Taj Gibson Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Knicks Notes: Gibson, Quickley, Brunson, Randle

December 27th, 2023 at 8:58am CST by Arthur Hill

Taj Gibson wasn’t in the NBA two weeks ago, but now the 38-year-old big man is playing an important role for the Knicks, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. With Mitchell Robinson possibly out for the season and Jericho Sims sidelined for another week or two, Gibson has become the team’s primary backup center. He played 15 minutes in the Christmas Day game against Milwaukee after Isaiah Hartenstein got into foul trouble and even spent time guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo.

“Taj’s defensive activity was terrific,” coach Tom Thibodeau said. “His hustle plays give us energy.”

Gibson is a long-time Thibodeau favorite, but he wasn’t expected to have such an active role when he signed with the team on December 15. Circumstances have forced him to become more than just a veteran presence on the bench, and he has averaged 9.5 minutes in the six games he has played.

“He’s come in and I think he has a little bigger role than he thought he was going to have originally,” Josh Hart said. “But he’s been great being able to get in and play his style. Obviously he’s been with Thibs for a long time. So he knows the system but, ability to rebound, his communicating, which is huge for us.”

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Immanuel Quickley continues to see reduced minutes in Thibodeau’s rotation, notes Zach Braziller of The New York Post. Quickley was only on the court for 22 minutes Monday, even though the Knicks outscored the Bucks by 14 points while he was playing. Thibodeau replaced Quickley with RJ Barrett as his closing lineup continues to evolve. “[It’s] part of having a good team, and one thing is we all cheer for each other,” Barrett said. “We know every game can be somebody else’s night. You get in there, you do your job and you cheer for the next man.”
Jalen Brunson is likely headed to his first All-Star game and will get plenty of consideration for All-NBA honors, says Fred Katz of The Athletic. Brunson has raised his game since coming to New York and is in the midst of his best season, averaging 26.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.9 assists per night while shooting 48% from the field and 45.9% from three-point range.
In an interview with Shams Charania for Stadium (video link), Julius Randle talks about his complicated relationship with Knicks fans and how much he wants to give them an NBA title. “New York has definitely been the most challenging,” Randle said. “… I want to win so bad. There’s nothing more that I want to do other than win a championship here in the city.”

Knicks’ Jericho Sims To Miss Time With Ankle Injury

December 20th, 2023 at 4:46pm CST by Luke Adams

4:46pm: The Knicks have confirmed (via Twitter) that Sims will be out at least seven-to-10 days, which is when he’ll be reevaluated.

1:36pm: Although he’s still listed on the injury report as questionable for Wednesday’s game in Brooklyn, Knicks center Jericho Sims is expected to miss one or two weeks due to his right ankle sprain, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). Sims suffered the injury during Monday’s victory over the Lakers.

Sims has averaged just 1.6 points and 1.7 rebounds in 7.4 minutes per game across 14 appearances so far this season, but he has become an important part of New York’s rotation since starting center Mitchell Robinson went down with a left ankle injury. Sims started the Knicks’ first five games without Robinson and had been playing between 17 and 21 minutes per night.

Although Isaiah Hartenstein had been handling the majority of the minutes at the five and looks like the obvious candidate to move into the starting lineup, the Knicks now find themselves shorthanded up front. With Robinson and Sims unavailable, the team’s only other center besides Hartenstein is 38-year-old Taj Gibson, who just made his season debut last week and probably shouldn’t be counted on for meaningful minutes.

Even before Wojnarowski revealed Sims’ recovery timeline, Stefan Bondy of The New York Post had suggested that something has to give for the Knicks, who can’t count on Hartenstein to keep playing 39 minutes per game like he did on Monday.

Head coach Tom Thibodeau has resisted the idea of using a power forward like Julius Randle as a small-ball five, since he prefers to always have some form of rim protection on the floor, but Thibodeau may need to be flexible on that front, writes Bondy.

The other option would be for the front office to add another center via free agency. The Knicks currently have a full roster, but a few players, including Ryan Arcidiacono and DaQuan Jeffries, don’t have fully guaranteed contracts, so the team has some flexibility to move players in and out if necessary.

Knicks Notes: Sims, Centers, Reddish, Hart

December 19th, 2023 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Knicks center Jericho Sims sprained his right ankle after just three minutes of action in Monday’s win over the Lakers. Head coach Tom Thibodeau didn’t have an update after the game about the severity of the injury, per Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link), but Sims was in a walking boot, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday.

Still, it sounds like the injury may not be significant. According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), the Knicks are listing Sims as questionable to play in Wednesday’s contest vs. Brooklyn, which suggests he may not have to miss any time at all.

If Sims is forced to the sidelines, his absence figures to result in a significant role for reserve center Isaiah Hartenstein, who had already been getting the majority of playing time at the five since Mitchell Robinson went down.

On Monday, Hartenstein logged an impressive 39 minutes off the bench and played a key role in the victory — he grabbed a career-best 17 rebounds and the Knicks outscored the Lakers by 15 points when he was on the court. Recently added big man Taj Gibson was a minus-8 in his six minutes of action.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

Prior to Monday’s win and Sims’ ankle injury, Stefan Bondy of The New York Post questioned whether Hartenstein should simply be moved into the starting lineup, since the groups with Sims at center haven’t been particularly effective, especially defensively. Since Robinson’s injury, New York has a +11.5 net rating with Hartenstein on the court and a -16.9 mark (including a 131.1 defensive rating) when Sims is playing.
Facing his former Knicks team for the first time this season on Monday, Lakers forward Cam Reddish wasn’t willing to revisit the past, Bondy writes in another New York Post story. “I’ve got nothing for you,” Reddish said on his way out of the locker room. “My time in New York is over.” Asked about the former Knicks forward, who fell out of favor in New York and reportedly sought a trade, Thibodeau lauded the 24-year-old for being willing to accept his role in Los Angeles: “I think the first thing is to embrace the role, and I think he’s done a really good job of that.”
Speaking to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, Josh Hart attributed his bumpy start to this season to adjusting to a new role and to not being in his usual rhythm after spending a long summer with Team USA. Still, Hart suggested he’d happily accept an invitation to the 2024 Olympic team — though he’s not necessarily holding his breath for that invite. “I’d be very pleasantly surprised if I get a call. If I do, I’ll go cheerlead LeBron (James), KD (Kevin Durant) and all of them and I would love every minute of it,” he said with a laugh.
After seven straight lottery seasons from 2014-20, the Knicks are now a “fully functional” franchise and a solid playoff team, according to Chris Mannix of SI.com, who considers what it will take for the club to become more than that.

Atlantic Notes: White, Thybulle, Sixers, Knicks

December 17th, 2023 at 9:02am CST by Luke Adams

Does Derrick White deserve All-Star consideration? Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston argues that the Celtics guard has a legitimate case, noting that the team has a +13.6 net rating when White is on the court compared to a +1.5 mark when he sits. That’s the widest on/off difference for any player on the roster.

White is also averaging 15.6 points and 5.1 assists per game while shooting 48.2% from the field and 42.7% on three-pointers. All of those numbers would be career bests for the seventh-year guard (with the exception of his rookie season, when he shot 48.5% from the floor and 61.5% on threes in just 139 total minutes).

Still, while the 19-5 Celtics certainly have a case to send multiple players to this season’s All-Star Game in Indianapolis, it’s unclear whether White will make the cut. As Forsberg observes, Jayson Tatum is a lock to be an All-Star, while teammates Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis will also warrant consideration.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Since being traded from Philadelphia to Portland at last season’s trade deadline, Matisse Thybulle has made 39.9% of his three-point attempts, well above the 32.5% mark he put up across three-and-a-half seasons with the Sixers. Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer wonders if the 76ers gave up on Thybulle too early and whether he might’ve been rejuvenated under a new head coach in Nick Nurse.
In a separate story for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Gina Mizell previews trade season for the Sixers, identifying some potential big-name trade targets while also considering what sort of role players might fit in Philadelphia. A prototypical point guard, a more traditional center, and a “straight-up gunner” are among the pieces the club could keep an eye out for, Mizell suggests.
With Mitchell Robinson out for a couple months and Taj Gibson now a part of the roster, Tom Thibodeau‘s rotation at center for the Knicks looks pretty clear, writes Stefan Bondy of The New York Post. Jericho Sims will start, Isaiah Hartenstein will get the majority of the minutes, and Gibson will be available for insurance purposes. That’s how it worked out on Friday and Saturday, with Hartenstein averaging 30.5 minutes, Sims averaging 17.5, and Gibson logging a total of seven minutes in garbage time.

Knicks Notes: Brunson, Quickley, Gibson, Randle

December 16th, 2023 at 9:38am CST by Tristan Tucker

Knicks guard Jalen Brunson‘s three-point shot is the key to New York’s ability to win games, writes the New York Post’s Stefan Bondy. Overall, Brunson is shooting a career-best 46.0% on 6.8 attempts per night from beyond the arc. When the Knicks win, Brunson shoots 57.4% from deep, but when they lose, he shoots just 27.4%.

Bondy breaks down what Brunson’s threes have looked like this season in victories and defeats. Generally, entering Thursday, Brunson was getting more open looks in wins than in losses, including 37% of his threes in wins being “wide open” (compared to 32% in losses).

Like clockwork, Brunson had a historic night from downtown in a 17-point victory against the Suns on Friday. Brunson scored a career-high 50 points in the win, 35 of which came in the second half, where he shot 12-for-12 from the floor and 8-for-8 from three-point range in the period.

Brunson’s overall 9-for-9 performance from three tied the NBA record for the most three-point attempts in a game without a miss (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Fred Katz). Latrell Sprewell did it for the Knicks in 2003.

We have more from the Knicks:

Immanuel Quickley returned from a brief injury absence on Dec. 13, playing just 18 minutes against Utah as Tom Thibodeau continues to navigate his guard rotation. He wasn’t concerned about the lack of minutes, writes Bondy. “Just whatever minutes you get, go out there and be effective,” Quickley said. “Whatever minutes I get — whether 15, 20, 25. I played 55 [in an overtime game] last season. Whatever minutes I get, go out there and help the team win.“
The Knicks are happy to have veteran big man Taj Gibson back in the fold after signing him on Friday. Gibson, 38, spent three seasons with the Knicks before joining the Wizards last year. With Mitchell Robinson sidelined due to injury, it made sense for Gibson to come back, writes Newsday’s Steve Popper. Gibson also spoke about his future upon arriving with the Knicks. “I’m still considering [coaching],” Gibson said. “But it has to be the right situation. I want to be somewhere where I can learn, brighten my future. This is a bright spot for me, being around the coaching staff who I can learn from. Just top to bottom, this is just family for me.“
After a sluggish start to the season that saw him shoot just 31.6% from the field and average 16.5 points per game, Julius Randle has improved his efficiency and turned his season around, writes Bondy in a separate story. Randle’s stated goal before the season was to become a more efficient player, which didn’t seem likely after his start to the year, but he’s shooting 60.0% from the floor and 41.2% from three over the last eight games while averaging 28.0 PPG. “Just playing to my strengths and understanding spots on the court where I can get high-percentage shots where I can either get a high-percentage shot or they double me and I can kick out and play-make for my teammates,” Randle said. “So I understand who I am as a player. While I can shoot the ball and make a ton of 3s, I understand who I am as a player, what my strengths are.“

Knicks Waive Dylan Windler, Sign Taj Gibson

December 15th, 2023 at 9:06am CST by Luke Adams

DECEMBER 15: The Knicks have officially signed Gibson, the team announced today in a press release (Twitter link). He’ll earn a salary of $2,241,188, while the team carries a cap hit of $1,416,116.

DECEMBER 13: The Knicks are making a change at the back of their standard 15-man roster, announcing today that they’ve waived wing Dylan Windler (Twitter link). Using their newly opened roster spot, the team will sign free agent big man Taj Gibson to a one-year contract, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link).

Gibson’s one-year deal with New York will be non-guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Gibson is a longtime favorite of Tom Thibodeau, who has coached the veteran forward/center in Chicago, Minnesota, and New York. Gibson previously had a stint with the Knicks that lasted from 2019-22 — he appeared in 159 games over the course of three seasons.

Gibson spent last the 2022/23 season with the Wizards and re-signed with Washington on a one-year, minimum-salary contract during the 2023 offseason. However, even though his deal was fully guaranteed, the 38-year-old became the victim of a roster crunch in D.C. and was cut before the season began.

With starting center Mitchell Robinson expected to miss at least eight-to-10 weeks due to an ankle injury, New York was in the market for additional frontcourt depth and Gibson was an obvious candidate to fill that role, given his familiarity with Thibodeau and the Knicks, who highly value his leadership, according to Begley.

Gibson’s playing time has been on the decline in recent years and he’ll turn 39 in June, so he’s unlikely to leapfrog Isaiah Hartenstein or Jericho Sims on New York’s depth chart, but he’ll be a useful piece of insurance at center.

Since the Knicks had a full 15-man roster, they had to waive someone to make room for Gibson. None of their three players on non-guaranteed salaries – Windler, DaQuan Jeffries, and Ryan Arcidiacono – had seen much action this fall, but it was Windler who was ultimately the odd man out. The former first-round pick has logged just seven total minutes across three appearances for the Knicks this season.

For what it’s worth, Windler is still eligible for a two-way contract, whereas Jeffries and Aricidacono aren’t, so if he clears waivers, the former Belmont sharpshooter could return in that capacity. It would require another cut though, since New York doesn’t have an open two-way slot.

If he goes unclaimed on waivers, Windler will end up making $659,454, a prorated portion of his minimum-salary deal with the Knicks.

Wizards Cut Taj Gibson, Xavier Cooks

October 23rd, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Luke Adams

The Wizards have reduced their roster from 17 players on standard contracts to 15 by waiving big man Taj Gibson and forward Xavier Cooks, reports Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Washington faced a roster crunch this fall, with all 17 of their players on standard contracts owed fully guaranteed salaries in 2023/24. Neither Gibson nor Cooks projected to have a significant rotation role in D.C. and neither one was owed any guaranteed money beyond this season, making them logical candidates to be the odd men out.

Gibson, who has 14 years of NBA experience under his belt, spent last season with the Wizards, averaging 3.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in a career-low 9.8 minutes per game across 49 appearances. After reaching unrestricted free agency, the 38-year-old earned a new one-year, minimum-salary contract from Washington, but was unable to claim a regular season spot.

Assuming Gibson goes unclaimed on waivers, the Wizards will remain on the hook for his $2,019,706 cap charge and the forward/center will earn his full $3,196,448 salary.

As for Cooks, the Australian-born forward had spent most of his professional career playing for the Sydney Kings after going undrafted out of Winthrop in 2018. After helping lead the Kings to a National Basketball League title earlier this year, Cooks signed a four-year contract with the Wizards in March that included two guaranteed seasons — last year and this year.

Cooks’ $1,719,864 salary will remain on the Wizards’ books for 2023/24, but the team won’t have to pay his $2,019,699 salary for 2024/25 or his $2,187,451 team option for ’25/26.

Having signed center John Butler to a two-way contract earlier today, Washington now has a full 18-man roster entering the regular season — 15 players on standard deals and three on two-ways.

Eastern Notes: Gobert, Fournier, Van Gundy, Wizards, Black, Howard, Hayward

October 15th, 2023 at 8:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is disappointed that fellow Frenchman Evan Fournier has an uncertain future with the Knicks and an undefined role, he told Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. Fournier anticipated during the offseason that he would be traded.

Gobert calls Fournier “the best shooter on the Knicks.”

“I think he can contribute and help a lot of teams,” Gobert added. “I think everybody knows it. But it’s kind of weird when you end up on the bench and you don’t really know why. Sometimes you can be stuck in a situation — I know he’s going to have an opportunity again, and everybody will understand that he can help and win. And do it at a high level. And do it every night.”

We have more Eastern Conference news:

Jeff Van Gundy, who was hired by the Celtics as a senior consultant, has a longtime admirer in president of basketball operations Brad Stevens. “Jeff has been an unofficial consultant for so many of us that grew up in coaching for a long time,” Stevens told Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe. “He’s so humble and approachable, and has always gone out of his way to spend time helping others.”
The Wizards’ Deni Avdija (back), Patrick Baldwin Jr. (knee) and Taj Gibson (groin) were all full practice participants on Sunday, Josh Robbins of The Athletic tweets. Anthony Gill (hamstring) and Landry Shamet (toe) were the only players who didn’t fully participate.
Magic coach Jamahl Mosley felt lottery picks Anthony Black and Jett Howard showed improvement in the team’s second preseason contest against Clevleand, according to Jason Beede of the Orlando Sentinel. “That second game, they were settled down,” Mosley said. “Our coaches did a tremendous job of watching film with them to help them see what they’re able to do and they settled in that second game.”
Hornets forward Gordon Hayward (right foot discomfort) missed the team’s preseason contest against Oklahoma City on Sunday, the team’s PR department tweets.

Contract Details: Morris, Gibson, Boban, Forrest, Millner

September 18th, 2023 at 12:56pm CST by Luke Adams

Markieff Morris‘ new contract with the Mavericks is a one-year, minimum-salary deal that is partially guaranteed, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, who tweets that Morris received a $200K guarantee.

The agreement doesn’t include any early salary guarantee dates prior to the league-wide salary guarantee date in January, so Morris will have to remain under contract beyond January 7 in order to earn his full $3,196,448 salary. If it becomes guaranteed, it will count for $2,019,706 against the Mavericks’ cap, with the NBA covering the difference between the cap hit and Morris’ full salary.

Here are a few more contract details from around the NBA:

The one-year, minimum-salary deal that Taj Gibson signed with the Wizards is fully guaranteed, Hoops Rumors has learned. That gives Washington a total of 17 players on standard guaranteed contracts, meaning the club will need to trade or waive at least two of those players before opening night.
Boban Marjanovic‘s one-year contract with the Rockets will be worth the veteran’s minimum and will be partially guaranteed, according to Kelly Iko of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The two-way contracts recently signed by Trent Forrest (Hawks) and Setric Millner (Spurs) each cover just one year, Hoops Rumors has learned. That means Forrest and Millner will become eligible for restricted free agency in 2024, assuming they play out their respective deals.
In case you missed it, we recently passed along the details on Danny Green‘s non-guaranteed contract with the Sixers, including multiple partial guarantee dates.

Wizards Re-Sign Taj Gibson

September 15th, 2023 at 1:51pm CST by Luke Adams

1:51pm: The Wizards have officially re-signed Gibson, the team announced in a press release.

“Taj has earned his reputation as a consummate professional and loyal teammate,” Wizards general manager Will Dawkins said in a statement. “We look forward to him adding to the competitive atmosphere when we begin training camp next month.”

9:47am: Free agent big man Taj Gibson has reached an agreement to return to the Wizards on a one-year, minimum-salary deal, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Gibson, 38, appeared in 49 games for Washington last season, averaging 3.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per night. All of those figures were career lows, though the former first-round pick was a valued veteran presence in the Wizards’ locker room.

Given that the Wizards were already carrying 16 players on guaranteed contracts and revamped their front office this offseason, the odds seemed to be working against Gibson’s return. However, Washington isn’t especially deep in the frontcourt after trading away big man Kristaps Porzingis, so having a vet like Gibson on the bench could be a useful insurance policy.

It’s unclear at this point whether or not Gibson’s salary will be fully guaranteed. Many of the contracts being signed by veteran free agents at this stage of the offseason are either non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed, and the Wizards may not be eager to exacerbate their roster crunch by adding another guaranteed salary to their books. We’ll have to wait for additional details.

Assuming they all make the 15-man regular season roster, Gibson could end up vying with fellow centers Daniel Gafford and Mike Muscala for playing time at the five. His minimum-salary contract would pay him $3,196,448 for the 2023/24 season, while Washington would have a $2,019,706 cap charge.