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Mike Zarren Withdraws From Sixers GM Search

August 30th, 2012 at 12:32pm CST by Luke Adams

One of the candidates to become the new 76ers general manager, Mike Zarren has removed himself from consideration for the position, according to Paul Flannery of WEEI.com (via Twitter). Zarren, assistant GM for the Celtics, has decided to remain in Boston, says Flannery.

Zarren was one of four candidates reportedly under consideration by the Sixers, along with former Hornets GM Jeff Bower, former Blazers executive Tom Penn, and current Rockets exec Sam Hinkie. With coach Doug Collins operating as the de facto GM in Philadelphia, John Hollinger of ESPN.com doesn't expect the Sixers to hire an "analytics guy," meaning Bower could be the choice (Twitter link).

For now, Rod Thorn continues to operate as the Sixers' president, but he's expected to transition into an advisory role when the club hires its new general manager.

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Thunder Notes: Westbrook, Lakers, Heat

August 30th, 2012 at 12:20pm CST by Luke Adams

They may have been one of the NBA's least-active teams in free agency this summer, but the Thunder have remained in the news in recent weeks — in August alone, Oklahoma City had four players in the gold medal game in London and signed Serge Ibaka to a long-term extension.

In yesterday's round-up of Northwest Division notes, we heard that the head coach of the Thunder's D-League affiliate in Tulsa had been hired away by the Trail Blazers, and received the latest updates on a potential extension for Eric Maynor. Here are today's Thunder-related links:

  • Russell Westbrook appeared on 710 ESPN in Los Angeles, and was asked about the Lakers' summer acquisitions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash. As Sports Radio Interviews notes, Westbrook wouldn't concede that the pickups were more than "good."
  • Westbrook also called the Heat the team to beat in 2012/13 and said he wouldn't mind seeing the Lakers in the playoffs again.
  • In an Insider piece for ESPN.com, Chris Broussard explains why he thinks the Thunder are still the favorites in the Western Conference.
  • The franchise's old home, Seattle, continues to make progress toward building a new arena. King 5 TV in Seattle reports that Chris Hansen has purchased another parcel of land for $8MM in the area where he hopes to construct the new building.
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Magic Hire Unseld, Profit, Stuckey As Assistants

August 30th, 2012 at 11:53am CST by Michael Pina

AUGUST 30TH, 11:53am: The Magic have hired Laron Profit and Luke Stuckey as assistants, filling out the team's coaching staff, tweets Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. Profit and Stuckey join Unseld Jr., James Borrego, and Brett Gunning on head coach Jacque Vaughn's staff.

AUGUST 24TH, 5:25pm: Wes Unseld Jr., son of Hall of Fame player Wes Unseld, will move from the Warriors to the Magic, where he'll assume an assistant coach position on Jacque Vaughn's new staff, reports CSNBayArea.com. Unseld spent last season in Golden State, and the previous 13 on the Wizards bench. 

Warriors GM Bob Myers indicated that the team would replace Unseld Jr. by either promoting someone from within the organization, or hiring a new name from the outside. Earlier this week, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel tweeted that Unseld Jr. was a candidate for an assistant coaching position on the Magic staff. 

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Top Distributors Still Available In Free Agency

August 30th, 2012 at 10:54am CST by Luke Adams

Over the course of this week, we've been looking at unsigned free agents that specialize in particular areas on the court. We examined the top remaining rebounders on Monday, and looked at the best available outside shooters on Tuesday. Today, we'll focus on the best distributors still on the market, rounding up the free agents that produced the most assists per 36 minutes in 2011/12. These guys aren't exactly Deron Williams, but they can find teammates for open shots, and should be available on the cheap.

Listed below are the top 10 remaining free agents by assists per 36 minutes. Their AP36 rate for 2011/12 is listed in parentheses. To qualify, they must have averaged at least 10 minutes per game and appeared in at least 20 contests in 2011/12.

Honorable mention:

  • Anthony Carter averaged 5.9 assists per 36 minutes, but played less than 10 MPG for the Raptors in 2011/12.
  • Baron Davis' 4.7 AP36 would have tied him with McGrady, but his torn MCL and ACL make his 2012/13 return uncertain.
  • Gaines and Pargo provide a nice combination of passing and three-point shooting, ranking among the top five on both lists. Fisher also cracks the top 10 on each list.
  • Matt Barnes' 3.2 AP36 wasn't quite enough to make the top 10 here, but it's worth mentioning, since the jack-of-all-trades was among the top 10 available rebounders and three-point shooters.
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Kyler On Harrington, Thomas, Gibson, Calderon

August 30th, 2012 at 9:27am CST by Luke Adams

Sources close to the Magic deny that Al Harrington was included in this month's Dwight Howard blockbuster as a throw-in, according to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. However, Kyler still believes the Magic will explore the possibility of moving Harrington and his contract before the trade deadline. Harrington has three years remaining on his deal, but the last two are only partially guaranteed, and he's still a serviceable player, so Orlando could find a taker. Here are the rest of Kyler's Thursday morning updates on players that may be on the move prior to the trade deadline:

  • According to Kyler, the Bobcats are hoping new coach Mike Dunlap can reach Tyrus Thomas in a way that Paul Silas couldn't. Thomas' contract still looks like an albatross though, and the Bobcats would likely move it in a minute if they could find a taker.
  • While Kyler hears a handful of teams have been in contact with Cleveland about Daniel Gibson, the Cavs deny they're shopping the guard.
  • The Raptors haven't been able to find a deal they like for Jose Calderon to date, but as February's deadline approaches, the Spaniard may turn into a more viable trade chip, as his contract nears its end.
  • Larry Sanders could be on the trade block for the Bucks, who acquired Samuel Dalembert and Ekpe Udoh, re-signed Ersan Ilyasova, and drafted John Henson within the last few months.
  • Kevin Martin and the Rockets and Corey Maggette of the Pistons figure to be trade candidates this season, as veterans with $10MM+ expiring contracts.
  • The Spurs are expected to continue trying to find a trade partner for DeJuan Blair, but his health history raises some red flags for rival clubs.
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Bobcats, Knicks, Bulls Interested In Josh Howard

August 30th, 2012 at 8:31am CST by Chuck Myron

THURSDAY, 8:31am: Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer classifies the Bobcats' interest in Howard as no more than "exploratory" at the moment.

WEDNESDAY, 6:18pm: It's a little surprising that Josh Howard remains on the free agent market this late in the offseason, considering the 32-year-old former All-Star started three out of four playoff games for the Jazz this spring. Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports hears that Howard, a native of Winston-Salem, N.C., has been working out with the Bobcats this week, and is also drawing interest from the Knicks and Bulls (Twitter link).

Aside from the draft, the Bobcats have done little to upgrade the roster that compiled the league's all-time worst winning percentage last season, with Ramon Sessions as the team's only veteran signee. They have about $2MM in cap room available, so Howard's salary could fit into that space. The Knicks would only be able to offer the veteran's minimum, which for Howard, a nine-year vet, would be about $1.229MM. The Bulls seem the unlikeliest team of the three to land Howard, since the team is under a hard cap this year and doesn't even have room to add anyone at the minimum. They'd have to swing a trade to free up the space to bring Howard aboard.

Injuries have plagued Howard after the Mavs traded him to the Wizards midway through the 2009/10 season. He's played in only 65 regular season games since, and averaged 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds in 23.0 minutes per game last season, with a 10.5 PER. Those numbers are well off his career highs of 19.9 PPG, 7.0 RPG and 36.3 MPG, all established in 2007/08.

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Odds & Ends: Pacers, Patterson, Evans, Lakers

August 29th, 2012 at 11:10pm CST by Chuck Myron

This year's Hall of Fame induction takes place a week from Saturday, and as Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com writes, the list of presenters, led by Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, threatens to overshadow the inductees, headlined by Reggie Miller. The figures who'll be enshrined are not without their accomplishments, however, and among them is Don Nelson, the NBA's all-time winningest coach. Nelson recently spoke about a missed opportunity to take over as coach of the Celtics in 1983, the origins of his trademark small-ball style, and how his relationship with Sarunas Marciulionis changed the way he coached. Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com has the details, and we've got more from around the Association: 

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What Was The Best Minimum Salary Signing?

August 29th, 2012 at 10:25pm CST by Chuck Myron

Players generally see the minimum salary as a last resort, but sometimes quality contributors will take a voluntary paycut if they're especially eager to join a team that's short on available cash. Usually these teams are contenders who get an added boost from a title-hungry player who goes down as a bargain, but sometimes a player just thinks a certain team is the right fit, and is willing to give up a chance for better money elsewhere.

There have already been dozens of minimum salary signings, with plenty more surely to come. Let us know which of these players below is the best minimum salary signing of the offseason. If you have someone else in mind, vote for that option and let us know who it is in the comments.

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Veterans On Rookie Scale Contracts

August 29th, 2012 at 9:17pm CST by Chuck Myron

The term "rookie scale" is something of a misnomer, since a player can still be on his rookie scale contract during his fourth year in the league. They're the standard, fixed contracts teams give to first-round picks, and they're generally team-friendly, with team options included in the third and fourth years. Since 30 new first-round picks enter the league every year, save for a couple who sign overseas, there are quite a few players on rookie scale deals. Every team has at least one, except the Lakers. The Wizards have the most, with six, and that doesn't include Bradley Beal, their first-round pick from June. For more on how rookie scale contracts work, check out our Hoops Rumors Glossary entry.

We've listed all the veterans on rookie scale contracts here, by team, along with the last season of the deal in parentheses. The list doesn't include Blake Griffin and Serge Ibaka, who are still on rookie contracts for 2012/13, but who have signed extensions that will kick in the following season.

Read more

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Southeast Notes: Heat, Chalmers, Webster, Howard

August 29th, 2012 at 8:09pm CST by Luke Adams

The Lakers may have made the bigger offseason splash, but executives around the NBA still view the Heat as the most dangerous team heading into the 2012/13 season, according to SI.com's Sam Amick. Of the 19 execs, including 10 GMs, asked by Amick to pick their favorites for the 2013 title, 15 chose the Heat, with two opting for the Lakers and two naming the Thunder. We've heard a lot about Southeast Division teams today, so we'll round it all up here, with the latest on top:

  • Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel doesn't think the Heat are quite as willing to trade for a point guard as they were last year (Sulia link). He says he's seen reports that the Wolves might be looking to deal someone from their backcourt, and though we haven't heard anything specific, Darren Wolfson of ESPN Radio 1500 reported earlier that Minnesota is attempting to work out a trade to free cap room for Anthony Tolliver. 
  • Mario Chalmers, whose continued development has apparently impressed his bosses with the Heat, sees himself among the league's elite point guards, but that might be stretching it a bit, as Winderman writes.
  • Michael Lee of The Washington Post has more on Martell Webster's signing with the Wizards, which became official today. Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld hopes Webster can improve the team's outside shooting, but Webster, who sees himself as "more of an all-around player," doesn't want to be typecast as a three-point specialist.
  • Dwight Howard's decision to fly to China for a promotional appearance two weeks after saying his injured back would not allow him to travel to Orlando for his children's basketball camp in Orlando is another sign the former Magic center wanted out of town all along, opines Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel.

Earlier reports:

  • Shane Battier tells Andrew Beaton of The Chronicle (Duke's student newspaper) that he'd love to recruit former Duke players for the Heat: "We’ve got a pretty full roster, so we didn’t recruit any Duke guys this summer. But, if the opportunity arises, I won’t be afraid to make a phone call."
  • Newest Wizard Martell Websterspoke to WashingtonWizards.com about signing with Washington and what he expects to bring to the team.
  • Dwyane Wade has returned to the court for the first time since undergoing knee surgery, as Winderman writes.
  • In examining four teams he believes are "set up to fail" in the 2012/13 season, Derek Page of HoopsWorld names two Southeast squads: The Bobcats and the Magic.
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