Rondae Hollis-Jefferson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Nets, Celtics, Mudiay

June 1st, 2015 at 9:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nets could make some noise with some draft night deals, Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News reports. Gregg Polinsky, the team’s director of player personnel, hinted that the Nets may try to move up in the first round or buy picks, Abramson continues. The Nets own the No. 29 overall pick, plus a second-rounder at No. 41. A draft-and-stash strategy could also be employed by GM Billy King, as the franchise did with Bojan Bogdanovic. “I think there’s a bunch of ways to play this,” Polinsky told the team’s beat writers on Monday. “We’ll see. It could even be that we move up to get somewhere depending on what that will require, but obviously that will be Billy and ownership’s decision, solely, once we give them our opinion on what guys might be worth.”

In other news around the Atlantic Division:

The Celtics worked out a handful of forward prospects on Monday morning, including Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Justin Anderson, Branden Dawson, Jonathan Holmes and Levi Randolph, according to Taylor C. Snow of Celtics.com. The team is looking for another defensive-minded forward in the mold of Jae Crowder, director of player personnel Austin Ainge told Snow. Sam Dekker pulled out of that workout but is expected to work out with the club at a later date, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald tweets. Anderson will work out for the Raptors later this week, according to a tweet from Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
Emmanuel Mudiay is expected to work out for the Knicks and Sixers as well as the Lakers, former NBA coach and current SMU coach Larry Brown told Adam Zagoria of SNY.TV. Mudiay originally committed to Brown and SMU but wound up playing in China last season. Brown believes Mudiay would be a good fit in New York’s triangle offense because he could learn from Knicks President Phil Jackson and coach and ex-point guard Derek Fisher, Zagoria adds.

Atlantic Notes: Russell, Nets, Hollis-Jefferson

June 1st, 2015 at 11:13am CST by Chuck Myron

D’Angelo Russell doesn’t seem like a strong fit for the triangle, but his game would complement Carmelo Anthony‘s if the Knicks draft him, and the Ohio State combo guard has the tools to become a strong defender, as Ohm Youngmisuk and Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com examine. Here’s more on the Atlantic Division as the June 25th draft draws ever closer:

The Nets would like to use cash to buy second-round picks to find draft-and-stash candidates in over the next few years, when they’ll have a sharply limited number of draft picks, in the hopes that one or more of them becomes a rotation piece, as NetsDaily explains. GM Billy King and CEO Brett Yormark hinted recently that they want to again have a one-to-one D-League affiliate, though that’s unlikely for this coming season, as the NetsDaily scribe adds.
Small forwards Rondae Hollis-Jefferson of Arizona and Justin Anderson of Virginia highlight today’s Celtics predraft workout, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com relays (Twitter link). Jonathan Holmes (Texas), Branden Dawson (Michigan State), LeBryan Nash (Oklahoma State) and Levi Randolph (Alabama) are the other prospects Boston is auditioning today, Forsberg notes.
Hollis-Jefferson will also work out for the Raptors this week, reports Kevin Rashidi of Canada.com (Twitter link). UNLV shooting guard Rashad Vaughn, Minnesota center Mo Walker and Stanford center Stefan Nastic will do the same, as Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun reports (Twitter link).

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Heat, Pierce

May 27th, 2015 at 4:46pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Hawks are optimistic about their chances to bounce back next season despite the sting of having been eliminated from the playoffs by Miami, Paul Newberry of The Associated Press writes. ”It’s clear that we have some work to do as a team,” center Al Horford said. ”We will all learn from this process and I know it will make us a better team. We have a group that’s resilient. We have a group with a lot of high-character guys, guys that I’m willing to go to war with any day.”

If Atlanta decides not to reinstate GM Danny Ferry, coach Mike Budenholzer could take on an expanded role in player personnel matters, likely assisted by assistant GM Wes Wilcox, in an arrangement similar to the one in San Antonio between coach Gregg Popovich and GM R.C. Buford, Newberry adds. Budenholzer would like the team to add a rim-protecting big man to the mix for next season after being pushed around on the inside during the playoffs, the AP scribe notes.

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

The Heat held workouts on Tuesday for Rondae-Hollis Jefferson, Rashad Vaughn, Charles Jackson, and Mouhammadou Jaiteh, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald reports. The team was especially impressed with Vaughn’s showing, Jackson tweets.
Working out today for the Heat was potential lottery pick Sam Dekker, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. The former Wisconsin forward is who Miami is projected to select in Hoops Rumors’ most recent mock draft.
Paul Pierce had as much of an impact on the Wizards‘ locker room culture as he did with his production on the court, Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post writes in his season review for the veteran. Pierce has a player option for 2015/16 worth $5,543,725, though it’s unclear if he’ll retire, or possibly look to join the Clippers and his former coach Doc Rivers.

Atlantic Notes: Marks, Hodges, Hollis-Jefferson

May 26th, 2015 at 4:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Nets and assistant GM Bobby Marks have parted ways, as Marks confirmed via his Twitter account (hat tip to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports). It’s believed the Nets are set on cutting costs across the board and staff cuts are underway, Wojnarowski tweets. Indeed, the austerity measures have been ongoing for months and the Nets progressively reduced their player payroll throughout the season, NetsDaily’s Tom Lorenzo writes. Brooklyn is poised to pay the luxury tax for the fourth straight season, triggering repeater penalties, if it keeps Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young as GM Billy King has said the team wants to do.

The team appears ready to explore moves to reduce salary elsewhere on the roster, as Marc Stein and Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com wrote earlier today. The well-respected Marks, who drew praise today from agent Brian Bass (Twitter link), among others, was a Nets employee for two decades. Here’s more from around the Atlantic Division:

Knicks interim D-League coach Craig Hodges is expected to be back with the Westchester team as an assistant coach next season, returning to the role in which he spent most of this past season under now-fired head coach Kevin Whitted, reports Adam Johnson of D-League Digest. Still, there’s been no formal decision, a league source tells Johnson. Hodges, who spoke with Zach Links of Hoops Rumors this past fall, would like to come back, and the ball is in the Knicks’ court, a source tells Links (Twitter link). The name of Joel Abelson, director of basketball ops for New York’s D-League affiliate, keeps coming up as a potential head coaching candidate for the team, Johnson adds.
Arizona small forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Brazilian point guard George Lucas are among the draft prospects to whom the Nets have spoken, notes Robert Windrem of NetsDaily (Twitter link).
Maryland shooting guard Dez Wells has worked out for the Celtics, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.

Eastern Notes: Seraphin, Knicks, Bucks

May 17th, 2015 at 7:16pm CST by Will Joseph

Kevin Seraphin, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, wants to play for a team that would allow him to compete for a starting job, J. Michael of CSNWashington.com reports, and that likely means that the center won’t re-sign with the Wizards, Michael adds. Seraphin matched his career high with 79 regular-season appearances but didn’t start a game after inking a one-year qualifying offer last summer for $3.9MM to stay in Washington, as Michael points out. The Wizards are set at center, Michael adds, because Marcin Gortat will be entering the second year of a five-year deal with the team. “I definitely want a chance to be a starter,” Seraphin told Michael. “I definitely want to be somewhere I have a chance to be a starter.”

Willie Cauley-Stein said on Friday that he would work out with the Knicks today, but the Knicks didn’t end up bringing him in, tweets ESPN.com’s Ian Begley, who added that a league source told him that a workout was actually never scheduled. The Knicks met with D’Angelo Russell and Justise Winslow at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, according to ESPN.com. All three players are expected to be selected within the first 10 picks of the draft. The Knicks own a top-five pick heading into the lottery. According to Hoops Rumors’ odds page, the most likely spot for the Knicks is fourth. New York has a 31.9% chance of picking fourth.
If the Sixers slide into the fifth or sixth spot in the draft, Justise Winslow, who played at Duke, might be a solid option, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. The Sixers have a 15.6% chance of winning the draft lottery and are guaranteed to pick at least sixth.
The Bucks, who own the No. 17 pick in the draft, met with small forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, who played at Arizona, and big man Frank Kaminsky, who earned college player of the year honors with Wisconsin, Matt Velazquez of the Journal Sentinel tweets.

Northwest Notes: Freeland, Jazz, Draft

May 15th, 2015 at 9:39pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Center Joel Freeland can become a restricted free agent this summer if the Blazers tender him a qualifying offer worth $3,766,890, and Sean Meagher of the Oregonian, along with a panel of writers, runs down the case for the team to retain the big man. While Freeland’s numbers don’t stand out, he can be a solid backup when healthy, the panel notes. Working against Freeland is the fact that he is relatively easy to replace, though there is mutual interest in the 28-year-old returning to Rip City next season, the writers add.

Here’s more from the Northwest Division:

The Jazz interviewed UNLV’s Christian Wood, Arizona’s Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, and Chris McCullough of Syracuse, Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune relays in a series of tweets. Also scoring an interview with Utah was Notre Dame point guard Jerian Grant, Jones adds.
Arizona forward Stanley Johnson is set to interview with representatives from the Jazz on Saturday, Jones tweets.
The Jazz also have an interest in Cameron Payne, and the team is expected to bring him in for an individual workout, Jones adds (Twitter link). Utah also wants to schedule individual workouts with Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky and Kansas swingman Kelly Oubre, Jones relays.
The Trail Blazers interviewed Arkansas’ Bobby Portis and Louisville’s Montrezl Harrell, both forwards, Jabari Young of CSNNW.com relays (Twitter links).
Duke point guard Tyus Jones met with the Timberwolves today, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes. Jones, who is a native of Minnesota, dished on his excitement about joining the NBA, Zgoda relays. “Every kid who plays basketball dreams it, but it’s one of those things that might not seem realistic,” Jones said. “You don’t necessarily see a lot of guys from Minnesota go to the NBA. Especially for me, being out of Apple Valley, it doesn’t seem like it’s possible. But it’s just one of those things: If you work hard, put your mind to something, you can do it. I’m proud to be from Apple Valley, Minnesota, and I’m very excited about this opportunity.”

Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Draft, Sixers

May 14th, 2015 at 8:02pm CST by Eddie Scarito

While teams with lottery picks such as the Magic, Kings, Nuggets, and Pistons may be willing to consider trading down in the draft, the Celtics don’t have the assets necessary to entice those franchises to make a deal, Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) opines. The only player on Boston’s roster who could be used to move into the five to eight range of picks is Marcus Smart, but the point guard is considered virtually untouchable, Ford notes.

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The Sixers interviewed UNLV big man Christian Wood today, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports (Twitter links). Philadelphia also interviewed Texas center Myles Turner, Pompey adds.
The Celtics also sat down for an interview with Wood, as well as Arizona forward Stanley Johnson, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe relays (Twitter links).
Arizona defensive ace Rondae Hollis-Jefferson has an interview scheduled with the Celtics, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe tweets. You can check out our full prospect profile for Hollis-Jefferson here.
Most of the Celtics heavy lifting at the draft combine will be done at the hotel where the team will conduct its interviews, Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com writes. This is because most of the players whom Boston has interest in will not be participating in the on court portion of the activities, Forsberg adds.
Point guards Delon Wright and Jerian Grant were among the players the Nets interviewed today at the combine, Robert Windrem of NetsDaily reports. Both Wright and Grant fit the Nets’ draft model under GM Billy King, who prefers veteran players from big programs, Windrem adds.

Draft Notes: Winslow, International Prospects

April 26th, 2015 at 10:27am CST by ChrisCrouse

The 2015 draft has its fair share of athletic small forwards who can defend multiple positions, David Aldridge of NBA.com opines. Aldridge ranks Duke product Justise Winslow as this year’s top small forward and some scouts agree.

“Outside of Winslow, the other guys really kind of underperformed,” an anonymous Pacific Division scout told Aldridge. “I think [Winslow’s] going to be real good. Like most guys, he’s got pretty good shooting mechanics and he’s going to get better when he gets to the NBA. Because of his defense and his IQ, he’ll find a way to get on the floor.”

Aldridge has Arizona products Stanley Johnson and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson right behind Winslow in his small forward rankings. Hollis-Jefferson is considered one of the best wing defenders in the draft, as Eddie Scarito of Hoops Rumors writes in his profile of the 20-year-old.

Today is the deadline for a prospect to declare for the 2015 draft and here’s some players who have made formal decisions:

Latvian center Andzejs Pasecniks has declared for the NBA draft, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Givony ranks the 19-year-old as the No. 70 overall prospect, while Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider Subscription required) slots him at No. 98 overall.
Andrey Desyatnikov has declared for the NBA draft, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). The Russian born 7’3″ center is not currently ranked within Givony’s or Ford’s top 100.
Wael Arakji has also declared for the NBA Draft, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Givony ranks the 6’4″ Lebanese point guard as the No. 100 overall prospect, while Ford does not include Arakji in his rankings.

Prospect Profile: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson

April 24th, 2015 at 4:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Arizona sophomore Rondae Hollis-Jefferson‘s decision to enter this year’s NBA draft is one that is open for second-guessing. While the forward is perhaps the best wing defender in this year’s draft, serious questions abound regarding Hollis-Jefferson’s offensive skills, or lack thereof. The player certainly has lottery pick potential, but in a draft peppered with talented wings, Hollis-Jefferson may have been better served to spend one more season with the Wildcats.

The 6’7″, 220-pounder is currently ranked as the No. 23 overall prospect by Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, while Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) places him 24th overall. With 2016’s NBA draft class projected to be much weaker than this year’s, Hollis-Jefferson, barring an unforeseen regression in 2015/16, would likely have been a top-15 pick, though that is merely my speculation.

Hollis-Jefferson is an extremely athletic player who is a monster in transition, and is an elite finisher at the rim. The sophomore is also adept at absorbing contact when attacking the basket, and his 7.1 free throw attempts per 40 minutes pace adjusted ranking is the most of any small forward in this year’s draft. The rest of his numbers are quite solid, with Hollis-Jefferson averaging 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.2 steals in 28.7 minutes per contest as a sophomore. His career numbers are 10.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 1.5 APG, and 0.9 SPG, and a career slash line of .496/.205/.697.

But it’s the Hollis-Jefferson’s jump shot that is his Achilles heel, and what is relegating him to the bottom half of the first round this year. With the NBA placing more and more value on “3-and-D” players, Hollis-Jefferson’s anemic 20.7% shooting from beyond the arc does him no favors in the eyes of talent evaluators. While some players can “fix” their outside shooting form, it’s not necessarily something that can be counted on. Plus, it would likely take a number of seasons for the team drafting Hollis-Jefferson to see any repair efforts bear fruit on the hardwood. With patience not a staple amongst NBA teams, talent evaluators aren’t likely to be very forgiving in their pre-draft assessments of Hollis-Jefferson’s game.

The 20-year-old will be able to match up athletically with most wing NBA players, as his combination of strength, quickness and explosiveness is difficult to find, Givony notes. Hollis-Jefferson is a solid rebounder for his position, though he will need to bulk up to continue that trend in the NBA, since his athleticism will be somewhat neutralized when he is surrounded by the abundance of talent in the league. The player also needs to improve his ball-handling, since he doesn’t handle heavy ball pressure as well as he should.

Offensive woes aside, Hollis-Jefferson’s true value is on the defensive end of the court. The forward is second all time in the Pac-12 for career defensive rating (88.6) and fifth in the conference this past season in defensive win shares (2.9). He is capable of guarding four positions, which makes Hollis-Jefferson especially valuable with the league’s increasing focus on pick and roll offense, and the switches that defenses are required to make on the fly in order to counter those attacks.

Hollis-Jefferson can certainly contribute as a role-player in an NBA rotation, perhaps as early as next season. But unless he can make himself a passable threat on offense, he is looking at a career as a role-player. The young wing reminds me quite a bit of Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and not just because of the hyphenated last name. Both players are high-energy defenders who can dominate in transition, but hamper their teams in half court sets with their offensive limitations. The best case scenario for Hollis-Jefferson is that he can carve out a career similar to that of Gerald Wallace. For a team selecting toward the end of the first round that potential should be enough to make drafting Hollis-Jefferson worthwhile, but teams picking in the top 20 should pause before nabbing him that high.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson To Enter Draft

April 7th, 2015 at 7:44pm CST by Eddie Scarito

TUESDAY, 7:44pm: Hollis-Jefferson will indeed enter this year’s NBA draft, Brandon Schlager of The Sporting News relays. “I’ve decided to move on to the next chapter of my life and enter my name in the 2015 NBA Draft,” Hollis-Jefferson said during a joint press conference with coach Sean Miller. “After talking with my family and coach Miller to weigh the pros and cons, I fully believe this is the right choice. I’m excited for the challenges that lie ahead, and with the knowledge that God rewards hard work, I plan to attack them.”

6:23pm: Hollis-Jefferson took to his personal Twitter account (hat tip to Zagoria) to say that he had not made a decision regarding the draft as of yet. He indicated that he still needed to discuss the matter with his mother and Arizona coach Sean Miller.

WEDNESDAY, 6:18pm: Arizona sophomore Rondae Hollis-Jefferson intends to enter the 2015 NBA draft, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link). The 20-year-old is currently ranked No. 24 by DraftExpress and No. 25 by ESPN.com. Hollis-Jefferson played his last game in a Wildcat uniform last Saturday in Arizona’s 85-78 loss to Wisconsin in the NCAA tournament. The sophomore went out with a good game, despite the loss, logging 17 points and 8 rebounds on 6-12 shooting.

The swingman was overshadowed a bit this season by highly heralded freshman Stanley Johnson, who is also likely to enter the draft, though that is merely my speculation. Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv tweets that Johnson is 50-50 on leaving school. The 6’7″ Hollis-Jefferson is a fantastic athlete and defender, and both are skills that will translate well to the professional level. But he is extremely limited on the offensive end, which is why he is projected to last until the late first round. Hollis-Jefferson is exciting on the break and a monster when attacking the rim, but his outside shot needs significant work. He’s a player who will benefit from spending significant time in the D-League in 2015/16.

Hollis-Jefferson appeared in 38 games for the Wildcats this past season, averaging 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 28.7 minutes per contest. His career averages in two seasons at Arizona are 10.2 PPG, 6.3 RPG, and 1.5 APG. His career shooting numbers are .496/.205/.697.