscopic surgery.

“I just felt like different things just kept happening,” Dunn said. “My initial injury was my knee. I felt like I was on the verge of getting better there, then the ankle situation happened. I felt like I was on the verge of getting better there (with my ankle), then the knee kept (having issues), it was just back and forth trying to get back the alignment right. It was a long process. Every emotion you can think of, I went through during that 15 months. But I have a great support system in the organization, my teammates, the coaching staff, everybody kept belief in me, and deep down inside, I’m going to just keep working. I did, and I’m happy I did it.”

Dunn played 13 minutes Monday night and will remain on a minutes restriction for a while. He signed a two-year deal with the Hawks during the offseason that includes a $5MM player option for next season.

There’s more from Atlanta:

Kevin Huerter will undergo an MRI today on his sprained left shoulder, tweets Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. Huerter suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Monday’s loss in Detroit.
Also injured last night was guard Brandon Goodwin, who left the game with an ankle impingement, Spencer adds (via Twitter). An X-ray taken after the game was negative, and the team said his status will be updated “as appropriate.” Goodwin offered his own update, tweeting, “Ankle good.”
The return of Bogdan Bogdanovic has helped Nate McMillan turn around the Hawks since taking over for Lloyd Price, writes Kevin Pelton of ESPN (Insider link). In McMillan’s first game as interim coach, Bogdanovic returned from an avulsion fracture in his right knee — since then, he has been on the court for most of the minutes without Trae Young.

Southeast Notes: Gafford, Collins, Hawks Injuries, Olynyk

April 20th, 2021 at 7:31pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Daniel Gafford thought there was a “50-50” chance he could be dealt by the Bulls before the Wizards traded for him, according to Fred Katz of The Athletic.

“I was in and out (of the lineup). I wasn’t really playing as much,” Gafford said. “So, there was a lot of stuff going on in my head, just really trying to stay as positive as I could.”

He’s thriving thus far since joining the Wizards, averaging 11.4 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 2.0 BPG in 17.1 MPG through his first eight games.

The Wizards were not only interested in adding an athletic body in Gafford. They also liked his affordable contract — he has a non-guaranteed $1.78MM salary next season, a guarantee Washington will almost certainly pick up given his production.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Hawks big man John Collins admits that trade rumors affected him mentally before the deadline, he told Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium (video link). “It’s not an easy thing to deal with,” he said. Collins will be a highly-coveted restricted free agent this summer, since he was unable to reach an extension agreement with the club last fall. “Very disappointing to not have something done,” he said. “I wanted to stay here, I want to be here. Now the situation being as it is, just (have to) weigh all my options.”
De’Andre Hunter, Tony Snell and Kris Dunn missed the Hawks’ game against Orlando on Tuesday and there’s no timetable for their return. Coach Nate McMillan provided updates on the trio on Monday and noted that Hunter (knee) was unable to participate in practice, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic tweets. Snell did some light running and shooting, while Dunn did some live work. They’re both sidelined by ankle injuries.
While Heat guard Victor Oladipo is sidelined by an knee injury, one of the players traded to Houston, Kelly Olynyk, has thrived in his new NBA home, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes. “It’s different for me coming from Boston and then Miami, just a different role,” Olynyk said. “But it’s been a great opportunity for me to go out there and play and help these young guys and help this team in a different way than my role was in Miami.” He had 10 points and eight rebounds against his former team on Monday.

Lou Williams Considered Retirement After Trade

March 26th, 2021 at 2:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran guard Lou Williams contemplated retirement following the trade that sent him from the Clippers to the Hawks on Thursday. As the three-time Sixth Man of the Year winner explained in a post on Instagram, being dealt away by the Clippers – his team for the last four years – hit him hard.

“I thought about retiring yesterday. You give so much to an organization and you wake up and boom, it’s no more,” Williams wrote. “Then in true Clipper nation fashion I was reminded that my talent and contribution was appreciated and it made me reflect on what’s to come. There’s plenty left in my tank and I’m privileged to continue my career in my backyard.”

The Clippers didn’t want to move Williams, but he was the only salary-matching piece that made sense in their deal for Rajon Rondo, writes Sam Amick of The Athletic.

The Hawks, incidentally, received high marks on that trade from ESPN’s Kevin Pelton (Insider link). Rondo hadn’t been effective this season and was owed a guaranteed $7.5MM salary for 2021/22, so trading him for Williams’ expiring $8MM deal and multiple second-round picks was an “enormous win” for Atlanta, Pelton argues.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

Although it’s a win for the Hawks overall, the Rondo trade will cost the team a respected veteran leader in the locker room, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, who says some players were going to the point guard for guidance over former head coach Lloyd Pierce. Kirschner notes that Williams, a 16-year veteran, should help replace Rondo’s leadership.
With Rondo gone, the Hawks don’t have a clear-cut backup point guard, but general manager Travis Schlenk said today that he thinks Williams can fill that role, with Bogdan Bogdanovic and others also sharing ball-handling responsibilities, per Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Schlenk added that the team will count on Williams to inject more offense into a second unit that has often struggled to score without Trae Young on the floor.
Atlanta never had any “serious conversations” about a John Collins trade prior to Thursday’s deadline, Schlenk told reporters. “We’ve been steadfast that we view John as a big part of our team, a big part of our franchise,” the Hawks’ GM said, according to Spencer. “Like with all our players, we do our due diligence to see what their value is, but I don’t think that you’ve ever heard myself or anybody else in the Hawks organization say that we don’t place great value on John. We do.”
Schlenk told reporters today that the plan is for Kris Dunn (ankle) to scrimmage on Monday, and that the guard could make his Hawks debut near the end of the team’s current West Coast road trip, tweets Spencer. That trip concludes on April 2 in New Orleans.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Southeast Division

March 19th, 2021 at 9:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Throughout the season, Hoops Rumors takes a closer look at players who will be free agents or could become free agents this off-season. We examine if their stock is rising or falling due to performance and other factors. This week, we take a look at players from the Southeast Division:

Moritz Wagner, Wizards, 23, PF/C (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $5.99MM deal in 2018

Wagner’s younger brother Franz is pursuing a national championship with Michigan and could be a lottery pick this summer. Moe Wagner, who played in the national championship game with the Wolverines in 2018, is currently biding his time on the Wizards’ bench.

Despite the season-ending injury to starting center Thomas Bryant, Wagner has fallen behind Alex Len and Robin Lopez in Scott Brooks’ rotation and hasn’t gotten his number called in the last four games. Washington declined its fourth-year option on Wagner in December, so he’ll be an unrestricted free agent this summer. A first-round pick by the Lakers in 2018, Wagner can only hope he’ll get a fresh start after seeing his career stall in Washington.

Kris Dunn, Hawks, 27, PG/SG (Down) – Signed to a two-year, $10MM deal in 2020

Dunn left Chicago and signed a two-year deal with the anticipation that he’d be a second-unit mainstay in Atlanta. Hawks fans are still waiting to see Dunn take the court. He underwent right ankle surgery in late December and has yet to make his team debut, though he has returned to practice. For a team intent on making the postseason, the Hawks may not have the luxury of waiting for Dunn to get into a rhythm. Thus, there’s no guarantee he’ll be in the rotation when he suits up. Dunn likely agreed to a $5MM player option with the aim of playing well enough to test the market again this summer. It’s a safe bet now he’ll exercise that option.

Duncan Robinson, Heat, 26, SF (Up) – Signed to a three-year, $3.1MM deal in 2018

Robinson’s name has been linked to some trade rumors, but whether or not Miami retains him, he’ll be making way more money next season. Robinson is expected to command an offer in the $15-$20MM range annually as a restricted free agent. That’s the value of a wing who can consistently knock down 3-pointers. Robinson established himself as a big-time shooter when he made 44.6% of his 3s last season in his second NBA campaign. That percentage is down to 38.9% this season but he’s still receiving around 30 MPG as a starter in coach Erik Spoelstra’s rotation.

Devonte’ Graham, Hornets, 26, PG/SG (Down) – Signed to a three-year, $4MM deal in 2018

It’s been a rough season for Graham after his breakout sophomore campaign in which he averaged 18.2 PPG and 7.5 APG. He’s dealt with some injuries, including a sore knee, and now he’s lost his starting job to rookie phenom LaMelo Ball.

The less he plays, the more time he spends hanging around the 3-point line rather than attacking the rim. With Ball leading the pack for the Rookie of the Year award, there’s speculation that Graham – a restricted free agent after the season — is available in trade talks. If Charlotte doesn’t deal Graham, it will have to decide how much it’s willing to pony up to retain him if he receives an offer sheet.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Hawks Notes: Collins, Dunn, Vaccinations

March 19th, 2021 at 3:15pm CST by Luke Adams

Hawks big man John Collins is receiving “heavy interest” ahead of next Thursday’s trade deadline, league sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN. However, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on the latest episode of The Woj Pod that he believes Collins is unlikely to be dealt, suggesting it’ll be hard for Atlanta to get good value for the 23-year-old, given his small cap hit and his looming restricted free agency.

“I think they can figure out John Collins’ future,” Wojnarowski said. “I know there was a limit they were willing to go in negotiations – around $90MM – on a (preseason) extension. … They can figure that out after the season.”

Brian Windhorst of ESPN (Insider link) conveys a similar sentiment, reporting that the Hawks have told teams inquiring on Collins that they intend to match any contract offer for him in the offseason.

While that hasn’t stopped the trade offers from coming, per Windhorst, Atlanta remains focused on making the playoffs and has been red-hot since Nate McMillan took the head coaching reins, winning seven straight games and moving up to the No. 5 seed in the East. Collins figures to play a crucial part in the club’s efforts to secure a postseason berth.

Here’s more on the Hawks:

According to a team press release, veteran guard Kris Dunn returned to modified team practice on Wednesday and is traveling with the Hawks on their eight-game road trip, which gets underway Saturday in Los Angeles. Dunn, who is coming off of ankle surgery, has yet to play a game for Atlanta, but there’s optimism he’ll make his debut before the end of the month.
As of Thursday night, 36 members of the Hawks’ organization, including 14 players, had received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. As Spencer explains, all of those individuals meet the current eligibility requirements in Georgia, while the three players who have yet to receive their first dose aren’t yet eligible.
Injured forward De’Andre Hunter (knee) is due to be re-evaluated today. The Hawks have yet to issue an update on his status, but the expectation is that he’ll be available at some point during the team’s upcoming road trip.