A few random notes from around the NBA.

• Knicks rookie forward Chris Copeland had a few breakout moments in the NBA playoffs, and he's more than interested in making more memories in New York, telling ESPNNewYork.com's Jared Zwerling that it's "very possible" he stays with the team next season. 
• According to the Sacramento Bee's Jason Jones, Kings assistant coach Bobby Jackson would love to return to the team next season, but has no contract yet.
• James Harden is spending his offseason recruiting free agents to join him with the Rockets next season, writes Hoopsworld.com's Alex Kennedy.

Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald spoke to the media today, reflecting on a Knicks season that ended with a second-round loss to the Pacers and looking ahead to the team's plans for the coming summer. A number of New York reporters, including Al Iannazzone of Newsday, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com, Marc Berman of the New York Post, and Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv, passed along a few of Grunwald's more notable comments, so let's round them up:

• The Knicks will focus on continuing to build and add to their core group, but won't be able to acquire anyone via sign-and-trade, says Grunwald (Twitter link). That rules out the pursuit of a top free agent like Chris Paul.
• New York will have access to the taxpayer mid-level exception rather than the full $5.15MM MLE, and Grunwald says the club may have to dip into it to match offer sheets for restricted free agents Pablo Prigioni and Chris Copeland (Twitter link).
• Despite the team's limited cap flexibility, Grunwald is confident the team can be "creative" when it comes to adding talent, noting that the Knicks "have some ideas" for what can be done (Twitter link).
• After speaking to Jason Kidd, Grunwald is confident the veteran point guard will be back next season, as opposed to retiring (Twitter link).
• Grunwald declined to comment on J.R. Smith's free agency, but added: "I don’t think you should read that one way or another" (Twitter link).
• Although Grunwald was disappointed by the way the Knicks' season ended, he stressed that he likes the team and is excited about its future (Sulia link).

The Raptors have scheduled a pair of conference calls this morning, one with MLSE president/CEO Tim Leiweke and one with Bryan Colangelo, who appears to be taking on a new non-basketball role with the franchise. While we await word on Colangelo's official title, let's check in on a few other notes related to the Raptors' front office changes and related to one of Toronto's division rivals....

• The Raptors' top target to replace Colangelo as the head of basketball operations, Masai Ujiri, isn't going to talk to Leiweke before Wednesday, says Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. Smith also suggests that if the Raptors miss out on Ujiri, they should try to convince current advisor Wayne Embry to become the team's new president.
• Bruce Arthur and Eric Koreen of the National Post each provide retrospectives for Colangelo's tenure as the Raptors' general manager.
• A few days after Chris Copeland's agent said that money would be an important factor in free agency this summer, Copeland stressed that he's "never chased the highest bidder," as Mark Hale of the New York Post details. "I love it here [with the Knicks]," Copeland said. "The finances play a part, but I have a lot of emotional ties here that it would be harder for me to break."
• In his latest piece for the New York Post, Marc Berman touches on the contract situations for a number of Knicks players. The highlights: Tyson Chandler says he's not sure whether or not Jason Kidd will continue his playing career, while Carmelo Anthony expresses a desire to see J.R. Smith re-sign with the team.

Perhaps the most unlikely success this season in the NBA was enjoyed by 29-year-old Knicks rookie Chris Copeland, who stuck with the team all season after arriving at training camp with no guaranteed deal. His 13 points helped spark New York's win in Game Five against the Pacers last night, and agent John Spencer is hoping to turn his surprising performance this season into a financial windfall for his client. Spencer said Copeland wants to find a way to stay with the Knicks, but "wants to get paid" as well.

Zwerling hears three teams are interested in negotiating with Copeland when he becomes a restricted free agent on July 1st. A source told Marc Berman of the New York Post that Copeland may seek a contract similar to Steve Novak's four-year, $16MM deal in the offseason, and Spencer says the same to Zwerling, envisioning the 6'9" forward's value to merit an annual salary between $3.5MM and $5MM. 

Copeland is on a minimum-salary deal this year, making just $473,604, plus whatever his playoff share from New York's run will be. The Knicks, a luxury tax team, could use his Non-Bird rights to give him $988,872, the amount of his qualifying offer. They could also use their taxpayer's mid-level exception to give him up to $3,182,700, but, as our Luke Adams wrote today, that would preclude the Knicks from signing many free agents from other teams.

As Zwerling notes, the Knicks have plenty of decisions to make regarding free agents this summer, with Sixth Man of the Year J.R. Smith topping that list. Knicks point guard Pablo Prigioni is in a situation identical to Copeland's, though his age (36) may make him less attractive on the market. He's hinted that he may return overseas next season, but the native of Argentina has also expressed a desire to re-sign with the Knicks.

Let's round up a few Friday morning items out of the Atlantic Division....

• When Kevin Garnett decided to re-sign with the Celtics last summer, it made the rest of the team's decisions easy, GM Danny Ainge tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. However, with more factors in play this offseason, Ainge anticipates more difficult decisions and plenty of possible outcomes for the C's.
• Knicks GM Glen Grunwald is hoping to re-sign Chris Copeland this summer, but one source tells Marc Berman of the New York Post that the restricted free agent may seek "Steve Novak money" (four years, $16MM), which would put him out of New York's price range. I think if the Knicks were to offer their mini mid-level exception to Copeland, they could re-sign him, but that would rule out the pursuit of many outside free agents.
• When Kurt Thomas underwent right foot surgery toward the end of this season, it was widely assumed that he may have played his last NBA game. Thomas remains undecided on his future though, suggesting to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News that there's a chance he could return.
• Asked about yesterday's report that the Sixers had received permission to interview Rockets assistant Kelvin Sampson, GM Sam Hinkie replied, "I'm not even there yet. I won't confirm or deny, but I will say I don't know where that came from" (via Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News).
• Citing word out of Toronto, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio hears that this very well could be Bryan Colangelo's last week as the Raptors' GM (Twitter link). The last real updates on the subject came on Monday, when reports were mixed on whether or not Colangelo would be back.

After paying a hefty price of Andre Iguodala, Nikola Vucevic, Maurice Harkless and a first round pick to bring Andrew Bynum to Philadelphia, the 76ers have had little to reap from that investment this season. Ben Bolch of the LA Times wonders if it will be worth the risk offering the one-time All-Star a new deal this summer, something that GM Tony DiLeo called the team's "Plan A" for the upcoming offseason. Here's the rest of what we've heard out of the Atlantic Division tonight: 

• Howard Beck of the New York Times clarifies that Amar'e's contract is uninsured in the event of a career ending eye or knee injury (Twitter link). 
• Amare Stoudemire's injury could open up some playing time for sparingly-used Chris Copeland, writes Mark Herrmann of Newsday. Meanwhile, ESPN New York's Jared Zwerling talks about the fallout of not having Stoudemire and how the Knicks will have to adjust for the rest of the season. 
• A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com highlights the potency of the Celtics bench, who he says has had an impact on nearly every aspect of the game. In another article, Jackie MacMullan of ESPN Boston delves heavily into the complete team player that Paul Pierce has been and how he has carried the Celtics on his back this season.
• Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer profiles Raptors' rookie Jonas Valanciunas, who despite his inexperience has earned a significant role with coach Dwane Casey because of his high activity level and toughness. 

Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston delves further into what today's roster moves meant for the Celtic green, noting that the $275K the team saved by waiving Kris Joseph is nearly the amount it will cost the team to sign a veteran-minimum player late in the season. He also points out that Boston must wait for Joseph and Jarvis Varnado to clear waivers before being able to offer 10-day contracts. As for the now-former Celtics, Forsberg writes that both will have the option of returning to the D-League while awaiting their next opportunity. Here's the rest of what we've heard out of the Atlantic Division tonight:

• ESPN New York's Jared Zwerling describes how current Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga played a pivotal role in helping Knicks forward Chris Copeland earn a shot to play in the NBA. 
• With P.J. Carlesimo, Nets rookie Mirza Teletovic has another chance to make a first impression (Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports). 
• In a Q&A with readers that covered a variety of miscellaneous topics, Doug Smith of TheStar.com said that with a full roster, the Raptors aren't currently inclined to waive anyone in order to sign someone to a 10-day contract. With regards to their point guard situation, Smith thinks that Toronto should stand pat for now and seems confident that the team will eventually have discussions next summer to try and keep Jose Calderon. 

• Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com looks at some implications that the two vacant roster spots have for the Celtics, namely the flexibility to go after a player like Kenyon Martin for a minimum deal down the line and the ability to take in more players in a potential trade. 
• Despite his offensive struggles since returning from injury, Celtics guard Avery Bradley has been making enough of an impact defensively to earn significant playing time (Gary Washburn Boston.com writes). 
• Efficient three-point shooting, the ability to get to the free throw line at a high rate, and versatility at power forward are just a few of the reasons why it has been a career year for Carmelo Anthony thus far, opines Tommy Beer of HoopsWorld. 
• With his consistent ability to tap the basketball out to teammates for second chance opportunities, Tyson Chandler has become a key component for the Knicks' success offensively, says Nate Taylor of The New York Times.
• Marcus Camby thinks that teammate Amare Stoudemire can thrive in a role off of the bench the way J.R. Smith has done for the Knicks, notes Marc Berman of the New York Post. 

Marc Berman of the New York Post writes that Amare Stoudemire isn't quite ready to make his return for the Knicks just yet, citing that he is still "not 100 percent yet." Although he looked active during his scrimmage with the Erie Bayhawks today, Stoudemire feels that he still needs more practices and conditioning work before his return. You can find more of tonight's notable links from the Atlantic Division below:

• Coach Mike Woodson says that although Iman Shumpert took part in conditioning workouts, the young guard is still "a little ways away" with regard to his rehab (Christian Red of the New York Daily News reports). 
• Considering the Raptors' recent four-game winning streak, Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun is wary of the possible challenges that Kyle Lowry and Andrea Bargnani will create for the team's current chemistry once they return from injury. 
• In a brief Q&A Twitter session with followers, renown NBA capologist Larry Coon acknowledged that Knicks rookies Pablo Prigioni and Chris Copeland will be restricted free agents this summer (Twitter link). 
• Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld notes that Raptors big man Ed Davis has made noticeable improvements and is beginning to progress into the talent that Toronto envisioned when they drafted him. 
• Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston talks about why Jason Terry belongs in the Celtics' starting lineup.

We'll keep track of all the day's D-League moves right here. As always, you can reference the season's comings and goings with this post.

• The Knicks have assigned James White and Chris Copeland to the Erie BayHawks of the D-League for a second time this week, tweets Keith Schlosser of Knicks Journal. The pair of forwards went to Erie on Tuesday and were called back to New York yesterday in time for both to appear in the Knicks' victory over the Nets. Neither played in a game for the BayHawks, and the assignments are simply a measure to get the players more practice time, as Schlosser points out.
• The Cavaliers have recalled Jon Leuer from the D-League, the team announced. Leuer has appeared in six games, all starts, for the Canton Charge since he was assigned to the club two weeks ago. The 6'10" power forward notched 20.3 points and 12.3 rebounds per game and shot 54.5% during his D-League stint. 
• Tyler Honeycutt was on the active list for the Kings in their win against the Warriors last night in his first game since returning from the league's longest D-League stint of the season. Honeycutt was sent down November 7th, the first time an NBA player was assigned to a D-League squad in 2012/13. The 6'8" small forward averaged 10.9 points and 9.6 rebounds in seven games with the Reno Big Horns.

We'll be keeping track of all of today's D-League comings and goings in this post. To keep up with the latest assignments and recalls, check out Hoops Rumors' 2012/13 list right here.

• The Thunder announced they've assigned Perry Jones III and DeAndre Liggins to the Tulsa 66ers. It's the second time they've each been sent down. Liggins has averaged 11.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in three games for Tulsa, while Jones has put up a total of 23 points and seven rebounds in his two D-League contests.  
• Forwards Chris Copeland and James White have returned to the Knicks after being assigned yesterday to the D-League's Erie BayHawks, the BayHawks announced via Twitter (hat tip to Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside). Their return was expected when they were sent down, along with Amare Stoudemire, to practice with the BayHawks. Erie is in the midst of a four-day layoff, so none of the Knicks assignees saw game action. 
• The Pistons have brought back Khris Middleton and Kim English from the D-League, according to James Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press. Both rookies were sent down to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants a week ago. They were in the starting lineup for three games with Fort Wayne, with English putting up 18.0 points, 5.7 assists and 5.0 rebounds per contest, while Middleton posted averages of 11.0 points and 7.7 boards. Neither of them, both second-round picks this past June, have seen significant minutes for the big club in Detroit.
• The Spurs announced that they have assigned Kawhi Leonard to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League for a medical rehab assignment.  Leonard has been sidelined with quadriceps tendinitis in his left knee since November 17th. Prior to the injury, Leonard appeared in nine games for the Spurs, averaging 10.6 PPG, 5.4 RPG and 2.0 SPG in 28.9 minutes.  Team doctors will determine a timeline for Leonard's return after he practices with the Toros.