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Draft Notes: Porter, Bamba, Sexton, Allen

May 17th, 2018 at 8:43pm CST by marksuleymanov

Missouri standout Michael Porter Jr. spoke to reporters at the draft combine in Chicago today and confirmed he has met with the Knicks, Mavericks, Sixers, Suns, Cavaliers, Hawks, Grizzlies, Rockets and Clippers, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. He will have another set of interviews tomorrow as he is scheduled to meet with the Kings, Hornets, Thunder and Celtics.

Porter, 19, missed most of his freshman campaign after he suffered a serious back injury just two minutes into the season. Porter underwent surgery –a microdiscectomy of the L3-L4 spinal discs — which sidelined him until the SEC tournament later in the season. In total, Porter appeared in three games with the Tigers, averaging 10.0 PPG and 6.7 RPG. However, Porter spoke confidently about his abilities and how he compares to other talents in this year’s draft pool.

“I know without a doubt that I’m the — I played against all these guys, they’re all great players — but I’m the best player in this draft,” Porter said. “And I just can’t wait to show what I’m capable of.”

Check out more notes related to the draft below:

We relayed earlier that Texas big man Mohamed Bamba measured in with a staggering 7’10” wingspan at the combine. Bamba would have the longest wingspan of any player coming into the NBA since 2000. Speaking to reporters, including Madeline Kenney of the Chicago-Sun Times, Bamba addressed his strongest attribute.“I’d say my biggest strength right now, just one word to summarize it all, is just my presence,” Bamba said. “Both offensively and defensively, the presence that I have is pretty profound. I don’t think any other prospect has this presence. I do more but require less. That’s both on the court and off the court. I feel I’m the most efficient guy in this draft class.” Bamba confirmed he has met with 13 teams, tweets ESPN’s Nick Friedell.
Alabama point guard Collin Sexton is at the draft combine and has already met with five teams, Alabama head coach Avery Johnson said to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. Sexton has yet to interview with the Mavericks but that could happen by Friday. Sexton did meet with the Knicks, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
The Timberwolves are set to interview Duke shooting guard Grayson Allen, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN.

Kings To Consider Doncic, Other Bigs

May 17th, 2018 at 6:10pm CST by marksuleymanov

If the Suns do select Ayton as many expect, the Kings will consider options beyond Slovenian guard Luka Doncic. Jonathan Givony appeared on The Woj Pod and said that the Kings, who own the second overall pick, will consider bigs in addition to Doncic (via RealGM). “They have a real hole there in the frontcourt. I don’t think that they’re in love with Willie Cauley-Stein by any means. They started Zach Randolph at the four all year long,” Givony said. “What do they do there? Do they go with Marvin Bagley who is going to be a compelling prospect for them? Or do they go with Luka Doncic? His father is of Serbian descent. Their GM is Serbian. Their assistant GM is Serbian.”
Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee also weighed in on the Kings’ big decision with the second overall pick. While Doncic is the popular name, Jones suggests the Kings aren’t sold on him.

2018 NBA Draft Picks By Team

May 17th, 2018 at 10:49am CST by Luke Adams

While the Sixers were knocked out of the 2018 playoffs in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the underdog Celtics, few teams are better positioned in this year’s draft than Philadelphia. The 76ers own six of the 60 picks in the 2018 NBA draft, including a pair of first-rounders.

As our full 2018 draft order shows, the Sixers are one of seven NBA teams that holds more than two selections in this year’s draft. On the other end of the spectrum, eight teams have just one pick in 2018, while two teams – the Heat and Raptors – don’t have any selections.

To present a clearer picture of which teams are most – and least – stocked with picks for the 2018 NBA draft, we’ve rounded up all 60 picks by team in the space below. Let’s dive in…

Teams with more than two picks:

Philadelphia 76ers (5): 10, 26, 38, 56, 60
Phoenix Suns (4): 1, 16, 31, 59
Atlanta Hawks (4): 3, 19, 30, 34
Dallas Mavericks (3): 5, 33, 54
Orlando Magic (3): 6, 35, 41
Charlotte Hornets (3): 11, 45, 55
Denver Nuggets (3): 14, 43, 58
Los Angeles Lakers (3): 25, 39, 47

Teams with two picks:

Sacramento Kings: 2, 37
Memphis Grizzlies: 4, 32
Chicago Bulls: 7, 22
New York Knicks: 9, 36
Los Angeles Clippers: 12, 13
Washington Wizards: 15, 44
San Antonio Spurs: 18, 49
Minnesota Timberwolves: 20, 48
Utah Jazz: 21, 52
Indiana Pacers: 23, 50
Brooklyn Nets : 29, 40
Oklahoma City Thunder: 53, 57

Teams with fewer than two picks:

Cleveland Cavaliers (1): 8
Milwaukee Bucks (1): 17
Portland Trail Blazers (1): 24
Boston Celtics (1): 27
Golden State Warriors (1): 28
Detroit Pistons (1): 42
Houston Rockets (1): 46
New Orleans Pelicans (1): 51
Miami Heat (0)
Toronto Raptors (0)

Phoenix Suns Win No. 1 Pick In Draft Lottery

May 15th, 2018 at 7:26pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Having entered draft lottery night with the best odds of landing the No. 1 pick, the Suns won the first overall pick, making good on those 25.0% odds. The Kings grabbed the No. 2 overall selection, with the Hawks coming in at No. 3.

The Suns are looking for a franchise player they can pair with Devin Booker, and the top two contenders for the No. 1 pick appear to be Arizona’s Deandre Ayton and Real Madrid’s Luka Doncic.

Ayton is the favorite to go No. 1, but the center isn’t a lock to be the top pick, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link). The Suns have been scouting Doncic all season and they like what they see.

New Phoenix head coach Igor Kokoskov previously coached Doncic on the Slovenian national team and he knows the 19-year-old wing very well.

“We call him wunderkind,” Kokoskov said (via Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic). “He’s an upcoming, rising star. Luka is a very talented player. His ability to pass, that’s the hardest part of the game, the most difficult part to teach. To be a good passer you have to understand the game. It’s basketball IQ. He’s really unique and special at that age to understand the game well and to be a team player. He’s not necessarily playing point guard but he’s a playmaker who makes everybody else better on the court.”

Ayton is a “lock” to go to the Kings if he’s there at No. 2, per Givony (Twitter link). The scribe adds that GM Vlade Divac “won’t have any issue” recommending Doncic as the pick if the Suns pick Ayton.

The Hawks moved up one spot in the lottery and they are thrilled to be in the top three. “If somebody wants to make us a great (trade) offer, we will listen. Right now we are happy to pick (third) and we know we are going to get a good player,” GM Travis Schlenk said tonight, as Michael Cunningham of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays (on Twitter).

Atlanta figures to get one of the Doncic, Ayton, and Marvin Bagley trio and Givony tweets that the team will gladly settle for whichever player is left out of that group. Givony adds that the Hawks would have had strong interest in Trae Young had they landed outside the top three.

[RELATED: Full 2018 NBA Draft Order]

In addition to the No. 1 selection, the Suns also own the No. 16 overall pick (via the Goran Dragic deal), plus the Nos. 31 and 59 selections in the second round. The Kings’ only other pick is their own second-rounder (No. 37).

The Hawks have a pair of extra first-rounders — one from the Wolves (No. 19 via the Adreian Payne trade) and one originally from the Rockets (No. 30, via a three-way trade with the Clippers). They also own their second-round pick (No. 34).

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Community Shootaround: Draft Lottery Scenarios

May 15th, 2018 at 12:46pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2018 NBA draft lottery will take place on Tuesday night, as we noted in our lottery primer earlier today. While the odds favor the Suns, there are 14 NBA teams that could ultimately end up with the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, creating some fascinating drama.

In a piece for The Ringer on Monday, Paolo Uggetti broke down some of the most interesting potential scenarios for the draft lottery. As Uggetti observes, the two teams still alive in the Eastern Conference Finals have a chance to get some great news before they take the court on Tuesday, since the Cavaliers own the Nets’ first-round pick, while the Celtics will own the Lakers’ first-rounder if it lands at No. 2 or No. 3 overall. The possibility of one or both of those teams landing a top-three pick at the same time they’re looking to advance to the NBA Finals isn’t good news for the rest of the league.

Of course, the Sixers would keep that Lakers pick if it moves all the way up to No. 1. It’s currently 10th in the lottery standings, so the odds of it becoming a top-three pick are slim, but it would create some terrific drama if it lands in the top three, since the balance of power in the Eastern Conference could shift significantly depending on whether the pick ends up at No. 1 (Sixers) or Nos. 2 or 3 (Celtics).

Uggetti’s other intriguing scenarios include big-market teams like the Knicks and Clippers getting a top pick — L.A. could theoretically move into the top three while keeping a second lottery selection, courtesy of the Pistons. Uggetti points to the Magic or Kings getting the No. 1 pick as interesting scenarios too, since neither of those clubs has had much lottery luck in the last few years — despite several appearances near the top of the draft.

Outside of the teams we’ve already mentioned, the Grizzlies, Mavericks, Hawks, Bulls, Hornets, Pistons, and Nuggets all have a chance to land a top pick.

What do you think? What would be the most interesting draft lottery scenario? Which team deserves some good luck the most (or least)? Jump into the comment section below to share your thoughts!

Draft Notes: Ayton, Pinson, Spalding, Amius, Eubanks

May 14th, 2018 at 10:47pm CST by Dana Gauruder

DeAndre Ayton is the top pick in ESPN Jonathan Givony’s latest mock draft heading into the draft lottery on Tuesday. Givony has the Arizona center going to the Suns, Euro guard Luka Doncic being snapped up by the Grizzlies at No. 2 and Duke big man Marvin Bagley III heading to the Mavericks at No. 3. Naturally, the deck could be shuffled after Tuesday’s results. Michigan State big man Jaren Jackson Jr. (Hawks) and Texas center Mohamed Bamba (Magic) round out the Top 5.

In other draft-related developments:

North Carolina combo guard Theo Pinson will participate in the draft combine in Chicago, Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports tweets. Pinson is ranked the No. 89 prospect on Givony’s latest Top 100. Louisville’s power forward Ray Spalding has also been invited, Charania reports in a separate tweet. Spalding is currently ranked No. 58 by Givony.
Western Carolina junior forward Mike Amius has hired an agent and will remain in the draft, Jeff Goodman of ESPN tweets. He averaged 12.7 PPG and 5.6 RPG last season. He is not among Givony’s Top 100 prospects.
Oregon State forward Drew Eubanks has signed with agent James Dunleavy and ISE Worldwide, Liz Mullen of the Sports Business Journal tweets. The junior averaged 13.2 PPG and 6.8 RPG for the Beavers last season.
The Suns will send Josh Jackson and the Kings will be represented by De’Aaron Fox at the draft lottery on Tuesday, Tyler Conway of Bleacher Report relays. The Nuggets’ Jamal Murray and the Pistons’ Luke Kennard are the other current players who will represent their teams in Chicago. The full list of representatives can be found in Conway’s story.

Kings Announce Sacramento Summer League Schedule

May 14th, 2018 at 1:18pm CST by Luke Adams

The Kings have made official what was reported last week, announcing today in a press release that they’ll host a three-day Summer League this July called the California Classic Summer League.

The Sacramento Summer League will effectively take the place of the Orlando Summer League, which was cancelled this year. Like the Utah Summer League, the California Classic will serve as a precursor to the league’s main event, the Las Vegas Summer League. All 30 teams are set to play in Vegas this July.

The Sacramento event, which will take place at the club’s Golden 1 Center, will begin on July 2, with games also taking place on July 3 and July 5. No games will take place on Independence Day.

The Lakers, Warriors, and Heat will join the Kings in Sacramento for the inaugural California Classic, with each team playing every other club once. The Kings, who will play the late game all three days, will face the Lakers on July 2, the Warriors on July 3, and the Heat on July 5, with the remaining two teams playing in the earlier game on each of those days.

Kings’ Kosta Koufos Exercises Player Option

May 11th, 2018 at 8:44am CST by Luke Adams

MAY 11: Koufos has officially exercised his 2018/19 option, according to RealGM’s NBA transactions log.

MAY 10: Kosta Koufos won’t opt for free agency this summer, according to ESPN’s Chris Haynes, who reports that the Kings center will pick up his player option for 2018/19. That option will pay Koufos a salary of $8,739,500 next season before he reaches unrestricted free agency in 2019.

Koufos, 29, has been a mainstay in the Kings’ rotation for the last three seasons, having signed a four-year, $32MM+ deal with the franchise in the summer of 2015. In 2017/18, Koufos averaged 6.7 PPG and 6.6 RPG in 71 regular season contests (19.6 MPG).

Although Sacramento has added young bigs like Willie Cauley-Stein, Skal Labissiere, Georgios Papagiannis, and Harry Giles in recent drafts, the team has yet to alter Koufos’ role, as he continues to average approximately 20 minutes per game.

Papagiannis was waived by the Kings earlier this year, but with Cauley-Stein and Labissiere still under contract, and Giles set to make his debut in the fall, it will be interesting to see if Koufos once again gets regular minutes for the club going forward. He could have a little value as a trade chip, given his now-expiring salary for 2018/19.

Koufos joins Cory Joseph, Jeremy Lin, Wesley Johnson, and Wesley Matthews as veterans who have exercised – or will exercise – player options, matching 2017’s total of five exercised options. That number will likely keep growing this year, since teams aren’t expected to be as aggressive with their spending in free agency.

Koufos is one of three Kings players with a player option for 2018/19. Iman Shumpert is considered a lock to exercise his $11MM+ option, while Garrett Temple is probably a good bet to pick up his $8MM option as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Kings Promote Peja Stojakovic To Assistant GM

May 9th, 2018 at 12:12pm CST by Luke Adams

Former Kings All-Star Peja Stojakovic, a member of the team’s front office since 2015, has received a promotion, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Kings, Stojakovic will serve as an assistant general manager for Sacramento going forward.

Stojakovic, who had previously been the Kings’ vice president of basketball and team development, will assume more responsibilities related to player development and talent evaluation in his new position, per the team. He will also gain additional oversight over the organization’s G League affiliate, the newly-relocated Stockton Kings.

“I am thrilled to announce that Peja will serve in this expanded role,” general manager Vlade Divac said in a statement. “His experience as a player and basketball executive combined with his ability to develop players and assess talent is a valuable asset to the Kings.”

The Kings had already employed a pair of assistant GMs in Brandon Williams and Ken Catanella. According to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee, Williams’ and Catanella’s roles will remain unchanged following the promotion of Stojakovic.

NBA Planning Summer League In Sacramento

May 6th, 2018 at 3:03pm CST by marksuleymanov

The NBA is planning a Summer League exhibition to take place in Sacramento in addition to scheduled tournaments in Utah and Las Vegas, according to Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders. The event is tentatively scheduled to host the Kings, Warriors, Lakers, and Heat, Dowsett notes.

The Summer League allows NBA teams to showcase roster hopefuls, young players and draftees ahead of training camp. Last November, it was reported that the Magic would not host their annual Summer League and would instead participate in the Las Vegas event. Thus, the Sacramento Summer League replaces the canceled Orlando event.

Utah’s Summer League is scheduled to occur prior to the Vegas event, but only four teams – the Celtics, Spurs, Sixers, and Jazz – played in that league last year.

As we passed along in late January, for the first time ever, all 30 NBA teams will take part in the Las Vegas Summer League in July. Last summer, 24 teams took part in the Vegas exhibition with the Knicks, Pistons, Pacers, Hornets, Magic, and Thunder sitting out the event.

“Summer League has become such an integral part of the NBA calendar, especially in Las Vegas,” NBA executive VP of basketball operations Kiki Vandeweghe said last year. “It’s grown exponentially. You kind of think about where Summer League has come from, years ago. Now it’s become this event that all 30 teams have to be a part of. … It’s a place you must be. And really, it’s become the center of basketball in the month of July.

“Anybody who is a high draft choice, a free agent trying to make it in the league or a young player trying to get some extra practice, is there,” Vandeweghe continued. “It’s a very central location that has established itself as the premier summer event for basketball in general, not just the NBA but also international as well.”