Tag: Isaac Okoro

Isaac Okoro was thrilled Adrian Wojnarowski made him the final Woj bomb after ESPN departure

Isaac Okoro, the No. 5 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, made sports media history.

The most shocking sport media news of the day came early when NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski announced he was leaving ESPN.

Wojnarowski, a longtime reporter who led the basketball newsbreaking industry during his time at Yahoo and ESPN, had a final tweet announcing his own retirement from the space.

But before that, his final tweet about the NBA was breaking the news that Isaac Okoro, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, re-signed with the Cavaliers as a restricted free agent. It was the final news he broke during his time with ESPN.

WOJ BOMBS: Adrian Wojnarowski’s 7 biggest Woj bombs as famed NBA reporter retires from ESPN

While it wasn’t the biggest news he broke during his career, it was the last piece of reporting we got from Woj before he switched to join the front office for the St Bonaventure Bonnies.

Okoro seemed elated that he got to become a part of sports media history.

If you are ever asked this as a trivia question, you now know Okoro is the answer.

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Isaac Okoro signs extension with Cleveland Cavaliers

The former Tiger forward agreed to terms on a 3-year, $38 million contract extension on Saturday.

Former Auburn forward [autotag]Isaac Okoro[/autotag] will stay a Cleveland Cavalier through his age 26 season.

The 23-year-old agreed to terms on a 3-year, $38 Million contract extension on Saturday, officially ending his restricted free agency well before NBA teams are expected to report to training camp later this fall.

Okoro, the fifth overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft lottery, has brought the defensive prowess he flashed on the Plains to Cleveland throughout his four NBA seasons. While the Atlanta, GA native is still working to grow as a scorer, his defense and his ability to stay available for nearly every game has made him a valuable piece in head coach J. B. Bickerstaff’s rotation.

Okoro’s ability to ink a “Max Contract” when he enters his athletic prime in three years will likely come down to his ability to grow as a scorer. Despite providing value elsewhere, the former Tiger has yet to average double-digit points per game in any of his four seasons in the Association. His highest scoring output came in his rookie season, when Okoro managed 9.6 points per contest, although his field goal percentage (42%) was the worst of his career.

Standing at 6-5, Okoro is now set to retain his role as a key bench piece and wing defender in Cleveland for the foreseeable future. In his NBA career, the former Tiger is averaging 8.5 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game. He and the “Cavs” open the preseason on October 8 against the Bulls.

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Nets likely would have traded Dorian Finney-Smith to get Isaac Okoro

Per Evan Dammarell of ClutchPoints, the Brooklyn Nets likely would have traded Dorian Finney-Smith in exchange for forward Issac Okoro.

The Brooklyn Nets are in the early stages of their latest rebuild and as a result, they are expected to trade more of their veterans at some point in the near future. There was a chance that Brooklyn could have taken a chance on another young player, but there are more details surrounding that situation as well.

Per Evan Dammarell of ClutchPoints, his sources confirmed a report from Yahoo! Sports’ Jake Fischer that talks between the Nets and Cleveland Cavaliers about forward Isaac Okoro did not get far. Dammarell also adds that if Brooklyn and Cleveland were able to come to terms on a deal involving Okoro, Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith “likely” would have been going to the Cavaliers as a result.

Similar to Fischer, Dammarell points out that the possible reason that the two franchises were unable to nail down a deal was because of the financial situations of both teams after free-agency has died down.

The Nets are hard-capped at the first apron after acquiring guard Shake Milton from the New York Knicks as part of a sign-and-trade deal to facilitate the Mikal Bridges trade while the Cavaliers are operating as an over-the-cap, non-tax paying team as of this writing.

It has been reported plenty of times that the Cavaliers have been interested in acquiring either Finney-Smith or Cam Johnson, but they may be trying to keep Okoro at the same time as well. Ultimately, it seems like Brooklyn is unlikely to get Okoro at this point as they have only $5.2 million in space under the first apron.

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Nets considered potential trade destination for Cavaliers’ Isaac Okoro

Per HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto, the Brooklyn Nets are possibly a sign-and-trade destination for Cleveland Cavaliers forward Isaac Okoro.

The Brooklyn Nets are in the middle of a full-blown rebuild after trading Mikal Bridges to the New York Knicks in exchange for as many as five first-round picks and three players. Even though the main part of rebuilding is embracing the young players on the roster, it’s possible that Brooklyn could also consider young players on other NBA rosters.

Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported on Sunday that the Nets are considered to be one of the teams that could be explore sign-and-trade opportunities with the Cleveland Cavaliers for forward Isaac Okoro. What makes this report interesting is that the Cavaliers and the Nets have been linked in the past, but with regard for Cleveland’s reported interest in Cam Johnson and/or Dorian Finney-Smith.

“The Nets are among the teams considered a sign-and-trade possibility for Okoro, though nothing is considered imminent with Brooklyn, sources said,” Scotto wrote. “As previously reported by HoopsHype, Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith has drawn trade interest from Cleveland and has come up in discussions for Okoro, sources said.”

At the moment, Okoro is a restricted free-agent, meaning that his next contract could go a number of ways as he could leave the Cavaliers in a sign-and-trade deal, re-sign with the Cavaliers on a multi-year deal, or sign his one-year qualifying offer with Cleveland to become an unrestricted free-agent next summer.

Per Scotto, Okoro’s qualifying offer is worth $11.8 million and with Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor recently saying that the Cavaliers have offered Okoro a multi-year deal between $8 million and $10 million per season, it’s possible that Brooklyn could find themselves trading for a 24-year-old that fits the mold of the prototypical 3-and-D wing while being on a reasonable contract.

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Jaylin Williams among top 100 prospects ahead of NBA draft

Williams looks to become the next Auburn player to join the NBA ranks.

Under [autotag]Bruce Pearl[/autotag]’s direction, it has become common practice for Auburn basketball to produce NBA talent.

Pearl has produced six NBA draft picks since taking over the program in 2014, most recently sending [autotag]Jabari Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Walker Kessler[/autotag] to the association as first-round picks in 2022. The next Auburn-made NBA product could be forward Jaylin Williams.

Williams had an impressive Auburn career which saw him average 10-plus points per game in four of his five seasons on the Plains. Now, he is ready to take the next step in his career by joining the NBA ranks.

Ahead of next week’s NBA draft, [autotag]Jaylin Williams[/autotag] ranks No. 78 in On3’s top 100 prospects list. NBA Scouting Live feels that Williams could be a threat on both sides of the basketball.

Auburn’s Jaylin Williams is a versatile scorer that can make plays on both sides of the ball. He has a variety of skills but can tend to fade into the background too much at times, but he is a skilled forward that could end up being a second round pick in the 2024 draft.

Williams ends his collegiate career as Auburn’s all-time winningest player with over 110 wins. In five seasons at Auburn, Williams averaged 9.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game over 141 games. He looks to join the likes of [autotag]Isaac Okoro[/autotag] and [autotag]JT Thor[/autotag] by becoming another former Tiger on an active NBA roster.

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Bruce Pearl hints at Auburn’s 2024 rotation

Auburn will have a very different looking rotation this season.

Auburn men’s basketball coach [autotag]Bruce Pear[/autotag]l addressed the media via Zoom on Friday. With fall camp fast approaching, Pearl pointed out four key areas where the Tigers need to make up for lost production from last season.

“We gotta replace [autotag]Wendell Green[/autotag], we gotta replace [autotag]Zep Jasper[/autotag], we gotta replace [autotag]Allen Flanigan[/autotag], and we gotta replace whoever backed up [autotag]Jaylin Williams [/autotag] last year.”

Pearl mentioned freshmen guard [autotag]Aden Holloway[/autotag] as the likely replacement for Green.

He called Holloway “a combination of a lot of the guards [Auburn] has had in the past.” Holloway was a McDonald’s All-American in 2022, leading his team to a 36-1 record while averaging 18.5 points, 5.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game as a senior.

Auburn’s head coach is high on the former five-star recruit, likening his work ethic to that of former Auburn first-round picks [autotag]Jabari Smith[/autotag], [autotag]Walker Kessler[/autotag], and [autotag]Isaac Okoro[/autotag].

The starting point guard spot is Holloway’s to lose, although Pearl did mention [autotag]Tre Donaldson[/autotag] as a player who will see some minutes and push Holloway to be better.

Pearl’s next test will be replacing defensive wizard [autotag]Zep Jasper[/autotag]. While the loss of Jasper will hurt the Tigers defensively, Pearl did note the potential for the team to improve scoring the basketball, where he is opting to give transfer guard [autotag]Denver Jones[/autotag] a run in the starting five over fan-favorite [autotag]K.D Johnson,[/autotag] at least for now, due to his high-volume scoring ability.

“Denver Jones could be a candidate for one of our top two or three scorers.”

It’s hard to argue with that statement, Jones was absolutely lethal as a scorer last season. The sophomore guard was one of only 26 players in Division 1 to average at least 20.0 points per game in 2022, helping him become the first-ever FIU Panther to win Conference USA first-team all-conference honors.

Pearl was a little more ambiguous when discussing how he would deploy his front-court options.

He did take time to praise JUCO transfer [autotag]Chad Baker-Mazara[/autotag] and Division 2 transfer [autotag]Chaney Johnson[/autotag], calling Baker-Mazara “really good,” while citing his accomplishments at Northwest Florida State College and San Diego State.

The issue with Baker-Mazara is his size, where he measures 6 feet 7 inches but weighs only 190 pounds. That body type does not bode well for a healthy season, especially in the physical SEC.

As for Johnson, Pearl called him “one of the best athletes on our team,” citing his ability to shoot, guard multiple positions, and dribble the basketball.

Of course, returning Tigers [autotag]Johni Broome[/autotag], [autotag]Jaylin Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Dylan Cardwell [/autotag] will see ample minutes in the front court as well.

Pearl still has plenty of time to figure out his final rotation ahead of Auburn’s season opener against Baylor on Nov. 7, but it seems like he at least has an idea of how he would like to deploy his roster ahead of this season.

Fall camp performances and injuries will surely change some things too.

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Projected starting lineup for the Cavaliers with Max Strus after sign-and-trade with Heat

Max Strus has reportedly agreed to a four-year, $64 million deal to sign with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Max Strus has reportedly agreed to a four-year, $63 million deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers after a sign-and-trade with the Heat, per ESPN.

Miami landed Cedi Osman, Lamar Stevens and two second-round picks in the three-team deal that involved the Spurs.

Strus is a 6-foot-5, 27-year-old wing who was an essential piece for the Miami Heat during their run to win the Eastern Conference in 2022-23. He started all 23 games that Miami played during the postseason.

The former undrafted free agent is a very smart pickup because Cleveland connected on the third-fewest 3-pointers per game (10.0) among all teams in the postseason, via NBA.com. Only four players in the league attempted more 3-pointers than Strus (135) during the playoffs.

Here is what the rotation will likely look like for Cleveland with Strus in the mix:

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WATCH: Isaac Okoro drains game-winning 3 for Cleveland Cavaliers

It is the first game-winner of his young career.

The biggest question about [autotag]Isaac Okoro[/autotag] when the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted him was his shooting. Well, he showed how far he has come Thursday night, draining a three with 0.7 seconds remaining to secure a 116-114 win over the Brooklyn Nets.

With the Cavs trailing 114-112 with 11.6 seconds left the Nets fouled Donovan Mitchell who calmly made the first free throw before missing the second. After Mitchell missed two put-back shots the ball bounced out to Caris LeVert who found Okoro in the corner for the game-winner.

Okoro finished the game with 11 points and was 3-of-4 from deep.

After making just 28.6% of his 3-pointers in his lone season at Auburn, he has improved each season and is shooting 35.3% from behind the arc this season. He is averaging 6.4 points and 2.4 rebounds for the Cavaliers who are 47-28 and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.

Watch Okoro make his first career game-winner below.

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Watch: Walker Kessler blocks Isaac Okoro’s shot in Cavaliers win over Jazz

In Monday night’s game between the Utah Jazz and Cleveland Cavaliers, there was a classic case of “Auburn on Auburn” crime.

Is there anything wrong with a little “Auburn on Auburn” crime?

That situation took place on Monday night, as [autotag]Walker Kessler[/autotag]’s Utah Jazz traveled to Ohio to face [autotag]Isaac Okoro[/autotag] and the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.

The battle of the former Tigers featured a great matchup between the two, which resulted in a stellar highlight. During Monday’s game, Okoro drove toward the basket and appeared to fake-out Kessler. Okoro then took advantage of the lane that he created by going up for the shot. However, after resetting his footing, Kessler was successful in blocking Okoro’s shot, causing the possession to end.

Despite losing the battle, Okoro and the Cavaliers ultimately won the game, 122-99. Okoro ended the evening with 12 points and four assists in 30 minutes of action while Kessler scored 11 points and pulled down six rebounds.

Kessler will meet former teammate Jabari Smith Jr. on January 5 when the Jazz travel to Houston to meet the Rockets. The next time that Okoro will face a former Tiger will be on Jan. 10, when he gets a rematch with Kessler and the Jazz.

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Projected starting lineup for Cavaliers with Donovan Mitchell makes them Eastern Conference favorites

This team is going to be a problem.

The Cleveland Cavaliers pulled off the biggest shocker of the offseason by trading for Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell.

After exceeding expectations last season, the Cavs accelerated their rebuild with this trade. They have added three-time All-Star Mitchell to a core that already included two All-Stars in Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen — as well as Evan Mobley, who may be the most valuable player on the entire roster.

Cleveland made the play-in tournament last season, but they are heading into the upcoming campaign as a force to be reckoned with. In addition to the stellar defense in their frontcourt with Mobley and Allen, they now have one of the best backcourts in the league with Mitchell and Garland. All four are currently 25 years old or younger.

Here is their projected starting lineup now that they have made this trade: