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NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 3/2/20

March 2nd, 2020 at 7:37pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Here are Monday’s assignments and recalls from across the NBA G League:

The Warriors assigned guard Stephen Curry to its affiliate in Santa Cruz and then recalled the former MVP, according to a team press release and Twitter post. Curry got in a practice with the G League club as he prepares to return from a broken left hand. The team also assigned forward Alen Smailagic to Santa Cruz. Smailagic has appeared in 19 games with Santa Cruz this season, posting averages of 15.2 PPG and 6.1 RPG in 25.9 MPG.
The Pacers recalled center Goga Bitadze and forward Alize Johnson from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the team’s PR department tweets. Bitadze, the team’s first-round selection, has averaged 3.0 PPG in 8.5 MPG while making 46 appearances for the Pacers. Johnson, a 2018 second-rounder, has seen action in 12 NBA games this season.
The Magic recalled guard Melvin Frazier from Lakeland, the team’s PR department tweets. A 2018 second-round pick, Frazier has appeared in 14 games with Orlando this season.
The Bulls assigned and then recalled power forward Lauri Markkanen from the Windy City Bulls, the team tweets. Markkanen participated in a practice as part of his rehab process. He has been sidelined since January 22 with a stress reaction of his right pelvis.
The Clippers assigned big man Mfiondu Kabengele and guard Terance Mann to their Agua Caliente affiliate, according to the team’s PR department. A late first-rounder last June, Kabengele has appeared in 12 Clippers games. Mann, a rookie drafted in the second round, has seen action in 35 NBA games.
The Jazz assigned forward Juwan Morgan and guard Rayjon Tucker to the Salt Lake City Stars, according to the G League transactions log. A pair of undrafted rookies, Morgan has appeared in 16 Jazz games this season while Tucker has made 14 NBA appearances.

Warriors: Stephen Curry On Track To Play In March

February 29th, 2020 at 11:53am CST by marksuleymanov

As he continues his recovery from hand surgery, Warriors point guard Stephen Curry remains on track to return “at some point in March,” the team announced in a press release Saturday (Twitter link).

Curry will practice with the G League’s Santa Cruz Warriors on Monday, ruling him out of an originally-reported Sunday return against the Wizards. Shams Charania of The Athletic, who first reported that Curry would play on Sunday, tweets that the star guard had been preparing to do so, but the two sides ultimately agreed that he needed more practice time.

The two-time NBA MVP has missed all but four games this season after undergoing surgery to repair a broken left hand. In those games, he averaged 20.3 PPG and 6.5 APG for the reigning Western Conference champions. With Curry and Klay Thompson sidelined and Kevin Durant departed, the Warriors have endured a miserable season, sporting an NBA-worst 12-47 record.

Curry’s return will not mark a late-season addition for Golden State hoping to make a postseason push. Instead, it will be an opportunity for the three-time NBA champion to finish out a difficult season for the Warriors on a high note.

Warriors Notes: Bowman, Curry, 2020 First-Rounder

February 28th, 2020 at 8:50am CST by Luke Adams

Rookie guard Ky Bowman injured his right ankle late in the Warriors‘ blowout loss to the Lakers on Thursday night, and head coach Steve Kerr said after the game that he expects Bowman to miss some time as a result of that injury.

“He rolled his ankle pretty well,” Kerr told reporters, including Ali Thanawalla of NBC Sports Bay Area. “It’s not going to be a day-to-day thing. He’s going to be out a little bit. He won’t go on the trip (to Phoenix) and I think he’ll get an MRI (on Friday).”

With Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole also banged up, the Warriors’ backcourt might be extremely thin on Saturday vs. Phoenix. However, there’s a chance reinforcements could be coming by Sunday in the form of a two-time MVP.

Here’s more on that, along with a couple other Warriors-related notes:

Kerr intends to meet with general manager Bob Myers, the team’s training staff, and Stephen Curry on Friday after practice to set a concrete plan for Curry’s return from a broken left hand, per ESPN. A report earlier this week indicated that Curry is on track to get back on the court on Sunday vs. Washington, but the team has yet to confirm that decision.
Not that there has been any doubt for months, but the top-20 protected 2020 first-round pick Golden State traded to the Nets in last summer’s Kevin Durant/D’Angelo Russell sign-and-trade is now officially protected as a result of Thursday’s loss, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Instead of sending a first-rounder to Brooklyn, the Warriors will instead owe the Nets their 2025 second-round pick (unprotected).
In case you missed it, we relayed a handful of Warriors-related items on Thursday, including news of the team officially signing Mychal Mulder to a 10-day contract, along with notes on Dragan Bender and Joe Lacob.

Steph Curry Expected To Return For Warriors On Sunday

February 26th, 2020 at 3:41pm CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 26: After Curry went through his second full-speed scrimmage today, head coach Steve Kerr said he’d like to see the star guard scrimmage a little more, downplaying the notion that a Sunday return is locked in (video link via Anthony Slater of The Athletic).

“If it’s Sunday, great,” Kerr said. “If it’s not, that’s fine too.”

FEBRUARY 25: Warriors star Stephen Curry will return to action on Sunday following his four-month recovery from a broken left hand, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter).

The March 1 contest, a home game vs. the Wizards, is the one Curry has been eyeing as a potential target date for more than a month. Now, barring an unexpected setback within the next few days, it appears he’ll meet that target date.

At 12-45, the Warriors rank dead last in the NBA, 4.5 games behind the Timberwolves, the next-worst team in the Western Conference. Although the team has no playoff hopes at this point, getting Curry back for the last month-and-a-half of the season will give the Dubs an opportunity to see how the two-time MVP meshes with some of the team’s new contributors.

Andrew Wiggins is the most notable of the Warriors’ newest additions, but Curry has also seen little to no playing time alongside youngsters like Eric Paschall, Ky Bowman, and Marquese Chriss, all of whom look like good bets to be part of next year’s squad.

Curry’s presence will add some extra intrigue to the Warriors’ matchups vs. contenders down the stretch. Following Sunday’s game against Washington, six of Golden State’s next seven contests will be against the Nuggets, Raptors, Sixers, Clippers, and Bucks.

While Curry’s return is around the corner, his fellow Splash Brother won’t be suiting up for the Warriors this season. The club publicly ruled out Klay Thompson for the season last week.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Curry Scrimmages, Confirms March 1 As Target Date To Return

February 22nd, 2020 at 6:33pm CST by Arthur Hill

Stephen Curry has cleared another hurdle in his quest to return to action March 1, relays Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Team doctors cleared Curry for full contact and he participated in his first scrimmage today since breaking his left hand in late October.

Speaking with reporters afterward, the Warriors guard confirmed that he has set next Sunday as his target date to return to action. Although he will need another positive week of rehab to make that happen, all indications are that the healing process is nearly complete.

Curry explained the details of the injury, which involved nerve damage in addition to the break. That’s why his recovery time will be about four months, rather than the usual two when a clean break happens.

“This was a serious one that had a lot of nuances to it with the two surgeries and the nerve damage and stuff I’m still dealing with,” he said. “Everything is new. If it was an ankle thing, I’d tell you everything every step of the way.”

Curry also shared his memories of the play, which happened when Suns center Aron Baynes tried to take a charge on a drive to the basket. Both players fell to the court and Baynes landed directly on top of Curry’s hand, causing the damage. Because Curry is right-handed, the injury shouldn’t affect his shooting, but Slater notes that much of his game is based on the ability to dribble, pass and make layups with either hand.

“I’m getting used to what the new normal is,” Curry said of the recovery process. “It definitely feels different than the right (hand). But you try to get to the point when you’re playing basketball, you don’t think about it — whether it feels all the way same or not, it doesn’t really matter, as long as I’m not worried about the things I’m trying to do, the strength part of it and how it bounces back the next day after pushing it in contact stuff. … Anybody who has had surgery knows it takes a long time to get back to true normal. Functionally speaking, where I’m not out there on the court thinking about it, that’s where I’m trying to get it to.”

With Klay Thompson already sidelined with a torn ACL, Curry’s injury eliminated any chance the Warriors may have had to reach the playoffs. Golden State is focused on returning to title contention next season, and Curry believes the team added an important piece in the deadline deal that brought Andrew Wiggins from the Timberwolves.

“I’ve been watching and seeing what he’s capable of on a nightly basis,” Curry said. “He’s a walking 20 points. The intangibles he can bring, in terms of speed, cutting, length on defense, all those things, will be a fun process to build that chemistry. This is a 15-month journey to spring next year.”

Latest On Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson

February 19th, 2020 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

Two-time MVP Stephen Curry practiced for the Warriors on Tuesday for the first time since he broke his left hand in October, writes Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area. It’s a positive step forward in Curry’s recovery process, though he hasn’t yet advanced to taking contact or scrimmaging.

“I don’t know when he’s going to be allowed to scrimmage,” head coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s not this week or anything. But he looks really good. He’s gaining strength, gaining confidence. He has been putting himself through some brutal workouts, so his conditioning is about as good as it can possibly be for somebody who hasn’t been able to scrimmage.”

Despite the Warriors’ 12-43 record, team owner Joe Lacob tells Mark Medina of USA Today that the idea of sitting Curry for the rest of the season is “not even a discussion internally.” Curry has been aiming for an early-March return, and while there’s no guarantee he’ll meet that target date, the Warriors are expected to re-evaluate him and issue an update on February 28, tweets Poole.

Kerr is looking forward to getting the star guard some minutes alongside newly-acquired forward Andrew Wiggins, as ESPN’s Nick Friedell details.

“I think it’s important for Steph and Andrew to get to know each other and to play together,” Kerr said. “I think it’s important for Steph to play without all the guys we’ve lost who are not gonna be back next year — Kevin (Durant) and Andre (Iguodala) and Shaun (Livingston). … He only got three games before his injury, I think it was, so it’s important for him to feel the difference, because it feels different for us.”

Meanwhile, Lacob hasn’t closed the door on the idea of Thompson making it back to the court at the end of this season, once he has recovered from his torn ACL. The team intends to re-evaluate Thompson this week, per Medina.

“Klay might come back for a few games at the end. He might not,” Lacob said. “That doesn’t matter so much. Maybe we’ll err on the cautious side. Maybe. That’s up to him.”

In spite of Lacob’s comments, Kerr isn’t counting on getting both of his veteran sharpshooters back in the lineup before the end of the 2019/20 season.

“With Steph, there’s a definite timetable,” Kerr said, according to Poole. “It’s easy to look and say that in a couple weeks, Steph is going to be ready to play. I don’t know exactly what day. But Klay is a long way from that. I don’t even entertain any thoughts of Klay playing this year.”

USA Basketball Announces 44 Finalists For 2020 Olympic Roster

February 10th, 2020 at 10:21am CST by Luke Adams

USA Basketball has formally announced a preliminary group of 44 players who are candidates to be part of the program’s roster for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

The final roster will only consist of 12 players, so most of these finalists won’t actually play for Team USA at the Olympics. Some will likely withdraw from consideration, while others simply won’t make the final cut. However, these players have all expressed interest in being involved in the process.

“This is the first step in USA Basketball identifying the 12 players who will represent the United States as members of the 2020 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball Team in Tokyo,” said USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo.

“… Over the course of the remainder of the NBA season we’ll continue to monitor all of the athletes. Selecting the 12-man USA roster will obviously be an extremely challenging and difficult process, and we will again attempt to select the very best team possible to represent our country and who we hope will be successful in our difficult mission of repeating as Olympic champions for a fourth consecutive Olympics.”

Although the U.S. men’s team has won three consecutive Olympic gold medals, the program had a disappointing showing at last year’s World Cup, finishing in seventh place. Team USA will be looking for a bounce-back performance in Tokyo this summer, with many players from that World Cup squad among the 44 finalists announced today.

Here’s the full list of players who are candidates to play for Team USA at the 2020 Olympics:

Bam Adebayo (Heat)
LaMarcus Aldridge (Spurs)
Harrison Barnes (Kings)
Bradley Beal (Wizards)
Devin Booker (Suns)
Malcolm Brogdon (Pacers)
Jaylen Brown (Celtics)
Jimmy Butler (Heat)
Mike Conley (Jazz)
Stephen Curry (Warriors)
Anthony Davis (Lakers)
DeMar DeRozan (Spurs)
Andre Drummond (Cavaliers)
Kevin Durant (Nets)
Paul George (Clippers)
Draymond Green (Warriors)
James Harden (Rockets)
Montrezl Harrell (Clippers)
Joe Harris (Nets)
Tobias Harris (76ers)
Gordon Hayward (Celtics)
Dwight Howard (Lakers)
Brandon Ingram (Pelicans)
Kyrie Irving (Nets)
LeBron James (Lakers)
Kyle Kuzma (Lakers)
Kawhi Leonard (Clippers)
Damian Lillard (Blazers)
Brook Lopez (Bucks)
Kevin Love (Cavaliers)
Kyle Lowry (Raptors)
JaVale McGee (Lakers)
Khris Middleton (Bucks)
Donovan Mitchell (Jazz)
Victor Oladipo (Pacers)
Chris Paul (Thunder)
Mason Plumlee (Nuggets)
Marcus Smart (Celtics)
Jayson Tatum (Celtics)
Klay Thompson (Warriors)
Myles Turner (Pacers)
Kemba Walker (Celtics)
Russell Westbrook (Rockets)
Derrick White (Spurs)

Warriors Notes: Wiggins, Curry, Chriss, Luxury Tax

February 9th, 2020 at 9:05am CST by Arthur Hill

Andrew Wiggins‘ first game with the Warriors may have eased the doubts from those who wonder if he will be a good fit for the organization, writes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Acquired Thursday in exchange for D’Angelo Russell, Wiggins posted 24 points and five steals Saturday night. Coming to Golden State gives him a chance to change the arc of his career after five-and-a-half seasons with the Timberwolves.

“We lost a lot in Minnesota,” Wiggins said. “So coming here, being part of a winning culture, it’s different. Losing’s never fun. Being here, you can tell by everyone’s attitude, everyone’s approach, everything that’s everywhere, they’re winners. That’s something I’ve wanted to be my whole career.”

Slater points out that one of the benefits of making the Russell deal now instead of hoping for a better return this summer is that Wiggins has 30 games to adjust to the Warriors’ style of play. Ideally, he will evolve into a new version of Harrison Barnes, who was able to play power forward in brief stretches next to Draymond Green at center.

“A huge part of this trade is we know Andrew is a better positional fit for us than D’Angelo was,” coach Steve Kerr said. “… To be able to get a valuable wing player is not easy. There’s very few of them in the draft according to scouts and very few of them available in free agency. Wings are hard to come by. Just by bringing in a positional fit, a guy who has a lot of talent, I think the move makes sense.”

There’s more Warriors news this morning:

Stephen Curry confirmed on last night’s broadcast that he’s targeting the first week of March to return from his broken hand (video from NBA.com). Curry played just four games before suffering the injury in late October. He called his rehab “a work in progress.”
Marquese Chriss gave himself flexibility by signing for two years rather than three, tweets Bobby Marks of ESPN. Chris will be just 24 years old when he becomes a free agent in 2021.
After reshaping the roster at the trade deadline, general manager Bob Myers talked about the importance of getting under the luxury tax line for this season (video link from Slater). “To see the numbers of being a repeater the level we would’ve been, the numbers got pretty high,” Myers said. “If we would’ve drafted in top five … the (taxpayer mid-level exception) … the traded player exception, all of a sudden you’re talking high 200 (millions).”

Stephen Curry To Miss Another Month, May Return In March

February 1st, 2020 at 5:13pm CST by Arthur Hill

Warriors star Stephen Curry will miss all 11 games in February and will be re-evaluated in four weeks, tweets Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Curry is making steady progress in his return from a broken hand, and the team is “hopeful” he can return in March. Curry has increased the intensity of his shooting routines without any issues, Slater adds.

Sources tell Connor Letourneau of The San Francisco Chronicle that Curry will meet with team doctors on February 29. He is targeting a return to the court sometime in early to mid-March, with the March 1 game against the Wizards a possibility depending on how his hand responds to continued treatment.

The Warriors insist that the potential of taking the league’s worst record into the lottery won’t factor into any decisions on Curry. At 10-39, they hold the top spot in our current Reverse Standings, three games ahead of the Knicks, Cavaliers and Hawks.

“We’re going to try to win every game that we can,” head coach Steve Kerr said recently. “I don’t think there’s a whole lot of value in doing anything else other than that.”

Golden State entered the season with hopes for the playoffs, but those were dashed when Curry broke his hand in an October 30 game. They are 9-36 since the injury, which puts them on pace to tie the worst record in franchise history, Letourneau notes.

Steph Curry Eyeing Possible March 1 Return

January 19th, 2020 at 1:53pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Former two-time MVP Stephen Curry may play his fifth game of the 2019/20 season on March 1, when his Warriors take on the Wizards, according to Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. In his piece, Thompson refers to March 1st as more of a broad “target date” than anything official.

Curry broke his left hand on October 30 against the Suns. The Warriors currently sit at a league-worst 10-34 record, at the bottom of the NBA by percentage points over the 1o-33 Hawks and the 11-32 Knicks. Thompson notes that a Curry return could impede the Warriors’ odds of nabbing a top-five pick, if the six-time All-Star point guard can help the team win.

The flip side of that equation is that Curry’s presence with some of the Warriors’ current players, including D’Angelo Russell and Willie Cauley-Stein, could indicate to GM Bob Myers whether it makes sense to retain their services into next season, when the team should be healthy and competitive once again.