Kristaps Porzingis

Eastern Notes: Beal, Porzingis, Knicks, Caruso, Ibaka, Rubio

January 15th, 2023 at 11:59am CST by Luke Adams

Bradley Beal, who has been sidelined for the Wizards‘ last four games due to a low-grade left hamstring strain, is nearing a return.

According to Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link), Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. said today that Beal has been upgraded to questionable for Monday’s game vs. Golden State. If the star guard doesn’t end up playing in that contest, his next chance to return would be on Wednesday in New York.

Here’s more from around the East:

In a Q&A with Mark Medina of NBA.com, Wizards big man Kristaps Porzingis discussed why he feels comfortable in D.C., what he’s doing this season to stay healthy, and why his stints with the Knicks and Mavericks didn’t work out as hoped.
The Knicks have been scouting the Bulls “closely” as of late, according to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, who suggests New York would be a team to watch if Chicago decides to make guard Alex Caruso available.
Bucks big man Serge Ibaka wasn’t with the team on its four-game road trip this past week due to personal reasons, and it doesn’t sound like that will change anytime soon. According to Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link), head coach Mike Budenholzer said on Saturday that he doesn’t expect Ibaka to rejoin the club when it returns home. The Bucks will play in Milwaukee on Monday and Tuesday before heading back out on the road.
After returning to action on Thursday following a year-long recovery from an ACL tear, Ricky Rubio said he was “grateful” to be playing basketball again, per ESPN’s Kevin Pelton. While he acknowledged there were “a lot of emotions” in his first game back, the veteran point guard added that he’s already thinking about what the rest of the season will look like for him and the Cavaliers. “I didn’t work just to come back today,” Rubio said. “I worked hard to come back stronger than ever. It’s not just about today. I’m looking forward to having a strong season, not just a comeback season.”

Southeast Notes: Wizards, Vucevic, Magic, Favors, Heat

January 11th, 2023 at 7:25pm CST by Rory Maher

Johnny Davis, the 10th overall pick last June, has rarely seen the court for the Wizards, making just 10 appearances for an average of 5.0 minutes per contest. The rookie guard has spent most of the season with the team’s G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, averaging 11.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.1 APG and 1.0 SPG on .408/.352/.786 shooting in 14 games (25.2 MPG) during the Showcase Cup.

Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. has been keeping a close eye on the lottery pick’s G League performances, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.

“I think the injuries have been a big piece of it. It’s hard to really evaluate a guy who hasn’t had a ton of opportunities here. I’ve seen a lot of growth with his G-League development,” Unseld said of Davis, who is currently sidelined with a right hip strain.

“The level of confidence he’s playing with, I think he’s starting to see the game slow down for him. Offensively, I think he’s starting to settle in to see the types of plays and the types of shots we want him to take. So, there’s a lot of growth there. I know it’s not translating as fast as maybe we would all like to see, but I think it bodes well.”

Go-Go head coach Mike Williams also spoke to Hughes about Davis, saying he’s done a nice job defensively, but he needs to work on his decision-making and shooting offensively.

Here’s more from the Southeast:

The Wizards are shorthanded for tonight’s game against the Bulls. In addition to guard Bradley Beal, who continues to be sidelined with a left hamstring strain, big men Daniel Gafford (right ankle sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (right rib contusion) were downgraded from questionable to out (Twitter link). Deni Avdija and Taj Gibson started in place of Gafford and Porzingis. Backup forward Rui Hachimura should also see an uptick in minutes.
In an appearance on The Sixth Man Show podcast, Bulls center Nikola Vucevic was asked if he would be open to returning to the Magic if it made sense for him down the road. “Of course, I mean yeah,” Vucevic said. “That’s something that I would love to do at some point. We’ll see when that is possible, if that’s realistic and how it all works out. But yeah, for sure, I would like to, if anything, at least get one last year in Orlando. I think it’s only right it happens, so we’ll see. … I feel like I have a lot of basketball left, so who knows what will happen, but yeah, for sure, it’s something that’s on my mind, I can’t say it’s not.” The two-time All-Star will be a free agent in the summer.
Veteran center Derrick Favors, an Atlanta native who just inked a 10-day contract with the Hawks, says he grew up a fan of the team. “Oh, definitely a fan growing up,” Favors said, per Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscriber link). “Back when they had like Josh Smith, Joe Johnson, those guys. I’m definitely a fan, Al Horford. And just being from Atlanta has always been a dream to, you know, at least put the jersey on at least one time. So, it’s definitely a dream, and I’m blessed and humbled to be here.” According to Williams, Favors went through shootaround Wednesday, but he wasn’t sure if he’d see the court against the Bucks. “It’s up to them, you know, if they call the name, call my number, I’ll be ready,” he said. “You know, if not, then you know, I’ll be ready for the next game. So, you know, we’ll see.”
Head coach Nate McMillan provided a little more context on Favors’ potential role during his 10-day stint, Williams adds (Twitter links). He said he would prefer Favors to go through a practice before actually playing, but he might play Wednesday if needed. McMillan views Favors as an “insurance policy” when the Hawks need more size.
The Heat have dealt with so many injuries this season that head coach Erik Spoelstra admits that he sometimes forgets who is actually available to play, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “We’ve been dealing with a lot of moving parts,” he said. “I kept on forgetting who’s available and who’s not.” Miami only had a seven-man rotation after Dewayne Dedmon was ejected Tuesday.

Eastern Rumors: Bucks, Bogdanovic, Raptors, Wizards, Hampton

January 6th, 2023 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Bucks are tied for the NBA’s second-best record, they’re in the bottom five in offensive rating, having relied on one of the league’s best defenses during their strong first half. As they look to upgrade their offense, they’re expected to be in the market for help on the wing at the trade deadline, according to Matt Moore of ActionNetwork.com.

The Bucks, Suns, and Rockets reportedly discussed a three-team trade involving Jae Crowder, but it didn’t get done because Houston wanted more draft compensation than Milwaukee and Phoenix were willing to offer. Some league sources who spoke to Moore suggested they wouldn’t be surprised to see the three teams return to that framework and eventually get something done.

Pistons forward Bojan Bogdanovic is another player who is on the Bucks’ radar, per Moore, and he’d certainly provide the club’s offense with a boost. However, Detroit doesn’t appear eager to move Bogdanovic, Moore adds. Jake Fischer reported earlier this week that the Pistons are believed to be seeking a first-round pick, plus additional draft assets or a young player with upside.

Here are a few more rumors from around the Eastern Conference:

Sources who have spoken to Moore have indicated that the Raptors are willing to discuss a variety of players but have been seeking a substantial return for their potential trade candidates. Moore says the words “insane,” “astronomical,” and “far-fetched” have been used by his sources to describe Toronto’s asking prices. He adds that the price for OG Anunoby is believed to be higher than it was in the offseason, when the Raptors were reportedly seeking a top-10 pick.
Although there has been some trade speculation this season centered on Wizards guard Bradley Beal and especially forward Kyle Kuzma, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype has heard that the front office would like to build around Beal, Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis long-term and would ideally find a fourth core player to complement that trio.
As he did last month, Magic wing R.J. Hampton requested and was granted an assignment to the G League in order to get more playing time, reports Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. Hampton played a couple games with the Lakeland Magic last month before returning to Orlando, but has been a DNP-CD in four of eight contests since then and logged more than five minutes just once.

Luka Doncic, Kristaps Porzingis Named Players Of The Week

January 2nd, 2023 at 2:40pm CST by Rory Maher

Mavericks guard Luka Doncic and Wizards big man Kristaps Porzingis have been named the NBA’s players of the week, the league announced (via Twitter).

Doncic, the Western winner for the second straight week and the conference’s first repeat winner this season, led Dallas to a 3-0 record and put up historic numbers in the process. He averaged 48.7 points, 13.0 rebounds, 10.7 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.3 blocks, becoming the first player in NBA history to total 140-plus points, 30-plus rebounds and 30-plus assists over any three-game span, according to the Mavericks.

The 23-year-old, who now leads the league in scoring average with 34.2 per game, recorded 60 points, 21 rebounds, 10 assists, two steals and one block against New York, followed by 35 points, 12 rebounds, 13 assists, one steal and two blocks against Houston, and lastly had 51 points, six rebounds, nine assists, four steals and one block against San Antonio. Doncic shot 61.7% from the field in the three games, including 48.0% from three, and only had six turnovers.

Porzingis, Doncic’s former teammate with the Mavs, led Washington to a 4-0 week. The East’s winner averaged 24.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.5 blocks on .559/.364/.857 shooting. Porzingis led the league in plus/minus over the four contests, recording a total of plus-82 for an average of plus-20.5 in each game, per the Wizards.

According to the NBA (Twitter links), the other nominees in the West were LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Ja Morant, Jordan Poole, Domantas Sabonis and Zion Williamson, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jaylen Brown, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield and Myles Turner were nominated in the East.

Southeast Notes: Porzingis, Gafford, Beal, Magic, J. Johnson

December 31st, 2022 at 7:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards have strung together four straight wins with a super-sized starting lineup featuring Kristaps Porzingis and Daniel Gafford, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Both big men have adapted well to the pairing, enabling Washington to climb back into the race for the play-in tournament.

Hughes notes that both players blocked four shots Friday night at Orlando, becoming the first Wizards teammates to reach that total in the same game in 10 years. With Porzingis getting 13 rebounds and Gafford collecting eight, they are the first Washington players with at least four blocks and eight rebounds in the same game since 1987.

Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said earlier this week that he wanted to watch the Porzingis-Gafford pairing for five games before determining whether to make it permanent, but Hughes suggests that Unseld has probably seen enough already to make a decision. Hughes points out that Porzingis has more freedom on offense with Gafford stationed down low, allowing him to look for three-point shots and post up whenever he has a mismatch.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Wizards guard Bradley Beal missed Friday’s game with a sore left hamstring and is listed as questionable for Sunday night against the Bucks. He has sat out the past two games.
After enjoying an 8-2 stretch earlier this month, the Magic have dropped their last three games, observes Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel. The Magic are short-handed because of suspensions imposed after a fight with the Pistons this week, but they also have a lot of young players who are still getting used to the rigors of a long season. “It’s a tricky balance,” coach Jamahl Mosley said. “You have a group of young guys that are working every single day but balancing how much they work vs. understanding their bodies need to get the rest. You don’t want to overdo it in practice to the point that in the game that their energy levels are lower. We’ll balance it out.”
Hawks forward Jalen Johnson is coming off the best week of his NBA career, averaging 12.3 PPG over his last three games, per Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Opportunities have arisen for the team’s younger players after injuries to Clint Capela and De’Andre Hunter. “That’s just a part of being an NBA,” Johnson said. “You just got to be prepared for whatever situation like last year, when we had all those COVID cases, like we had a whole new team. So, you just got to be prepared for whatever injuries happen. That’s just a part in this league playing 82 games. So yeah, it’s not really nothing crazy getting adjusted to that.”

Scotto’s Latest: Porzingis, LaVine, Trent, Pacers, Spurs

December 21st, 2022 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

Two NBA executives who spoke to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype believe that if he remains healthy and productive this season, Wizards big man Kristaps Porzingis could be in line for a three- or four-year contract worth about $30MM annually on the open market next summer. Porzingis holds a $36MM player option for 2023/24, but would likely decline that option and accept a modest pay cut next season if it meant securing a lucrative long-term deal.

With Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma both potentially on track for 2023 free agency, the Wizards may have to make some decisions in the coming weeks about their current roster’s ceiling and how committed they are to this core. The team holds Porzingis’ and Kuzma’s Bird rights, but both players would be unrestricted free agents, so Washington wouldn’t be able to fully control the process. If the Wizards are worried about losing Porzingis and/or Kuzma next summer, it would make sense to gauge their value in advance of February’s trade deadline.

According to Scotto, the Wizards believe their roster is more talented than their 12-20 record suggests and are hoping to get an extended look at a fully healthy group before making any decisions about personnel changes.

Here’s more from Scotto:

The Bulls, Raptors, and Wizards are among the teams being monitored closely by rivals in case they pivot to selling. Multiple clubs, including the Knicks, are keeping a close eye in particular on Bulls guard Zach LaVine, says Scotto. LaVine has reportedly not seen eye-to-eye with the organization this season after signing a five-year, maximum-salary contract in July.
Multiple NBA executives who spoke to Scotto at this week’s G League Showcase “unanimously” consider Gary Trent Jr. the Raptors‘ most likely trade candidate. Trent is widely expected to turn down his 2023/24 player option (worth $18.8MM) and seek a multiyear deal. Two executives told Scotto they think Trent can get $20MM+ per year as a free agent, and there’s skepticism around the NBA that Toronto will want to retain him at a price exceeding $20MM annually.
With the Pacers and Spurs still well below the salary floor, multiple executives believe the two clubs will be on the lookout for opportunities to take on unwanted contracts – along with draft compensation – at this season’s deadline, per Scotto.

Southeast Notes: Hampton, Beal, Porzingis, Kuzma, Butler

December 14th, 2022 at 6:01pm CST by Rory Maher

Magic guard R.J. Hampton has signed with CAA and will be represented by agent Aaron Mintz, according to Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link), who notes that Mintz also represents Magic veterans Terrence Ross and Gary Harris.

Hampton was previously with LIFT Sports Management, but departed the agency after the Magic declined their fourth-year team option on his rookie scale contract for 2023/24, making him an unrestricted free agent in 2023.

Price reports (via Twitter) that Hampton requested — and was granted (Twitter link) — a temporary G League assignment with Orlando’s affiliate in Lakeland in order to get more playing time. The No. 24 overall pick of the 2020 draft has been a healthy scratch for three consecutive games.

The plan is for the 21-year-old to play in Lakeland’s home games on Thursday and Friday and then rejoin the Magic in Boston for Sunday’s contest, head coach Jamahl Mosley confirmed to Price (Twitter link). Through 21 games (15.6 MPG), Hampton is averaging 6.5 PPG, 1.6 RPG and 1.5 APG on .438/.347/.871 shooting.

Here’s more from the Southeast:

The Wizards will be playing without their two leading scorers on Wednesday in Denver, as Bradley Beal (hamstring) and Kristaps Porzingis (low back soreness) have been ruled out, tweets Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. Beal was medically cleared to return, but clearly needs a bit more time to ramp up his conditioning. He has now missed five straight games with the injury, while Porzingis will miss just his second game of the ’22/23 season.
Josh Robbins of The Athletic details why Kyle Kuzma‘s contract situation has the Wizards in a tough spot. As Robbins writes, Kuzma is limited by the CBA rule regarding veteran contract extensions, so the maximum the Wizards can offer him in an extension is $69.9MM over four years. He’s averaging 21.3 PPG, 7.7 RPG and 3.6 APG, and he figures to land $20MM+ annually when he opts out of his $13MM player option in the summer to become a free agent (a mere formality at this point), so Washington has to decide if they want to risk losing him for nothing or trade him away to recoup assets. The Wizards do hold his Bird Rights, so they can offer him an additional year — and more money — than a rival team could.
The Wizards have lost 10 of their past 11 games, including seven straight. When asked about the team’s morale, Kuzma said it’s “not as bad as you think,” according to Robbins. The veteran forward added that he’s disappointed in the results, but not the team’s effort. “I mean, it does suck to lose,” Kuzma continued. “Everybody in here does feel s–t about losing, but we’re competing. It’s not a lack of effort. If it was a lack of effort, it’d probably be way worse. But as long as we’re competing every single night, we’ve given ourselves a chance. You’ve just got to tip your cap and just live with it.”
Heat forward Jimmy Butler will miss Wednesday’s game in Oklahoma City due to right knee management, but he’s expected to return to action on Thursday against Houston, per Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald (Twitter link). As Chiang relays in a full story for The Miami Herald, Butler missed seven games in November with the injury, so the Heat are being cautious with their star player. He’ll miss one end of the back-to-back at the end of the month, but the team is hopeful that will be the last time he’ll miss a game on a back-to-back — Miami doesn’t have any on its January schedule.

Southeast Notes: Beal, Bamba, Bogdanovic, Porzingis

December 6th, 2022 at 10:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

More promising news regarding Bradley Beal‘s injury was revealed by Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr., who told The Athletic’s Josh Robbins (Twitter link) and other media members on Tuesday that Beal’s right hamstring injury is a low-grade strain.

Unseld is hopeful Beal might return at some point during the Wizards’ West Coast trip that begins on Dec. 14. The team announced on Monday that Beal would miss at least three games due to the injury he suffered against the Lakers on Sunday.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

Magic big man Mohamed Bamba is not on the injury report released by the team for Wednesday’s game against the Clippers, Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. Bamba has not played the last five games due to back pain. With Wendell Carter Jr. still out due to a plantar fascia strain, Bamba could play significant minutes right off the bat. He’s averaging 8.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per game.
Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 17 points on Monday in his second game back after recovering from a knee injury. The Hawks’ wing still working on his conditioning, according to Aaron Wilson of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I thought I would be more tired, more sore,” he said. “I feel really good; I feel like my old self. I did have heavy legs in the second half, all the shots, all these curls I usually make weren’t there. Just got to keep working.”
Kristaps Porzingis is on his third NBA team and he doesn’t want to join a fourth any time soon, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports. He holds a $36MM option on his contract for next season but wants to stay with the Wizards. “One hundred percent. One hundred percent. I love the city. I love the organization. People around the organization. And I love playing with Brad and these guys, Kuz (Kyle Kuzma),” Porzingis said. “You never know what happens in the future, but I’m enjoying my time here so far and hopefully I can stay here long term.”

Southwest Notes: Jones, Chandler, Luka, Mavs, Spurs

December 6th, 2022 at 2:00pm CST by Luke Adams

With Ja Morant sidelined on Monday due to left ankle soreness, Tyus Jones showed why the Grizzlies made him the NBA’s highest-paid backup point guard this past summer, writes Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Inserted into the starting lineup, Jones responded by scoring 28 points and dishing out 10 assists en route to an impressive Memphis win over Miami.

While we could quibble over whether Jones is technically the NBA’s highest-paid backup point guard (Russell Westbrook is coming off the bench in Los Angeles while earning more than three times as much), the Grizzlies point guard is perhaps the league’s highest-paid point guard who signed his contract expecting to be a backup — even if he doesn’t think of himself that way.

“I feel like I view myself as a starter in this league,” Jones said. “I feel like I am a starter in this league. I just come off the bench, and I have no shame in that. I love being in Memphis, and I take pride in my role.”

Morant’s absence and Jones’ promotion gave Grizzlies rookie Kennedy Chandler the rare chance to play a major role off the bench, and he logged a season-high 26 minutes in the win over the Heat. As Evan Barnes of The Memphis Commercial Appeal details, Chandler has taken advantage this season of the opportunity to lean from the two veteran point guards ahead of him on the depth chart, but admits he has had to adjust to not playing regularly.

“It’s hard. It’s the first time I’ve ever dealt with this. My whole entire life I’ve played 30 minutes (a game),” Chandler said. “This is a business, it’s a growing up moment for me to just keep my mind right.”

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd recognizes that the workload Luka Doncic has handled so far this season isn’t sustainable, according to Vincent Goodwill of Yahoo Sports. Doncic ranks first in the West with a 37.9% usage rate and is second in the conference in minutes per game (36.8). “For 82 games, it’s no way that he can play at this level, the usage is just way too high. No one can. You know, the things that we ask him to do on the offensive end and then asked him to defend on the other end. It’s a lot,” Kidd said, noting that other players will have to step up for Dallas.
Now a member of the Wizards, former Mavericks big man Kristaps Porzingis is willing to admit in a conversation with Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports that he “just wasn’t the right guy” to be Doncic’s co-star. “On paper, it would be the perfect fit, but it just didn’t mesh the way that we wanted to,” Porzingis said. “We just did not mesh together well. Sometimes it’s like that in the workplace, you know? It just didn’t work out the way you expected.”
The Spurs are doing a ton of homework to prepare for the possibility of landing Victor Wembanyama in the 2023 draft, including considering how their current players might mesh with him, according to LJ Ellis of SpursTalk.com. The Spurs won’t have more than a 14% chance of winning the No. 1 pick in next year’s lottery, but it seems likely they’ll be among the top contenders for Wembanyama — San Antonio is currently just 6-18, dead last in the West.

Southeast Notes: Young, Bogdanovic, Porzingis, Oladipo

December 4th, 2022 at 3:05pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

All-Star point guard Trae Young, who missed the Hawks‘ 117-109 victory over the Nuggets on Friday with a sore shoulder, is back with the team after not being present even on the Atlanta bench or home arena, writes Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (subscriber link).

“It was just miscommunication in that situation with Trae,” Hawks head coach Nate McMillan said, without offering further details. “Just as simple as that.”

Young and fellow All-Star guard Dejounte Murray have been a huge reason for the Hawks’ solid 13-10 start to the season. Through 21 healthy contests, the 6’1″ Young is averaging 27.8 PPG on .411/.303/.899 shooting splits, along with 9.6 APG, 2.9 RPG and 0.8 SPG.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

Hawks reserve guard Bogdan Bogdanovic appreciated the enthusiastic fan reception he received for his first game back from a knee surgery Friday, Williams writes in a separate piece (subscriber link). “I honestly think it was perfect because I didn’t expect (the reaction), honestly,” Bogdanovic noted. “When I was checking in, I was really calm, like I know what I’m going to do and what is my job, and I was ready. But then, I don’t know, I didn’t expect the ovations and the crowd going crazy… It made me nervous, honestly, like a little kid. That’s how I felt like the first two minutes and everyone’s trying to talk to me, I can’t hear nothing.” Though he scored a modest five points on Friday, the swingman certainly seems positive about his outlook going forward.
Wizards starting center Kristaps Porzingis has hired a new agent, reports Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News (Twitter link). Excel Sports agent Jeff Schwartz is the 7’3″ big man’s new rep, per Bondy. Porzingis, who has been enjoying a bounce-back season in his first full year with Washington, has a $36MM player option for 2023/24. Through 22 appearances, the 27-year-old is averaging 21.6 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.5 APG, and 1.5 BPG while shooting .470/.364/.800 from the floor for the 11-12 Wizards.
Heat guard Victor Oladipo is nearing a return from his injured knee, though the timeline is still somewhat up in the air. Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel writes that Oladipo seems optimistic that he could return as soon as this week. “I feel good, been moving a lot more,” Oladipo said. “Just going to make sure it’s the right thing, the right decision collectively. I’m not going to make a decision by myself. Just going to make sure everything feels good and I can perform at the highest level.”

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