Hoops Links: Celtics, Smith, Pelicans, Lakers
This week 14 years ago, the NBA Board of Governors approved several playing rules modifications for the 1999-2000 season. The modifications had been recommended by a special committee of current and former players, general managers, coaches and other basketball experts the previous June and were tested in several NBA summer leagues. Among the rule changes: the 24-second shot clock would be re-set to 14 seconds if certain violations occur with less than 14 seconds remaining.
Got a fantastic basketball blog piece that you want featured on Hoops Rumors? Send your submissions to HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here's this week's look around the web..
- Celtics Hub can't wait to get rid of the former Nets that came over in the blockbuster.
- Posting And Toasting looks for silver linings in the J.R. Smith situation.
- The Brooklyn Game wants you to get to know the Pelicans a little better.
- Silver Screen And Roll explores the Lakers and the novelty of losing.
- Rufus On Fire looks at some potential lineups.
- Red94 asks how the Rockets will beat the Atlantic Division.
- The Two Man Game goes over the money plays.
- Cavs The Blog sizes up the Celtics and 76ers.
- 48 Minutes Of Hell supports the Spurs' deals for Tiago Splitter and Manu Ginobili.
- Blazers Edge asks if analytics enhance the NBA experience.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached here.
Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Humphries, 76ers
Will Delonte West find a home in 2013/14? Last night, Spencer Lund checked in on the stock of the troubled guard, who had some good times and some not so good times with the Celtics. Here's more out of the Atlantic Division..
- New Celtics acquisition Kris Humphries is in camp earlier than ever and determined to turn things around this season, his business manager tells Jared Zwerling of ESPN.com. Hump says that he's excited for a new start in Boston and is happy to know that the C's have no intention of tanking this season despite their efforts to build for the future.
- Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside wonders how the 76ers will utilize their D-League team this season. The 76ers will be starting from the ground up with their new team, the Delaware 87ers. Philly is obviously in rebuilding mode and one has to imagine that they'll want to get their young players as much run as possible.
- Forward Darington Hobson was one of the more talented players drafted by the Sixers' D-League affiliate this year, but he's now shifting his attention to finding a gig in the Chinese Basketball Association, a source tells Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside. As sixth man for the Warriors' Santa Cruz D-League affiliate that went all the way to the D-League Finals, the forward averaged 9.2 points, 6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists through 36 games.
Hoops Rumors Originals
This week, Hoops Rumors rolled out the brand new International Player Movement Tracker. The exciting new tool, put together with Mark Porcaro of Secret Rival, is the best way to keep track of basketballers from around the globe. Here’s a look back at the original analysis from the Hoops Rumors staff this week..
- In a two part series, Luke Adams broke down how each agency did in free agency.
- Chuck Myron gave us a roster previews for teams in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference.
- Luke gave us an explanation of the NBA’s maximum roster rules.
- Spencer Lund checked in on the free agent stock of Delonte West.
- Avery Bradley probably won’t get an extension worked out with the Celtics in Chuck’s estimation.
- Is Michael Beasley worth the risk? Most of you say yes.
- Beasley is also far and away the camp invite most likely to make his respective team, according to our readers.
- Chuck found that teams draw from a variety of sources to piece together their training camp rosters.
- Michael Pina asked if the Bulls should re-sign Luol Deng and opinions were split down the middle.
- Our readers aren’t too high on the Sixers this season.
- Get the Hoops Rumors iPhone/iPad app today!
- Follow your favorite team on Facebook, Twitter, and RSS.
- Get to know our 2013 Free Agent Tracker as well.
Week In Review: 9/9/13 – 9/15/13
Three years after the Heat parted ways with their 2008 lottery pick, Michael Beasley is headed back to Miami. It won't cost the Heat anything to roll the dice on Beasley as the 24-year-old agreed to a non-guaranteed, make-good contract. The club reportedly considers the fall audition to be no-risk, and worth the gamble. The former No. 2 overall pick is certainly troubled, but there's no denying that he has potential. Here's the rest of the week that was..
- Carmelo Anthony isn't interested in leaving the Knicks.
- LeBron James hopes to table the contract talk for the rest of the season. Good luck.
- Extension talks between the Bulls and Luol Deng have stalled.
- Guard Mike James has reached agreement with the Bulls.
- The Mavs are bringing Fab Melo to training camp.
- The Sixers finally signed a free agent when they agreed to a deal with Darius Morris. They're also signing Rodney Williams to a multi-year pact.
- The Suns and Bucks have interest in Royal Ivey.
- The Mavs went out and signed Devin Ebanks.
- Hamed Haddadi is weighing offers in the NBA and abroad.
- The NBPA is still waiting for official confirmation that Jay Z has divested his ownership stake in the Nets before granting him full NBA agent certification
- The Bulls signed guards Patrick Christopher and Kalin Lucas.
- The Heat signed Justin Hamilton.
- The Lakers could sign Marcus Landry and he has a good shot of making the team.
- Larry Sanders will make an even $11MM per year under his new deal.
- The Pacers are bringing Darnell Jackson in.
- Flip Saunders opened up about his offseason in Minnesota and his relationship with Kevin Love.
- Cameron Jones accepted a camp invite from Golden State.
- Julyan Stone and Chris Wright are coming to camp with the Raptors.
- The Nuggets have signed undrafted University of Mississippi power forward Reginald Buckner.
- The Nugs also signed Damion James.
- The Suns inked Dionte Christmas.
- The Kings added DeQuan Jones.
- As we've long expected, Khalif Wyatt agreed to terms with the 76ers.
- No teams will be sold until the NBA locks down their newer, more lucrative deal.
- It looks like Yi Jianlian won't be coming back to the NBA anytime soon.
- The Bulls are monitoring Kurt Thomas.
Pre-Camp Roster Outlooks: Western Conference
Yesterday, we looked at the way training camp rosters were shaping up for Eastern Conference teams, and today we'll do the same for the Western Conference. Camps open in two weeks, meaning its crunch time for unsigned free agents and teams with roster spots to fill. Using our updated roster counts and our list of non-guaranteed contracts, as well as the rumors we've been tracking throughout the summer, I've examined what each team likely to do in the weeks ahead:
- Clippers: Slightly above the tax line, the Clippers could slip beneath it if they drop their non-guaranteed contracts and dump a little salary via trade, as HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler recently suggested. That indicates that the team might not carry more than the 13 fully guaranteed contracts it currently has, but with only 15 total players, the Clippers will surely sign more for camp. They were still interested in Lou Amundson as of earlier this month.
- Grizzlies: Memphis is another team with 15 players and 13 guaranteed deals, and though the Grizzlies find themselves a few million dollars short of the tax line, they're still exercising financial caution, having released Fab Melo last month. The front office will almost certainly add more bodies for camp, but they'll all be long shots to make the team.
- Jazz: Expectations aren't high for Utah this year, and with a year that seems focused on player development ahead, I wouldn't be surprised to see them bring the full complement of 20 players to camp. That means there's work to do for GM Dennis Lindsey and company, who have agreements with only 14 players, just 12 of whom have fully guaranteed deals. They were reportedly scheduled to audition Justin Holiday and James Nunnally this past week, and it sounds like they recently took at look at Ronald Murray and Dallas Lauderdale, as well. Second-rounder Raul Neto is unsigned, but it seems most likely that he'll play overseas.
- Kings: Sacramento might have rounded out its roster with its addition Friday of DeQuan Jones for camp, and with 14 fully guaranteed contracts, that leaves one regular season job up for grabs, at most. The Kings are at 17 players, leaving Jones, C.J. Aiken, and the partially guaranteed Trent Lockett to battle for the 15th opening-night spot.
- Lakers: The purple-and-gold figure to have a wide open camp, with just 14 players and 11 guaranteed contracts in tow as the preseason draws near. Second-round pick Ryan Kelly remains unsigned as he deals with injury, and as the only NBA team without a rookie-scale contract on the books, the Lakers could use an infusion of young talent. They'll probably add several young players, and they may be in the mix for veterans Lou Amundson and Sebastian Telfair, too.
- Mavericks: NBA teams are never done dealing, but Dallas is as likely as any team in the league to stand pat in advance of camp. They have 15 guaranteed contracts and four others on fully non-guaranteed deals. The Mavs could fill one more preseason roster spot, but there's no pressing need to do so, given that they appear to have their opening-night roster set.
- Nuggets: Denver added a pair of camp invitees this week, bringing their roster to 17. The Nuggets have 14 players on fully guaranteed deals and Quincy Miller on a partially guaranteed contract, so they may have all the bodies they need for the preseason.
- Pelicans: Lance Thomas has spent the past two seasons with New Orleans and has a tiny $15K guarantee for this year, but he's not a shoo-in for opening night. Only 13 Pelicans have fully guaranteed deals, and with just 15 total players, the Pelicans will almost certainly be signing more in the days ahead. James Nunnally is one possibility.
- Rockets: They may have 19 players, but the Rockets continued to pursue guys even after they hit the 20-man offseason roster limit last summer, so if that's any indication, there could be more movement in Houston before camp starts. Only 13 Rockets players possess fully guaranteed deals, but three more have partially guaranteed contracts.
- Spurs: San Antonio has 14 players on 14 fully guaranteed contracts, and though that leaves a spot open for 28th overall pick Livio Jean-Charles, he'll probably remain overseas this year. That means the Spurs are likely to bring in several players to audition for the 15th spot, though they're under no obligation to fill it. It sounds like they're prioritizing veterans, as Damien Wilkins worked out for them last week, while Mike Bibby, Mickael Pietrus, Sebastian Telfair and Josh Childress have all been linked to the team this month, though they're set to audition James Nunnally, too.
- Suns: Phoenix is in a tricky situation with 16 fully guaranteed contracts, meaning the Suns will either have to trade or cut one of them before opening night. Dionte Christmas is also with the team on a partially guaranteed contract, further complicating matters. They can bring three more players to camp, but any of them would be longshots to make the team. The Suns are among many looking at James Nunnally, and it appears they're also interested in Royal Ivey.
- Thunder: A report indicated the Thunder were unlikely to sign anyone of note for training camp as a replacement for DeAndre Liggins, whom the club waived last week. With a team salary approaching the tax line and 15 players already on board, the club may have its opening-night roster in place, but I still expect the team to sign a few young players for camp, if for no other reason than to retain their D-League rights for the Tulsa 66ers, their exclusive affiliate. Diante Garrett looks like he'll be one of them, and another might be second-round pick Grant Jerrett, who remains unsigned.
- Timberwolves: The T-Wolves have 14 players on 14 guaranteed contracts, and we've frequently heard that Othyus Jeffers, Robbie Hummel and second-round pick Lorenzo Brown will compete for the 15th opening-night roster spot, though none of the three have signed.
- Trail Blazers: It will be hard to earn a spot in Portland, where among the 19 players, 15 have full guarantees and another two are partially guaranteed. One of the non-guaranteed players is Terrel Harris, who seems unlikely to make the club in light of his impending league suspension. Still, anyone else who signs with Portland would appear destined for the team's D-League affiliate.
- Warriors: Golden State only has 12 fully guaranteed contracts, but the team is carrying three guys with partial guarantees, which is as many as any team in the league. Cameron Jones is with the team on a non-guaranteed pact, and it sounds like 2012 second-rounder Ognjen Kuzmic will be in camp, too.
Eastern Notes: Jordan, Heat, Magic, Raptors
Three Eastern Conference teams are carrying only 11 fully guaranteed deals, as I noted when I looked at how training camp rosters are shaping up for each team in the East. That means there should be plenty of intrigue ahead over the next several weeks for the Sixers, Cavaliers and Bulls as they decide how they'll look come opening night. Here's more from the East:
- Former Knicks center Jerome Jordan has reached a deal to play in Italy with Virtus Bologna, Sportando's Emiliano Carchia reports. Jordan played summer league ball for the Knicks and Pacers this year. The Knicks considered formally bringing him back to the team, but it appears the former second-round pick will instead play overseas this season.
- Chris Bosh's ability to establish himself as the Heat's second option over Dwyane Wade may be the key to convincing LeBron James to stick around, opines Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
- Maurice Harkless and Tobias Harris are two of the jewels of the Magic's rebuilding efforts, but they could wind up fighting each other for minutes this season, writes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
- Doug Smith of the Toronto Star addresses a few Raptors items in his mailbag column. The team invited three players to training camp in the past few days.
Poll: Which Camp Invitee Is Most Likely To Make It?
A few dozen players are on non-guaranteed, minimum-salary training camp deals with NBA teams, and more will surely follow with camps set to open in two weeks. Friday, I examined where each came from, noting that international circuits, the D-League, college and the pool of unsigned NBA veterans are all nearly equally fruitful sources of camp hopefuls. Since then, the Raptors have reached agreement on a deal with Angola-born shooting guard Carlos Morais, and presumably it's no more than a non-guaranteed camp invitation, too.
I limited that list to players without any sort of guarantee or extra year tacked on to their contracts, so each of them faces an uphill battle to make the regular season roster. Still, each year training camp invitees make teams around the league, and sometimes, as we saw with Chris Copeland of the Knicks last season, they play an important role.
Let us know which of the players who've drawn camp invitations so far this year is most likely to make his respective team. I've singled out a few of the more notable names for this poll, but its often the most unheralded players who emerge out of the pack, so if you think that's the case, choose the "Somebody Else" option. In any case, let us know the reasons behind your vote in the comments.
Which Camp Invitee Is Most Likely To Make It?
-
Michael Beasley, Heat 72% (443)
-
Fab Melo, Mavericks 11% (68)
-
Mike James, Bulls 8% (52)
-
Somebody Else 5% (33)
-
Rasual Butler, Pacers 3% (16)
Total votes: 612
Odds & Ends: Kings Arena, Kobe, Raptors
The number of signatures necessary to vote on the public subsidy of a new Kings arena in Sacramento appears to be closing in on the minimum needed for the 2014 ballot, reports Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee.
But the success of that ballot measure hinges on the ability of Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed to Pork (STOP) to find the thousands of signatures financed by Chris Hansen. Hansen was recently fined $50K for contributing $100K to STOP in an effort curb Sacramento's plan to fund a new arena in an effort to buy the team and move it to Seattle.
Here are some some more links from around the league during a slow Saturday in September as most of the NBA world is watching the Mayweather-Alvarez fight…
- Nike PR Director Heidi Burgett shared a video of a Nike talk, via Twitter, where Kobe Bryant discussed what was going through his head after he tore his Achilles tendon during the April game that ended his 2012/13 season prematurely (h/t SI's Ben Golliver).
- Doug Smith of the Toronto Star confirms Angolan media reports that MVP of the African championships Carlos Morais will be in training camp with the Raptors (Twitter).
- Former Mavs and Pistons player Mark Aguirre told the Star-Telegram's Full Court Press blog that basketball on both coasts has shifted with the Clippers overtaking the Lakers in Los Angeles and the Nets overtaking the Knicks in New York.
- Star-Telegram beat writer Dwain Price adds, in a tweet, that when asked about the Heat's chances for a 3-peat, Aguirre said, "I don’t know if any of the other teams that are pushing them 4 the title understand how 2 win the big game.''
- Matt Moore of CBS Sports believes there would have been a more formal investigation if the revelations are true about three members of the 1981/82 Knicks colluding to throw games for their drug dealer.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Delonte West
NBA teams sometimes deem a player untouchable after off-the-court issues make them a risk for any guaranteed contract. Even serious injury problems won't scare teams as much as when players are considered locker-room problems; the Cavs signed Andrew Bynum to a deal where only $6MM of his $12MM contract this year is guaranteed, with a team option for $12.5MM in 2014/15.
But the trend away from troubled players is never more evident than with former Celtics and Cavaliers guard Delonte West. West hasn't appeard on an NBA court since the 2011/12 season when he averaged 9.6 PPG, 3.2 APG and 1.3 SPG in a shade over 24 minutes a night for the Mavs. The 6'4" guard out of St. Joseph's University shot over 46 percent from the field and better than 35 percent from beyond the arc in his last season with a hungover championship team in Dallas.
But West's troubled behavior during his time in training camp last fall led the Mavs to cut him. West signed with the Development League's Texas Legends, but was tardy in reporting and only played in eight games for the team while averaging 10.4 points and 4.4 assists.
West turned 30 years old in July and after the Knicks and Grizzlies expressed interest earlier in the summer, the Knicks' interest waned. Despite the advocacy of Grizzlies guard Tony Allen, nary a whiff has been rumored about West even after he said he was open to a non-guaranteed deal.
The lack of interest is a little peculair considering the positive reactions to his play at Tim Grgurich's camp in Las Vegas in mid-August. But West's mental health struggles — he suffers from bipolar disorder — and his run-ins with the law over the years have scared teams off.
It's worth noting that Delonte's play on the court has never been the problem. He's shot slightly above league average from 3-point range over his eight-year career (37.2%), and he's averaged over 30 minutes a night for multiple playoff teams and title contenders, like the late 2000s Cavs. He plays hard defense and is an unselfish player who can be a contributor off the bench or as an interim starter.
Plenty of teams need help in the backcourt, but there are a lot of available guards still left on the market, including Richard Hamilton, whose free agent stock Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors assessed last week. But while most of the guards available may fall short of the experience and numbers West can bring to the table, the lack of interest from teams this summer leads one to believe teams are wary of West's issues off a basketball court.
Since the rumored interest by the Knicks, they've re-signed Pablo Prigioni and signed Beno Udrih to backup Raymond Felton. The Grizzlies were West's other potential suitor earlier in the summer, but they've already signed Nick Calathes to a two-year deal worth less than $2MM. While Calathes is talented, the Grizzlies still might want to bring West in to take a closer look during training camp.
Unfortunately, after so many issues completely unrelated to basketball still surrounding West, the talented guard is hovering in absentia after already missing the entirety of the 2012/13 season. If a team does take a chance on him and invites him to training camp, it'll likely they're trying to get a feel for how he meshes with the rigors of NBA life again.
A contender with a strong front office and an experienced coach is the sort of team that seems likely to take a chance on West sometime during the season if he doesn't catch on before training camp. But West's repeated chances to stay in the NBA are slowly dwindling.
Atlantic Notes: Williams, Knicks, Sixers, Guerin
The back-and-forth between the new-look Nets and the Knicks this summer has kept the tabloids afloat. After coming over to the Nets with Kevin Garnett in the mega trade with the Celtics, Paul Pierce appeared to have started the war of words by telling ESPN New York's 98.7 FM he thought it was time "the Nets start running New York."
ESPN New York's Ian Begley asked Nets point guard Deron Williams about the quote, and Williams supported his new teammate, but didn't elaborate much beyond wanting to settle the inter-city rivalry on the court.
"That's my teammate so I'm with him. Of course we want to run New York. The Knicks are our rival. I don't get into too much of the talking. We'll decide all that on the court. We have four games to play against them and then the playoffs so I'll let Paul do the talking and I'll just go out there and play."
Williams also noted that the advanced age of Nets' roster means, "Our time is now," he told Begley. "We have a short window to try to win."
Here's what else is happening around the Atlantic division on a night when most are watching the big fight…
- The New York Post, by way of Ben Golliver at Sports Illustrated, confirmed allegations by Brian Tuohy in his book, Larceny Games: Sports Gambling, Game Fixing and the FBI, that Knicks players were fixing games for their drug dealer during the 1981/82 season.
- According to the Post, the FBI has confirmed the authenticity of the documents cited by Tuohy in his book. The Knicks would not comment on the allegations.
- According to Touhy's book, the FBI "seemed to possess very credible information that three members of the New York Knicks were shaving points as a favor to their cocaine supplier."
- Newsday's Bob Herzog profiles former Knick Richie Guerin after he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame last weekend.
- Philadelphia Daily News' beat writer Bob Cooney originally said the Sixers would win 22 games this season, but now thinks it'll be closer to 18 after talking to a team higher-up (Twitter).