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Central Notes: LaVine, Rose, Shumpert, R. Jackson

December 30th, 2017 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

When they stumbled their way to a 3-20 start, no team seemed less likely to have a seven-game winning streak than the Bulls. But that’s what happened, and their improbable play since December 8 has given them the league’s best record during that span at 10-2. With Zach LaVine due back soon, the only thing that could dampen spirits in Chicago is a rumored trade involving Nikola Mirotic or Robin Lopez, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.

Trade rumors began when the Bulls appeared headed for a high lottery pick and Mirotic was sidelined by facial fractures from a preseason fight with teammate Bobby Portis. Those two have resolved their differences enough to co-exist on the court, and Chicago has pulled to within five games of a playoff spot.

“We’re playing so well you don’t want to interfere with that,” LaVine said about the possibility of a deal. “But that’s not a decision for me or anybody on the team. We go out there to play and win and prove ourselves and impress. That’s what we’re going to do.”

There’s more tonight from the Central Division:

  • Today marked the first of six straight contact practices scheduled for LaVine as he works his way back from ACL surgery, Johnson adds in the same story. LaVine, who was averaging 18.9 points per game for the Timberwolves before the injury last season, said he feels “close” to returning. “I’ve actually picked things up pretty quickly,” he said of the Bulls’ offense. “The main thing is just doing a lot of conditioning. I like being one of the best in-shape dudes out there. I’m getting that down. The touch and feel comes back the more you play.”
  • There’s also positive health news regarding the Cavaliers, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. In addition to the imminent debut of Isaiah Thomas, Cleveland expects to have Derrick Rose and Iman Shumpert back soon. Rose has been sidelined since December 7 with bone spurs and a sprained ankle, while Shumpert hasn’t played since having meniscus surgery December 1. “D Rose looked good the other day,” said coach Tyronn Lue. “First time I seen him run without a limp. He was going through some stuff. He was doing three-man weave with a lot of pace and speed. … You know Shump, he’s always healing faster than he’s supposed to, so he’s coming along well also.”
  • Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson can’t start his rehab process until the swelling goes down in his injured right foot, tweets Rod Beard of The Detroit News. That’s expected to happen in about two weeks.
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Pistons Guard Reggie Jackson Out For Extended Period

December 27th, 2017 at 11:47am CST by Dana Gauruder

Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson suffered a Grade 3 right ankle sprain against the Pacers on Tuesday and will be sidelined until after the All-Star break, the team announced on Wednesday. Jackson underwent an MRI on Wednesday, which revealed the extent of the injury. He will be re-evaluated in six to eight weeks, according to the press release.

Coach Stan Van Gundy said during his postgame press conference that X-rays were negative. However, Jackson was in severe pain when the injury occurred and couldn’t put any pressure on the leg.

Jackson had eight points and a season-high 13 assists prior to the injury. He missed the first 21 games last season with a knee injury but the club got off to an 11-10 start with Ish Smith running the offense. Smith will move into the lineup as long as Jackson is out. “Ish did a great job of taking over when Reggie went down last year, so we won’t miss a beat,” center Andre Drummond said after the game.

Langston Galloway or Dwight Buycks, who is on a two-way contract, will back up Smith while Jackson mends. Galloway, who inked a three-year, $21MM free agent contract during the summer, has played almost exclusively at shooting guard this season. Buycks appeared in his first NBA game on Tuesday since playing six games with the Lakers during the 2014/15 season.

Another option, as Keith Langlois of Pistons.com tweets, is to sign a player to a 10-day contract. Teams can add a player via a 10-day deal beginning on January 5th and Detroit has an open roster spot.

In the short run, the Pistons are without both starting guards. Shooting guard Avery Bradley has missed the last five games with a groin injury but he is progressing. The team is hopeful he can return next week, as Langlois tweets.

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Pistons Notes: Bradley, Drummond, Jackson

November 28th, 2017 at 5:31pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Avery Bradley, who was dealt to the Pistons in exchange for Marcus Morris over the summer, didn’t want to leave the Celtics, but he understands Boston’s decision to make the move, as Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press relays.

“I understand what they did. I have no hard feelings at all. I ended up with a great situation and a great organization so I’m happy and they’re playing well,” Bradley said.

The shooting guard added that the team warned him that a trade was a strong possibility prior to making the transaction.

“There were [conversations] that me and [GM] Danny Ainge had, but when it does happen, it still catches you off guard a little bit destination-wise, where you end up,” Bradley said. “I know it’s part of the business so I respect their decision and I know that Danny is going to make the best decision for the Boston Celtics.”

The Celtics own the best record in the league at 18-4, but the Pistons sit just 3.5 games behind them for the Eastern Conference’s top spot after a pulling out a win on Monday in Beantown.

Here’s more from Detroit:

  • Bradley will be a free agent after the season, though it’s “obvious” that both he and Pistons have interest in a long-term deal, Ellis adds in the same piece. “It’s been really good for me so far,” Bradley said. “We have a great group of guys, a great coaching staff that’s pushing us every day and I feel like we are going to continue to grow as a group.”
  • Andre Drummond was seemingly available for the right price at last season’s trade deadline, but after improving his game this offseason, he is no longer on the table in trade talks, Rod Beard of The Detroit News writes.
  • Executive/coach Stan Van Gundy believes the improvement is a result of Drummond putting in the necessary work and playing hard on a nightly basis, Beard passes along in the same piece. “There were never any doubts about his ability and he’s always been a good guy; the concern was whether he was going to play hard on a nightly basis,” Van Gundy said. “That was the question in my mind — and so far this year, it’s been a lot better.”
  • If the Pistons are going to remain in the conference’s top tier, they’ll need Reggie Jackson to maintain his level of play, Matt Barresi of NBAMath contends. The point guard is shooting a career-high 38.4% from downtown and he’s averaging nearly one more assist per 36-minutes than he did last season.
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Central Notes: Bell, Valentine, R. Jackson, Rose

November 26th, 2017 at 11:51am CST by Arthur Hill

Jordan Bell‘s jab at the Bulls after Friday’s game was a reminder of how many mistakes Chicago’s front office has made in recent years, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. The dynamic Warriors rookie made a money gesture during pre-game introductions and later said, “I wanted to see how cash considerations was playing over there.” Bell was drafted by the Bulls with the 38th pick and traded to Golden State for $3.5MM.

Chicago was focused on wing players at that spot, Johnson explains, and didn’t mind selling the rights to the pick once its prime targets were off the board. At the time, it was an indication that the team planned to re-sign free agents Cristiano Felicio and Nikola Mirotic and had faith in Bobby Portis and first-rounder Lauri Markkanen.

Johnson says the Bulls have to hope that Bell won’t be the latest successful young player they’ve let get away, a list that includes Gary Harris, Jusuf Nurkic and Tony Snell.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • One young player who is offering hope for the future in Chicago is Denzel Valentine, who has started the past six games, notes Sam Smith of NBA.com. Valentine has improved his numbers to 11.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per night in that new role and is getting used to small forward, where he is expected to battle for playing time with Justin Holiday once Zach LaVine returns from injury. “[You] come to an NBA team and the second year basically is like the first year until you gain that trust and prove yourself a little bit in the league,” Valentine said. “I haven’t proved myself yet, but I think I am inching my way to trusting, the coaches trusting me and me trusting the coaches.”
  • Friday’s win at Oklahoma City was important to Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson, who spent the first three-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Thunder before a 2015 trade to Detroit. “It was definitely special because I haven’t won in this building – except for playing here and being on this team, but I hadn’t won in this building with this team,” Jackson told Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. “It’s good to get a team win like that and have these guys’ backs and find a way to get one is special.”
  • The Cavaliers knew physical problems were a concern with Derrick Rose when they signed him this summer, notes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. However, he worked out with LeBron James during part of the offseason and seemed worth the risk on a veterans’ minimum contract.
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Central Notes: Portis, R. Jackson, Vaughn, Turner

November 4th, 2017 at 8:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Bulls forward Bobby Portis will be eligible to return from his eight-game suspension on Tuesday, but there’s no guarantee he’ll get playing time right away, tweets Vincent Goodwill of NBC Sports Chicago. Coach Fred Hoiberg responded, “We’ll see,” when asked whether he plans to use Portis in that game.

Portis was punished for injuring teammate Nikola Mirotic in an altercation during a scrimmage last month. Mirotic suffered a concussion and fractured two facial bones, and is expected to be out until mid-November. Hoiberg told reporters today that Mirotic remains in good spirits and has progressed to doing pool work, relays Nick Friedell on ESPN Now.

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • Two front office sources from the Pistons confirmed to Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press that the organization has no plans to trade Reggie Jackson for Eric Bledsoe. One source said there was no substance to the rumored deal, while another confirmed communication between the Pistons and Suns but indicated a trade is unlikely.
  • Bucks guard Rashad Vaughn wasn’t surprised that the team elected not to pick up his option for next season, relays Gery Woelfel of WoelfelsPressbox. Considered a gamble when Milwaukee made him the 17th pick in the 2015 draft, Vaughn played 70 games as a rookie, but slipped to 41 last season. He is still just 21 and hopes for a long NBA future, although as he heads into unrestricted free agency following this season, he knows it probably won’t be with the Bucks. “It’s a business,’’  Vaughn said. “You just have to respect their decision and move on. I’m not going to let this stop me. I’m going to keep striving. That’s all I can do.’’
  • Myles Turner saw his first action for the Pacers Friday since an opening-night concussion and is now ready to return to the starting lineup, according to Clifton Brown of The Indianapolis Star. Turner will be the starting center Sunday against the Knicks, with Domantas Sabonis returning to the bench. “It”ll take me a few games to get my rhythm back,” Turner said, “but being back out there is what’s important.” Coach Nate McMillan has been impressed by Sabonis’ play during Turner’s absence and plans to give him a steady dose of minutes off the bench.
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Southwest Notes: Jackson, Evans, Cuban, James

November 4th, 2017 at 9:52am CST by marksuleymanov

Unless it actually happens, rumors of Reggie Jackson joining the Pelicans may persist for years to come. A reported three-team deal that would have sent Suns’ point guard Eric Bledsoe to the Pistons and Jackson to the Pelicans fell through this week. As Bryan Kalborsky of HoopsHype writes, interest in Jackson by people within the Pelicans organization goes back to the 2014/15 season.

Pelicans’ assistant coach Darren Erman was the Celtics’ director of NBA scouting during the 2o14/15 campaign. Boston reportedly had interest in Jackson that trade deadline, according to MassLive. Fast forward two years, Jackson has been connected to New Orleans in some form since February of this year. In mid-June, the Pistons and Pelicans discussed a deal that would send Jackson to New Orleans for E’Twaun Moore and Alexis Ajinca, per Basketball Insiders.

The Pelicans have since re-signed Jrue Holliday to a long-term contract, have veteran Rajon Rondo on the shelf, and recently added Jameer Nelson. Jackson, still just 27 years old, may remain on the Pelicans’ radar until he’s actually wearing their uniform at some point in the future.

Check out other news out of the Southwest Division:

  • Tyreke Evans had a near-historic performance off the Grizzlies’ bench on Wednesday, scoring 32 points. As Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal writes, it may be time to accept that Evans’ shooting — once considered a weak point of his game — has improved.
  • Through the Mavericks‘ first nine games, the team owns an abysmal 1-8 record. However, owner Mark Cuban feels the team is a lot better than the record indicates, Eddie Sefko of Dallas Morning News writes.
  • Ben Golliver of Sports Illustrated examines LeBron James‘ possible thinking as he faces free agency next offseason. A lot has been made of James possibly considering Los Angeles as a place of interest but Golliver looks at the Rockets and Spurs as two possibilities for King James.
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SVG: Pistons Not Trading Jackson For Bledsoe

November 3rd, 2017 at 12:58pm CST by Luke Adams

After trade rumors surrounding Eric Bledsoe and Reggie Jackson swirled on Thursday, Pistons head coach and president of basketball operations Stan Van Gundy once again assured his starting point guard that no deal is in the works, as Rod Beard of The Detroit News details.

“It was crazy yesterday,” Van Gundy said on Friday. “I left practice yesterday and there’s a rumor out on Reggie and Bledsoe so I had to get home and call Reggie and say we’re not trading you for Bledsoe. I don’t usually address all of them, but it’s early in the (season). You can’t address all of them at the trade deadline, but I felt the need to address this.”

Van Gundy acknowledged that Pistons general manager Jeff Bower is active when it comes to reaching out about trade possibilities and doing his due diligence. However, SVG confirmed that a rumored deal involving the Pistons, Suns, and Pelicans – described yesterday as “dead’ – doesn’t have legs. The hypothetical three-team swap would have seen the Pistons give up Jackson and a first-round pick in exchange for Bledsoe.

For the Pistons, it’s a situation eerily reminiscent of one that took place last January. At that time, reports linked the Pistons and Jackson to a possible Ricky Rubio trade, and Van Gundy publicly denied that such a deal would happen. He was right about that, and there’s no reason to believe he’s misleading reporters and fans about the possibility of a Bledsoe deal either.

Still, the fact that Van Gundy keeps having to come out and shoot down reports involving Jackson suggests that the Pistons continue to explore possible point guard deals, even with the 27-year-old off to a strong start this season. For his part, Jackson says he’s not worried about his name popping up in trade rumors once again.

“I don’t pay attention and really don’t care (about rumors),” Jackson said. “I’m still in Detroit and still here to compete and make my team the best it can be. If something else happens, it happens. That’s not something I’m concerned about.”

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Pelicans, Suns, Pistons Discussed Bledsoe Trade

November 2nd, 2017 at 6:28pm CST by Luke Adams

6:28pm: It turns out the third team involved in the Bledsoe/Jackson trade discussion was New Orleans. Jake Fischer of Sports Illustrated writes that the Suns would have landed Detroit’s 2019 first-round pick, New Orleans’ 2018 first-round pick, Alexis Ajinca, and Omer Asik. Jackson would have gone to the Pelicans in that scenario. The talks are now “dead,” the report states.

2:25pm: According to Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders, the Pistons offered the Suns a package including Jackson and a first-round pick for Bledsoe.

12:06pm: If they make a deal with the Pistons, the Suns would prefer to get a third team involved to take Jackson, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

It makes sense that the rebuilding Suns wouldn’t want to absorb Jackson’s contract, which runs through 2019/20, but involving a third or fourth team typically makes trades more difficult to complete, so we’ll see if this goes anywhere.

11:39am: The Pistons should be added to the list of teams that have exhibited interest in disgruntled Suns point guard Eric Bledsoe, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link). However, Stein cautions (via Twitter) that for a deal to appeal to Phoenix, the Pistons would have to attach additional pieces to Reggie Jackson.

Shortly after Bledsoe publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with his situation in Phoenix a week and a half ago, the Suns sent him home and began aggressively seeking a trade. At that point, it seemed as if the Suns may resolve the situation quickly, but GM Ryan McDonough said this week that there’s no timetable for a Bledsoe deal, suggesting the team isn’t rushing to get something done.

Reports last week indicated that the Nuggets and Bucks might be the most likely landing spots for Bledsoe, but Jamal Murray and Emmanuel Mudiay have played well lately for Denver, and Malcolm Brogdon – whom the Suns would reportedly target – is off to a good start in Milwaukee. As such, the Suns may be looking to engage other teams in trade discussions.

The Pistons would be an interesting trade partner. It’s worth noting that the Suns were said to have expressed “strong” interest in Andre Drummond back in June. Jake Fischer of SI.com, who initially reported Phoenix’s interest in Drummond, tweeted today that Bledsoe’s name was part of those discussions as well.

For what it’s worth, Detroit has been linked to multiple point guard trade candidates over the course of the year, including Kyrie Irving in August and Ricky Rubio back in January. Those rumors never led to anything real, so it’s possible Stan Van Gundy and the Pistons are just doing their due diligence again here. However, the fact that they’ve kicked the tires on so many other point guards may also suggest they’re open to moving on from Jackson.

After enjoying a career year in 2015/16, Jackson struggled through an injury-plagued 2016/17 campaign. He’s off to a good start this season, averaging 16.4 PPG and 6.0 APG through eight games.

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Central Notes: Pacers, Bell, Bulls

October 19th, 2017 at 4:28pm CST by Austin Kent

The Pacers have made a concerted effort to play a faster tempo and managed to do just that thanks to their new-look backcourt spearheaded by Victor Oladipo. As Clifton Brown of the Indianapolis Star writes, Indiana managed to up their pace eventually outrunning their opening day opponent altogether.

While Oladipo led the squad in scoring with 22 points in Indiana’s first game, he wasn’t the only guard to post an impressive stat line. Veteran Darren Collison added 21 and 11 of his own while reserve guard Cory Joseph – plucked from the Raptors this offseason – put in 11 points and 4 assists of his own for the victorious Pacers.

“[Pacers coach] Nate MacMillan’s done an unbelievable job of letting us take the onus as point guards and kind of let us run the show,” Collison said. “He was a point guard himself. He knows what it’s like to let us see the game, instead of micromanaging every single play. If we can play like that, call a guard game, play with one another, we’ll be alright.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

  • The Bulls have gotten flak for, among other things, selling second-round pick Jordan Bell to the Warriors. Cody Westerlund of 670 The Score tweets that VP of basketball operations John Paxson said that he was “building up equity” with ownership when he sold the No. 38 pick to Golden State for $3.5MM.
  • After a down year besieged by injuries in 2016/17, Reggie Jackson has recovered and returned to the court for the Pistons. He’s “only going to get better as time goes on” head coach Stan Van Gundy told the media, Brendan Savage of MLive included.
  • The Bulls are looking to regroup after a fight in practice set the team into chaos before the season even began. Sam Smith of the team’s official website offers an inside account of what happened and what comes next.
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Central Notes: Pistons, Maker, Munford

October 15th, 2017 at 7:29pm CST by Austin Kent

Only two of the Pistons‘ opening day starters are set in stone, the other three have yet to be determined, Keith Langlois of the team’s official website writes. With Avery Bradley at the two and Andre Drummond in the middle, head coach Stan Van Gundy is hard-pressed to figure out who will join them at tip-off.

“Everything’s a consideration,” Van Gundy said, before implying that Tobias Harris would probably start for the Pistons but, then, again might not. “I thought he was good off the bench last year. I’m really not locked in to anything.”

As Langlois explains, what Van Gundy decides to do with Harris will impact the other decisions he’ll have to make with the Pistons’ lineup. If the 25-year-old forward plays the three, they’ll look to somebody like Jon Leueur to fill in at the four. If they pencil Harris in at the four, they could turn to someone like Stanley Johnson to man the three.

Another decision that the Pistons will need to come to terms on ahead of opening day is who to start at the point. On one hand the idea of a healthy Reggie Jackson working in tandem with Drummond is tantalizing but there’s no guarantee it plays out that way in the first game of the season.

Langlois writes that Ish Smith could get serious consideration to start for the Pistons. “We found out last year just about anybody’s going to play pretty well with Ish,” Van Gundy said.

There’s more from the Central Division:

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