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Hoops Rumors Live Chat: 3/8/2022
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Luke Adams
12:01
Thanks for stopping in today, guys! Let's chat.
Willie Cauley-Stein
12:01
If I sign with a Team today, am I eligible to play in the Playoffs?
Luke Adams
12:02
Yes! You were "released" after March 1, but since you were on a 10-day contract, you didn't have to pass through waivers. Only players placed on waivers after March 1 lose their playoff eligibility.
Relatedly, there are actually currently zero players who would be playoff-ineligible if they signed with an NBA team today. No one has been waived since DeAndre Jordan on March 1.
Sean
12:03
Feels like Knicks should trade Randle, keep Fournier and build around Barrett and Reddish?
Luke Adams
12:04
I'm not convinced yet that Reddish is a player worthy of building around, but I don't hate your concept. Based on his skill set and his style of play, Randle is a really tricky player to build around, especially if you're not getting the super-charged version of him we saw last season.
Eric from LA
12:05
Would you put Jason Tatum on your first team all-NBA five?  What other Celtics will get award votes?  Ime as COY?  Smart and Time Lord as DPOY?  Rob as Most Improved?  And who are your award winners today and All-NBA teams?
Luke Adams
12:07
Hard to imagine a scenario in which Tatum makes All-NBA First Team. Even if you don't feel like Lebron and Durant have played enough games to warrant a spot there, Giannis and DeRozan are ahead of Tatum.
And that's before we take into account whether voters might try to put Jokic or Embiid in at forward to make sure both of them make the First Team (I don't think this will actually happen, but the fact that one of them will end up on the Second Team should be a wake-up call to the league that All-NBA teams should be positionless).
12:08
I don't see any Celtics winning major awards, but they have guys who get All-NBA and All-Defensive consideration.
12:09
As for my award picks, it's still too early to lock anything in, and I haven't done enough homework on certain ones (DPOY, Most Improved) to pick a frontrunner yet, but I like Jokic as MVP right now, plus Mobley as ROY, and Herro as Sixth Man.
MLB is dead
12:10
Will Warriors trade Wiggins in the offseason now that Moody looks like he could be a big time NBA player?
Luke Adams
12:12
It'll be something they consider, but they shouldn't feel any urgency to make a decision on him yet. They showed when Durant left that they're capable of recouping value for a free agent who wants to leave, even when that player is going to a team with cap room. They could probably do that again with Wiggins in 2023.
jamoche1
12:12
Any news on how long Jarrett Allen will be out? Will the Cavs try to fill that void in-house or look to bring someone in?
Luke Adams
12:14
"Out indefinitely" is one of the more irritating phrases in any injury update. It's sometimes used to describe lengthy absences, but it could just as easily mean they need to do more testing to determine a shorter-term timeline. The good news with Allen's injury is that the broken finger is on his non-shooting hand. We're probably looking at weeks rather than days, but my best guess is he'll be back before the playoffs start.
12:15
Again though, this is just speculation based on what we know about finger fractures. Very little info out there right now.
12:16
As for the Cavs' options to replace Allen, I imagine they'll stay in house, but they do have an open roster spot if they want to audition anyone on a 10-day deal -- Tim Frazier's 10-day expired overnight.
Aris B.
12:16
Does Jamal Murray/Michael Porter Jr. come back this month?
Luke Adams
12:17
I'll predict late March for MPJ. Murray is trickier. I'm not convinced he'll be ready within the next month, but I'm also not sure how comfortable the Nuggets would be bringing him back during the playoffs if he doesn't have any regular season reps under his belt.
12:18
I'll say early April for Murray, but I don't think we should be too shocked if we don't see him this season.
Celtics Fan
12:18
Other than probably Harden to Philly, is Derrick White the best deadline acquisition?
Luke Adams
12:20
If we're talking about the impact on the current season, I think that's a reasonable stance. You could also make a pretty good case for CJ McCollum, though even with him, I'm not sure the Pelicans' ceiling is higher than a first-round exit.
12:21
If we're talking about longer-term impact, I'd probably take the Pacers' acquisition of Haliburton ahead of White and CJ.
Joel E
12:21
Do I finally win MVP?
Luke Adams
12:22
Giannis and Jokic certainly aren't make it easy on you. You may have to outplay Jokic the rest of the way to win it.
12:23
On the other hand, even though the Sixers and Nuggets are only separated by 1.5 games right now, I do think if the Sixers end up with the East's 1 or 2 seed and the Nuggets finish 5th or 6th in the West, that might be enough to sway some voters.
Dub nation
12:23
I feel like momentum going into the playoffs is way more important than losing a handful of games in March.   Would you concur?
Luke Adams
12:24
I suppose it depends on how you're losing those games -- if the issues you're experiencing in March are the same ones that could haunt you in the playoffs, that's a problem. The Warriors' recent struggles are concerning, but I'd be more alarmed if they were playing like this with a fully healthy roster.
12:25
For what it's worth, I'm not sure that late-season momentum matters all that much. The top six teams will be off for almost a week between the regular season finale and the start of the first round. They'll have to generate some new momentum by that point.
Grizz
12:26
Do you think the Grizzlies will trade 2 of their 1st round draft picks and/or maybe Xavier Tillman to move up to select a backup center, Duren, Kessler or M. Williams?
Luke Adams
12:28
Moving up is easier said than done. Once the draft order is set, it's all about specific players and tiers -- if there's a team a few spots ahead of you who doesn't have its eye on any specific player and would be happy with any of 5-6 different guys, maybe it works, but I think we have to see where all the picks land before determining how realistic that is.
12:29
I do think the Grizzlies will view their excess picks as trade chips rather than bringing in three new rookies, but trading for a veteran or two might be more viable.
Oakland Warriors fan
12:29
So what are the Warriors going to do when Kevon Looney finally breaks down?  The Front Office refuses to take blame for having the Frontcourt paper thin and unprepared for these injuries to Draymond and Wiseman.  They gaffed.
Warrior1
12:29
Warriors are in dire need of a big center who can rebound and bang with the likes of Jokic. Sam Mitchell has even commented on Wiseman is a PF.  Who do you see them targeting for a back up C next year?
Luke Adams
12:31
Have gotten a few questions about the Warriors' lack of size. I've maintained for most of the season that they'd be fine with Green and Wiseman back, but I admittedly didn't expect either player to be out for this long. Green is going to get so many C minutes in the playoffs that I still think they'll be OK as long as he and Looney are healthy, but the fact they probably won't be able to count on Wiseman for reliable playoff minutes makes the margin for error a whole lot smaller.
12:33
I'm still not sure how much of a priority the Warriors will make the position in the offseason if they feel like Wiseman can play center next year, but they might benefit from signing a low-cost veteran. I'd be interested in exploring a Damian Jones reunion this summer if I were them.
X%sure
12:34
What is the minimum cost for each spot on a roster if the goal is saving money on the last 3 spots or so?  Assume a roster of 15+2.
Luke Adams
12:35
I always love answering cap/CBA questions, but I'm having a hard time parsing this one. If you want to follow up to clarify what you mean, I'll try to get to it in the next 20ish minutes.
J
12:35
Does Ben Simmons play in a game before the playoffs start? What kind of impact will he have?
Luke Adams
12:36
I expect once the Philadelphia game passes this week, it won't be long before we start getting more positive updates about his ramp-up process. I could see him debuting within about two weeks. I'm very curious to see how the Nets will use him, if he's playing alongside two fairly ball-dominant players in Kyrie and KD.
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