NBA Northwest

Utah Jazz point guard Mike Conley thought he was heading to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of Utah's offseason overhaul that featured the departures of Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.

Conley told Tony Jones of The Athletic on Monday he received a message from a "person he trusted" suggesting a move to the Clippers, a team that has interested him in recent years, could be on the horizon. Instead, the Clips opted to sign free agent John Wall.

"We tried to handle it as well as it could be handled," Conley told Jones about himself and his wife, Mary. "It was tough because there weren't really many answers to the questions that we had. We didn't know who was staying or going. We had no clue what to expect. It felt like every day I was being traded somewhere else."

The 2021 All-Star ultimately stayed in Utah, and he's played a key role in the team's red-hot 9-3 start to the 2022-23 season.

After the offseason whirlwind of moves, it seemed like the Jazz might struggle to reach .500, let alone sit atop the Western Conference standings as they do now. It's still a small sample size, but they're on track to far exceed expectations.

Conley has averaged 12.5 points, 7.5 assists, 2.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals through 11 appearances. He's also knocking down 2.4 threes per game at a 42.6 percent clip.

"This was tough at first because I'm 35 and I'm so used to having championship aspirations," Conley told Jones. "I came to the Jazz to play for championships. So I was wondering what would end up happening. But once we got a new coach (Will Hardy) in here and he started laying things out, I knew that I wanted to be here. We are building and developing."

The Ohio State product added he's "loved every second" of playing for the rebuilt Jazz.

Depending on how Utah plays over the next few months, it's still possible Conley ends up on the trade block ahead of the deadline. His three-year, $68 million contract includes a partially guaranteed salary for next season, per Spotrac.

For now, the three-time winner of the NBA Sportsmanship Award said he's focused on the present.

"Honestly, these young guys are keeping me in the moment," Conley told Jones. "Everyone is constantly asking questions and constantly wanting to watch film. I kind of feel like a coach now. I love playing this game and I'm enjoying it."

The Jazz are back on the floor Wednesday night when they visit State Farm Arena to take on the 7-3 Atlanta Hawks.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards isn't happy with the team's effort after falling to 5-6 on the season.

"We just play soft, man," Edwards told reporters. "Like, every bump, we flying all over the place, including myself. Teams just coming in like, 'We're going to take their heart,' and that's what's going on. We're down 20 every game! We've got to figure it out."

The Timberwolves have lost four of their last five games, with the only win coming at home against the last-place Houston Rockets. The latest loss came Monday against the New York Knicks, falling behind in the first quarter while never really getting competitive the rest of the game.

It's a disappointing stretch for a team with high expectations entering the year, adding Rudy Gobert to a squad that went 46-36 last season.

Talent is clearly not the issue with a team featuring Edwards, Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns and more. It seems the mentality has to change in order for Minnesota to emerge as a legitimate contender.

Jerami Grant hit a buzzer-beater to help the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Phoenix Suns on Friday night, but the NBA believes the final shot should have been called off for a traveling violation.

Grant made the go-ahead bucket off an inbound with no time remaining to complete the 108-106 win:

JERAMI GRANT FOR THE WIN 🔥 https://t.co/kx8eE8KQzG

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 5, 2022

A review confirmed Grant released the ball in time for the play to count, although the NBA's Last Two Minute Report stated there was an incorrect no call for a travel.

"Grant (POR) gathers the ball with one hand and then takes three steps before releasing the shot attempt," the report stated.

To make matters worse for Phoenix, the Trail Blazers only received the ball with one second left after Mikal Bridges was called for a travel on the other end of the court. The L2M report stated this was also an incorrect call.

"Bridges (PHX) brings two hands to the ball and gathers it on his right foot," the report said. "He then comes down on two feet for his first step and can choose either foot as his pivot foot. He establishes his left foot as his pivot by stepping with his right and then leaves the ground and releases his shot attempt."

The Suns might have had a chance to score their own go-ahead basket but instead fell to the Trail Blazers in regulation.

Portland still deserves credit for an impressive effort on the road, with Grant scoring 30 points on 10-of-17 from the field. It was enough to get to 6-2 on the season, tying the Suns for the best record in the Western Conference.

The Los Angeles Lakers' defense was criticized after struggling mightily to generate stops in a 130-116 home loss to the Utah Jazz on Friday night.

L.A.'s play at that end of the floor has been a bright spot despite the team's sluggish start, ranking seventh in the NBA with a 45.3 percent opponent's field goal percentage. That wasn't the case against Utah, which shot 50.5 percent from the field and knocked down 17 threes to drop the Lakers' record to 2-6.

"We never want it to happen, but there's some games throughout the course of an 82-game season where you don't have it defensively, and tonight we didn't have it," five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection LeBron James told reporters.

Here's a look at some social-media reaction to the defensive performance:

Defense was trash tonight. Ham should light em up. Seeing this team again on Monday. Gotta tighten up. Jazz playing beautiful team ball. Kudos to them.

— QuestFor18 (@HisandHerLakers) November 5, 2022

Lakers playing defense https://t.co/xheoCoaVEd

— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) November 5, 2022

LeBron finally looks kinda old. This lakers team is more embarassing than their record. AD took one shot in the fourth quarter and played awful defense. What are they doing lol. They needed russ to bail them out tonight and got run out the gym

— kang (@jaycaspiankang) November 5, 2022

The Lakers had the 3rd best defense coming into tonight.

The Jazz just dropped 130 points on them, shooting 51/43/90%.

They are 7-3. pic.twitter.com/Gn0IejyepM

— StatMuse (@statmuse) November 5, 2022

Lakers’ game plan on defense. pic.twitter.com/fIjkX180fi

— Durham Hurricanes (@DHurricanes2002) November 5, 2022

Not a lot to say, the defense was pitiful. Nobody put bodies on people. Utah was able to get open looks off simple ball movement and they set a ton is screens that the Lakers just died on

— CL Owens 🏀 🇺🇸 (@CSmoove_Sports) November 5, 2022

Lakers defense let them down tonight. Get back on track next game.

— TheLakersOptimist (@LakersOptimist) November 5, 2022

Russ has looked great the last few games! The defense let the Lakers down tonight which had been their strong front. Jordan Clarkson balled out!
I think they’ll find a groove here and start winning some of these games. If they keep their defense going & run faster breaks

— Kelvin Washington (@Kdubblive) November 5, 2022

The defense all around let the Lakers down in this one

Just abysmal.

Tough one coming up against Cleveland. #LakeShow

— 𝒦𝒶𝓃𝑒 💜💛🇳🇿 (@LALPrime) November 5, 2022

The struggles defending a well-rounded Jazz offense overshadowed some other positive signs for Los Angeles.

James nearly had a triple-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, while Anthony Davis recorded 22 points and eight boards. Russell Westbrook also continued his resurgence off the bench with 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting along with six dimes.

They just couldn't slow down Utah, which scored 40 points in the first quarter and never looked back.

Lauri Markkanen paced the Jazz with 27 points and 13 rebounds. Jordan Clarkson (20 points), Kelly Olynyk (18), Collin Sexton (17) and Mike Conley (15) also reached double figures in scoring for Utah, which improved to 7-3.

"Defense is something you can get right damn near every night," Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said. "We need to be accountable on that end of the floor. ... We gotta get stops to survive and excel."

L.A. will look to combine its typically reliable defense with an improving offense when it returns to action Sunday to host the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder were each fined $25,000 for violating the league's injury reporting rules:

The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/M4tZFzDVaW

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) November 3, 2022

The following was released by the NBA. pic.twitter.com/S7WLKgkOv5

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) November 3, 2022

Thunder guard Josh Giddey was initially ruled out for Tuesday's game against the Orlando Magic with an ankle injury but he was later able to play. He had seven points with 10 assists in a 116-108 win for Oklahoma City.

Brandon Boston Jr. and Moussa Diabaté were also ruled out for Sunday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans due to their G League assignments. They ended up being active and both playing in the game.

Boston and Diabaté each played five minutes in the 112-91 loss.

Both entered the game with the Clippers trailing by 18 points, so their appearances didn't make much of an impact, but the NBA still has strict rules about reporting lineups.

It was the second career NBA game for Diabaté, a second-round draft pick out of Michigan who is playing on a two-way contract. Boston averaged 6.7 points per game as a rookie last year for Los Angeles. He's now seen action in five games this season.

Giddey's impact is a bigger one for the Thunder. The 2021 No. 6 overall draft pick averaged 12.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game last season and continues to fill up the stat sheet in 2022-23. Through four games, he is averaging 12.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game.

An ankle injury cost him three games last week, but his return provides the Thunder with a significant boost going forward.

Expectations are high for Anthony Edwards in his third season, but the Minnesota Timberwolves guard has been inconsistent through eight games.

One thing that's been noticeably absent from Edwards' performance thus far is finishing at the rim with a dunk.

"I feel like I lost some of my powers," Edwards told Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

Per Basketball-Reference.com, Edwards has attempted 156 field goals with no dunks this season. He had 128 dunks in the previous two seasons combined.

https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1362972303303221254

There have been questions about Edwards' conditioning during the offseason. Karl-Anthony Towns publicly criticized his teammates' eating habits after a loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Oct. 24, the second night of a back-to-back.

"Maybe I could do a better job of teaching him how to take care of his body—diet and everything," Towns told reporters. "That’ll be on me. I know y’all think it’s funny up here when he talks about Popeyes and all that s--t. That doesn’t make me happy to hear. We’re high-level athletes."

Hine noted Edwards said last week he was working on conditioning to get his "legs back."

The 21-year-old is averaging career-highs across the board, including scoring (23.1 points per game), rebounding (6.1), assists (4.0), field-goal percentage (44.9) and three-point percentage (36.9). But he's also turning the ball over 3.1 times per game, up from 2.6 last season.

Minnesota's ceiling this season and beyond will depend largely on Edwards developing into a superstar. The team paid a steep price in draft picks to acquire Rudy Gobert.

The T-Wolves are only 4-4 through eight games, but it's still early. Edwards can play himself back into prime shape as the season goes along, which will allow him to throw down those poster dunks he was known for over the previous two years.

Former NBA guard Eric Bledsoe was arrested for allegedly slapping his girlfriend on Oct. 26, but he will reportedly not face charges.

According to TMZ Sports, the Los Angeles County District Attorney declined to press charges "due to insufficient evidence."

Bledsoe was freed on bond after his arrest.

Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post noted he was initially charged with misdemeanor domestic violence.

TMZ previously reported his girlfriend posted a since-deleted picture on Instagram that showed a red mark on her face and included a caption that said, "No relationship like this is ever worth staying in. ... Domestic violence is real! …. Eric Bledsoe really is a monster."

She has since commented on one of Bledsoe's pictures on Instagram with the words "my baby."

Bledsoe entered the NBA in the 2010 draft and last played in a game during the 2021-22 campaign. He suited up for the Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks and New Orleans Pelicans.

Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reported Thursday that Bledsoe was signing with the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association.

The Utah Jazz may be off to an unexpectedly strong start to the 2022-23 NBA season. However, the franchise's offseason suggests that Utah is looking to build for the future.

Over the summer, the Jazz traded star center Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves and dealt standout guard Donovan Mitchell to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Royce O'Neale was sent to the Brooklyn Nets. The message those moves sent was clear. Utah is focused on winning in the long term, not this season.

Yet when it comes to one remaining player, guard Jordan Clarkson, the Jazz appear unwilling to deal.

"I’ve heard the same stuff that other people have reported, that they are just super reluctant to move Clarkson," ESPN's Zach Lowe said on his Lowe Post podcast. ”They’re really fond of him for whatever reason so I would peg him as the least likely of all these Jazz guys to get traded."

This is a stance that Utah must change as it looks to build a perennial contender beyond 2022. As Tony Jones of The Athletic noted, Utah's plan is to take as many swings at the draft as possible.

"What the Jazz have done for themselves better than the last rebuild is give themselves more bites at the apple," Jones wrote. "It can't be stated enough how important it is to essentially control the draft of two teams for five consecutive years."

While trades to the Timberwolves, Nets and Cavaliers might not yield lottery picks—Utah's selection alone will give the Jazz a shot at Victor Wembanyama, if they don't keep winning—but it can bring in long-term pieces of the franchise.

The 30-year-old Clarkson is not that. He's been valuable early this year—he averaged 18.8 points while shooting over 40 percent from three-point range heading into Friday's game—but he may not be long for the franchise.

Clarkson has a player option for the 2023-24 season and may not want any part of the rebuilding process. If the Jazz don't want to risk losing Clarkson for nothing, they must move him before February's trade deadline.

And the Jazz can likely get something of value for the Missouri product. Earlier this month, Yahoo Sports' Jake Fischer reported that the Phoenix Suns have eyed Clarkson in a potential Jae Crowder deal.

"Clarkson, one of the many veterans thought to be available in Utah, is one dynamic guard the Suns have inquired about landing in exchange for Crowder, sources said," Fischer wrote.

Fischer believes that a Crowder trade could result in him receiving a buyout from the Jazz. In that scenario, the Suns would almost certainly include some enticing draft compensation to facilitate the deal.

Clarkson could also be a centerpiece in a trade with the Los Angeles Lakers. According to The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor, L.A. was close to offloading Russell Westbrook to the Jazz before Utah sent Bojan Bogdanović to the Detroit Pistons.

Per O'Connor, the Lakers and Jazz could re-engage in trade talks this season:

"Utah has been connected to the Lakers for months, too. League sources say that before the Jazz sent Bojan Bogdanovic to the Pistons, the Lakers offered Westbrook, a future first-round pick, and second-rounders for Bogdanovic and others. Sources expect the Lakers and Jazz to resume talks later in the season with some combination of other players discussed. (Utah has Jordan Clarkson, Mike Conley, and Rudy Gay—three veterans who can all shoot.)"

Would the Jazz take on Westbrook for a partial season in order to obtain more future draft capital? Given the team's rebuilding plan, it would make sense. Given the fact that Clarkson could walk next spring anyway, making him available would also be logical.

And perhaps Utah is open to dealing Clarkson, only privately. Perhaps the Jazz are feigning reluctance in an effort to maximize his trade value. Theoretically, they'll get a bigger return by showcasing Clarkson in a prominent role early than by representing him as a trade chip.

When it comes time to actually flip the switch on a deal, however, Clarkson shouldn't be off-limits. The Jazz may be stringing together some wins now, but their success is highly unlikely to last all season. Their future success may depend on their ability to turn aging role players like Clarkson into young cornerstones of the franchise.

Portland Trail Blazers superstar guard Damian Lillard is going to miss at least one to two weeks.

On Thursday, Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Lillard has been diagnosed with a calf strain. He will be re-evaluated in one to two weeks.

Lillard suffered the injury midway through the third quarter of Wednesday's loss to the Miami Heat. He told reporters after the game that he wasn't concerned about it being a significant issue.

"It wasn't nothing that I was overly concerned with," Lillard said. "I just know that it wouldn't make sense to try and push through it in the fifth game of the season."

The 32-year-old veteran is in the midst of his 11th NBA season, all of which have been spent with the Blazers. In five games so far this season, Lillard is averaging 31.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists.

Lillard is a six-time All-Star and six-time All-NBA selection. He also won the 2012-13 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.

The former Weber State standout has improved with almost every passing year in the league, although he entered the 2022-23 campaign coming off the greatest adversity he had ever faced during his career. Lillard was limited to only 29 games last season due to an abdominal injury that required surgery, and the Blazers went 27-55 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2013.

While Lillard playing great out of the gates this season, the Blazers will now have to make do without him at least for the next few games. Lillard is the straw that stirs the drink in Portland, and losing him for any period of time could be disastrous for the Blazers' playoff aspirations.

Anfernee Simons became the Blazers' go-to scorer last season when Lillard was out last season, and that will likely be the case again. Simons has moved into the starting lineup this year and is averaging 18.6 points on 41.2 percent shooting.

The Blazers can also lean more heavily on Jerami Grant and Josh Hart, while rookie guard Shaedon Sharpe could receive a huge uptick in playing time.

The Blazers are off to a 4-1 start this season, but losing Lillard for any length of time takes away the driving force of their offense. Head coach Chauncey Billups should have enough depth to keep his team afloat until his superstar point guard returns.

The Utah Jazz are one of the NBA's most surprising teams at 4-1 and are reportedly determined to hold onto at least one veteran member of their core.

ESPN's Zach Lowe said the Jazz are currently "super reluctant" to part ways with guard Jordan Clarkson.

“I’ve heard the same stuff that other people have reported that they are just super reluctant to move Clarkson," Lowe said on his Lowe Post podcast. ”They’re really fond of him for whatever reason so I would peg him as the least likely of all these Jazz guys to get traded.”

Clarkson is off to a stellar start to the 2022-23 season, averaging 18.8 points, 5.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game while appearing as a regular starter for the first time in seven years. He's currently shooting a career-high 42.9 percent from three-point range.

While Clarkson is playing the best basketball of his career, it's hard to find a logical reason behind the front office's reluctance to trade him. Utah started a full-scale rebuild this offseason, jettisoning stars Donovan Mitchell (Cleveland) and Rudy Gobert (Minnesota) in exchange for hauls that included mismatched veterans and future first-round picks.

Clarkson is a 30-year-old sixth man who can become an unrestricted free agent this summer. He's old enough to be out of his playing prime by the time the Jazz are capable of competing again and enough of an immediate-impact player that contenders would likely give up a protected first-round pick in trade talks.

In other words, Clarkson is the exact type of player rebuilding franchises seek to move.

It's possible, if not likely, the Jazz's front office softens on their stance as the season progresses. Utah isn't going to keep winning games at this rate, and Clarkson's performance will eventually regress back to his career mean.

When that happens, there will be any number of scoring-hungry teams looking to make a deal.