Paul George Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Team USA Announces 41-Player Pool For 2024 Olympics

January 23rd, 2024 at 3:54pm CST by Luke Adams

USA Basketball has officially announced a pool of 41 players who are in the mix for the 12 spots on the 2024 Olympic men’s basketball team.

While the pool is subject to change, Team USA’s 12-man roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics will, in all likelihood, be made up of players from this group.

The list figures to shrink as the summer nears due to players suffering injuries or opting not to participate for other reasons, but at some point prior to the July event the U.S. decision-makers will have to choose a final roster from the remaining candidates.

Here’s the full list of 41 players, 28 of whom have represented Team USA in a previous World Cup or Olympics:

Bam Adebayo (Heat)
Jarrett Allen (Cavaliers)
Paolo Banchero (Magic)
Desmond Bane (Grizzlies)
Scottie Barnes (Raptors)
Devin Booker (Suns)
Mikal Bridges (Nets)
Jaylen Brown (Celtics)
Jalen Brunson (Knicks)
Jimmy Butler (Heat)
Alex Caruso (Bulls)
Stephen Curry (Warriors)
Anthony Davis (Lakers)
Kevin Durant (Suns)
Anthony Edwards (Timberwolves)
Joel Embiid (Sixers)
De’Aaron Fox (Kings)
Paul George (Clippers)
Aaron Gordon (Nuggets)
Tyrese Haliburton (Pacers)
James Harden (Clippers)
Josh Hart (Knicks)
Tyler Herro (Heat)
Jrue Holiday (Celtics)
Chet Holmgren (Thunder)
Brandon Ingram (Pelicans)
Kyrie Irving (Mavericks)
Jaren Jackson Jr. (Grizzlies)
LeBron James (Lakers)
Cameron Johnson (Nets)
Walker Kessler (Jazz)
Kawhi Leonard (Clippers)
Damian Lillard (Bucks)
Donovan Mitchell (Cavaliers)
Chris Paul (Warriors)
Bobby Portis (Bucks)
Austin Reaves (Lakers)
Duncan Robinson (Heat)
Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
Derrick White (Celtics)
Trae Young (Hawks)

Adebayo, Booker, Durant, Holiday, Lillard, and Tatum were part of the Olympic team that won gold in Tokyo in 2021. Jerami Grant, Draymond Green, Keldon Johnson, Zach LaVine, JaVale McGee, and Khris Middleton were also on that roster, but aren’t part of the preliminary pool this time around. It’s possible some of them turned down invitations.

“The United States boasts unbelievable basketball talent and I am thrilled that many of the game’s superstars have expressed interest in representing our country at the 2024 Olympic Summer Games,” national team managing director Grant Hill said in a statement. “It is a privilege to select the team that will help us toward the goal of once again standing atop the Olympic podium. This challenging process will unfold over the next several months as we eagerly anticipate the start of national team activity.”

USA Basketball also announced today that Team USA will face Team Canada in Las Vegas on July 10 in an exhibition game. It sounds like that contest will take place during the NBA’s 2024 Summer League.

Northwest Notes: Jokic, George, Ayton, Blazers, Gobert

January 18th, 2024 at 8:54am CST by Luke Adams

Sixers star Joel Embiid racked up 41 points, 10 assists, and seven rebounds in a comeback victory over the Nuggets on Tuesday, but after the game he had nothing but praise for opposing center and fellow MVP Nikola Jokic, as Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes.

Embiid joked that there’s a “war” on Twitter between Sixers and Nuggets fans about which player is better, but suggested that Jokic has earned that honor, at least for now, after leading Denver to a championship in 2023.

“He deserves (the title of best in the NBA),” Embiid said. “Until you knock him down, that’s the best in the league, and he’s the Finals MVP. So until someone else takes that away, then you can claim that.

“But then again,” Embiid continued, with a smile. “I also believe in myself. … I’ve just gotta get there.”

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Following a victory over Oklahoma City on Tuesday, Paul George said the 2019 trade that sent him from the Thunder to the Clippers for a package that included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and several first-round picks has been a win for both sides — and acknowledged that it may have been a bigger win for OKC. “I just think both sides won. I did think it was quite a lot that the Clippers were willing to give up, but their commitment to me is my commitment to them,” George said (Twitter video link via Joey Linn of SI.com). “… We knew Shai was gonna be really, really good, but he’s special. In a way, Oklahoma won that trade with picks and a future MVP. Great trade for both sides.”
After missing the Trail Blazers‘ past 11 games due to a knee issue, starting center Deandre Ayton was on track to return Wednesday vs. Brooklyn, but icy conditions in Portland prevented him from getting to the game, as Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report tweets. Ayton will presumably be available on Friday vs. Indiana.
Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups tried a new starting lineup on Wednesday, with Jerami Grant, Anfernee Simons, Malcolm Brogdon, Duop Reath, and Jabari Walker making up the 19th starting five the team has used this season. After the game, Billups explained that he wanted to make a change due to the slow starts the Blazers had been having (Twitter link via Highkin). The original plan, Billups added, was to move Shaedon Sharpe into Scoot Henderson‘s starting spot, but Sharpe is sidelined with an abdominal injury.
While Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert has been lauded for a bounce-back season on defense, he lauded his teammates for making things easier on him at the end of the court, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “We got people that can guard. We got people that can move their feet and take the challenge,” Gobert said.

Paul George “Optimistic” About Extension Talks With Clippers

January 11th, 2024 at 8:00am CST by Luke Adams

After Kawhi Leonard signed a three-year, $152MM extension with the Clippers on Wednesday, teammate Paul George expressed confidence that he’ll agree sooner or later to a new deal of his own that keeps him in Los Angeles beyond this season, according to Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.

“I mean, absolutely,” George said when he was asked if Leonard’s extension increases the chances of him signing his own contract. “You secure and lock in Kawhi. Definitely leaves the door open for myself, but very, very optimistic something will get done on my behalf, as well.”

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reported on Wednesday in the wake of the Leonard news that the Clippers have been motivated to get both forwards locked up to longer-term contracts and that talks with George are ongoing. Asked later in the day about how close he and the Clippers are to finding common ground on an extension, George essentially confirmed Wojnarowski’s report.

“We’re working on it,” he said. “… I’m extremely excited and happy for Kawhi reaching a deal to hopefully make him a Clipper for the rest of his career. We’ll see my situation when we get there, but just happy they got the deal done on his end. I know he wants to stay here, myself as well. When my time comes, we’ll be ready for those conversations as well.”

Like Leonard, George has been affected by various injuries since he joined the Clippers in 2019 and didn’t appear in more than 56 regular season games in any of his first four years with the team. However, he has played in 35 of 37 contests so far this season and is performing at a high level, averaging 23.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.6 steals in 34.6 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .464/.414/.918.

George’s current contract situation is identical to the one Leonard was in before agreeing to his extension — he’s earning approximately $45.6MM this season and holds a $48.8MM player option for 2024/25. In order to sign an extension, George would have to decline that option, at which point he would be eligible to receive up to approximately $220MM over four years on his new deal.

Of course, Leonard accepted a three-year deal worth slightly below his maximum salary, and the two Clippers stars have essentially been on matching contracts since teaming up in Los Angeles, so it will be interesting to see if George’s next deal features terms similar to Kawhi’s. Leonard suggested on Wednesday that he feels good about the likelihood of both George and James Harden sticking with the Clippers beyond this season.

“With the conversation that I have with them about it, I think for the most part everybody is coming back,” Leonard said. “So with me signing an extension, I think it gives us a chance to sign both of those players.”

Harden won’t become extension-eligible prior to the expiration of his current contract, but the Clippers will hold his Bird rights this offseason.

Clippers Sign Kawhi Leonard To Three-Year Extension

January 10th, 2024 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

1:00pm: Leonard’s new contract is a three-year extension worth $152.4MM, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter links). The deal, which runs through 2026/27, doesn’t include a player option and comes in a little below Leonard’s maximum salary, Charania adds.

The precise value of Leonard’s maximum salary for next season won’t be known until the 2024/25 salary cap is set, but based on current projections, Leonard could have earned up to about $161MM on a three-year max extension; that figure could end up at nearly $170MM if the cap increases by the maximum 10%.

Leonard’s new deal will feature a salary in the $52MM range in year one before dipping to approximately $50MM for each of the next two seasons, per Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The cap would have to rise by more than 9% this summer for Kawhi’s max to get to $52MM — if it doesn’t, the first-year salary on his new deal will come in slightly lower than that.

The extension will make Leonard ineligible to be traded until July 10.

12:34pm: The Clippers have signed star forward Kawhi Leonard to a contract extension, the team announced today in a press release.

Prior to agreeing to a new deal, Leonard was eligible to reach unrestricted free agency this summer by turning down a $48.8MM player option for 2024/25. The terms of his extension aren’t yet known, but he had the ability to decline that option at any time up until June 30 and then add as many as four years to the final season of his current contract.

“We’re thrilled to continue our relationship with Kawhi,” president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank said in a statement. “He is an elite player, a terrific partner and a relentless worker who knows how to win and makes it his first priority. He elevated our franchise from the moment he arrived. We feel fortunate that Kawhi chose to join the Clippers four years ago, and excited to keep building with him.”

Leonard, who signed with the Clippers in 2019 on the heels of leading the Raptors to a championship, has been hampered by injuries during his time in Los Angeles, appearing in no more than 57 regular season games in any of his first four years as a Clipper. He missed the entire 2021/22 season while recovering from an ACL tear that he sustained during the ’21 playoffs.

However, the 32-year-old has continued to perform at an All-NBA level when he’s healthy and has played in 32 of 36 Clippers games so far in his fifth season with the franchise, leading L.A. to a 23-13 record. Leonard has averaged 23.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.8 steals in 34.5 minutes per night in 2023/24, posting an elite shooting line of .516/.430/.871.

Entering the day, Leonard and Paul George were on identical contracts, with George also eligible to sign an extension of up to four years if he declines a $48.8MM player option for ’24/25.

According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link), the organization’s extension talks with George are ongoing, with the Clippers hoping to get both stars locked up to longer-term contracts as they prepare to move into their new arena later this year.

The Clippers won’t be able to extend James Harden‘s contract before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in the 2024 offseason, but if the rest of this season goes well, the team would presumably be looking to sign him to a new deal as well.

The Clippers lost their first six games after acquiring Harden on November 1, but have been on fire since then, winning 20 of their past 26 games to move up in the Western Conference standings from 12th place to fourth.

Northwest Notes: Conley, Thunder, Nuggets, Jackson

December 24th, 2023 at 1:57pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley is feeling revitalized at age 36 as a leader for the team with the West’s best record, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

“You see it, not only with his approach but his ability to make huge plays, whether it be a steal in transition, obviously the threes, get the ball to the right people at the right time, close the game, quarterback the defense,” head coach Chris Finch said. “On and on it goes.”

“This is probably the best shape I’ve been in, in a long, long time,” Conley said. “I’m prepared to play however long I need to play. I tell [Finch] if I get tired, but I never do that. I want to be on the court as much as I can and help the guys, so we just keep communicating, and hopefully I can just keep going.”

The six-footer is averaging 11.5 PPG on .464/.445/.952 shooting, along with 6.3 APG and 2.9 RPG. Conley is in the final season of a three-year, $68MM million deal he signed when still with the Jazz. He’ll reach unrestricted free agency this summer, and if he can keep playing like this, he may still have more solid salaries waiting for him.

“I’ve still got it,” Conley said. “My age doesn’t matter, man. I’m still moving good, so I’m happy.”

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

A trio of former Thunder stars offered high praise for Oklahoma City’s upstart young club and fanbase, following an up-close-and-personal encounter this week, writes Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. Clippers stars Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Paul George, who all had multiple successful seasons with the Thunder, fell 134-115 in Oklahoma City on Thursday. “This reminded me of when I was here in the beginning of the Thunder Up days,” Harden said. “And it’s beautiful. It’s been a long time as far as the rebuilding process, but I think it’s exciting. These fans deserve some good basketball.” Harden was drafted by the Thunder in 2009, and was flipped in 2012 to the Rockets. George spent 2017-19 with Oklahoma City, alongside Westbrook. And while he only spent two seasons with the Thunder, he developed a strong connection with the community. He had high praise for Thunder center Chet Holmgren. “He’s a talent,” George said. “We didn’t quite figure it out because he’s not necessarily a big. He can play and move like a guard and a wing, so he gave us some problems.” Westbrook was drafted by the Thunder in 2008, and played there until 2019, winning an MVP in 2017. “It’s like home for me,” Westbrook said. “I grew up here… I’m grateful and gracious for their appreciation of the way I play basketball and the way I compete.”
The Nuggets, much vaunted for their offense, have seen their efforts on the other end of the ball come to the fore of late, as Bennett Durando of The Denver Post details. In the second half of an eventual 102-95 win over the Hornets, Denver outscored Charlotte 17-0 to start the third frame, while the Hornets went 0-for-20 from the field at the opening of the quarter. “We wanted to win tonight because of our defense, not our offense,” defense-first power forward Aaron Gordon said.
Nuggets sixth man Reggie Jackson, who was a high school legend at nearby Palmer High School, is reveling in his pro time with Denver, Durando writes in another piece. A big element of his time in town now has been his ability to reconnect with old friends and teammates. “That’s the best part of being back,” Jackson said. “If I have the urge to go see somebody, I can just go drive down there. Getting to see my childhood friends, their families grow, and getting to experience that and actually be around. Being gone so long in the NBA, it’s fun to finally have these moments and be close to them. I’m happy to be back home.”

L.A. Notes: Clippers, Leonard, Lakers, Vincent, Vanderbilt

December 20th, 2023 at 11:56pm CST by Rory Maher

The health of Kawhi Leonard and Paul George has played a significant role in the Clippers‘ surge up the standings, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. George was sidelined for just his second game of the season in Wednesday’s victory over Dallas, while Leonard has yet to miss a game in 2023/24.

“That was never the case,” George said of the idea that he and Leonard sat out games last season to rest. “We had injuries that we were trying to keep minimal. No one knows what we go through, what and where our bodies are at. But they paint that picture on us as if we were sitting games out like we wanted to.”

According to Youngmisuk, the star wings have already appeared in more back-to-backs this season (four) than they did in the previous four seasons combined (three). The addition of James Harden has also made it easier on Leonard and George, who are handling the ball less and have had more open looks.

“That’s the great thing about having James,” head coach Tyronn Lue said. “For them, getting easier shots, open threes. Before in the past, they had to take every shot. They had to create every shot.”

Here’s more on the two Los Angeles-based teams:

Wednesday marked the ninth consecutive victory for the Clippers. It’s certainly not a coincidence that the league’s hottest team has received elite two-way play from Leonard, according to Andrew Greif of The Los Angeles Times. Leonard averaged 29.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.3 steals on a scorching hot .623/.548/.951 shooting line in the first eight games of the streak, only turning the ball over 1.8 times per game over that span.
After losing Wednesday’s game in Chicago, the Lakers have gone 1-4 since winning the in-season tournament, including dropping three straight. Head coach Darvin Ham said he wasn’t considering a change to the starting lineup in the wake of the skid, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN (Twitter link). “You can’t just keep, on a whim, changing,” Ham said. “That’s a big deal when you change your starting lineup at this level.” As Jovan Buha of The Athletic tweets, the upcoming schedule will be challenging for the Lakers, who face Minnesota, Oklahoma City and Boston over the next three games.
Lakers guard Gabe Vincent returned to the lineup on Wednesday, suiting up for the first time since October 30 and playing 14 minutes in the loss, as Khobi Price of The Southern California News Group relays. Vincent was on a minutes restriction and likely will be for a least a little while. Ham said he was excited about the lineup possibilities with nearly the entire roster active — only rookie Jalen Hood-Schifino (back) is injured at the moment. “(Vincent) can be our lead guard, he can play off the ball, he can be a secondary creator, so it’s gonna be good. The discovery process is gonna be good for that,” Ham said.
Despite returning on December 2, Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt admits he’s still battling the left heel injury that sidelined him for the first several weeks of the season, Price adds in the same story. Ham said Vanderbilt has an “active issue with his foot,” which is why he’s been limited to 13-to-17 minutes per game. Vanderbilt was asked why he returned at less than 100%. “Because we have a chance,” he said. “I consider us being a contender. And I know how far we can fully go if healthy, so, that’s the reason I tried to come back and fight through it and get right.“

Pacific Notes: Vincent, Lakers’ Trip, Maledon, Beal, George

December 19th, 2023 at 10:09pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Lakers are poised to get one of their top guards back in action. Gabe Vincent is listed as probable to play Wednesday against Chicago, Khobi Price of the Orange County Register tweets.

Vincent, who has been sidelined since Oct. 30 due to left knee effusion, appeared in just four games before he was sidelined. He joined the Lakers in free agency on a three-year, $33MM contract after playing a key part in the Heat’s playoff run to the Finals.

We have more from the Pacific Division:

The Lakers are 1-3 since winning the in-season tournament, and playing their next three games in four nights on the road won’t make things any easier, Anthony Davis admits. “It’s tough,” said Davis, as relayed by Price. “For the whole month of December, we’ve really been on the road – and are gonna be on the road for probably the rest of December. But there’s nothing we can really do about it. It’s the schedule. Just gotta take care of our bodies and get some guys back hopefully within the next couple of games. But it’s definitely a mental challenge going on the road as much as we are right now.”
Theo Maledon, who was claimed off waivers from Charlotte by the Suns on Sunday, has been on Phoenix’s radar for a while, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports. Maledon, who is on a two-way deal, worked out for the Suns during the offseason. “I want to say two months before training camp probably,” Maledon said. He’ll give the team another point guard option. “For sure, but I just want to do my role on what coach expects from me or the team expects me to do. Whatever they need, I feel like that’s the biggest priority,” he said.
Suns wing Bradley Beal, who is expected to miss at least the rest of this month with an ankle injury, was a spectator when Phoenix defeated his former team on Sunday. The ex-Wizards star says it’s “surreal” to be on the same team as Devin Booker and Kevin Durant. “It’s definitely surreal at times,” he told Ava Wallace of the Washington Post. “… That’s two guys I competed against for a long time in this league, and now we’re all sharing the opportunity to go compete for a title. It’s surreal in a lot of ways. But it kind of motivates you, too, to just continue to be the best version of yourself you can be.”
Clippers forward Paul George is listed as questionable to play against Dallas on Wednesday due to an illness, ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk tweets.

Los Angeles Notes: Clippers’ Streak, Coffey, Davis, James

December 17th, 2023 at 8:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Clippers have won seven straight, demonstrating how far they’ve come since the James Harden trade, Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times writes. Kawhi Leonard has scored 30-plus points in six of the last 10 games, and Leonard, Paul George and Harden are developing into a dominating trio.

“It’s exactly what I envisioned just how we should play and how we can play,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “The biggest thing is just PG, Kawhi and James making each other better on a night-to-night basis.”

We have more on the Los Angeles teams:

Amir Coffey played 29 minutes for the Clippers on Thursday, scoring 18 points against Golden State. He saw 17 more minutes of action against the Knicks on Saturday after playing sparingly in the first 23 games. Lue said Coffey, who is signed through next season, bulled his way into the rotation, Greif tweets. “He’s earned the right to have the opportunity to play,” Lue said.
The Clippers’ defense will be tested in all of their games before Christmas, Law Murray of The Athletic notes. They face top-10 offenses in the Pacers, Mavericks and Thunder during their upcoming three-game road trip, then host another top-10 offense in the Celtics. “We’re a defense-first team, and we’ll watch film, see what they like to do, prepare for them and do our best,” Ivica Zubac said. “We know Indy is a great offensive team, and then you got Dallas and OKC, some great offensive teams. But we got some good defenders on this team and guys with high IQ that read very well on defense that can make plays. It’s going to be a great test for us.”
The Lakers list Anthony Davis (left adductor, hip spasm) and LeBron James (left calf contusion) as questionable for Monday’s home game against the Knicks, Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Christian Wood (non-COVID illness) is also listed as questionable.

Pacific Notes: Clippers, George, Vincent, Nurkic, Green, Durant

December 14th, 2023 at 10:56pm CST by Tristan Tucker

After trading for James Harden, the Clippers went through a rough patch while adjusting to incorporating another ball-dominant player. Star wing Paul George said that it’s a growing pain plenty of teams with several All-Stars have historically experienced.

“They all went through some sort of adversity, regardless of the talent,” George said. “It’s going to take some time because you got to find how to be yourself when your usage rate isn’t going to be as high as it used to be [or] the possessions you were going to have.”

Now, Los Angeles has flipped its fortunes. The team holds the NBA’s longest active win streak (five games entering Thursday) and has won 10 of its last 13. Janis Carr of The Orange County Register says the Clippers are finding the “new you” in themselves by re-imagining their games and playing freely.

“I mean that’s it. Just all of us just combining into the defensive end and just wanting to get things going on that end first and then letting, whatever the offense, take care of itself since we got so many scorers,” said star forward Kawhi Leonard.

Harden made headlines earlier in the season, saying that he didn’t feel like the Sixers let him play like himself, a problem he isn’t having in coach Tyronn Lue‘s system.

“[Lue] allows me to just be free, be who I am and, like I said previously, that’s not just scoring, but just me reading defenses, seeing the different game and putting Kawhi and PG in better positions or in the pick-and-roll with [Ivica Zubac] getting easy layups or [Daniel Theis] getting easy layups,” Harden said. “It is everything that I thought it would be. It’s taken a little time, but as far as me playing and the chemistry on the court … it’s getting where it needs to be.”

We have more from the Pacific Division:

George sat out the second half of the Clippers‘ Tuesday win over the Kings with a sore left groin. According to ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk, Lue said George could have come back in and played if needed. However, he was ruled out before L.A’s Thursday game against the Warriors with hip soreness (Twitter link via Los Angeles Times’ Andrew Greif). He’s considered day-to-day, according to Youngmisuk.
Lakers guard Gabe Vincent is ramping up during the team’s three-game road trip, with coach Darvin Ham saying “everything is going according to plan,” The Orange County Register’s Khobi Price writes. Vincent hasn’t played since Oct. 30 due to a left knee effusion. The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Monday that Vincent was targeting a Dec. 18 return to play. He’s averaging 6.0 points and 3.0 assists this season.
Even after taking a hit to the face from Warriors forward Draymond Green that led to Green being suspended indefinitely, Suns center Jusuf Nurkic still holds the four-time All-Star in a high regard, according to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic. “I have a lot of respect for him, obviously, even before this,” Nurkic said Wednesday. “I still have it. I don’t know what people go through. It’s not our problem, but he’s an NBA champion for me, Hall of Famer still.“
Suns star forward Kevin Durant also reacted to the altercation on Wednesday, expressing well wishes to Green. “I hope he gets the help he needs,” Durant said (Twitter link via Rankin). Durant and Green played on the Warriors from 2016-19, winning two championships together. “[The altercation] was insane to see,” Durant said. “Glad Nurk is alright. Never seen that on the basketball court in an NBA game.“

Warriors Notes: Moody, Thompson, Green, Paul, Payton

November 29th, 2023 at 5:19pm CST by Arthur Hill

Moses Moody hit several big shots in the fourth quarter Tuesday night, but he wasn’t on the floor for the closing minutes as the Warriors fell to the Kings. That’s something coach Steve Kerr may have to change if the third-year guard remains productive, writes Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic.

Moody scored 11 points in the first seven minutes of the quarter, making all four of his shot attempts. However, Kerr opted to replace him with Andrew Wiggins with 4:26 remaining.

“Moses was awesome tonight,” Kerr said. “We needed (Wiggins) on the floor for defense against (De’Aaron) Fox, and we decided to go with Klay (Thompson) and our vets. We thought about keeping him out there. But we made the move that we made.”

Kerr’s loyalty to his veterans cost the Warriors an important division game and a possibly a chance to reach the in-season tournament quarterfinals, according to Marcus Thompson. With Moody and rookie Brandin Podziemski both playing well, Thompson believes Kerr will eventually have to trust them with a game on the line.

There’s more on the Warriors:

Stephen Curry remains as productive as ever, but Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are no longer playing at a championship level, contends Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer. He notes that Thompson has been forcing shots and can’t stay in front of quicker players on defense, while Green’s intensity has been out of control lately, resulting in a five-game suspension for an incident with Rudy Gobert and a near ejection for mocking the officials in Tuesday’s game. O’Connor’s recommendation is for the Warriors to shake up their roster with a trade, using Chris Paul‘s salary and some of their young talent. He suggests targets such as the Raptors‘ Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby, the Bulls‘ Alex Caruso, the Wizards‘ Kyle Kuzma, or possibly Lauri Markkanen from the Jazz or Kawhi Leonard or Paul George from the Clippers if those teams continue to struggle.
Golden State could be heading toward a difficult place with Thompson if he can’t shake his early-season slump, observes Connor Letourneau of The San Francisco Chronicle. Thompson has an expiring contract, and if he can’t prove that he’s worth the four-year, $220MM extension that he reportedly expects, his only choices next summer will be to either leave the Warriors or re-sign for significantly less.
A pair of injuries added to the team’s woes in Tuesday’s loss, notes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. Paul was ruled out with lower left leg soreness shortly after halftime, and Gary Payton II hobbled to the locker room with a right calf injury late in the third quarter.