Nikola Jokic Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Harrell, Batum, Jokic, Ollie

June 8th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Montrezl Harrell is a dangerous force around the basket, but it’s the former Louisville power forward’s improving midrange game that would make him attractive to the Jazz at pick No. 12, as Jody Genessy of the Deseret News examines. He’d certainly already have been drafted by the time Utah’s other picks, at Nos. 42 and 54, come up, Genessy notes. Harrell worked out for the team Sunday. Here’s more from around the Northwest Division:

Nicolas Batum envisions someday returning to play in France to finish his career, mentioning Le Mans and Caen as preferred destinations to Alexandre Lacoste of BeBasket.fr (translation via HoopsHype). Of course, that probably won’t be for a while, since Batum is only 26 even as he’s set to enter the final season of his contract with the Trail Blazers.
Draft-and-stash prospect Nikola Jokic has his sights set on joining the Nuggets, tweets David Pick of Eurobasket.com. Pick reported last month that Jokic was holding out for a long-term deal from Denver, but it appears as though the center who plays for Mega Leks in his native Serbia is nonetheless enthusiastic about joining the NBA team that selected him 41st overall last year.
The Thunder and Kevin Ollie never engaged in formal talks about the Connecticut coach taking the Oklahoma City job, as Dom Amore of the Hartford Courant writes. There nonetheless appeared to be some contact, as Ollie was reportedly the team’s No. 1 target and apparently listened to overtures before pulling out of the running.

Western Notes: Jokic, Afflalo, Aminu

May 7th, 2015 at 6:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Mavs forward Al-Farouq Aminu has indicated that he’ll turn down his minimum-salary player option with the team for next season, but both sides have indicated a willingness to rekindle their relationship next season. When discussing his feelings regarding returning to Dallas in a radio interview with KRLD-FM 105.3 (hat tip to the Dallas Morning News), Aminu said, “People are still playing now, so it’s hard to tell, but I really want to. … Nobody likes moving and different things like that. I’ve been in L.A. then I went to New Orleans and now here. It’s always better to stay where you’re at but things happen. But it would be nice.”

Here’s more from the NBA’s Western Conference:

When asked what positives he would pitch about playing in Dallas to prospective free agent targets, Aminu said, “I guess it’s what I went through last year when I was coming to play here. It’s a great city. It doesn’t get that cold, which is nice. Also, the practice facility is in the arena is close, as well as the airport, so it’s not a lot of long hours you have to drive back and forth to places. It does become a drag. You’re going to play with great players. Obviously you’re probably going to win and then you’re going to have a chance at a championship.”
Nuggets 2014 second-round pick Nikola Jokic is seeking a long-term deal from Denver or else he’ll remain overseas, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com (via Twitter). There are reports that the Nuggets intend to ink the big man prior to the NBA summer league commencing.
Blazers guard Arron Afflalo has to make a decision this offseason regarding his player option worth $7,750,000, and Sean Meagher of The Oregonian examines the pros and cons of the 29-year-old returning to Rip City in 2015/16.
Sam Amick of USA Today looks at the path Warriors star Stephen Curry has taken from being the No. 7 overall selection in the 2009 NBA draft to winning the league’s MVP award this season.

And-Ones: Coaches, Jokic, Payne, Draft

May 7th, 2015 at 1:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

Most of the college coaches who’ve come into the NBA over the past two decades have either left basketball schools that gave them wide autonomy, joined NBA teams with little hope of success, or both, observes Phil Taylor of Sports Illustrated. Brad Stevens doesn’t fit either category, and neither does new Thunder hire Billy Donovan, Taylor argues, suggesting that the success Stevens has found with the Celtics is an auspicious omen for Donovan and a signal that more college coaches are on their way to the league. In any case, Stevens is the only college head coach to jump directly to the NBA since 2000 to guide his NBA team to the playoffs, as I pointed out. Here’s more from around the Association:

The Nuggets are expected to sign 2014 second-round pick Nikola Jokic prior to summer league in July, according to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. It’s not entirely clear whether the deal will cover only summer league or will formally bring the 6’11” draft-and-stash prospect onto the roster for training camp in the fall. However, the Nuggets are anxious to see last year’s 41st overall pick compete against NBA-caliber talent, Dempsey writes. The 20-year-old center averaged 14.9 points and 9.0 rebounds in 30.1 minutes per game this season for KK Mega Vizura in his native Serbia.
It’s Murray State point guard Cameron Payne‘s dual threat of scoring and passing that truly distinguishes him as a top prospect, but his ability to perform on defense is a question mark, as Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz of DraftExpress examine. Givony ranks Payne as the 20th-best draft hopeful.
Chad Ford and Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com, in an Insider-only piece, debate the avenues the Nuggets, Heat, Pacers and Jazz have to improve via the draft, sharing conflicting viewpoints on whether it would behoove Utah to spend a third consecutive lottery pick on a point guard.

And-Ones: Internationals, Crowder, Cavs

November 12th, 2014 at 10:55pm CST by Alex Lee

With Rockets and Timberwolves playing below the border and the Blazers scoring 111 points in the first three quarters in Denver, the NBA’s Wednesday night has been anything but normal. As the final quarter ticks away in Mexico City, let’s look at some news and notes from around the league:

David Pick of Basketball Insiders includes Vasilije Micic (Sixers), Alex Abrines (Thunder), Davis Bertans (Spurs), Dario Saric (Sixers), Nikola Jokic (Nuggets) and Bogdan Bogdanovic (Suns) on his list of six international draft-and-stashes who could contribute in the NBA now.
In a chat with readers, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News calls the Mavericks‘ Jae Crowder a “keeper in this league” on a good team. Crowder will hit restricted free agency after this season, but has not really gotten an opportunity to put his skills on display thus far in his third NBA season, as Sefko adds.
Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders provides an extensive evaluation of how the Cavaliers have handled building around their trio of stars, for this and the coming years. As Duncan points out, the Anderson Varejao extension now looks a bit riskier considering the team’s defense struggles. Duncan opines that locking up fellow big Tristan Thompson might be shrewd since the Varejao deal has limited any other options.

West Notes: Jokic, Kanter, Burks, Gasol, Beasley

September 30th, 2014 at 7:50pm CST by Alex Lee

Here are the latest news and notes coming out of the Western Conference on Tuesday night:

There’s been no word of a deal between the Nuggets and Nikola Jokic, and his name isn’t among the 19 on the preseason roster that the Nuggets released today, so presumably the 41st overall pick from this year’s draft will remain under contract with Serbia’s KK Mega Vizura this season.
On the heels of yesterday’s report that the Jazz have opened extension talks with Enes Kanter and Alec Burks, GM Dennis Lindsey said the team anticipates the duo to be with the Jazz for a “long time,” writes Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. “They’re both valued members and we’re really proud of where they’re at as people and as players,” Lindsey said. “We’ll see if we can get something done early … but we anticipate both of them being with the Jazz for a long time.”
When asked about his impending free agency next summer, Marc Gasol reiterated his affinity for his teammates and the city of Memphis, writes Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal in a subscription-only piece. Gasol also suggested that it would be hard to sign an extension prior to next summer knowing how quickly things can change in the NBA. Grizzlies owner Robert Pera said in August he’s determined to keep Gasol in Memphis for the rest of his career.
Also from Calkins’ story, Grizzlies head coach Dave Joerger had the following to say when asked what it would take for Michael Beasley to end up on the roster: “Just be as good as he can be on the court and off the court. He’s going to have to come in and take somebody’s spot, and he knows that.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Western Rumors: Jokic, Grizzlies, Jazz, Kings

July 31st, 2014 at 9:44pm CST by Cray Allred

It doesn’t sound like the Nuggets intend to sign 41st overall pick Nikola Jokic this year, as Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post writes amid his mailbag column that the center from Serbia won’t be on the roster come fall. Here’s a rundown of the Western Conference, including some more notes out of Denver:

In another response, Dempsey predicts that the Nuggets will make the playoffs this season, but speculates that a failure to do so will result in a “gut-job” on the roster from the front office.
The Denver Post scribe would expect JaVale McGee to be on the trading block for 2015/16, when he will be on an expiring contract, if the Nuggets center doesn’t stay healthy and play well this year.
The Grizzlies have retooled their coaching and development staff with a group of promotions and hires, installing Jeff Bzdelik, Jason March, Drew Graham and John Townsend as assistant coach, assistant coach/advanced scout, head trainer, and director of player development, respectively, according to a team release.
Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune looks at the plethora of rookie extension decisions facing the Jazz, who have six lottery picks on their roster, in the coming years.
The Kings final court victory regarding their new arena will be appealed, but a team spokeswoman tells Dale Kasler of The Sacramento Bee that Sacramento will move forward with construction.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Draft Notes: Embiid, Celtics, Trades

June 21st, 2014 at 12:55pm CST by Cray Allred

Joel Embiid‘s foot injury has shaken up the draft, with split opinions around the league regarding the seven-footer’s prospects for the draft and beyond. One league source tells Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe that Embiid’s health concerns place him in legitimate danger of plummeting out of the lottery, while others are confident he will still be selected in the top 10. More draft rumblings:

Tyler Ennis will have his second audition for the Magic on Monday, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (H/T Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic).
The international teams for Jusuf Nurkic, Nikola Jokic, Nemanja Dangubic, and Vasilije Micic will not put any barriers in place to keep the players from joining the NBA if drafted, per tweets from Yugobasket and Misko Raznatovic (H/T Emiliano Carchia of Sportando).
Marcus Smart, Noah Vonleh, and Aaron Gordon are the Celtics preferred group of draftees at No. 6, tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe.
Boston’s “most likely” scenario for the draft is to keep both of their picks, GM Danny Ainge tells Washburn (Twitter link).

Earlier updates:

The Cavs are making efforts to trade down from the top spot to the No. 3-5 range in the draft, where they think Embiid would still be available, tweets Brett Poirier of Sheridan Hoops. The Magic, sitting at No. 4, have not been contacted by Cleveland, a source tells Poirier (Twitter link). The Sixers and Jazz own the third and fifth pick, respectively.
The Lakers would consider taking Embiid at No. 7 if he fell that far, a source familiar with their thinking tells Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News. Unsurprisingly, LA’s choice would hinge on their confidence in the big man’s recovery.
The Lakers are more likely to hang on to that seventh pick than deal it, despite their ongoing efforts to explore what they could net for it, writes Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. The pick was linked to Klay Thompson as part of the Kevin Love discussions earlier today.
The Suns are willing to trade away the 27th pick for a future first-rounder, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
Jakarr Sampson, Niels Giffey, Glenn Robinson III, and Chane Behanan will work out for the Celtics today, tweets Holmes.
As previously reported, the Warriors, Blazers, Pelicans, and Knicks are all looking to acquire first round draft picks, but the price tag is extremely high due to the deep draft pool, reports Alex Kennedy (via Twitter). Kennedy says that teams are asking for future picks that are unprotected or barely protected in return for first-rounders this year.
The NBA has invited 21 prospects to the green room for the draft broadcast, Chad Ford of ESPN.com reveals in two tweets. The invite is a sign of consensus around these players as first round selections. The players invited were Andrew Wiggins Jabari Parker, Joel Embiid, Dante Exum, Noah Vonleh, Aaron Gordon, Marcus Smart, Julius Randle, Doug McDermott, Dario Saric, Gary Harris, Elfrid Payton, Nik Stauskas, James Young, Zach LaVine, Jusuf Nurkic, Adreian Payne, T.J. Warren, Tyler Ennis, Rodney Hood, and Shabazz Napier.

NBA Draft Withdrawal Deadline Updates

June 17th, 2014 at 2:18pm CST by Chuck Myron

Monday was the deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA draft, and the league has announced the list of those who’ve pulled out. The deadline applied mostly to prospects from overseas, since any collegian who takes his name out of consideration at this point isn’t be able to return to NCAA competition. Mychal Ammons of South Alabama is the only U.S.-based player who withdrew, but he’d already signed a deal with an overseas club.

Yesterday’s reports identified several of the prospects taking their names out of the draft, as well as some high-profile players staying in, and we’ve added the previously unreported names of those pulling out to the top of the list below. For the complete register of early entrants denoting those who’ve withdrawn, click here.

Withdrawing from the draft

Ammons, Berkay Candan, Tomas Dimsa, Marko Ramljak, Alejandro Suarez, Devon Van Oostrum are all out of the draft, the NBA announced.
Joonas Caven has pulled out of the draft, agent K.C. Callero tells Givony (Twitter link).
Matias Bortolin is withdrawing from the draft, his agent tells Sportando (Twitter link).
Ilja Gromovs will exit the draft, too, agent Arturs Kalnitis says to Givony (Twitter link).
Mateusz Ponitka has removed his name from draft consideration, Givony tweets.
Moussa Diagne and Guillem Vives will take their names out of the draft, agent Herb Ruboy says to Givony (Twitter link).
Rasmus Larsen has decided to exit the draft, as agent Doug Neustadt informs Givony (Twitter link).
OKK Spars Sarajevo teammates Nedim Buza and Adin Vrabac have decided to pull out of the draft, agent Alexander Raskovic tweets.
Lefteris Bochoridis has withdrawn from the draft, a source tells Shams Charania of RealGM.

Remaining in the draft

Jokic isn’t the only prospect to flip-flop today. Damien Inglis changed his mind and has decided to keep his name in the draft, agent Pedja Materic tells Jonthan Givony of DraftExpress (via Twitter).
Raznatovic, Saric’s agent, took to Twitter to confirm that his client will remain in the draft (hat tip to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
Nikola Jokic has changed his mind and will remain in the draft after all, Raznatovic tweets (hat tip to Chad Ford of ESPN.com).
Dario Saric will stay in the draft, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link).
Vasilije Micic remains in the draft, agent Misko Raznatovic tweets.
Clint Capela will keep his name in this year’s draft, agent Bouna Ndiaye tells Givony (Twitter link).

Nikola Jokic To Enter Draft

April 24th, 2014 at 8:08am CST by Chuck Myron

Serbian center Nikola Jokic was leaning toward entering the draft before this month’s Nike Hoop Summit, and after a strong performance, he’s decided to declare, agent Misko Raznatovic tells Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Givony lists the 19-year-old as the 45th-best prospect for this year, though Chad Ford of ESPN.com has him unranked.

The 6’11” Jokic primarily came off the bench this year for KK Mega Vizura in his home country, averaging 11.1 points and 6.3 rebounds in 24.5 minutes per game. It was a significant step forward for a player who’d been largely unknown entering the season. He showed a diverse skill set in Hoop Summit World Team practice, as Matt Kamalsky of DraftExpress observed, though he’s a limited athlete. Jokic only saw three shots in the Hoop Summit game, but he pulled down seven rebounds in less than 16 minutes of playing time.

Jokic won’t be automatically eligible for the draft until 2017, so he could easily withdraw before the June 16th deadline to do so. Still, it seems like he has a strong chance to be drafted this year.

And-Ones: Mavericks, Corbin, Moore

April 10th, 2014 at 7:18pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson guested on the SVP and Russillo Show on ESPN Radio (audio link) earlier today, praising Rick Carlisle‘s performance this season and acknowledging that the franchise will have the flexibility to be active in the free agent market this offseason. It’s definitely worth mentioning that Dallas’ first priority, according to Nelson, is to re-sign Dirk Nowitzki and allow him to finish his career with the Mavs. He also said that the team will be looking to add another superstar with the intent of having Dirk eventually become their second-best player.

Though he didn’t specifically mention any other names, Nelson stated that the team has a few of its own free agents that are priorities as well. He’s gone on record before saying that there is mutual interest with Vince Carter in negotiating a new deal and that he plans on keeping Samuel Dalembert this summer.

Here are some more miscellaneous news and notes out of the Association tonight:

A few days ago, we noted that Jazz head coach Tyrone Corbin, along with his staff, will know by the end of this month if they’ll be returning for the 2014/15 season. Corbin’s contract is set to expire this summer, although Jody Genessy of the Deseret News found it interesting that the 51-year-old coach spoke today about working with the players this summer and getting them ready for next year (Twitter link).
Magic shooting guard and soon-to-be free agent E’Twaun Moore tells Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel that his preference is to stay put: “Most definitely…Orlando has been good to me. It’s great here. We got a lot of young guys and I feel like we’ve grown up together.”
6’11 center prospect Nikola Jokic will most likely declare for the 2014 NBA Draft and is expected to make his final decision after the Nike Hoops Summit, per Misko Raznatovic of BeoBasket Sports agency (Twitter link).
Former Marquette standout Jamil Wilson has signed with Relativity Sports and is currently projected as a second-round pick, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.