Tag: Josh Hall

Thunder injury updates: Hamidou Diallo out vs. Mavs, George Hill still in cast

OKC Thunder coach Mark Daigneault provided injury updates to George Hill and Hamidou Diallo, who will be out against the Dallas Mavericks.

Three Oklahoma City Thunder are injured coming out of the All-Star break and have been ruled out for the first game against the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.

Guard Hamidou Diallo, who suffered a groin injury on Feb. 24, will miss his fifth game in a row, head coach Mark Daigneault said on Wednesday.

“Hami will be out for tomorrow’s game but has made progress over the course of the break,” Daigneault said. “He’s just on a progression right now that, we’ll obviously be cautious and make sure that when he goes back out there, he’s be as close to 100% as he can be.

Diallo had initially been ruled out two games, but even before those games were played, Daigneault said he thought the guard may miss the remaining four before the break.

His absence will be somewhat extended from that original estimation.

“He will not play tomorrow, and after that, I’m really not sure,” Daigneault said.

Point guard George Hill, who suffered a thumb injury in late January, remains in a hard cast following surgery. Daigneault said on March 1 that Hill would be in the cast for one to two weeks, which could put the cast removal date around March 15.

“George Hill is on the same timetable. He’s still in a cast right now and so there’s been no change there,” Daigneault said Wednesday.

Josh Hall, who is suffering from left knee soreness, only played in one G League game and rejoined the Thunder before bubble play concluded.

On March 4, Daigneault said Hall was still recovering while he was in Florida and that the treatment resources in Oklahoma City were better.

He too will be inactive against the Mavericks.

Tipoff for the game between Oklahoma City and Dallas, their first of the second half of the season, is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Thursday.

Thunder’s Josh Hall, Moses Brown to play in G League bubble tournament

OKC Thunder two-way players Josh Hall and Moses Brown will join the Blue for the G League bubble tournament scheduled to begin in February.

Oklahoma City two-way players Josh Hall and Moses Brown have had limited court time with the Thunder.

That’s why head coach Mark Daigneault is looking forward to them taking part in the G League bubble tournament with the OKC Blue.

“The biggest thing for guys like them that are this early in their careers is being able to be to go out there and apply it,” Daigneault said.

Hall has scored 12 points over six appearances with the Thunder. Six of those points came in the game against the Denver Nuggets, but then he missed the next four games due to coronavirus health and safety protocols.

He played five minutes in the blowout loss against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, where he scored three points.

Brown, a second-year NBA player, has 21 points in six appearances. He already has more points and almost as many rebounds as he did last year with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Daigneault, who coached the Blue from 2014-19, said the G League affiliate tries to operate with the same culture as the NBA team.

“The beauty of the Blue is the consistency between the two programs,” he said. “We try to replicate everything about the Thunder there, especially from a cultural standpoint.”

The G League tournament will feature 18 teams. Seventeen are NBA affiliates and the other is the G League Ignite, a one-year developmental program for elite prospects.

It will take place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

“We take those minutes very seriously and we’re really looking forward to watching those guys and the other guys with the Blue,” Daigneault said.

The Blue’s first game is scheduled to tip off on Feb. 11 at 10:30 a.m.

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Who can take Aleksej Pokusevski’s place as he goes through concussion protocol?

Aleksej Pokusevski is out with a concussion, but the OKC Thunder can use this time to explore bench options like Isaiah Roby and Justin Jackson.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been eager to give first-round draft pick Aleksej Pokusevski minutes off the bench this season. The 19-year-old, selected No. 17 overall, is averaging 16 minutes per game over his first five contests.

Despite Pokusevski’s shooting troubles, giving him these minutes is logical. Right now, his big hurdle is understanding how to play against NBA players, not an actual lack of talent — he’s shown chops rebounding and playmaking and his shooting stroke looks to have a solid form with a quick release.

In an organization that isn’t judging progress based on wins and losses, playing Pokusevski makes sense in both the short- and long-term.

However, the rookie suffered a concussion during practice on Sunday and is in concussion protocol. That will force the Thunder to turn to other players.

Head coach Mark Daigneault said Monday prior to the game against the Miami Heat that exploring the roster without breaking the rhythm of the lineups is important.

“One thing philosophically that we try to do as a coaching staff and as an organization is explore the roster,” Daigneault said. “Give different guys different opportunities and see how different combinations kind of click.”

Who will get the chance to step up in this specific situation? Let’s take a look at some of the options.

4 Thunder players out in final preseason game; George Hill to start

George Hill will start for the OKC Thunder, but four players will be inactive for the final preseason game against the Chicago Bulls.

Four Oklahoma City Thunder players will not be active for the final preseason game against the Chicago Bulls, head coach Mark Daigneault said prior to the game on Friday.

Guard Ty Jerome, forward Darius Miller and forward Josh Hall are all inactive for their third games of the preseason. Rookie guard Theo Maledon will not play due to rest purposes.

Daigneault declined to go into specifics about what is keeping Jerome, Miller and Hall sidelined, but said they are all on a return-to-play track and are doing workouts with the team.

He has previously described their conditions as “bumps and bruises.”

Daigneault does not believe any of them will be sidelined long-term.

All three players are new to the Thunder. Jerome, a second-year guard, was acquired from the Phoenix Suns in the Chris Paul trade. Miller was received from the New Orleans Pelicans as part of the Steven Adams deal, and Josh Hall signed as an undrafted free agent.

The three have yet to make their debuts for Oklahoma City.

Maledon, meanwhile, impressed in his two preseason games with the club. He posted 20 points in his first game, scored 11 in his second and is averaging just under 30 minutes per game.

It would be unsurprising if he has carved out a backup guard role to start the season.

In front of him appears to be George Hill, who will start for the Thunder on Friday. Hill scored 11 points in the preseason opener against the San Antonio Spurs but did not play last game against the Bulls on Wednesday.

GAME DETAILS: How to watch Thunder vs. Bulls

Joining Hill in the starting lineup will be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Lu Dort, Darius Bazley and Al Horford.

Oklahoma City is 1-1 in the preseason and is looking to close it out with a win over the Bulls, who beat them Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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What Daigneault said about new two-way Thunder players Moses Brown, Josh Hall

The Oklahoma City Thunder signed Josh Hall and Moses Brown to two-way contracts, the team announced Wednesday.

The Oklahoma City Thunder signed a pair of players to two-way contracts, the team announced Wednesday.

Undrafted rookie forward Josh Hall and second-year center Moses Brown are joining the organization.

“We’re excited about them. They’re intriguing players,” head coach Mark Daigneault said. “Two guys again, like the rest of our group, really eager to learn. Both have great size for their position, both are very rangy, athletic. A lot of raw tools there.”

Brown, listed at 7-foot-1 and 245 pounds, spent the majority of his time in the G League last season, where he averaged 14.4 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 19.4 minutes per game while shooting 64.1% from the floor.

He appeared in nine games with the Portland Trail Blazers.

Brown spent one year of college at UCLA. He averaged 9.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.

Hall was a fifth-year student at Moravian Prep in North Carolina. Listed as a four-star prospect on the 247Sports Composite rankings, he dominated the high school court.

Listed at 6-foot-8 and 200 pounds, Hall averaged 24 points per game and led Moravian Prep to a 34-3 record, according to the Charlotte Observer.

He averaged 20.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game at the John Wall Holiday Invitational.

Both are listed on the Thunder’s training camp roster.

“It’s early, but so far have shown the type of qualities of people that improve,” Daigneault said. “They work hard, they pay attention, they try to get it right, and they have embraced our environment and our culture so far.”

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OKC added 3 players this offseason who left or decommitted from NC State

Oklahoma City Thunder signed Omer Yurtseven and Josh Hall and traded for (and away) Jalen Lecque, all of whom have NC State connections.

The Oklahoma City Thunder’s roster has been a whirlwind of change over the last month, and inside that storm is one rather strange anomaly.

This offseason, the Thunder have added three different players who have either transferred or decommitted from North Carolina State. Two of them remain on the team while one was quickly traded away after being acquired.

Omer Yurtseven, signed as an undrafted free agent, played at NC State from 2016-18 before transferring to Georgetown. While with the Wolfpack, Yurtseven averaged about 10 points and six rebounds per game and shot 54.2% from the field, with his numbers dramatically improving as a sophomore.

Josh Hall, also added to the Thunder as an undrafted free agent, was committed to NC State but entered the draft out of high school instead. As a 19-year-old and fifth-yer prep player, he was eligible for the NBA draft coming out of Moravian Prep.

This was the second year in a row the Wolfpack lost the commitment of a star high school prospect.

In 2019, Jalen Lecque entered the draft out of Brewster Academy instead of going through with his NC State commitment. Lecque was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Phoenix Suns and played for the organization last season before being traded to the Thunder as part of the Chris Paul trade.

Lecque is no longer with the Thunder, as he was traded to the Indiana Pacers for T.J. Leaf and a second-round draft pick, but the coincidental nature of Oklahoma City adding three players who left NC State hanging remains strange.

Last season, there were four former NC State players in the NBA according to Basketball RealGM, not including G League players. Lecque is actually now in the same organization as one of them, T.J. Warren.

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Oklahoma City reportedly signs Josh Hall, Omer Yurtseven as undrafted free agents

Josh Hall and Omer Yurtseven have reportedly been signed by the Oklahoma City Thunder as undrafted free agents.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have reached agreements to sign two undrafted free agents, according to reports.

The team signed Josh Hall, who played postgraduate high school season at Moravian Prep, to a two-way contract, according to Stockriser’s Jake Weingarten.

Oklahoma City also signed Georgetown center Omer Yurtseven to an Exhibit 10 contract, according to Yahoo’s Chris Haynes.

Hall had been committed to North Carolina State but withdrew the commitment out so he could enter the NBA draft. The 6-foot-9 wing, who turned 20 in October, averaged 24 points per game and led Moravian Prep to a 34-3 record, according to the Charlotte Observer. He was ranked a four-star player and the No. 31 player in the 2020 high school class by the 247Sports composite.

Yurtseven spent his first two seasons at North Carolina State before transferring to Georgetown. As a senior, he averaged 15.5 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

He is 7 feet tall with a 7-foot-1 wingspan and weighs 264 pounds.

Both will likely spend the majority of the season on the Oklahoma City Blue, the Thunder’s G League affiliate.

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2020 NBA Draft Big Board 5.0: Final update ranking Top 100 prospects

After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.

After numerous delays and postponements, front offices and draftniks have had more time to analyze the 2020 NBA draft than any previous year.

Originally scheduled for June, the ongoing pandemic pushed the big night back by five months. While this may cause some teams to overthink their decisions, it gave analysts plenty of time to study all of the top prospects eligible in this class.

This year, players had to participate in a mostly virtual pre-draft process. On the bright side, this meant that teams had the opportunity to interview more candidates than ever before.

However, the number of in-person visits were incredibly limited due to the restrictive parameters set by the league. Similarly, the NBA draft combine was conducted without the typical scrimmages where players can separate themselves from the others with impressive on-court performances.

Overall, the players that stood out in this pre-draft process had a different path to recognition than any other year. College basketball players did not have the opportunity to showcase themselves during March Madness. The nation’s top seniors did not get to participate in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament.

As such, executives will rely mostly on the existing game footage as well as the intel they gathered during their conversations with the prospects. We also depended on similar strategies, getting access to one-on-one interviews with more than three dozen prospects and exchanging our thoughts with various scouts across the league.

This helped us put together our final big board, looking at the Top 100 players ranked on their potential to make a difference for teams in the NBA.

Relevant statistics were pulled from Synergy Sports Tech, Bart-Torvik, KenPom, Open Look Analytics and RealGM. Note that the age listed for each player references how old they will be on the night of the draft.

2020 NBA aggregate mock draft 8.0: Draft day ranges for top prospects

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done. 

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done.

We looked at mock drafts from NBADraft.net, ESPN, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, The Ringer, Stadium, SI.com, USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire, USA Today and Yahoo to give us a more clear understanding of consensus rankings and projections.

This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.

Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.

The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.

2020 NBA aggregate mock draft 8.0: Draft day ranges for top prospects

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done. 

The 2020 NBA draft is fairly unpredictable and prospects have wider ranges in where they could get selected when it is all said and done.

We looked at mock drafts from NBADraft.net, ESPN, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, The Ringer, Stadium, SI.com, USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s Rookie Wire, USA Today and Yahoo to give us a more clear understanding of consensus rankings and projections.

This also provided context for realistic high-end and low-end predictions for the players most often included in mock drafts.

Please note that the range included for each player is not based on our own reporting or intel and it only reflects the data pulled from the various mock drafts.

The full list of our latest aggregate mock draft rankings can be found here. HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report.