Tag: T.J. Warren

Who are the top remaining options for the Boston Celtics in free agency?

Boston needs to find players willing to take a pay cut for a chance to compete for a championship.

The NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement was designed to punish high-spending clubs such as the Boston Celtics. The idea is to make it fairer for the other teams to acquire top-shelf talent. As a result, to fill out remaining roster spots, Boston needs to find players willing to take a pay cut for a chance to compete for a championship.

With the pool of free agents worth signing getting more shallow by the hour, the Celtics need to look at players such as Hamidou Diallo, Kelly Oubre, Christian Wood, Terence Ross, JaMychael Green and T.J. Warren in the hopes of finding the right role player able to help them win some games on the cheap.

To talk over how that might go down in practice, the hosts of the CLNS Media “A-List” podcast recently convened to discuss Boston’s free agency options.

Check out the clip embedded above to hear what they had to say for yourself.

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=590969556]

The Suns are favorites to make the NBA Finals with Kevin Durant, but another team is still in the way

The Suns are favored to come out the West. That’s where it gets interesting.

While you were getting some much-needed beauty sleep Wednesday night, the Phoenix Suns were exploring ways to expedite their makeover. That led to one of the biggest trades in years.

Phoenix acquired Kevin Durant and TJ Warren from the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, Jae Crowder and four unprotected first-round picks. While the Nets didn’t exactly lose by getting such a great haul in a deal that seemed necessary, the Suns are definitely the biggest winners here.

With Durant, they have a starting lineup that can compete with anybody, and the betting odds at BetMGM reflect that. Phoenix went from +1800 to win the NBA title — sixth-best in the Western Conference — to +450, which is second-best in the entire NBA.

Now favored to win the West, Phoenix will have to start by making up ground in the standings. The Suns are in fifth place, with 8.5 games between them and the first-place Denver Nuggets. They’re still second overall to the reigning East champion Boston Celtics, who have +350 odds to win the title.

If Phoenix can stay healthy, the odds makes sense. Outside of Denver, which was beginning put some distance between itself and the Memphis Grizzlies, the West appeared to be wide open. The Suns give the conference another potential heavy hitter, and one that won’t be easy to slow down — even if they’re playing the Celtics.

The Suns were in the NBA Finals themselves just two years ago, and last season’s playoff letdown ultimately stemmed from Chris Paul wearing down in the playoffs and Devin Booker being unable to carry the load offensively. Durant’s presence lessens the burden on each.

[mm-video type=video id=01grqtbswpj0prm95n03 playlist_id=none player_id=01gp1x90emjt3n6txc image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01grqtbswpj0prm95n03/01grqtbswpj0prm95n03-9b1ca3e1f54324a68a5c3fb28533a9e9.jpg]

Lakers are reportedly interested in forward T.J. Warren

The Lakers will reportedly target T.J. Warren, a forward who can defend and get buckets efficiently.

Heading into free agency, the biggest need the Los Angeles Lakers have is arguably young, productive two-way wings.

L.A. had to make do this season with washed-up vets at the spot, such as Trevor Ariza and Carmelo Anthony, as well as willing but unproven youngsters like Stanley Johnson and Wenyen Gabriel.

With today’s NBA based upon up-tempo offenses, 3-point shooting and switching defenses, the Lakers will need much better play from their wings if they are to become a good team again, let alone contenders.

Reportedly, the team will be interested in signing T.J. Warren, a 28-year-old, 6-foot-8 forward with the Indiana Pacers.

Warren can play both forward spots, although he is more of a small forward, and he has shown lots of productivity, especially on offense.

Late in 2020, he suffered a stress fracture in the navicular bone of his left foot, and he missed most of the 2020-21 season, as well as all of this season.

But just prior to that, he was becoming a hot commodity.

Warren averaged 19.8 points a game in 2020 while shooting 53.6 percent from the field and 40.3 percent from 3-point range.

[pickup_prop id=”25856″]

In the Walt Disney World Resort bubble, he was one of the NBA’s hottest players, as he averaged 31.0 points in six seeding contests, which included a 53-point outburst.

[mm-video type=video id=01g64cjv6fbxv6e99tr6 playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01f5k5xtr64thj7fw2 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g64cjv6fbxv6e99tr6/01g64cjv6fbxv6e99tr6-1e778d3a4a422d5dca37f724ca1ac2a8.jpg]

[listicle id=83342]

Report: Boston Celtics ‘linked to Danilo Gallinari and TJ Warren’ ahead of 2022 free agency start

B/R’s Jake Fischer is hearing Boston is asking after bigger wings.

As the 2022 NBA offseason’s free agency period inches closer to the Thursday 6 pm ET start which will allow franchises to get to work in their process of teambuilding we are starting to hear rumbles of what the Boston Celtics are hoping to accomplish in it.

Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer reports that the Celtics seem to be focusing on bigger wings ahead of the start of free agency. “Boston appears focused on high-scoring, small-ball forwards for the Celtics’ mid-level,” writes the B/R reporter. “They have been linked to Danillo Gallinari and T.J. Warren, among others.”

Fischer also relates that Boston was one of several teams who had been inquiring after Atlanta Hawks big man John Collins at the draft, but none of those teams (including the Celtics) were currently close to a deal with the Hawks for Collins.

Gallinari would need to be waived, as he is under contract with Atlanta with just $5 million guaranteed. But with the Hawks looking like a team that may want to cut costs with a rapidly growing payroll, such a move is not out of the question.

Warren has some substantial health concerns moving forward but could pay off big if his often-injured foot remains healthy.

Expect plenty more rumors to percolate up in the coming hours and days — and with Boston fully in contention mode, we would rate the likelihood of moves of some sort to be likely, of perhaps not of the blockbuster variety.

Follow us on Facebook and check out the Celtics Lab podcast here.

[mm-video type=video id=01g6kjc8rejawap8ebp3 playlist_id=01eqbzegwgnrje4tv2 player_id=01eqbvq570kgj8vfs7 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g6kjc8rejawap8ebp3/01g6kjc8rejawap8ebp3-4b6cf8caebfc3291c8d4bf4a1c011004.jpg]

[lawrence-related id=104969,104990,104967,104952]

[listicle id=104956]

[listicle id=104937]

[listicle id=104882]

Final free agent list: 5 targets who make sense for Philadelphia 76ers

Here is a final list of 5 targets who make sense for the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency in 2022.

Free agency is set to begin on Thursday night and the Philadelphia 76ers still need to make some moves in order to clear enough space to sign who they want–i.e., P.J. Tucker–but now is the time to take one more list of players who fit what the Sixers want to do ad build around Joel Embiid and James Harden.

The Sixers need players who are not afraid to pull the trigger on an open 3-ball, can provide quality depth on the wings, and they also have to come on the cheap. Philadelphia will be working with a tight budget as they only have certain exceptions they can offer to free agents and the biggest one–the nontaxpayer mid-level exception–will likely be offered to Tucker.

Therefore, Sixers Wire has put together a list of five players who look like they can fit with the Sixers want to do in the 2022-23 season and help contend for a title.

How ACC teams have fared in First Four games

What has the conference done in Dayton, Ohio?

While it isn’t a specific goal for NCAA Tournament-bound teams to play in the First Four in Dayton, Ohio, eight of them must do so. Ever since the tournament competition in Dayton expanded to four games from one in 2011, teams from power conferences have had to earn the right to play in the Round of 64. After all, it would be completely unfair if only mid-majors and No. 16 seeds, which are pretty much the same thing anyway, were assigned to these games.

Notre Dame is about to make its first appearance in the First Four against Rutgers. but it will be the fifth time an ACC program has traveled to Dayton to determine its tournament fate. Historically, these games have worked out very well for the conference, and the Irish will hope to expand on that reputation. Here are the four other times the ACC has been represented in the initial round of tournament games:

Jimmy Butler says his T.J. Warren conflict is ‘dead,’ but should we really believe him?

The two will face off in the first round.

Jimmy Butler is the same Miami Heat star known for blowing up a Minnesota Timberwolves practice to force a trade. He’s the same Butler who used his quarantine time in Disney World to hold a solo workout in his room that got security to come because of noise complaints.

And yes, he’s the same Butler who not only got into it on the court with Indiana Pacers wing T.J. Warren, but who blew Warren kisses when he got ejected, called him “trash” to reporters AND took to Instagram to call him out.

In their next meetup, there were no melees, but Butler did post a video of himself dancing on Instagram after the forward completely shut down Warren.

Now, there was this quote from Sunday’s meeting with reporters:

Here’s the thing: do we REALLY believe that, given what we know?

I’m not saying he’s about to spend the first-round series against the Pacers pushing Warren’s buttons on every single possession. But in a funny way, saying their rivalry is “dead” and “something of the past” could be subtly irritating if you’re Warren. If it was so dead, why did Butler post his “mood” on Instagram after the win?

View this post on Instagram

mood

A post shared by Jimmy Butler (@jimmybutler) on

Here’s what we know for sure: if the Pacers want any chance of taking down the surprising Heat, Warren has to be the X-factor behind Victor Oladipo (he doesn’t quite seem 100 percent as he continues to come back from surgery) and Malcolm Brogdon. And Butler’s probably going to spend the series locked on to his small forward counterpart.

In other words, this whole thing isn’t dead yet, and Butler already has the upper hand both on the court and off it.

[jwplayer 6YKYPoxe-q2aasYxh]

Jimmy Butler and the Heat got social media revenge on T.J. Warren after January scuffle

Butler shut down Warren.

There were no melees involving Miami Heat Jimmy Butler and his Indiana Pacers counterpart T.J. Warren, who had gotten into a scuffle back in January that led to Butler calling him “trash” and literally circling their next meeting on Instagram.

What did happen is Butler completely shut down Warren, who had been up to this point the bubble MVP, getting buzz for his incredible play for the Pacers. He shot 5-of-14 with just 12 points in the 114-92 blowout, with Butler disrupting him for much of the night.

And afterwards, both Butler and the Heat Twitter account celebrated with what might be nods to the Butler-Warren saga.

First, here’s some info on Butler’s lockdown D:

And this is what Butler posted on Instagram afterwards, not naming Warren, but simply saying “mood.”

View this post on Instagram

mood

A post shared by Jimmy Butler (@jimmybutler) on

And the Heat changed their profile photo to this:

That’s a reference to Butler kissing Warren goodbye after the Pacers forward was ejected in their previous matchup:

Petty? Perhaps. But these two meet again in the bubble later in the week … and they might play each other in the postseason. If it’s an attempt to get into Warren’s head, it may help them down the road.

[jwplayer l8fXl8Bu-q2aasYxh]

 

A look back at the Suns’ awful T.J. Warren trade to the Pacers for … cash

Oof, this was a bad one.

Over a year ago, when the Indiana Pacers traded for veteran wing T.J. Warren, they knew what they were getting: a dependable scorer who had developed a much-improved three-point shot in what turned out to be his final year with the Phoenix Suns.

What they didn’t know is that he’d positively explode in the NBA bubble when the league restarted after the COVID-19 pause. He’s scored 34.8 ppg in Disney World, and has continued to show his improvements on the defensive end this season weren’t an anomaly.

That’s led everyone to look back at the trade the Suns made and laughed so very, very hard.

So does Phoenix deserve it in hindsight? Let’s break it all down.

First off, the trade was Warren and the 32nd overall pick to the Pacers in exchange for … cash. The Pacers shipped the pick to the Heat in a separate deal, but that’s not what we’re concerned with.

On paper, that was already a bad trade, and we don’t need hindsight to see that. How many wing scorers are you getting for nothing, one in the middle of a four-year $50 million deal? At the time, regardless of the fit, it was a heist for the Pacers, who needed a player to replace Bojan Bogdanovic — he left for the Utah Jazz in the offseason.

For the Suns, we do need to look at it in context. Yes, they should have gotten something besides money back for Warren. But at the time, it was pre-free agency in June. The team still had to re-sign restricted free agent Kelly Oubre (they did) and probably felt they had too many small forwards with Oubre and Mikal Bridges there. They wanted to use the cap room created with this trade to sign a much-needed point guard to get the ball out of Devin Booker’s hands, and so they ended up with Ricky Rubio.

Now, in the restart, they’re 5-0 and in the running for the No. 8 seed in the West. Booker, of course, is a star, DeAndre Ayton is starting to turn a corner, Bridges is a defensive dynamo who could be the next great 3-and-D stud, Rubio has filled in exactly how he was supposed to and former first-rounder Cameron Johnson has shown some flashes.

So, yes. The trade was a bad one at the time, and now it REALLY is. But we do have to give some credit to Phoenix for the team they have without Warren. Do they get Rubio if they don’t trade him?

Still: maybe don’t trade a solid player for nothing next time, NBA teams.

[jwplayer l8fXl8Bu-q2aasYxh]

The heated T.J. Warren, Jimmy Butler rematch we’ve been waiting for could happen Monday

Oh boy.

A lot of things have changed since January 9, 2020, the night that the Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers met up.

But one thing that hasn’t: NBA fans everywhere have been waiting for this rematch since then.

Let’s go back to that night: Heat star Jimmy Butler and Pacers wing T.J. Warren got into it after a foul, with Butler appearing to call Warren “trash.” Butler followed that up by putting a shoulder into Warren, who clapped back right in front of Butler and got ejected.

Butler then told reporters Warren was “soft” and “trash,” then took to Instagram to circle the next date they’d meet (which, as we now know, was rescheduled).

One other thing has changed, too. Warren has become the NBA Bubble MVP, exploding in the restart. So I’d expect Butler to have some extra incentive to play hard against him, not to mention the fact that both teams are fighting for playoff position — the Heat are currently the No. 4 seed, the Pacers are tied with them and the Sixers are one game behind them both.

And despite Butler missing the last three games with an injury, he plans to play in this one:

If he’s good to go, this is going to be a game to watch.

[jwplayer Vi2QpnHo-q2aasYxh]