Danny Green has a $10MM player option on his contract and could hit free agency this summer, potentially leaving the Spurs. Given that he recently received a platelet-rich plasma injection for an ailing left groin, it’s possible Green returns to San Antonio, but he’s weighing all options, Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News writes.
The Warriors have already been set as the favorites to win the 2018/19 title, relays Ben Fawkes of ESPN, but there’s a huge variable that hangs over the equation. The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook gives Golden State 5-4 odds to capture the championship, followed at 7-2 by the Rockets and Sixers, two teams believed to be in the running to sign LeBron James.
“When you have LeBron in free agency, you have to be careful,” oddsmaker John Murray said. “You’ve got Philadelphia, Miami, the Lakers and even Houston as potential destinations [outside of Cleveland]. We cut all of those teams’ odds down, and we’ll raise back up the teams he doesn’t sign with.”
Murray adds that the Rockets would take over as favorites if they are able to add James and keep Chris Paul and Clint Capela. The Celtics, who come in at 8-1, will be favored to win the East if James leaves Cleveland and goes anywhere but Philadelphia. The Lakers and Heat are tied for fifth place at 20-1, followed by the Spurs at 25-1 and the Cavaliers at 30-1.
There’s more basketball-related news to pass along:
- Former lottery pick Jimmer Fredette hopes to use The Basketball Tournament this summer to get another shot at the NBA, writes Myron Medcalf of ESPN. The 10th selection in the 2011 draft, Fredette played for four teams in five years before heading overseas. “I would always love to get another chance in the NBA,” Fredette said. “I’ve gotten better in China and improved every year. … You hope somebody takes notice.” He has another year remaining on his Chinese Basketball Association contract.
- J.R. Hensley, a prominent NBA agent, has been placed on 18 months’ probation, tweets Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal. The action came because Hensley refused to fully cooperate in an investigation of potential violations, according to a press release from the NBPA.
- The USA Men’s Under 18 National Team made its first round of cuts this morning, trimming the squad from 33 players to 18. Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog has the complete list of players who advanced.
Spurs executive Monty Williams is talking to Sixers head coach Brett Brown about a possible lead assistant role, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Currently the vice president of basketball operations in San Antonio, Williams spent five seasons as a head coach in New Orleans, compiling a 173-221 record and reaching the playoffs twice. He has been looking for an opportunity to return to coaching, Wojnarowski adds.
Williams served as associate head coach in Oklahoma City during the 2015/16 season before landing the job with the Spurs. He also spent five years as an assistant with the Trail Blazers.
Heat assistant coach Juwan Howard will interview with the Pistons about their head coaching vacancy, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Howard is expected to receive an interview in the next few days, Wojnarowski adds. He is the second prominent name to emerge as a candidate for the job today, following TNT broadcaster Kenny Smith. Former Raptors coach Dwane Casey and Spurs assistant Ime Udoka will also receive interviews, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports.
Howard has been part of Erik Spoelstra’s staff in Miami for the past five seasons. He and Smith were among 11 candidates to interview for the Knicks’ head coaching position before they hired David Fizdale.
Howard, 45, played 19 NBA seasons before retiring in 2013. Casey coached Toronto for the past seven seasons before being fired after a second-round playoff ouster, and Udoka has been on Gregg Popovich’s staff for six years.
- The Spurs will workout Duke freshman guard Gary Trent Jr., reports Darren Wolfson of KSTP-TV. Trent, whose father, Gary Trent Sr., played nine seasons in the NBA, will also work out for the Trail Blazers, Nets, Nuggets, and Bucks.
- Georgia Tech prospect Josh Okogie suffered a grade 1 right adductor strain during a workout with the Grizzlies last Wednesday, his agent tells ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link). The injury, which was diagnosed by the Spurs on Thursday, brought Okogie’s workout schedule to a temporary halt — he’ll be re-evaluated tomorrow.
The Raptors officially interviewed Spurs assistant coaches Ettore Messina and Ime Udoka for the team’s vacant head coaching position, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. Messia interviewed on Thursday while Udoka met with the Raptors on Friday, Wojnarowski notes.
With several teams seeking to fill head coaching vacancies, Messina and Udoka have been popular names this summer.
Messina interviewed with the Bucks and Hornets before those teams hired Mike Budenholzer and James Borrego, respectively. Messina received a second interview with Milwaukee before the team decided on Budenholzer. Long considered one of the top international coaches in basketball, the 58-year-old has served as an assistant under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio the past four seasons. Messina stepped up to coach the Spurs for Game 3-5 during the first round of the playoffs after Popovich’s wife, Erin, passed away.
As for Udoka, he has interviewed with the Magic and Hornets about their openings. Udoka has been an assistant to Popovich the past six years after he finished his playing career with the Spurs in 2010/11. Udoka played seven NBA seasons, spending time with the Trail Blazers, Kings, Knicks and Lakers.
The Raptors fired Dwane Casey after another early postseason exit, despite finishing with the best record in the Eastern Conference. Casey, who was named Coach of the Year by his fellow coaches after his dismissal, is also one of three finalists for the official award. Budenholzer was reportedly a top target for the Raptors before he accepted the Bucks job.
Toronto recently interviewed Jerry Stackhouse –– a former assistant to Casey — who coached the organization’s G League squad this season. Stackhouse was one of three internal candidates considered by the Raptors as Nick Nurse and Rex Kalamian have also interviewed for the job.
Stay up to date with all the latest developments on the coaching front with our Coaching Search Tracker.
Kawhi Leonard‘s future with the Spurs remains a mystery as the organization ponders whether or not to keep its superstar player in San Antonio beyond next season. Leonard is set to hit free agency after 2018/19 and if he reaches the open market, he will have no shortage of suitors.
However, at least one teammate believes that the two-time Defensive Player of the Year wants to stay in San Antonio. Spurs guard Danny Green recently made an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up!, where he addressed his mercurial teammate (via San Antonio Express-News).
“It’s up in the air right now,” Green said of Leonard’s status with the Spurs. “But I think he wants to be in San Antonio. He’s let me know that, he let me know verbally he wanted to be there, so we’ll see what happens.”
Leonard, soon to be 27 years old, appeared in just nine regular season games with the Spurs as he battled a troublesome right quadriceps injury. There were various points where it seemed Leonard was on the verge of an on-court return late in the season, but it never happened. Instead, Leonard rehabbed his injury in New York — with little to no contact with the Spurs — while under the care of his own doctors.
As the Spurs were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Warriors, Leonard was not even on the bench as a spectator.
Most recently, we relayed a report that the Spurs do not intend on trading Leonard and hope to mend the relationship. A healthy Leonard is a difference maker; he finished third in NBA Most Valuable Player award voting last season while averaging 25.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 4.7 APG in 74 games.
The NBA’s playoff pool money has increased to $20MM this season, up from $15MM for the last two years and $14MM for the two years before that, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. This pool represents money awarded to teams for certain achievements, which is then divvied up among the club’s players.
According to Zillgitt, the breakdown for 2018’s playoff pool money is as follows:
Regular season achievements:
- Best record in NBA (Rockets): $576,843
- No. 1 seeds in each conference (Rockets, Raptors): $504,737 each
- No. 2 seeds (Warriors, Celtics): $405,684 each
- No. 3 seeds (Trail Blazers, Sixers): $302,843 each
- No. 4 seeds (Thunder, Cavaliers): $238,001 each
- No. 5 seeds (Jazz, Pacers): $198,317 each
- No. 6 seeds (Pelicans, Heat): $135,263 each
Postseason achievements:
- Teams participating in first round (all playoff teams): $298,485 each
- Teams participating in Conference Semifinals (Rockets, Warriors, Jazz, Pelicans, Celtics, Cavaliers, Sixers, Raptors): $355,159 each
- Teams participating in Conference Finals (Rockets, Warriors, Celtics, Cavaliers): $586,898 each
- Losing team in NBA Finals (TBD): $2,346,947
- Winning team in NBA Finals (TBD): $3,541,896
The Grizzlies’ draft preparations won’t be interrupted by the departure of executive VP of basketball operations Ed Stefanski, according to Michael Wallace of the team’s website. Stefanski accepted a front-office position with the Pistons on Thursday.
“Our draft process moves forward at this time,” Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace told Michael Wallace. “In due time, we’ll get to if we’re going to do something else in our front office. But our draft (process) rolls on. And we know who (Stefanski) likes already.”
The Grizzlies didn’t get lucky in the lottery but still have the No. 4 overall pick, as well as the No. 32 pick in the second round.
In other news around the Southwest Division:
- Swingman Alessandro Gentile will play for the Rockets in the Vegas Summer League, he indicated in an interview with Il Corriere dello Sport that was relayed by Sportando. Gentile, who has been playing in the Italian League, will be a free agent this summer. The Rockets acquired his draft rights in 2014 after he was selected in the second round.
- Signing Mavericks free agent Nerlens Noel might be a worthwhile gamble for the Hawks, Frank Urbina of Hoops Hype opines. Noel’s skill set could complement Atlanta’s promising power forward, John Collins, because of his defensive versatility. The Spurs, Wizards and Warriors are some other potential landing spots for Noel, who signed his qualifying offer after a disappointing foray into restricted free agency last summer.
- It’s unlikely the Mavericks will trade the No. 5 overall pick, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. They would have to get some prime assets to trade down below the No. 7 or No. 8 slot, Sefko continues. If Dallas wants to move up, it would likely have to give up a future first-rounder as well as the No. 5 pick and possibly one of its top young players, Sefko adds.