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Pacific Notes: Barnes, LeBron, Morris, Griffin

February 13th, 2019 at 7:29pm CST by Arthur Hill

Now that the Kings have Harrison Barnes, the next step is to figure out the best role for him, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Acquired from the Mavericks last week, Barnes has played extensively at both forward spots and his usage in Sacramento may depend on the opponent, according to coach Dave Joerger.

“I’m still learning what to do,” Joerger said. “How much I do I want to play Harrison at (small forward)? How much at (power forward)? And what do the matchups look like? And I need to get it done sooner than later because we’re not going to find a rhythm if I don’t figure it out quickly.”

Barnes has played both positions extensively throughout his career, with 48% of his minutes as a three and 50% as a four. The Warriors used him mainly as a small forward when he broke into the league, but shifted him to power forward later in his tenure there. He was mainly a power forward in Dallas.

“It’s a good problem to have,” added Joerger, who said he has wanted Barnes on his team for years. “You want to be as versatile as we can be at times. It’s going to be a little bit on the run, as we know, and it’s tough on me, but guys are playing as hard as they can and that’s all you can ask as a coach. And it’s on me to figure some of that stuff out.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

LeBron James hasn’t lived up to the excitement that surrounded his decision to join the Lakers, contends Bill Plaschke of The Los Angeles Times. L.A. will enter the All-Star break with a 28-29 record, placing them 10th in the Western Conference. Plaschke notes that although James has been brilliant on the court, he missed 17 games with a groin injury and affected team chemistry by maneuvering to get head coach Luke Walton replaced and pushing for an Anthony Davis deal that caused all of his young teammates to be subjected to weeks of trade rumors.
The Lakers missed out on Enes Kanter in the buyout market, but they remain in the running for Markieff Morris, tweets ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, who names the Rockets, Thunder and Raptors as the other top contenders. L.A. is also considering Carmelo Anthony, Shelburne adds, but is concerned because he hasn’t been active since November.
Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman examines whether the Clippers made the right move by trading away Blake Griffin last season.

Raptors Sign Jeremy Lin

February 13th, 2019 at 4:47pm CST by Arthur Hill

Two days after agreeing to a buyout with the Hawks, Jeremy Lin has officially signed with the Raptors, the team announced on Twitter. Toronto has been the expected destination for the 30-year-old guard once he cleared waivers.

Lin will make approximately $697K for the rest of the season, which matches the amount he gave back to the Hawks in his buyout, and will carry a $487K cap hit, posts Bobby Marks on ESPN Now. The Raptors’ moves this month have saved them $13.5MM in luxury taxes and they have trimmed their projected tax bill to $21.2MM.

Lin played in 51 games for Atlanta, nearly all as a reserve, and posted a 10.7/2.3/3.5 line in 19.7 minutes per night. He also proved that he can stay healthy after missing significant time with injuries in each of the past two seasons.

Although he is far removed from his “Lin-sanity” days in New York, Lin still has the ability to help a contender. He arrives at a good time for the Raptors, who will be without reserve guard Fred VanVleet for around five weeks after he undergoes thumb surgery.

Toronto coach Nick Nurse had planned to use Lin as a combo guard, but he will inherit the role of backup point guard until VanVleet returns, tweets Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun. Lin will make his Raptors debut tonight.

“He’s a good player,” Nurse said of Lin. “We want to get good players on the floor.”

Fred VanVleet Undergoes Thumb Surgery, Out Five Weeks

February 13th, 2019 at 2:32pm CST by Luke Adams

FEBRUARY 13, 2:32pm: VanVleet will undergo surgery to repair the ligament damage in his left thumb, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical, who reports (via Twitter) that the Raptors’ point guard is expected to miss about five weeks.

FEBRUARY 11, 3:19pm: Raptors point guard Fred VanVleet is expected to be sidelined at least into March, the team announced today in a press release. According to the Raptors, VanVleet suffered a partial ligament injury in his left thumb and will wear a splint for approximately three weeks before being re-evaluated.

It’s unfortunate timing for the Raptors, who waived fourth-string point guard Lorenzo Brown about a month ago and traded away third-string point guard Delon Wright last week. Toronto now appears awfully short-handed at a position that was once its deepest, with players like Patrick McCaw, Norman Powell, and two-way guard Jordan Loyd perhaps in line for increased ball-handling duties behind starter Kyle Lowry.

Help should be on the way, however, as a report earlier today indicated that Jeremy Lin is expected to finalize a buyout with the Hawks and sign with the Raptors. Still, Lin’s release isn’t yet official, and he’ll have to spend 48 hours on waivers, so it’s not clear if he’ll be able to join the Raps before the All-Star break.

[UPDATE: Lin was bought out on Monday and is expected to clear waivers on Wednesday.]

The All-Star break, at least, should help limit the number of games VanVleet is projected to miss. If he’s able to return in three weeks, he’d only be out for the next seven Raptors games. There’s no guarantee he’ll be ready to go at that point though.

A finalist for last season’s Sixth Man of the Year award, VanVleet has seen his shooting percentages dip this season, but remains a key part of Toronto’s rotation, with 10.5 PPG and 4.6 APG on .403/.366/.833 shooting in 51 games (22 starts).

Raptors Were On Porzingis' Wish List

February 12th, 2019 at 3:55pm CST by Luke Adams

Marc Stein of The New York Times reported last week that after meeting with Knicks‘ management, Kristaps Porzingis‘ camp gave the team a four-team list of preferred destinations in the event of a trade, with the Nets and Clippers among those would-be landing spots. In his latest newsletter for The New York Times, Stein fills in the other half of that wish list, reporting that the Heat and Raptors were also on it.

Chris Bosh Prepared To Retire

February 12th, 2019 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran big man Chris Bosh hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2015/16 season due to health issues related to blood clots, but has talked frequently since then about pursuing a comeback. In a podcast conversation with Bill Simmons of The Ringer, however, Bosh sounded prepared to give up his hopes of playing in the NBA again, suggesting he’ll officially call it a career (hat tip to Bryan Kalbrosky of HoopsHype).

Discussing his jersey retirement ceremony in Miami on March 26, Bosh acknowledged that he’ll likely get emotional at that event since he knows “that part of my life is over.”

“That has been a tough thing to deal with, but I’m good,” Bosh said, adding that he was “still trying pretty adamantly” to get back into the NBA last year, particularly as he saw the success that stretch fives were having around the league. However, he’s no longer continuing those efforts.

“That time has passed,” Bosh said. “I’ve made the decision not to pursue it anymore.”

According to Bosh, he plans to officially retire during that ceremony in Miami next month, two days after he turns 35. He joked to Simmons that he might be the first player to retire as a player on the same night that his most recent team raises his jersey to the rafters.

In 13 total seasons with the Raptors and Heat, Bosh averaged 19.2 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 2.0 APG in 893 regular season contests, appearing in another 89 postseason games and earning a pair of titles with Miami. He also earned 11 All-Star nods and appeared on an All-NBA team in 2007.

While it’s not clear yet what the next phase of Bosh’s career will look like, he indicated that his health problems are under control and expressed some interest in a broadcasting job or an NBA front office role.

Markieff Morris Draws Interest From Several Teams

February 11th, 2019 at 10:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Free agent forward Markieff Morris has drawn interest from the Rockets, Lakers and Raptors, agent Rich Paul told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports.

Morris was dealt from the Wizards to the Pelicans last week and subsequently waived. He has not played since December 26 due to a neck injury, but was cleared to resume full basketball activities on Monday by spinal specialist Dr. Robert Watkins of Los Angeles, Haynes continues. He’s expected to decide which team to join this week, Haynes adds.

Morris, 29, has appeared in 34 games this season, including 15 starts, averaging 11.5 PPG and 5.1 RPG.

All of Morris’ reported suitors have open roster spots via deals made prior to last week’s deadline. They’re also playoff contenders seeking a rotation piece for the stretch drive and postseason.

The Lakers’ interest was previously reported, though they’ve also been linked to Carmelo Anthony.

Celtics forward Marcus Morris posted a tweet on Monday expressing his desire to become teammates with his brother again, as they had been in Phoenix. However, the Celtics have not shown any interest in making that happen, according to an NBC Sports Boston report.

Jeremy Lin Finalizes Buyout With Hawks, Plans To Sign With Raptors

February 11th, 2019 at 4:19pm CST by Luke Adams

4:19pm: The Hawks have officially waived Lin, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets.

12:41pm: Veteran point guard Jeremy Lin is in the process of finalizing a buyout with the Hawks, agents Jim Tanner and Roger Montgomery tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. According to Wojnarowski, Lin intends to sign with the Raptors once he reaches free agency.

Lin, 30, has played well off the bench for the Hawks this season after missing most of the last two years in Brooklyn with injuries. In 51 games (19.7 MPG) for Atlanta, he has averaged 10.7 PPG, 3.5 APG, and 2.3 RPG with a shooting line of .466/.333/.845.

Although Lin was mentioned in a number of trade rumors leading up to last Thursday’s deadline, the Hawks ultimately didn’t find a taker, with his $13.77MM cap hit likely acting as an obstacle in negotiations. Once Lin remained on Atlanta’s roster through the deadline, reports indicated that the team was unlikely to buy him out, but it seems that stance changed within the last few days.

By agreeing to a buyout with the Hawks, Lin will give back a little of his remaining salary with the Hawks, which he should make up when he signs with the Raptors. However, he’ll also forfeit the chance to earn possible incentives that were written into his previous contract, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks observes.

When Lin was traded from Brooklyn to Atlanta last summer, a 10% trade kicker in his deal ensured that he received a $1.25MM bonus for this season, so perhaps that extra money helped convince him that it was worth surrendering some money in a buyout and giving up his opportunity to earn those incentives.

The Raptors gave up five players in three deadline-week trades and only received one (Marc Gasol) in return, so adding Lin will help the club replenish some of its lost backcourt depth. While it’s not clear exactly what sort of role Lin will assume in Toronto, the Raps found playing time for three point guards before trading Delon Wright to Memphis, and both Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet have battled health issues throughout the season. There should be plenty of minutes available for Lin.

After dipping to 10 players following their deadline deals, the Raptors have since signed Malcolm Miller and Chris Boucher, and are now poised to add Lin and Ben McLemore (10-day contract) to get back to the league-mandated minimum of 14 players.

As for the Hawks, they’ll drop to 12 players once they officially part ways with Lin, so they’ll need to add at least two players to their roster soon.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Gasol Waived Trade Kicker; Frontcourt Rotation Still In Flux

February 11th, 2019 at 2:56pm CST by Luke Adams

Marc Gasol waived the 15% trade kicker on his contract to help finalize the trade sending him to Toronto last week, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks on The Lowe Post podcast. While the trade bonus would only have been worth about $1.29MM, Gasol’s decision could save the Raptors about $3.2MM in projected tax penalties, as Blake Murphy of The Athletic notes (via Twitter).
Speaking of Gasol, the Raptors are still experimenting with a fluid frontcourt rotation as they figure out how to best use Gasol, Serge Ibaka, and Pascal Siakam, head coach Nick Nurse said today (Twitter link via Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca).

Raptors No Longer Signing Ben McLemore?

February 11th, 2019 at 1:55pm CST by ChrisCrouse

FEBRUARY 11: It sounds as if the deal between McLemore and the Raptors has fallen through due to CBA complications, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca.

League rules prohibited Toronto from signing McLemore – or anyone else – to a 10-day deal until the team had at least 12 full-season contracts on its books. The Raps signed Chris Boucher and Miller on Sunday to reach that threshold, and could complete McLemore’s 10-day agreement now.

However, because 10-day contracts must span at least three games, signing McLemore to one this week would mean committing to him for at least 12 days due to the upcoming break in the schedule. The in-the-tax Raptors are under no obligation to get up to 14 players until after the All-Star break, so holding off on the McLemore signing would save them some money.

If the Raptors don’t sign McLemore before the All-Star break, it’s possible the two sides could circle back to a deal later, but it appears it’s no longer a lock.

FEBRUARY 9: The Raptors will sign Ben McLemore to a 10-day deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Kings waived McLemore earlier this week.

The former No. 7 overall pick has failed to live up to expectations throughout his NBA career. His highest player efficiency rating came this past season at 10.6 during his 19 games with Sacramento. He did show some improvement on his 3-point shooting this season, hitting 41.5% of his 41 attempts, though admittedly it’s a rather small sample size.

Toronto needs players. The franchise came out of the trade deadline with just 10 rostered players before agreeing to sign Malcolm Miller on Friday. Teams technically are not allowed to drop below 11 players, though as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors writes, the Raptors likely received a short window from the league to rectify the situation.

Raptors Sign Malcolm Miller To Multi-Year Contract

February 10th, 2019 at 7:14pm CST by Eric Spyropoulos

As the Raptors continue to shape up their roster after the trade deadline, Blake Murphy of The Athletic is reporting (via Twitter) that the team is signing Malcolm Miller to a multi-year contract. Miller was originally expected to ink a 10-day contract, but CBA rules required Toronto to sign standard contracts to get to 12 players.

Murphy reports that the deal is expected to be for two seasons, with the 2019/20 season being non-guaranteed. The team has confirmed the signing in a press release.

Miller, 25, spent the 2017/18 season on a two-way contract with the Raptors, appearing in 15 games for the NBA squad and averaging 12.6 PPG and 5.1 RPG in 34 contests for the Raptors 905, Toronto’s G League affiliate. He was a candidate to stick with the team for 2018/19, but suffered a dislocated shoulder during Summer League play.

Since then, Miller has remained in the organization, rehabbing his injury with the G League squad and recently making his return to the court. In six games with the Raptors 905, Miller averaged only a modest 8.2 PPG and 2.5 RPG, but Toronto apparently saw enough to give him a promotion.

The Raptors still have multiple roster spots to fill as the regular season reaches the stretch run.