Tag: Kyle Kuzma

Free agency eve rumors: NBA teams expect Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks to join Rockets

Rival teams are expecting Fred VanVleet and Dillon Brooks to reach contract agreements with the #Rockets shortly after NBA free agency opens on Friday night, @TheSteinLine reports.

The NBA’s 2023 free agency window officially opens on Friday at 5:00 p.m. Central, and it might not take long for agreements to roll in.

For the Houston Rockets, who have a league-leading figure of more than $60 million in financial space beneath the salary cap, there’s an incentive to work quickly. If they can’t get a top target, they need to move on to secondary ones before those potentially sign elsewhere.

So, who will general manager Rafael Stone target once negotiations can officially begin on Friday afternoon? According to veteran NBA scribe Marc Stein, rival NBA teams are expecting Toronto guard Fred VanVleet and Memphis wing Dillon Brooks to both sign with the Rockets in the hours after free agency begins.

VanVleet will likely get a two-year offer worth a projected maximum of over $40 million per season, according to Stein, while Brooks could be on a two-year deal worth at least $14 million, annually.

As of Thursday morning, here’s where things stand.

Report: Kyle Kuzma could reunite with the Lakers this summer

Could a fan favorite be headed back to the Lakers this summer?

During his four seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, Kyle Kuzma was one of the more popular players on the team.

Despite being a late first-round pick, he proved one of the best players in his draft class as a rookie during the 2017-18 season. Over the last two or three seasons, he has shown improvement, especially when it comes to his rebounding, passing and defense.

Lakers fans have been pining for Kuzma to return ever since he was sent packing to the Washington Wizards in 2021’s Russell Westbrook trade. The forward is expected to become a free agent, and NBA analyst Jake Weinbach reported that there’s a looming possibility he will return to Los Angeles (h/t Lakers Daily).

This season, Kuzma averaged a career-high 21.2 points a game. However, he’s not the man to solve the Lakers’ 3-point shooting woes. He shot just 33.3% from downtown and has never shot as high as 37% from that distance for an entire season.

Report: Washington’s Kyle Kuzma a potential option for Rockets in free agency

With Washington potentially headed into a rebuild, veteran forward Kyle Kuzma could be an option for the #Rockets in 2023 free agency, @JakeLFischer reports.

With Washington considering Bradley Beal trades and potentially entering a rebuild, veteran forward Kyle Kuzma could be an option for the Houston Rockets in the NBA’s 2023 free agency period, according to national reporter Jake Fischer of Yahoo! Sports.

Now 27 years old, the 6-foot-9 Kuzma averaged 21.2 points (44.8% FG, 33.3% on 3-pointers), 7.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 35 minutes per game with the Wizards last season.

In his latest column, Fischer writes:

There no longer appears a pathway for the Suns to bring in Kyle Kuzma, whom Phoenix has targeted for several seasons, sources said. Kuzma has said he intends to decline his $13 million player option for 2023-24 to test free agency. You can chalk up Kuzma as another forward who’s being connected of late to both Indiana and Houston as a potential free-agent target.

It’s worth noting that with a massive figure of approximately $60 million in salary cap flexibility, agents around the NBA could easily leverage the potential threat of Houston as a 2023 suitor for their client to get a better financial deal elsewhere.

In the case of Kuzma, it’s hard to see where he would fit with the Rockets. Houston already has a crowded forward rotation with Jabari Smith Jr., Tari Eason, KJ Martin and Jae’Sean Tate. There is also the potential for drafting a forward such as Alabama’s Brandon Miller or Villanova’s Cam Whitmore at No. 4 in the 2023 first round. Memphis veteran Dillon Brooks has frequently been rumored as a free agency possibility, as well.

So, it’s certainly possible Houston’s connection to Kuzma could be for leverage purposes. Nonetheless, with such a significant amount of cap space, it shouldn’t be ruled out — especially if Kuzma’s former team, Washington, enters into a youth-driven rebuild and becomes less likely to use its Bird rights to retain veterans.

Free agency negotiations can officially begin on Friday, June 30.

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Bradley Beal isn’t coming to the Boston Celtics — but maybe Kyle Kuzma could

Boston’s stars are almost certainly set, but the Bradley Beal news might signal other trades the Celtics could get in on.

Fans of the Boston Celtics who have heard Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal plans to work with his team to be traded should temper their hopes the former Florida star could be dealt to the Celtics given his substantial contract and its potential effects.

Under the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement, teams carrying especially costly rosters are punished in a number of ways that would make it almost impossible for a franchise to have three supermax players and still assemble enough depth to contend for a title.

With Jaylen Brown supermax-extension eligible this offseason, and Jayson Tatum eligible next year, but Celtics only other viable alternative (if you can call it that) would be to ship out either Brown or Tatum in a deal instead.

By almost any account, that would be a step backward, especially given Beal’s age (30 next season) and injury history (he has not played more than 60 games the last four seasons) on a deal that would run as long as a Brown extension — but start sooner.

However, such news hints that the Wizards are rebuilding, perhaps a sign that forward Kyle Kuzma could be had for the right ask, pending his decision on his player option for next season. The question then becomes whether Boston and Washington could strike a deal that makes sense for both sides.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

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Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie discusses Twitter beef with Kyle Kuzma

In a recent appearance on Gil’s Arena, Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie addressed his ongoing beef with Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma.

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie has seen and been through a lot in his nine-year NBA career. One of those things that seems to come up on social media repeatedly for Dinwiddie is his ongoing beef with Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma. Starting in January, Dinwiddie and Kuzma have been going at it over comments that Dinwiddie made about various players on the Wizards, including Kuzma, with regards to their reasons for playing the game.

Dinwiddie has essentially accused Kuzma of playing for something other than winning basketball and ever since then, Kuzma has been insulting Dinwiddie and Dinwiddie has been rebutting Kuzma with more measured retorts. Dinwiddie made an appearance on FanDuel TV’s Run It Back show in April and went more in-depth with his thoughts regarding his feud with Kuzma. As you can imagine, Kuzma has more to say about Dinwiddie and some of it was funny to say the least.

Fast forward to Tuesday when Dinwiddie made an appearance on Underdog Fantasy’s Gil’s Arena hosted by former NBA player Gilbert Arena and “King of NBA Twitter” Josiah Johnson. Dinwiddie was once again asked for his reaction to his beef with Kuzma and Dinwiddie has this to say:

“How I feel about that? Obviously, he (Kuzma) was hurt by the things I said. And, let me preface this: I never once said he wasn’t talented. So, I never once called him a bum on the court. Everything that I said though, was designed to be honest. It was a fact. Right? So, do I respect his talent level? Yes. Do I respect his priorities? No. And, that’s what I said.”

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Kyle Kuzma thinks the Lakers can reach the NBA Finals this year

Former Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma sees a lot of potential in his former team.

Kyle Kuzma is one of the most popular former Los Angeles Lakers among the team’s fan base.

He spent four seasons with the Purple and Gold and become a more well-rounded player during his time there. He improved his defense, rebounding and passing. Of course, he earned an NBA championship ring with L.A. in 2020.

Kuzma was sent to the Washington Wizards during the summer of 2021 in the Russell Westbrook trade, and he had a career-best effort this season by averaging 21.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

While his Wizards didn’t reach the postseason, he thinks the Lakers, who claimed the seventh seed in the Western Conference by winning their play-in game versus the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday, can reach the NBA Finals this year.

Although Kuzma referred to this tweet as a hot take, it doesn’t seem so far-fetched. A number of national pundits feel the same way. In fact, ESPN’s Jay Williams and Nick Wright of Fox Sports 1 have both said L.A. will win the world championship.

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Kyle Kuzma rooting for Sixers to beat Nets amid Spencer Dinwiddie beef

Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma is rooting for the Philadelphia 76ers to beat the Brooklyn Nets amid his beef with Spencer Dinwiddie.

Before Spencer Dinwiddie was sent back to the Brooklyn Nets in a deal that sent Kyrie Irving to the Dallas Mavericks, Dinwiddie was a member of the Washington Wizards.

He was expected to help the Wizards be a competitive team while playing alongside Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma. It wasn’t meant to be. In 44 games with the Wizards, Dinwiddie averaged 12.6 points and 5.8 assists while shooting only 37.6% from the floor and 31% from deep. Washington sent him to the Mavs at the 2022 deadline.

Since then Dinwiddie and Kuzma have exchanged some words, and Dinwiddie recently went after Kuzma for not being a third star. Kuzma has clapped back. The upcoming free agent went on a long NSFW Twitter thread going at Dinwiddie, and he ended it by rooting for the Philadelphia 76ers to knock out Dinwiddie’s Nets.

The Sixers should win this series considering they are the better team as they have their eyes on a championship, but the Kuzma beef with Dinwiddie just adds another layer to this series.

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Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie goes at Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma for not being ‘a third star’

Spencer Dinwiddie cooks Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma on Wednesday for prior comments.

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie has a big game coming up on Saturday when his Nets face the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 1 of their first-round matchup in the playoffs. However, it appears that he had some free time on Wednesday to take the public just what he thinks about Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma.

Dinwiddie appeared on FanDuel TV’s Run It Back to be interviewed by former ESPN personality Michelle Beadle. Among the topics that Dinwiddie was asked about, his beef with Kuzma came up. As the interview went on, it’s clear that Dinwiddie had no thoughts about holding back what he said despite not addressing the matter when it happened.

Dinwiddie played 44 games for the Wizards in the 2021-2022 season along with Kuzma before Dinwiddie was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in a deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to Washington. This beef started over Dinwiddie saying that the Wizards didn’t playing winning basketball when they beat the Mavericks 127-126 on Jan. 24. Kuzma responded by saying that the Mavericks didn’t play winning basketball either. Here’s what Dinwiddie had to say in the interview:

“What’s the thing Draymond (Green) just said? Insecurity is loud. Right? We lost to them. I was on the Mavericks. I make a statement about we need to be better understanding the culture and the way games are played in D.C. He decides to respond because he felt like it was a shot at him. I’m in the playoffs. He’s not. If we look at him (Kuzma) and the way he approaches life, fame, and all that stuff, we can see that his priorities tend to vary. You know that you’re there shooting shots to try to get a contract, you’re probably not even a third star on a good team because if you were, the Lakers would have kept you.”

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Wizards offseason primer: Kristaps Porzingis, Kyle Kuzma, Bradley Beal, more

The Washington Wizards are headed back to the lottery for the fifth time in six seasons. They were hoping to get back to the playoffs with a healthy Bradley Beal and more continuity with Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma, but they remained in the …

The Washington Wizards are headed back to the lottery for the fifth time in six seasons. They were hoping to get back to the playoffs with a healthy Bradley Beal and more continuity with Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma, but they remained in the middle of the pack. Doubts about their ability to reach contention anytime soon could lead to questions about their future and those of their top players.

Here is a preview of the 2023 offseason for the team.

Kuzma on Beverley: Clippers didn’t want to be in NBA bubble in 2020

Kyle Kuzma threw shade at former Clipper Patrick Beverley when he said his team would’ve won the 2020 NBA title if not for the pandemic.

In the summer of 2019, Anthony Davis joined LeBron James on the Los Angeles Lakers, while Paul George and Kawhi Leonard went to the Los Angeles Clippers. It led many to expect a showdown between the two teams in the Western Conference finals the following spring.

Once the novel coronavirus pandemic hit critical mass and the NBA was forced to complete its season in the Walt Disney World Resort bubble, the Clippers mysteriously blew a 3-1 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals to the Denver Nuggets, depriving fans of that showdown.

George, Leonard and crew had been the overwhelming favorites to win the championship at the beginning of the season, making that collapse all the more shocking.

Patrick Beverley, who was a member of that Clippers team, recently said it would’ve won it all had the pandemic never happened.

Kyle Kuzma, a key member of that year’s Lakers squad, retorted that the players on the Clippers didn’t want to report to the bubble in the first place (h/t Lakers Daily).

The Lakers, of course, went on to easily dispatch the Nuggets in the conference title series and put away the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals to claim their 17th title.

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