Utah Jazz Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Jazz Center Udoka Azubuike Done For Season After Surgery

March 25th, 2022 at 6:09pm CST by Rory Maher

Jazz center Udoka Azubuike underwent successful surgery on Friday to repair multiple ligaments in his right ankle and foot, the team announced. He’ll miss the rest of the 2021/22 season.

Azubuike appeared to suffer a dislocated ankle in a G League contest on March 10, his third right ankle injury in the past 13 months. He had a partially dislocated ankle back in November and a severe ankle sprain in February of 2021.

In 17 games this season, the second-year big man averaged 4.7 points and 4.2 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per night while shooting 75.5% from the field. He appeared in just 15 games as a rookie last season, logging a total of 57 minutes.

After four seasons at Kansas, Azubuike was the 27th pick in the 2020 draft. Although his NBA run has been brief, the 22-year-old has shown flashes of upside — as Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune notes, Azubuike averaged 9.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks over a six-game stretch between February 2-14.

Since Azubuike was behind Rudy Gobert and Hassan Whiteside on Utah’s depth chart, his absence won’t have much of an impact on the team’s playoff push, but obviously it’s a tough setback for the young center and hopefully he’s able to recover quickly.

At 45-28, the Jazz are currently the No. 4 seed in the West, but their hold on that spot is tenuous, as the Mavs have an identical record and the No. 6 Nuggets and No. 7 Timberwolves trail the Jazz by 2.5 and 3.5 games, respectively.

Quin Snyder Addresses Rumors Linking Him To Spurs, Lakers

March 24th, 2022 at 10:51am CST by Luke Adams

In a pair of recent stories, veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein linked Jazz head coach Quin Snyder to head coaching jobs in San Antonio and Los Angeles, writing that he has repeatedly heard Snyder’s name mentioned as a possible successor for Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and as a potential replacement for Lakers coach Frank Vogel.

Asked on Wednesday about those reports, Snyder told Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune that he feels as if he’s disrespecting the Spurs, the Lakers, and their respective coaches by even discussing the rumors.

“To be honest, having to address this type of question in any form, in my view, is disrespectful to the teams that are mentioned themselves,” Snyder said. “I think specifically, these types of discussions are also disrespectful to coaches. And I love the guys that I coach. I love these players. And frankly, my focus is on our guys and our team. And as I said, addressing hypotheticals in these types of questions in any form I feel like is disrespectful. And that’s how I would characterize that.”

In his most recent story, Stein said it’s unclear when exactly Snyder’s deal with the Jazz expires. While the belief is that Snyder is under contract at least through 2022/23, Stein indicated that Utah’s efforts to extend him beyond his current agreement have been unsuccessful. Speaking to Larsen, Snyder declined to offer any clarity on his contract.

“I’ve never talked about my contract from day one, and I’m not going to,” he said. “That’s not something that I’m going to comment on now, nor at any point in the future. That’s not something that the Jazz have done. I personally don’t want to or believe in getting into public contract discussions.”

While Snyder didn’t outright dismiss the rumors about his eventual exit, he did heap plenty of praise on the Jazz for how the organization has treated him since he arrived in 2014, suggesting that he’s happy in his current position.

“I think the fact that I’ve been here eight years speaks in and of itself. And I’ve been lucky to have been a part of an organization that has been supportive of coaches, generally and of me in particular,” Snyder told The Salt Lake Tribune, adding that he has felt “embraced and supported” by the community. “And I’m grateful for [new Jazz owner Ryan Smith]. He’s doing some terrific things with the franchise and has a vision for how it can continue to grow.”

Community Shootaround: Top Six In West

March 23rd, 2022 at 10:02am CST by Luke Adams

The Suns, who hold a nine-game lead over the NBA’s next-best team, are close to clinching the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The two teams behind them in the standings, the No. 2 Grizzlies and No. 3 Warriors, each have a two-game cushion over their next-closest competitor.

After the top three though, the West’s standings get a little more congested. The No. 4 Jazz, at 45-27, are separated from the No. 7 Timberwolves (42-31) by just 3.5 games, with the Mavericks (44-28) and Nuggets (43-30) sandwiched in between them.

All four clubs have looked like playoff teams, but – barring a massive Warriors collapse – only three will finish in the top six in the West. The other will end the regular season at No. 7 and will need to win a play-in game in order to officially earn a playoff spot.

The Timberwolves have been locked into the No. 7 seed since January and have the seventh-hardest schedule the rest of the way, according to Tankathon. That probably makes them the odds-on favorite to finish outside of the top six. But they’ve been one of the hottest teams in basketball over the last few months, having gone 26-11 since the new year. They’ll also control the tiebreaker vs. Denver and will face the Nuggets once more on April 1 with a chance to gain ground.

The Nuggets have a more favorable schedule, but have been a little shakier as of late — before Tuesday’s win over the Clippers, they’d lost four of their last six. With no guarantee that Jamal Murray or Michael Porter Jr. will be back before the end of the regular season, Denver can’t necessarily count on getting reinforcements down the stretch.

The Jazz and Mavericks look like safer bets for top-six finishes, since time is running out for Denver or Minnesota to catch them. Still, it’s worth noting that Utah has the NBA’s fourth-hardest remaining schedule, per Tankathon, with only two games left against non-playoff or play-in opponents. Dallas, meanwhile, has big games in Minnesota on Friday and vs. Utah on Sunday — losing both of those contests would make the Mavs’ top-six position more tenuous.

We want to know what you think. Will the West’s current playoff teams hang onto their spots and force the Timberwolves into the play-in tournament? Or will Minnesota catch the Nuggets or another team and secure a playoff spot by the end of the regular season?

Head to the comment section below to weigh in with your thoughts and predictions on the West’s playoff race!

Knicks Notes: McBride, Grimes, Draft, Mitchell, Hunt

March 21st, 2022 at 5:38pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Quentin Grimes absorbed most of Miles McBride‘s minutes after Grimes returned from a knee injury on Friday. However, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau will still try to find ways to play the rookie second-rounder despite having a more crowded backcourt, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes.

“I love what ‘Deuce’ has done. We’ll try to figure out how to work that out,” Thibodeau said of McBride. “He’ll probably be going back and forth. He’s done a really good job. We’ll see how this unfolds.’’

We have more on the Knicks:

Thibodeau is focused on his team but he’s finding some time to watch prospects in the NCAA Tournament, Berman adds in the same story. “I’ll get an opportunity to watch a little bit here, little bit there,’’ Thibodeau said. “Then, when the season’s over, I’ll go back and dig in a lot deeper. It’s an exciting time of year.”
There are some intriguing connections between Jazz star guard Donovan Mitchell and the Knicks. Mitchell was previously represented by Knicks president of basketball operations Leon Rose, while New York assistant Johnnie Bryant was one of Mitchell’s favorite coaches in Utah, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News notes. If Mitchell comes to a point where he wants out of Utah or the Jazz are willing to trade him, Berman speculates the package would have to include RJ Barrett and multiple first-rounders.
Feron Hunt‘s two-way contract is a two-year deal, JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors tweets. Hunt signed the contract on Friday. Hunt had 16 points and eight rebounds playing for the G League’s Westchester Knicks on Sunday.

Western Notes: Snyder, Lakers, Warriors, Nurkic, Hayes

March 21st, 2022 at 4:00pm CST by Luke Adams

After writing last week that he has heard Quin Snyder‘s name mentioned as a possible Gregg Popovich successor in San Antonio, Marc Stein says in his latest Substack article that he has also heard Snyder suggested as a probable candidate to replace Frank Vogel if and when the Lakers seek a new head coach.

Stein cautions that Snyder won’t necessarily be available this offseason. The details of the Jazz head coach’s contract aren’t publicly known, but his deal is believed to run for at least one more season beyond 2021/22.

However, according to Stein, coaching sources have said Utah has been unsuccessful in its attempts to further extend Snyder, creating the sense that he “might be more gettable than advertised.” There’s a sense that major changes could be in store for the Jazz if they don’t make a deep playoff run this spring — it remains to be seen if Snyder’s job could be among those potential changes.

Here are a few more notes from around the Western Conference:

With James Wiseman‘s return up in the air following a recent setback, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said on Sunday that head of basketball operations Bob Myers and the front office are “constantly looking at options” for frontcourt help (Twitter link via Kerith Burke of NBC Sports Bay Area). Golden State hasn’t made a change to its 15-man roster since re-signing Gary Payton II to be the team’s 15th man on October 19.
The NBA has yet to announce anything, but Trail Blazers center Jusuf Nurkic could be facing a fine after a video surfaced showing him grabbing a fan’s phone and tossing it away following Sunday’s game in Indiana.
Jaxson Hayes‘ shift from center to power forward has allowed him to defend more on the perimeter and become an ancillary shot-blocker and rebounder instead of having to anchor the Pelicans‘ defense, writes Christian Clark of NOLA.com. Hayes, who will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason, has played some of his best basketball since adopting his new role. “I feel like playing the four, I’m out guarding more guards and switching one through four instead of playing in my actual drop coverage like the other bigs,” Hayes said. “… I can showcase more of what I can do on the defensive end.”

Southeast Notes: Oladipo, Bam, Collins, Bridges

March 20th, 2022 at 1:31pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Heat guard Victor Oladipo, who continues to work his way back from quadriceps tendon surgery, has played in just four games since returning to the hardwood for Miami on March 7, averaging 5.5 points on .450/.222/.667 shooting across 16.3 MPG. Oladipo has also struggled with lower back spasms in recent days.

Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes that the Heat were never anticipating that Oladipo could be a starter this season playing major minutes. Winderman notes that the 6’4″ guard, a former two-time All-Star with the Pacers before being beset by injuries, could still be a valuable contributor for the East’s top-seeded club in spot minutes during the playoffs. The play of fellow reserve guards Max Strus and Gabe Vincent has made any help Oladipo provides a bit of a bonus.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

Heat center Bam Adebayo believes he deserves to be named Defensive Player of the Year this season, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Adebayo has been the anchor for one of the league’s staunchest defenses this year. As of this writing, the Heat rank fifth in defensive rating and fourth in points allowed per game. The 6’9″ big man has been no slouch when it comes to counting stats, either, averaging 19.0 PPG, 10.3 RPG and 3.5 APG this season for Miami. Though Adebayo has missed 25 games this season due to injury, missing some contests does not necessarily preclude a player from DPOY consideration. In the 2017/18 season, Jazz center Rudy Gobert won his first Defensive Player of the Year award after playing only 56 of 82 games for Utah.
Hawks head coach Nate McMillan sounds fairly skeptical that starting power forward John Collins will be available to return to the floor for Atlanta within the 10-to-14-day timeline initially provided by the team, per Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). “That’s when they will talk about his injury again,” McMillan said. “I don’t think we’re saying in two weeks he’ll be back. We will re-evaluate him in two weeks.”
Hornets power forward Miles Bridges, who should at least be a finalist for the 2022 Most Improved Player award thanks to his excellent play this year, is focused on reaching the playoffs with Charlotte following several past disappointments, per Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer. “I’ve been here before and all three years when we could’ve made the playoffs we didn’t finish like we wanted to,” Bridges said. “So I just want this year to be different.” Bridges is averaging 20.0 PPG, 7.1 RPG and 3.8 APG for the 36-35 Hornets, current occupants of the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference. Charlotte – currently 5.5 games ahead of the No. 11 Wizards with just 11 games left in its season – seems like a safe bet to at least qualify for the 2022 play-in tournament. Last year, the Hornets finished as the tenth seed with a 33-39 record, but lost to the Pacers in their first play-in game.

Knicks Notes: Payne, Coaching Staff, Mitchell, Quickley

March 19th, 2022 at 9:51pm CST by Arthur Hill

Knicks assistant Kenny Payne went through several tearful goodbyes before leaving the team to become the head coach at Louisville, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Payne had close relationships with many players and front office members, and it wasn’t easy to let go.

“Over the last few days, (Knicks executive VP) William Wesley and (team president) Leon Rose and myself cried six, seven times a day for me to get out of there to come here,” Payne said Friday at his introductory news conference at Louisville. “So, this was not an easy deal for me to just walk in here.”

Payne was an assistant at Kentucky before joining Tom Thibodeau’s staff in 2020 and recruited Julius Randle to play for the Wildcats. Immanuel Quickley also played for Payne at Kentucky and calls him “Pops” because he’s like a second father.

“It’s bigger than basketball when it comes to K.P., and that’s why he’s so special,” Randle said. “And that’s why he has so many great relationships around the league with so many players because he’s gonna push you on the court, but everything he does is out of love.”

There’s more on the Knicks:

Thibodeau has lost two of his top two assistants in two seasons, with Mike Woodson leaving last year to become head coach at Indiana University, Katz adds. Thibodeau didn’t indicate whether he plans to fill Payne’s position before the end of the season, but he did wish him well. “You’re always trying to work on developing (young coaches) knowing that there’s going to be opportunities for other guys to get head coaching jobs and that sort of thing,” Thibodeau said. “So if you hire good people you anticipate that those things will happen.”
Jazz star Donovan Mitchell will play his only game of the season at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, but many fans — and some front office members — are hoping he’ll eventually wear a Knicks jersey, per Steve Popper of Newsday. A source told Popper last month that Wesley would like to build the team around Mitchell, but acquiring him would be difficult even if Utah does eventually put him on the market. Mitchell still has three years and about $98MM left on his contract, and the Knicks don’t have a lot of tempting trade assets.
Quickley has adjusted to this season’s rule changes and has been getting to the foul line as often as he did as a rookie, Popper states in the same piece. Quickley was 9-for-9 on free throws Friday after going 7-for-8 Wednesday. “I’m watching a lot more film and just seeing how everybody else is getting calls,” he said. “You know, I had to adjust just like everybody else. I am not consciously trying, but if I see somebody out of position, I feel like I can get them, and then I’ll try and do that.”

Alexander-Walker Shines With Extended PT

March 19th, 2022 at 9:33am CST by Dana Gauruder

Nickeil Alexander-Walker has looked sharp while getting extended playing time this week, Tony Jones of The Athletic writes. Alexander-Walker had 13 points and five assists against the Clippers on Friday after a 16-point outing against Chicago. The Jazz also believe Alexander-Walker, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason, can be a defensive factor off the bench.

Six Players Out Friday, Including Mitchell

March 18th, 2022 at 9:53pm CST by Rory Maher

The Jazz are dealing with a plethora of maladies at the moment. Six players were listed as out for Friday’s game against the Clippers, the team announced (Twitter link): Donovan Mitchell (right calf contusion), Bojan Bogdanovic (left calf strain), Danuel House (left knee bone bruise), Hassan Whiteside (non-COVID illness), Trent Forrest (right wrist sprain), and Udoka Azubuike (right ankle sprain).

Northwest Notes: Gay, Hart, Towns, McDaniels

March 16th, 2022 at 7:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rudy Gay‘s first season with the Jazz has been disappointing, but he believes there’s still time to turn it around, writes Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. Gay signed as a free agent over the summer, but offseason heel surgery kept him out of action through the first 14 games of the season. He missed four more games because of soreness in the heel and another six in February due to illness and knee pain. Although the season is winding down, Gay feels like there’s still progress to be made before the playoffs.

“I feel pretty good going into the later part of the season,” he said. “This is good. We went through a lot early. That was good for us. The thing about it is, I’m motivated. Just trying to make a long run in these playoffs. That’s what it’s really about. The real season’s coming. This is all trying to get in a rhythm so we can be our best by then.”

Coach Quin Snyder recognizes that because he’s missed so much time, Gay is still adjusting to his role on the team. Snyder has been extending Gay’s minutes lately, even in games that are out of reach.

“I feel about Rudy the way I do about our team: as he plays more, he’ll continue to be able to give us more,” Snyder said. “… Getting him out there is important to us. Rudy’s obviously someone we feel like can really impact the game for us.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Josh Hart is adapting to his new situation with a Trail Blazers team that is currently more focused on developing young players than winning games, notes Jason Quick of The Athletic. Coach Chauncey Billups said Hart is used to being a complementary player on teams with stars, rather than a primary scorer surrounded by youngsters. “I had to have some conversations with him, because Josh is a very, very competitive dude, and sometimes we’ve been in situations where we haven’t been very competitive,” Billups said. “And that’s tough, especially for a vet. So I’m challenging him right now to just control that, and help our guys. But it’s a tough deal.”
Karl-Anthony Towns‘ 60-point outburst Monday was accompanied by a joy that was missing when he set the previous team record of 56 in 2018, observes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. After some difficult years with the Timberwolves, Towns is now the leader of a winning team that enjoys playing together. He could be headed for a spot an All-NBA team, which would make him eligible for a four-year super-max extension this offseason.
Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels suffered a high ankle sprain, tweets Chris Hine of The Star-Tribune. Josh Okogie is expected to get extra playing time while McDaniels is sidelined (Twitter link).