Kings Rumors

Marcus Morris Expected To Draw Interest From Knicks, Lakers, Others

Veteran forward Marcus Morris figures to receive plenty of interest on the free agent market this summer, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic, who reports that the Knicks, Lakers, Kings, Clippers, and Bulls are all expected to be “in pursuit” of Morris.

All five of those teams project to have significant cap room this offseason, though Morris is unlikely to be the No. 1 priority for most of them. The Knicks, Lakers, and Clippers will be chasing the top free agents on the market, while the Kings have been frequently linked to Nikola Vucevic. Signing a point guard will be a priority for Chicago.

Still, Morris would be a nice fit for any of those clubs after two strong seasons in Boston. In 129 games (27.4 MPG) for Boston, the 29-year-old averaged 13.8 PPG and 5.8 RPG with a .439/.372/.826 shooting line, providing toughness and defensive versatility in the frontcourt.

League sources tell Charania that Morris remains “open-minded” about re-signing with the Celtics, and the C’s are expected to reciprocate that interest. Boston will have a handful of pressing roster questions to address though, including Kyrie Irving‘s free agency.

Morris, who earned $5.375MM in 2018/19, figures to be in line for a raise on his next deal.

Southwest Notes: Barea, Ball, Davis, Capela, Conley

Point guard J.J. Barea‘s recovery from a ruptured right Achilles tendon is going well and he’s hopeful of playing for Puerto Rico in the FIBA World Cup this summer, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon tweets. The Mavericks veteran suffered the injury on January 11th and underwent surgery three days later.

“The way I feel right now, it looks pretty good,” Barea told MacMahon. “But I’m not going to make a decision until it gets closer.” Barea is doing non-contact basketball activity under the supervision of Mavericks staff members, MacMahon adds, and took 600 shots in an hour last week.

Barea, an unrestricted free agent this summer, is expected to re-sign with the Mavericks.

We have more from the Southwest Division:

  • While Anthony Davis‘ representatives said he still wants out after meeting last week with executive VP David Griffin, there’s no need for Griffin to rush out and trade the superstar big man, Scott Kushner of the New Orleans Advocate writes. Griffin can wait as long as February’s trade deadline to deal Davis, leaving open the possibility that the team can convince him to change his mind. If Davis remains firm, his wish is more likely to come to fruition if he’s willing to make a commitment to the trade partner, Kushner adds.
  • Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry is intrigued by the possibility of a Lonzo BallJrue Holiday backcourt if Davis is dealt to the Lakers, Andrew Lopez of the Times-Picayune reports (hat tip to the Sporting News).
  • The Hawks, Spurs, Mavericks and Kings are possible destinations for center Clint Capela if the Rockets deal him, Frank Urbina of HoopsHype opines. The Rockets reportedly have made everyone on the roster available at the right price.
  • The Grizzlies should swap veteran point guard Mike Conley while his value remains high after he averaged a career high in points this season, Omari Sankofa II of The Athletic argues.

Pacific Notes: Durant, Suns, Kings, Clippers

As relayed by The Associated Press, this Tuesday is the next time we may know more about a possible return of Warriors superstar Kevin Durant. Having already been ruled out for tonight’s Game 2, Wednesday night’s Game 3 marks the next opportunity for Durant’s return, but Tuesday is Golden State’s next practice.

Head coach Steve Kerr, having already said that Durant will need to practice before playing in a game, expounded upon his stance today, saying that Durant could potentially only need one day of practice to be cleared for game action.

“It’s really a day-to-day thing,” Kerr said “If we had a crystal ball, we would have known a long time ago what we were dealing with. But it’s just an injury (where) there’s been a lot of gray area. So, literally, it’s just day-to-day and how the progress is coming. And at this point he’s still not ready.”

But, when further pressed on the issue, and asked whether Durant will only need one practice, said “it’s feasible.” Accordingly, we should know a lot more on Tuesday as to whether Durant can return for Game 3.

There’s more from the Pacific Division this afternoon:

Juwan Morgan To Work Out For Kings, Others

  • According to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com (via Twitter), the workout list for Indiana forward Juwan Morgan includes the Suns, Pacers, Bulls, Grizzlies, Timberwolves, Jazz, and Kings.

Vucevic Remains Free Agent Target

  • The Kings are interested in Magic free agent center Nikola Vucevic, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 tweets. This reiterates a previous Athletic report in late March that revealed Sacramento’s desire to sign Vucevic.

Draft Notes: Vick, Caroline, Kings

The NBA Draft is less than one month away. As we await the big night, let’s take a look at some workout notes:

Kings Working Out Several Prospects

  • The Kings are hosting their fifth pre-draft workout at their practice facility on Wednesday, the team announced in a press release. Sacramento listed Anthony Cowan (Maryland), Barry Brown (Kansas State), Alpha Diallo (Providence), Amir Coffey (Minnesota), Robert Franks (Washington State), and Dedric Lawson (Kansas) as the participants, though Cowan and Diallo are both expected to pull out of the draft before tonight’s NCAA withdrawal deadline.

Kings Add Three To Coaching Staff

The Kings have made several additions to their coaching staff. According to Sam Amick of The Athletic (Twitter link), the team has added Bob Beyer, Jesse Mermuys and Roy Rana as assistant coaches.

Beyer most recently coached under Billy Donovan in Oklahoma City. He previously was in Detroit under Stan Van Gundy.

Mermuys follows new Kings head coach Luke Walton from Los Angeles to Sacramento, having spent the last three seasons with the Lakers.

Rana is a long-time Canadian coach who leads the country’s under-18 and under-19 national teams.

Walton joined the Kings after mutually parting ways with the Lakers. Sacramento is expected to add even more staff in the coming weeks.

Draft Decisions: Noi, Mack, German, Carvacho, Bolden

TCU forward Kouat Noi will remain in the draft, Jeff Goodman of WatchStadium.com tweets. The 6’7” Noi averaged 13.9 PPG and 4.9 RPG during his sophomore season. He has workouts upcoming with the Bucks, Kings and Clippers, Goodman adds. Teammate Desmond Bane will return to school, Goodman adds (Twitter link).

We have more draft news.

  • Alabama swingman Tevin Mack has decided to withdraw from the draft, Goodman reports in another tweet. Mack averaged 9.0 PPG in his junior season.
  • Northern Illinois guard Eugene German will return to school, Goodman adds in another tweet. The point guard averaged 20.4 PPG and 2.9 APG in his junior year.
  • Indiana University guards Devonte Green and Aljami Durham and forward Justin Smith are all expected to return to school, according to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
  • Colorado State’s Nico Carvacho will return to school, Rothstein reports in another tweet. The 6’11” center averaged 16.1 PPG and 12.9 RPG as a junior last season.
  • Duke center Marques Bolden will remain in the draft, Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets. He averaged 5.3 PPG and 4.5 RPG as a junior.

Kings Express Interest In Thunder Assistant Bob Beyer

  • The Kings have expressed interest in Thunder assistant coach Bob Beyer, Marc Stein of the New York Times tweets. Beyer has been an NBA assistant since 2007, making stops with Orlando, Golden State, Charlotte and Detroit before joining Oklahoma City last year. He also served as an assistant with the Raptors during the 2003/04 season.