Execs: Jalen Green's potential peak as similar to those of Bradley Beal and Zach LaVine

Kellan Olson: Jusuf Nurkic said he was making his way down the floor while Devin Booker had the ball, and as he was getting ready to set the screen while scanning the floor, he saw Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal around the corner. “I was saying, ‘G******, man.’” -via Twitter @KellanOlson / October 4, 2023

Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal got coach Frank Vogel’s message loud and clear at a team meeting Tuesday morning before they took the floor for the first day of training camp. “Be a physical, defensive-minded team,” Beal said. “That’s going to come first. We know what our abilities are on offense, but if we’re not willing to guard, defend and get in the stance and hold each other accountable at that end, we’re wasting our time.” -via Arizona Republic / October 3, 2023

Kellan Olson: I asked Bradley Beal about the opportunity to prove himself as a defender on this team. “It’s a big expectation we have on ourselves is to defend. We know that we can score but we want to be an elite defensive team and showcase that we can do that.” -via Twitter @KellanOlson / October 3, 2023

Nikola Vucevic refuses to be a participant in the blame game. The Bulls big man is well aware of its existence, especially how it pertains to him, but finds it rather unnecessary to even sit down at that table, let alone join in the finger-pointing fun. His mindset? Leave that game for others to play. “The anger, so to speak, or blame directed at me has really only been on social media,’’ Vucevic said on Tuesday when discussing the underachieving Bulls the last few seasons. “Like never in the city, the arena, in person have I ever felt that. Actually the opposite. All the negativity I’ve seen has been on Twitter … well X now. And honestly, for me I can understand it because people expect what I was doing in Orlando. But I don’t have that same role, I’m not utilized the same way, don’t have the same amount of touches or the touches where I was getting previously. “Out of the three of us (Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine) I’m the one that has sacrificed the most from an individual game. That’s why I feel like the people that have been critical of me really don’t understand how basketball works, what it takes for us to function as a group. “It’s OK, not everyone is going to like you.’’ -via Chicago Sun-Times / October 3, 2023

KC Johnson: Zach LaVine said “you can’t turn down opportunities like that” when asked about a potential spot on USA Basketball at Paris Olympics. LaVIne won gold in Tokyo. -via Twitter @KCJHoop / October 2, 2023

The Bulls missed the playoffs last season. Lonzo Ball is expected to miss this upcoming season with his left knee injury for a second consecutive season. But even with the tough landscape, what are your expectations on what the Bulls can accomplish with a core around you, Zach LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, Alex Caruso, and a handful of young players? DeRozan: “I think we can accomplish it all. From a lot of mistakes we had and ups and downs last season, it’s about understanding that and knowing how to correct that. That will make us even better than we were last season. We were pretty good, but we were too inconsistent. I think addressing a lot of the flaws that we had last season come next week in training camp will be the start of that. How much we correct that will determine how good we can be. I definitely think we can be extremely good.” -via SportsKeeda / September 27, 2023

It is on Green to pay off that faith by digging deeper into nonscoring aspects of the game. “This is a huge year for him,” Rafael Stone, the Rockets general manager, told ESPN. “It’s on him to really put together all the things he’s worked on. You see individual games where he’s locked in — whether it’s on-ball defense, help-side defense, making the right reads in the pick-and-roll. And then there are other games where he just kind of let go of the rope. He’s a bucket. It’s about all the little things.” -via ESPN / October 5, 2023

Long before Rockets guard Jalen Green would consider NBA free agency, he is a coveted free agent of a different kind that has generated intense interest from a segment of the NBA community. Green is weighing dropping CAA as his representatives and is considering several options, with a decision expected in the coming weeks, two individuals with knowledge of the situation said. -via Houston Chronicle / October 4, 2023

Green confirmed he is considering his options. He could return to CAA, where he has been represented by Aaron Mintz. Green has considered Lift Sports, and to be represented by former NBA player Mike Miller and veteran agent Kevin Bradbury; and Klutch Sports Group, to be represented by Rich Paul, according to individuals with knowledge of the process. Another individual said he is also considering WME. -via Houston Chronicle / October 4, 2023