Grizzlies Trade Talks In “Holding Pattern”
According to various reports so far this year, the Grizzlies have been at least gauging the value of Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, and other players on their roster, if not shopping them outright. However, it doesn't appear that Memphis will be making a deal anytime soon. Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal reports (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies are currently in a "holding pattern" on trade talks, with nothing imminent and no serious discussions taking place.
The news isn't surprising, as recent reports on Gay have suggested that the team is now leaning toward keeping the veteran forward rather than moving him. I expect that's due at least in part to the fact that teams aren't likely to present their best trade offers with the trade deadline still five weeks away. Tillery notes in his tweet that Memphis expects to receive more serious offers close to February 21st.
I looked into the Grizzlies' cap situation yesterday, explaining why the team is considering moving Gay or another player. As I noted, besides the team's core four players (Gay, Randolph, Marc Gasol, and Mike Conley) and Marreese Speights, there isn't a single player on the roster that could be traded by himself to get the Grizzlies under the tax line for 2012/13. As such, the Grizzlies may look to make a deal, either before the deadline or over the summer, that will get them out of the tax for future seasons, rather than this season.
Jose Calderon Talks Trade Rumors, Free Agency
Jose Calderon has been one of the most-discussed trade candidates this season, as he continues to put up strong numbers (10.7 PPG, 7.7 APG, 19.0 PER) for a Raptors team that remains 5.5 games out of the playoff hunt. While Calderon has dealt with trade rumors before, he recognizes that with his contract set to expire at season's end, trade chatter only figures to increase over the next few weeks.
"Maybe it’s going to be more than usual," Calderon said of the trade rumors, to RealGM's Michael Scotto. "It’s been usual for a while now for a few years."
Grantland's Zach Lowe is the latest to suggest that the Raptors ought to move Calderon before the deadline, breaking down the pros and cons provided by the Spaniard and fellow point guard Kyle Lowry before concluding that Lowry makes more sense for Toronto in the long run. If Raptors president Bryan Colangelo reaches the same conclusion, Calderon could be the subject of many trade talks over the next month, though the veteran point guard doesn't expect his agent to keep him apprised of the latest discussions.
"I prefer not to," said Calderon. "Unless if there is something he’s going to call, we’re going to talk about it. If he’s not calling, there’s a lot of things out there. He’s better just to leave it there and don’t talk about it because at the end of the day there’s nothing good, it’s just rumors."
With unrestricted free agency awaiting him this summer, it won't be long before Calderon will have the ability to determine his own future. However, he tells Scotto that it's still too early to be looking ahead to that decision.
"I think it’s too soon," said Calderon. "I don’t know what’s going to happen. I don’t know if I’m going to get traded or not because of my contract situation. Let’s see what happens when we finish the season. I think the summer is going to be the time to think about it, all the pros and cons, in every situation."
Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors explored Calderon's trade candidacy earlier this month.
Potential Rebounding Options For The Heat
While the Heat continue to maintain the best record in the Eastern Conference, the team has struggled as of late, playing sub-.500 ball so far in 2013. A few factors have contributed to Miami's recent slide, but the team's primary concern is its rebounding. The Heat rank dead last in the NBA in offensive rebounds (8.0) and total rebounds (38.6) per game. In Miami's last four losses, the club has been outrebounded 188-132, an average defecit of 14 boards per game.
Chris Bosh has offered to play fewer minutes if it means getting better rebounders into the game, and LeBron James has said the current roster has to figure out a way to improve on the glass, but so far not much has worked. Coach Erik Spoelstra and president Pat Riley are undoubtedly mulling changes, either to the lineup or the roster. So what are Miami's options, as the club looks to improve its rebounding numbers? Let's break them down….
Internal options:
The Heat have embraced the small-ball approach that helped propel them to a Finals win last season, with Udonis Haslem (19.5) and Joel Anthony (9.9) both averaging career-lows in minutes per game. Haslem, Anthony, and Dexter Pittman aren't exactly among the league's most-feared interior players, but increasing their minutes during the regular season could take some of the rebounding pressure off of scorers like James and Bosh. For what it's worth, Anthony's 11.6% rebound rate so far in 2012/13, while not exceptional, is the best of his career.
Free agents:
With no cap space or mid-level money left, the Heat can only offer 10-day contracts or minimum-salary deals, but that should be more than enough to draw the interest of rebounding specialists. Miami recently worked out Chris Andersen, a guy who could help on the glass, though it's not clear how much he has left at age 34. Andersen isn't the only veteran big man still on the market — as our free agent list shows, other options include Kenyon Martin, Troy Murphy, and Dan Gadzuric. If the Heat prefer to go younger, players like Samardo Samuels and Luke Harangody (14.7 RPG in six D-League contests) are also available.
Trade candidates:
Because the Heat have so few assets outside of their big three, it's hard to find many realistic matches on the trade market. Someone like Haslem, Anthony, or Mike Miller would probably need to be included in a deal for any player earning a decent salary, but those guys have undesirable long-term contracts, making them tough to move.
Miami's most valuable trade chip is probably Norris Cole or the 76ers' lottery-protected 2013 first-round pick. But even combining those two pieces would mean the Heat could only acquire a player on a very small salary, with Cole only making $1.08MM this season. That likely eliminates possibilities such as Jason Maxiell, Glen Davis, Jason Thompson, and Samuel Dalembert, since they're all earning $5MM+.
There are still a few intriguing options out there. Brandan Wright and DeJuan Blair are inexpensive, and I'm sure the Mavs and Spurs, respectively, would be very open to swapping their bigs for that Sixers pick. Timofey Mozgov and Marreese Speights are also names worth considering, though the Heat don't match up particularly well as trade partners with either the Nuggets or Grizzlies. Still, if the Heat decide to explore trades, they'd probably be better off engaging these Western Conference clubs, since I doubt many Eastern Conference contenders would be eager to help the Heat patch up their biggest hole.
At 24-12, the Heat are hardly in perilious danger, despite their recent play. Even if the rebounding woes continue, I think Miami is the odds-on favorite for the No. 1 seed in the East, so we shouldn't anticipate a panic move. The Heat will likely experiment with different lineups and perhaps bring in a couple new players on 10-day contracts in the coming weeks.
If rebounding is still a major concern when the trade deadline approaches, a move for someone like Blair appears to be a reasonable bet. The free agent market will also be worth monitoring after the February 21st deadline, when veterans are waived or bought out. But considering this Heat team had similar frontcourt issues last season and still came away with a championship, it's probably not realistic to expect the club to make a major splash before season's end.
Central Notes: Varejao, Prince, Bucks, Boylan
Losing Anderson Varejao for a good chunk of the season was a blow to the Cavaliers' on-court prospects and to the team's chances of extracting value for him at the trade deadline, but it wasn't just the Cavs that were adversely affected by Varejao's leg injury. According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (Twitter link), earning an All-Star berth would have triggered a $1MM bonus in Varejao's contract. Given the big man's strong performance early in the season (14.1 PPG, 14.4 RPG, 22.0 PER), an All-Star berth appeared well within reach before he was sidelined.
Here are a few more Wednesday morning items out of the Central Division:
- Despite a recent report suggesting the Pistons aren't interested in trading Tayshaun Prince, the veteran forward recognizes he's not untouchable, as Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News writes. Still, Prince has no desire to ask the Pistons to trade him: "One day it might hit me. I might get in a position where it's time for me to win one more (championship). To go to a contender-type team. I might go to Joe [Dumars] that day and say, 'It's time for me to move on' and play that route. But now is not the time."
- While he'd been excited to join the Bucks in the offseason, Samuel Dalembert was disappointed by Scott Skiles' use of him — the veteran center is averaging his fewest minutes per game since his rookie year in 2001/02. Dalembert spoke to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times about his relationship with Skiles, and says "everyone is enthusiastic" about the change to new coach Jim Boylan.
- Ersan Ilyasova, who signed a five-year deal with the Bucks last summer, is also pleased with the team's coaching change, having been re-inserted into the starting lineup. So far, Boylan has made the moves that will benefit the franchise long-term, writes Stephen Brotherson of HoopsWorld.
Lakers Rumors: Howard, Gasol, Blake, DPE
The Lakers' new game plan involves increasing Kobe Bryant's role on defense, having him guard opponents' top wing players. The approach was certainly effective last night, as the Lakers beat the Bucks by 16, and Brandon Jennings told reporters after the game that Kobe played "probably the best defense anybody's played on me since I've been in the league" (Twitter link via Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register). As the Lakers look to continue their winning ways on the court, here are the latest off-court notes on the club:
- Brook Lopez is now trade-eligible, which would suggest that trade rumors connecting Dwight Howard to the Nets may be renewed. However, Ian O'Connor of ESPNNewYork.com hears from a source close to Nets management that Brooklyn's interest in D12 may not be as strong as it once was: "It's not as cut and dried as it was last year, when the feeling was go ahead and pretty much gut the team for Dwight, give up a bunch of draft picks and players and take back bad contracts. That feeling isn't there anymore."
- Regardless of the Nets' interest or lack thereof, exploring trades involving Howard isn't even something that's on the table for the Lakers, says Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld.
- The Lakers are leaning toward keeping Pau Gasol at the trade deadline in part because they're not 100% sure Howard will remain in L.A. long-term, and they don't want to risk losing both of their All-Star bigs in a matter of months, writes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.
- Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com has details on how Gasol and Steve Blake are recovering from their respective injuries.
- GM Mitch Kupchak confirmed to reporters, including Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times, that the Lakers have requested a disabled player exception for Jordan Hill. Kupchak expects to hear back from the league within a week or so. I outlined on Monday what a DPE would mean for the team.
Kings/Seattle Rumors: Tuesday
A pair of columns yesterday from Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports and TNT's David Aldridge featured plenty of details on the Chris Hansen/Steve Ballmer group's bid for the Kings. But the sale of the franchise to the Seattle investment group still appears to be far from a done deal. Here are Tuesday's updates on Sacramento, Seattle, and the Kings:
- Ken Armstrong of the Seattle Times tracks the rise and fall of the Maloof family's ownership of the Kings, saying that should the team move north, Seattle would be the beneficiary of their downfall.
- The goal of Sacramento-based investors hoping to buy the Kings is to force the NBA's hand, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. While virtually all the factors fall in favor of the Seattle group, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson and local investors hope to come up with the sort of capital that would make it hard for David Stern and the NBA to turn them away.
- According to Amick, John Kehriotis, who currently owns 12% of the Kings, has been in talks with one of the local groups organizing an offer for the franchise. Mark Mastrov is also involved in local efforts, though the interest of Ron Burkle has been overstated, says Amick.
- Wojnarowski's report, which indicated that the Seattle group intended to buy 65% of the franchise, actually gave some hope to Sacramento groups, according to Amick. A 65% portion of $525MM would only be about $341MM, which is much lower than the $425-450MM that Johnson estimated he'd need to raise to make a local bid for the team.
- Johnson said this morning that he has received approval from Stern to present an offer for the Kings directly to the league's Board of Governors, reports Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee. A potential deal must include a new arena and local partners, according to Johnson, who says he wants this "to be the final act of a saga that's gone on for far too long."
- AEG, the entertainment company that was involved in last year's bid for a new Sacramento arena, is still interested in a partnership, according to Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee. "We remain committed to the mayor and the city, and we would be more than happy to meet with a potential new owner," an AEG spokesman said.
Southeast Notes: Seraphin, Hawks, Beal
The Bobcats were the only Southeast team in action tonight, getting torched by the Central-leading Pacers in Charlotte. Let's take a look at what else is going on in the division on Tuesday:
- According to ESPN's Brian Windhorst (via Twitter), Wizards big man Kevin Seraphin has changed agents, hiring Rich Paul. Seraphin, a former first round pick, is under contract in Washington at least this year and next before the team must decide whether to extend him a qualifying offer. He was formerly represented by Bouna Ndiaye.
- Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today offers his perspective on the job new general manager Danny Ferry has done with the Hawks. After clearing cap space by moving Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams, much of the Hawks roster is currently playing on expiring deals. While that can be a tough spot for a coach to be in, Larry Drew has gotten his team off to a solid start despite a recent lull. The Hawks now have the financial flexibility to re-sign Josh Smith this summer as well as go after someone like Dwight Howard, Zillgitt writes.
- In a separate story for USA Today, Zillgitt concurs with much of what we heard yesterday with regard to Bradley Beal; essentially that the Wizards have no plans whatsoever of trading their rookie phenom for Rudy Gay or anyone else. On the contrary, Zillgitt writes that Beal is settling nicely into his role as the team's closer.
Central Links: Cavaliers, James, Pacers
The latest news and notes from around the Central Division on Tuesday night:
- Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer opines that even with all the recent LeBron James talk with regard to the summer of 2014, the Cavaliers must put a winner on the floor next year to prove to everyone they're not the perennial doormat they've been of late. We've heard the team will do nothing to jeopardize their 2014 financial flexibility, but Pluto warns against putting all their eggs in that basket.
- Meanwhile, Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio writes that while the Cavs aren't remotely banking on James returning to Cleveland, there seems to be a lot of arrows pointing in that direction. Amico says, depending on the development of the pieces in Cleveland, it could be a perfect fit and based on what he hears from around the league, the animosity over "The Decision" won't be nearly as big an obstacle as one might think.
- Grantland's Zach Lowe breaks down the dominant Pacers defense, which he describes as "potentially historically great." However, Lowe says, no team as offensively challenged as Indiana has been this year has ever won the NBA title. The imminent return of Danny Granger should help, but to have a chance at dethroning the Heat, the Pacers will probably need other players, like Roy Hibbert, to step up without losing much on the defensive end of the floor.
Odds & Ends: Mavericks, Most Improved, George
With six games on the NBA docket tonight, let's round up any odds and ends from around the Association here:
- In HoopsWorld's NBA PM column, Alex Kennedy summarizes some of the trade chatter we've heard recently from the Mavericks, Grizzlies, Raptors, Rockets, Lakers, Magic and Jazz.
- Speaking of the Mavs, despite Mark Cuban's recent bold proclamations, Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas writes that it is business as usual in Dallas. While some of the Mavs players admit that swirling rumors can be a distraction, Rick Carlisle says it has always been the norm in his time under Cuban.
- In a Yahoo Sports video, Greg Anthony and Marc J. Spears discuss the leading candidates for the NBA's Most Improved Player award, specifically mentioning Paul George, James Harden, Greivis Vasquez, Nikola Vucevic and Jrue Holiday as the current contenders.
- In the New York Times' Off The Dribble blog, Jim Cavan writes that the Pacers have been one of the few teams that has arguably benefited from losing a superstar to injury this year, citing the emergence of Paul George as a franchise player in Danny Granger's absence as the reason.
Mavericks Notes: Marion, Carlisle, Trades
Mavericks owner Mark Cuban made headlines last night when he vowed that the "Bank of Cuban" would be open as the trade deadline approaches. Cuban has already declared recently that he was "100%" certain the Mavs would make a deal in the coming weeks. Shawn Marion and Mavs coach Rick Carlisle were among those to react to Cuban's comments today. Here's what they had to say:
- Marion would like to finish his career with the Mavericks, but if he's traded as part of the team's rebuilding efforts, he'd prefer to go to a contender, as he tells Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. "Right now, you’re not playing to be a (expletive) all-star, after 15 years in the league," Marion said. "You’re playing to win a championship."
- Carlisle is aware that trade rumors will begin to circulate more frequently over the next few weeks, but doesn't expect his team to be distracted by them: "I think our guys are going to play. I don’t think they’re going to be affected by any potential rumors or any present rumors. There’s really nothing going on right now that I can surmise."
- Carlisle added that the team's aggressiveness on the trade market is nothing new, and that he'd be more surprised if the so-called "Bank of Cuban" was closed: "I know we’re aggressive. I know we’re on the phone a lot. I know we’re going to make deals that are the right deals to rebuild this thing the way we want to rebuild it, and not just for the sake of doing it."
- We passed along a pair of Mavericks links, including Dirk Nowitzki's reaction to Cuban's comments, earlier this afternoon.