Here's tonight's look around the Association as the Heat find themselves in a battle with the 15-26 Raptors..

• When asked about his impending free agency earlier today, Dwight Howard said "We're not discussing that," tweets Brian K. Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.  Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak might start feeling uneasy if the star big man has the same stance a few weeks from now when the trade deadline comes and goes.
• Bostjan Nachbar told Beko BBL that he will likely stay with his team in Germany next season, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.  The forward was a prominent bench player for the Nets in 2006/07 and 2007/08.
• Former NBA forward Ryan Gomes has parted ways with Germany's Artland Dragons, according to David Pick of Sportando (on Twitter).  Gomes, who played for the Celtics, Wolves, and Clippers, averaged 11 PPG in ten games for the German club.  

After having been amnestied by the Clippers more than four months ago, Ryan Gomes has finally found a new team. Gomes has signed with the Artland Dragons in Germany, the team confirmed on its website today (German link). Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress first reported (via Twitter) that Gomes would join the Dragons.

Gomes, 30, worked out for the Bobcats in September, but didn't receive a training camp invite from Charlotte or any other NBA club. After a few productive seasons with the Celtics and Timberwolves, Gomes' performance declined with the Clippers over the last two years. In 2011/12, he recorded just 2.3 PPG and a 4.4 PER, along with a .326 FG%, in 32 games. Gomes' career rates (13.2 PPG, 6.0 RPG) and relative youth suggest he could still earn another shot in the NBA if he has success overseas.

Because he was released via the amnesty clause, Gomes is still earning the $4MM salary owed to him by the Clippers. However, that amount doesn't apply to Los Angeles' team salary for this season.

This morning, we learned that the Magic are expected to sign Armon Johnson and DeQuan Jones to non-guaranteed contracts. That's one of a handful of items related to Eastern Conference teams today, so let's round up the rest right here:

• Although he worked out with the team recently, it doesn't sound as if Ryan Gomes will be in training camp with the Bobcats, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
• Unrestricted free agent D.J. White spent the last season and a half with the Bobcats, but it doesn't appear he'll be back in Charlotte either. David Pick of Sportando reports that White is drawing interest from Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv.
• After receiving head coach consideration this offseason, Michael Curry will return to the 76ers' staff, and coach Doug Collins is elated to have him back, writes Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News.
• The Celtics have added former Erie BayHawks head coach Jay Larranaga to their staff as an assistant coach, the team announced today in a press release. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first reported the hire last month.
• Asked whether Ray Allen or Rashard Lewis will provide the Heat more "bang for the buck," Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel says Lewis "could be a revelation" if he provides some rebounding and defense for Miami.

Unrestricted free agent Ryan Gomes is expected to work out in Charlotte for the Bobcats next week, reports Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter). Gomes has seemingly drawn little interest since being amnestied by the Clippers in July, but he'll enter the mix of frontcourt players that could fill out Charlotte's roster, says Bonnell.

After five solid years in Boston and Minnesota to start his career, Gomes saw his production fall off significantly over the past two seasons for the Clippers. Entering his stint with the Clippers with a 13.6 career PER, Gomes recorded an 8.2 mark for the team in 108 games, and is coming off a disastrous 2011/12 campaign in which he averaged just 2.3 points and 1.9 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game.

If Gomes can bounce back this season, he could be an intriguing addition for the Bobcats -- the team has reportedly been eyeing power forwards, and could be looking for some outside scoring as well, given their alleged interest in Tracy McGrady. Gomes is slightly undersized for the four, but can play the position, and prior to last season, he was an effective scorer from the outside as well, with a .357 career 3PT%.

The Bobcats currently have 13 players on guaranteed contracts, and are also expected to invite Cory Higgins to training camp.

As Hoops Rumors' amnesty tracker shows, exactly half of the NBA's 30 teams have used their amnesty provisions to release a player and eliminate his contract from their books. These teams are still paying the players' salaries, but don't take a cap or tax hit for the contracts.

Many of 2011's and 2012's amnesty victims quickly found other NBA homes, with many of this summer's amnestied players not even clearing waivers before they were snatched up. But for every Luis Scola or Elton Brand, there's a player who has yet to catch on with another NBA club. Most of the following players are still receiving pay checks from their old teams, but are available to be signed as free agents. Here's the latest on them:

• Baron Davis: Entering the final year of his old contract with the Cavaliers, Davis is unlikely to sign anytime soon, since he's still recovering from the torn MCL/ACL he suffered in May. However, Davis would like to return before the end of the 2012/13 season if possible, and it sounds like the Knicks would be his first choice.
• Ryan Gomes: Our rumors page for Gomes is empty since he was amnestied by the Clippers, which doesn't necessarily bode well for his chances of signing somewhere for the coming season. Still, I expect him to at least get a training camp invite from a team, and even if he doesn't, he'll earn $4MM this season from the Clips.
• Gilbert Arenas: A 2011 cut, Arenas managed to catch on with the Grizzlies for part of last season, but didn't blow anyone away with his performance in Memphis. Based on recent reports, the former 20+ PPG scorer is "slimmed down and fully healthy," which could make him a worthwhile risk at the veteran's minimum.
• Chris Andersen: It seems that the former Nugget is at least drawing interest, with one report suggesting that he's received offers up to $5MM per year. I think if he truly had even a one-year offer worth $5MM, he would've accepted it yesterday, but the Birdman still looks like a good bet to find a bench spot somewhere.
• Josh Childress: The Wizards were said to be one of a handful of teams with a little interest in Childress, but based on his horrid 2011/12 season in Phoenix, anything more than a minimum salary for the former sixth overall pick seems unlikely. With three years and $21MM still remaining on his Suns deal, Childress is under no pressure to accept the first offer he gets.
• Darko Milicic: While spending a year overseas could make some sense for Darko, it appears it's not an option he's considering, based on comments made by his agent. The Heat, Nets, Bulls, and Clippers were said to be interested shortly after he was amnestied, but at least two of those teams have signed other big men since then, so Darko's options may be dwindling.
• Andray Blatche: Blatche reportedly received at least exploratory interest from the Spurs and Heat, but I wonder if the young forward would prefer to try to rebuild his value on a non-contender that would give him more playing time. Given Blatche's upside, I imagine there are teams willing to take a flier on him.
• James Posey / Charlie Bell: Both Posey and Bell had just one year left on their deals when they were released in December by the Pacers and Warriors respectively, and neither player has signed an NBA deal since. Bell played overseas this year, and neither Posey or Bell has announced his retirement, as far as I know, but it doesn't seem like an NBA return is in the cards for either player.

Just before the 11:00pm CST amnesty deadline, the Clippers used the amnesty provision to waive Ryan Gomes, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. By amnestying Gomes, Los Angeles clears the final year of his deal, worth $4MM, from its cap, though the team will still have to pay him.

The decision to amnesty Gomes doesn't clear any cap space for the Clippers, but it gives them a bit more breathing room. Having used their full mid-level exception on Jamal Crawford, the Clips will be hard-capped at the "tax apron" (about $74MM) this season.

Taking into account Crawford's $5MM salary, Chauncey Billups' $4.3MM salary, and the $1.957MM bi-annual exception that Turner reports the Clippers will spend on Grant Hill, the team was already hovering around the luxury tax threshold. Removing Gomes' $4MM from the equation will give the club the flexibility to sign a handful of minimum-salary players over the course of the year.

As our amnesty tracker shows, exactly half of the NBA's 30 teams have now used the amnesty clause, with seven cuts coming in 2011 and eight in 2012.

The Clippers have interest in Marco Belinelli, but having already committed their full mid-level exception to Jamal Crawford, don't have a ton of cap flexibility to sign him. As such, the Clips have discussed the possibility of a sign-and-trade deal with the Hornets, as we heard from ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne earlier this week. However, according to John Reid of the Times Picayune, the Hornets aren't interested in L.A.'s offer of Ryan Gomes and a second-round pick.

As an unrestricted free agent, Belinelli could sign outright with the Clippers, but the team could only offer him a minimum-salary deal or the bi-annual exception, which is worth less than $2MM. Sending Gomes and his $4MM expiring contract to the Hornets in a sign-and-trade would allow Belinelli to sign with the Clippers for up to $6MM, though he certainly wouldn't receive that significant a starting salary -- with the Clips approaching the tax line, they're probably looking to sign Belinelli to a lesser amount than Gomes' $4MM.

According to Reid, the Hornets aren't interested in the deal because they'd rather not take on the $4MM. owed to Gomes New Orleans has been aggressive in clearing salary this offseason, even when it's an expiring deal like Jarrett Jack's. With a number of players in the mix at power forward already, the Hornets have little use for Gomes, and a second-rounder provides little incentive for them to absorb his contract.

The Mavericks are also seeking a sharpshooter, as Jeff Caplan of ESPNDallas.com writes, and have been rumored to have interest in Belinelli.

The July moratorium came to an end late last night, and a number of teams didn't waste any time in finalizing moves. The Lakers' acquisition of Steve Nash was the first transaction to become official, followed closely by the Knicks' signing of J.R. Smith, Deron Williams' contract with the Nets, and Blake Griffin's five-year extension with the Clippers. We're expecting more deals to be formally announced today, but there are plenty of free agents still on the market too. We'll be tracking the latest news on those guys right here, with the newest items added to the top of the page throughout the day....

• The Nets are considering Kenyon Martin and Craig Smith and discussing a sign-and-trade for Antawn Jamison, clouding Kris Humphries' future with the team, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). 
• The Pacers are targeting unrestricted free agent Gerald Green as their wing player off the bench, and are expected to offer him a three-year, $10MM contract, according to Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star. O.J. Mayo and Courtney Lee are out the team's price range at the moment (All Twitter links). 

Earlier updates:

• Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group reports (via Sulia) that the Warriors have expressed interest in C.J. Watson, who is expected to become an unrestricted free agent soon. However, some members of the Warriors' organization, including coach Mark Jackson, prefer Nate Robinson to Watson (Twitter link).
• The Knicks have some interest in Maurice Evans, who is willing to sign for the veteran's minimum, according to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Evans has also drawn interest from the Wizards, but would like to join a team that "has a chance to do something special," says Begley.
• After tweeting earlier that the Knicks would likely make an offer to Spanish League point guard Pablo Prigioni today, Marc Berman of the New York Post passes along a report out of Argentina indicating that Prigioni plans to accept it (Twitter link).
• The Pacers will sign Roy Hibbert outright rather than matching an offer sheet from the Blazers, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. That way the Pacers can control the timing of the move, and the Blazers won't have to tie up their cap for three days.
• On the other hand, the Suns will go through with their plan to sign Eric Gordon to an offer sheet, even though the Hornets will almost certainly match it, tweets Berger.
• The Clippers are eyeing free agent shooter Marco Belinelli, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Los Angeles has committed its mid-level exception to Jamal Crawford, but could sign Belinelli using the bi-annual exception or explore a sign-and-trade deal. Shelburne suggests that the Clips and Hornets have discussed a sign-and-trade that would send Ryan Gomes and a draft pick to New Orleans for Belinelli.
• Michael Redd continues to draw interest from the Suns and Bulls, says Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Sulia link). The interest from those clubs should only grow if they don't lock up Eric Gordon and Kyle Korver, respectively.

While the chatter about Raymond Felton has been "very light" in recent days, according to Ben Tolliver of Blazer's Edge, Felton's teammate Jamal Crawford still seems to be drawing significant interest. Yesterday we heard the Trail Blazers had discussed D.J. Augustin with the Bobcats, and had talks with the Clippers involving Eric Bledsoe and Ryan Gomes. Today's Crawford rumblings can be found below, with the newest items added up top throughout the day:

• The Blazers haven't been able to secure a first-round pick in any offers for Crawford, and are thought to be "cooling" on the idea of moving him, tweets Ken Berger of CBS Sports.
• The Clippers' interest in Crawford hinges on the Blazers taking Gomes' contract, which Portland is unlikely to do, tweets Golliver.
• Crawford talked to Joe Freeman of The Oregonian about the trade rumors, saying that if it were up to him, he'd remain in Portland: "At the end of the day, I chose to come here. I want to be here. I don't know how to approach the situation, honestly. I haven't talked to anybody in the organization. I'm just trying to stay ready for whatever. Hopefully we can finish what we started. If not, well, it's a business."

No Jamal Crawford trade is imminent, but Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reports (via Twitter) that one league source believes a deal is coming. With less than 72 hours remaining until the trade deadline, Crawford could be the "first domino" to fall, says Kennedy. Here are the latest rumors on Crawford trade talks:

• The Blazers and Clippers are discussing a trade that would send Crawford to Los Angeles for Eric Bledsoe and Ryan Gomes, tweets Ken Berger of CBS Sports.
• David Aldridge of NBA.com mentioned earlier today that the Bobcats and Blazers could be talking about a deal involving Crawford and D.J. Augustin. Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com also hears that the two teams have engaged in discussions. Said one league exec: "At this point, they are just talking right now and it's just part of what happens around this time of season."
  
• Haynes adds that the Timberwolves are purusing Crawford more aggressively than ever, which is somewhat surprising -- Luke Ridnour had been mentioned in previous rumors as a Blazers' target, but the Wolves presumably need to keep Ridnour following Ricky Rubio's season-ending injury. Haynes thinks perhaps the two teams are trying to involve a third club to get Crawford to Minnesota.