The 2019-2020 Around the NBA thread

[Ronin]

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[Ronin]

There have been rumblings well before either of them contracted coronavirus that the Jazz were growing weary of Gobert. Not that they were actively shopping him or trying to get rid of him, but that he might be more available than you’d think a Defensive Player of the Year and guy who is such an anchor would be. It will not surprise me if Utah moves on after this season.

https://sports.yahoo.com/rumor-jazz-were-tiring-rudy-000036231.html

 

[Ronin]

Andre Drummond: No decision on 2020-21 player option yet

https://sports.yahoo.com/andre-drummond-no-decision-2020-150341660.html

 

[Hoop Head]

Drummond would be one of the top free agents this summer but I don't think any team would throw the max at him, which he'd need to get in order to justify walking away from $28 million this next season.

I can't see anyone throwing more than $20 million a year at him and if he could get that much this offseason then it's likely he could the following year as well. He'll be the primary big in Cleveland and his style might actually mesh better with Love than any other PF he's played with.

His presence in Cleveland should cause the Cavs to move on from Tristan Thompson who might not be a bad target for the Suns. I know he's been an undersized Center for the Cavs the last few years but I think he could play alongside Ayton. He's a good offensive rebounder, which Ayton isn't, and he's tried expanding his game out to the 3pt line as well. He only averaged an attempt every other game but shot 39% from 3.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not high on TT but he wouldn't be a bad stop gap. If the price is right then playing him as a Sixth Man, backing up Ayton at C and a rookie like Toppin at PF, would make for a decent big man rotation.

 

[95pro]

Drummond would be one of the top free agents this summer but I don't think any team would throw the max at him, which he'd need to get in order to justify walking away from $28 million this next season.

I can't see anyone throwing more than $20 million a year at him and if he could get that much this offseason then it's likely he could the following year as well. He'll be the primary big in Cleveland and his style might actually mesh better with Love than any other PF he's played with.

His presence in Cleveland should cause the Cavs to move on from Tristan Thompson who might not be a bad target for the Suns. I know he's been an undersized Center for the Cavs the last few years but I think he could play alongside Ayton. He's a good offensive rebounder, which Ayton isn't, and he's tried expanding his game out to the 3pt line as well. He only averaged an attempt every other game but shot 39% from 3.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not high on TT but he wouldn't be a bad stop gap. If the price is right then playing him as a Sixth Man, backing up Ayton at C and a rookie like Toppin at PF, would make for a decent big man rotation.

Wow no to Tristan.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

https://sports.yahoo.com/rumor-jazz-were-tiring-rudy-000036231.html

But sure, I must’ve overreacted to his coronavirus idiocy. Looks like others had similar thoughts about his recklessness and his value wasn’t as untouchable as many of you claimed.

 

[cwamjn]

I've been doing a lot better living without sports, but I'm hungry for some basketball. I would kill to watch an NBA playoff game, but not watch the Lakers. No hunger is bad enough for that.

 

[Finito]

Drummond would be one of the top free agents this summer but I don't think any team would throw the max at him, which he'd need to get in order to justify walking away from $28 million this next season.

I can't see anyone throwing more than $20 million a year at him and if he could get that much this offseason then it's likely he could the following year as well. He'll be the primary big in Cleveland and his style might actually mesh better with Love than any other PF he's played with.

His presence in Cleveland should cause the Cavs to move on from Tristan Thompson who might not be a bad target for the Suns. I know he's been an undersized Center for the Cavs the last few years but I think he could play alongside Ayton. He's a good offensive rebounder, which Ayton isn't, and he's tried expanding his game out to the 3pt line as well. He only averaged an attempt every other game but shot 39% from 3.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not high on TT but he wouldn't be a bad stop gap. If the price is right then playing him as a Sixth Man, backing up Ayton at C and a rookie like Toppin at PF, would make for a decent big man rotation.

Tristan Thompson is horrible and I mean horrible. Why on earth anyone would want him especially at what he’s being paid is beyond me

 

[Mainstreet]

Tristan Thompson is horrible and I mean horrible. Why on earth anyone would want him especially at what he’s being paid is beyond me

Tristan Thompson will be a free agent. I doubt he will ever see $18,539,130 again.

 

[Finito]

Tristan Thompson will be a free agent. I doubt he will ever see $18,539,130 again.

still doesn’t change the fact he’s not good

 

[Mainstreet]

still doesn’t change the fact he’s not good

I imagine he will find a home somewhere in the NBA but not anywhere near his previous salary.

 

[Phrazbit]

Drummond would be one of the top free agents this summer but I don't think any team would throw the max at him, which he'd need to get in order to justify walking away from $28 million this next season.

I can't see anyone throwing more than $20 million a year at him and if he could get that much this offseason then it's likely he could the following year as well. He'll be the primary big in Cleveland and his style might actually mesh better with Love than any other PF he's played with.

His presence in Cleveland should cause the Cavs to move on from Tristan Thompson who might not be a bad target for the Suns. I know he's been an undersized Center for the Cavs the last few years but I think he could play alongside Ayton. He's a good offensive rebounder, which Ayton isn't, and he's tried expanding his game out to the 3pt line as well. He only averaged an attempt every other game but shot 39% from 3.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not high on TT but he wouldn't be a bad stop gap. If the price is right then playing him as a Sixth Man, backing up Ayton at C and a rookie like Toppin at PF, would make for a decent big man rotation.

Ayton's average of 4.1 offensive boards per game was 2nd best in the entire league. He is, in every sense, one of the best rebounders in the NBA right now.

As for Thompson, a total of 9 three pointers made on the season does not make me think he would be a threat to stretch the floor. He is also a really lousy defender that I suspect would only be worse when pulled away from the interior.

 

[Hoop Head]

Ayton's average of 4.1 offensive boards per game was 2nd best in the entire league. He is, in every sense, one of the best rebounders in the NBA right now.

As for Thompson, a total of 9 three pointers made on the season does not make me think he would be a threat to stretch the floor. He is also a really lousy defender that I suspect would only be worse when pulled away from the interior.

I didn't realize Ayton was that good on the offensive glass. I wasn't looking at numbers and going on what I remember seeing. Apparently he was much better than I remembered. I do know he was up and down on the glass though. In his 30 games, he actually had 4 offensive boards just 5 times. So while he averaged that, it's not a great indicator of what he'll give you nightly.

I know Tristan Thompson isn't an ideal target, and I said as much, but he would be a better big than bringing back Kaminsky or signing someone like him, a stretch big like Kelly Olynyk, for example. I'd rather get a banger than someone who avoids contact. I thought I was clear in stating that TT as a stop gap wouldn't be terrible. He's not someone who should be a high priority signing, something like how we found Kaminsky last offseason after the first week or so had passed in free agency but before you're looking for the 12th men like Diallo.

 

[JCSunsfan]

At this moment, I don't know if I have ever been LESS interested in the NBA. I had to force myself to come to this board today.

 

[Mainstreet]

At this moment, I don't know if I have ever been LESS interested in the NBA. I had to force myself to come to this board today.

The important thing is you did. I think it's important to push forward even when one is not feeling like it. The NBA and the Suns will return soon enough.

The NBA is planning to reopen practice facilities at the appropriate time. I think there will be basketball this season even if it is without crowds.

From ESPN:

The NBA is reopening team practice facilities beginning on Friday for players in states and municipalities that are loosening stay-at-home restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic, sources told ESPN.

Players can return to team facilities in states such as Georgia for voluntary individual workouts as soon as next week, which allows for NBA organizations to start allowing players to return to training in a professional, safe environment.


https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id...ay-where-local-restrictions-eased-sources-say

 

[Hoop Head]

Here's a feel good story. Barbosa tested positive for the Corona Virus with his wife in mid-March, which sucks but his wife was expecting their first child together and was 38 weeks pregnant at the time, which caused a lot of issues, as one can imagine. They did an emergency c-section and the baby ended up being fine. Somehow the baby didn't contract the virus. Barbosa wasn't able to be there for the birth of his daughter but his family is happy, healthy, and together now. There's more in the article. This isn't his first child but it is his first with his current wife.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/sports/basketball/leandro-barbosa.html/


Apparently he's playing in a league in South America and is the leagues leading scorer at 37 years old. So he's still got it, to a certain extent. I thought he had more to offer when he was last on the Suns but the team was headed towards a youth movement so him sticking around here didn't make a lot of sense.

He's always been one of my favorite Suns. He doesn't look like he's aged a day either and his wife isn't too hard on the eyes herself.

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[Mainstreet]

Wish Leandro and his family nothing but the best. He will always have a special place in the heart of Suns fans. It feels like we grew up with him.

 

[Mainstreet]

@Russ Smith

It looks like the run on players choosing the G-League over college is picking up steam. Other players may follow.


Shams Charania‏Verified account @ShamsCharania

Five-star prospect Daishen Nix has decommitted from UCLA and plans to sign in the NBA G League, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.

9:23 AM - 28 Apr 2020

 

[Mainstreet]

More on Daishen Mix.

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[Hoop Head]

I heard the G-League is giving these recruits 4 year college scholarships also, so it's not like they're bypassing college entirely, they just won't play for the NCAA on their path to the NBA and I can't blame for that.

I think we'll see some prospects fall in the draft some because they elected for the G-League vs College ball but it won't be much. I think a player who is viewed as a potential lottery pick will still be one, provided they don't suck, but it'll be a little harder for them to make a case for themselves as the #1 overall pick unless they dominate in the G-League. A player can get away with being the #1 pick from the NCAA because of their potential vs their actual impact and results and I don't think that will change for a couple more seasons and more prospects go that route.

Look at someone like Markelle Fultz, for example. He couldn't get his NCAA team to the NCAA Tournament but still sold the NBA on being the #1 prospect entering the league that year. If a player fails to helps his G-League team win more than they did the year before and they miss out on their postseason, I can't see them selling the NBA on being the top prospect, while laying a lot of blame for their shortcomings on the G-League team they played for.

 

[Mainstreet]

I heard the G-League is giving these recruits 4 year college scholarships also, so it's not like they're bypassing college entirely, they just won't play for the NCAA on their path to the NBA and I can't blame for that.

I think we'll see some prospects fall in the draft some because they elected for the G-League vs College ball but it won't be much. I think a player who is viewed as a potential lottery pick will still be one, provided they don't suck, but it'll be a little harder for them to make a case for themselves as the #1 overall pick unless they dominate in the G-League. A player can get away with being the #1 pick from the NCAA because of their potential vs their actual impact and results and I don't think that will change for a couple more seasons and more prospects go that route.

Look at someone like Markelle Fultz, for example. He couldn't get his NCAA team to the NCAA Tournament but still sold the NBA on being the #1 prospect entering the league that year. If a player fails to helps his G-League team win more than they did the year before and they miss out on their postseason, I can't see them selling the NBA on being the top prospect, while laying a lot of blame for their shortcomings on the G-League team they played for.

I'm guessing the NBA wants to turn the G-League into a true minor league. Improved salaries and perks such as scholarships will attract better talent.

In the future, I can see the G-League developing different levels of competition. Eventually it may be on a similar level of college basketball or perhaps a step above. It will probably take awhile because the NBA will want to give colleges time to adjust. I think it will resemble minor league baseball.

 

[Mainstreet]

Shams Charania‏Verified account @ShamsCharania

Sources: The Knicks will retain Scott Perry as general manager on a one-year deal.

7:48 AM - 29 Apr 2020

 

[Ronin]

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[Mainstreet]

Shams Charania‏Verified account @ShamsCharania

Sources: The NBA G League is improving some conditions for players starting in 2020-21, informing teams they must secure separate hotel rooms for players on road and elevate the per diem by $15. Players have shared rooms up until now.

11:41 AM - 1 May 2020

 

[Mainstreet]

NBA draft postponed indefinitely it's NBA Draft Lottery and Draft Combine in May.


Shams Charania‏Verified account @ShamsCharania

The NBA has indefinitely postponed its NBA Draft Lottery and Draft Combine in May in Chicago due to coronavirus pandemic, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.

1:39 PM - 1 May 2020