Despite a recent report suggesting that a "major shakeup" could be on the way in Phoenix, the Suns don't currently have any free agents on their radar, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). That includes Mike Bibby, who worked out for the Grizzlies today, and reportedly has workouts lined up with a handful of other clubs.
The Suns have 15 players on their roster, so if they were considering adding a free agent, someone would need to be released to make room. In that case, Diante Garrett or Luke Zeller could be candidates to be cut, since they're on non-guaranteed contracts. However, it seems the team is uninterested in the free agent market, and has no plans to make any coaching changes.
If a "shakeup" is indeed on the way, it could come in the form of a trade, since many players signed this past offseason, including Michael Beasley, become trade-eligible as of this weekend. For now though, it seems as if the Suns are moving forward with the current roster and hoping for a turnaround on the court.
3:28pm: Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports (via Twitter) that while the workout took place, no deal is imminent between Bibby and the Grizzlies. If Memphis decides to add a point guard, it will be so Bayless can play off the ball, says Tillery.
1:03pm: While the Lakers seem to be eyeing virtually every point guard on the market, one name that they haven't been connected to is Mike Bibby. However, Bibby is drawing NBA interest, according to Sam Amick of USA Today. Amick reports that the veteran guard is working out for the Grizzlies today in Phoenix.
With Bibby looking to catch on with a team for the second half of the season, the Grizzlies will be just one of "four or five" clubs that work him out, sources tell Amick. However, the Lakers aren't expected to be one of those teams. Bibby, who made his NBA debut in 1998, spent last season with the Knicks, appearing in 39 games.
While the Grizzlies are happy with starter Mike Conley, the team seems to be considering adding some depth at the point guard position, says Amick. Backup Jerryd Bayless isn't exactly a traditional point guard, and hasn't been as productive so far for the Grizzlies as he was in Toronto last season.
NBA veteran Mike Bibby is still hoping to hook on with an NBA team after being left on the shelf this summer, writes Jorge Sierra of HoopsWorld. The point guard is working out in the Phoenix, Arizona area, playing pick-up games, and waiting for an opportunity to come.
"I'm getting ready for any call," Bibby said. "It's reassuring that Derek Fisher got that call. People are still getting calls right now. It can happen somewhere down the line, I'm not worried about that. I'm just keeping myself ready when that call comes."
Bibby saw his numbers plummet all across the board last season with the Knicks. The 34-year-old admitted that he wasn't in great shape last season and attributed much of it to the lockout. Bibby didn't anticipate having to play in 2011/12 and as a result he didn't get himself in peak condition in an effort to save his body for the next year.
The one-guard struggled in the regular season but saw 23.6 minutes per game in the club's first-round series against the Heat and shot 7-17 from the outside. Agent David Falk says that he is "cautiously optimistic" that his client will get signed between mid-December and mid-January and completely ruled out the possibility of a D-League stint in order to get more exposure.
Let's consolidate all the odds and ends from Sunday night in this post:
Earlier updates:
Keyon Dooling's retirement reduced the number of fully guaranteed contracts on the Celtics roster to 13. Though Dionte Christmas and Jamar Smith have small partial guarantees of $237K and $25K, respectively, the team appears to have the flexibility to add another free agent. They still possess their $1.957MM biannual exception, and with Dooling retired and Avery Bradley recovering from right shoulder surgery, they could be in the market for an experienced backup to point guard Rajon Rondo. In the meantime Jason Terry will serve in that capacity, according to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com, who believes the former Mav will make the greatest contribution of all the new Celtics this year (Twitter links). Blakely unleashed a series of tweets full of notable Celtics rumors, and we've rounded them up here:
Mike Bibby is still hoping to catch on with an NBA team within the next few weeks, but he doesn't expect to return to his 2011/12 squad, as Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com reports. A source close to Bibby tells Zwerling: "We do expect a need for him [with a team] once camp starts or just before, but we don't think it's going to be with the Knicks."
The news comes as no real surprise, considering the Knicks loaded up on point guards this summer, acquiring Raymond Felton in a sign-and-trade and signing Jason Kidd, Pablo Prigioni, and Chris Smith to free agent deals. Despite maintaining a solid assist rate for the Knicks last season, Bibby wasn't productive overall, averaging career lows in minutes (14.3), field-goal percentage (28.2%), and PER (7.8), among other categories.
Still, according to Zwerling, Bibby is healthy and has been preparing to play in the upcoming season. Bibby and brother-in-law Eddie House have been training and working out at Bibby's Arizona home over the summer.
It's been a busy day already for the Knicks, who appear poised to officially announce that they've signed J.R. Smith and waived Renaldo Balkman. As New York looks for its eighth straight win tonight, let's round up a few links that address the impact of the team's latest moves. And don't worry, there's a Jeremy Lin update too....
The Knicks and Lakers have contacted the Rockets to ask about Jonny Flynn, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Broussard adds that the Knicks mentioned Renaldo Balkman and Mike Bibby as trade chips, but that the Rockets weren't interested, and no moves are imminent.
The Lakers and Knicks are known to be seeking point guard help. Steve Blake is still recovering from a broken rib, meaning the Lakers are relying heavily on Derek Fisher and rookie Andrew Goudelock. For the Knicks, Baron Davis has been sidelined all season with a back injury and suffered another setback today, leaving Jeremy Lin to start at the point tonight. Both clubs are thought to have interest in Cavs point guard Ramon Sessions.
Flynn, a former Timberwolves lottery pick, has seen less action than ever in Houston this year, having played just 81 minutes in seven games. The Syracuse product has struggled with turnovers throughout his NBA career, recording an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.57 in his three seasons. Flynn is in the last year of his contract, earning $3.41MM this season.
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