NBA News Round-Up, Sep. 27: T-Wolves Asked for Ben Simmons in Butler Trade; Boogie Details FA call with Warriors
With Media Days of all 30 teams done and training camp underway, the NBA is well and truly back. In fact, at the time of the writing, the first preseason (Melbourne United vs Philadelphia 76ers) is under 24 hours away.
And with the NBA comes its numerous storylines, however, the one dominating the past week is the Jimmy Butler saga in Minnesota. The 4-time All-Star's trade request has jolted the stability of the Timberwolves franchise. Not to mention, putting coach & President of Basketball Operations Tom Thibodeau's job in question.
As we continue moving forward, with more possible interactions between players and the media, expect no shortage of storylines. So as we inch closer to the weekend, and the first NBA action in close to four months, let's take a look at all of the buzz from Thursday:
#1 Mavs' Harrison Barnes "out for a while"; Lakers' Lonzo Ball cleared for contact
Led by their young and super talented backcourt - Dennis Smith Jr. and Luka Doncic, the future looks bright for the Dallas Mavericks but those expectations received a small short-term hit. The franchise's 2016 free-agency acquisition Harrison Barnes suffered a hamstring injury in practice on Thursday.
He might not be the franchise cornerstone like he would have possibly expected when he signed his 4-year $94 million dollar deal in 2016, but as a wing, he is integral to the team's future. By missing all of the preseason, he will most likely not travel with the team to China where they play a couple of games against the 76ers as part of the league's Global Games initiative.
On the flip side, there was some good news further West. The Los Angeles Lakers' No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 Draft, Lonzo Ball, was cleared for contact. Not just that, he even participated in the team's camp routine on Day 3.
It's no surprise that the Lakers are being cautious with his return. Lakers' coach Luke Walton earlier told ESPN that the team would be starting Rajon Rondo at the beginning of the season to allow Ball a healthy recovery from his left knee surgery (an arthroscopic procedure he underwent in July).