Portland Trail Blazers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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.

And-Ones: T. Davis, Trade Deadline, Team USA, Diamond Sports

January 17th, 2024 at 3:41pm CST by Luke Adams

After not finding an NBA opportunity when he became a free agent during the 2023 offseason, veteran guard Terence Davis eventually opted to sign a G League contract in December. Speaking to Cyro Asseo de Choch of HoopsHype, Davis said he gave up “a good amount of money” by turning down a EuroLeague opportunity with a Greek team, but that he didn’t want to move his family overseas and believed the G League was the best route back to the NBA.

Unfortunately, Davis’ comeback efforts will go on hold for the rest of the 2023/24 season and potentially beyond that. While playing for the Rip City Remix – the Trail Blazers‘ NBAGL team – the veteran guard recently suffered a torn Achilles, which will sideline him for the rest of ’23/24.

Davis told HoopsHype that he’s hopeful he’ll be able to recover quickly and be ready for training camps in the fall, but the rehab process for Achilles tear often takes longer than that. The 26-year-old admitted that there’s no specific return timetable yet.

“We haven’t had surgery. I get reevaluated in a week,” Davis said. “Then, I will get to fly home and probably won’t see Dr. (Richard) Ferkel again for another three or four weeks. So, that’s when I can start my rehab, and we’ll know the timelines.”

We have a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

In another story for HoopsHype, Mark Deeks previews the trade deadline for all 15 Eastern Conference clubs, exploring what each team will – or should – do.
At some point in the next few days, USA Basketball is expected to announce a pool of about 30 players who will be in the mix for spots on the 2024 Olympic roster, tweets Marc J. Spears of Andscape. The final 12-man roster likely won’t be announced until sometime after the season.
Fred Katz, Mike Vorkunov, and James Edwards of The Athletic ranked the 15 best in-season NBA trades of the past five years, focusing on which deals had the most significant impact on the teams involved. Their No. 1 pick was 2020’s Andrew Wiggins/D’Angelo Russell swap between the Warriors and Timberwolves, which beat out the 2022 Kings/Pacers blockbuster that included Tyrese Haliburton and Domantas Sabonis.
Amazon is partnering with Diamond Sports as part of restructuring agreement, per Joe Reedy of The Associated Press. Diamond Sports, which filed for bankruptcy last March, owns 18 Bally Sports networks that control the TV rights for 15 NBA teams. The agreement will give Amazon’s Prime Video access to Diamond’s content and should allow the company to emerge from bankruptcy and continue its operations, as Reedy details.

Fischer’s Latest: Tucker, Suns, Warriors, Mavs, Blazers, Graham

January 17th, 2024 at 12:28pm CST by Luke Adams

After being traded from Philadelphia to the Clippers earlier this season, veteran forward P.J. Tucker is a “strong” candidate to be moved again ahead of the February 8 deadline, says Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

According to Fischer, Washington is viewed as a potential trade destination for Tucker, who would likely be bought out if he’s sent to the Wizards. In that scenario, the Suns and Bucks would be among the teams expected to pursue the 38-year-old on the buyout market, Fischer adds.

Tucker is earning $11MM this season, with an $11.5MM player option for 2024/25, so unless he gives up a significant portion of his remaining money in a buyout agreement, he’d still have a real impact on his team’s salary cap for next season. With that in mind, the Wizards (or another trade partner) would presumably want a solid asset or two as a sweetener to take on his contract, especially if they’re also giving up a rotation-caliber player in the process.

Here’s more from Fischer:

The Suns are one of the more active teams on the trade market and have explored what a package that includes Grayson Allen and Nassir Little could bring back, Fischer reports. Those efforts are complicated by the fact that Phoenix’s draft assets consist of just four second-round picks, according to Fischer, who points out too that Allen has been arguably the team’s most important players outside of its three stars.
Although the Warriors and Mavericks have displayed interest in Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, Golden State has shown little desire to part with either Jonathan Kuminga or Moses Moody, Fischer writes. As for the Mavs, they’ve been linked to many forwards, per Fischer, including Andrew Wiggins, P.J. Washington of the Hornets, and former Mav Dorian Finney-Smith, now a member of the Nets.
Jerami Grant is the sort of player who would appeal to teams like the Mavericks and Kings, but the Trail Blazers aren’t expected to seriously consider offers for the veteran forward, according to Fischer. Portland guard Malcolm Brogdon, on the other hand, is viewed as a more viable trade candidate.
In addition to veterans like Doug McDermott and Cedi Osman, who were previously identified as trade candidates, guard Devonte’ Graham is another Spurs player who is available via trade, sources tell Fischer. Graham has been out of San Antonio’s rotation all season and has a $12.1MM cap hit for this season, with a $2.85MM partial guarantee for 2024/25, so he presumably won’t have positive value.

Blazers Rule Out Sharpe For At Least Two Weeks

January 16th, 2024 at 7:59am CST by Luke Adams

Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe, who has missed the past two games due to what the team was referring to as adductor soreness, underwent an MRI and has been diagnosed with a lower abdominal strain, according to a press release.

Sharpe will be reevaluated in two weeks, per the club, so he won’t be back on the court until the very end of the month or sometime in February, at the earliest.

The seventh overall pick in the 2022 draft, Sharpe is averaging career highs in points (15.9), rebounds (5.0), and assists (2.9) per game in 2023/24. However, that’s largely a byproduct of his increased role.

After coming off the bench in 65 of his 80 games as a rookie and averaging 22.2 minutes per night, Sharpe has started 25 of 32 contests so far in 2023/24 and has seen his playing time increase to 33.1 MPG for the retooling Blazers. The 20-year-old’s usage rate has risen to 22.2%, but his shooting percentages (.406 FG%, .333 3PT%) are well below the marks he posted as a rookie.

Despite his dip in scoring efficiency, Sharpe is considered a cornerstone piece in Portland and is one of the few players on the roster who looks like a lock to stay put at this season’s trade deadline.

The 10-29 Blazers, who are nine games out of a play-in spot and who have been outscored by 203 points in their past eight contests, will likely consider a wide range of trade scenarios in the coming weeks as they look to continue building a roster capable of contending within a few seasons.

Seventeen More Players Become Trade-Eligible

January 15th, 2024 at 7:02am CST by Luke Adams

Today is Monday, January 15, which means that a total of 17 players who signed free agent contracts meeting specific criteria this past offseason are now eligible to be traded.

Most offseason signees became trade-eligible on December 15, but players who met the following criteria were ineligible to be moved for an extra month:

The player re-signed with his previous team.
He got a raise of at least 20%.
His salary is worth more than the minimum.
His team was over the cap and used Bird or Early Bird rights to sign him.

The following players met that criteria and are eligible to be traded as of Monday:

Miles Bridges (Hornets) *
Ayo Dosunmu (Bulls)
Jerami Grant (Trail Blazers)
Rui Hachimura (Lakers)
Cameron Johnson (Nets)
Herbert Jones (Pelicans)
Tre Jones (Spurs)
Kyle Kuzma (Wizards)
Brook Lopez (Bucks)
Trey Lyles (Kings)
Jakob Poeltl (Raptors)
Austin Reaves (Lakers)
Paul Reed (Sixers) *
Matisse Thybulle (Trail Blazers) *
Moritz Wagner (Magic)
P.J. Washington (Hornets)
Coby White (Bulls)

(* Players marked with an asterisk have the ability to veto trades.)

Most of the players on NBA rosters are now eligible to be moved, though a small handful still can’t be dealt. That group includes Heat guard Dru Smith, who becomes trade-eligible on Monday, Hornets guard Ish Smith (trade-eligible on January 24), Lakers star Anthony Davis (trade-eligible on February 6), and Pistons forward Kevin Knox (trade-eligible on Feb. 8).

There are also several players who won’t become trade-eligible prior to this season’s February 8 deadline, including stars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, and Jaylen Brown. Players on 10-day contracts are also ineligible to be dealt.

Team Looks Worse Than Projected

January 14th, 2024 at 9:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

While the expectations for the Trail Blazers dropped after they traded away Damian Lillard, they’ve still been worse than projected this season, Sean Highkin of RoseGardenReport.com writes. They are coming off a road trip in which they went 1-6 and got outscored by 192 points. The games have been as non-competitive as Portland’s post-trade deadline tanking during the past two springs, Highkin notes.

Northwest Notes: Sexton, Clarkson, Jazz, Thunder, Sharpe

January 13th, 2024 at 9:47am CST by Tristan Tucker

Collin Sexton has started the past 17 games for the Jazz, with the team going 13-4 in those contests and completely turning around their season, writes The Salt Lake Tribune’s Andy Larsen. Sexton — who was once viewed as an available trade piece — is among the league’s top per-possession scorers and is averaging 28.1 points per 36 minutes over the past 30 days, sixth in the NBA.

“Collin’s been playing really well, at a high level. He’s really picking his spots, when to attack, when to facilitate, and when to slow down and when to use his speed,” teammate Lauri Markkanen said. “I think he’s playing a really high level right now and we need him to keep it up.”

Larsen observes Sexton’s made changes to his game, including the pace at which he plays and improving his efficiency.

“Collin’s one of the best athletes I’ve ever been around. He gets incredibly low to the floor when he drives, he’s very strong, very explosive, and he’s able to play through contact,” head coach Will Hardy said. “We know can get in the paint at will — maybe not every time, but most times he can get into paint, and his decision making has really improved in those spots.”

Sarah Todd of The Deseret News explores a similar topic, writing that Jordan Clarkson has also helped turn Utah’s fortunes around in recent weeks. Since returning from a hamstring injury, Clarkson is averaging 19.8 points and a career-best 5.9 assists in 11 games while breaking the Jazz’s 15-year triple-double drought in early January.

“It’s been feeling really great, to be honest,” Clarkson said. “I think in the beginning of the year it was just tough. I think we were all trying to figure out each other. … Early in the season it’s hard to put a label on the team. Just credit to the coaching staff and all of us for sticking with it and coming out here and putting a good product out.”

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Part of Sexton and Clarkson’s success comes from Hardy’s adjustments to the Jazz‘s rotation, Larsen writes in a separate piece. Every rotation player has more defined roles than they did at the beginning of the year, leading to guys like Kris Dunn and Simone Fontecchio improving in starting spots. Larsen also writes the bench unit has improved as a result of the progress made by, and changes to, the starting lineup, with the five-man bench lineup of Keyonte George, Clarkson, Ochai Agbaji, Kelly Olynyk and Walker Kessler outscoring opponents by 24 points per possession.
Tony Jones of The Athletic says that the Jazz‘s players have bought into the team’s changes. “We’ve just mixed and matched and put ingredients into the soup and kind of figured out what’s worked and what hasn’t worked,” Olynyk said. “We’re at the point where guys know their roles, and they are trying to be stars in their roles, and it’s all just working right now.“
The Thunder are way ahead of their rebuilding timeline and are among the league’s top contenders, The Athletic’s John Hollinger notes. It’s an impressive feat alone, but becomes even more fascinating when considering many of the Thunder’s top guys have come from their own draft picks, like Chet Holmgren and Cason Wallace, and not the draft picks obtained from dismantling the Paul George–Russell Westbrook core. Of course, as Hollinger acknowledges, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has become one of the NBA’s best players since being obtained in the George trade, while Jalen Williams was drafted using a Clippers pick. Hollinger argues the Thunder should look to move some of their non-rotation young guys and big contracts for a player who can help now, since their contention window has already started and they’ll have big contract decisions on the horizon.
Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe left Thursday’s matchup against the Thunder with a right adductor strain and did not return, according to team PR (Twitter link). Sharpe missed Portland’s Friday game at the Timberwolves due to the injury, The Oregonian’s Aaron J. Fentress tweets.

Checking In On NBA Roster Openings, Deadlines

January 12th, 2024 at 3:23pm CST by Luke Adams

With the NBA’s league-wide salary guarantee date for 2023/24 behind us, it’s worth checking in once again on which teams have open spots on their 18-man rosters.

As our roster count tracker shows, these are the teams that don’t currently have full rosters consisting of 15 players on standard rest-of-season contracts and three on two-way deals:

Teams with standard roster openings:

Boston Celtics
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers (2)
Golden State Warriors
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
New York Knicks
Portland Trail Blazers (2)
Sacramento Kings *
Toronto Raptors
Washington Wizards *

The Cavaliers and Trail Blazers each face a deadline to add a 14th man, since NBA teams aren’t permitted to carry fewer than 14 players on standard contracts for more than two weeks at a time. Cleveland has to make a move by January 18, while Portland has until January 20.

The Kings and Wizards, meanwhile, technically have full 15-man standard rosters at the moment, but they’re each only carrying 14 players on full-season contracts, with one player on a 10-day deal. Those 10-day deals run through next Thursday, at which time each club could open up a roster spot.

Most teams in this group likely won’t sign a player to a rest-of-season or multiyear contract until sometime after the trade deadline, when they know they won’t need to use that 15th roster spot to accommodate a trade in which they acquire more players than they send out. In between now and the trade deadline, however, some of these clubs could join Sacramento and Washington in signing free agents to 10-day contracts.

Teams with two-way openings:

Brooklyn Nets
Memphis Grizzlies
Milwaukee Bucks (2)

The deadline to sign a player to a two-way contract won’t arrive until March 4, so there’s no urgency for these clubs to fill their openings right away. But the prorated portion of a two-way salary is such a minor financial commitment for an NBA franchise that we may see these teams bring in a new two-way player sooner rather than later, even if they’re not certain he’ll hold that spot for the rest of the season.

Scotto’s Latest: Gafford, Knicks, Mavs, Dinwiddie, Markkanen

January 12th, 2024 at 11:55am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks inquired earlier this season on Wizards big man Daniel Gafford, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype told ESPN’s Bobby Marks in the latest episode of the HoopsHype podcast.

While Scotto doesn’t say exactly when that inquiry occurred, it was presumably sometime after New York lost Mitchell Robinson to the left ankle injury that is expected to sideline him for most or all of the season. It seems safe to assume, Scotto continues, that whatever level of interest the Knicks had in Gafford decreased after the club acquired Precious Achiuwa from Toronto in the OG Anunoby deal.

Here are a few more items of interest from the HoopsHype podcast:

The Mavericks are interested in upgrading at the forward position, according to Scotto, who suggests the team would be looking at either the three or the four. Scotto’s comment on the Mavs came during a more general conversation about Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant as a potential trade candidate — while Scotto views Dallas as a fit for Grant, he doesn’t explicitly say that the Mavs have expressed interest.
The Nets and Spencer Dinwiddie, who is on track for unrestricted free agency this summer, had brief extension discussions prior to the season when he became eligible to sign a new deal, per Scotto. The two sides reportedly explored a one- or two-year deal, but Dinwiddie wanted something longer. During their discussion, Scotto and Marks wondered if Dinwiddie’s days in Brooklyn may be numbered, which is a topic that Collin Helwig of NetsDaily also explored after the veteran guard didn’t play in crunch time on Sunday and barely saw any action in the second half on Thursday.
The trade speculation about Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen earlier this season seemed more like something other teams were trying to speak into existence rather than anything real, says Scotto, adding that Markkanen will be eligible for a contract renegotiation and extension with Utah next summer and seems interested in pursuing that.

Blazers’ Brown To Miss At Least Six Weeks After Wrist Surgery

January 10th, 2024 at 7:09pm CST by Rory Maher

JANUARY 10: Brown had successful surgery on Tuesday and will be reevaluated in six weeks, the Trail Blazers announced (via Twitter).

JANUARY 8: Trail Blazers center Moses Brown has been diagnosed with a non-displaced scaphoid fracture in his left wrist, which will require surgery this week, the team announced in a press release. A return timeline will be determined post-surgery, per the team.

A 7’2″ big man who played one season of collegiate ball at UCLA, Brown signed a one-year, partially guaranteed contract with Portland back in August. While it’s obviously unfortunate for Brown that he’s out indefinitely, the good news is his salary became fully guaranteed after he remained on the roster past Sunday’s deadline — he’ll earn the full veteran’s minimum ($2,165,000) for a player with his level of experience.

Brown returning to Portland in the offseason was actually a reunion, as the 24-year-old spent his rookie season with the Blazers on a two-way deal. He has bounced around a good deal during his five seasons, having also played for the Thunder, Mavericks, Cavaliers, Clippers and Nets.

In total, Brown has averaged 5.3 points and 5.2 rebounds in 12.2 minutes per night over 137 career regular season games. He has appeared in nine games for Portland in 2023/24 and played 82 total minutes.

According to Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report (Twitter link), it’s “within the realm of possibility” that Brown could still be released despite his contract becoming guaranteed, depending on how long he might be out or if the team needs to cut a player to complete a trade.

In other Blazers roster news, Highkin expects center Duop Reath to have his two-way deal converted to a standard deal at some point in the next two weeks. The Blazers have until January 20 to reach the 14-man roster limit after waiving Skylar Mays and Ish Wainright on Saturday.