With the offseason winding down, most of the summer's impact free agents are off the board with deals in the NBA and, occasionally, overseas. However, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld identified five free agents still out there that can contribute to a team in 2013/14. Richard Hamilton who was waived by the Bulls in July for financial reasons, leads the list of free agents. Tyrus Thomas, Rodrigue Beaubois, Jamaal Tinsley, and Sebastian Telfair also earned mentions as players that can make a difference this season. Here's more from around the Association..
- Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd) runs down a host of arguments for why the NBA should eliminate the max contract. One major reason is that players like LeBron James are probably worth more than the top deal allowable by the collective bargaining agreement. By capping the type of deal that James can fetch, it unfairly distributes the wealth to lower-level players.
- In an interview with Italy's Gazzetta TV (video link), Thunder star Kevin Durant says that he would have liked to see Oklahoma City add guard Marco Belinelli this summer. The sharpshooter wound up signing a two-year deal with the Spurs this offseason.
- The Knicks knew they were taking a risk when they re-signed J.R. Smith to a lucrative three-year pact this offseason, argues Marc Berman of the New York Post. A slight majority of Hoops Rumors readers say Smith's three-year, $17.95MM deal wasn't a good move for the Knicks.
- Jabari Davis of HoopsWorld looks at six players on the comeback trail this season, including Kevin Love, Rajon Rondo, and, of course, Derrick Rose.