Ashish Mathur Articles - Page 187

The Washington Wizards aim to be a competitive team while point guard John Wall is out and Thomas Bryant, Rui Hachimura and Troy Brown Jr. develop, which is why the franchise wants to keep shooting guard Bradley Beal. Beal has two years left on his contract. The Wizards offered the All-Star guard an extension worth […]

The Washington Wizards believe point guard John Wall “can get back to that guy” in 2020-21, meaning the franchise is confident Wall will be an All-Star again. Wall is recovering from an Achilles injury and likely won’t play at all next season. A Wizards executive talked to Keith Smith of Real GM about working around […]

The Philadelphia 76ers signed All-Star big man Al Horford to a four-year, $109 million contract this summer. The Sixers now have two elite big men in the paint in Horford and Joel Embiid. A Sixers executive can’t stress enough how big the addition of Horford is for the club. The exec also raved about Josh […]

An NBA scout says New York Knicks rookie RJ Barrett “is like a lefty version” of Minnesota Timberwolves small forward Andrew Wiggins. This scout says Barrett has more passion for the game and is a better passer than Wiggins. The Knicks have tough veterans such as Julius Randle, Bobby Portis, Taj Gibson and Marcus Morris […]

The Milwaukee Bucks can offer MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo the supermax extension next offseason, which would keep The Greek Freak in Milwaukee for the long-haul. The Bucks had the best record in the NBA last season. Antetokounmpo won the MVP award, but Milwaukee fell short of its goal, losing to the Toronto Raptors in the Eastern […]

The Milwaukee Bucks signed shooting guard Kyle Korver after he was waived by the Phoenix Suns, and members of the Bucks organization can’t stop smiling about the move. Korver signed a one-year, $2.6 million contract with the Bucks. An executive in Milwaukee claims Korver is “the best shooter in the league still” and going to […]

It’s a new era for the Charlotte Hornets, as the franchise is handing the keys to the offense to Terry Rozier, who is replacing All-Star point guard Kemba Walker. Rozier and Walker were traded for each other this summer. Rozier signed a three-year, $56.7 million contract with the Hornets as part of a sign-and-trade with […]

An executive for the Brooklyn Nets says “there will be no pressure” for superstar small forward Kevin Durant to “return even one day before he is ready.” Durant is widely expected to miss the entire 2019-20 season recovering from his Achilles tear. The two-time Finals MVP signed a four-year deal with the Nets in free […]

Portland Trail Blazers All-Star point guard Damian Lillard says he and Russell Westbrook “never” hated each other. During the first round of the 2019 playoffs, the Blazers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games. Lillard and Westbrook had a back-and-forth in pretty much every game, prompting everyone to think the two superstars didn’t like […]

An NBA executive says Miami Heat small forward Jimmy Butler “can ruin your whole deal if he’s not happy.” As part of a sign-and-trade deal between the Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers, Butler signed a four-year, $141 million deal with the Heat. Butler has a reputation as a locker room chemistry killer and had issues […]

An assistant coach on the Chicago Bulls thinks the team can be a playoff team in 2019-20. The Bulls drafted Coby White and Daniel Gafford in the 2019 NBA Draft. They also signed Thaddeus Young, Luke Kornet and Tomas Satoransky in free agency. Chicago’s core is headlined by Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen, Otto Porter Jr. […]

An anonymous Eastern Conference guard says the Brooklyn Nets are going to be “really good” after the moves they made this summer. The Nets signed All-Stars Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan, as well as veteran small forwards Wilson Chandler and Garrett Temple in free agency. “They were already tough, now you’ve got to […]

An executive on the Atlanta Hawks believes the team got a “steal” in small forward Jabari Parker this summer. The Hawks signed Parker to a two-year, $13 million deal in free agency. “We needed someone on the second unit who could score,” the Hawks exec told Keith Smith of Real GM. “We went through periods […]

The Detroit Pistons signed former MVP Derrick Rose to a two-year contract this summer. The Pistons are going to have Rose be the backup point guard to Reggie Jackson. An executive who works for the Pistons believes Rose is going to be “terrific” as Jackson’s backup. The exec also says Detroit will be fine with […]

An anonymous assistant coach on the Phoenix Suns believes shooting guard Devin Booker will improve playing alongside point guard Ricky Rubio. The Suns have been looking for a starting-caliber point guard ever since they traded Eric Bledsoe to the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2017-18 season. Rubio is one of the best passers in the game. […]

A Memphis Grizzlies executive says losing point guard Mike Conley was tough, but the return they got from the Utah Jazz was good for the future. The Grizzlies traded Conley to the Jazz for Grayson Allen, Kyle Korver, Jae Crowder, the No. 23 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft and a future first round pick. […]

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Anthony Davis says if he doesn’t win a championship during his NBA career, it will be one of his “biggest failures” in life. Davis requested a trade from the Pelicans because he wanted to compete for championships. AD got his wish, as he was traded to the Lakers. The Brow and […]

An executive who works for the Memphis Grizzlies believes putting stat benchmarks on point guard Ja Morant for his rookie season “would be silly and not productive.” The Grizzlies are handing the keys to the franchise to Morant now that Marc Gasol and Mike Conley are both gone. Morant was the second overall pick in […]

An executive who works for the New Orleans Pelicans wants No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson to “work as hard as he can and be a sponge from our veterans.” The Pelicans have surrounded Williamson with three solid veterans in Jrue Holiday, JJ Redick and Derrick Favors. New Orleans GM David Griffin has already said […]

An anonymous NBA executive says his team, and every other team in the league for that matter, will start “circling” around Karl-Anthony Towns after the Minnesota Timberwolves endure a “couple more years of losing.” Towns signed a five-year, $158.25 million extension with the Timberwolves last summer. Minnesota is nowhere near close to contending in the […]

An anonymous NBA executive believes the Utah Jazz had “one of the best” offseasons this summer. The Jazz acquired Mike Conley from the Memphis Grizzlies and signed Bojan Bogdanovic, Jeff Green, Ed Davis and Emmanuel Mudiay in free agency. Now, many believe the Jazz are title contenders in the rugged Western Conference. “It’s one of […]

An anonymous NBA executive expects Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti to trade veteran point guard Chris Paul “for something useful” down the line. Paul is expected to begin the 2019-20 season on the Thunder. However, Presti will most likely try and find a trade partner for CP3 before the February 2020 trade deadline. […]

The Portland Trail Blazers traded for Hassan Whiteside this summer because they will be without starting center Jusuf Nurkic to begin the season. Whiteside is looking forward to the opportunity of a new beginning in Portland after his tenure with the Miami Heat ended sourly. A Blazers executive believes Whiteside will be an excellent fit […]

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart is ready for the 2019-20 season, but the rugged defender did have one last comment on the 2018-19 Celtics team. Smart admits the Celtics were “dysfunctional” last season. Boston was the preseason favorite to win the Eastern Conference, but lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the […]

New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday says his injury woes make summer workouts a lot of fun because “you know exactly why you’re doing it.” Holiday missed the final 15 games of the 2018-19 season due to a core muscle injury which required surgery. The Pelicans’ floor general missed 90 games from 2013 to […]

Multiple teams inquired with the Indiana Pacers about a Myles Turner trade before and after the 2019 NBA Draft, according to Ian Begley of SNY. The Pacers signed Turner to a four-year, $80 million extension last summer. It’s unclear if trade talks centered on Turner gained any significant traction: Teams inquired with Indiana about Myles Turner both […]

New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday was fifth in the NBA last season in minutes per game. He actually led the NBA in minutes played before last year’s All-Star break. Holiday missed the final 15 games of the season due to a core muscle injury which required surgery. With Anthony Davis now on the […]

New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday plans to organize a mini training camp in August since New Orleans has so many new players on the team. The Pelicans acquired Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Josh Hart from the Los Angeles Lakers in the Anthony Davis trade, acquired veteran big man Derrick Favors from the […]

JR Smith’s brother, Chris Smith, posted a picture of Houston Rockets stars James Harden and Russell Westbrook on Instagram with the caption, “Sh*t bout to get ugly one more piece…@teamswish sh*t would be sick.” JR’s Instram handle is @teamswish. The unrestricted free agent took a screenshot of his brother’s post and posted the eye emoji. […]

Veteran small forward Wilson Chandler believes the Brooklyn Nets can “make a lot of noise” in 2019-20 even without superstar Kevin Durant. Durant is expected to miss the entire season recovering from his Achilles injury. However, Chandler is still confident the Nets are going to be an elite team with Kyrie Irving as the leader. […]

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie says his Twitter mentions are filled with “salty” New York Knicks fans after the Nets got Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in free agency. All season long, Irving and Durant were rumored to be going to the Knicks. Dinwiddie, who hasn’t been shy to troll the Knicks on Twitter, says […]

Los Angeles Clippers superstar small forward Kawhi Leonard wants to let everyone know one more time he wasn’t a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers growing up. Leonard says all the people who said he was going to sign with the Lakers because they were his childhood team were proven wrong in free agency after […]

Veteran small forward Garrett Temple says star point guard Kyrie Irving recruited him to the Brooklyn Nets. Irving put together a list of free agents that he wanted to play with and Temple was on the list. The swingman signed a one-year, $4.67 million contract with the Nets after speaking to Irving. “I talked to […]

Spencer Dinwiddie and Kyrie Irving got close with each other after they hung out at All-Star Weekend in 2018 in Los Angeles. The two are now teammates on the Brooklyn Nets. Irving and Dinwiddie started talking this past December about playing together in New York. Dinwiddie recruited Irving to the Nets. Kyrie was considering signing […]

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie says the franchise deserves credit for signing Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and DeAndre Jordan in free agency without tearing up the roster. The Nets lost All-Star point guard D’Angelo Russell from last year’s team, but that’s it. Brooklyn was able to retain Jarrett Allen, Caris LeVert, Joe Harris, Rodions Kurucs […]

Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie says with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant on the team, the Nets are now title contenders and not just a “sixth, seventh or eighth seed anymore.” Durant is expected to miss the entire 2019-20 season recovering from his Achilles tear, so the Nets will likely not compete for a championship […]

Veterans Luc Mbah a Moute and Vince Carter are reportedly unlikely to be attracted to sign with the Houston Rockets, according to Clutch Fans. The Rockets currently have 13 players on the roster. Houston’s current opportunities are more “come into camp and earn it,” and that isn’t currently attractive to Mbah a Moute and Carter. […]

Scott Brooks, who coached Russell Westbrook on the Oklahoma City Thunder, says the Houston Rockets are getting one helluva player. Brooks, who is currently the head coach of the Washington Wizards, says he’d love to coach a team of 15 Russell Westbrooks. Just talked to former Rocket player, former OKC coach and current Wizards coach, […]

Rising point guard Jamal Murray signed a five-year, $170 million maximum contract extension with the Denver Nuggets on Thursday. According to Bobby Marks of ESPN, the two sides agreed to include Rose Rule language in Murray’s new deal. The Rose Rule is named after Derrick Rose, who won an MVP award in his third year […]