Basketball Wiretap

Argument Between Rudy Gobert & Kyle Anderson Lead To Punch, Gobert Tweets Apology

Apr 10, 2023 1:47 AM

An argument in the huddle between Rudy Gobert and Kyle Anderson lead to Gobert punching Anderson, sources described to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. 

Anderson reportedly told Gobert to block some shots, with Gobert responding by telling Anderson to grab a "bleeping" rebound.

Gobert then lost his temper when Anderson told him to "Shut the f--- up, b----."

"That's what set Rudy off," a source told Wojnarowski.

Gobert then tweeted Anderson an apology after the game. 

"Emotions got the best of me today. I should not have reacted the way i did regardless of what was said. I wanna apologize to the fans, the organisation and particularly to Kyle, who is someone that i truly love and respect as a teammate," wrote Gobert.

Gobert nearly didn't play in the game after hurting his back on Saturday against the Spurs.

Anderson said afterwards that the situation would be handled within the team.

"We'll move forward. We want to win games. It is what it is. We'll keep it in house," said Anderson. 

 

Adrian Wojnarowski & Andrew Lopez/ESPN

Tags: Kyle Anderson, Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Luka Doncic Following Spurs Loss To End Season: 'I'm Happy Here'

Apr 10, 2023 1:32 AM

Luka Doncic reiterated his long-term commitment to the Dallas Mavericks following their 138-117 loss to the San Antonio Spurs to close out the season.

"I'm happy here, so there's nothing to worry [about]," said Doncic after the game.

ESPN reported earlier in the weekend that the Mavs feared Doncic requesting a trade as early as 2024.

"Something's got to change, for sure. I mean, last year we went to Western Conference finals. We were having fun. I always talk about the chemistry we had. It was great. But something's got to change for sure," added Doncic. 

The Mavs finished 38-44 on the season, representing Doncic's first losing record since his rookie season. 

Doncic did acknowledge his frustration with the losing season, along with difficulties in his personal life. 

Tim MacMahon/ESPN

Tags: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Steph Curry Receives $75M Of Under Armour Shares As Part Of Long-Term Extension

Apr 8, 2023 1:40 AM

Steph Curry received $75 million in Under Armour shares as part of his long-term extension with the company, reported Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.

The shares will vest in 2029 and 2034. 

Curry is also set to become the president of Under Armour's Curry Brand as part of the deal.

The partnership could turn into a lifetime contract if specific revenue targets are met. 

 

Mike Vorkunov/The Athletic

Tags: Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Raptors Will Not Convert Jeff Dowtin's Two-Way Contract To Full-Time Deal

Apr 8, 2023 1:33 AM

The Toronto Raptors will not convert Jeff Dowtin's two-way contract into a standard NBA deal.

Dowtin has appeared in 25 games this season, averaging 2.4 points and 1.2 assists.

Dowtin reached his 50-game limit last Tuesday. He will not be available for the play-in tournament or the playoffs unless the Raptors waive a player on their roster. 

Sportsnet

Tags: Jeff Dowtin, Toronto Raptors, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Rafael Stone: Rockets 'Coming To End Of First Stage' Of Rebuild

Apr 6, 2023 1:14 PM

As they complete their third straight season with one of the worst records in the NBA, the Houston Rockets believe they have the pieces in place to begin to accelerate their rebuild. The Rockets have drafted Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr. with their first two high lottery picks and will get a third this year.

"I think we're kind of coming to the end of the first stage of it," Rafael Stone said. "When my group took over, we didn't have draft picks and we didn't have cap space. We had a team that was kind of singularly built. It was built to play a single style of play based around kind of a generational talent. And so we kind of felt like we had the right set that starting at the bottom floor."

The Rockets are projected to have more than $60 million in cap space this offseason.

Including the team option for Kenyon Martin Jr., Houston has 11 players under contract for next season and 10 of those players are 22 or younger.

"They need to continue to improve and they need to improve at a really great rate," Stone said of the team's young core. "That doesn't mean anybody needs to be an All-Star next year, but we need to see really good progression, which starts with really good work ethic. And to date, I have no complaints about how hard our guys work. That needs to continue. As they get older and their capacity for hard work grows, they need to then exceed that capacity. It's an exponential thing. That's the challenge for them."

The Rockets plan on bringing in some veterans with their available cap space.

"We're definitely gonna bring in some veteran players this offseason," Stone said. "But that's largely because if you go draft a guy, they're not gonna be ready to play in the NBA with a one in a million exception. So we want to bring in people who help our guys and we know what we're getting. And, by definition, that's a veteran."

Stone and Tilman Fertitta are ready for their next step.

"Everything worth doing is at some level or another really hard," Stone said. "And, certainly I think every team and every organization would rather have unlimited success year over year, forever. That's not where we were when I took over. That realistically was not something I felt confident we could achieve. And so then the question becomes, 'What's your goal?'

"My goal, our goal, the Fertittas' goal, our organization's goal is to win championships. And so we tried to plot out what we thought was the best path to get there. And that's what we're trying to execute on."

Andrew Lopez/ESPN

Tags: Houston Rockets, NBA, NBA Misc Rumor, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Heat Rename Arena To Kaseya Center

Apr 5, 2023 1:54 AM

The arena where the Miami Heat play home games will be renamed the Kaseya Center following a vote by the Miami-Dade County commissioners.

The deal, which will take effect immediately, is set for $117.37 million over the next 17 years.

The Heat will receive $2 million per year in the deal.

The agreement comes five months after the team and the county started the process to remove the FTX brand from what was briefly called FTX Arena. 

ESPN

Tags: Miami Heat, NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Luka Doncic Takes Responsibility For Mavericks' 'Very Disappointing Season'

Apr 4, 2023 3:13 PM

The Dallas Mavericks have had a disappointing 22-23 season after reaching the Western Conference Finals last year.

The Mavericks didn't re-sign Jalen Brunson, traded for Christian Wood, and then traded Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith for Kyrie Irving as much of the roster has been shuffled around Doncic.

Doncic described this as "a very disappointing season" for the Mavs.

"I think you don't see that chemistry we had before -- I mean, especially last year," Doncic said. "I think that chemistry was at the top, everybody. But chemistry builds not just not right away. It's a long process."

Doncic said the Mavericks need to be better on defense and took accountability for his own shortcomings on that side of the floor. Doncic said he has struggled with fatigue after having little time off over the past three years.

"But that's not an excuse," Doncic said. "I'm still young, age-wise, but it's a lot of basketball. But I gotta be way better.

"I'm the leader of this team. The one to blame is me."

Tim MacMahon/ESPN

Tags: Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks, NBA, NBA Misc Rumor, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Players Able To Invest In NBA, WNBA Teams With New CBA

Apr 3, 2023 12:52 AM

Players will be able to invest in NBA and WNBA teams via a private equity firm as part of the new collective bargaining agreement, sources told Shams Charania and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.

The new CBA will also give players the ability to promote or invest in gambling and cannabis companies, including the ability to sign non-gambling endorsements with sports betting companies.

The new CBA will still need to be ratified by players and team governors. 

Shams Charania & Mike Vorkunov/The Athletic

Tags: NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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NBA, NBPA Agree On New 7-Year Collective Bargaining Agreement

Apr 1, 2023 3:28 AM

The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association agreed to a new seven-year collective bargaining agreement on Friday night, reported Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

The deal starts with the 2023-24 season and includes a mutual opt-out after the sixth year.

The agreement includes several key new details, including the creation of a second salary cap apron of $17.5 million over the tax line where teams will no longer have access to the taxpayer mid-level in free agency.

The deal will also have larger trade exceptions as a way to create more spending and trading opportunities for middle- and lower-spending teams. 

The new CBA will also add a mandatory games played of 65 games (with conditions) in order to be eligible for postseason awards. 

A new in-season tournament will also start during the 2023-24 season, which includes pool-play games baked into the regular season schedule. Eight teams will then advance to a single-elimination tournament, with the final four possibly taking place in Las Vegas. With in-season tournament games counting towards regular season standings, the two championship teams will play 83 games in a season. 

The prize money for the championship team will be $500,000 per player, sources told Shams Charania of The Athletic. Charania also adds that marijuana has been removed from the anti-drug testing program. 

The two sides also agreed to increase the upper limit on extensions from the current 120% to 140%.

The agreement will also add a third two-way contract slot on team rosters. 

Both the owners and players are expected to ratify the agreement in the future.

Adrian Wojnarowski/ESPN

Tags: NBA, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Giannis Antetokounmpo Admits He Cares About MVP But Priority Is Championship

Mar 30, 2023 2:52 PM

Although Giannis Antetokounmpo is widely regarded as the best player in the NBA and is having a historic season on the team with the best record in the league, he only placed third in ESPN's final MVP straw poll. It has been suggested that Antetokounmpo may not be as concerned about winning the MVP award this season since he has already won two MVP awards and a championship.

“That’s a lie,” Antetokounmpo told Yahoo Sports recently. “I won’t say I don’t care. I want to compete. If you say I don’t care, it’s a lie. Do I think it’s a priority for me? No. The priority for me is to get better, to help my team win a championship, to get that feeling again.

“If God can bless me with an MVP again, I’ll take it.”

Antetokounmpo knows the conversation revolves more around Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid, to which he says, “That’s OK.” 

While Antetokounmpo is not apathetic about the MVP, winning another championship remains the priority.

“I want a championship,” Antetokounmpo said. “It’s the truth. The truth is the only thing that exists. I want … to win … a championship. More.”

Vincent Goodwill/Yahoo Sports

Tags: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks, NBA, NBA Award, NBA B-Ball IQ

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Anthony Davis: I Think We've Got Everything We Need, We Can Definitely Make A Run

Dave McMenamin/ESPN

Kevin Durant: I Don't Care About Legacy Anymore

Shams Charania/The Athletic

Alex Rodriguez, Marc Lore Close Second $290M Payment Towards Wolves, Lynx Ownership

Shams Charania & Jon Krawczynski/The Athletic

Steve Kerr: 'There's Hope' Andrew Wiggins Returns This Season

ESPN

Nic Batum To Start For Clippers At Power Forward

Law Murray/The Athletic

Mavs Set To File Formal Protest Following Loss To Warriors

Shams Charania & Tim Cato/The Athletic

Blazers Haven't Considered Firing Chauncey Billups

Jason Quick/The Athletic

Suns Hire Gerald Madkins As Assistant General Manager, Vice President Of Personnel Evaluation

Duane Rankin/Arizona Republic

NBA Teams Strongly Considering Brandon Miller Over Scoot Henderson At No. 2

RealGM Staff Report

Bally Sports' Parent Company Files For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Daniel Kaplan/The Athletic

Nets 'Pleasantly Surprised' By How Mikal Bridges Has Elevated Game

Brian Lewis/New York Post