Host Danny Leroux (@DannyLeroux) and Jared Weiss of The Celtics Wire (@JaredWeissNBA) go in-depth on the Boston Celtics.
They discuss the development of young players Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown; Boston’s place in the NBA’s hierarchy; Gordon Hayward’s status this season; integrating Kyrie Irving and much more.
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The Miami Heat will sign Derrick Jones Jr. to a two-way contract.
Jones was released by the Phoenix Suns in early December. Jones has appeared in 38 games, all with the Suns, over his first two NBA seasons, averaging 4.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in an average of 15.2 minutes.
The Heat released Matt Williams Jr. from his two-way contract.
The New Orleans Pelicans are back down to .500 after losing consecutive games to the Mavericks and Knicks.
“I’m not frustrated,” Anthony Davis said. “We’re fine. We just have to take care of business on the road. We have to get back to playing how we were playing before, which is with a lot of energy. But, I’m not frustrated. I’m disappointed we dropped these two.”
Davis had 31 points and nine rebounds in the game.
The Pelicans are now 9-9 at home.
Rudy Gobert was re-evaluated on Saturday and is expected to miss two more weeks.
Gobert is showing progress towards his return as he's participating in light workouts and individual drills in practice.
Gobert suffered a left PCL sprain and bone bruise on Dec. 15.
A right tibia contusion also sidelined Gobert for 11 games earlier in the season.
“Rudy’s working and trying to get back, there’s nothing that his teammates or myself can do to accelerate that,” said Quin Snyder. “We see him every day. He’s been great about staying connected to the team, but having an advent calendar isn’t the answer.
“It’s going to be when it is and we’ll be glad to have him back when we do, but I don’t think there’s a sense that ‘Oh, if we had Rudy then we may have’… that’s not the right way to approach it.”
Austin Rivers is day-to-day with an Achilles tendon strain.
Rivers left Friday's game on crutches.
The Clippers are 2.5 games out of the eighth seed in the Western Conference.
Rivers is averaging career highs of 15.8 points, 3.6 assists and 40.5 percent 3-point shooting over 32 games this season.
Jonathan Isaac will be placed in an injury rehabilitation and conditioning program and will be out indefinitely.
Isaac's return to play will depend on how he responds to the program. Isaac originally suffered a sprained right ankle on Nov. 11
Rudy Gay will miss at least two weeks after an MRI revealed retrocalcaneal bursitis in his right heel.
Gay exited with the injury on Thursday.
An MRI Friday morning showed the inflammation of the bursa sac that lies over the heel.
Gay missed the previous two games with a sore right heel.
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We wade through a huge news backlog, including the various point guard injuries, the latest on two-way contract situations for Phoenix, Indiana, and the Clippers, and more. Then (27:00) we start our power forward rankings. Where do Giannis, AD, KLove, and the rest fall?
With host Nate Duncan (@NateDuncanNBA). And if you like this pod, please donate to support Nate and Danny at Patreon.com/DuncanLeroux. Merchandise available at NateDuncanNBA.com.
Serge Ibaka has been suspended by the Toronto Raptors for one game.
Ibaka and a member of the Raptors' staff had an altercation after their game on Dec. 27th in Oklahoma City.
Ibaka will miss Friday's game against the Hawks.
"Both parties have apologized. We've discussed this internally as a team, and we won't be discussing it any further," said Masai Ujiri. "Now we're focused on moving forward together and we look forward to having Serge back in the lineup."
The Los Angeles Lakers held a "heart to heart" meeting in place of practice on Thursday.
"Just clearing up some things, what we can be better at, how we can hold each other to be more accountable, more accountable for ourselves, and how we can just get a better feeling for the game," Brandon Ingram said after the team's shootaround on Friday. "... I don't think you work through it in one day, but I think we put it out there about how each guy was feeling about how they play on the basketball floor, about how they're feeling about the business of the organization, how they want to be played or anything of that nature. I think they just put it all out there, and ultimately I would hope they felt free after they did."
Luke Walton noticed players "pouting" on the bench after a recent loss.
Andrew Bogut cited injuries, rotations and how "everyone knows what is going on with the salary-cap situation next season."
"We just really had a heart to heart," rookie Kyle Kuzma said. "We're just trying to get back on the same page. That happens at all levels. It's no different. Every team has problems. Championship teams have problems and whatnot. Meetings are always good. ... But, of course, everybody on the team said something about how they feel."
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