Enes Kanter: See u in a little bit NY #Knicks ❤️
“I don’t even know about this trade,” Curry said. “I just heard about this trade 10 seconds ago. So, they got Kanter and … I guess I am happy [for Anthony] because I know he wanted to get out and be in a situation where he felt like what he was doing on the court was actually productive. It’s going to be wild to see that trio of guys together. It’s just crazy how the West is getting stronger and stronger. It should be another tough matchup when we play them.”
CJ McCollum: Kanter released a statement about his love for OKC and the organization ... 4 days later he got traded. Stay woke, it's a business. Damian Lillard: Nobody safe 🤷🏽♂️
Enes Kanter: One last time Okla-Home 💙🇹🇷
Marc Berman: Like Thunder: Sources say #Knicks will announce Monday they have finally move Melo in gaining young assets
Frank Urbina: For Knicks fans: Per @NBA Math's play-type profiles, Enes Kanter added the 4th-most value on post-ups in 2016-17.
Maybe he had no idea or maybe he was just having some fun with the whole thing, but as news - including from USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick - surfaced that Enes Kanter is heading to the Knicks he took to Periscope - and encouraged all of the kids at an event for his foundation to say 'hi' to the camera. "We're just here with the kids, just hanging out at OKC," he said. "Just playing some basketball, just doing some charity work."
Kanter on periscope in OKC, and doesn’t know he’s been traded yet.. ?? (??: @Enes_Kanter)
David Aldridge: Source confirms @Carmelo Anthony trade to Thunder for Enes Kanter, Doug McDermott and 2018 pick (originally Chicago's). @Adrian Wojnarowski first.
Katz: Now, I’ll ask you the question that you already asked for me. What do you think of the trade talk surrounding you? Kanter: I see trade rumors all the time, especially about me. The year I got traded to OKC, I played that year and then after every year, I heard the rumors. 'Enes Kanter is getting traded. Enes Kanter is getting traded.' I can’t say enough how much I love the fans [in Oklahoma City], how much I love the organization, all the people there. I see them like family. I really see them like my family. But if it happens, it happens. I can’t do nothing about it, because it’s not in my hands.
Katz: Did you have that same mentality when you were in Utah and you actually got traded? Do you feel like you’ve matured more? Kanter: Yeah, of course. If I ever get traded, I can’t say enough how much I appreciate this organization. They’re amazing. Katz: So, what were you like in Utah, then? How have you changed as a person? Kanter: I changed. Of course, you cannot compare OKC to Utah. There is a huge difference, but I changed, too. If you see something bad, you don’t say it to media. You have to keep it to yourself. You don’t have to say it loud. You just have to be mature about it, because those fans are paying your bills, and they love you.
It’s an interesting time for Kanter to become an international story, considering he’s quite likely on the trading block for the Thunder. We wrote about Kanter’s status for the Wednesday Oklahoman, which you can read here. Does Kanter’s contentious relationship with Turkey hurt his trade value? How could it not? We’ve already established that Kanter’s value has been diminished by the type of play. Low-post players with limited versatility are not in demand the way they once were. A player like Kanter still can help a team – he still helps the Thunder a bunch – but his value is less than in previous forms of NBA play.
So there are potential trade partners for Kanter. However, you add in the political developments, and franchises will give pause. Do they want to take on the potential problem of a player who doesn’t even have a passport? Do they want to add a player who is the arch-enemy of a major international nation? What does that even mean? No one knows. Which hurts his trade value. You absolutely know what you’re getting with Enes Kanter the basketball player. Heck, you know what you’re getting with Enes Kanter the person. A friendly guy – friendliest player in Thunder history, I’d say – and a loyal teammate.
So of course the roster will undergo changes — big changes, if Presti has his way. Kanter absolutely is on the trading block, not because the Thunder has grown disenchanted with Enes the Menace, but because he's got some value (remember, 33.1 points per 100 possessions played) and OKC is overstocked on big men. The Thunder absolutely is in the market for a backup point guard. And literally every team in the league covets versatile wings.
Marc Stein: OKC, meanwhile, continues to probe the league for potential trade partners to take on Enes Kanter to free up money for a run at Al Horford. Don't forget on Kanter: Has veto power over any trade until July 12 after OKC matched his Portland offer sheet AND a 15-percent trade kicker
March 22, 2023 | 9:21 pm EDT Update

Walt “Clyde” Frazier said he’d been “meandering” all day on Wednesday, one day after the loss of his longtime friend, captain and championship teammate, Willis Reed. “It took me so long to get dressed today,” the famously fashionable Frazier said softly before working Wednesday’s game between the Knicks and the Heat as the longtime analyst for MSG Networks. “It’s been devastating. After seeing him on the video for the 50th anniversary, I didn’t know he was that far gone. Everybody was really surprised.”

Law Murray: Clippers injury report for Thursday night: – Paul George (right knee) out – Norman Powell (left shoulder) out – Brandon Boston Jr. (tailbone) out – Jason Preston (G-League) out – Moussa Diabaté (2-way) out – Xavier Moon (2-way) out
Damichael Cole: A loud standing ovation for Ja Morant in his return to the floor. pic.twitter.com/0LrY2x5Afb
March 22, 2023 | 8:24 pm EDT Update
Mike Brown on Domantas Sabonis: He's as close to Draymond Green as a big man

Sabonis leads the NBA in rebounding and is dishing a career-high 7 assists per game. Every teammate — even Fox — knows to run the wings when Sabonis grabs a defensive board. “He is as close to Draymond Green as any big man I’ve seen in terms of someone who can get it off the glass, bring it up, and make the right play,” says Brown, who coached Green as an assistant in Golden State for six seasons.
During Sabonis’ rookie year in Oklahoma City, Russell Westbrook invited Sabonis to early-morning workouts to go through the nuances of pick-and-roll, says Billy Donovan, who coached that Thunder team. They drilled how to read a defender’s feet, when Sabonis could slip screens, how Sabonis could make himself available for pocket passes. (One of Sabonis’ rookie duties was supplying Westbrook with Snapple for team flights, Sabonis and others on that team recall.) Sabonis was astonished that Fox ceded so much ball handling to him right away, including letting Sabonis rush the ball up after rebounds. “I was really surprised,” Sabonis says. “He has been with the Kings forever. This is his team. He really let me do my thing. Not many franchise point guards would let their big man bring the ball up. He ran with me. He set screens for me. That’s what shocked me most. That’s what made the transition so easy. Neither of us care who is who. We just want to win.”
Sabonis suffered an avulsion fracture in his right thumb and ligament damage in his hand. Fixing it required surgery that would cost between six and eight weeks. The Kings were 17-14, sixth in the West, only a couple games ahead of No. 11. Sabonis wanted to keep playing. “In my mind, sitting out was not an option,” he says. “Six to eight weeks — we can’t risk that.” He asked the team’s medical staff to wait to see if the swelling would subside. It did — enough. He joked that he didn’t use his right hand anyway. After consulting with doctors, trainers, and Sabonis’ agents, the decision was made: He’d play on. The training staff nicknamed him “Wolverine” for his apparent imperviousness to pain.
“He didn’t always understand — this should come from you,” Brown says. “To tape that thumb up and say ‘I’m playing,’ it sets the tone for the whole team. If he and De’Aaron are doing things like that, everyone else falls into line.”
In the weeks before the trade, Thunder officials had talked to Sabonis about playing him more at center — the position he preferred. He pictured himself in Oklahoma City long-term. As free agency approached, Sabonis heard rumors the Thunder might sign Blake Griffin and worried he could end up traded as a result. When news broke that the Clippers had re-signed Griffin, Sabonis was relieved and went to bed to rest up for his summer league game the next day. Minutes later, Thunder officials called to tell him he had been traded. “I was in shock,” he says. “Like, are you joking? I was not so happy.”