Tag: Kessler Edwards

Woj: Nets’ Kessler Edwards has agreed to be traded to the Kings along with cash

Kessler Edwards has agreed to be traded to the Sacramento Kings, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Brooklyn Nets forward Kessler Edwards has agreed to be traded, along with cash, to the Sacramento Kings, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. According to Wojnarowski, The Nets save a total of $8M in salary and luxury tax and open up a roster spot. Edwards still has to approve trade because he has a “one-year Bird Rights restriction” in his deal.

Despite there being reports that the Nets remain active and determined to add a star player to pair with Kevin Durant, it looks like this Edwards trade is one of the least-impactful trades done near the deadline thus far. Edwards, who is in his second season with the Nets, has not played much for the team outside of the G-League.

Wojnarowski also reports that Sacramento plans to use Edwards for their G-League affiliate, the Stockton Kings, but that his status is fluid with the deadline still two days away. Edwards was not helping Brooklyn contend for a title this season anyway and trading him gives Brooklyn an extra roster spot to potentially make a bigger move before the deadline passes.

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Player grades: Cam Thomas scores 33 as Nets beat Pacers 136-133

Here are the Nets’ player grades for Saturday’s win over the Indiana Pacers.

The Brooklyn Nets visited the Indiana Pacers on Saturday and won 136-133. This was the fourth and final matchup between these two teams this season and the regular-season series is tied at 2-2.

For the Nets, Cam Thomas had 33 points and three rebounds off the bench while Patty Mills had 24 points and six assists. Day’Ron Sharpe had 20 points and 12 rebounds as Edmond Sumner had 20 points and seven rebounds.

For the Pacers, Tyrese Haliburton had 35 points and nine assists as Buddy Hield had 17 points and four rebounds. Myles Turner had 16 points and three rebounds while Oshae Brissett had 14 points and three rebounds off the bench.

In a game where the Nets rested eight players including Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn still had six players in double figures. Not much defense was played in this game by either team, but the Nets were able to limit the Pacers in the second a tad by allowing them to score only 24 points in the third quarter.

The Nets couldn’t hit many 3s, but they did win the rebounding battle 59-30 which includes 29 offensive rebounds. The Nets only had 19 assists as they were relying more on players like Thomas and Mills to hit shots off the dribble or guys like Sumner getting to the rim. Turnovers were an issue for the Nets, but in the end, the 25-11 run Brooklyn made from the middle of the third quarter to the beginning of the fourth quarter was huge.

Here are the Nets’ player grades:

Brooklyn Nets player grades: Durant, Irving score 78 vs. Grizzlies

Brooklyn Nets superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving combined for 78 points against the Memphis Grizzlies. How does each player grade?

On Wednesday, the Brooklyn Nets came up short in their 132-120 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Kyrie Irving (43) and Kevin Durant (35) finished with a combined 78 points, but it wasn’t enough to get a win. Despite not having Ja Morant in the lineup, the Grizzlies put up 132 points while shooting 19-38 (50.0 percent) from beyond the arc.

The Grizzlies received strong individual scoring outings with Morant as Desmond Bane (23), DeAnthony Melton (23), and Dillon Brooks (21), all combined for 67 points. Memphis is now 15-2 in games played without Morant in the lineup.

“(The Grizzlies) are playing with freedom knowing (Morant) is not there, so a lot of guys are playing with a free mind and spirit,” Durant said. “You see, it’s translating into buckets.”

The Nets remain without Ben Simmons in the lineup as he recovers from a herniated disc. Before tipoff, there were developments about the New York City vaccine mandate change that restored Kyrie Irving’s eligibility for home games.

Here are the player grades after a loss to the Grizzlies:

Brooklyn Nets player grades: Kevin Durant’s 37 leads vs. Utah Jazz

The Brooklyn Nets defeated the Utah Jazz 114-106. How does the performance for each of their rotation players grade?

The Brooklyn Nets managed to win their second consecutive game by defeating the Utah Jazz with 114-106 being the final score.

Kevin Durant took care of business with a game-high 37 points while also recording nine rebounds and eight assists. He’s now up to averages of 30.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 7.3 assists on shooting splits that well exceed the illustrious 50-40-90 mark in the month of March.

“I just think we’re rallying around each other,” Durant said. “We’re making big plays, we’re just doing it together more than anything. It’s just a collective effort.”

The Nets held a 108-87 lead in the fourth quarter at one point, but the Jazz managed to rally back using a 19-4 lead to make it a competitive game with 57 seconds remaining in the game. Brooklyn held on to win the game in the end, however.

Brooklyn remained without Kyrie Irving (ineligible) and Ben Simmons (herniated disc) for this game, but still managed to get the job done against one of the better teams in the Western Conference despite that fact.

Here are the player grades after a win over the Jazz:

Steve Nash: Kessler Edwards was outstanding to help shorthanded Nets

With just eight players available, the Nets were forced to turn to several rookies and they stepped up in a big way on Tuesday.

With just eight healthy players available, the Brooklyn Nets needed the assistance of four rookies but the group managed to scrape and claw its way to a narrow overtime win over the Toronto Raptors.

Kevin Durant led the way with 34 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists in 48 minutes for his 14th career triple-double while Patty Mills had 30 points in the 131-129 victory, including a 3-pointer late in regulation to send the game to overtime.

The 48 minutes were the most logged by Durant in a single-overtime regular-season game since 2014.

Brooklyn received huge contributions from two-way rookies David Duke Jr. and Kessler Edwards. Duke produced a career-high 10 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two blocks while Edwards had a career-high 17 points and 10 rebounds on 7-of-12 shooting from the field.

The double-doubles for Duke and Edwards were the first of their careers.

Nets head coach Steve Nash said Edwards was outstanding in the win.

He was outstanding, obviously. (He had) 17 and 10 with two steals, two assists and three 3s. He started the game and he didn’t run in for a dunk, he gave up an offensive rebound and we just told him: ‘Be aggressive. Have fun out there. You’re a good player. Show it!’ Then he responded so I’m really proud of him and all of these guys.

The Nets announced prior to the contest that James Harden and Bruce Brown were placed into the health and safety protocols. They joined LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre’ Bembry, Jevon Carter and James Johnson in the protocols, leaving Brooklyn with just eight players.

The 8 players available to play on Tuesday: 

  • G: David Duke Jr., Patty Mills, Cam Thomas
  • F: Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Kessler Edwards
  • C: Nic Claxton, Day’Ron Sharpe

The contest on Tuesday was just the third of the season for both Duke and Edwards. They had played primarily in the NBA G League with the Long Island Nets but were called upon with Brooklyn down six players in health and safety protocols.

Durant credited Edwards and Duke for fueling him down the stretch.

I was gassed for sure there in that fourth (quarter). To see Kess, Patty, Duke and Blake make plays in that fourth reenergized me going into that fourth. I was able to hit a couple of shots there in the overtime and give us a small cushion and then Patty was just an assassin tonight. It was an overall team effort and words can’t describe how proud I am to be a part of this group. It was incredible.

Players entered into the health and safety protocols this season are forced to sit out for a minimum of 10 days. However, they can be cleared to play sooner if they return two consecutive negative PCR tests taken at least 24 hours apart.

With the status of those six players in question, the Nets will need to continue to rely on the likes of Duke, Edwards, Thomas and Sharpe. They each stepped up when their team needed them to and that should be an encouraging development moving forward.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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Nets 3 goals: How Kessler Edwards can grow in the G-League

Three goals for Nets rookie Kessler Edwards as he begins his first year:

2021-22 will be an intriguing two-way season to watch for Brooklyn’s 2021 second-round pick Kessler Edwards. The Pepperdine product recently agreed to a two-way deal with the Nets, and can play up to 50 games with the team.

One of the significant differences for a player like Edwards in the new two-way structure is that he can have unlimited practice time with his NBA team even if he isn’t suiting up in games.

Nets fans got their first glimpse of the 2020-21 WCC first-teamer at NBA Summer League, where after a slow start he broke out against the Washington Wizards for 14 points and a number of defensive gems. Attacking this Corey Kispert closeout in a late shot clock situation was a particularly fun flash:

Edwards was branded as a prototypical “3-and-D” NBA wing, but that broad, overused archetype will lead you down many different rabbit holes when further analyzing a prospect with that label. The best defense Edwards played at Pepperdine was as a team defender, helping to cover up the mistakes of his teammates with length, timing, and intelligence to be able to guard in nearly every spot on the floor.

The funky jumper mechanics were a big question for many, but he nearly never had an issue getting his shot off or making those shots at a decent clip while in college.

What would define a successful year for the two-way tweener? Here are three goals for Edwards heading into his first NBA campaign:

Kessler Edwards signs a two-way deal with the Nets

Kessler Edwards, the 44th pick of draft, has agreed to a two-way deal with the Brooklyn Nets.

The Brooklyn Nets have made a decision with rookie Kessler Edwards. The former Wave was offered a two-way deal with the team and he has already agreed with the terms and conditions. In Las Vegas, Edwards has averaged 9 PPG to go with 9.7 RPG. Although he struggled in the recent contest versus the San Antonio Spurs, scoring only one point on 0-of-3 shooting in 13 minutes, the organization is convinced that he still has a future with the franchise.

In his time with the Long Island Nets and the first team, Edwards must work on his jumpshot. Yes, it does drop at times, but it can be better especially as he continues to elevate at the next level. There’s still more work that needs to be done there. His perimeter defense has also been questionable because the forward tends to get beaten off closeouts.

Still, Edwards does show great potential with his overall defensive game. Standing at 6’8” with a 6’11” wingspan, this gives the rookie the ability to guard multiple positions. His instincts on that end also serve him well. Once he taps into his true potential on the defensive end, he will be a problem. It’s almost inevitable that he will become a better catch and shooter offensively too.

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A roundup of NBA sleepers draft analysts are higher on than others

Who owns the most real estate on Davion Mitchell Island? Who is buying stock in Sharife Cooper?

Everyone loves Cade Cunningham. It’s not a hot take for an analyst to say that Cunningham is their favorite player in the class. That’s not particularly interesting to read, either.

But what is fascinating, however, is when an analyst deviates from the norm and ranks someone significantly higher than where the prospect falls in other rankings. What does that tell us about their individual scouting process and what they value? Further, what does that tell us about the potential draftee?

Some folks call it “buying stock” in a player. Others, like ESPN’s Zach Lowe or The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, call it owning real estate on a player’s island. I like to refer to it as a “draft crush” when I wind up higher than consensus in my evaluation of a player.

My process is ridiculously tedious but the results can be fairly useful. I’ve tracked the evolution of more than sixty unique mock drafts, big boards and draft models from trusted analysts and popular accounts on Twitter.

Each placement is assigned a value based on Kevin Pelton’s draft pick trade value chart. I do this because, as Pelton notes, the difference in relative value between the No. 5 overall pick and the No. 7 overall is much more stark than, say, that of the No. 45 pick and the No. 47 pick.

After composing an aggregate score based on each ranking, I can see where each analyst strays from the pack.

I’ll leave the conclusions drawn from these results up to the reader. But if nothing else, this can eventually be used as a bragging point if one writer was higher than consensus on a draftee who eventually ends up outperforming his draft position.

Final 2021 NBA Mock Draft: Latest intel, trade rumors and predicting all 60 picks

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

Wasn’t it just the 2020 NBA draft? How is the 2021 NBA draft already here? Crazy, maybe, but the league is about to have a ton of new faces.

The names that you’re most likely to hear at the top are Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green and Evan Mobley. But the draft will start heating up once guys like Jalen Suggs, Scottie Barnes and Jonathan Kuminga start to find their new homes.

This draft will also be unique in that there will be fewer players in attendance than usual. According to one prospect who recently spoke to For The Win, due to COVID-19 restrictions, those not invited to the green room are not allowed to come to the stage and shake the hand of the commissioner as they have been in years past.

Regardless of who is actually in the building, however, it is certain to be an exciting and life-changing night for the next generation of NBA talent.

Based on conversations I’ve had with scouts around the league, and from reports and tea leaves left in other mock drafts from trusted draftniks, below is how I project the events will unfold at Barclays Center and on ESPN and ABC at 8:00 p.m. ET on July 29.

2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 7.0: Ranking the full class of prospects

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in — and who has withdrawn — from the class.

The 2021 NBA draft is less than a week away and we finally have an idea of who is in – and who has withdrawn – from the class.

In order to get a better sense of where all of the prospects stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Yahoo, The Athletic, The Ringer, Yahoo, NBA Big Board and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Since our previous update last month, some of the players with the most positive momentum include Quentin Grimes, Joe Wieskamp, Vrenz Bleijenbergh, Aaron Wiggins, Justin Champagnie, Jericho Sims, Jason Preston, Josh Primo, Neemias Queta, Trey Murphy and Bones Hyland.

Among players who ranked on our previous update who have since withdrawn from the draft include Roko Prkacin (32), Marcus Bagley (39), Terrence Shannon (48), Ariel Hukporti (50), Max Abmas (53), Johnny Juzang (54), Jordan Hall (66), Carlos Alocen (69) and Ochai Agbaji (75).

The most notable omissions who remain in this class but not these rankings are Yves Pons, Scottie Lewis, Jay Huff, Marcus Zegarowski, Aamir Simms, Dalano Banton, Matt Mitchell, Jose Alvarado, Carlik Jones, Derrick Alston Jr., Romeo Weems, Balsa Koprivica, Chaundee Brown, Isaiah Miller, Jordan Schakel and D.J. Carton.

Note that for the offensive roles, we borrowed a fun idea from Todd Whitehead (formerly of Nylon Calculus) with help from our friends at Bball-Index.com to create a slightly tweaked formula from the version they use.

The goal of that is not to explain how well a player scores but rather offer context for the way that he was used on his most recent team. This should help you predict how he might be used at the next level.

Meanwhile, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report