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LeBron James: ‘Everybody in the East thinks they can get to the Finals because they ain’t gotta go through me’

By Dan FeldmanFeb 8, 2019, 11:32 AM EST
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The 76ers traded for Tobias Harris. The Raptors traded for Marc Gasol. The Bucks traded for Nikola Mirotic. The Celtics… well, they didn’t get anyone before yesterday’s trade deadline, but they’re in stronger position to land Anthony Davis this summer.

LeBron James, via Joe Vardon of The Athletic:

“Those top teams in the East, yeah, they’re going for it,” James told The Athletic. “Toronto is going for it, Milwaukee’s going for it, Philly. Boston believes they can do it, too. They know they ain’t gotta go through Cleveland anymore.

“Everybody in the East thinks they can get to the Finals because they ain’t gotta go through me.”

It sounds arrogant for him to say it, but it’s OK. Because he’s right.

LeBron ruled the East for the last years. He won four straight conference titles with the Heat then went to Cleveland and won four straight there. He broke up the Celtics, Bulls, Pacers then Celtics again. Eastern Conference teams feared LeBron.

The Cavaliers looked vulnerable last year, and maybe if LeBron stayed, East rivals would have gone just as hard this season. But we know they have with LeBron on the Lakers. The window is open for everyone else, and they know it.

Markelle Fultz’s tenure with 76ers ended historically quickly for No. 1 pick

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By Dan FeldmanFeb 8, 2019, 3:43 PM EST
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On June 17, 2017, 76ers fans exuberantly declared victory. Philadelphia’s standing within the league hadn’t really changed. The 76ers were stacked with assets from Sam Hinkie’s Process – Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and multiple extra first-round picks. But the 76ers were stacked with assets the day before, too. The only difference was Philadelphia consolidated a couple of those assets, agreeing to trade the No. 3 pick in the upcoming draft and a future first-rounder to the Celtics for the No. 1 pick, used on Markelle Fultz.

76ers fans were just that certain Fultz was the missing piece. They saw him as a surefire star and a perfect fit with Embiid and Simmons. That trio would lift Philadelphia to championships and fulfill the destiny of The Process.

Yesterday, the 76ers traded Fultz to the Magic for a potential late first-rounder, a second-rounder and Jonathon Simmons.

That closes a disappointing tenure in Philadelphia for Fultz, whose career has been derailed by a mysterious combination of injuries and mental blocks. Fultz played just 33 games with the 76ers – the fewest ever for a No. 1 pick with his original NBA team in the modern-draft era. It’s even fewer than the 34 games Pervis Ellison, the Kings’ No. 1 pick in 1989, played in his lone season with Sacramento before getting traded.

Here’s every No. 1 pick since 1966, the first draft without territorial selections, sorted by games with the player’s original NBA team. Traded players count with the first NBA team they played for (e.g., Andrew Wiggins with the Timberwolves, not Cavaliers). Only a player’s first stint with his original team counts (e.g., LeBron James‘ 2003-10 games, not 2014-18 games, with the Cavaliers).

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As little production as Philadelphia got from Fultz, it could have been worse.

The Hawks drafted David Thompson No. 1 in 1975. But after Atlanta (according to legend) wined and dined him at McDonald’s, he signed with the ABA’s Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets joined the NBA in the leagues’ merger the next year. Thompson stayed with Denver, the team he’s listed with above. But the Hawks got nothing from him – not even 33 games, a couple middling draft picks and a struggling veteran.

Report: Kyrie Irving believed LeBron James wanted Cavaliers to trade Irving

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By Dan FeldmanFeb 8, 2019, 2:34 PM EST
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Kyrie Irving reportedly requested a trade from the Cavaliers only after hearing they discussed trading him.

But maybe Irving’s problem wasn’t with the Cavs as an organization exploring trading him.

Maybe it was with a specific Cav looking to trade him – LeBron James.

Jackie MacMullan of ESPN:

He was convinced and remains convinced – maybe not now, maybe now because he’s so enlightened – that LeBron wanted him gone, that LeBron wanted him traded, that LeBron wanted to bring in his guys. And that’s when he decided to go. It wasn’t that Gilbert was maybe going to trade him. The fact that he thought LeBron wanted him moved on. And now LeBron denies that that was ever the case. I asked him myself.

LeBron reportedly suggested Cleveland trade Irving for Damian Lillard, but that was supposedly after Irving’s trade request. By all accounts, LeBron told the Cavaliers not to trade Irving.

Still, perhaps that was only because Irving’s trade request had become public, undermining the Cavs’ leverage. Throughout that saga, LeBron certainly didn’t act as if he were invested in Irving staying.

How long had this been building? Irving reportedly considered requesting a trade in 2016, a year before he actually he did. Did Irving believe for years LeBron wanted him gone?

Really, there are two key questions here: Did LeBron want Irving traded? Did Irving believe LeBron wanted him traded. Both mattered. Even if LeBron never wanted Irving traded but Irving believed otherwise, that perception apparently drove Irving’s exit from Cleveland.

Both Irving and LeBron have taken major steps in diffusing tension between them. Really, this story indicates just how far they had to come to make that happen.

Report: Wayne Ellington signing with Pistons

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By Dan FeldmanFeb 8, 2019, 1:29 PM EST
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The Pistons just traded their best wing (Reggie Bullock) and another rotation wing (Stanley Johnson). And Detroit was already thin at the position.

Yet, the ninth-place Pistons – 1.5 games out of postseason position – also insist they’re still trying to make the playoffs.

Wayne Ellington will make that more feasible.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN:

Like with Wesley Matthews choosing the Pacers, this is another surprising post-buyout decision. Both wings were likely pursued by better teams.

The sharp-shooting Ellington will likely start in Detroit, though it’s possible Luke Kennard or Bruce Brown starts and gets partnered with a bigger wing than Ellington. Either way, Ellington is primed for a bigger role than he had with the Heat. That’s clearly part of the reason he approved a trade from Miami/buyout from the Suns.

The Pistons have $2,889,072 of their mid-level exception remaining, but they’re also just $2,634,613 below the luxury-tax line. I’d be shocked if they go into the tax for Ellington. Still, Detroit can beat the pro-rated minimum Ellington could get from most other interested teams today ($762,306).

This signing casts the Pistons’ pre-deadline moves in a better light. Detroit got a younger players in Thon Maker and Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk plus a second-round pick. Though the immediate downgrade on the wing stands, Ellington softens the blow.

Report: Bobby Portis rejected Bulls extension worth $40M-$50M

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By Dan FeldmanFeb 8, 2019, 12:41 PM EST
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The Bulls traded Bobby Portis to the Wizards as part of the Otto Porter deal shortly before the trade deadline.

But not before trying to keep Portis in Chicago long-term.

K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune:

There’s plenty of variability within those reported teams. How many years? What accounts for the difference between the $40 million and $50 million. Fully guaranteed? Options?

But it was probably the max-allowable four years. Most extensions like that are fully guaranteed for at least the first three seasons.

Even if it were just $40 million over four years with only three years fully guaranteed, I would have advised Portis to take the offer. That’s life-changing money for someone who has earned only $6,855,506 in his first four seasons. Restricted free agency is too risky to pass on an offer like that.

Portis’ production has slipped slightly this season. He’s still a fine player, but I doubt he gets $10 million annually in free agency, let alone the $16 million he’s reportedly seeking.

Getting traded hurts Portis. Washington doesn’t have nearly the same attachment to him as Chicago, which drafted him.

Portis’ qualifying offer next summer (assuming the Wizards extend it) will be $3,611,813. That number could be quite relevant.

Meanwhile, Portis is tweeting:

I respect Portis’ determination. Getting traded could push him to be even better.

But he has a way to go to get the money he wants.