NBA RUMORS AND NEWS

KSAT.com "Former Spurs star Bruce Bowen didn't hold back on his thoughts on the Kawhi Leonard-Spurs saga in an interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio Thursday. Bowen said he feels the franchise's small forward is giving "nothing but excuses," and that he's..." June 22

New York Times "Carmelo Anthony does not intend to opt out of his current contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder, according to a person familiar with Anthony’s decision. Anthony has until Saturday at midnight (Eastern) to exercise the option that would make him a free agent July 1 —..." June 22

Bleacher Report "Now that the 2018 NBA draft is in the books, oddsmakers are already looking ahead at which rookies will have the most impact on the court next season. Per OddsShark, No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton of the Phoenix Suns and reigning Euroleague MVP Luka Doncic of the Dallas..." June 22

Dime Magazine "With less than a week until the start of NBA free agency, the league’s attention can fully turn away from the draft and focus on the task at hand. LeBron James is, by far, the biggest domino to fall and, in some circles, there is a belief that many players could simply be forced to sit..." June 22

Larry Brown Sports "Michael Porter Jr. may take a “redshirt year” with the Denver Nuggets as he continues to work on his health. NBA writer Matt Moore believes based on the words of Nuggets president Tim Connelly that Porter, who missed virtually all of last season with a back injury, will..." June 22

ESPN "New York Knicks star Kristaps Porzingis reached out to rookie Kevin Knox shortly after New York drafted him with the ninth overall pick on Thursday night. One of the topics covered during their conversation? Getting booed by Knicks fans on draft..." June 22

Clutch Points "The Oklahoma City Thunder have kickstarted talks with forward Carmelo Anthony’s representatives, giving him a rundown of his potential options with an early termination, according to Brett Dawson of The Oklahoman. OKC general manager Sam Presti noted during exit..." June 22

Real GM Basketball "Chris Paul orchestrated an opt-in-and-trade to the Houston Rockets last offseason to delay his free agency by one season. Paul had an excellent season but injury issues plagued him. Since then, the Rockets were also sold to Tilman Fertitta, which could complicate contract discussions..." June 22

12 Up "The chances of LiAngelo Ball being selected in last night's NBA draft were slim to none. That didn't mean he wouldn't get an invite to join a team's Summer League for a chance to prove doubters wrong.  As far as the Los Angeles Lakers are concerned, they have..." June 22

WEEI Boston "The Celtics could sign an eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year this summer for the veteran minimum –– or something close to it. Sounds great, right? The answer to that question depends on your opinion of Dwight Howard. The Hornets..." June 22

NESN "Isaiah Thomas just wants to pay it forward. The Los Angeles Lakers point guard has carved out quite the successful NBA career, considering he was taken dead last (No. 60 overall) in the 2011 NBA Draft. Thomas has carried that chip on his shoulder ever since, and whenever the draft..." June 22

The Score "Despite selecting Alabama sensation Collin Sexton with the eighth overall pick in Thursday's draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers may not be done looking to acquire high-level talent at the point guard position. General manager Koby Altman and the Cavs are..." June 22

Bleacher Report "The Los Angeles Lakers told LiAngelo Ball they won't sign him to their summer league team after he went undrafted Thursday night in the 2018 NBA draft, ESPN's Ramona Shelburne reported. Shelburne spoke to a source who said the decision has..." June 22

Hoops Provider "Guess who is buying Justise Winslow stock? Me. Jake Fischer of SI, who was been a busy bee around the rumor hive lately, reported this today:

Larry Brown Sports "The Cleveland Cavaliers made one pick in the NBA Draft Thursday night, and the player they took happens to be one that LeBron James and his camp are reportedly enamored with. Does that give the Cavs a better chance at re-signing LeBron in the coming weeks? Apparently..." June 22

Awful Announcing "Thursday night’s NBA Draft was not the spoiler-free affair the league hoped for, but that doesn’t seem to have held back ratings much. Austin Karp of Sports Business Daily reports Friday that ESPN and ESPN2’s draft coverage combined for..." June 22

Newsday "David Fizdale doesn’t plan to bring Kevin Knox along slowly. Fizdale said he would have no problem starting the Knicks’ first-round pick if he earns his spot. This is a definite change in philosophy from last year when the Knicks brought in veterans to mentor..." June 22

Pro Basketball Talk "Paul George has openly stated the appeal of playing for his hometown Lakers. He has also openly stated the appeal of staying with the Thunder. That has created significant confusion about his upcoming free agency. Could George find a compromise..." June 22

CBS Boston "Many thought that Danny Ainge would be calling Terry Rozier Thursday night to inform him of a trade. Instead, the Boston point guard FaceTimed Ainge as the Celtics were getting ready to make their pick. Not knowing he was live on Bleacher Report’s online draft show, Ainge..." June 22

Terez Owens "  Klay Thompson took a couple of his close friends to Cabo San Lucas, he chatrered a jet and rented a fat house…We obtained all the footage and pictures of the Intagram models he brought with him.  " June 22

SLAM Online "Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley told reporters Thursday night that Miami isn’t shopping center Hassan Whiteside. Despite rumors to the contrary, and the big man’s frustration with his diminished role, Riley says Whiteside..." June 22

Clutch Points "Dwyane Wade made an unforeseen return to the Miami Heat last season, getting traded by the Cleveland Cavaliers at the trade deadline, finding a window back into his eventually preferred destination after the Cavs chose to go a different direction. Yet the..." June 22

Hoops Rumors "The Lakers are expected to add a pair of undrafted rookies to their roster sometime after the new NBA league year begins, reports Michael Scotto of The Athletic (Twitter links). According to Scotto, the Lakers have reached agreements on free agent deals with UNC guard Joel..." June 22

TMZ "LaVar Ball has heard the trade rumors involving Lonzo Ball going to the Spurs ... and has a message for the Lakers:  "If they wanna trade him, trade him. It'll be the worst move they ever made." LaVar went off at his JBA season..." June 22

Bleacher Report "Game 1 of the 2018 NBA Finals was a night Cleveland Cavaliers guard JR Smith would love to forget, but one person will keep the memory alive after buying the jersey Smith wore during that contest. According to TMZ Sports, the winning bidder nabbed Smith's jersey..." June 22

Real GM Basketball "The Los Angeles Lakers have plans to pursue two max free agents while also possibly pursuing a third via trade. But the Lakers are willing to maintain their cap flexibility for 2019 if their primary targets are not acquired. The Lakers plan on pursuing LeBron James and Paul George in..." June 22

12 Up "​Poor Luka Doncic. The Slovenian is less than 24 hours into adjusting to life in the NBA, and he'll do so in Dallas after a draft day trade saw him taken third overall by the Mavs. But it was never going to be this easy. In the age of social media, everything is fair..." June 22

Cavs Nation "Most NBA teams would love to have LeBron James at the end of this year’s offseason. But the latest rumor reveals that he is only considering moving to the Los Angeles Lakers or staying with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Speaking on The Jump, analyst Brian Windhorst feels that..." June 22

Real GM Basketball "LeBron James is a few days away from free agency and continues to pursue his options to remain with the Cleveland Cavaliers. "All the arrows point to him bolting," said Ryen Russillo. "But I know for a fact LeBron is trying to figure out if other stars around the league..." June 22

SLAM Online "Wizards center Marcin Gortat says “the decision has been made by the front office” in Washington to get rid of him. The 34-year-old expects to be traded soon. " June 22

247 Sports "LiAngelo Ball has officially gone undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft. Ball was not viewed by most analysts as an NBA-caliber prospect in high school, and that didn’t change when he went through a bizarre 2017-18 season that started with UCLA, included an arrest in China and ended in..." June 22

ESPN "When Atlanta Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk found out whom other teams were planning on drafting and that he'd be able to select Kevin Huerterwith the 19th overall pick, there was no need to trade up to get the Maryland guard. Schlenk told 95.7 The Game in San..." June 22

Bleacher Report "NBA fans surely don't think of the Sacramento Kings when pondering superteams in the NBA, but don't tell their general manager. As Kings on NBC Sports California shared, GM Vlade Divac said his squad is a "super team, just..." June 22

NBC Sports Chicago "It wasn’t an exciting night at the Advocate Center but it was a successful one in the eyes of the rebuilding Chicago Bulls. And a telling one, from their inaction as they stayed put to select Duke’s Wendell Carter Jr. and Boise State’s Chandler Hutchison with their..." June 22

Larry Brown Sports "With the 2018 NBA Draft now in the books and Kawhi Leonard still a member of the San Antonio Spurs, the team may be looking to keep it that way. Addressing reporters after the draft, Spurs GM RC Buford indicated a desire to keep the disgruntled former All-Star around longterm. Buford..." June 22

Hoops Rumors "The Pacers are expected to bring back Darren Collison and guarantee his $10MM contract for next season, tweets Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports. Collison only has a $2MM partial guarantee for now, but will be in line for his full salary if Indiana doesn’t waive him..." June 22

ESPN "Nearly one week before LeBron James must inform the Cleveland Cavaliers whether he intends to pick up the option on his contract with the Cavs for next season, Cleveland general manager Koby Altman said he and James' camp have already established a "good..." June 22

Bleacher Report "Collin Sexton was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the No. 8 pick of the 2018 NBA draft, and one of his first tasks was to try to get LeBron James to stay in Cleveland. "LeBron, let's do it. Let's do it," Sexton said on ESPN after..." June 22

Lakers Nation "The Los Angeles Lakers had a busy night for the 2018 NBA Draft. Though they didn’t make any trades, the team had three picks to improve the roster, but they weren’t done after that. As is usually the case, undrafted players tend to agree to Summer League contracts with..." June 22

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "The NBA has another Antetokounmpo. Kostas Antetokounmpo, younger brother of Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis, was picked by the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the NBA draft with the 60th overall selection via a trade from the Philadelphia 76ers. Kostas..." June 22

Oregonian "The Portland Trail Blazers added a little NBA lineage and a whole lot of shooting Thursday night in the second round of the NBA draft. The Blazers, who entered the draft with just one pick, acquired the draft rights to Duke guard Gary Trent Jr. in a trade..." June 22

Courier-Post "Hamidou Diallo is being reunited with former Kentucky teammate Malik Monk. The Queens, New York, native was drafted by the Brooklyn Nets in the second round (No. 45 overall) in Thursday's NBA draft but then reportedly traded to the Charlotte Hornets, who drafted Monk in the..." June 22

SNY TV "The Knicks went out on a limb and selected Mystery Man Mitchell Robinson with the No. 36 pick in the NBA Draft. The 7-foot-1 Robinson hasn't played a meaningful game since the Jordan Brand Classic in New York City in April 2017, where he scored 15 points on 7-for-7..." June 22

Asbury Park Press "Apparently, production does matter to NBA executives. Despite all the pre-draft focus on upside, youth and athleticism, Seton Hall big man Angel Delgado signed a free-agent deal immediately after the draft ended Thursday night.  According to Yahoo Sports, Delgado signed..." June 22

Larry Brown Sports "Joel Embiid wasted little time shutting down comparisons between himself and Deandre Ayton. Ayton was selected No. 1 overall by the Phoenix Suns during Thursday’s NBA Draft. Leading up to the draft, Ayton had been compared to Joel Embiid because of his big personality. Embiid..." June 21

NewJersey.com "The Sixers used the No. 10 pick in the first round on Mikal Bridges and then turned around and traded him to the Phoenix Suns for No. 16 pick Zhaire Smith, a forward from Texas Tech. Trade details Sixers receive No. 16 pick (Zhaire Smith) and unprotected 2021 first-round..." June 21

Deseret News "Duke's Grayson Allen has long been one of the most polarizing personalities, and now he's a member of the Utah Jazz. The Jazz selected the 6-foot-5 guard with the 21st overall pick of the NBA Draft on Thursday night. The Jacksonville, Florida, native averaged 15.5..." June 21

SEC Country "Michael Porter Jr. was one of the most hyped freshman in the country. And that hype will only continue as he enters the NBA, as the former Tiger was taken with the No. 14 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. In his lone season at Missouri, Porter Jr. played in only 3..." June 21

Penn Live "The Atlanta Hawks selected Villanova forward Omari Spellman in the first round of Thursday's 2018 NBA Draft at Barclays Center with the 30th overall pick, culminating the 6-foot-9 post player's path to the professional ranks. A former five-star recruit, Spellman..." June 21

EuroHoops.net "Dzanan Musa was the 29th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, being selected by the Brooklyn Nets. The 19-year-old Bosnian wig becomes the third European player picked after Slovenian Luka Doncic and German Moe Wagner. Musa is one of the most experienced players in his Draft class..." June 21