Draft Notes: Fournier, Lottery, Jazz, Wolves
With the 2012 NBA Draft scheduled for Thursday June 28th, we should expect to see more and more early entrant decisions and mock drafts as the next two months progress. Luke Adams recently posted an index page for our Prospect Profile series, which should become more complete as we near the draft. Let's take a look at some draft updates as we head into Friday night's games:
- Jonathan Givony from Draft Express takes a look at Evan Fournier, and he says could be the only international player taken in this year's first round. Givony says the 19-year-old Frenchman is, at 6-foot-7 with a good frame, the ideal size to play wing in the NBA, but needs to work on his jumper.
- Chad Ford in an ESPN insider piece provides a detailed look at the race for the top selections in June's draft as well as many of the existing trade scenarios that will help to shape the order. The Jazz, in particular, are an interesting case – they can still end up with two lottery picks, or they can end up with none.
- Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press takes a look at the Timberwolves' draft situation, who will have an eye on the Jazz's final few games of the season. Minnesota traded away their own first rounder, but should the Jazz make the playoffs the Wolves would get their first rounder as part of the Al Jefferson trade. Walters says Minnesota is desperate for a shooting guard.
Blazers Interested In Hammond, Still Eyeing Kerr
The Trail Blazers continue to search for a permanent general manager, and a number of reports on their search have surfaced today. Let's round them up….
- Blazers president Larry Miller says Steve Kerr, who told the team he wasn't interested in the GM opening, hasn't been officially ruled out yet, according to Jason Quick of the Oregonian (via Twitter).
- Portland is interested in Bucks GM John Hammond for the position, tweets Quick. Miller says he has yet to ask the Bucks for permission to speak to Hammond (Twitter link). I imagine that could happen within a week or so, when Milwaukee's season will likely come to an end.
- The Blazers didn't contact Larry Brown about interviewing for the position, though he was interested, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
NBPA Wants Derek Fisher Out As President
4:44pm: The NBPA confirmed in a series of tweets today that it has asked for Fisher's resignation. Maurice Evans, a member of the executive committe, spoke to Craig Stouffer of the Washington Examiner about the issue, explaining why the executive committee wants Fisher to step down.
"We sent out a letter on behalf of the entire board to Derek, telling Derek that we have appreciated his leadership up until this point, up until the lockout," Evans said. "From the end of the lockout to now, we have been dissatisfied with his actions. There's been a number of actions that have been questionable, and that have lost him the confidence of the board, not the other players, because the other players are not up to speed with what's going on."
2:27pm: Fisher made a brief statement on the issue at the Thunder's shootaround today, saying that he takes his position very seriously and that he's fighting for what's best for the players. Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman has the full transcript of Fisher's comments.
12:03pm: Not all the player reps are on board with ousting Fisher. One player rep told Wojnarowski, "Before we let Billy [Hunter] do anything else, I want an audit of this union… A lot of guys feel that way."
11:40am: Hunter is pursuing a call of team player reps today to vote on removing Fisher from his position, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski. Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter) that it's unclear just how much power the player reps have in the decision.
FRIDAY, 10:35am: In a letter to executive committee members, Fisher urged them to live up to their "fiduciary responsibility" and vowed not to resign, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
"He's lost the confidence of the players and he's not representing our interests," one union member told Berger. "We gave him the courtesy of having the option to resign without letting this thing get messy."
THURSDAY, 10:11pm: Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Billy Hunter, the executive director of the NBA Player's Association, has convinced the union's executive committee to seek the resignation of the organization's president, Derek Fisher.
Reportedly, the main reason for their fallout came when a power struggle occurred after Fisher convinced the executive committee to vote for an independent auditor to look into the union's finances. Hunter then turned around and convinced the committee that an audit wasn't necessary, and that they should instead try to oust Fisher from his position.
Mistrust between the Player's Association's two most public figures was first created during the lockout, when various players were forced to choose which side they trusted. As it stands, Fisher refuses to step down, and has two years left to serve as NBAPA president. Hunter has three-plus years left on his contract.
Jazz Re-Sign Blake Ahearn
The Jazz have signed Blake Ahearn for the remainder of the season, the team officially announced today. Ahearn's 10-day deal with the team had expired yesterday.
Ahearn hasn't seen much playing time during his time with the Jazz, but the 27-year-old showed off his scoring prowess for the Reno Bighorns this season, leading the D-League in scoring with 23.8 PPG. Ahearn will be eligible for the postseason, should the Jazz qualify.
Jerry T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune reported yesterday that the Jazz were expected to re-sign Ahearn.
Non-Bird Rights
We've outlined how teams can use Bird or Early Bird exceptions to re-sign players who have been on their roster for multiple seasons. The third related cap exception in the group is the Non-Bird exception, for players who are considered Non-Qualifying Veteran Free Agents. Non-Bird rights are earned when a player spends just a single season with his team after having signed as a free agent or being claimed off waivers.
Because a partial season is generally considered a full year for Bird purposes, every veteran player who finishes the season on an NBA roster should qualify for at least the Non-Bird exception. Even if a player is waived halfway through the season and signs a rest-of-season contract with another team, he'll earn Non-Bird rights at the end of the year.
Teams are permitted to sign their own free agents using the Non-Bird exception for a salary starting at 120% of the player's previous salary, 120% of the minimum salary, or the amount of a qualifying offer (if the player is a restricted free agent), whichever is greater. Contracts can be for up to four years, with 4.5% annual raises.
Because the amount a team can offer its Non-Bird free agent is so limited, the exception may not be enough to retain an impact player. For instance, Jeremy Lin will be a Non-Bird player for the Knicks at the end of this season — he was claimed off waivers by the team in December, so he'll only have one year on his Bird clock. The amount of Lin's qualifying offer will only be about $1.03MM, which other suitors will easily be able to top. As such, the Knicks will have to use another cap exception (likely the mid-level) if they want to re-sign Lin.
Kwame Brown is another example of a player who would have Non-Bird rights at season's end. He signed a one-year deal with a new team last December, so his Bird clock will be at just a single year at season's end. Using the Non-Bird exception, the Bucks could offer him a salary starting at up to $8.1MM, 120% of his 2011/12 salary, though of course there's no chance they'll do so.
The cap hold for a Non-Bird player is 120% of his previous salary.
Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon's Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.
Grizzlies Sign Lester Hudson
FRIDAY, 3:07pm: The Grizzlies announced the Hudson signing today in a press release. He'll take up the 15th spot on Memphis' roster.
THURSDAY, 10:26pm: Lester Hudson has a verbal agreement to join the Grizzlies for the rest of this season, according to The Commercial Appeal's Ronald Tillery. With Gilbert Arenas recovering from a torn ligament on his shooting hand, the Grizzlies decided to bring Hudson on as for backcourt insurance as the team heads into the playoffs. Hudson, whose most recent 10-day contract expired, is eligible to play in the postseason because he was not waived by the Cavaliers.
This is the 27-year-old Memphis natives second stint with the Grizzlies. Two years ago he appeared in nine games with the team, averaging 4.0 PPG. After Cleveland failed to extend him an offer to sign for the rest of the season, Hudson decided to part ways with the team earlier today.
Nets Re-Sign Armon Johnson
The Nets have re-signed Armon Johnson for the rest of the season following the expiration of his 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release.
After appearing in just a single game for the Blazers earlier this season, Johnson was waived to clear a spot on the roster for Joel Przybilla. The 23-year-old guard has received a shot at more playing time with the Nets, averaging 4.4 PPG on 58.8% shooting in five contests (8.8 MPG).
As our 10-day contract tracker shows, Johnson joins Gerald Green as the only other Net to be signed to a rest-of-season deal following a 10-day contract this year. New Jersey has signed a total of five players to at least one 10-day deal.
Latest On Dwight Howard
Dwight Howard has been ruled out for the rest of this season, undergoing back surgery that is also expected to remove him from consideration for the Team USA Olympic roster this summer. But just because we've received some closure on D12's on-court status doesn't mean the rumors and speculation about his long-term future will come to an end. Here's the latest on the Magic superstar:
- SI.com's Chris Mannix is one of many reporters shooting down rumors that Howard called Magic owner Rich DeVos to tell him he won't play for coach Stan Van Gundy anymore. Of course, as Mannix points out, that doesn't mean Howard is interested in playing for SVG going forward.
- A league source tells Mannix that Howard believes Van Gundy lied when he told reporters D12 had asked the Magic to fire him, since the Orlando center didn't specifically make that request. Sources close to Howard tell Mannix that it was the Magic front office that first approached Dwight about the possibility of replacing Van Gundy.
- Management's silence on the topic may not sit well with Howard, writes Mannix, noting that perhaps a deteriorating relationship between the team and its star will lead to renewed trade rumors this summer.
- According to Van Gundy, Howard is scheduled for surgery today in the Los Angeles area, tweets Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
Odds & Ends: Curry, Hornets, Hollins, Bulls
As the NBA season enters its final week, the race for playoff berths and the jockeying for seeding will be the primary storylines. For out-of-contention teams though, the jockeying for draft spots and lottery balls will be the main focus of these last few games. Be sure to check out Hoops Rumors' tentative draft order to keep tabs on the shuffling standings this week.
Here's a grab-bag of links from around the Association:
- Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is interesting in having Eddy Curry return to Miami next season, but Curry isn't sure whether he'll re-sign with the team, says Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida.
- John Reid of the New Orleans Times-Picayune examines a number of decisions facing the Hornets in the offseason, including the free agencies of Chris Kaman and Carl Landry and the possibility of amnestying Emeka Okafor.
- Both the Grizzlies and Bobcats passed on Lionel Hollins after he interviewed for their coaching openings in 2007, but Memphis didn't make the same mistake twice, writes Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal.
- Sam Smith fielded a number of questions on the Bulls and the rest of the league in a lengthy mailbag for Bulls.com.
Pacific Notes: Nash, Robinson, Kings, Williams
It appears 2012 will be yet another year without a Pacific Division title for the Clippers, who fell to the Suns last night to slip a half-game in the standings. While the Clippers are only a game behind the Lakers, the Lakers hold the tiebreaker, so with just three games left, the Clips look ticketed for a second-place finish in the Pacific. Still, as Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes, one more win would clinch the Clippers' best winning percentage in team history.
Here are a few more Friday morning notes out of the Pacific:
- TNT's David Aldridge told Arizona Sports 620 that he believes there's a good chance Steve Nash stays with the Suns next season. Vince Marotta of ArizonaSports.com has the details.
- Nate Robinson would like to re-sign with his Warriors but isn't getting his hopes up, says Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group.
- Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee has the latest details on why the Kings' owners rejected the Sacramento arena proposal.
- Terrence Williams has impressed in his late-season audition with the Kings, writes Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee. Williams, who was waived by the Rockets last month, will be a restricted free agent this summer if the Kings decide to extend him a $1.06MM qualifying offer.