Tag: nba draft 2020

Warriors sign second-round pick Nico Mannion to two-way contract

After picking Nico Mannion at No. 48 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Warriors are signing the Arizona product to a two-way contract.

Before the team returns to the Bay Area for the start of preseason training camp, the Golden State Warriors are handling the last offseason orders of business.

After drafting Arizona product Nico Mannion with the No. 48 overall selection in the 2020 NBA draft, the Warriors are signing the second-round pick to a two-way contract. Over his first season in the NBA, the 19-year-old guard will spend time between Chase Center in San Francisco and Golden State’s G League affiliate in Santa Cruz.

Two-way contract players can spend up to 50 games with their NBA club. Unlike years of the past, travel and practice will not count as active days for service time on two-way deals.

With a bevy of injuries last season, the Warriors relied on two-way contract players like Damion Lee, Ky Bowman and Marquese Chriss.

Via @WarriorsPR on Twitter:

During his freshman season at Arizona, the 6-foot-3 point guard averaged 14.0 points on 39.2% shooting from the field with 5.3 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 32 games. On 5.1 long-distance attempts per game, Mannion averaged 32.7% shooting from beyond the arc.

When training camp kicks off, the former five-star recruit will likely compete for minutes behind Steph Curry in Golden State’s backcourt with Jordan Poole, Lee and newly signed free agent Brad Wanamaker.

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Klutch Sports Draft news: Tyrese Maxey goes No. 21 to Philadelphia 76ers

Maxey averaged 14 points, four rebounds, and over three assists per game in 31 games last season for Kentucky.

Klutch Sports Group had a pretty great night 2020 NBA Draft Wednesday as they had the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft and another player go in the first round 20 picks later on Wednesday night.

Kentucky’s Tyrese Maxey was selected with the No. 21 pick in the 2020 draft. Georgia’s Anthony Edwards was selected No. 1 overall to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Maxey averaged 14 points, four rebounds, and three assists per game while he shot 42.7% from the field, 29.2% from the 3-point line but a promising 83.3% from the free-throw line.

Maxey is a combo guard who can defend and play both guard positions in the offense but will be going to a Sixers team that can use his skills immediately. Maxey was an odds-on favorite to go in the top-ten of Wednesday’s draft but he fell and the 76ers were the beneficiaries of an unlikely drop down the draft board.

While Maxey was projected to go much higher, he likely ended up in an even better basketball situation than a projection could have put him in.

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Watch Spike Lee’s hilarious photobomb of Cole Anthony after he was picked by the Magic

The Knicks have never made Spike this happy.

Spike Lee is one of the most notable basketball fans out there — specifically when it comes to the New York Knicks.

So it’s absolutely no surprise that he would have lots of connections with players around the league, both former and current. But absolutely nobody expected to see him at Cole Anthony’s house celebrating the biggest moment of the former Tarheel’s life.

Anthony was picked 15th overall by the Orlando Magic and was surrounded by family and friends when he was drafted. Among those people? Spike Lee, apparently.

The legendary director popped up out of nowhere and into the camera when the pick was announced.

Easily the best photobomb of the draft.

When you start to think about it, it makes a little bit more sense. Cole Anthony is the son of former Knicks guard Greg Anthony. Lee is a Knicks superfan, so of course, he’d be cool with some of the players.

But, still, everyone was surprised to see him there.

Even in a virtual draft, Spike just can’t stay away. Hilarous. Shoutout to Anthony, though. Just another amazing touch on a special night for him.

LeBron James tweets prayers for Klay Thompson, injured in recent workout

According to multiple reports, the Thompson camp is looking to determine the severity of the injury.

Just minutes before Wednesday’s NBA Draft, news broke that could potentially shift the entire landscape of the draft and the league at large beyond tonight’s draft. The Golden State Warriors, who have the No. 2 pick in tonight’s draft after making it to five straight NBA Finals, have been dealt a potentially brutal blow.

According to multiple reports, Golden State’s Klay Thompson suffered a lower leg injury in his right leg, the severity of which is still being determined. But the terms in which the injury is being talked about making it seem severe, with little detail, other than the fact it’s not good, provided. A source in the know told Marc Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated said it’s not good.

LeBron James is hoping the injury is only something minor.

The Warriors were looked at as a team that would once again be at the top of the Western Conference with a healthy Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, along with new additions like Andrew Wiggins and whomever they selected with the No. 2 pick in Wednesday’s draft. However, if Thompson’s injury is serious it does change the calculus for the Warriors just minutes before Wednesday’s draft.

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4 realistic trade ideas for the Warriors No. 2 overall pick

To move or not to move. That is the question.

It’s no secret that the Warriors are trying to win a championship next season. And they believe they can really do it.

Why shouldn’t they? Yes, they were absolutely awful last year. But they were without the two greatest shooters of all-time for, pretty much, the entire year. Now with both Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson back and healthy, they’re ready to work their way back into the Western Conference’s elite.

So it’s no wonder that they’re open to trading the No. 2 overall pick. They’re looking for a player or players that can help them contribute now — not necessarily two or three years down the line.

If they can find a bridge for the Steph Curry era? Great. If not? They’ll probably try to move this pick.

Here are a few trades that might interest them.

5 realistic trade ideas for the Timberwolves No. 1 overall pick

This is fun!

It is Wednesday. The NBA draft is here. Yet, somehow, we still have no idea who the Minnesota Timberwolves want to take with the number one overall pick.

It’s rare that you’d ever see a team actively shopping such a valuable pick — especially when that team wasn’t actually good last year — but it seems that the Wolves are really trying to trade their pick, per the Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski.

So far, there have certainly been a number of suitors for the pick who have made calls, but obviously, nothing has moved just yet.

Let’s help them out a bit. Here are a few realistic trade ideas that the Wolves might seriously consider for the top pick in this year’s draft.

NBA Draft: Which colleges have produced the most first-round picks?

NBA Draft: Which colleges have produced the most first-round picks?

Dwyane Wade: Anthony Edwards ‘can be better’ than him

Miami Heat basketball legend Dwyane Wade thinks that former Georgia Bulldog basketball standout Anthony Edwards can be better than him.

NBA and Miami Heat basketball legend Dwyane Wade has strong praise for former Georgia Bulldog basketball standout Anthony Edwards. Dwyane Wade, who is a three-time NBA Champion, believes that Anthony Edwards can be better than him.

Here’s what a quote of what Wade Tweeted regarding the University of Georgia basketball product:

He can be better. America here is your number 1 pick!

Anthony Edwards committed to the Georgia Bulldogs to go a similar journey to that of NBA superstars Victor Oladipo and Dwyane Wade.

Current Georgia basketball coach Tom Crean coached all three players. Crean previously coached Wade for several years when he was at Marquette, where the duo made a Final Four. Additionally, Crean coached Victor Oladipo at Indiana from 2010-2013. Both Oladipo and Wade ended up as top five NBA Draft picks. Crean maintains close relationships with all three players.

Anthony Edwards will look to be Tom Crean’s latest player to be a top five selection. All three players are dynamic shooting guards, who are excellent at getting to the rim. Each of them has explosive athleticism.

Anthony Edwards is arguably the best jump shooter of the group and came in as the most highly touted high school recruit of the three. He has to refine his defensive game in order to truly resemble Dwyane Wade or Victor Oladipo. Edwards does have immense defensive potential due to his rare athleticism and solid build.

Here’s Dwyane Wade’s reaction to Anthony Edwards picking him as his NBA comparison:

Victor Oladipo, a two time NBA All-Star, chimed in via Twitter as well. He’s definitely a believer a Anthony Edwards’ game.

Is Dwyane Wade, Victor Oladipo, or someone else a better NBA comparison for Anthony Edwards?

Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports
Ashley Landis/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports

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NBA trade moratorium will be lifted Monday of draft and free agency week

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Sunday morning that the NBA’s trade moratorium will be lifted on Monday at Noon Eastern Time.

What is likely to be the biggest week of transactions in NBA history officially has a start date. Monday at Noon ET, 9 a.m. Pacific, the NBA will lift the current trade moratorium and allow teams to execute deals, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Teams themselves have been working around the clock over the weekend and now they know then they can start getting serious about deals. With the league office opening for business on Monday, this gives the league a chance to review deals as they normally do. Woj also reports that the salary cap is expected to continue rising slightly amidst the pandemic, thanks to the latest modifications agreed to by the league and the Player’s Association.

As for other factors, the Monday start date also puts several other things into alignment. According to the AP’s Tim Reynolds, decisions on players or teams picking up option years must be made by Thursday at 3 p.m. EST.

https://twitter.com/ByTimReynolds/status/1327992846364913664

According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, players who are eligible to sign rookie extensions or a Super Max extension, such as Lakers forward Kyle Kuzma (rookie extension) or Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo (super max), must do so by Dec. 21, the night before the NBA season begins.

The NBA has yet to release the schedule for the 2020-21 season, which is expected to be weighted even more heavily by games against teams in the same division.

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Free agency expected to start ‘soon’ after NBA Draft on Nov. 18

The NBA hasn’t decided on a new start date but reporting suggests the offseason will come together rather quickly.

There appears to be a great deal of momentum surrounding a potential quick start to the 2020-21 NBA season, with the league eyeing a proposal of a start just before the Christmas Day holiday. While the NBPA still has to agree to whatever the NBA’s Board of Governors proposes, they do have one concrete date that they can work around: the November 18 NBA Draft.

According to the latest reporting from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Brian Windhorst, it’s expected that free agency will occur soon after the draft is done. Typically there is about a week between those two dates but with a compressed offseason, it could be even shorter. The Lakers have the No. 28 pick in the first round of the 2020 Draft, which they cannot trade until after they’ve made the selection on draft night. They currently do not have a second-round pick.

As for free agency, they have plenty of key players who are planning to opt-out and become free agents. While Anthony Davis is a lock to re-sign on a new deal, other free agents Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Rajon Rondo, and Dwight Howard may find interest, and perhaps more money, from other teams around the league.

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