Atlantic Notes: DeRozan, Conley, Hollis-Jefferson

The Raptors‘ DeMar DeRozan told Sean Deveney of The Sporting News he has no regrets about signing a four-year, $40MM extension in 2012. The deal came just before DeRozan’s break-out season that saw him raise his scoring average to 18.1 points per game. Even though DeRozan could have made much more by waiting for restricted free agency, he doesn’t wish he had taken the gamble. “I don’t regret anything,” DeRozan said. “Everything happens for a reason, man. This is the place I wanted to be, so that’s where I wanted to be. I never second-guessed or thought twice about anything.”

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

• Mike Conley could be the Nets‘ answer at point guard, according to Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com. The columnist says Brooklyn seems certain to pursue the 28-year-old Grizzlies star when he becomes an unrestricted free agent next summer. He concedes it will be a difficult sell, as Conley is part of a successful franchise in Memphis and the Grizzlies will be able to offer an additional year and roughly $30MM more in salary.
• The Nets had Rondae Hollis-Jefferson rated 12th on their draft board, tweets NetsDaily.com. As he began to slide, Brooklyn made a deal with Portland, which selected him with the 23rd pick.
• The Sixers will endure a year of criticism from fans and the media as they go through what is likely to be another 60-loss season, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Alth0ugh the columnist said the team has been successful in its plan to stockpile assets, cap space and draft picks, the on-court product looks terrible again. The latest public heat on the front office came after this week’s decision to pick up the third-year option on Joel Embiid, who hasn’t played an NBA game and is out for the season after bone-graft surgery in his right foot. Pompey noted that the Sixers have bright spots in Nerlens Noel, Jahlil Okafor and Nik Stauskas, but speculates it will take at least three years to build a contender around them.