Jamison Not Expecting Cavs To Trade Him
For teams seeking cap space this summer, Antawn Jamison's $15MM+ expiring contract would be a valuable asset. For teams looking to make a title run, Jamison would be a valuable frontcourt piece, having posted 17.4 PPG and 17.9 PER for the Cavs this season. However, Jamison doesn't expect to be traded before the deadline, as he tells Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
"Honestly, deep down inside, I don't want to go anywhere, and I don't feel like I'm going anywhere," Jamison said. "I enjoy playing with these guys. These guys are very receptive to what I tell them and what I do on the court."
When I examined Jamison as a trade candidate last week, I noted that the 35-year-old may be too valuable to the Cavs for the team to find a deal it likes. Cleveland is well-positioned to have a tremendous amount of cap space this offseason, and trading Jamison for a player under contract for multiple years would affect the club's flexibility.
Additionally, the Cavs seem more inclined to attempt a run at the playoffs rather than selling off players that can help in the short-term. Jamison has certainly been helping this month, averaging 22.0 PPG and 9.0 RPG in 11 February games (36.0 MPG). If the former Tar Heel continues playing well and the Cavs continue to believe they're postseason contenders, I think Jamison may be right — he'll remain in Cleveland past March 15th.
Bulls Notes: Thibodeau, James, Roster
The Bulls head into the All-Star break trailing the Heat by mere percentage points in the Eastern Conference standings. Let's round up the latest out of Chicago, as the team hopes for a healthier backcourt in the second half….
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune asked chairman Jerry Reisendorf why the team hasn't picked up Tom Thibodeau's third-year option for 2012/13. While Reisendorf said there was nothing to announce at this point, he added, "We certainly hope and expect that Tom will be with the Bulls well beyond his current contract."
- Johnson notes that when the Bulls were in a similar situation with coach Scott Skiles, the team waited until June to exercise his option, but also signed him to a three-year extension at that point.
- Mike James' 10-day contract has expired, and he won't sign another one right away. Johnson says the Bulls could re-sign James in March, a decision which I expect will depend on the health of Derrick Rose, C.J. Watson and Richard Hamilton.
- Even if the team doesn't make a move before the trade deadline, the Bulls' players believe they have a better squad than last year, says Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Pacers Exploring Trade Market
As the trade deadline approaches and teams look to make moves that fit within their financial restraints, the Pacers have an asset no other club has — over $14MM in cap space. Indiana president Larry Bird plans to take advantage of that flexibility, telling Conrad Brunner of NBA.com that he's exploring moves to improve the team.
"I'm not afraid to make another move now to strengthen our bench or maybe even (add) one or two guys," Bird said. "We're still out there looking and whatever we can do to make this team better, we're going to do…. It could be a trade, but it's probably going to be picking up somebody off another team just so they can get some money off (the salary cap). We've got a lot of calls in, talked to a lot of people and we're going to try to continue to strengthen this team."
As I outlined Wednesday when I discussed some of the trade rules under the league's Collective Bargaining Agreement, most trade restrictions apply to over-the-cap teams, so the Pacers are in an enviable position. They have about $14.27MM in cap room, meaning they could absorb one or more players' salaries without sending any players back in return. For instance, the Pacers are a logical destination for Chris Kaman and his $14.03MM cap figure, since no other team could acquire the Hornets' center without sending back salary.
Bird's comments indicate the team doesn't intend to compromise its long-term plan or make changes to its core. I'd expect any deal the Pacers pull off before March 15th would see them giving up no more than a future second-round pick or perhaps a protected first-rounder.
Odds & Ends: Howard, Koponen, Hunter
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Thursday night:
- Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson, a champion of NBA player rights in the 1970s, told the Orlando Sentinel that Dwight Howard should stop feeding trade rumors and focus on basketball.
- Sportando reports that Finnish guard Petteri Koponen is undecided as to whether to stay with Virtus Bologna or join the Mavericks, who own his draft rights. Koponen was drafted no. 30 overall in 2007 by Philadelphia and had his rights traded to Portland before being sent to Dallas in June 2011.
- Sportando also reports that Othello Hunter has reached an agreement to play in the Ukraine with Azovmash Mariupol. The 26-year-old power forward played in 23 games for the Hawks between 2008 and 2010.
Latest On Sacramento Arena Proposal
Yesterday, it was reported that the talks for a new arena for the Kings in Sacramento were making progress. However, NBA.com's Scott Howard-Cooper (via Twitter) shed some new light on the state of the talks that was slightly less optimistic. Here are the important points:
- Howard-Cooper characterizes the talks as "too close to call" as to whether a deal will get done by the March 1 deadline.
- David Stern does not believe that the Maloof brothers' financial stability will be an obstacle in the arena talks, refuting a previous report.
- There is a belief among some NBA officials that the deal could fall short, leading to the Kings' eventual departure from Sacramento.
Kevin Martin Disputes Report He’s Dissatisfied
It has been suggested recently that Kevin Martin is unhappy in Houston, but the veteran guard told Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle that these reports are inaccurate.
“I think it’s an inappropriate article,” Martin said. “A writer must be starving for attention. He’s not going to bring a distraction around our team. I’m the team’s leading scorer, and we’re in the playoff hunt. I don’t understand how I could not be happy about that. Basically, he’s just making it up.
“Individually and team-wise, we’re doing pretty well.”
Speculation on Martin's happiness in Houston has been prevalent since he was nearly traded in the failed Chris Paul deal from December that would have sent Pau Gasol to the Rockets. Martin, 29, is owed approximately $23.9MM through the remaining two years of the five-year, $53MM deal he signed in 2007. He will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2012/13 season.
Prospective Buyer Emerges For Hornets
Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune reports that a California-based businessman named Raj Bhathal is heading up a new ownership group that is expected to make a strong push to purchase the New Orleans Hornets. The 72-year-old Bhathal founded a swimwear manufacturing company in 1972 and previously owned a franchise in the now-defunct World League of American Football.
Bhathal's group has some local ties in the form of partner Larry J. Benson, another former WLAF owner whose brother, Tom, owns the Saints. Former NBA coach and executive Mike Dunleavy is also in the group.
The NBA, which currently owns the Hornets, has expressed a strong desire for the team to remain in New Orleans, and would require any prospective buyer to sign a 10-year lease extension to stay through 2024.
NBA commissioner David Stern said earlier this week that he believes a deal to buy the Hornets will be in place in the next couple of weeks.
Steve Nash Open To Re-Signing With Suns
Steve Nash has repeatedly expressed his desire to remain in Phoenix through the end of the 2011/12 season, when his contract expires. However, it has long been assumed that upon becoming an unrestricted free agent this summer, the two-time MVP would look to sign with a contender. But a recent Associated Press interview (via ESPN.com) found Nash expressing a desire to stay with the Suns beyond this season.
According to Nash, two things would have to happen for him to re-sign: first, they would have to offer him a substantial contract, as he indicated that he is not willing to take a pay cut to re-sign; second, Nash wants the team to acquire new players and make a move towards playoff contention.
Nash, 38, will make approximately $11.6MM this season, the final year of a two-year, $22MM contract extension he signed in summer 2009.
J.R. Smith Plans To Stay With Knicks
Before Thursday night's game game against the Heat, new Knick J.R. Smith told FoxSports.com's Chris Tomasson (via Tomasson's Twitter feed) that he plans to pick up his player option and remain with the Knicks for the 2012/13 season.
Upon returning from a stint in China, Smith signed a two-year contract with the Knicks last week worth a pro-rated version of the $2.5MM mini mid-level exception. The contract included a player option for next season also worth $2.5MM.
Chris Paul Commits To Player Option
Chris Paul appeared on Jim Rome's radio show recently and stated that he intends to stay with the Clippers for the 2012/13 season, Matt Moore of CBSSports.com reports. Paul has the ability to opt out of his contract this summer and become an unrestricted free agent, but this possibility has not been discussed much recently because the Clippers traded for him in December assuming he would not do so. Thus, it comes as no surprise that he told Rome he plans to stay in Los Angeles at least through next season. However, hearing it directly out of Paul's mouth is encouraging for the Clippers organization and fans.