Rounding up all Warriors and NBA-related news for Tuesday, July 23rd.
Team USA finished their USA showcase a perfect 5-0 after defeating Germany in another close matchup, 92-88. The American team, still working on their cohesiveness as a unit, continues to search for their rhythm in international play, especially on the offensive side where they turned the ball over 14 times to Germany’s seven.
Golden State Warriors sharpshooter Stephen Curry was among those who had a rough game, managing 13 points but hitting only 1-of-7 from beyond the arc. Despite the struggles, Curry remains confident that the team’s best offensive performance is yet to come.
For more on this and other news around the NBA, here is our latest news round-up for Tuesday, July 23rd:
Warriors News:
LeBron James’ late scoring spree propels Team USA past Germany in final pre-Olympic game | The Athletic
“I think we can get a lot better,” Kerr said. “We’re getting to a place now where we’re getting comfortable with rotations and I think guys are getting familiar with each other, but we can do a lot of things better with our passing, which was not great tonight.
“They put a lot of defensive pressure on us and we turned it over a few times. I think we can tighten up our game and get better. And that’s the plan here in the next couple of weeks.”
Durant misses exhibition finale but will stay on Team USA | ESPN
Kerr had hoped Durant would play in one of the games in London but said that the new plan is for him to practice with the team several times when it gets to France later this week. Kerr said he also wants Durant to have some contact and go through a scrimmage before bringing him back, which makes his availability for Sunday’s pool play opener against Serbia in some doubt.
USA Basketball has until Saturday to finalize the roster, and Durant will be on it.
“There’s no thought of replacing Kevin,” Kerr said. “I was hoping he would get a game in here, but it just didn’t work out that way.”
Five main takeaways from Warriors’ successful NBA Summer League run | NBC Sports Bay Area
As it currently stands as of this publishing, the Warriors have 14 players on their roster and don’t have room to sign a 15th player under the hard cap. A trade can change things. But Post appears headed for a two-way contract, from an outside perspective.
The Warriors’ second-round pick wasn’t their best player in their summer league finale, ending their seven-game win streak in a 102-99 loss to the Heat. Neither was Plowden. It was Kevin Knox, the No. 9 overall pick by the New York Knicks in the 2018 draft.
Ranking the Most Overrated NBA Players Right Now | Bleacher Report
1. Jonathan Kuminga, Golden State Warriors
Framing Kuminga’s value against the backdrop of Lauri Markkanen trade talks, here’s what we both had to say (17:35 mark):
“DF: I’m just at the point where I think he might be one of the most overrated players in the NBA. And I don’t mean that as an insult. But we’re talking about him as if he almost has this Mikal Bridges-type of non-star value. I see the vision with him. But as of right now, I don’t trust the jumper. I don’t trust his ability to generate his own shot unless he’s in space. And the defense is kind of just all over the place.
“So I see the vision, and that rim pressure is great. And I don’t know how much of this is on the Warriors. I’ve just reached a point where part of me understands why they’d want to keep him out of this [Markkanen] deal. But the other part of me is just, like, if it’s Jonathan Kuminga or Lauri Markkanen, it’s not really a choice.”
Moses Moody working on his handle this offseason
NBA News:
TNT Sports plans to match Amazon’s media rights package, forcing NBA staredown | The Athletic
“We’re proud of how we have delivered for basketball fans by providing best-in-class coverage throughout our four-decade partnership with the NBA,” TNT said in a statement. “In an effort to continue our long-standing partnership, during both exclusive and non-exclusive negotiation periods, we acted in good faith to present strong bids that were fair to both parties. Regrettably, the league notified us of its intention to accept other offers for the games in our current rights package, leaving us to proceed under the matching rights provision, which is an integral part of our current agreement and the rights we have paid for under it.
“We have reviewed the offers and matched one of them. This will allow fans to keep enjoying our unparalleled coverage, including the best live game productions in the industry and our iconic studio shows and talent while building on our proven 40-year commitment for many more years. Our matching paperwork was submitted to the league today. We look forward to the NBA executing our new contract.”
Heat top Grizzlies in OT to win summer league title | ESPN
Brooklyn Nets forward Jalen Wilson was named the summer league MVP earlier in the day. He averaged 21.8 points and 4.6 rebounds, making 47.3% of his field goals and 55% of 3-pointers.
The summer league’s first team included Jackson and Pippen of the Grizzlies, Ware of the Heat, Jordan Miller of the Los Angeles Clippers, and Reed Sheppard of the Houston Rockets. Though he was named event MVP, Wilson was chosen for the second team along with Bub Carrington of the Washington Wizards, Donovan Clingan of the Portland Trail Blazers, Jaime Jaquez Jr. of the Heat, and Jarace Walker of the Indiana Pacers.
Free agent guard Spencer Dinwiddie signs one-year deal with the Mavericks, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania
In case you missed it at the Golden State of Mind:
Summer Warriors’ Cinderella run ends
Golden State took the lead on the Miami Heat with 53 seconds to play on a Yuri Collins layup, but a Josh Christopher three-point play followed by two Warriors turnovers sent the Dubs to their first loss of the summer. The Summer Warriors had won seven straight games across the California Classic and Las Vegas seasons, but the team’s 8-for-34 shooting from three-point range and 15 turnovers ultimately ended their improbable quest for Summer League rings, which are actual jewelry, not plastic trinkets with candy on top as you might assume.
