NBA Rumors

The New York Knicks have picked up the $6.8 million team option in the rookie contract of power forward Obi Toppin for the 2023-24 NBA season.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the news ahead of Wednesday night's game between the Knicks and Charlotte Hornets at Madison Square Garden.

Toppin has averaged 6.8 points and 3.0 rebounds while shooting 52.2 percent from the field across 137 career games. He has per-game averages of 9.3 points and 3.7 boards during the early stages this season.

The New York City native enjoyed a monster 2019-20 season at Dayton, winning the Wooden and Naismith Awards as the national player of the year and earning consensus First Team All-American honors.

That success led the Knicks to select him with the eighth overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft, but he's yet to reach expectations in the NBA. He's finished with a negative Raptor in each of his first two seasons, a FiveThirtyEight metric that measures a player's overall impact.

It's prevented him from earning a consistent role in the team's rotation, a trend that's continued in the early stages this season as he's playing just 16 minutes per game.

That hasn't come as a surprise, as Toppin discussed the expected lack of playing time back in September when training camp opened.

"Not a lot of people in this position, so that's all we can do is have fun," Toppin told reporters. "Coach [Tom Thibodeau] controls all that, and we're here. I'm ready whenever my name is called, just like every other player. So, whenever my name is called, I'm gonna try to give it 110 [percent] every day."

Despite the limited role, the Knicks' decision to pick up the fourth-year option isn't shocking given the team-friendly salary.

The tougher call will come when New York has to choose whether to make a $9.2 million qualifying offer that would come with a $20.4 million salary-cap hold for 2024-25, per Spotrac.

Thibodeau is under pressure to coach the Knicks to a bounce-back season, so he's going to stick with the players he trusts, and recent history suggests that doesn't bode well for Toppin trying to earn a more high-volume role.

If New York struggles and a coaching change takes place, that would likely be the 24-year-old forward's chance to break through. Otherwise, he may have to wait until he changes teams for that shot at putting together a breakout year.

The Los Angeles Lakers are off to an 0-3 start and may need to make a trade before a second straight season slips away.

That could reportedly lead to more phone calls with the Utah Jazz.

According to Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, the Purple and Gold offered Utah a package that included Russell Westbrook, a future first-round pick and second-rounders in a potential trade that could have landed them Bojan Bogdanović, but the Jazz ultimately traded the forward to the Detroit Pistons.

Yet O'Connor reported the two teams could "resume talks later in the season with some combination of other players discussed" and pointed to Jordan Clarkson, Mike Conley and Rudy Gay as three possible options.

To say there should be concern in Los Angeles would be an understatement.

After all, this team is loaded with future Hall of Famers and didn't even qualify for the play-in tournament last season. While the Lakers fired head coach Frank Vogel, they didn't make many significant changes to the roster even after a summer of Westbrook trade rumors.

Westbrook struggled to adjust to a new role in his first season and isn't the type of outside shooter who can consistently take advantage of the spacing created by playing alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

After shooting 29.8 percent from deep in 2021-22, he is shooting 28.9 percent from the field and 8.3 percent from three-point range through three games this season. He was even benched at the end of Sunday's loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.

The Lakers as a team are shooting a league-worst 21.2 percent from beyond the arc in the early going in 2022-23, and James even recognized during a press conference that "we're not a team constructed of great shooting."

Bogdanović could have helped that considering he is a career 39.3 percent shooter from deep who connected on 50.0 percent of his looks in Detroit's first three games this season.

Conley, Clarkson and Gay are all capable shooters who are better suited to playing next to a ball-dominant player like James. And the Jazz may be 3-0 in a surprise start, but they are also building toward the future after trading Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert and Bogdanović this offseason.

A quick start to the season likely won't stop them from adding future draft picks in a deal with the Lakers if the right one presents itself.

As Draymond Green prepares to potentially become a free agent after this season, there have been rumblings he could pursue a deal with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Per Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.com, there's a belief around the NBA that Green is using the Lakers for leverage to try to get more money from Golden State.

There have been a lot of questions about Green's future with the Warriors in the wake of his altercation with Jordan Poole during a practice last week that resulted in the four-time All-Star punching his teammate.

After stepping away from the team for a few days, Green returned Thursday and addressed the situation with Poole during a press conference.

"Jordan's a professional and I'm a professional," Green said. "We have a job to do...We're gonna do what it takes to win, and I think that's the most important thing."

Head coach Steve Kerr announced the Warriors fined Green, but he was not going to be suspended and he's expected to play in the preseason finale Friday against the Denver Nuggets.

In the aftermath of the Poole punch, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said on First Take this week that Green wants to play for the Lakers if he leaves Golden State.

Anthony Slater and Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic reported in July that Green "wants and believes" he deserves a four-year max contract from the Warriors, but the team had "no plans" to make him such an offer.

The Warriors are in a tricky spot with player contracts. They have been willing to pay deep into the repeater tax to keep their core of Green, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson together.

Things will start to get interesting after this season with Green able to opt out of his deal and Andrew Wiggins set to become an unrestricted free agent. Kerr told reporters earlier this week that Poole is "hopefully" about to sign a "big extension" with the team.

Green's current deal pays him $25.8 million this season with a $27.6 million player option for 2023-24. The 32-year-old was named to the All-Defensive second team last season, and he averaged 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game in 46 games during the 2021-22 campaign.

The Warriors will begin defense of their NBA title Oct. 18 when they host the Lakers at Chase Center.

Let the tanking begin.

After Victor Wembanyama's performance during Tuesday's high-profile showdown with fellow top prospect Scoot Henderson, one general manager believes teams will be striving for the top pick in the 2023 NBA draft like never before.

"Victor distorts basketball reality," the GM said, per Adrian Wojnarowski and Jonathan Givony of ESPN. "The tank/trade market will really shift after that showing. It feels like last night will start a race to the bottom like we've never seen."

While Tuesday's exhibition was between France's Metropolitans 92 and the G League Ignite, it was billed as a clash between the potential top two picks in the next draft.

Henderson led his team to a victory with 28 points, nine assists and five rebounds, showing off his skill set as a foundational guard who could be the face of a franchise for years to come, but it was the 7'4" Wembanyama who dazzled with 37 points, five blocks and seven threes.

Victor Wembanyama & Scoot Henderson's duel was a MOVIE!

Victor: 37 PTS (11-20 FGM), 7 3PM, 5 BLK
Scoot: 28 PTS, 5 REB, 9 AST

Game 2: Thurs. 3PM ET on ESPN 2 and the NBA App
📲 https://t.co/WIy2EVo02V pic.twitter.com/ljStpTNQt5

— NBA (@NBA) October 5, 2022

The overall smoothness of his game at that size and the reality he is an absolute matchup nightmare with his outside shooting surely had front offices around the league dreaming of the chance to draft him.

"He's a 7'4" Durant who blocks shots—and he's not even close to what he's going to be," one GM said. "He will be the most hyped player since LeBron."

The possibility of more teams tanking could have a ripple effect across the league during the 2022-23 campaign, as Wojnarowski and Givony explained.

Perhaps that comes in the form of teams on the fringe of the play-in tournament trading or resting more of their go-to players. That, in turn, could help the teams near the top of the standings who are looking to make additions prior to the trade deadline.

Tanking does not guarantee anything, though, as the league changed the draft lottery rules in 2019. The teams with the three worst records in the league all have a 14 percent chance of the top pick, and the numbers fall to 12.5 percent for the team with the fourth-worst record and 10.5 percent for the one with the fifth-worst.

Those lottery odds will be even more important ahead of the 2023 draft if Wembanyama does live up to his potential as someone who could be the face of the league in the future.

The Golden State Warriors are releasing second-year guard Mac McClung, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium.

The reigning NBA champions intend to sign Ty Jerome, who was waived by the Houston Rockets. Per Charania and Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Golden State is also bringing in Anthony Lamb on a training-camp contract.

McClung played 12 minutes in the Warriors' 104-95 preseason win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday. He finished with nine points on 4-of-6 shooting, two rebounds, two assists and two steals.

The 23-year-old spent the bulk of the 2021-22 season in the NBA G League, making just two appearances in the NBA regular season. In the G League, the 6'2" guard averaged 19.6 points and 5.8 assists over 13 games with the South Bay Lakers.

Jerome brings a little more experience as Golden State looks to shore up its backcourt. The 6'5" guard is approaching his fourth season in the Association, having averaged 7.1 points and shot 34.4 percent from beyond the arc in 17.1 minutes per game in 112 contests.

Lamb would give the team another option on the wing. The 6'6" forward has logged 423 career minutes, putting up 5.1 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.

The Warriors have the NBA's highest payroll at $202.1 million. Because of that, they may prefer to have the flexibility offered by signing a player to a training-camp or two-way contract even though they have the space to offer one more guaranteed deal.

The Los Angeles Lakers have been eyeing a move for Buddy Hield and Myles Turner this offseason, and it appears the Indiana Pacers would be willing to move both players—on one condition.

If the Lakers traded two unprotected first-round picks to the Pacers, Indiana would "probably do that deal," ESPN's Zach Lowe said on The Lowe Post podcast:

"The one I've said I would lose sleep over if I were a Buss or Mr. Pelinka is trading both picks to the Pacers for Buddy Hield and Myles Turner. ... My best intel right now is if the Lakers called Indiana and said 'Both picks unprotected,' the Pacers would do that deal, would probably do that deal."

However, the Lakers have nothing in the works with the Pacers on a deal for Hield and Turner, Lowe added.

"I don't think the Lakers are there," Lowe said. "For whatever reason, they don't appear to think that the Pacers' package puts them really in the championship inner circle and they're holding onto those picks unless they find a deal that they think gets them into that inner circle."

The Lakers had been pursuing Hield and Turner for much of the offseason. However, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski (h/t Arthur Hill of Hoops Rumors) reported in August that the Purple and Gold weren't interested in moving both of their 2027 and 2029 first-round picks in exchange for the duo.

Wojnarowski added that the Lakers would be open to moving those picks for the right player, such as Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving, who is now very much off the table with the return of Kevin Durant.

It's understandable that the Lakers don't want to sacrifice their future. However, Hield and Turner would be solid additions to a team that struggled during the 2021-22 campaign.

The Purple and Gold were interested in acquiring perimeter shooting depth this offseason, and Hield would undoubtedly provide a boost in that department. During the 2021-22 season, he shot 36.6 percent from deep and is averaging 39.8 shooting from beyond the arc across six seasons.

In addition, Hield averaged 15.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists while shooting 40.6 percent from the floor last season.

Turner, meanwhile, would be a nice upgrade at center, and playing him at the position would allow Anthony Davis to move back to power forward. He averaged 12.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 2.8 blocks last season while shooting 50.9 percent from the floor.

Turner is entering the final year of his contract in 2022-23, so it's possible the Lakers and Pacers could revisit negotiations around the trade deadline. The same goes for Hield, who is under contract through 2023-24.

That said, it seems like the Pacers aren't interested in making a deal unless it includes both of L.A.'s first-round picks. So, the Purple and Gold might need to consider other options moving forward.

The Boston Celtics won't stand in Ime Udoka's path if the suspended head coach gets a chance to seek employment elsewhere.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the news Friday:

"At a news conference last week, Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck said the suspension—which extends through June 30, 2023—was a product of multiple violations of team policies, and sources told ESPN the Celtics won't stand in Udoka's way should he have the chance to become a coaching candidate elsewhere. There are teams that have tried to gather a preliminary understanding of the full explanation for Udoka's suspension in preparation for possibly evaluating him for future coaching employment, sources told ESPN."

Wojnarowski reported on Sept. 21 that the suspension resulted from his role in an "intimate relationship with a female member of the franchise's staff."

Udoka joined the Celtics last year after nine seasons as an NBA assistant. He led Boston to an Eastern Conference title, its first since 2010.

Wojnarowski previously reported on other teams' potential interest in Udoka (h/t ClutchPoints).

"In talking to some other organizations today, he may become a candidate or a coach of interest for other jobs that might open or might become open during the season or certainly next season," Wojnarowski said on SportsCenter on Sept. 22.

Udoka does not plan to resign from the Celtics amid the suspension, per NBA insider Chris B. Haynes. He has since apologized for "putting the team in this difficult situation" and has accepted the suspension.

There's speculation and insight that Udoka has coached his last game with the Celtics. Of note, Brian Robb of MassLive reported on that front in a recent mailbag.

"At this point, I’d be pretty shocked if he did," Robb said in response to a question regarding whether he thought Udoka would coach the Celtics again. "Time will ultimately tell the tale on this front but wouldn’t surprise me to see the two sides eventually reach some sort of buyout of Udoka’s contract. Leaving a suspension open-ended after one season speaks volumes in my mind that there is far from a guarantee that he would ever be welcomed back."

In the meantime, assistant coach Joe Mazzulla will step in as the team's interim head coach. The 34-year-old, who starred for West Virginia as a guard en route to a 2010 Final Four berth, has worked as an assistant with Boston since 2019.

The C's open the season on Oct. 18 against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Deandre Ayton believes Phoenix Suns governor Robert Sarver is to blame for not initially receiving a max contract extension, as both Ramona Shelburne and Marc Spears of ESPN reported:

"I was told that it was Robert Sarver who didn't want to give him that fifth year, who wanted to save the money," Spears said on NBA Today (2:35 in video).

"My understanding from talking to people close to Deandre is that he thinks this was Robert Sarver's decision as well," Shelburne added (3:50).

The Suns chose not to offer Ayton a max contract when he was eligible in 2021, allowing the center to become a restricted free agent this offseason. Phoenix eventually matched the four-year, $133 million offer sheet signed by the Indiana Pacers in July.

As Spears noted, the difference cost Ayton one year and $40 million in his total contract.

Sarver has already announced he will sell the Suns as well as the Phoenix Mercury after earning a one-year suspension from the NBA for racist and misogynistic behavior. His departure could allow Ayton to move forward on a positive note with the organization.

On the other hand, there are still question marks about his relationship with head coach Monty Williams.

Williams benched the center in Game 7 of the team's second-round loss to the Dallas Mavericks after 17 minutes of playing time, and Ayton said Tuesday the two haven't spoken since.

The coach doesn't believe it will be an issue, saying he doesn't speak to a lot of the players during the offseason. It's still enough to raise question marks about a team expected to compete for a championship.

Phoenix finished last season with the best record in the NBA at 64-18, with Ayton finishing as its second-leading scorer and top rebounder. He averaged 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, his fourth year averaging a double-double in as many seasons.

Forward Draymond Green reportedly won't hesitate to leave the Golden State Warriors in free agency next offseason if it benefits him to do so.

According to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com (h/t Jack Simone of Heavy.com), an anonymous Western Conference executive said Green "is not going to be shy about leaving" Golden State for the right offer since he is "about player power" and "understands this business."

The executive mentioned the Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers as teams Green would potentially consider leaving Golden State for if he receives a favorable offer.

Green is under contract through at least the 2022-23 season, and while he could exercise his player option for the 2023-24 campaign, he also has the option of declining it and becoming a free agent next offseason.

The anonymous exec noted that Green has long had an interest in playing in Detroit, which is near his hometown of Saginaw, Michigan. Green would reportedly also "love" to play with Luka Dončić in Dallas, and may have an interest in joining LeBron James in L.A., especially since he has entertainment aspirations once his NBA career is over.

Green, 32, is one of the NBA's all-time great role players, having played a key part in four Warriors championships.

The former Michigan State standout is a four-time All-Star, seven-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection and one-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, due largely to his ability and willingness to do the little things in support of Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

Green's career averages of 8.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.0 block per game don't necessarily leap off the page, but they prove that he does a little bit of everything to contribute to winning.

The Warriors and Green suffered through a couple of tough seasons after their run of five consecutive NBA Finals appearances, but they got back on track last season, winning their fourth title since 2015.

While Green never has been and likely never will be a go-to offensive option, he is the type of player that every contending team would love to have.

Because of that, the Warriors figure to have some heavy competition for Green's services whenever he hits the free-agent market.

It stands to reason that the Dubs will fight hard to retain Green, but given the money tied up in Curry and Thompson, plus potential future investments in Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole, Jonathan Kuminga and James Wiseman, keeping Green will be easier said than done.

Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka reportedly will not resign from his position while he awaits punishment from the Boston Celtics for having a consensual relationship with a female member of the organization, according to NBA insider Chris Haynes.

Per multiple reports, he is potentially facing punishment and possibly a yearlong suspension.

Celtics coach Ime Udoka had an improper intimate and consensual relationship with a female member of the team staff, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. It’s been deemed a violation of franchise’s code of conduct.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) September 22, 2022

Ime Udoka’s job isn’t believed to be in jeopardy, but a suspension is looming and a final determination on that length could come as soon as Thursday, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/x0uWgD5URM

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 22, 2022

Assistant coach Joe Mazzulla is likely to become Boston's interim coach for the season, sources tell ESPN. https://t.co/GKEiMemnFN

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 22, 2022

While the actual details of the situation are unclear, the Celtics' handling of the situation to this point has been seen as suspect by some NBA pundits:

The handling of the Ime Udoka situation has been awful. From it leaking out to the coverage to the rampant speculation and putting people’s names and reputation up while speculation is disgusting and gross. No one needs these details. These are real people in a messed up spot.

— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) September 22, 2022

Agreed. The initial reporting invited heightened speculation, and that's only been compounded by the team's silence. The longer this drags on, the more it appears the #Celtics and Ime Udoka are headed for a parting, not a hiatus. https://t.co/0UNqWfrJmO

— Adam Kaufman (@AdamMKaufman) September 22, 2022

If somebody in the Celtics organization leaked that story about Ime Udoka, they need to be held accountable. Every woman who works there now must deal with some awful speculation. Just foul.

— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) September 22, 2022

Udoka, 45, was entering his second season as head coach for the Celtics after leading the team to a 51-31 record and a trip to the NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Golden State Warriors.

Prior to joining the Celtics he spent time as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs (2012-13 to 2018-19), Philadelphia 76ers (2019-20) and Brooklyn Nets (2020-21).

He also had a seven-year career in the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers (2003-04), New York Knicks (2005-06), Portland Trail Blazers (2006-07) and San Antonio Spurs (2007-08 to 2010-11).

Additionally, he spent time playing professionally overseas in Europe.

Joe Mazzulla, 34, will take over as interim head coach. He has spent the past three years as an assistant coach for the Celtics under both former head coach and current President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens and Udoka.