Jim Eyen

Western Notes: Terry, Papanikolaou, Lakers

With a few weeks until training camps begin, here is the latest news coming out of the Western Conference on Tuesday evening:

  • Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle reports that the Rocketsdeal for Jason Terry will be completed tomorrow (via Twitter). The trade, which will send Terry to Houston and Alonzo Gee and Scotty Hopson to Sacramento, was originally agreed to on August 31st. There was a report yesterday that it would be finalized today, so we should expect an official announcement shortly.
  • Feigen also expects the signing of Kostas Papanikolaou to become official this week, though he cautions that his buyout ($1.5MM) and the necessary FIBA approval make it a little unpredictable (Twitter link). Papanikolaou’s first-year salary of just under $4.8MM is the most ever given to a second-round pick in his first NBA season.
  • The Lakers announced today that Paul Pressey, Jim Eyen and Mark Madsen will join Byron Scott on the Los Angeles bench as assistant coaches this season. Beyond that trio, the team also announced Clay Moser, Larry Lewis, Tom Bialaszewski and J.J. Outlaw as members of the staff. Rondre Jackson has been promoted to director of player development and Jordan Wilkes has been hired as an operations assistant, according to the team release.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.

Pacific Notes: World Peace, Howard, Kings, Suns

Let's round up any and all links from the West's Pacific division in this post tonight:

  • Confirming Jason Jones' report from earlier, the Kings announced the firings of assistant coaches Jim Eyen, Alex English, and Clifford Ray via press release.  However, former assistant Bobby Jackson will be retained in some fashion, but will not serve as an assistant under Michael Malone.   

Earlier updates:

  • The Lakers have granted the Hawks and Bobcats permission to speak to Darvin Ham, currently an assistant in L.A., about joining their staffs, tweets Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News.
  • Metta World Peace will continue to defer to his agent, Marc Cornstein, on what he should do about his $7.7MM player option with the Lakers in 2013/14, writes Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News, who exclusively spoke with the veteran forward.  World Peace has until June 25 to make a decision.  If he exercises his option, he will force the Lakers to make a decision on whether or not to use the amnesty provision on him.  
  • While the Lakers certainly have a built-in advantage when it comes to signing Dwight Howard, there are plenty of factors that make him obtainable for other teams, writes ESPN salary cap guru Larry Coon.  In this Insider only piece, Coon breaks down what it will take for Howard to land with the Rockets or Mavericks, both of which are considered realistic destinations.
  • It looks like new Kings head coach Michael Malone will not retain any assistant coaches from Keith Smart's staff from last season, tweets Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee.  According to the team's media guide, Smart's staff consisted of assistants Alex English, Jim Eyen, Bobby Jackson and Clifford Ray
  • Suns managing partner Robert Sarver understands that his team's rebuilding process could be long and painful, writes Paul Coro for USA Today.  With the No. 5 pick in a draft that seems devoid of high-end talent, and not enough star power to lure one of the big-time free agents, franchises like Phoenix need this patient approach to avoid the pitfalls of trying to rebuild too quickly.