Jay Hernandez: The talks I’ve had with the Hornets staff, coach James Borrego and management have allowed me to continue to be decisive and confident in the messaging that I have been providing the team. Mitch Kupchak and Larry Jordan came and got to see four games. Their presence in the gym was a great sign of support and commitment to the development we have invested in with the Hornets.
NBA Rumor: G League Bubble
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Jay Hernandez: On top of having one of the best bigs in Vernon Carey, we were able to add another in Nick Richards who finally got to play his first game last Sunday. He entered the bubble and left after one day to rejoin the Hornets so having him back adds frontcourt depth that has really helped elevate our team.
Wes Goldberg: Warriors have officially assigned Alen Smailagić to the Santa Cruz Warriors. Per a source, he is getting on a plane to Orlando today, and will practice for a week before they determine if he’s ready to play. He hasn’t played or practiced yet this season after knee surgery.
Eddie Sefko: The Mavericks have transferred Tyler Bey and Nate Hinton to the Long Island Nets of the G-League. Texas Legends opted not to go to Orlando bubble so LI it is. G-League cranks up Feb. 10.
Joe Mussatto: Aleksej Pokusevski and Ty Jerome are going to join the OKC Blue in the G League bubble, per Mark Daigneault.
Noah Levick: Sixers two-way player Rayjon Tucker is with the Blue Coats in the G-League bubble at Disney World. He said he’d like to eventually develop into a player like Victor Oladipo, who “came out of nowhere, proved himself time and time again when everybody doubted him.”
Jordan Poole hasn’t yet decided what necessities he’s going to bring with him to the NBA G League bubble near Orlando. He’s just excited about finally getting consistent minutes. “I’m just ready to play 15 games in 25 days,” Poole said Saturday, the day before he heads to Orlando to begin his mandatory quarantine. “So that’s all I needed to hear. A lot of games? I’m straight.”
Dennis Smith to play in the G League bubble?
Eager for reps and an opportunity to demonstrate he’s still an NBA prospect, Knicks guard Dennis Smith Jr. has requested to play in the G-League bubble, the Daily News has learned. The former ninth overall pick hasn’t cracked Tom Thibodeau’s rotation and logged his ninth straight DNP in Friday’s victory over the Cavs. He’s appeared in only three games this season for a total of 28 minutes.
The month-long G-League competition, which begins Feb. 10 at Disney World, also offers Smith Jr. exposure before the trade deadline and free agency. His rookie contract, which pays out $5.7 million this season, expires in the summer. The Knicks are expected to grant Smith Jr.’s G-League request, according to a league source.
Steve Popper: Can confirm report by @Stefan Bondy – Dennis Smith Jr. has asked and will be allowed to play with the Westchester Knicks in the Orlando G-League bubble to get back on the court for game action.
The Sacramento Kings announced today that the team has flex-assigned Jahmi’us Ramsey to the Agua Caliente Clippers (LA Clippers) and Robert Woodard II to the Austin Spurs (San Antonio Spurs) for the NBA G League single site in Orlando, Fla.
Minnesota Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations Gersson Rosas today announced the team has transferred guard Ashton Hagans and to the Iowa Wolves, the team’s NBA G League affiliate. Hagans will join the Wolves in Orlando, Florida where the 2021 G League season is set to begin on Feb. 10.
Joe Mussatto: Mark Daigneault said two-way players Josh Hall and Moses Brown will play in the G League bubble.
James Ham: According to Luke Walton, both Jahmi’us Ramsey and Robert Woodard are heading to the G League bubble.
Rockets assign Kevin Porter to G League team
The Clippers have hired Paul Hewitt to coach their G League affiliate ahead of next month’s start to the season, The Times has learned. Hewitt’s hiring for the Agua Caliente Clippers position marks a return to coaching for the former college coach at Siena, Georgia Tech and George Mason who had worked for the Clippers as a scout since 2016. He replaces Brian Adams, who in October joined Doc Rivers’ staff with the Philadelphia 76ers.
Wes Goldberg: Alen Smailagic will go to Orlando mid next week for the G League bubble. Was Sunday, but they are pushing it back so he can rehab a little more in the Bay.
The Charlotte Hornets are recalling rookie Nick Richards from the Greensboro Swarm to meet the NBA minimum of 12 available players. The NBA advised that since Charlotte has an open roster spot, sending Richards, Vernon Carey and Jalen McDaniels to the G-League bubble meant the Hornets were short one player for the NBA minimum 12 spots.
Warriors to send three players to G League bubble
Nico Mannion to play in G League bubble
Wes Goldberg: Kerr anticipates Nico Mannion will participate in the G League bubble in Orlando next month.
Kai Sotto, the 7-foot-3, 18-year-old basketball phenom who is on a path to becoming the first native-born son of the Philippines to play in the NBA, is opting out of the start of the NBA G League bubble in Orlando next month in order to meet contractual obligations with the Filipino National Team — the Gilas. Instead of entering the G League bubble on Jan. 26 with the G League Ignite team, Sotto will travel to the Philippines and play with the Gilas when they host Korea (Feb. 18 and Feb. 22) and Indonesia (Feb.20) at Clark City in Pampanga. “The G League agreed for me to meet my previous commitments to play for the national team,” Sotto said via direct message. “They have asked for me to immediately report back to the bubble after my last national team game.”
Cayleigh Griffin: I asked Coach Silas pregame if there’s any hesitation sending his two way players to the G League Bubble in Orlando next month, with the situation we have tonight (8 available players). He said, in short, yes. But he’s hopeful they won’t have this many injuries moving forward…
Connor Letourneau: Steve Kerr said he expects Nico Mannion to participate in the upcoming G League bubble in Orlando. Kerr isn’t so sure about his other two-way-contract player, Juan Toscano-Anderson.
Rick Bonnell: Hornets coach James Borrego was very relieved Charlotte will have a team in the G-League bubble. He didn’t get into specifics about which of the rookies would spend time at Disney when the G-League starts outside Orlando in February.
The NBA G League announced today that 18 teams, including 17 NBA G League teams and G League Ignite, will take to the court in February at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla. The top eight teams will advance to a single-elimination playoff. “We worked closely with our teams, the Basketball Players Union, and public health experts to develop a structure that allows our teams to gather at a single site and safely play,” said NBA G League President Shareef Abdur-Rahim. “We are thrilled to get back to basketball and to fulfill our mission as a critical resource for the NBA in developing players, coaches, referees, athletic trainers and front-office staff.”
The 17 participating NBA G League teams are: Agua Caliente Clippers (LA Clippers), Austin Spurs (San Antonio Spurs), Canton Charge (Cleveland Cavaliers), Delaware Blue Coats (Philadelphia 76ers), Erie BayHawks (New Orleans Pelicans), Fort Wayne Mad Ants (Indiana Pacers), Greensboro Swarm (Charlotte Hornets), Iowa Wolves (Minnesota Timberwolves), Lakeland Magic (Orlando Magic), Long Island Nets (Brooklyn Nets), Memphis Hustle (Memphis Grizzlies), Oklahoma City Blue (Oklahoma City Thunder), Raptors 905 (Toronto Raptors), Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Houston Rockets), Salt Lake City Stars (Utah Jazz), Santa Cruz Warriors (Golden State Warriors), Westchester Knicks (New York Knicks)
G League Bubble official for February
Disney World expected to host 2021 G League season
The NBA G League is focused on Orlando’s Disney campus as its bubble playing site for the 2021 season amid the coronavirus pandemic, with tipoff tentatively scheduled for Feb. 8, sources tell The Athletic’s Shams Charania.
G League teams have been given tentative dates to prepare for, subject to change: 1. Jan. 19, arrival in their home markets for physicals and onboarding 2. Jan. 26, teams arrive at the single site in Orlando 3. Tip-off set for Feb. 8, with the tentative playoff schedule will be from March 5 to March 9. The G League is expected to play a 12-to-15-game schedule, sources said.
The following 11 franchises will not send a G League affiliate: Atlanta (College Park Skyhawks), Boston (Maine Red Claws), Chicago (Windy City Bulls), Dallas (Texas Legends), Detroit (Grand Rapids Drive), Los Angeles Lakers (South Bay Lakers), Miami (Sioux Falls Skyforce), Milwaukee (Wisconsin Herd), Phoenix (Northern Arizona Suns), Sacramento (Stockton Kings) and Washington (Capital City Go-Go; will utilize Erie).
Adam Johnson: Per league sources, these teams are expected to participate in the G League bubble: Agua Caliente Austin Canton Delaware Erie/Capital City Fort Wayne Greensboro Ignite Iowa Lakeland Long Island Memphis Raptors 905 Salt Lake Santa Cruz Westchester
Fred Katz: Things are trending toward the Wizards using the Pelicans’ G League team, the Erie Bayhawks, as their G League affiliate in the bubble, according to sources. The two organizations would each chip in some of the cost of going to the bubble.
G League to have a 18-team season including the Ignite squad
The NBA is putting the finishing touches on plans for an NBA G League Bubble this upcoming February, and according to a report from Jonathan Givony of ESPN, the Bubble will include 17 affiliate teams from across the NBA as well as the G League Ignite squad, led by top NBA Draft prospects Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga, and Daishen Nix.
G League season starting in February?
Stefan Bondy: Per source, the tentative G League schedule: Jan. 29: Training camp opens at bubble site. Feb. 8: Season starts March 5: Playoffs start *the hope is that the bubble site is Atlanta but that’s not set.
G League expecting to play this season
The NBA’s G League is determined to push forward with its season despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, league sources have told ESPN. In the face of health and financial concerns, a primary motivation is to not let the league-run Ignite team fall on its face in the program’s inaugural campaign. Some of the top prospects in the country are on team Ignite.
In order to support a season, the G League plans to mimic the NBA’s “bubble” model, and is eyeing Atlanta as its temporary home after also considering Orlando, Florida, league sources told ESPN. The G League season, normally a 50-game slate from early November until late March followed by playoffs, would be truncated to go from January until March, sources said.
Preliminarily, 10 teams, including the South Bay Lakers and the Maine Red Claws (the Boston Celtics’ affiliate) indicated they will opt out, sources told ESPN. The G League has received commitments from about a dozen teams, including the Ignite, sources told ESPN, and await final decisions from a handful of other franchises. With the details surrounding the upcoming season being so fluid, the teams on the fence are not sure what exactly they would be committing to, sources told ESPN.
Adam Zagoria: League source says there’s a ‘big chance’ the G League bubble won’t happen in GA due to logistical reasons. Team presidents are due to have a call next week to ‘sort out things and get closer to a final decision,’ source says.
12 teams participating in G League bubble, starting on January 10?
Marc Berman: Knicks signing Bryce Brown for G League action. Looks like this Atlanta bubble will feature about a dozen teams and start around Jan. 10, per source.
Wizards, Pelicans to combine G League teams for bubble?
Stefan Bondy: The Westchester Knicks are among the teams expected to participate in the G League bubble in Atlanta, according to sources. There’s a financial cost to playing and some teams are opting out.
Barry Jackson: Per source, Heat will not field G-League team this year. G-League is expected to field teams in a bubble in an Atlanta suburb. Heat will not participate. Heat’s 2-way players (Vincent & likely either Eboua, Tyree, Strus or BJ Johnson) will stay with Heat, can play 50 games each
Jared Weiss: The Celtics are opting out of the NBA’s preliminary plans for a G-League bubble, sources tell @The Athletic. Details on the league’s planning stage, impact on Exhibit 10 contracts and what this means for the Maine Red Claws: theathletic.com/2241819/2020/1…
NBA to use G League bubble?
G League bubble?
The NBA G League and its teams are currently considering the possibility of playing a 2020-21 season that would take place either fully or partially in a bubble, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.
The G League, the NBA’s developmental league, is made up of 28 teams who are each affiliated with one NBA team as a sort of minor-league feeder system for parent organizations to develop young talent and look for diamonds in the rough. The G League suspended its 2019-20 season on March 12 due to the coronavirus pandemic before canceling it entirely on June 4. Unlike NBA teams — who fly in private jets and are thus more easily and safely able to isolate during travel — G League teams have always flown on commercial airlines, making getting anywhere during a pandemic a much less safe proposition for them than it is for their parent teams.
The G League has yet to announce anything about the upcoming season, but sources say that discussions are ongoing about how to pull off a season, with the NBA itself resuming on Dec. 22.
April 12, 2021 | 5:55 pm EDT Update
Kawhi Leonard out Tuesday night against Pacers
Mirjam Swanson: Clippers will be without Kawhi tomorrow in Indy, he’s OUT with a sore right foot. Serge (back) and Pat Bev (hand) also are out, of course. Everyone else is available.
Kevin Chouinard: Hawks say: Trae Young (left calf contusion) is questionable. Danilo Gallinari (right foot soreness) is doubtful. Collins, Dunn, Reddish, Snell, Hunter remain out.
The scene was quite familiar to fans who have watched the Bucks’ starters celebrate their teammates’ success at the end of blowout victories in the last two seasons with one notable exception: Antetokounmpo was not wearing a jersey. Instead, Antetokounmpo was wearing a black Bucks hooded sweatshirt and a pair of black joggers as he watched from the sidelines as he missed his fifth consecutive game because of left knee soreness.
“We were talking about it before the game,” Middleton said after putting up 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists in Sunday’s win. “He said he hasn’t missed this many games in a row in his career. He’s itching to get back out, so hopefully he’ll be back out there soon.”
Following shootaround before the Pacers game, The Athletic asked Connaughton about Antetokounmpo’s impressive ability to stay healthy throughout his career and why he has always been able to return to the floor quickly after an injury. “Work ethic,” Connaughton said. “I feel like the misnomer is when you get injured, you need rest, like your body will heal itself and what I’ve seen since I’ve been in the NBA is that is actually the opposite.”
April 12, 2021 | 5:12 pm EDT Update
Kevin Durant on MVP race: I don't care, I feel the criteria changes every day
The Jump: “I really don’t care. I feel the criteria changes every day” – @Kevin Durant on who he thinks should be the MVP #NBA #NBATwitter #TheJump #BrooklynTogether pic.twitter.com/oWDqhw4GmP
