NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on Celtics' Draft Plans, LeBron James and More
The NBA rumors market being more active than usual over the next three weeks is about as surprising as LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers refusing to suffer a sweep at the hands of the Golden State Warriors in the Finals.
Both are predictable developments—LeBron isn't getting swept at home no matter what super team the opposition trots out. The rumors market has too many things happening at once thanks to the approaching draft on June 22 and the future fates of players and teams alike in free agency over the summer.
The following contains a mix of both. With workouts concluding ahead of the draft, teams continue to finalize boards and the rumblings keep reshaping the event's outlook. As for well-known players looking free agency in the eye over the next few years, the most notable nugget pertains to the King himself.
Let's take a look.
Mark Cuban's Secret Draft Weapon
The Dallas Mavericks admittedly aren't the hottest topic around right now coming off a season in which the team only recorded 33 wins.
Still, when a nugget pops up involving Mark Cuban and the lottery, it's worth keeping an eye on, because the man isn't afraid to take a few risks if it means a better chance at competing in the deep Western Conference.
This time it's an unexpected potential risk by the name of Frank Ntilikina.
According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, Cuban has his eyes on the him at No. 9: "If the Knicks pass on French League point guard Frank Ntilikina with the eighth pick, the Mavericks, sitting at No. 9, are interested in the 18-year-old stud."
The writeup goes on to mention the Mavericks made a point to send big names within the organization overseas to meet with Ntilikina. He wound up only meeting the Mavericks during the recent stretch.
It's no secret the Mavericks have a massive need at the point given the current depth chart led by Yogi Ferrell and J.J. Barea. But thinking about the 2017 draft class brings to mind names such as Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball, De'Aaron Fox and Dennis Smith Jr., among others.
Ntilikina has been a late riser of sorts, though the rise isn't hard to figure out considering he checks in at 6'5" and 180 pounds and would probably be the best pure pass-first guard in the class if it weren't for Ball.
At the least, it's interesting to hear which direction the Mavericks might go as they start to seriously rebuild around a core looking something like Seth Curry-Harrison Barnes-Nerlens Noel.
Boston Far from Set at No. 1
Conventional wisdom on at least a national scale seems to suggest the Boston Celtics will use the first pick in the draft to select the aforementioned Fultz and call it a day.
But it's never so cut and dry.
While Fultz would fit incredibly well in Boston, folks who've been paying attention understand the credit for Boston's ahead-of-schedule resurgence in large part goes to Isaiah Thomas, a surefire MVP contender who put the team on his back. And in general, Boston has been known for its roster imbalance for years favoring the backcourt.
So it's not much of a shock to hear the coaching staff might want to shy away from messing with Thomas' role. According to ESPN.com's Chad Ford, the Celtics have an eye on a handful of other prospects at the top spot.
"Fultz has been the top guy on the Celtics' board for a while, but he's not the only player they're considering. Ball, De'Aaron Fox, Josh Jackson and Jayson Tatum are also in the mix, according to sources," Ford wrote.
So there it is—the Celtics, despite a point-heavy class, apparently wouldn't flinch at the idea of taking a forward.
At the least, the two mentioned could be stars in no time. Josh Jackson (6'8", 202 pounds) out of Kansas is close to as consensus as it gets as the draft's top two-way player, and Duke's Jayson Tatum (6'8", 204 pounds) is an elite shooter and monster transition player.
Boston can't really go wrong either way until hindsight kicks in years later. Adding another point guard in an effort to form an elite backcourt in a Golden State-esque mold isn't a terrible idea. Nor is grabbing up one of two elite forward prospects who could feed off Thomas' elite game and reach as close to his ceiling as possible, if not pass it.
The Celtics continue to grab headlines every summer regardless of where they pick in the draft. Clutching No. 1 and keeping the pick a secret only ups the usual intrigue.
LeBron James' Unpredictable Future
Here we go again, right?
LeBron can't even finish competing for a title this year before rumblings about his trip to free agency in 2018 start popping up.
Alas, here goes—let the rumor mill tell it, LeBron might next want to take his talents West.
This comes from The Ringer's Kevin O’Connor, who spoke with sources about the matter:
"Multiple league sources I’ve spoken to think the Lakers or Clippers are viable destinations for King James. Jalen Rose said this week on First Take that he expects LeBron to make a move from Cleveland to California, where he already owns a house 30 minutes away from Staples Center. The Lakers make sense if LeBron wants to build a sustainable winner with a core blend of veterans and youthful talent like Paul George — if, as NBA gossip suggests, George truly is 'hell-bent' on going to L.A. — and Brandon Ingram."
Crazier things, as fans from the Cleveland area know well, have happened. But it's hard to imagine LeBron up and leaves the Cavaliers a second time. He's been to the Finals for the third year in a row and both Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving are playing great ball—LeBron going elsewhere won't help him better thwart the current Warriors roster.
The options here are the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers. But the Clippers haven't shown any hint whatsoever of breaking up the Chris Paul-Blake Griffin-DeAndre Jordan trio. Not only is money tight, the aging trio couldn't even get past the upstart Utah Jazz in the postseason for a reason.
More realistic here are the Lakers. With Magic Johnson in charge, the team is about to add a top-two draft pick to a quality young core headlined by D'Angelo Russell, Brandon Ingram and Julius Randle. LeBron James is LeBron James, but adding him as he heads toward his mid-30s flies directly in the face of the current long-term rebuilding plan.
Alas, LeBron will get what he wants. Ohio is home, and it only makes sense for arguably the world's most popular athlete to own a house in a market like Los Angeles. Certain dots like this will always get connected, though it'll be quite a long time before we officially find out what the King will do in 2018.
All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
