- Wizards point guard Isaiah Thomas is expected to miss at least another week due to his calf injury, sources tell Charania.
[SOURCE LINK]
The Wizards have applied for a disabled player exception in response to C.J. Miles‘ left wrist injury, reports Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link). The team announced last week that Miles had undergone surgery to repair ligament damage in his wrist, and there’s a belief that procedure will sideline him for the rest of the season.
As we outline in our glossary entry on the disabled player exception, a team can apply for a DPE to replace a seriously injured player. In order for the exception to be granted, an NBA-designated physician must determine that the player is “substantially more likely than not” to be sidelined through at least June 15 of that league year.
If granted, the disabled player exception allows a club to sign a replacement player for 50% of the injured player’s salary, or for the amount of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, whichever is lesser. In the case of Miles, the exception would be worth $4,365,079, half of his 2019/20 salary ($8,730,158).
The DPE, which doesn’t give a team an extra roster spot, can also be used to acquire a player on an expiring contract via trade or waivers if his salary fits into the exception.
[RELATED: 2019/20 Disabled Player Exceptions]
The Wizards have already applied for one disabled player exception this season, hoping to gain extra flexibility as a result of John Wall‘s Achilles injury. However, that request was denied by the NBA, presumably because Wall wasn’t considered likely to be out through June 15, 2020. We’ll see if the ruling is any different on Miles, who doesn’t have a definitive recovery timeline after undergoing wrist surgery.
If the DPE for Miles is granted, the Wizards seem unlikely to make use of it on the free agent market, as the rebuilding squad already has $128MM in salary on its books for this season. However, it could come in handy in a smaller trade. Last season, the Wizards used a DPE to acquire Wesley Johnson from New Orleans, allowing the team to generate a trade exception that was eventually used to land Davis Bertans.
- Wizards forward Davis Bertans is on track for a historic season shooting the ball from 3-point range, Fred Katz of The Athletic writes. Bertans has connected on 78 threes through 21 games, making a remarkable 45% of his attempts. Katz also examines the possibility of Bertans being traded before the February deadline, with the team looking to prep for the future and the UFA-to-be looking like a potentially valuable trade chip.
Here are Saturday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the league:
- The Thunder assigned Deonte Burton to the Oklahoma City Blue after he served a one-game suspension for a locker room altercation with a teammate, tweets Royce Young of ESPN. “I think it’s pretty clear, one-game suspension and we’ll all move on,” said coach Billy Donovan, who attributed the incident to healthy frustration over the team’s slow start. The second-year shooting guard is averaging 2.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in 12 NBA games this season.
- The Wizards assigned Admiral Schofield and Justin Robinson to their Capital City affiliate so they could play in tonight’s game, the team announced on Twitter.
- The Timberwolves assigned Jaylen Nowell to Iowa, according to a tweet from the team. The rookie shooting guard has gotten into just two games for Minnesota.
- In a leftover move from yesterday, the Clippers recalled center Mfiondu Kabengele from their Agua Caliente affiliate.
Wizards swingman Jordan McRae underwent surgery on Wednesday to remove the pin in his right ring finger and will miss at least two weeks, according to a team press release.
The procedure was a precautionary measure to prevent infection, the release adds.
McRae suffered a fracture to that finger during the season opener against Dallas on October 23. He returned to action on November 6. The pin became dislodged on a dunk attempt against Charlotte on November 22.
McRae has been a part of the team’s rotation but this could impact his presence on the roster. His $1.6MM contract, which is partially guaranteed at $600K, becomes fully guaranteed on December 20, per Basketball Insiders.
McRae is averaging 8.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG and 2.8 APG in 18.1 MPG in 13 games this season.
Big man Jason Smith said he’s interested in returning to the Wizards if they want him, Mike DePrisco of NBC Sports Washington relays. Smith made the comment on a Wizards Postgame Live broadcast. Washington’s frontcourt has been depleted by injuries, including a foot ailment to starting center Thomas Bryant that will sideline him for at least three weeks. The 33-year-old seven-footer played 20 games last season, including 12 with the Wizards.
- After playing for the Capital City Go-Go earlier in the day, Admiral Schofield and Justin Robinson were recalled to the NBA by the Wizards for the evening game, per the team (Twitter link). Schofield, in particular, got in a full day’s work, playing a game-high 38 minutes for the Wizards’ G League affiliate, then seven more minutes for the NBA squad.
Wizards center Thomas Bryant is expected to be sidelined until at least Christmas, with the team announcing today in a press release that he has been diagnosed with a stress reaction in his right foot. According to the Wizards, Bryant will be re-evaluated in three weeks.
Bryant, 22, had a modest breakout season a year ago after being claimed off waivers from the Lakers by the Wizards. He had been building on last year’s success in the early going in 2019/20, averaging career bests in PPG (13.9), RPG (8.5), APG (2.7), and a handful of other categories through 18 games (all starts).
With Bryant sidelined, the Wizards find themselves somewhat shorthanded at the five. Veteran big man Ian Mahinmi has been unable to take the court so far this season due to an Achilles injury, while Moritz Wagner missed Sunday’s game with an ankle injury and is out tonight as well.
Wagner should see heavy minutes at center when he’s ready to return. Until then, the team may rely more heavily smaller lineups, with forwards like Davis Bertans and Rui Hachimura as the bigs. A roster move is also possible, though Washington doesn’t currently have an open spot.
Criticism can be hard to give and harder to accept but it’s something that teams in the NBA need to be comfortable with in order to improve. Wizards players are still figuring out one another and being constructive with criticism is something that the team has discussed within the locker room, as David Aldridge of The Athletic relay.
“You do it strategically,” said Ish Smith, who was part of the rebuild in Philadelphia. “Everybody ain’t rah-rah. You’ve got to be able to talk to them. And you’ve got to read people’s body language. How people walk, how do people talk, how they’re feeling, if they’re down if they’re up. Those are the things you’ve got to be able to do. You’ve got to communicate, not just by yelling and screaming. You’ve got to be able to pull guys to the side. And that all grows with relationships and just building throughout the season.”
Here’s more from the Southeast Division:
- The Magic have listed Michael Carter-Williams as doubtful for Tuesday’s contest vs. the Wizards, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. The designation is technically an upgrade on out, which is what MCW has been for the last six contests, so the point guard may be nearing a return.
- Jimmy Butler is proving to be the ultimate teammate, Ira Winderman of the Sun-Sentinel writes. Butler is simply trying to win games and he’s not making it about personal glory or any statistics during his first year with the Heat.
- In the same piece, Winderman explains why Justise Winslow has been playing in crunch time for the Heat over Tyler Herro and Kendrick Nunn. Winslow remaining on the floor has to do with his defense and coach Erik Spoelstra valued that late in games recently.
After injuries wiped out nearly all of his 2018/19 season, Dwight Howard made promises to new Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard that he never got a chance to fulfill, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Howard suffered a back injury before training camp and played just nine games last year. Entering the second season of his two-year contract, Howard vowed to Sheppard that things were going to be different.
“I told Tommy I was gonna lose 30 pounds and come back in the best shape of my life and we were gonna have a shot at winning a championship,” Howard said. “That was my goal all summer, to lose weight and come back better than ever.”
Howard delivered on his promises, but not in D.C. He was traded to Memphis in July to create more minutes for centers Thomas Bryant, who re-signed this summer, and Moritz Wagner, who was acquired in a trade. Howard reached a buyout with the Grizzlies and accepted a non-guaranteed offer from the Lakers. It marked his second straight summer with a buyout arrangement and his seventh team in the past five years, but he’s grateful for the chance to rebuild his reputation.
“A lot of times, you gotta outlive the lie,” he said. “I’ve been lied on for many years about who I am as a player, person, my character. So, I just wanted to get into good shape. If I say something, I’m gonna do it. I’m gonna be that way, and (that’s) not gonna change.”
There’s more Wizards news to pass along:
- The team is holding out hope that C.J. Miles won’t need surgery for his injured left wrist, relays Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. Miles damaged ligaments while taking a charge in Tuesday’s game and can’t visit a specialist until Monday when the Wizards are back from their current road trip. An operation would sideline him for about four months and likely end his season. “Right now, they’re talking to the doctors, talking to C.J. as well and our staff and have a game plan, I’m sure, the next couple of days,” coach Scott Brooks said.
- Bradley Beal doesn’t regret his decision to accept a two-year extension, even though Washington is off to a poor start at 6-11, according to Dan Woike of The Los Angeles Times. Beal could have turned down the offer and possibly paved the way for a trade to a contender, but he opted to commit to the organization through at least 2021/22. “It’s easy for people in all walks of life to see the grass as greener on the other side and not to see and appreciate your current environment,” Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. “And I do admire that in Bradley.”
- Beal blamed weight gain over the past two seasons on Couvade Syndrome, also known as “sympathetic pregnancy,” writes Quinton Mayo of NBC Sports Washington. Beal’s partner has delivered two children in the past two years. “I gained about 12-15 pounds,” he said. “Coach Brooks used to make fun of me and say my uniform was fitting a little tighter, and not in a good way. I was up at 3, 4 o’clock in the morning eating ice cream when I shouldn’t have been eating ice cream. That’s all because momma was pregnant and I had the exact same symptoms. I was craving stuff that I never had the desire to eat before.”