Seattle Group Increases Offer For Kings
5:56pm: In spite of the increased offer from Hansen and company, the Sacramento bidders are still viewed as having the upper hand, according to TNT's David Aldridge. The Vivek Ranadive-led Sacramento group is buoyed by comments Heat owner and relocation committee member Micky Arison made on Twitter this week. Arison indicated the city had done what was necessary to keep the Kings.
2:12pm: The Seattle investment group led by Chris Hansen has increased its bid for the Sacramento Kings, according to Chris Daniels of KING5. Daniels reports that Hansen has informed the NBA that his new offer will increase the valuation of the franchise to $625MM, a $75MM increase on his previous bid. Because Hansen is attempting to buy 65% of the team, a $625MM valuation would mean the Seattle group's offer would increase to about $406MM.
The NBA's relocation committee has formally recommended that the Kings remain in Sacramento, and the Sacramento investment group is working toward finalizing its own bid for the team. Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game reported earlier today (via Sulia) that the Sacramento group is seeking additional investors before it puts the full purchase price into escrow, though Aaron Bruski of NBCSports.com hears (Twitter link) that money isn't a problem for the group.
Even if the Sacramento group was able to match Seattle's previous offer, the new Seattle offer represents an increase of nearly $50MM for that 65% share. When the NBA's Board of Governors officially make its decision on the issue, which is expected to happen next Wednesday, it will be voting on whether to approve Hansen's purchase and whether to approve relocation. The league would clearly prefer the Kings to remain in Sacramento, so it will be interesting to see whether the Maloofs' sale to Hansen is voted down even if Seattle's offer is significantly higher than Sacramento's. One source told Bruski that "no matter how much they kick and scream, this is not about Seattle's offer" (Twitter link).
Daniels adds (via Twitter) that, in addition to increasing its offer, the Seattle group has agreed to pay revenue-sharing money should the team to move to Seattle, even in the initial years at Key Arena. The Sacramento group had agreed to eventually phase out the revenue-sharing money the Kings receive if the team remains in Sacramento.
Lionel Hollins: Grizzlies Say They Want Me Back
Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins was confident heading into the playoffs that the team would bring him back for next season. Ironically, he became even more sure of keeping his job after the team went down 0-2 to the Clippers in the first round. That's when Hollins says Grizzlies management told him that they wanted him back as coach, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
"The only conversations we've had is they said they wanted me back," Hollins said. "After we lost the first two games to the Clippers, we had a friendly conversation about the series and how they just wanted me personally to know that regardless of what's being said out there, this is how they felt."
Hollins is in the final year of his contract, and could be one of the most sought-after coaching free agents this summer. The Sixers have reportedly been keeping an eye on his status in Memphis, and he's been linked to the Nets as well. Hollins nonetheless says "there's no question" he'd prefer to remain with the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies won the next four games to oust the Clippers after Hollins and the front office brass spoke, and as Memphis sits tied 1-1 with the Thunder in the second round, I'd be surprised to see Hollins go no matter what happens in the rest of the playoffs. The coach criticized the Rudy Gay trade soon after it occurred, but softened his stance later, calling his comments an emotional reaction to the swap.
Eastern Notes: Prigioni, Nets, Bobcats, Redick
After spending 17 years playing professional basketball in Europe, Pablo Prigioni has enjoyed his first taste of the NBA this season with the Knicks. Prigioni will be a free agent at season's end, but George Bass, who represents Prigioni, tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com that his client is interested in re-signing with the Knicks.
"Pablo really enjoyed himself here, and he has interest in playing again next year," Bass said. "He's fallen in love with New York, there's no doubt. The Knicks are just a first-class organization, so it's been good all the way around."
Here are a few more updates from around the Eastern Conference:
- With Bojan Bogdanovic expected to sign with the Nets this summer, Tim Bontemps of the New York Post examines what ramifications such a move would have for Brooklyn.
- There's no timetable for the Bobcats' coaching search, which figures to be lengthy and include plenty of candidates, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
- Before he makes a decision in free agency in July, J.J. Redick plans to consult with Mike Krzyzewski, his former coach at Duke, as Andrew Gruman of FOX Sports Wisconsin writes.
- A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com identifies a few possible offseason targets for the Celtics.
- Over at Bulls.com, Sam Smith's latest mailbag focuses primarily on the current Bulls/Heat series, but also looks ahead to the summer. Asked about Nate Robinson's value on the open market, Smith predicts Robinson will be looking at an annual salary in the $3MM neighborhood.
Timberwolves Release Brandon Roy
3:00pm: The Timberwolves have officially released Roy, according to the team (Twitter link).
2:15pm: The Timberwolves are finalizing the release of Brandon Roy, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. While the move isn't official yet, an announcement from the team is expected soon, according to Wojnarowski.
Roy signed a two-year deal with the T-Wolves last summer, but the second year of that deal became nonguaranteed when his knee problems resurfaced, meaning Minnesota won't be on the hook for the 28-year-old's $5.33MM salary for next season.
Roy's return to the NBA following his 2011 retirement was a disappointing one, as injuries limited him to just five games for the Wolves, in which he scored a total of 29 points. It's not clear yet if Roy will officially announce his retirement for the second time or whether he'll attempt to continue his playing career, but it's hard to imagine him playing in the NBA again.
Even if Roy does retire, he'll continue to receive pay checks from the Trail Blazers for a little longer yet. Because he was amnestied by Portland, Roy will receive the full amount of his five-year, $82MM contract, which runs through the 2014/15 season.
Odds & Ends: Lakers, Aldridge, Jackson, Haynes
With all four Conference Semifinals tied at one game apiece, the Heat and Spurs will be the first two favorites to try to regain home-court advantage tonight, in Chicago and Golden State respectively. As we look forward to those games, let's check in on a few odds and ends from around the Association:
- If the Lakers try to make significant moves this offseason, it may adversely affect the team's ability to undergo a major rehaul in the summer of 2014, opines Mark Willard of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- In his most recent mailbag at Blazer's Edge, Dave Deckard says he doesn't anticipate the Trail Blazers to entertain trading LaMarcus Aldridge until at least next summer.
- Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News (Twitter link) expects the Warriors to pick up head coach Mark Jackson's 2014/15 option in the coming weeks, and engage in discussions about a longer-term deal.
- 6'8" wing Aaron Haynes, the 2012/13 MVP of the Korean Basketball League, will pursue an NBA roster spot for the '13/14 season, according to Chris B. Haynes at SLAMonline. The 31-year-old Haynes will be repped by Larry Williams of Union Sports Agency, who also counts Ivan Johnson among his clients — Johnson made his NBA debut for the Hawks at age 27 after spending several years playing for international and D-League teams.
- Lehigh guard C.J. McCollum tops Chad Ford's list of five potential draft sleepers in his latest Insider-only piece for ESPN.com.
Mavs Notes: Mayo, Pekovic, Free Agency
As we noted this morning, reports out of Minnesota are suggesting O.J. Mayo will be a top target for the Timberwolves in free agency this summer. Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com explores that story from the Mavericks' perspective, wondering how the Wolves' interest in Mayo could affect Dallas. As MacMahon notes, the Mavs would like to re-sign Mayo, but are unlikely to engage in any bidding wars for him. MacMahon suggests that if the Wolves prioritize Mayo over Nikola Pekovic, it could open up the door for the Mavs to make a run at Pekovic. Here's more out of Dallas:
- Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson made an appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas this week, and addressed a number of topics of note, and the Dallas Morning News transcribed some of Nelson's more interesting quotes in a pair of articles.
- Asked about the selling points the Mavs will use in talking to free agents this summer, Nelson pointed to Dallas' warm weather, the absence of state taxes, and the presence of an elite owner (Mark Cuban) and head coach (Rick Carlisle).
- If the Mavericks had to choose between acquiring an elite point guard and an elite center, Nelson suggests the team would lean toward the point guard. "I don’t think there is any question if you look at some of the challenges we had last year, point guards are very unique, and it’s really hard to find those guys," Nelson said. "That’s why we pulled out all the stops to try to get Deron Williams to come back home. Obviously, he opted to stay in New York. I don’t think there is any position as important as point guard regardless of what level you’re playing on."
Mid-Level Exception
The mid-level exception is the most common way for over-the-cap NBA teams to sign other teams' free agents. The exception can be used every season and can be split among multiple players, but different teams receive access to different mid-level exceptions based on their cap situations.
A team whose total player salaries, cap exceptions, and cap holds amount to less than the salary cap forfeits its full mid-level exception. A taxpaying team also doesn't have access to the full mid-level. However, both under-the-cap and taxpaying teams receive a lesser form of the MLE. Here's a breakdown of the restrictions placed on each of the three forms of the exception:
For teams with cap room:
- Called the mini mid-level, or the room exception
- Maximum two-year contract
- Maximum 4.5% annual raises
- First-year salary grows by 3% annually, beginning at $2.5MM in 2011/12.
For over-the cap teams:
- Called the full or standard mid-level exception
- Maximum four-year contract
- Maximum 4.5% annual raises
- First-year salary grows by 3% annually, beginning at $5MM in 2012/13.
- Once used, the team cannot surpass the "tax apron" ($4MM above tax line) for the remainder of the season.
For taxpaying teams:
- Called the mini mid-level, or the taxpayer mid-level exception
- Maximum three-year contract
- Maximum 4.5% annual raises
- First-year salary grows by 3% annually, beginning at $3MM in 2011/12.
In 2012/13, the room exception was worth $2,575,000, the full mid-level was worth $5,000,000, and the taxpayer mid-level was worth $3,090,000. However, those values are all set to increase by 3% for the '13/14 season. Here's the maximum contract a free agent could receive this summer using each of these three forms of mid-level exception:
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.
This post was initially published on April 24th, 2012.
Atlantic Links: Raptors, Nets, Sixers, Celtics
After a night without NBA action, the headlines are a little scarce on this Friday morning. But there are still a handful of notable links to round up, particularly out of the Atlantic Division….
- It's not clear what's holding up MLSE's decision on whether or not to pick up Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo's 2013/14 option, says Eric Koreen of the National Post. As ownership weighs the Colangelo decision, it's possible that his potential replacements are being courted by other teams, according to Koreen.
- The Nets may not be able to bring back all of their productive bench players, with Andray Blatche and C.J. Watson potentially heading for free agency. However, as Michael Scotto of RealGM.com writes, Brooklyn's starting lineup is under contract for multiple years, so the team should get a chance to continue developing chemistry and consistency next season.
- Former 76ers coach Larry Brown is coaching college ball at SMU, but tells Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News that he still lives in Philadelphia and that "I'd love to be a resource [for the Sixers] any way I can." The Sixers are currently seeking a new head coach, and could also be exploring hiring a new general manager.
- The Celtics' ability to contend over the next several seasons will hinge on Kevin Garnett's future, writes Justin Barrasso of WEEI.com.
Timberwolves To Target O.J. Mayo
With Flip Saunders assuming control of the Timberwolves' basketball operations, the team's coming offseason figures to play out a little differently than past summers under GM David Kahn. Nonetheless, it sounds as if Saunders will be targeting at least one player that Kahn pursued in the past. Dan Barreiro of KFAN in Minneapolis tweets that he expects the T-Wolves to "go hard" after O.J. Mayo this summer.
Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities follows up on Barreiro's tweet, confirming his report and noting (via Twitter) that he has heard from multiple people that Saunders likes Mayo. Wolfson adds (via Twitter) that the Wolves figure to have plenty of other players on their wish list and that creating the necessary cap space for the free agent guard may be tricky, but that Mayo has been cited by multiple sources as a likely target for Minnesota.
Assuming Brandon Roy's and Greg Stiemsma's contracts for 2013/14 are fully non-guaranteed, the Wolves only have about $36MM in guaranteed salary on their books for next season. That would seem to give them plenty of room to make a run at Mayo, who I predicted would earn more than the mid-level. However, that total doesn't include Andrei Kirilenko's $10.22MM player option, and it also assumes the team won't bring back restricted free agent Nikola Pekovic. If Kirilenko opts in and Pekovic returns on a $10-12MM salary, the Wolves won't have much room left to make Mayo a lucrative offer.
A sign-and-trade deal with the Mavericks is also a possibility if Minnesota doesn't have the necessary cap space to sign Mayo outright. But taking on salary in a Mayo trade could compromise Dallas' other plans in free agency, so I'd expect the Mavs to be reluctant to work out a Mayo deal unless they were presented an offer they couldn't refuse.
It's also worth mentioning that, since Mayo has a $4.2MM player option for next season, he could still decide to exercise that option before June 30th, avoiding free agency. The 25-year-old is considered extremely likely to opt out and become a free agent though.
Odds & Ends: Thompson, Ellis, Hollins, Turkoglu
Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski looks back to June 2011, when Warriors' GM Bob Myers had worries about not being able to select Klay Thompson knowing that either the Spurs could possibly trade up in the draft to get him or that the Bucks were planning to select him with the 10th overall pick. As it would turn out, San Antonio would wind up trading for the 15th pick (Kawhi Leonard) and the Kings landed the 10th pick to select Jimmer Fredette, leaving the sharpshooting Washington State forward right into the hands of Golden State. Here are a few more miscellaneous notes to share along this evening:
- AJ Mitnick of Sheridan Hoops fills us in on the "best of the bunch" in terms of international prospects in this year's draft.
- The 76ers aren't expected to hold most of their interviews for their head coaching search until after the Chicago Pre-Draft Camp, writes Tom Moore of phillyBurbs.com, although there is a possibility that the team could conduct some during camp.
- According to this report by the Detroit Free Press, the Pistons are widely known to be seeking perimeter help heading into the draft but could look to add more to their frontcourt.
- Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports that the Lakers have granted the Cavaliers permission to interview Phil Handy about joining Mike Brown's coaching staff in Cleveland.
- When asked about the trade that sent Monta Ellis to Milwaukee for Andrew Bogut, Warriors head coach Mark Jackson told reporters that letting Ellis go helped change the culture of the team, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com (Sulia link).
- ESPN's Chris Broussard tweets that Lionel Hollins will be highly coveted if the Grizzlies opt to not re-sign him this summer, adding that the Nets would figure to be among the interested teams.
- Heat owner Mickey Arison engaged in some civil discourse with a fan on Twitter regarding the possibility that Seattle loses out on their bid for the Kings (credit goes to SportsRadioKJR.com). Arison made it clear that he believes that the city of Sacramento has done enough to warrant keeping the team, and refuted the notion that Seattle had put forth the same effort in 2008 before the Sonics franchise ultimately moved to Oklahoma City.
- John Denton of NBA.com writes that Magic forward Hedo Turkoglu understands the current youth movement of the franchise and that his time in Orlando could be over within the next coming months.
- Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter) reports that Lakers big man Pau Gasol will be held out of basketball activities for the next three months after undergoing an operation on his knee today.