- An injury to point guard George Hill has limited any impact the Jazz could hope to have on the Warriors, Randy Hollis of the Deseret News writes. The veteran has missed Games 2 and 3 thus far and head coach Quin Snyder said his effectiveness would be limited even if he tried to return.
Gonzaga big man Zach Collins is quickly rising up draft boards, tweets Jon Rothstein of Fanrag Sports. The 7’0″ freshman didn’t play a lot this season, but he has become a favorite of NBA scouts. Collins averaged 10.0 points and 5.9 rebounds in just 17.2 minutes per night for the national runners-up. He is ranked 12th in Jonathan Givony’s latest list of the top 100 prospects at DraftExpress and 11th by ESPN’s Chad Ford. Collins is the top-rated center on Ford’s list, while Givony has him one spot behind Jarrett Allen of Texas.
There’s more draft-related news today:
- Sophomore big man Chance Comanche of Arizona has announced via Twitter than he plans to remain in the draft. He averaged 6.3 points and 3.6 rebounds this season and is a long shot to be drafted.
- Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders examines players who have gone on to NBA success after not receiving invitations to the draft combine. This year’s edition will be held this week in Chicago.
- Kentucky guard Hamidou Diallo may be the best athlete at the combine, an NBA executive tells Rothstein (Twitter link). Diallo is projected to go early in the second round by both Givony and Ford.
- Three Michigan players are headed to the combine, writes James Hawkins of The Detroit News. Moritz Wagner and D.J. Wilson, who entered the draft without hiring agents, both received invitations, along with senior Derrick Walton. Another Wolverines senior, Zak Irvin, also has draft aspirations but wasn’t invited to the combine.
- Wagner will be among six players working out for the Jazz on Sunday, according to a tweet from the team. Joining him will be LSU’s Antonio Blakeney, UCLA’s Aaron Holiday, Florida State’s Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Georgetown’s L.J. Peak and BYU’s Eric Mika.
Now 16 years into an admirable NBA career, Joe Johnson is happy to still be contributing significantly to a winning team. Marc Spears of ESPN recently wrote about the veteran’s career and the role he currently serves with the Jazz.
In a transcribed interview with Johnson, Spears asks the swingman about his life as a veteran in the locker room and how he came to sign with the Jazz last summer.
George Hill will miss tonight’s game with Golden State because of soreness in his left big toe, the Jazz announced via Twitter.
“It’s something he’s been fighting all year,” Utah coach Quin Snyder told reporters (Twitter link). “It’s been sore. He’s been playing through it.”
Snyder said he hasn’t decided if Raul Neto, Shelvin Mack or Dante Exum will start in place of Hill. He added that Hill’s absence will be a huge loss to the team’s offense.
The ninth-year point guard is in his first season with the Jazz after being acquired from the Pacers in an offseason trade. He is averaging 15.6 points through Utah’s first eight playoff games.
Several under-the-radar players who will be free agents this summer are improving their bargaining position with their performance in the playoffs, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. He identifies six players, starting with Golden State big man JaVale McGee, who is averaging 8.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks through five games despite playing just 11.8 minutes per night. McGee signed a non-guaranteed deal with the Warriors for the veteran’s minimum and could be in line for a huge pay raise in July. The others that Kennedy singles out are Serge Ibaka of the Raptors, Joe Ingles of the Jazz, Nene of the Rockets, Andre Roberson of the Thunder and Deron Williams of the Cavaliers.
There’s more news from around the basketball world:
- The Texas Legends, the Mavericks‘ affiliate in the D-League, have given coach Bob MacKinnon a two-year extension, tweets D-League Digest. The D-League veteran is in his first season with the Legends.
- Invitations have been issued for the D-League’s Elite Mini Camp, which will be held May 8-9 in Chicago, relays Chris Reichert of FanSided. Many players have used this showcase to earn spots on summer league rosters, with alumni such as Jonathon Simmons, Hollis Thompson and DeAndre Liggins. Among the best-known names at this year’s camp will be Russ Smith, JaKarr Sampson, Ray McCallum and Cliff Alexander.
- Former No. 1 pick Anthony Bennett, who played 23 games for the Nets this season, has been replaced on his Fenerbahce team in Turkey, according to Bugra Uzar of Eurohoops. Taking his spot on the roster is Pero Antic, who played for the Hawks from 2013 to 2015. Bennett will remain with the club and is expected to be part of the upcoming EuroLeague Final Four.
- Greg Oden, another former No. 1 pick, is hoping to be part of The Basketball Tournament this summer on ESPN, relays Alysha Tsuji of USA Today. Oden’s team is called Scarlet and Gray and is made up of Ohio State alumni. “We think we’re a team that can win it,” he said. “We look at the talent we’ve had here in the last 10 years or so, and we can match up with anybody. We want the state of Ohio supporting us. We’re called Scarlet and Gray, but this team is a representation of the whole state.”
Tonight, the Jazz begin their second-round matchup with Golden State. While Utah prepares for a difficult challenge against the heavily favored Warriors, there are other team-centric happenings worthy of monitoring. Stay current below:
- The Jazz’s first-round ousting of the Clippers could have a positive effect on the team’s chance of retaining key free agents Gordon Hayward and George Hill beyond this offseason, reports Sam Amick of USA TODAY Sports. Earlier in his career, the 27-year-old cornerstone of the franchise, Hayward, had entertained notions of taking his talents elsewhere. Now that the Jazz have advanced to the second round for the first time since 2010, Amick believes Hayward is convinced that the Jazz can build a contender and wishes to stick around to help make that happen.
- Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey turned down other GM offers before accepting Utah’s, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports. Prior to accepting the Jazz’ top job, Lindsey had been the assistant general manager for the Spurs. During Lindsey’s conversation with The Vertical on Sunday, he said that he accepted Utah’s offer because the vision of the Jazz’s ownership group reminded him of that of the Spurs.
- According to J. Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic, George Washington University’s departing star Tyler Cavanaugh worked out for the Jazz over the weekend. As a senior, Cavanaugh led the Colonials with 18.3 PPG and 8.4 RPG, while shooting 40.9% from deep. The 6’9″ forward spent his first two college campaigns with Wake Forest before transferring to George Washington. Cavanaugh also had a pre-draft workout lined up with the Spurs, among other teams.
The Warriors will face the Jazz in the conference’s semifinals, though Golden State was rooting for the Clippers to beat Utah in the previous round, Chris Haynes of ESPN.com writes. Were the Warriors concerned about the opposition’s slow pace, Gordon Hayward‘s perimeter game, or Rudy Gobert‘s defensive presence? None of the above. They were worried about being bored.
“There’s no nightlife in Utah,” Matt Barnes said. “Obviously, as players, you want to be able to have a little bit of a nightlife, but the main focus is winning games. Me personally, I want to get out there because I want to beat the Clippers. That’s my former team, and my kids are out there. But as far as nightlife, there’s no comparison to nightlife in Utah and L.A.”
Barnes added that he’s not sure what he’ll do during his spare time in Utah. “I think there’s an Olive Garden out there and then a Benihana. So you’ll definitely be locked in [on the game] all the way,” He said.
The small forward hasn’t played yet in the postseason because of ankle and foot issues, though it appears he’s getting set to play in Game 1 against Utah, according to Golden State’s Twitter feed. Shaun Livingston, who has a hand injury, is considered questionable for the contest.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Chinanu Onuaku has been suspended two games for pushing an official during a D-League Finals appearance, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Onuaku was not available for the Rockets‘ tilt with the Spurs tonight and he’ll miss Game 2 as well.
- Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News believes the Lakers could be a threat to sign Nerlens Noel. GM Rob Pelinka recently said that the team is looking for a big man who fit’s in today’s NBA.
- The Clippers will face some tough decisions this offseason, Bill Oram of the Orange County Register writes. Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, and J.J. Redick will all be free agents, though it appears Los Angeles is committed to doing whatever it takes to bring Paul and Griffin back.
- Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic wonders if the Suns can find their point guard of the future in the upcoming draft and he examines some of the top options. Phoenix has a 19.9% at grabbing the No.1 pick and a 55.8% chance of landing in the top-3, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors recently detailed.
The Jazz could be without the services of Alec Burks for the remainder of the postseason, Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Per the paper’s sources, the guard could be shut down for the rest of the playoffs on account of his current knee injury.
Burks saw his role decrease substantially in 2016/17 and he averaged just 6.7 points per game in the opportunities that he did get. Sidelined for the entirety of Utah’s first-round series against the Clippers, Burks hasn’t played meaningful basketball since April 12.
The emergence of Rodney Hood over the course of the past two seasons and the offseason addition of Joe Johnson have limited Burks’ chances to thrive in the Jazz lineup. The 25-year-old, however, is just two seasons removed from averaging 33.3 minutes per game in an injury shortened 2014/15.
Jones adds that, while it appears as though the shooting guard will be shut down with Utah’s second round slated to begin on Tuesday, no final decision has been formally made.
- The Jazz have wrested control of their first-round series with the Clippers in large part to the return of Rudy Gobert. The big man has resumed shutting down the paint, which teammate Rodney Hood discussed with the Associated Press. “Rudy erases a lot of mistakes,” Hood said. “And he cleans up a lot of bad offensive possessions by rebounding the ball. It’s great just to have him back.“
- Although it’s his first time serving as a head coach in the NBA playoffs, Jazz bench boss Quin Snyder has no shortage of experience. Jody Genessey of the Deseret News discussed the coach’s leadership with club point guard George Hill. “He’s one of the smartest coaches I’ve been around. His mind’s always going other places. He’s very technical with what we do,” Hill said. “We listen to him. I think he’s got a great coaching staff around him that give us one heck of a game plan. It’s our job to follow him.“
Last year’s NBA Finals combatants, the Cavaliers and Warriors, made quick work of their first round playoff opponents, dispatching the Pacers and Trail Blazers respectively in four games apiece. However, many of the other first round series around the NBA remain very much up in the air.
Currently, four series are tied at 2-2, with two of those Game Fives scheduled for tonight, and two more on tap for Wednesday. The Clippers and Jazz have each split their home games, resulting in a 2-2 tie, while the No. 7 seeded Grizzlies won two home games over the Spurs following David Fizdale‘s post-Game 2 “take that for data” rant, pulling even in that series. Those four teams will be in action tonight.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the No. 1 seeded Celtics find themselves tied with the No. 8 Bulls in an unusual series in which road teams are 4-0 so far. Meanwhile, the Hawks ripped through the Wizards‘ defense in two games in Atlanta, evening that series at 2-2. Both of those series will resume on Wednesday.
In each of those four series, the higher seed maintains the advantage, with two of the final three games on their home court. But most of those higher seeds don’t look as formidable as they did entering the postseason.
What do you think? Will any of these series result in upsets? If the Jazz are able to knock off the Clippers, should that series even be viewed as a legit upset, given the absence of Blake Griffin and the teams’ identical regular season records?
Vote below on which lower seeds will make it through the first round — you can pick as many as you want. After placing your vote, share your thoughts in the comments section!