Eastern Notes: McRae, Stoudemire, Kidd

There’s a possibility that 2014 second-rounder Jordan McRae could join the Sixers prior to the end of the season, Tom Moore of Calkins Media writes. McRae, whose rights the Sixers acquired from the Spurs on draft night, has been averaging 20.9 points in 18 games for Melbourne United of the Australian league this season. Philadelphia coach Brett Brown has kept a watchful eye on McRae’s progress overseas, Moore notes. “We are always paying attention to Jordan,” Brown said. “He’s in a good situation. He’s playing a lot of minutes and continuing to score. Jordan is always in the back of our minds.”

With the Sixers having an open roster spot thanks to Andrei Kirilenko being placed on the suspended list, Brown was asked about the possibility of McRae filling that slot, Moore adds. “It’s a fair question,” Brown said. “How we decide to handle Jordan will be determined — just not now. We have talked a lot about it.”

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

  • Kevin Love‘s comment that he intends to opt in and remain with the Cavaliers for the 2015/16 campaign leaves the team with one less distraction this season, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders writes.
  • The Knicks are reportedly not looking to deal Amar’e Stoudemire, but the team has had internal discussions about the possibility of reaching a buyout agreement with him so that Stoudemire could try and catch on with a contender, Mark Woods of ESPNNewYork.com reports.
  • Jason Kidd has found a fit as the coach of the Bucks that he didn’t during his time with the Nets, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today writes. Last year’s Brooklyn squad didn’t need a teacher in the way that Milwaukee does, and it’s a role that Kidd is more suited to, Zillgitt opines.
  • Cavs coach David Blatt‘s level of comfort in Cleveland would benefit greatly from a stout endorsement from LeBron James, something that hasn’t happened yet, Sam Amick of USA Today writes.
  • One of the Knicks‘ biggest issues as a franchise is their poor player development history, Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal writes. “The Knicks have always had the money to spend. But because they saw that as their advantage, it might have also become a reason to put off being patient with a rebuild,” John Nash, a former NBA GM, told Herring. “They may have felt they didn’t have the time to truly develop young players.” New York’s problem isn’t poor drafting, as the franchise has actually had three first-team All-Rookie selections the past four seasons, Herring notes. But those players have all regressed offensively in their second seasons, which is an alarming trend, the Wall Street Journal scribe adds.
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