Knicks Notes: Anthony, Douglas, McMillan
The Knicks wrap up their four-game road trip in Milwaukee tonight, hoping to salvage a win after losses in Boston, Dallas, and San Antonio. In the meantime, here are a few Friday morning Knicks links:
- Unlike Tyson Chandler, who Mike D'Antoni called the Knicks' "most irreplaceable player," Carmelo Anthony has looked very replaceable lately, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- Howard Beck of the New York Times argues that blaming Anthony for the Knicks' recent struggles is too easy. An overcrowded rotation means certain players may not be getting the minutes they require to be effective, says Beck.
- Toney Douglas is one player who has been a casualty of the Knicks' increased depth, and Berman writes that Douglas is trying not to think about the upcoming trade deadline. "I want to be a good teammate," Douglas said. "I don’t want to talk about that or deal with that. I can control what I can control. That’s me working out, being ready. I don’t want to get into all that."
- If the Knicks were to deal Douglas, they'd likely want a couple of second-round picks, says Berman.
- Moke Hamilton of Sheridan Hoops thinks current Blazers coach Nate McMillan is a good candidate to be the next coach of the Knicks.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Thursday
In their respective trade-rumor columns for ESPN.com and CBSSports.com, Chad Ford and Ken Berger both talked Dwight Howard today. Ford noted that the Magic still aren't looking to field offers for Howard (though he thinks they should), while Berger reports that the Rockets and Warriors maintain interest in acquiring the star center. Here are the rest of today's Howard links:
- In a new column posted Thursday night, Berger notes that the Magic are still not hot on the idea of trading Howard, but if they do, they will ask for a substantial return similar to the one Denver received last year for Carmelo Anthony, including multiple young players and draft picks.
- Derrick Rose told ESPNChicago.com's Melissa Isaacson that he's grown weary of the Howard-to-the-Bulls speculation, and that he's happy with the team as presently constructed.
- HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy hears (via Twitter) that the Magic may consider trading Howard to a team willing to take him on as a rental, rather than one of his preferred teams. Kennedy lists the Rockets and Warriors as teams willing to gamble on him, while also mentioning the possibility that one of these teams could trade for him with the promise that he'd exercise his player option for next year, a la Chris Paul with the Clippers.
- In a separate Howard-centric column, Berger says rival executives believe the Magic need to seriously consider moving Howard by next Thursday if they don't get a definitive answer on whether he'll remain in Orlando. "I think they've got to trade him," one rival GM said. "It's a hell of a risk if they don't."
- Like everyone else, Sean Deveney of The Sporting News hears the Magic continue to tell teams that Howard isn't on the trade block. However, one source suggests to Deveney that perhaps the stance is a bluff to create some leverage.
- Asked today about the possibility of playing for the Bulls, Howard wasn't quite as talkative as the last time he answered the question: "Nah, it's pretty cold here," Howard jokingly told reporters in Chicago, including Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
- SI.com's Ian Thomsen thinks choosing to re-sign in Orlando could be a great career move for Howard. Former Magic star Tracy McGrady also thinks Howard should stay, as he told Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida.
Feigen On Rockets’ Deadline Possibilities
The Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen assesses the state of the Rockets as the deadline approaches:
- Head coach Kevin McHale admits that the trade rumors are getting in the heads of players, but notes that it's like that for every team in the league.
- In Feigen's estimation, the Rockets are among the teams aiming to bring in an impact player—if not Dwight Howard, then possibly Gerald Wallace or Omer Asik.
- Unlike last year, when they had Shane Battier as a trade piece, the Rockets don't have any notable expiring contracts outside of Courtney Lee and Goran Dragic.
Bonnell On Possible Bobcats Moves
The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell posted a breakdown of the options the Bobcats are likely to explore at the deadline:
- The likeliest avenue the Bobcats will go to add a player will be to use the $3.5MM trade exception they got from trading Shaun Livingston to the Bucks, probably packaged with a draft pick.
- Bonnell doesn't believe Boris Diaw has much trade value despite his $9MM expiring contract, due to his lack of on-court production and the lack of teams with the ability to absorb his salary without sending players back.
- Bonnell cautions against moving D.J. Augustin now, arguing that rookie Kemba Walker isn't fully developed yet, and that Augustin could have value in a sign-and-trade as a restricted free agent this summer.
Heat Notes: Wallace, Kaman, Diaw, Randolph
The latest surrounding the Miami Heat in the leadup to the March 15 trade deadline:
- Fox Sports Florida's Chris Tomasson wonders whether the Heat would be wise to pursue Rasheed Wallace. Wallace, who last played in 2010, has hinted at coming out of retirement for a while, and was most recently linked to the Lakers.
- The South Florida Sun-Sentinel's Ira Winderman touches on a handful of potential acquisitions in his mailbag column, most notably Chris Kaman. Winderman doesn't believe the Heat have the assets to pull off a Kaman deal that David Stern would approve, especially in light of the blocked Chris Paul trade to the Lakers in December.
- Winderman thinks the Heat could do worse than to pick up Boris Diaw for the minimum in the event that the Bobcats buy the veteran big man out.
- According to Ben Golliver of Blazers Edge (via Twitter), forward Shavlik Randolph recently worked out with the Heat. Randolph last appeared in the NBA with Miami in 2010, and is currently playing in Puerto Rico.
Minor Moves: Foote, Rush
The latest news and notes from around the D-League:
- Former Cornell center Jeff Foote, currently with the D-League's Springfield Armor, will be called up by the New Orleans Hornets, according to Eurobasket.com's David Pick (link via Twitter).
- Yahoo! Sports' Marc J. Spears reports (via Twitter) that Kareem Rush has entered the D-League player pool. Rush last played with the Clippers in 2009.
Amico On Lakers, Clippers, Celtics, Magic
Fox Sports Ohio's Sam Amico has posted a rundown of the trade-deadline needs of four teams: the Lakers, Clippers, Celtics, and Magic. Here are the highlights:
- Amico believes the Lakers should surrender first-round draft picks for Ramon Sessions to address their point-guard issues, arguing that they will not likely find an equally-skilled player in the draft.
- Kirk Hinrich would be the safest bet for the Clippers, with Ray Allen likely costing too much. Amico also mentions Jamal Crawford as a possibility.
- Amico points to J.J. Hickson as a potential low-cost trade target who could benefit from being around Kevin Garnett.
- Amico says the Magic should do everything in their power to convince Dwight Howard to stay, and trade him only if it becomes clear that is impossible.
Blazers Interested In Jose Calderon
With point guard Raymond Felton underperforming, the Trail Blazers are looking to shore up their backcourt ahead of next week's trade deadline. And while their name has been in the mix for names such as Steve Nash, Rajon Rondo, Luke Ridnour, and Steve Blake, Hasan Alanam of Canada.com points to their reported interest in Raptors point guard Jose Calderon and explores several trade scenarios.
Alanam mentions possible trades involving Felton and either Gerald Wallace or Jamal Crawford, with Portland possibly also taking back Linas Klezia. In one scenario, the Timberwolves participate in a three-team deal with Malcolm Lee going to Portland and Anthony Randolph going to Toronto.
Calderon is making approximately $9.8MM this season and has one year left on his contract, which will pay him $10.5MM in 2012/13. He is averaging 10.7 PPG and 8.7 APG this season.
Pacers Still Covet Kaman
The Indianapolis Star's Mike Wells reports (via Twitter) that Chris Kaman is still the Pacers' top target for the trade deadline. However, due to Pacers' strong salary-cap flexibility (they are about $14.5MM under the cap), they don't consider it worth giving up a first-round pick for Kaman's expiring deal, which is by all indications what the Hornets are asking for.
Kaman has been on the trading block since the start of the season after being shipped from the Clippers to the Hornets as part of the Chris Paul trade. The Pacers have long been thought to be the most interested suitor, and with the trade dealine a week away, a decision one way or the other appears to be forthcoming.
Ainge: “Nothing Close” On Trade Front
There's still a week left until the trade deadline, but for the moment, the Celtics definitely aren't on the verge of making any moves, GM Danny Ainge told Boston's WEEI on The Big Show today.
"As of right now we have nothing close to happening," Ainge said. "It’s not from a lack of trying. Not necessarily to make major changes but to make small changes at least" (via Paul Flannery of WEEI.com).
Ainge added that he doesn't feel the Celtics need to completely rebuild their roster, but that he wouldn't be interested in a deal that sacrificed future assets to add depth for this season. The GM also said he's receiving a handful of calls each day, and that there's still plenty of time for things to pick up before March 15th.