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International Notes: Doncic, Embiid, Gobert, Lessort

July 30th, 2023 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

Mavericks star Luka Doncic was introduced Saturday as the new captain of the Slovenian national team for the FIBA World Cup competition, writes Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops. He takes over for Edo Muric, who will miss the tournament with a torn ACL.

“I am honored to be the captain. The coach and the rest of the players made the decision,” Doncic said. “It is a pleasure to play for the national team. I have not played since April 10, so I can’t wait for the games.”

At 24, Doncic is already a veteran of international competitions. He was among the stars at the last Summer Olympics and competed twice in EuroBasket, helping Slovenia capture the gold medal in 2017. His team failed to defend its title at last year’s tournament, getting upset by Poland in the quarterfinals.

“As in every tournament, the goal is to win the championship,” Doncic said. “Last year’s failure in the EuroBasket did not make (me) too angry, but instead motivated me. You must look ahead. We don’t care what happened last year. I feel better this year. It is apparent. Much praise to the fitness coach pushing me.”

There’s more international news to pass along:

  • After saying earlier this week that he’s hoping to have Sixers center Joel Embiid for the 2024 Olympics, Team USA managing director Grant Hill expanded on those comments Saturday on Marc Stein’s podcast (hat tip to HoopsHype). Hill expressed guarded optimism about landing Embiid, who also has citizenship with France and Cameroon, stating that talks will continue as he puts the team together. “Joel Embiid is an incredible talent and he has options,” Hill said. “And I guess that’s a good thing. I’ll just say this: I’ve had some discussions with him, and he knows our desire to have him a part of our program. So we’ll see sort of where that goes. But we’ll certainly, as we get through this World Cup and start to sort of plan for next summer, we’ll continue with those conversations, and hopefully by then, I’ll have some numbers and percentages to give you in terms of where the possibility stands.”
  • Rudy Gobert had doubts about participating in the World Cup after the season ended, but now he believes France has a good shot at a gold medal, according to Eurohoops. Gobert said he continued to work hard after the Timberwolves were ousted in the first round of the playoffs. “The break after the end of the season wasn’t one,” Gobert said. “I trained a lot in June and July, I feel good and that’s also why I’m here.”
  • France may be without draft-and-stash player Mathias Lessort, whose NBA rights are owned by the Knicks, Eurohoops reports. Lessort has an ankle issue that will force him to miss an exhibition game with Tunisia next week.
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Texas Notes: Irving, Cuban, Gueye, Spurs

July 23rd, 2023 at 3:08pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Mavericks team owner Mark Cuban is confident that newly re-signed point guard Kyrie Irving understands his hierarchical relationship with regard to All-NBA teammate Luka Doncic.

Irving inked a three-year, $120MM+ deal to remain with Dallas this summer. Though he played well on offense, the Mavericks’ defense collapsed after trading for his services, and they finished outside of the play-in picture in the West.

Cuban spoke with NBASiriusXM Radio (YouTube video link) about the dynamics of his two All-Star backcourt.

“I think Kyrie is mature to the point now where he knows it’s Luka’s team,” Cuban said. “Luka knows this [too]. He knows, and that’s what’s important, and he’s willing to play more of a shooting guard role. When Luka is out, we have a point guard who can score and create for other guys, they’re both players who make their teammates better, and we didn’t have that before.”

There’s more out of the Lone Star State:

  • The Mavericks‘ G League team, the Texas Legends, sent the returning player rights to combo forward Mouhamadou Gueye to the Raptors‘ NBAGL club, the Raptors 905, in exchange for a first-round selection in the 2024 G League draft, the team has announced in a press release. After going undrafted out of Pittsburgh, the 6’9″ forward averaged 8.6 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.9 BPG, and 1.5 APG across 29 contests with the Legends.
  • The doors are about to open on a spiffy new $500MM Spurs practice facility, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. Team president RC Buford spoke about San Antonio’s fresh digs, dubbed The Rock at La Cantera. “We’re not trying to build this to be the best in the NBA,” Buford said. “We’re going to build this for our needs and to have the best environment we can to help develop the Spurs’ culture. It’s not about being better or worse than anybody.”
  • In case you missed it, 2021 No. 2 Rockets lottery pick Jalen Green was one of the intriguing young names added to the USA Select Team in the lead-up to this summer’s FIBA World Cup. Green is essentially an alternate for Team USA’s 12-man roster. The shooting guard could be pressed into service as an injury replacement when the action gets underway next month.
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Southwest Notes: G. Williams, Pelicans, Green, Morant

July 22nd, 2023 at 6:45pm CST by Arthur Hill

In an appearance on J.J. Redick’s “The Old Man and the Three” podcast, Grant Williams talked about the thrill of teaming up with Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (hat tip to Eurohoops). Williams, who was acquired from the Celtics in a sign-and-trade, is looking forward to the easy scoring opportunities that Doncic can create for him.

“Whenever you are open, he is going to find you,” Williams said. “I am excited just because he brings so much pressure and attention to himself. He does a good job of getting others involved. His growth and his next step is understanding that as much as that happens he also has to power others to play their games as well.”

Williams is part of a revamped roster in Dallas, which is hoping to bounce back after missing the playoffs last season. He will restore a defensive presence that the Mavs lacked after trading for Kyrie Irving in February, while Doncic and Irving will be counted on to power the offense.

“Kyrie has been in this league long enough that he knows how to make a tough shot and also get off the ball,” Williams told Redick. “And Luka does a good job of seeing the full court from the beginning.”

There’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • The upcoming season will provide a good test of whether the Pelicans are willing to pay the luxury tax, writes Christian Clark of NOLA. New Orleans is currently about $3MM over the tax line after moving E.J. Liddell from a two-way contract to a standard roster spot. If the Pelicans remain at that figure when the tax is calculated after the end of the regular season, they will pay a $4.4MM penalty and won’t be able to share in the leaguewide distribution for non-taxpaying teams. New Orleans and 20 other clubs each received $17.3MM this summer. Sources told Clark that they believe owner Gayle Benson will eventually be willing to pay the tax, but they’re skeptical that she’ll do it this season with the Pelicans coming off a non-playoff year.
  • New Rockets head coach Ime Udoka wants to see Jalen Green start to build “winning habits,” per Michael Shapiro of The Houston Chronicle. Green has put up impressive scoring numbers in his first two seasons, but Udoka has instructed him to improve other aspects of his game. “The one thing we have stressed to him is being an all-around player,” Udoka said. “He is a natural scorer. But he has to do it on each side of the ball. He is a guy who can get anywhere on the court.”
  • Davonte Pack, a close friend of Grizzlies star Ja Morant, was arrested this week for misdemeanor assault stemming from a pick-up basketball game at Morant’s house last summer, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN. Morant and others are involved in a civil lawsuit for allegedly striking a teenager during the game.
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And-Ones: Terry, Doncic, Tatum, Wembanyama, Selden

June 18th, 2023 at 3:34pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Former Mavericks point guard Tyrell Terry, who retired from basketball after just two seasons due to mental health reasons, explained his decision more thoroughly during an interview with Chip Scoggins of The Star Tribune.

The 22-year-old, selected with the No. 31 pick out of Stanford, is back in school following his brief pro stint, now majoring in Science, Technology and Society. Terry’s issues trying to gain weight at the next level prevented him from having the kind of on-court success he had enjoyed at the NCAA level.

“On a daily basis I was trying to convince myself that I loved basketball,” Terry said. “Trying to convince myself that people’s opinions didn’t matter. It became a game of trying to convince myself of something that I didn’t believe in. I realized that’s not how I want to live my life. It was like I was damaging myself.”

Terry took a two-month personal leave from the team during his rookie season in an effort to deal with persistent anxiety attacks. He also consulted with Dallas’ team therapist. The following year, he and his team eventually coordinated his release from the roster in training camp.

There’s more from around the basketball universe:

  • Young All-NBA stars Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum have both experienced significant team success during their early years in the league, but have yet to win the ultimate prize. Jared Weiss and Tim Cato of The Athletic examine the very divergent approaches their respective clubs, the Mavericks and Celtics, have taken to their offseasons in years past, and project what it could mean for the two players’ present and future.
  • Expected No. 1 draft pick Victor Wembanyama has officially concluded his run with Metropolitans 92, as Tim Bontemps of ESPN details. Wembanyama and his French team fell 92-85 in the third game of their league’s title series to Monaco, a club loaded with ex-NBA players like Mike James, Elie Okobo, Jordan Loyd and Donatas Motiejunas. Wembanyama, the French League MVP, recorded 22 points, seven boards and four blocks in the loss.
  • Former NBA shooting guard Wayne Selden is joining Puerto Rican club Gigantes de Carolina, reports Dario Skerletic of Sportando. After going undrafted out of Kansas in 2016, the 6’4″ swingman enjoyed stints with the Pelicans, Grizzlies, Bulls, and Knicks, as well as several NBAGL clubs. After first dipping a toe into the international game with Israeli club Ironi Ness Ziona in 2020, Selden ditched the league for good in 2022. He has since played in Turkey, Italy, and Philippines.
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“Unrealistic” For LeBron James To Get Traded To Mavs

June 5th, 2023 at 7:02pm CST by Dana Gauruder

It’s “unrealistic” that the Lakers would consider trading LeBron James to the Mavericks so that he could join forces with Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, a source told Jovan Buha of The Athletic.

Irving, who is headed to free agency, reached out to his former Cavaliers teammate about the possibility of playing in Dallas. James has previously expressed his desire to play with Irving in Los Angeles and was believed to be disappointed when the Lakers didn’t acquire him at February’s trade deadline.

However, as Buha details, the Lakers aren’t interested in what the Mavericks might offer from their roster for their aging superstar, who hinted at retirement after the team was eliminated by Denver in the Western Conference Finals. Dallas doesn’t have the young talent outside of Doncic to entice the Lakers if James were to ask for a trade. Even multiple draft picks to sweeten the pot (Dallas owns the No. 10 pick) probably wouldn’t get the job done.

James isn’t using Irving’s interest in playing with him as leverage to try to force the Lakers front office to pursue a sign-and-trade for the free agent guard, according to Buha.

Irving’s recruitment of James suggests that he prefers to sign the Mavericks’ max offer (or something close to it) rather than taking less money from the Lakers, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News notes.

The Lakers could open up as much as $30-35MM in cap space to sign Irving but he apparently doesn’t want to take a discount. A sign-and-trade scenario would be much more appealing to Irving because he could get a higher salary.

Los Angeles, from all indications, is more focused on retaining some of its top free agents (Rui Hachimura, Austin Reaves). Lakers sources reiterated to Buha on Monday they’re not looking to add Irving.

Outside of a trade, the only way James could join the Mavs would be via a buyout of his contract and that seems like an extreme long shot. James has one year remaining on his contract at $46.9MM and then a player option for the 2024/25 season worth $50.65MM.

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Kyrie Irving Wants Mavericks To Pursue Trade For LeBron James

June 5th, 2023 at 11:05am CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers may not have interest in a sign-and-trade deal for Kyrie Irving, but sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic that Irving has reached out to LeBron James to see if they can reunite in Dallas (Twitter link).

That report meshes with a story by Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report, who hears from league sources that Irving wants the Mavericks to pursue an offseason trade for James to form a new Big Three alongside Luka Doncic.

Sources tell Haynes that Dallas was preparing to make an offer for James before this year’s trade deadline. However, that would not have been possible, as James was ineligible to be traded after signing an extension last summer.

James has dropped hints about wanting to play alongside Irving again, and the Lakers were reportedly strong candidates to acquire him when he considered opting out of his contract last summer and again when he asked the Nets for a trade in February.

L.A.’s asking price for James would surely be exorbitant if the team would consider a trade at all. He has one year remaining on his contract at $46.9MM and then a player option for the 2024/25 season worth $50.65MM.

Haynes points out that penalties imposed by the new Collective Bargaining Agreement will make it extremely difficult for any team to carry three max-salary players. He states that Irving and James would both have to take significant pay cuts to make the arrangement work and suggests that the most viable path for James to get to Dallas would be to demand a buyout with the Lakers, which Haynes admits is extremely unlikely.

James has a good relationship with Doncic, so that wouldn’t be an impediment to a potential deal, Haynes adds. He’s also close with head coach Jason Kidd, who formerly served as a Lakers assistant, as well as assistant coach Jared Dudley, an ex-teammate.

Re-signing Irving remains Dallas’ top priority for the offseason, sources tell Haynes. Even though they missed the playoffs, the Mavs see a bright future for their All-Star backcourt and are determined to keep Irving after giving up two rotation players and three future draft picks to acquire the 31-year-old guard from Brooklyn.

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“Handshake Deal” For Kyrie Irving In Dallas?

May 22nd, 2023 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

Representatives of rival teams at last week’s NBA Draft Combine expect Kyrie Irving to re-sign with the Mavericks this summer, writes Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report. Dallas missed the playoffs after acquiring Irving from Brooklyn in a February trade and he often appeared to be an awkward fit alongside Luka Doncic, but sources tell Pincus that the Mavs didn’t trade for Irving as a short-term experiment.

“I hear they had a handshake deal before the trade,” one of Pincus’ sources said. “And Kyrie wouldn’t have said yes to anything less than the max.”

Irving will be eligible for a new five-year contract in Dallas that could be worth $272MM, Pincus adds. Although he was an All-Star this season for the 10th time in his career, off-court incidents in Brooklyn — and Boston and Cleveland before that — may limit the number of teams interested in signing him.

“I’m not sure what the market is for Kyrie, but no one with cap room is giving it to Kyrie,” another source told Pincus. “He comes with too much drama.”

Pincus talked to an agent who expects Irving to receive a four-year deal with a player option on the final season. It would be worth about $201MM in guaranteed money and would line up with Doncic, who can opt out of his current contract in 2026.

In an appearance Monday on ESPN’s “Get Up,” Brian Windhorst suggested that the Lakers shouldn’t be dismissed as a possible Irving suitor (video link). L.A. was reportedly interested in Irving when he considered opting out of his contract last summer and again when he submitted a trade request to the Nets in February.

Windhorst admits the Lakers would have to give up most of the assets they just acquired in order to sign Irving outright, but he says the landscape could be more favorable if Dallas would agree to a sign-and-trade. Regardless, Windhorst added that it helps Irving’s negotiating position if he can convince the Mavericks that L.A. is interested.

Pincus also talked with several sources who expect Dallas to be a potential landing spot for Suns center Deandre Ayton, who shares an agent with Doncic.

“The Suns need depth,” a source told Pincus. “I can see them getting Tim Hardaway Jr., JaVale (McGee) back, Josh Green and No. 10 (draft pick). Phoenix would probably flip the pick to another team for depth, or maybe it’d be a big multi-team deal.”

Pincus lists Maxi Kleber, Davis Bertans, Reggie Bullock and Jaden Hardy as other players who might be moved in a hypothetical Ayton trade, but he notes that Kleber is among Doncic’s best friends on the team, which gives Dallas incentive to keep him.

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Northwest Notes: Jazz, Doncic, Markkanen, Murray, Roy

May 15th, 2023 at 10:20pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Is it within the realm of possibility that the Jazz could trade for Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic? Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune ponders that topic. Larsen confirms an earlier report the Jazz are keenly interested in Doncic. The Jazz would either have to deal All-Star Lauri Markkanen and a smaller assortment of picks and players, or give up a boatload of picks for Doncic, in Larsen’s estimation.

However, as Larsen acknowledges, Doncic would first have to request a trade and the Jazz’s draft assets from Cleveland and Minnesota aren’t all that attractive since both are playoff teams, though the Timberwolves could fall back to the lottery pack in the near future.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

  • Speaking of Markkanen, Sarah Todd of the Deseret News notes that he displayed star power in his first year with the Jazz. After his breakthrough campaign, Markkanen can still build on his game by improving his ball-handling, defense, footwork and aggressiveness, Todd writes.
  • Jamal Murray is officially listed as questionable to play in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday due to a non-COVID illness. However, the Nuggets’ point guard intends to play, Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports tweets.
  • Former Trail Blazers star Brandon Roy will represent the team at the draft lottery on Tuesday. The Athletic’s Jason Quick writes that Roy, who retired at 28 due to knee issues, would like to return to the organization in an official capacity. “I do have confidence in myself in coaching, and I feel there is a lot I can offer,” Roy said. “But sometimes, I think about personnel, and what first, what works … and I think I’m good with chemistry and fit and understanding guys, so front office, scouting … or do something like Hersey Hawkins did when he was with the Blazers, mentoring and talking to guys. I’ve lived and experienced a lot of things, and I think I can help and give back to the younger players.’’
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NBA Announces 2022/23 All-NBA Teams

May 10th, 2023 at 6:10pm CST by Rory Maher

The NBA has officially announced its All-NBA teams for the 2022/23 season.

A total of 100 media members vote on the All-NBA awards. Players received five points for a First Team vote, three points for Second Team, and one point for Third Team, for a maximum total of 500 points. This year’s three All-NBA teams are as follows:

First Team

Second Team

Third Team

A total of 37 players received at least one vote, per the NBA. The top vote-getters who wound up missing out on All-NBA spots were Lakers center Anthony Davis (65), Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (49) and Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (44).

Morant had Rose Rule language in his rookie scale extension, meaning his five-year deal would have started at 30% of next season’s cap had he been voted in; instead, he’ll receive 25% of the cap, which is projected to be a difference of about $39MM across five seasons.

Other players receiving 20-plus points include Bucks guard Jrue Holiday (39), Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) and Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (23). The next three highest were Raptors forward Pascal Siakam (15), Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (15) and Anthony Edwards of the Timberwolves (14), who is listed under forward but spent most of the season at shooting guard.

As we noted earlier today, both of the Celtics’ top two players will now be eligible for Designated Veteran Extensions, also known as the super-max: Brown will be eligible to sign a five-year extension this offseason that starts at up to 35% of the 2024/25 salary cap, while Tatum will be eligible to sign a super-max extension in 2024 after earning All-NBA nods each of the past two seasons.

Like Brown, Siakam would have been eligible for a super-max extension this summer had he made an All-NBA team. He finished a distant ninth, so his maximum extension will now be worth a projected $192.2MM over four years, tweets Eric Koreen of The Athletic. As Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca observes (via Twitter), Siakam could still qualify for a super-max deal if he makes an All-NBA spot next season as an impending free agent.

This will be the last season under the current Collective Bargaining Agreement. In the new CBA, All-NBA voting will be positionless and players will be required to play a minimum of 65 games to earn major regular season awards. Five of the players honored today — Antetokounmpo, Curry, Butler, Lillard and James — played fewer than 65 this season and would have been ineligible if the new requirements had been in effect, according to ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link).

LeBron extended his own NBA record with his selection, earning a spot on an All-NBA team for the 19th straight season, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (Twitter link). No other player has more than 15 total All-NBA awards (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan are tied for second at 15 apiece).

Giannis was a unanimous First Team selection for the fifth straight season, per Eric Nehm of The Athletic (Twitter link), and the only unanimous choice in 2022/23. Antetokounmpo now has more First Team berths than any European-born player, tweets HoopsHype, and only trails Hakeem Olajuwon among international players (six). The Bucks superstar finished third in MVP voting behind Embiid and Jokic, but Jokic received some First Team votes over the Sixers’ MVP winner, which is why Embiid wasn’t a unanimous pick.

According to HoopsHype (Twitter link), this is the first season in league history that only one American player (Tatum) was voted to the First Team. Doncic (Slovenia) and Antetokounmpo (Greece) are European, Embiid was born in Cameroon, and Gilgeous-Alexander is Canadian.

Despite earning an All-NBA nod for the first time, Mitchell wasn’t happy that he didn’t make the First Team, sending out a tweet on the matter.

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Northwest Notes: Gordon, Malone, Gobert, Doncic

May 4th, 2023 at 10:00am CST by Arthur Hill

The Nuggets don’t expect Aaron Gordon to shut down Kevin Durant, but his defensive effort so far has played a large role in Denver’s 2-0 series lead, writes Sean Keeler of The Denver Post. Durant has scored 29 and 24 points in the first two games of the series, but he’s had to work hard to get those points. He shot 10-for-27 from the field in Game 2 and was just 2-for-12 from beyond the arc.

Gordon’s defense is a big part of that effort, Keeler adds. In the 17 minutes that he has been Durant’s primary defender during the series, Gordon has limited the Suns‘ star to 8-of-20 from the floor and 1-of-5 on three-pointers with just two free throws and five turnovers. That follows a similar defensive performance against Karl-Anthony Towns in the first round.

“The thing that jumps out to me in these playoffs is (that) Aaron is the definition of selfless,” coach Michael Malone said. “I mean, talk about a guy that, knowing that (Michael Porter Jr.) and Jamal (Murray) were back, has checked his ego at the door the whole season and he quietly goes under the radar. But the impact he is having is so profound both on offense and defense, (especially) by taking the other team’s best player (defensively).”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

  • Malone is warning his players not to get too comfortable after two wins at home, per Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post. The Nuggets appear to have control of the series, especially with Chris Paul unlikely to play in at least the next two games, but Malone understands that things can turn around quickly. “Whether it’s Chris Paul, Cameron Payne, Landry Shamet, our game plan remains the same,” he said. “We know that they have two guys in Devin Booker and Kevin Durant that are great players and they’ll have their home crowd in front of them. Down 2-0, we’re going to get their best effort and we have to exceed that.”
  • Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reexamines the Rudy Gobert trade that transformed the Timberwolves last summer. He acknowledges that Minnesota overpaid for Gobert, but adds that president of basketball operations Tim Connelly and coach Chris Finch still believe Gobert and Towns can be effective together. “I thought it was a great learning experience and I’m excited to see (with) some real time together where we can get,” Gobert said. “And we saw some glimpses of that this year and we saw that we can give teams a lot of trouble.”
  • In a discussion of the Nets’ offseason, John Hollinger of the Athletic states that the Jazz are “keeping a very interested eye” on Luka Doncic‘s situation in Dallas. If Doncic were to ask the Mavericks for a trade, Utah has a huge parcel of draft assets to offer.
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