Hoops Rumors

Celtics big man Al Horford sat out Boston’s preseason games vs. Denver in Abu Dhabi, but he’ll make his 2024/25 debut this weekend, per Brian Robb of MassLive.com. The Celtics have back-to-back home games this weekend vs. Philadelphia and Toronto. “Just ramping him up,” Mazzulla said of Horford. “We’re still talking about that. He’ll definitely play in one of them, maybe two, … [Read more...] about Horford To Make Preseason Debut This Weekend

Guerschon Yabusele scored 15 points for the Sixers in their exhibition game against the New Zealand Breakers on Monday and it was a special night for him, Gina Mizell of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I’m not going to lie, it felt amazing,” Yabusele said. “It’s been a long road, but happy to be here.” Yabusele signed a one-year contract with the Sixers in late August. He … [Read more...] about Atlantic Notes: Yabusele, Knicks’ Starters, Shamet, Nets

Scottie Barnes and Kelly Olynyk played less than 100 minutes together after Olynyk was acquired by the Raptors at the trade deadline. Barnes will make his preeseason debut on Friday and anticipates he could be an ideal pick-and-roll partner for the veteran big man, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet. “I think we’ve been working on that a lot. You play with different lines … [Read more...] about Atlantic Notes: Barnes, Olynyk, Barrett, Tillman, Celtics Sale, Lowry

The Celtics have made a change at the back end of their 21-man preseason roster, signing free agent guard Jay Scrubb and waiving forward Tristan Enaruna, according to the official transaction logs at RealGM and NBA.com. Bobby Manning of CLNS, who first reported during the offseason that Boston was expected to sign Scrubb to an Exhibit 10 contract once he had fully recovered … [Read more...] about Celtics Sign Jay Scrubb, Waive Tristan Enaruna

The Thunder made the best roster moves during the 2024 offseason, according to the NBA’s general managers. Within his annual survey of the league’s top basketball decision-makers, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes that 37% of his respondents picked Oklahoma City as having the best summer, with the Sixers coming in second place at 33%. The Knicks got 20% of the vote share, while … [Read more...] about NBA GMs High On Thunder’s Offseason Moves, Celtics’ Title Chances

Sixers center Joel Embiid told reporters at Monday’s media day that he has dropped “25 to 30 pounds” during the offseason and that staying healthy in 2024/25 is his number one goal entering this fall, writes Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “I still got a ways to go. I still want to lose more, but it’s a process,” Embiid said. “As soon as we lost last year, I just texted (Sixers president … [Read more...] about Atlantic Notes: Embiid, Drummond, Bridges, Celtics

The Celtics are getting an early challenge from head coach Joe Mazzulla as they begin the defense of their NBA title, writes Brian Robb of MassLive. Boston and Denver opened training camps this week in preparation for their games next Friday and Sunday in Abu Dhabi, and Jaylen Brown said the first practices have been intense. “Training camp has been hard,” he said. “Training … [Read more...] about Celtics Notes: Training Camp, Scheierman, Tatum, Cassell

The Suns‘ and Pacers‘ G League affiliates have completed a trade involving a former No. 3 overall NBA draft pick, per a press release from the Valley Suns. Phoenix’s new affiliate acquired the returning rights to guard David Stockton from the Indiana Mad Ants in exchange for the returning rights to forward Garrison Brooks and former lottery pick Jahlil Okafor. Brooks and Okafor … [Read more...] about And-Ones: G League Trade, Brissett, Future Power Rankings, Lowe

Lonnie Walker IV made a surprise move when he signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Celtics. It was an unconventional decision for a player with 322 regular-season NBA games on his resume, including 58 with the Nets last season. Walker explains that he had limited options in free agency. “I wish I had a clear-cut answer for that as to why I didn’t get a guaranteed deal,” … [Read more...] about Celtics Notes: Walker, Practice Methods, Kornet, Tillman