Woelfel On Knicks, Ilyasova, Stackhouse, Fesenko
Earlier this morning, we passed along a report from Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times on Beno Udrih's decision to exercise his player option this summer. Within the same column, Woelfel also shared a few other items of interest, so let's round those up:
- Woelfel is hearing that the Knicks will make a "major push" to hire Phil Jackson as their new coach if the team doesn't make it through the first round of the playoffs. However, a New York Post report suggests that interim coach Mike Woodson has become the odds-on favorite to earn the permanent position after the Knicks named Glen Grunwald their permanent GM.
- The "growing consensus" among some NBA officials is that Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova will land a multiyear contract worth about $8MM annually in free agency this summer.
- Hawks veteran Jerry Stackhouse is close to ending his playing career and pursuing a coaching position in either college or the pros. "I’m trying to transition into the next phase of my career," Stackhouse said. "I definitely want to be a head coach some day and I’m willing to pay my dues to make it happen."
- The Bucks were interested in Kyrylo Fesenko before the big man signed with the Pacers. Said Fesenko: "I had a good workout with the Bucks. I was interested (in signing with them), but they kept asking me to wait and to wait and to wait and I couldn’t wait anymore. I don’t what they were waiting for, a magic moment or what?"
Beno Udrih To Exercise Player Option
Beno Udrih will exercise his player option for next season and remain with the Bucks for at least one more year, he tells Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. The option will pay Udrih about $7.37MM in 2012/13.
Earlier this season, Udrih, frustrated by his reduced role this season in Milwaukee, told Woelfel he wasn't sure whether or not he'd pick up the option. At the time, I noted that a $7MM+ guarantee would be hard to pass up, and Woelfel suggests the same thing in his newest piece, writing that Udrih "fully realizes" his market value has taken a big hit this year.
After averaging double-digit points and 30+ minutes in each of the previous four seasons, Udrih is scoring just 5.8 points in 18.0 minutes per game in 2011/12. His shooting percentages are also below his career averages, at .443/.273/.726.
Even with Udrih's player option on their books for next season, the Bucks have a little under $46MM in guaranteed money committed for 2012/13, so they should still have some cap flexibility.
Dominique Ferguson To Declare For Draft
An ESPN.com article via the Associated Press reports that Florida International University's Dominique Ferguson will declare for this year's NBA Draft. It appears as though the dismissal of Isiah Thomas from the head coaching position as well as the trouble he's encountered while trying to transfer to other programs were the main reasons for his decision.
"I wanted to play for Isiah Thomas," Ferguson told the media, later adding: "After much discussion with my family and support base we have decided to hire an agent and attempt to play professionally in the states or overseas."
Ferguson is neither listed among the 60 projected selections in the current mock draft nor the top 100 prospects on DraftExpress. His decision was first reported by Jeff Goodman of CBS Sports.
Myers Wants To Retain Brandon Rush
J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today tweets that Warriors GM Bob Myers will aggressively try to keep guard Brandon Rush, who is set to become a restricted free agent this summer. The fourth-year player and former lottery pick is averaging career highs in points (9.7), three-point shooting percentage (44.7%), and overall field goal percentage (49.8%) this season.
Rush has only managed one start in 64 games but has still earned a consistent spot in Mark Jackson's rotation, as evidenced by his 26.6 MPG average. Golden State owns his Bird Rights, and I would expect them to retain him barring a scenario where another team decides to wildly overpay for him. In my opinion, a role-player like Rush could garner a contract offer from anywhere between what he's currently making ($2.9 MM) and around the mid-level exception or slightly above it at most.
Central Links: Bulls, Skiles, Sanders
- Nick Freidell of ESPN Chicago gives an update of the current state of the Bulls, reporting that Carlos Boozer looks to be the most primed for a playoff run, going over coach Thibodeau's plan to play his starters in order to maintain the team's approach, and looking at the strides that Derrick Rose is making as he is steadily recovering from injury.
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes about Thibodeau's focus on defense and rebounding as the keys to Chicago's road success this season.
- Michael Hunt of the Journal Sentinel wonders if Scott Skiles is worth retaining for the Bucks as they move forward but is confidently in support of keeping John Hammond as the GM.
- Bucks forward/center Larry Sanders sounded apologetic when addressing the media after returning from a two-game suspension (Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel reports). Sanders had been ejected from a game in Indiana last week.
Rockets Plan To Add Motiejunas Next Season
Mark Berman of Fox26 in Houston hears that Rockets GM Daryl Morey plans to add Donatas Motiejunas to the roster for next season (Twitter link). The 7'0 power forward/center had been acquired in a draft night trade with Minnesota last June and opted to play in Europe this season because of the NBA lockout.
In the same tweet, Berman added that Morey does not expect to encounter any issues with Motiejunas' contract.
Knicks Notes: Stoudemire, Practice
- Amare Stoudemire appears ready to another post-season opportunity with the Knicks, saying that last year's sweep at the hands of Boston left a "sour taste in our mouth." Jared Zwerling of ESPN New York takes a closer look at how Amare's pairing with Carmelo Anthony can work based on what he saw from New York's win in Atlanta.
- Al Iannazzone of Newsday writes that while some players expected a light day on the eve of a back-to-back to finish the season, coach Mike Woodson upped the intensity of practice in preparation of their playoff opener this weekend.
- Stoudemire plans to play the next two games as long as the Knicks have a chance to move up in the Eastern Conference standings, according to Ian Begley of ESPN New York. Begley also wrote that Amare could sit the last game of the season against the Bobcats if the Knicks can no longer improve their playoff seeding at that point.
- Mike Kurylo of the New York Times' Off the Dribble blog examines the possibility that the Knicks could currently be a stronger team than their overall stats this year would indicate, crediting the manner in which the team has been performing since All-Star break.
Mavs Notes: Nowitzki, Terry, Carlisle
The last time an NBA Champion subsequently returned to the playoffs and repeated a title run without holding homecourt advantage in the first round was when the Rockets won as the sixth-seed in 1995. Currently, the Mavericks find themselves in a potentially similar scenario heading into the playoffs, as they can no longer finish higher than sixth this season. Dirk Nowitzki acknowledges that the significant offseason roster changes have had an effect on the team, and added that only time will tell if the decisions made this past off-season would have been worth it (Brad Townsend of SportsDay DFW reports). Here's more of the latest we've heard out of Dallas:
- Mike Heika of SportsDay DFW quoted Nowitzki as he shed some light on teammate Jason Terry:"Hopefully, he'll play well, and we'll have a deep run. If I was in his shoes, that's what I would be focusing on, playing my best and helping this franchise ultimately win a couple playoff series." Terry, who will turn 35-years-old in September, is due to become a free agent this summer.
- In a separate article, Heika documented coach Rick Carlisle's thoughts on Terry as the team's X-factor: "He's not just a scorer, he's a play-maker. He has the ability to be a difference-maker defensively for us, and when he's out there scrambling, and getting loose balls and putting himself into position to get steals, we're a different team out there. So we need his total game, and his focus should be a basketball player and not just a scorer.''
Odds & Ends: World Peace, Eyenga, MKG
Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweeted that Metta World Peace will be suspended for seven games as punishment for elbowing James Harden during Sunday's game in Los Angeles. One interesting thing to note is that the suspension could potentially carry over into the second round of the playoffs depending on if and how the Lakers advance past the first round. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today writes that Harden remains day-to-day and will continue to undergo evaluation and testing. You can find the rest of this evening’s news here:
- Even with the suspension of World Peace and Matt Barnes ailing from a sprained right ankle, Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times tweeted earlier that Christian Eyenga isn't considered to be an option for the team. Andy Kamenetzky of ESPN Los Angeles delves into the ripple effect of World Peace's suspension as it affects the Lakers, saying that it makes them a vulnerable first-round matchup and that it may have an impact on his future with the team.
- Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress provides a breakdown of how Michael Kidd-Gilchrist's game could translate onto the NBA level and views him as the type of prospect who will maximize his potential.
- While Dwight Howard is expected to miss the Olympics this summer, his surgeon is optimistic that Howard will be able to return for the 2012-13 season (Ric Bucher of ESPN.com reports).
- Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman had no problem with J.J. Barea's postgame comments after a loss to the Warriors on Sunday (according to an ESPN.com report via the Associated Press). Barea had indirectly called out his teammates, claiming that "there are a lot of guys that don't care."
- Tom Reed of The Plain Dealer writes that Antawn Jamison and Anthony Parker are likely making their final farewell to Cleveland fans after the conclusion of Wednesday's game at home against the Wizards.
- The Nuggets' underdog mentality heading into the playoffs isn't a feeling that's anything new to them, says Aaron J. Lopex of Nuggets.com.
- Shaun Powell of NBA.com lists his second-half All-Stars.
Sixers Sign Xavier Silas
Michael Preston, the Director of Public Relations for the 76ers, tweeted that the team has signed Xavier Silas for the remainder of the season.
The 6'5 guard had been on Philadelphia's pre-season roster before being waived and has spent most of the year on the Maine Red Claws of the NBA D-League. Silas averaged 9.8 PPG in 23.6 MPG for Maine.