Stojakovic played for five teams during his 12 NBA seasons, but he’s best known for his time with the Kings in the early 2000s. The three-time All-Star won a championship with Dallas in 2011 and is also a member of the Greek Hall of Fame. Miller is one of the best shooters in NBA history and was named to the league’s 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.

“If I had to say something to the young kids who are starting to play basketball, it’s this: whatever you are, no matter the circumstances you are in, don’t be discouraged,” Stojakovic told the crowd. “If you really love the game, keep working hard because probably someone is watching.”

The other new Hall of Fame members are Miao Lijie (China), Danira Nakic-Bilic (Croatia), Kirk Penney (New Zealand), Romain Sato (Central African Republic) and Skaidrite Smildzina-Budovska (Latvia). Dan Peterson (USA), who coached extensively in Italy, was also recognized.

There’s more international news to pass along:

• Fenerbahce has parted ways with former NBA big man Luka Samanic, but will retain his rights through the end of the upcoming season, another Eurohoops story states. Samanic signed a one-year deal in August, but left the team to return home to Croatia in a mutual decision. Fenerbahce added Khem Birch this week as his replacement.
• There’s no chance that Filip Petrusev will be returning to Crvena Zvezda this season, BasketNews relays. Petrusev, who had brief appearances with the Sixers and Kings last season, is under contract with Olimpiacos. There was a report earlier this month that he might be loaned out to Crvena Zvezda, but team president Nebojsa Covic quashed that speculation. “This saga has been ongoing for months,” he said. “There was interest from both sides, but Petrusev is an Olympiacos player. These rumors have gone too far. As of now, Zvezda remains with the current roster.”
• Moses Wright, who spent time in the NBA during the 2021/22 season, may be headed to Cyprus, according to a BasketNews report. He’s also interested in becoming a citizen and playing for the national team.

The lottery will be one of three draft-related events held during that week in Chicago. The NBA’s annual draft combine will run from May 12-19, according to the league, while the G League Elite Camp will take place just before that, on the weekend of May 11-12. The Elite Camp features the top draft prospects who didn’t make the initial cut for the combine, with the top performers at that event typically invited to stick around for combine week.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

• Eight-time NBA All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard will continue his playing career in Puerto Rico, having reached a deal with Mets de Guaynabo, according to a tweet from the Baoloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). Howard, who last played in the NBA in 2021/22, spent the ’22/23 season in Taiwan. He was accused of sexual assault and battery in a lawsuit filed last July; that civil suit is ongoing, with a Georgia judge denying a motion to dismiss it last week.
• Playing in the G League is becoming a more common path for rookies to develop and show they’re capable of a longer look at the NBA level, according to Zach Kram of The Ringer, who says 18 of this year’s 30 first-round picks – including six of 14 lottery selections – have spent time in the NBAGL. Both of those marks are new records, Kram writes within an in-depth look at what the future might hold for the NBA’s minor league.
• Former Georgia Tech star Moses Wright appeared in just four NBA games in brief stints with the Clippers and Mavericks earlier in his career and now plays for Panathinaikos in Greece. However, Clippers player development assistant Wesley Johnson, who was on Tyronn Lue‘s staff when Wright signed a 10-day deal with the team in 2021, is confident that the 25-year-old will be back in the NBA at some point. “He’s a great player, talented, athletic, can shoot, put the ball on the floor. He was the player of the year in the ACC for a reason,” Johnson said, per Giorgos Efkarpidis of Eurohoops. “… He will find the time and the moment to join a team.”
• Suns forward Kevin Durant is looking forward to playing for Team USA this summer and will be looking to claim his fourth Olympic gold medal, according to Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic, who takes a closer look at what the U.S. roster might look like. The Athletic identified several frontrunners for the 12-man squad earlier this week.

Brunson is a popular pick for biggest snub in the All-Star Game after averaging 26.5 points and 6.4 assists per game  for the surging Knicks. Some writers were surprised by Bucks guard Damian Lillard‘s inclusion as the Eastern Conference’s second guard next to Tyrese Haliburton.

ESPN’s writers seem to believe the Western Conference — so far loaded with the likes of Nikola Jokic and LeBron James — will win the All-Star Game. Outside of that, the writers preview what reserves are battling for All-Star nods this year. As mentioned in the article, Stephen Curry, Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker, Tyrese Maxey, Scottie Barnes, Paolo Banchero, Bam Adebayo, Derrick White and Jalen Williams are among the All-Star caliber players worthy of a nod.

We have more from around the basketball world:

• Lillard is set to defend his three-point contest title during 2024 All-Star Weekend, according to Bleacher Report and TNT’s Chris Haynes (Twitter link). Lillard hit 26 of a potential 40 three-pointers last year to claim the crown in Utah.
• Partizan Mozzart Bet is considering a tribute preseason match against the Warriors in honor of the late Dejan Milojevic, according to Eurohoops.net. The well-regarded coach left an impact on both Partizan and the Warriors, and now the Serbian club is considering pathways to honor his legacy. “That would be phenomenal for both clubs and Serbia. We will send them an invitation, and we are prepared to cover the expenses for the Golden State Warriors’ arrival and stay in our city. The event would be scheduled during the preseason. Dejan was beloved in that NBA team, and needless to say, he left an indelible mark on our club,” Partizan president Ostoja Mijailovic said.
• Greek club Olympiacos signed former NBA center Moses Wright to a contract for the rest of the season, according to Eurohoops.net. The deal includes a team option for next season. Wright, 25, averaged 1.3 points across four NBA appearances with the Clippers and Mavericks in the 2021/22 season. He saw more action overseas, averaging 26.4 points and 8.4 rebounds in five games in Turkey this year.

Wright, who spent training camp and the preseason with the Clippers last fall after going undrafted out of Georgia Tech, signed a 10-day hardship deal with the Clips in December, then joined the Mavericks on a two-way contract in February. He logged just 14 total minutes in four NBA appearances for the two clubs, but had an impressive showing in the G League, earning a spot on the All-NBAGL First Team.

In 29 total appearances for the Clippers’ and Mavs’ G League affiliates, Wright put up 19.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 1.4 BPG on .562/.395/.657 shooting in 32.0 minutes per contest. The 23-year-old also played well for Dallas’ Summer League team in Las Vegas earlier this month, racking up 15.5 PPG and 6.8 RPG in just 19.0 MPG in four appearances.

While there was a sense that Wright might be a candidate to get another two-way contract with the Mavs, the team didn’t issue him a qualifying offer last month, so he was an unrestricted free agent. Assuming Wright officially completes his deal with Zhejiang, Dallas will have to look elsewhere to fill its open two-way slot.

The 6’8″ big man averaged a fairly pedestrian 8.5 PPG on 5-of-16 shooting and 5.0 RPG across the Mavericks’ first two Summer League contests, missed the team’s Tuesday matchup against the Suns, and then returned reinvigorated to play the Bucks on Thursday. He poured in 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the floor and grabbed 11 rebounds as a reserve.

Wright, signed to a two-way contract during the 2021/22 season with Dallas, is currently an unrestricted free agent.

“I think he was the most impactful player in the game,” Mavericks Summer League head coach George Galanopoulos said. “When he’s playing like that – just high energy and active motor, and with an edge and a disposition about him and that mentality — he’s one of the better players in the gym wherever he goes.”

There’s more out of the Southwest Division:

• Second-year Pelicans small forward Trey Murphy showed signs of improvement during his 2022 Summer League stint, writes William Guillory of The Athletic. Murphy, the No. 17 pick out of Virginia in 2021, averaged 26.5 PPG across the only two Las Vegas games New Orleans opted to play him. The Pelicans are hoping that Murphy, who evolved into a deep-bench option on a playoff-bound 2021/22 club by the end of his rookie season, will continue to develop this season. “At the end of the day, I know the stuff I’ve been working on,” Murphy said. “Just creating off the bounce and things like that… I’m not too worried about the shot. If my shot’s falling and I’m getting to the basket like I was tonight, that’ll be a pretty good recipe.”
• In an interview with Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Rockets forward Jae’Sean Tate discussed how his confidence in his own NBA-caliber abilities helped him while playing abroad. “I’ve always thought I was an NBA player,” Tate said. “There was never a question of if I was good enough. I just knew that I was going to have to be able to put myself in a position to get to my dream. I think [agent] EJ Kusnyer did a good job of just putting me in certain situations that allowed me to be successful, allowed me to show my worth, and allowed me to be me while bringing what I do to a team every step of the way.” After going undrafted out of Ohio State in 2018, the 6’4″ small forward first signed on with Belgian club the Antwerp Giants during the 2018/19 season. He then headed to Australia to play for NBL club the Sydney Kings. He was named to the 2020 All-NBL First Team before joining the Rockets in 2020.
• Rockets assistant coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah credits Houston with updating his thinking about shot selection, writes Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. Abdelfattah worked his way through the ranks with the club’s NBAGL affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, and eventually joined Houston’s NBA club as an assistant under Stephen Silas. “Offensively, I’m a big believer of shot selection, taking efficient shots,” Abdelfattah said. “It goes back to taking mid-range shots or not taking them, goes back to getting to the rim, getting to the free-throw line… I like to let the guys play with a lot of freedom and maybe take a couple of what some would call questionable shots or moves. “

In the wake of the trade sending Dejounte Murray to Atlanta, McDonald (Twitter link) views anyone on the Spurs’ roster over the age of 24 as “imminently available.” That would include sharpshooter Doug McDermott in addition to Poeltl, though it sounds like that’s just speculation for the time being.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

• Despite earning a spot on the All-G League First Team as a rookie this past season, forward Moses Wright wasn’t tendered a two-way qualifying offer by the Mavericks and is now an unrestricted free agent. As Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com writes, Wright is playing for Dallas’ Summer League team in Las Vegas and is determined to show he deserves a training camp invite, whether from the Mavs or another team. “I want to be the most dominant big (man) out there,” Wright said. “Whether it’s talking, rebounding, defensive presence, no matter what I do, just be dominant at what I do.”
• Kelly Iko of The Athletic wonders if there’s a way for the Rockets to get involved in a multi-team trade scenario involving Kevin Durant in order to land restricted free agent center Deandre Ayton. Iko acknowledges that Ayton’s positional overlap with Alperen Sengun isn’t ideal, but believes it would still make sense for Houston if the price was right.
• The Grizzlies, whose only move in free agency has been a new two-year agreement with Tyus Jones, believe time is on their side and are operating with patience this summer rather than making any significant roster changes, according to Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian (subscription required).

Queen headlined this year’s All-NBA G League First Team and also earned a spot on the NBAGL’s All-Defensive team, as the league announced today in a press release.

The complete list of the 2021/22 All-NBA G League teams, along with the All-Rookie and All-Defensive squads, is below. Players who finished the season on NBA contracts are noted with an asterisk (*), while those on two-way contracts are noted with a caret (^).

All-NBAGL First Team

• Trevelin Queen (Rio Grande Valley Vipers) ^
• Justin Anderson (Fort Wayne Mad Ants)
• Mason Jones (South Bay Lakers) ^
• Justin Tillman (College Park Skyhawks)
• Moses Wright (Texas Legends) ^

All-NBAGL Second Team

• Cat Barber (College Park Skyhawks)
• Charles Bassey (Delaware Blue Coats) *
• Braxton Key (Delaware Blue Coats) ^
• Saben Lee (Motor City Cruise) *
• Reggie Perry (Raptors 905)

All-NBAGL Third Team

• Luka Garza (Motor City Cruise) *
• Jared Harper (Birmingham Squadron) ^
• Justin Jackson (Texas Legends)
• Carlik Jones (Texas Legends)
• Anthony Lamb (Rio Grande Valley Vipers) ^

NBAGL All-Rookie Team

• Charles Bassey (Delaware Blue Coats) *
• Luka Garza (Motor City Cruise) *
• Carlik Jones (Texas Legends)
• Mac McClung (South Bay Lakers) ^
• Micah Potter (Sioux Falls Skyforce)

NBAGL All-Defensive Team

• Charles Bassey (Delaware Blue Coats) *
• Braxton Key (Delaware Blue Coats) ^
• Tacko Fall (Cleveland Charge)
• Shaquille Harrison (Delaware Blue Coats)
• Trevelin Queen (Rio Grande Valley Vipers) ^

All 19 players who earned a spot on one of the G League’s All-NBAGL, All-Rookie, or All-Defensive teams this year were on some form of standard, two-way, or 10-day NBA contract during the 2021/22 season.

Of those 19, Tillman is the only player who has yet to make his NBA debut, as he didn’t appear in any games after signing a 10-day deal with Atlanta in December.

FEBRUARY 24: The Mavericks are signing rookie forward Moses Wright to a two-way contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.

Dallas had a two-way opening and won’t have to make a corresponding move.

Wright has been playing for the G League’s Agua Caliente Clippers. He played one game for the NBA Clippers on a 10-day deal in December under the hardship exception before he was placed in protocols.

He has averaged 17.6 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 1.9 APG and 1.9 BPG in 17 G League starts.

Wright spent all four years of his college career at Georgia Tech and averaged 17.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.6 BPG, and 1.5 SPG with a .532/.414/.658 shooting line in 25 games (35.3 MPG) as a senior. He was named the ACC Player of the Year and made the ACC’s All-Defensive team but went undrafted.

• Andrew Wiggins has cleared the protocols, Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. The Warriors forward practiced on Monday and is probable to play on Tuesday against Denver, Kendra Andrews of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. Wiggins entered protocols on December 19.
• Guard Jordan Poole has also cleared the protocols, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. He’ll return to the Warriors’ facility on Tuesday but won’t play as the team needs to assess his conditioning, Anthony Slater of The Athletic tweets.
• Kings center Alex Len is listed as questionable to play on Tuesday, which indicates he’s cleared the protocols, James Ham of The Kings Beat tweets.
• Suns guard Elfrid Payton returned to action on Monday after clearing the protocols, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Payton had just entered the protocols on Sunday, so apparently he had a false positive.
• We noted earlier on Monday that Blazers coach Chauncey Billups has entered the protocols. Assistant coach Roy Rogers is also in the protocols, Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian tweets.
• Anthony Tolliver‘s 10-day contract with the Pelicans has been voided after he tested positive for COVID-19, Will Guillory of The Athletic tweets. Tolliver was signed on Sunday.
• Moses Wright, who has been playing on a 10-day contract with the Clippers, has also entered the protocols, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN tweets.

An undrafted rookie, Wright spent all four years of his college career at Georgia Tech and had a huge season as a senior in 2020/21, averaging 17.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.6 BPG, and 1.5 SPG with a .532/.414/.658 shooting line in 25 games (35.3 MPG). He was named the ACC Player of the Year and made the ACC’s All-Defensive team.

Wright has been playing for the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario this season, averaging 13.5 PPG and 8.5 RPG on .602/.400/.607 shooting in 13 games (29.7 MPG).

The Clippers haven’t been affected too significantly this month by COVID-19 and currently just have one player – Marcus Morris – in the health and safety protocols, but that could change quickly, as we’ve seen in recent weeks.

An undrafted rookie, Wright spent all four years of his college career at Georgia Tech and had a huge season as a senior in 2020/21, averaging 17.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.6 BPG, and 1.5 SPG with a .532/.414/.658 shooting line in 25 games (35.3 MPG). He was named the ACC Player of the Year and made the ACC’s All-Defensive team.

King, the 59th overall pick in the 2018 draft out of Colorado, spent his rookie season with Phoenix on a two-way contract, but appeared in just one NBA game and has been out of the league for the last two years. He played in Italy and Poland during the 2019/20 season, then spent the ’20/21 campaign in Germany with the Niners Chemnitz.

Both Wright and King played sparingly for the Clippers during the preseason, logging fewer than 10 minutes per game. It’s possible both players will end up on the roster of the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, L.A.’s G League affiliate.

The Clippers will have to make at least one more cut before the regular season begins. Harry Giles and Isaiah Hartenstein are vying for the 15th spot on the roster.

A 6’9″ forward, Wright spent all four years of his college career at Georgia Tech and had a huge season as a senior, averaging 17.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.6 BPG, and 1.5 SPG with a .532/.414/.658 shooting line in 25 games (35.3 MPG).

Wright was named the ACC Player of the Year and made the ACC’s All-Defensive team. After going undrafted, he represented the Pelicans in the Las Vegas Summer League last month, appearing in five games for New Orleans.

The Clippers have 14 players on guaranteed contracts on their roster. The team has also reportedly reached agreements on non-guaranteed deals with George King and Harry Giles.

Wright’s Exhibit 10 contract could theoretically provide a path to a spot on Los Angeles’ 15-man regular season roster. However, it’s more likely he’ll end up being an affiliate player for the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, L.A.’s G League team. He could also be in the mix for a two-way contract, though the Clips have Jay Scrubb filling one of their two-way slots and may be eyeing Amir Coffey for the other — Coffey is still a restricted free agent for the time being.

Kyle Goon of The Orange County Register goes through the obstacles facing the Lakers in a variety of different high-profile moves, such as a trade for Russell Westbrook or a sign-and-trade of Dennis Schroder for Kyle Lowry. Goon also discusses the idea of stars like Chris Paul, DeMar DeRozan, or Kyle Lowry taking pay cuts to play with LeBron James, explaining why it’s unlikely.

Lastly, Goon touches on the reports that the Lakers have been shopping a package of Kyle Kuzma and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope all over the league, and how poorly that reflects on the strength of that trade offer.

We have more from the Lakers:

• Lionel Hollins will no longer be an assistant coach for the Lakers, reports Jovan Buha of The Athletic (via Twitter). Hollins’ contract expired without the team and him coming to an agreement on an extension. Kyle Goon tweets that Hollins indicated he would be open to coaching again in the right opportunity.
• With the departure of Hollins, shooting coach Mike Penberthy is being promoted to a front-of-bench coaching position on head coach Frank Vogel‘s staff, Buha and Sam Amick write in a piece for The Athletic. Penberthy was offered a similar position on Jason Kidd‘s staff with the Mavericks before the Lakers matched their offer. Buha and Amick write that it’s unclear if the Lakers will add another assistant coach this offseason.
• The Lakers worked out five prospects today, according to Lakers reporter Brad Turner: MaCio Teague, Spencer Littleson, Jose Alvarado, Brandon Boston Jr., and Moses Wright. Of the five, Boston is the highest-ranked, and could be an option either at 22 or if the Lakers look to trade back from 22 into the top of the second round in order to save money.

However, a new report from Conrad Wilson and Tony Schick of Oregon Public Broadcasting calls into question just how exhaustive the Trail Blazers’ investigation was. According to Wilson and Schick, the attorney for Jane Doe (Billups’ accuser) said the Blazers didn’t contact her or her client.

“It’s news to us that they conducted an investigation,” attorney Margaret A. Burnham said.

The Blazers’ review didn’t obtain information directly from several primary sources, per the OPB’s report. That doesn’t necessarily meant the team’s conclusion about Billups’ involvement in the 1997 incident was inaccurate, but it suggests that the franchise may not have done everything it could to get the full story.

Whether the latest revelation results in any blowback for Olshey remains to be seen, as Sean Highkin of Bleacher Report tweets. Either way, the fact that the story continues to create PR problems for the club doesn’t reflect well on the Blazers or their head of basketball operations.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

• Alex Labidou of Nuggets.com provides some takeaways on the prospects that the Nuggets brought in for pre-draft workouts on Monday and Tuesday this week. Tuesday’s group included Chudier Bile (Georgetown), Carlik Jones (Louisville), Makur Maker (Howard), MaCio Teague (Baylor), Arnas Velicka (Lithuania), Moses Wright (Georgia Tech). Details on Monday’s group can be found here.
• The Jazz‘s biggest problems in the postseason were a lack of depth and a lack of versatility, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News, noting that the team figures to face some difficult roster decisions this offseason as it looks for ways to improve.
• There have been no reports stating that the Thunder are thinking about trading Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, but some writers have put the 23-year-old in hypothetical trades that Oklahoma City could offer to move up in the draft. Responding to those suggestions, Ross Lovelace of Daily Thunder argues that Oklahoma City should be building around Gilgeous-Alexander, not considering moving him.

According to Berman, the Knicks would’ve picked Sexton over Kevin Knox in the 2018 draft if he had slipped to No. 9 instead of being selected at No. 8. Berman adds that Knicks forward Obi Toppin, who played his college ball at Dayton, may be a player the Cavs would target in a trade.

A source tells Berman that the Knicks – who hold the 19th and 21st overall picks – are open to trading out of the first round entirely in order to acquire an “established player.” Sexton has certainly established himself as a talented scorer, having averaged 24.5 points per game in 2020/21, though it’s unclear if New York would be willing to offer both of its first-round picks in a package for him.

Here’s more from around the East:

• Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel explores whether Sexton might be a fit for the Heat, concluding that such an acquisition would have to be accompanied by another significant addition in order to make Miami a legit contender in the East.
• Ayo Dosunmu, Daishen Nix, Kessler Edwards, Cameron Thomas, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Josh Christopher, Joel Ayayi, David Duke, Joe Wieskamp, Luka Garza, Moses Wright, Justin Champagnie, Sandro Mamukelashvili, John Petty, JT Thor, and Carlik Jones are among the prospects that have worked out for the Hawks or will do so soon, reports Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link).
  
• Jalen Suggs is considered the most likely pick for the Raptors at No. 4 and has been referred to as a potential Kyle Lowry replacement. However, Eric Koreen of The Athletic isn’t convinced that the Raps will – or should – resign themselves to losing Lowry if they draft Suggs or another guard, suggesting that the veteran point guard’s free agency won’t be dependent on which player the team selects in the draft.