Category: NBA News Blog

NBA news blog

Thunder trade Ricky Rubio to Timberwolves

Minnesota Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas today announced the team has acquired guard Ricky Rubio and the draft rights to Jaden McDaniels (28th overall) from the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for forward James Johnson and the draft rights to Aleksej Pokuševski (17th overall) and Minnesota’s 2024 Second Round Pick.

The Timberwolves are also acquiring the draft rights to Leandro Bolmaro (23rd overall) from the New York Knicks in exchange for the draft rights to Mathias Lessort (50th overall in the 2017 NBA Draft) and the Detroit Pistons’ 2023 Second Round Pick.

“Ricky is a great fit to what we are building here in Minneapolis and we are thrilled to welcome him back to the Timberwolves organization,” said Rosas. “He will be a solid addition to our core in All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns, All-Star guard D’Angelo Russell and First Overall Pick Anthony Edwards. Ricky is an elite playmaker and someone who will boost our defense and bring a veteran presence to our team.”

Originally drafted by the Timberwolves with the fifth overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft, Rubio played in 353 games over six seasons with Minnesota averaging 10.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game. He ranks among the top-10 in numerous franchise records including ranking second in total assists (2991), second in total steals (747) and 10th in games played (353). Rubio holds the record for the most assists in a single game in Timberwolves history after dishing out 19 dimes against the Washington Wizards on Mar. 13, 2017. The 6-3 guard played in 65 games for the Phoenix Suns last season, averaging 13.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, his most since averaging 5.7 rebounds in 2014-15, and 8.8 assists in 31.0 minutes per game.

“Ricky is a needed piece when it comes to being a culture builder, a team-first player and the impact he has on and off the court,” said Timberwolves Head Coach Ryan Saunders. “I’m thrilled to welcome him back to Minneapolis.”

The El Masnou, Spain native began his national team career on Spain’s Under-16 team in 2005, winning a bronze medal at the 2005 FIBA Europe U16 Championships. Rubio was named MVP of the 2006 FIBA Europe U16 Championships after leading Spain to the gold medal where he averaged 22.3 points, 12.8 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 6.5 steals per game during the tournament, including two triple-doubles and a quadruple-double (posted 51 points, 24 rebounds, 12 assists and 7 steals in the championship game against Russia). Rubio was named to the Spanish team for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, where at age 17 he became the youngest ever to participate in the gold-medal game.

Bolmaro, a 6-6 forward, played his first season with FC Barcelona’s primary team for the 2019-20 season. He appeared in 13 games (two starts) across the club’s ACB and EuroLeague schedule. The Las Varillas, Argentina native averaged 4.4 points and 0.9 steals in 12.9 minutes in seven games in Spain’s top pro league. Bolmaro joined FC Barcelona’s “B” team for the second consecutive season and averaged 14.6 points, 3.6 assists and 1.8 steals in 26.8 minutes in nine games in Spain’s third division, LEB Silver. The 20-year-old joined FC Barcelona’s “B” team in 2018-19, averaging 10.4 points in 33 games in Spain’s second division, LEB Gold.

McDaniels, a 6-9 forward joins the Timberwolves after spending one season at the University of Washington where he averaged 13.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 blocks. He was the only player in any of the major conferences to average at least 1.4 blocks and 1.4 three-pointers made per game in 2019-20. The Federal Way, Washington native is the younger brother of Charlotte Hornets forward Jalen McDaniels.

Johnson was originally acquired by the Wolves in a three-team deal from the Miami Heat on Feb. 6, averaged 12.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game in 14 games with Minnesota.

Pokuševski (7-0, 195) averaged 10.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.8 blocks and 1.3 steals in 22.6 minutes in 11 games with Olympiacos B in the Greek Second Division, HEBA A2 in the 2019-20 season as the team went 17-4 and earned a second-place finish in A2. At the 2019 U18 European Championships, the Serbian native averaged 10.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2.7 steals and led with event with 4.0 blocks per game.

Quickley, 6-3, 188-pounds, averaged 10.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists, shooting 46.2-percent from the field, including 39.7-percent from three over 67 games (27 starts) at Kentucky. The Havre de Grace, MD-native was named the 2019-20 SEC Player of the Year after helping guide the Wildcats to the SEC regular season championship. During his sophomore season, the 2019-20 All-SEC-First Team selection recorded 16.1 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 42.8-percent from downtown over 33.0 minutes in 30 games (20 starts).

Heat guard Gabe Vincent signs Two-Way Qualifying Offer

Miami Heat guard Gabe Vincent has signed his Two-Way Qualifying Offer.

Vincent, who was named the 2019-20 NBA G League Most Improved Player, originally signed with the HEAT to a two-way contract on January 8, 2020. He appeared in nine games with Miami last season totaling 22 points, six assists, five rebounds and five steals in 82:46 minutes of action while leading the team in steals and plus/minus once each.

Vincent also split last season between the HEAT’s G League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce and the Stockton Kings. He appeared in 11 games with the Skyforce and averaged 16.4 points, 1.9 assists, 1.7 rebounds, 1.10 steals and 24.7 minutes.

Prior to joining the HEAT, he appeared in 20 games (three starts) with Stockton and averaged 23.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.30 steals and 31.8 minutes while shooting 46.9 percent from the field, 42.1 percent from three-point range and 89.7 percent from the foul line.

In college, Vincent played all four years at UC Santa Barbara, appearing in 113 collegiate games (105 starts), finishing as the school’s all-time leader in three-point field goals made (243) and among the Top 10 in points (1,441) and assists (116).

Pistons trade Tony Snell and Khyri Thomas to Hawks for Dewayne Dedmon

In a trade today, the Atlanta Hawks have acquired guards Tony Snell and Khyri Thomas from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for center Dewayne Dedmon.

In a subsequent move, the Hawks waived Thomas.

Snell, originally the 20th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, has averaged 6.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 22.5 minutes (.428 FG%, .385 3FG%, .838 FT%) in 501 career games (275 starts) with Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit. In 38 playoff contests (eight starts), he’s averaged 3.4 points and 1.4 rebounds in 14.0 minutes.

Last season in 59 games (57 starts) with the Pistons, the 6-foot-6 Snell averaged 8.0 points, 2.2 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 27.8 minutes (.445 FG%, .402 3FG%, 32-32 FTs), ranking tied for 24th in the NBA in three-point percentage.

In two seasons with the Pistons, Thomas has played in 34 games, averaging 2.3 points. He’s also appeared in three postseason contests. Thomas was originally a second-round pick of the Philadelphia 76ers (38th overall) in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Dedmon was re-acquired by the Hawks from the Sacramento Kings on February 6, 2020. Last season in 10 games (eight starts) with the Hawks, he averaged 8.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.0 steals in 23.3 minutes. In 136 games (106 starts) over three seasons with Atlanta, Dedmon compiled 10.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 blocks in 24.9 minutes (.499 FG%, .358 3FG%, .802 FT%).

Warriors waive Ky Bowman

The Golden State Warriors have waived guard Ky Bowman.

Bowman played in 45 games (12 starts) for the Warriors in the 2019-20 season. He averaged 7.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 22.9 minutes per game.

In the G League, Bowman played in 12 games (all starts) with the Santa Cruz Warriors, where he put up 14.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.25 steals in 31.7 minutes per game.

Bowman originally joined the Warriors as a free agent on July 31, 2019.

Toronto Raptors will begin 2020-21 NBA season based in Tampa, Florida

The Toronto Raptors will start the 2020-21 NBA season using Tampa, Florida as their home base. This is because the coronavirus pandemic has made travel more complicated, especially in between different countries.

STATEMENT FROM RAPTORS PRESIDENT OF BASKETBALL OPERATIONS MASAI UJIRI

“The Raptors worked diligently with public health officials at the local, provincial and federal level to secure a plan that would permit us to play our 2020-21 season on home soil and on our home court at Scotiabank Arena. These conversations were productive, and we found strong support for the protocols we put forward. Ultimately, the current public health situation facing Canadians, combined with the urgent need to determine where we will play means that we will begin our 2020-21 season in Tampa, Florida.

We want to thank all levels of government and their public health officials for their dedication to this process, and for looking after the health of Canadians. We commit to continuing our work together, planning for a safe return to play in Toronto. And as an organization, we remain committed to doing all we can to promote and demonstrate public health measures to help combat the spread of COVID-19 in Canada.

So we’ll be away from our home and our fans for now. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. I’m not sure that’s possible for us – we love Toronto and Canada, and we know we have the best fans in the NBA. For now, I’ll ask you to cheer for us from afar, and we’ll look forward to the day we are all together again.”

Clippers and Timberwolves trade draft rights to Daniel Oturu and Mathias Lessort

The LA Clippers have acquired the draft rights to center Daniel Oturu, the 33rd overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for the Detroit Pistons second-round draft pick in 2023 and the draft rights to Mathias Lessort.

Oturu led the Big Ten with 11.3 rebounds and 2.5 blocks to go along with 20.1 points in 33.9 minutes during his sophomore season at Minnesota. The 6-foot-10 center shot 56.3 percent from the field last season, which also led the Big Ten. The Woodbury, Minn., native was named to the 2019-20 Big Ten All-Defense team and 2019-20 All-Big Ten second team for the Gophers.

Lessort, a 6-9 forward from Fort-de-France, Martinique, France, was originally drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 50th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. He currently plays for AS Monaco in the LNB Pro A League (France). In seven professional seasons overseas, Lessort has averaged 7.5 points on 59.0% shooting and 4.9 rebounds. He competed for the French National Team during the 2019 FIBA World Cup where he totaled 23 points and 13 rebounds in six games.

Wizards select Deni Avdija at No. 9 in 2020 NBA Draft

The Washington Wizards selected Deni Avdija (pronounced Denny AHV-dee-uh) from Maccabi Tel Aviv (Israel) with the ninth overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

Avdija, a 6-9, 225-pound forward, becomes the highest-drafted Israeli player in NBA history. He averaged 18.4 points, 8.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.4 blocks and 2.1 steals to earn MVP honors at the 2019 FIBA U-20 European Championships and helped Israel win the gold medal in back-to-back FIBA U-20 European Championships in 2018 and 2019.

“We were absolutely thrilled to get the opportunity to select Deni at the ninth pick and add his versatility, toughness and effort on the defensive end to our roster,” said Wizards General Manager Tommy Sheppard. “While he is a young player who is still developing, he has great experience playing at a high level both professionally and in international competition.”

Avdija has played professionally the last three seasons with Maccabi Tel Aviv. He averaged 12.3 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 26.6 minutes in 2019-20 Israeli League play, shooting .555 overall from the field while ranking third in two-point percentage (.673) and 21st in three-point percentage (.375). Avdija was named MVP of Basketball Without Borders Europe in 2018 and the BWB Global Camp in 2019 and earned All-Event honors at the 2018-19 EuroLeague Next Generation Tournament while playing for Maccabi’s Under-18 team.

“I love Deni’s competitive spirit and feel for the game and I’m excited to help him continue to improve when we begin camp in a few weeks,” said Wizards Head Coach Scott Brooks. “His toughness and overall skill set will allow us to use him in multiple lineups and allow him to seamlessly blend in with our team.”

And from the Washington Post:

Now 19 and 6-foot-9 with a guard’s ballhandling skills, Avdija should be able to bolster the Wizards’ defensive presence on the perimeter and, at times, play alongside forward Rui Hachimura, the international pick the Wizards took at No. 9 last year.

Washington loved how many different boxes he ticked. Sheppard called Avdija a “blend player,” and Wizards Coach Scott Brooks highlighted his professional experience playing in pro leagues and for the Israeli national team.

“I love his toughness. I love his IQ. As a coach, you never have to worry about a player playing hard,” Brooks said. “That’s what [Avdija] does. He steps on the court and he competes. He’s going to make our practices better and our games better. … The thing that I like is most of his career you play against guys who are older than you. He’s played against men in the leagues that he’s played in.”

The youngest player to ever play for Maccabi’s Senior Team (debuting at 16 years, 320 days), Avdija played with several former NBA players during his tenure, including Amar’e Stoudemire, Omri Casspi, Quincy Acy and Tarik Black. His father, Zufer, won bronze at the 1982 FIBA Basketball World Championship with Yugoslavia and was a pro in Serbia and Israel in the 1980’s and 1990’s while his mother, Sharon Artzi, is a former championship runner.

Background and bio info on Pistons rookie Killian Hayes

The 2020 NBA Draft was Wednesday night, and with the 7th overall pick, the Detroit Pistons selected Killian Hayes. Here’s the Detroit Free Press:

Even though he was raised in France, Killian Hayes had the most Detroit Pistons connections of any player the organization could’ve targeted in Wednesday’s 2020 NBA draft.

Hayes, 19, began training with former Pistons point guard Will Bynum last summer, thanks to a connection with former Pistons guard and president Joe Dumars. And Hayes is good friends with Sekou Doumbouya, his fellow Frenchman.

On Wednesday night, it became official. The Pistons selected Hayes seventh overall, giving them one of the best point guard prospects in the draft to kick off their retooling.

Hayes, 6-foot-5 with a 6-8 wingspan, established himself as one of the draft’s more versatile players, bringing both size, playmaking and scoring upside to Detroit.

And the Detroit News:

Weaver stuck to the draft board and set the Pistons up at a needed position. With Derrick Rose as the only experienced point guard on the roster, Hayes doesn’t have to step into the starting lineup immediately and can learn the ropes.

“We stayed true to the board, absolutely. It pretty much went the way we thought we would go,” Weaver said. “We were fortunate enough that our guy was at No. 7 and we were excited about that.”

Hayes has extensive international experience and is known for his pick-and-roll ability and with his 6-8 wingspan, he can become a solid defender for the Pistons on the perimeter.

The only stars on the current Pistons roster played better basketball in the past: point guard Derrick Rose and power forward Blake Griffin. Most other spots in the rotation are up for grabs.

Knicks select Obi Toppin with No. 8 pick in 2020 NBA Draft

The 2020 NBA Draft was Wednesday night, and with their lottery-pick selection, the New York Knicks took Obi Toppin. The New York Post:

Dayton’s 6-foot-9 scoring forward fell to No. 8 on Wednesday night, and Knicks president Leon Rose pounced on the National College Player of the Year, whom he nearly traded up to get…

Toppin’s lone weakness is his fire on the defensive end, and the Knicks’ Tom Thibodeau is a defensive coach.

“I learned a lot about Coach through this pandemic,’’ Toppin said of Thibodeau. “I understand he’s a defensive coach, and that’s one of my biggest things I need to work on. He’s going to make sure that I lock in and make sure that I become great one day. I feel like if I get that defensive scheme down, I’m going to be a really good player one day, a really great player one day.’’ …

The 22-year-old Toppin is a Creative Artists Agency client, and Rose had hoped all along he would fall. Rose used to run CAA, and Toppin has been working out with Rose’s first client, Rick Brunson, in South Jersey. Toppin has been compared to Shawn Marion and Amar’e Stoudemire, for his explosiveness.

And the New York Times:

When Toppin first walked through the doors at Mt. Zion, he stood 6-foot-5, weighed about 185 pounds and had trouble getting the attention of the best A.A.U. teams in his area. Today he is 6-foot-9, weighs 220 pounds and is the holder of the 2020 John R. Wooden Award for college player of the year after he led the Flyers to a 29-2 record last season.

He shoots from long range and midrange, and slashes to the rim, and he is known to electrify audiences with his innovative and acrobatic dunks.

“I don’t rank his dunks,” said Anthony Grant, the head coach at Dayton, “but he will definitely excite a crowd with his explosiveness, variety and showmanship. He’s fun to watch; must-see TV.”

The Knicks are rebuilding, and hope that Toppin will emerge alongside shooting guard R.J. Barrett and forward/center Mitchell Robinson as a key young building block.