NBA News and Rumor Roundup 9/11/2024
Jamal Murray gets paid, Shaq's player complaints, and a few trade rumors float around
Aaaaaand we’re back!
And we’re just 41 days away from the regular season! The beginning of the NBA calendar creeps ever closer, while we get to chat it up about what’s happened over the past week of the offseason. Surprisingly, there’s been quite a bit of movement, with Nuggets star Jamal Murray getting a massive payday, a few trade rumors, and Shaquille O’Neal ripping into his least favorite player in the league once again — more on that later.
Let’s get right into it, shall we?
Side note: If you aren’t an American citizen you may not know it, but today is a day of memorial here — on September 11, 2001, nearly 3,000 people died due to terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Condolences to all who knew somebody who is a part of that statistic, and may we all never forget what happened on this day 23 years ago.
Jamal Murray Takes Advantage
One of the key unresolved storylines from this offseason has been the looming extension for Nuggets star Jamal Murray. After months of watching other stars lock up their deals, it seemed as if something was going wrong due to just how long the process was taking. If there was, there definitely isn’t now. On Sunday, Adrian Wojnarowski broke the news that the three-point sniper signed a 4-year, $205 million max extension, effectively keeping the Jokic, Murray, and Micheal Porter Jr. trio together through at least 2027-28.
But, boy, can we talk about that number?
The average per-year value of the deal is $51.25 million, which is more than what these guys are getting paid for this coming season:
Note: Murray’s new deal doesn’t kick in until 2025-26, these numbers are for 2024-25
Kevin Durant ($51.17 million)
Jaylen Brown ($49.7 million)
Devin Booker ($49.2 million)
Luka Doncic ($43 million)
Anthony Edwards ($42 million)
While I’m a big Jamal Murray proponent, just about zero (not counting his mom) people would say that he’s better than any of the above group as a complete player. He’s undoubtedly the second-best player on the Nuggets roster, however, and that gives him quite a bit of leverage. Players who score 20+ PPG and shoot over 42% from three are few and far between (last year it was just Murray and CJ McCollum), and while he had a horrific Olympic showing this offseason, he’s continued to prove that he (usually) shows up when it matters. Yet it’s still a lot of money to pay for a player who (probably wrongly) hasn’t made an All-Star Game thus far in his career at 28 years of age.
What we know right now is that this deal puts the Nuggets $10.9 million over the luxury tax line for 2025-26 and puts them just $7.8 million over the dreaded second apron, which would put massive restrictions on a team trying to maximize Nikola Jokic’s prime. Plus, that doesn’t even account for key role-playing star Aaron Gordon and his player option for the 2025-26 season, which means more spending could be necessary for this team to extend its window.
It’s interesting times in Nugget Land, but keeping Jamal Murray on board was still a must to maximize Denver’s current chances at getting back to the Finals.
Trade Rumors Trickle Out
Being this late into the offseason generally means that we don’t get to hear a lot of trade rumors. This week, though, our ears are likely tingling a little bit, because we’ve got two (and maybe three) to talk about.
The first one will have contenders in need of rim protection and defense quite excited, as the Portland Trail Blazers may be looking to shed some weight during their inevitable tank job this season. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, the so-called Time Lord might be on the market:
"'The Time Lord,' one of the great nicknames in the whole NBA, Robert Williams. Coming back off injury, obviously, he's a guy who's had repeated injury problems, but he makes $13 million. They may be willing to part with him, and he could go to a contender and be a significant piece if he is healthy.”
- Brian Windhorst | The Hoop Collective Podcast
While the health part is up in the air, Williams used to be one of the better interior defenders and rebounders in the league before the Celtics traded him in the Jrue Holiday deal. He played just 6 games last year due to the aforementioned injury problems but averaged a near-double-double with over 2 blocks per game (and on 73% shooting!) back in 2021-22, so there’s a lot of potential for a team to swoop in and use him as a key piece. Don’t be surprised to see a team like the Rockets, who were apparently interested in his services in January, look to make a deal for him if they can’t hold down the fort at the big slot. Other targets could be the Phoenix Suns, who could look to create a rotation of Jusuf Nurkic, their current big man, and Williams to create a stalwart rebounding crew.
The second trade rumor is one that is actually telling us a guy won’t be traded, but it’s interesting for multiple reasons. One of the still-loose threads that this offseason has failed to tie up has been the Brandon Ingram situation with the Pelicans. The All-Star forward wants a lucrative extension, yet has been shunned by the organization time and time again — and nobody else has come to save him in a trade yet, either. As a result, Ingram skipped the Pels’ voluntary minicamp and mused on Instagram about knowing one’s worth, so it seems that things aren’t quite chummy over in New Orleans.
One trade destination that was floated around for a while was the Warriors, seeing as they were on the market for Lauri Markkanen previously. However, according to Monte Pool of NBC Sports Bay Area, there is now a “minuscule” chance of the forward being sent to Golden State, making the market for Ingram even more sparse.
All signs point to Ingram continuing his dispute with the Pels, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a trade at the deadline. Signing an extension now would force the Pelicans to keep him for the rest of the season (due to after-extension trade restrictions), so I don’t see one being signed — after all, the Pels don’t seem to think he’s a great fit alongside Zion Williamson anymore.
Lastly, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post, the Brooklyn Nets have been willing to part with key offensive contributor Cam Johnson this offseason, yet have put such a high price on his services that no one else has come up with a quality offer. After being asked how Johnson fit into the team’s plans this offseason, Nets GM Sean Marks claimed that he is, “Still trying to figure it out,” which is, uh, not very encouraging. Regardless, he’s likely another guy who will be moved prior to the deadline — he’s 28, is in his prime, and would thrive as a catch-and-shoot guy on the wing for a contender.
Gobert Gets Shaq Attacked
If there’s one thing Shaquille O’Neal doesn’t have, it’s a filter. That tendency seems to cause collateral damage on some of the NBA’s big men, with Shaq often criticizing the likes of Embiid, Karl-Anthony Towns, and more. And yet, he’s likely outdone himself in a recent question-and-answer session. After being asked who he believed was the “worst player in the NBA,” he came up with this:
"Rudy Gobert. If you sign a contract for $250 million show me $250 million. There's a reason why I walk funny, why I can't turn my neck and why I can't do it. Because I played for that $120 million. You got guys like him who f*** the system over. They're making all this money and they can't f****** play. So, I don't respect guys like that."
- Shaquille “The Big Aristotle” O’Neal
Phew, there’s a lot to unpack here. First of all, the interviewer herself was somewhat taken aback, asking Shaq why he wouldn’t pick a guy like Ben Simmons — Shaq replied that he is “also a bum,” so I guess that’s that. Then, it’s an interesting case to make that a guy can be the “worst player in the NBA” purely based upon his contract, especially when said “worst player in the NBA” is a 3-time All-Star, 4-time Defensive Player of The Year, and a 7-time First Team All-Defense selection. In fact, it’s silly, though this isn’t the first time Shaq has ripped Gobert for his perceived lack of offensive capabilities.
Rudy Gobert swiftly replied on Twitter (I’m not calling it X), questioning why a man of Shaq’s caliber and historical relevance would feel the need to make hot takes that are, frankly, dumb and offensive:
Like Gobert said, there’s definitely some shock value that Shaq is trying to achieve here. And yet, he often does this to other big men (most prominently Gobert), despite the fact that many of them (minus Ben Simmons) are doing pretty darn well. While Gobert isn’t as offensively well-rounded as other big men now, KAT isn’t exactly a bruiser, and Joel Embiid often, well, flops for fouls, these guys are still the modern star big men of the league.
Plus, once again, when you’re calling one of the best defensive big men ever a scrub (let alone the worst player in the NBA), it’s somewhat silly. And bringing in contract values to the situation is also irrelevant in the context of how good a player is. Regardless, it’s going to be interesting to see how Shaq reacts to Gobert’s play throughout the season — and whether Gobert is interviewed by him in the normal postgame process.
Other News, Rumors, and Fun Facts
On Saturday, the Lakers signed young NBA journeyman Jordan Goodwin to an Exhibit 10 contract that can be converted to a full-scale deal at a later date. I quite like Goodwin strictly based upon his hustle and defense. Per 36 minutes, Goodwin averaged nearly 2 steals and 10 rebounds per game last season, though he’s extremely inefficient on offense (36% from the field). If he gets a full deal with the Lakers, expect them to use him in an off-ball stopper role and as an undersized rebounding machine off the bench.
According to European basketball insider Vasiliki Karamouza, former Mavericks and Hornets sharpshooter Davis Bertans will likely leave the NBA for Dubai BC, though a deal hasn’t been disclosed quite yet. It was previously reported that Bertans would work out for the Warriors, so this is an interesting change of pace.
In one of the weirder reports of the offseason, Matej Erjavec, president of the Basketball Federation of Slovenia, told an interviewer that Mavericks big man Daniel Gafford was considering becoming a naturalized Slovenian citizen to play alongside Luka Doncic for the 2024 Olympics — to which I say, what? It seems to be true based on the interview and Gafford reportedly may consider it for 2028, but this is a strange development, though it shows that he and Luka obviously have great chemistry, I guess.
JT Thor, a former Hornets player who has one of the best names in the league, just signed a two-way with the Cleveland Cavaliers. While he’s still young (22 years old!), his game has thus far been more theoretical than impactful. His physical profile is similar to Anthony Randolph, yet he has something of a 3-point shot in him (38% from range in the G League), which is pretty darn tantalizing. Yet, the Hornets only played him around 13 minutes per game and refused to put him in the G League last year, so maybe a change of pace will help Thor get more time on the, er, floor.
After signing head coach Mike Brown to an extension, the Sacramento Kings have just announced the promotion of Jay Triano from assistant coach to associate head coach. Triano has been the interim head coach for both the Raptors and the Suns at different points, was Team Canada’s head coach twice, and has been with the Kings since 2022.
Curry Brand (Steph Curry’s Under Armour subsidiary) announced the signing of Sacramento Kings star De’Aaron Fox, and now he’s getting his own shoe — and boy, is that logo nice. I’m willing to be quoted on this: Fox’s logo is the best signature shoe logo to come out of any NBA player born after 1995. Take a look:
According to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Bulls have, out of necessity, attempted to mend the relationship between the team and Zach LaVine, who they have failed to trade during the offseason. Head coach Billy Donovan reportedly visited the guard in Los Angeles this Summer to try to find common ground with LaVine, though Cowley believes the relationship will likely fray during the season.
During a press conference held after the league’s board of governors meeting, we got a few answers to the yearslong rumors about NBA expansion. According to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, there is quite a bit of interest in future expansion teams, though the league isn’t ready to start talking about it in full yet. However, that talk will be addressed at some point “this season,” so I wouldn’t be surprised to see rumors trickle out around the All-Star Break. In other expansion news, there is little news, but it is, in fact, some news.
The NBA has announced an update to its rules, expanding the use of instant replay technology for out-of-bounds reviews, effectively allowing the league to retroactively call fouls on certain plays that weren’t called for fouls beforehand. The NBA used this clip as an example in which the new rules would apply, which is from Game 2 of the Dallas/Wolves series. While it’s nice that instant replay is available in these types of situations now, it could have the unintended effect of elongating games even further, with the last 5 minutes of game time ballooning into 30 minutes of real-time.
On the WNBA side, the continuously incredible Caitlin Clark has received the Player of The Week honor for the third consecutive week. Over a 6 game span, she averaged 25.0 points, 10.0 assists, and 7.7 rebounds — absolutely insane numbers. With Angel Reese now out for the rest of the regular season, Caitlin Clark has Rookie Of The Year locked up, if there was any doubt at all in the first place. Superstar two-way threat Napheesa Collier won the Player of The Week award in the Western Conference with a week in which she averaged 22.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.5 blocks — also, like Clark, absurd numbers.
In a nice development, Gary “The Glove” Payton Sr. has signed on to become the new men’s basketball head coach at Alameda College, per Marc Spears. Alameda (no association with the sister company of failed crypto exchange FTX) is a community college in junior college in, you guessed it, Alameda, California.
Los Angeles Lakers big Christian Wood, who missed the last two months of the regular season with a knee injury, underwent another procedure on his left knee on Monday. He is set to be reevaluated in 8 weeks, which will likely keep him out for at least the first 2 or 3 weeks of the regular season.
The legendary assistant coach and GM of the Rockets for many years, Carroll Dawson, passed away at the age of 86 on Monday. Dawson was an assistant coach from 1980 to 1997 and led the team as GM from 1996 to 2007, making him a true cornerstone of the franchise.
In a somewhat silly report, NBA veteran Patrick Beverley says he now knows “how LeBron feels” because of his recent signing with Israeli EuroCup team Hapoel Tel Aviv:
Now I know how LeBron feels. I’m leaving a game and the players who were my opponents a moment ago want to take pictures with me. Even the opposing coaches want pictures. I go into a game and the opposing fans boo me when the ball is in my hands. After the game, 30-40 kids come up to me all of a sudden and want to take pictures with me. It’s the same in every country I’ve been to. Today we had a friendly in Belgrade, and I must have taken at least 50 pictures after the game.
- Patrick “LeNot James” Beverley
On this day in NBA history, not much happened — even prior to the terrible events of 9/11. In fact, one of the only things that popped up during my search was the birthday of NBA journeyman and fan favorite Shaun Livingston, who played 14 years in the NBA. Livingston turns 39 today and was an executive with the Warriors for a while until he left the role in 2023. Fun fact: Livingston never took more than 0.3 threes per game across an entire season, despite being a point guard and shooting guard. Additionally, he entered the NBA straight out of high school, despite committing to Duke in 2004.
My Favorite Reads This Week
Very interesting read from
, who found out that September 9th is one of the most popular NBA birthdays of the year, though the same could be said for the entire month of September, as Tom notes. It’s a great look at the impact of age and birthdays in the league — you can go read that here.Last week,
wrote a short and sweet piece showcasing the best NBA players based solely on their last season in the league. Eventually, we’ll likely see many modern players on this list because of how well players are playing into their late 30s, but it’s amazing to see how well guys like Clyde Drexler and Chet Walker played in their final season. Go read his piece here.- recently put together a crucial read if you’re a Pels fan or are following the aforementioned Brandon Ingram trade/extension saga. Mike showcases Ingram’s massive changes in his three-point tendencies, his catch-and-shoot game, and more. It’s a great read — you can find it here.
Arguably the best pure shooter in the draft, UConn’s Liam McNeely looks like the perfect fit for almost any NBA team.
just wrote up about McNeely, what makes him so good, and how he fits into UConn’s offense. You can read that piece here.- ’s has a great article on the improvement needs of each one of Boston’s guards that I enjoyed recently. It’s always fun to hear about teams’ needs from guys who write about said team a lot — you can read that article here.
Not NBA-related, but with the conclusion of the U.S. Open — in which Americans Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula lost to Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka in the final, respectively — I highly suggest reading
’s musings on the tournament. You can read her piece here.Also not NBA-related, but
just put together a phenomenal Part 1 of a 2-part essay about America’s intersections and how unsafe they can be for pedestrians. It’s a really great look into the multifaceted nature of American urban planning, and you can go read it right here.
That’s it for this week’s roundup! More content is on the way for this weekend, though nothing else between now and Saturday due to travel. I am considering starting a new project with all of this U.S. Open tennis talk going around, but you can be sure that it won’t affect what I’m doing here. I’ll have more details on that at a later date. See you this weekend!
Hey thanks for the share, Jacob!