Grizzlies Gauging Value Of Randolph, Others
Already today, we've heard that the Grizzlies have engaged in trade talks with the Suns involving Rudy Gay, and have spoken to the Warriors as well. According to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal, however, Gay isn't the only Memphis player who the team has discussed as a trade candidate.
Tillery reports that the new management group is gauging the value of several players on the team's roster, including power forward Zach Randolph. According to Tillery, the Kings are one club that the Grizzlies engaged in preliminary talks, though it's not entirely clear if Randolph, Gay, or someone else was discussed in those conversations. Most of the team's talks have been cursory in nature, so there's no framework for any deals, and nothing is imminent.
Still, Tillery echoes what we've heard from other reports, suggesting that the Grizzlies have been actively exploring potential trades to avoid becoming a perennial taxpayer. Randolph, like Gay, still has two years remaining on his contract after 2012/13, at an annual average salary of over $17MM. Gay appears to be the players most likely to be on the move, according to Tillery, but he didn't sound as if he was bothered by the swirling trade rumors.
"This is every year," Gay said. "If it happens, it happens. So what? I'm playing today as a Grizzly. It's a business. People are going to talk and stuff will happen."
Jazz Recall Kevin Murphy From D-League
The Jazz are recalling Kevin Murphy from their D-League affiliate, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Murphy had been playing for the Reno Bighorns since being assigned by Utah on November 26th.
When Murphy was assigned to the D-League by the Jazz, GM Dennis Lindsey noted that he wanted to see the second-round pick operate as a team player, rather than dominating the ball and trying to rack up points. In 14 games, including 12 starts, for the Bighorns, Murphy averaged 13.2 PPG on .446/.350/.775 shooting.
Western Notes: White, Nowitzki, Wolves, Blazers
So far, votes are virtually evenly split on whether or not the Lakers will earn a playoff spot this season in the competitive Western Conference. You can weigh in with your vote and/or comments on our afternoon poll right here. As the Lakers prepare to face the Rockets tonight in Houston, let's check in on a few Western Conference notes relating to the Rockets and a handful of other clubs….
- Royce White appeared on Slate's Hang Up and Listen podcast, and went into detail in discussing his relationship with the Rockets and the mental health protocol he's hoping to establish. You can listen to the conversation at about the 24:15 mark of the podcast or view the complete transcript over at Slate.com.
- Mavericks president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson says he expects Dirk Nowitzki to remain with the Mavericks for the rest of his career, according to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter). Nowitzki recently questioned some of the Mavs' roster-building strategies, but insisted he wants to remain in Dallas and not be traded.
- Even though Kevin Love will be out for an extended period, the Timberwolves, like every other team in the NBA, aren't currently interested in Kenyon Martin, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
- Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey isn't looking to make superficial changes to his team's roster, but is ready to make a move if the right kind of deal arises, as Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld writes.
- Terrel Harris, who was cut this weekend by the Heat, will join the Rockets' D-League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, tweets Fran Blinebury of NBA.com. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle clarifies (via Twitter) that Harris won't be part of Houston's 15-man roster, but the Vipers are operated by the Rockets, who want to take a look at the guard.
Mavericks Sign Mike James
TUESDAY, 2:09pm: James has officially signed his 10-day contract with the Mavs, according to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The team confirmed the news in a press release.
MONDAY, 2:01pm: The Mavericks will sign Mike James to a 10-day contract after the Texas Legends' game today, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter). James had recently signed with the D-League squad hoping to impress the Mavs and earn another shot in the NBA.
In his lone game for the Legends so far, James helped lead the club to a comfortable victory over the Tulsa 66ers, pouring in 26 points in three quarters. He'll join a Dallas team that was seeking a veteran for its backcourt after losing Derek Fisher (Twitter link via Stein).
James, 37, has appeared in 539 NBA games since making his debut back in 2001. Last season, he signed a pair of 10-day contracts from the Bulls in 2012 before inking a deal for the remainder of the season.
Poll: Will The Lakers Make The Playoffs?
When the 1-4 Lakers fired Mike Brown, it was hard to imagine the season getting much worse in Los Angeles. But nearly 30 games later, despite playing a reasonable schedule, with more home than road games, the Lakers are still three games under .500, at 15-18. Los Angeles currently sits 3.5 games back of the 20-16 Nuggets and Trail Blazers for the Western Conference's final two playoff spots.
As Ric Bucher of the 95.7 The Game points out (via Sulia), we may be nearing a tipping point, where the idea of the Lakers making the postseason is more far-fetched than the idea that they won't. After all, if Denver's and Portland's current pace of 46 wins represents the price of admission to the postseason in the West, the Lakers would have to go 31-18 the rest of the way to get there. For a team that's currently without Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, and Jordan Hill, that could be a very tall order.
Still, as Zach Lowe of Grantland writes, the Lakers have had a borderline top-five offense and the NBA's eighth-best point differential, which suggests some potential for a turnaround. And it's not as if they'd have to pass a collection of juggernauts in the Western Conference standings. The Timberwolves are banged up, the Jazz have played sub-.500 ball, and two of the teams currently in the top eight, the Rockets and Trail Blazers, are young and fairly unproven.
One thing is clear: The Lakers can no longer be considered a playoff lock. And if the team does crack the top eight, it figures to face a team like the Thunder, Clippers, or Spurs in the first round, without homecourt advantage. What do you think? Will the Lakers make a second-half run and appear in the postseason, or will the injuries and the slow start be too much to overcome?
Will the Lakers make the playoffs?
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No 51% (575)
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Yes 49% (550)
Total votes: 1,125
Bucks Rumors: Hammond, Ownership, Ellis
News broke late last night that Scott Skiles and the Bucks have mutually agreed to part ways immediately, rather than Skiles coaching the last season of his contract with no intention of remaining in Milwaukee. The 16-16 Bucks are currently tied for a seventh seed in the Eastern Conference, so the task of keeping Milwaukee in the playoff picture will fall to Jim Boylan, who will coach the club for the rest of the season, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. Just before reports of Skiles' departure surfaced, Woelfel published a column that included a few other Bucks-related tidbits, so let's check out the highlights from that piece….
- General manager John Hammond confirmed that he's in talks with owner Herb Kohl about a contract extension, tweets Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Earlier updates:
- Chatter around the NBA suggesting that Bucks owner Kohl will sell the team has intensified recently, according to Woelfel. Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley was, and perhaps still is, considered the frontrunner to buy the franchise, while Milwaukee Brewers owner Mark L. Attanasio is also said to have interest.
- Kohl hasn't commented on a potential sale and has even said he'll be more involved with the team now that he's no longer a U.S. Senator in Wisconsin. However, at age 78, Kohl may be inclined to at least bring aboard a partner to whom he could eventually pass the torch, reports Woelfel.
- Monta Ellis figures to exercise the early termination option on his contract and become a free agent this July.
- There have been "rumblings" that general manager John Hammond could receive an extension, but Hammond declined to comment on whether he has discussed a new contract with the team.
DeMarcus Cousins Talks Reputation, Kings, Future
When DeMarcus Cousins hired Dan Fegan as his new agent, the assumption, given Fegan's reputation, was that the big man wanted out of Sacramento. But so far, neither the player or the team has given any indication that such an option is being considered. Fegan met with Geoff Petrie yesterday, but reportedly didn't request a trade for his client. And according to Chris Mannix of SI.com, the Celtics, Bobcats, Hawks, Wizards, and Mavericks were all recently rebuffed when they inquired about Cousins' availability.
Mannix spoke to the 22-year-old about playing in Sacramento and the reputation he has developed, and Cousins had a number of interesting things to say. Here are a few of the highlights from the conversation:
On the public perception of Cousins:
"I'm not going to sit here and say I'm innocent, because I've done things. But to get the reputation that I've got, I don't think I've done enough. I don't have a criminal record. Some of the guys with the cleanest image in the league have a record. I don't think I was given a fair chance. I don't know what I did in college that was so bad to get that reputation. Okay, there is footage of me and Coach Cal going at each other. That happens in sports. Coming into the league, everyone said I was going to be fat, I was the next Oliver Miller. I had all these red flags. I just feel I was never given a fair chance coming in."
On the Kings' perception of Cousins when they drafted him in 2010:
"They wanted to get to know me but they were scared because of my reputation. I felt like it was bad on their part. I'm your player and you don't take the time to get to know me? You just go by what the rest of the world says?"
On whether the Kings always have his back now:
"I'm still not [given a chance]. It flip flops. When everything is good, [the organization] is good. When things go bad, there is nothing about that good person they remember. I just want that balance. You are either with me or you're not."
On the Kings' request that he seek counseling:
"I took it as an insult. That's another thing, our organization doesn't even know me. They were looking for an excuse. I don't believe that is the way to solve issues. I'm an emotional guy. It's as simple as that."
On trying to move on after his recent suspension:
"I can't sit here and say I'll never do anything again. This is a frustrating sport. There are a lot of emotions involved. It's easier said than done to just come in and be a professional. I can't sit here and say nothing will happen again because I would be lying. I really don't know. But at the same time I'm not going to go out of my way to cause an incident or a ruckus. I want to make things right."
On his desire to remain with the Kings and help turn things around:
"That's like a trophy to me. Taking a team no players really want to go to, a team considered the worst in the league, and through all the struggle and all the negativity, they found the way to win. I want to put Sacramento back on the map. I want to be an instrumental part of things changing here."
Scott Skiles Out As Bucks Coach
10:06am: The Bucks have officially confirmed that Skiles is out as head coach and that Boylan will assume the reins.
"Scott and I met yesterday after practice and after some honest discussion, we both came to the conclusion that it was best to part ways," Hammond said in the press release. "It is never an easy decision to make, but in the end a decision we felt was best for both parties. I want to thank Scott for his hard work, dedication and the imprint he leaves on our team and our entire organization. We all wish him and his family well."
TUESDAY, 12:09am: Boylan will coach the Bucks for rest of the season, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. Woelfel hears the team was close to firing Skiles recently, but the coach earned extra time when the Bucks beat the Heat on December 29th. That wasn't his first brush with an exit from Milwaukee. Skiles, thinking he wouldn't be back, cleaned out his desk at the end of last season, Woelfel notes (All Twitter links).
MONDAY, 11:51pm: Assistant coach Jim Boylan will take over for Skiles on an interim basis, just as he did when the Bulls fired Skiles in 2007, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
11:32pm: The Bucks and Scott Skiles have agreed to part ways immediately, reports Sam Amick of USA Today. The move comes on the heels of a report by TNT's David Aldridge that indicated Skiles would not return to the team when his contract expires this summer.
Skiles and GM John Hammond entered the season with high stakes on the team's performance, but after a strong start, the Bucks have lost four in a row to drop to 16-16. Skiles' agent, Keith Glass, denied rumors last year that Skiles was seeking a buyout of the final year of his deal. A reputed taskmaster, Skiles has clashed with some players, notably Stephen Jackson, who recently scoffed at the suggestion that he and Skiles had spoken since the team dealt him away last season. Skiles "hated his team" this season, a close friend told Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Skiles finishes his tenure in Milwaukee with a 162-182 record, highlighted by a 46-36 campaign in 2009/10, when the sixth-seeded Bucks took the No. 3 seed Hawks to seven games in the first round even without an injured Andrew Bogut. That was the only playoff appearance in Skiles' four and a half seasons with the team. He's 443-433 all-time as a head coach, including stops with the Suns and Bulls.
No Relocation Deal For Kings, Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach mayor Will Sessoms announced last week that he was setting a January 7th deadline to reach an agreement with a professional sports team to move to the city. No announcement was made Monday, but Sessoms and Peter Lukko, the president of Comcast Spectacor, are expected to announce today that negotiations to bring a team to Virginia Beach are at a standstill, reports Bruce Rader of WAVY-TV (hat tip to Tom Ziller of Sactown Royalty). The Sacramento Kings were the team considered to be Virginia Beach's target.
With no agreement in hand, the city of Virginia Beach will not ask the state for $150MM to help finance an arena deal. While the proposal to build a professional sports arena in Virginia Beach isn't entirely dead, it appears it will be shelved for now.
Rader suggests that the Kings and their owners will likely explore other avenues now that Virginia Beach no longer seems to be a realistic option. That could mean simply staying put in Sacramento, or perhaps discussing relocation with another city. Ziller notes that the next big rumor figures to be the possibility of a sale to the Seattle group led by Chris Hansen.
Odds & Ends: Kaman, Fredette, Beverley
Chris Kaman, making $8MM this year as one of many Mavs on a one-year contract, told Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida that he wants to return to Dallas next year, but he isn't sure whether the team will have him. Kaman's preference is for long-term contracts (Sulia links). "Nobody wants to do a one-year deal," he said. "If anybody prefers, they would do a long-term deal if they felt comfortable in the situation. So everybody kind of is just trying together to be a team. I think sometimes that creeps in. 'I’m in this one-year deal, I better play good.' It’s not that it’s selfish but it’s just a lot of pressure for a player." The handful of players without fully guaranteed contracts who got the ax today probably wouldn't mind a one-year deal right now, but it's all relative in the NBA. Here's more from around the Association.
- DeMarcus Cousins isn't the only member of the Kings off-limits in trade talks, as USA Today's Sam Amick hears the team is not making Jimmer Fredette available, either.
- The final two seasons of Patrick Beverley's three-year contract with the Rockets are team options, reports Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
- The Rockets signed Greg Smith to a similar deal 11 months ago, and he's become a significant contributor off the bench this season, as Feigen examines.
- Mike James will sign his 10-day pact with the Mavs on Tuesday, according to Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com (Twitter link).
- Wolves GM David Kahn doesn't think the team's most pressing need is another big man, even with Kevin Love sidelined, and said he's having difficulty getting other GMs to engage in serious trade talk with the deadline still more than six weeks away. Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune has the details.
- The Wolves are still keeping an eye on Mickael Gelabale, but other teams may have stronger interest, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link).
- Chris Andersen's "ancillary issues" aren't a concern for the Heat, who will bring him in for a workout Tuesday, tweets Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Winderman is presumably referring to Andersen's legal troubles last year.