Hawks Notes: Snyder, Adonis Thomas, Camp
After entering the offseason with more cap space than virtually any other NBA team, the Hawks didn't end up landing one of the summer's top free agents, but came away with a decent haul that included Paul Millsap, Jeff Teague, and Elton Brand, among others. As he looks back at the offseason and ahead to training camp, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution passes along a few tidbits on the Hawks, so let's round those up….
- As was previously reported, Atlanta assistants Quin Snyder and Kenny Atkinson both interviewed for the Sixers' head coaching opening before Brett Brown was hired. However, Snyder withdrew his name from consideration before a decision was made, according to Vivlamore.
- Adonis Thomas will likely be invited to Hawks training camp, though nothing is official yet. The former Memphis Tiger went undrafted in June, but played for Atlanta's Summer League squad in July.
- The Hawks are a good bet to carry 14 players on their regular-season roster, since GM Danny Ferry likes having some flexibility for that 15th spot, writes Vivlamore. However, the team still figures to add more players to its camp roster. In addition to Eric Dawson and David Lighty, Atlanta will probably bring two to four more players to camp, including a guard and a small forward.
Odds & Ends: Spurs, Sixers, Suns, Mekel
No team in NBA history has seen their 15th man have a significant impact on their season and the Spurs aren't likely to be the first, writes Dan McCarney of Spurs Nation. However, the fact that the Spurs are thinking about point guard Mike Bibby and Sebastian Telfair might say something about their concerns over the aging Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Here's more from around the Association..
- The 76ers are considering a number of free agent point guards including Rodrigue Beaubois, Chris Duhon, and Daniel Gibson, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (on Twitter).
- New Suns GM Ryan McDonough is eager to rebuild in Phoenix, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. McDonough moved or released five of the team’s top nine scorers from last season with an eye on the bigger picture. “Walking in there, the main thing I wanted to do is upgrade the talent,” said McDonough. “And do it in a fashion that was sustainable for the long term. I didn’t want to try to take any shortcuts or try any quick fixes.”
- Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype caught up with new Mavs point guard Gel Mekel. Mekel said that he chose Dallas over three other NBA clubs because he believed that Dallas sees him as a long-term piece.
- Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside wonders if financial security would make the D-League more desirable for players.
- Based on an early best estimate, Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld looks at the teams that will be in position to go shopping during the free agent bonanza of next summer.
Eastern Notes: Heat, Pistons, Pierce, Williams
We learned earlier today that the Heat are bringing Justin Hamilton to camp, which wasn't a huge surprise since the former LSU big man has been working out at AmericanAirlines Arena for the last few weeks. Hamilton had his moments with the Heat during the 2012 offseason, after he was acquired in a draft-night trade with the 76ers, leading some on the Heat staff at the time to see him as a more promising prospect than Jarvis Varnado. However, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes that Hamilton still faces long camp odds with Greg Oden already something of a long-term developmental project and the Heat possibly keeping the minimum of 13 players to start the year. Hamilton's chances of making the team could also rest on the Heat's ability to move Joel Anthony's pesky contract. Here's more out of the Eastern Conference..
- The Central Division is one of the most fascinating divisions in the NBA because of the expectations of competitiveness from each team, writes Zach Harper of CBSSports.com. For the Pistons, their best-case scenario will be seeing Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith become bona fide NBA stars. For the Bulls and Pacers, their ceilings see them as real championship contenders.
- John Havlicek told Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe (Sulia link) that he believes the departed Paul Pierce is the greatest one-on-one Celtics player of all-time.
- Former Nets big man Jordan Williams signed with Spanish club Bilbao Basket last week but was waived over the weekend, according to HoopsHype (via Twitter).
Northwest Notes: Jazz, T-Wolves, Thunder
The Jazz have a big decision on their hands this fall as they have until Halloween to extend Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward. Utah is comfortable with heading into the season without new deals for either player, but it might behoove them to lock them up before they see big minutes in 2013/14 and increase their value. In last week's poll, most Hoops Rumors readers said that they expect both players to get extensions ironed out. Here's more from the Northwest Division..
- Zach Harper of CBSSports.com sees an extension of roughly $8MM per season for Hayward and the Jazz.
- Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities has reported on multiple occasions that the Timberwolves would likely leave their final regular season roster spot up for grabs between Othyus Jeffers, Robbie Hummel, Lorenzo Brown and another big man, but Flip Saunders tells WCCO that there's no unnamed big man forthcoming, as Wolfson points out via Twitter. So, it appears it's down to Jeffers, Hummel and Brown, though none of the three have inked a camp invite yet.
- The Thunder, after relocating from Seattle, had the luxury of being able to build at a slower pace because the fans in OKC were supportive and anxious for basketball. A move to Seattle would have afforded the Kings a similar opportunity, HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram argues.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Hoops Links: Kings, Schmidt, Rose, Duncan
Nearly 29 years ago today, the Bulls signed their first-round pick out of UNC, Michael Jordan. The shooting guard captured the Naismith and the Wooden College Player of the Year awards after his junior season in 1984 and opted to forgo his senior year in favor of the draft. This was one underclassman who wasn’t overwhelmed by the jump to the pros and he had a pretty decent career for himself from that point forward.
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..
- The Brooklyn Game gets you up to speed on the Kings.
- Nets Daily explains how Oscar Schmidt could have been a Net.
- Blog A Bull talks Derrick Rose and hype.
- Pounding The Rock goes inside the mind of Tim Duncan.
- Rufus On Fire revists Adam Morrison‘s tenure in Charlotte.
- Red94 asks what the best case scenario is for the Rockets.
- Liberty Ballers reflects on Tim Thomas, Chris Webber, and other busts in Philly.
- Golden State Of Mind has some thoughts on the Warriors’ offseason.
- Indy Cornrows is happy to see Paul George settled in at home.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached here.
Week In Review: 9/2/13 – 9/8/13
The Michael Beasley era in Phoenix is over after the Suns waived the forward earlier this week. The Suns explained soon afterwards explaining why they cut ties with the former No. 2 overall pick. "The Suns were devoted to [Beasley]’s success in Phoenix," said president of basketball operations Lon Babby in a statement. "However, it is essential that we demand the highest standards of personal and professional conduct as we develop a championship culture. Today’s action reflects our commitment to those standards. The timing and nature of this, and all of our transactions, are based on the judgment of our basketball leadership as to how best to achieve our singular goal of rebuilding an elite team." Here's the rest of the week that was..
- The Heat might be open to signing Beasley.
- The Lakers officially signed Xavier Henry.
- The Thunder said goodbye to DeAndre Liggins after he got himself in a bit of trouble.
- Devin Ebanks has a few suitors.
- Mike Bibby and Mickael Pietrus worked out for the Spurs.
- Chris Mullin will join the Kings front office.
- Sebastian Telfair might have interest from the Lakers and others.
- The Pacers reached agreement with Rasual Butler.
- The Knicks, Bucks, and Heat like Hassan Whiteside.
- Danny Ainge talked about the blockbuster deal with the Nets.
- J.R. Smith got suspended for a drug violation.
- The Heat will bring Justin Hamilton to camp.
- Damen Bell-Holter was invited to come to camp with the Celtics.
- The Blazers will sign Richard Howell.
- The Knicks inked Toure Murry.
- J-Kidd is buying some of Jay-Z's stock in the Nets.
- David Lighty will camp with the Hawks.
- The Warriors will sign DeWayne Dedmon.
Hoops Rumors Originals
Here’s a look back at the original analysis produced by the Hoops Rumors staff this week..
- Chuck Myron ran down 2012 camp cuts who earned 10-day contracts.
- Luke Adams notes that there are several clubs with preseason cap decisions to make.
- I asked if J.R. Smith‘s three-year, $17.95MM deal was a good idea for the Knicks and a small majority of you said it wasn’t.
- Chuck predicts that DeMarcus Cousins will be the most talented extension-eligible player not to get an extension this year.
- Luke would be surprised if Richard Hamilton doesn’t play in the NBA this year.
- Most of you see the Jazz extending both Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors.
- Rudy Gay is both a trade candidate and an extension candidate.
- Ryan Raroque asked you to pick the most improved player in the Pacific Division – most of you like Greivis Vasquez and Wesley Johnson.
- Here’s a look at teams with multiple clients from the same agency, courtesy of Chuck.
- There are still a number of second round picks that remain unsigned.
- The Suns and Wizards lead the way in rookie scale deals, Chuck notes.
- Would Hoops Rumors readers sign Michael Beasley? Opinions are split.
- Chuck ran down upcoming rookie-scale option decisions.
- Chuck examined Vasquez as an extension candidate.
- Play nice, everyone. Here’s a refresher on our commenting policy.
- Here’s a comparison of salaries for No. 2 overall picks over time.
- Here are non-guaranteed players on non-minimum deals.
- And this year’s non-guaranteed players, by team.
- Here’s how you can follow specific players on Hoops Rumors.
Southeast Rumors: Drew, Jardine, Turkoglu
It's the time of year when the choice for some players is a spot at the end of an NBA bench or an overseas excursion. Three players appear to be teetering on the edge of playing with a Southeast Division team or seeking employment with another circuit. Here's the latest:
- Undrafted point guard Larry Drew II will audition for the Heat this week, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Drew was supposed to join the Heat in summer league, but a quad injury derailed that plan. He's the son of Bucks coach Larry Drew.
- A report in July said undrafted point guard Scoop Jardine would likely wind up in Bobcats camp, but the former Syracuse mainstay has signed with KK Zadar of Croatia, tweets Mark Porcaro of Secret Rival.
- Hedo Turkoglu remains under contract with the Magic, but his camp is continuing talks with Fenerbahce Ulker in Turkey, Fenerbahce manager Mirsad Turkcan tells Niki Bakouli of Eurohoops.net. The overseas club reportedly extended a $3.4MM offer to the veteran forward.
2012 Camp Cuts Who Earned 10-Day Contracts
A few dozen players will sign contracts with NBA teams in the next few weeks as teams add bodies for training camp, but those camp invitations aren't the only shot many of them will have at sticking with an NBA team this season. Nearly half of the 32 players who signed 10-day contracts last season were training camp casualties last fall. Another 10 were in camp with an NBA team and made the regular season roster before getting cut and later signing at least one 10-day deal.
In some cases, that's the plan all along. Teams often sign players for camp with no expectation that they'll make the regular season roster. Instead, NBA clubs will retain their D-League rights and carry those guys on their farm teams so they'll be ready when injuries or other circumstances create an opportunity during the season. Not every training camp cut is willing to toil in the D-League while they wait for a second-chance, as some of them prefer to play overseas for more money. Still, the allure of the NBA is such that many will do whatever's necessary for a second chance.
Here's a breakdown of last-year's 10-day signees, grouped by those who were in camp and failed to make the opening-night roster, those who made the team out of camp but were later waived, and those who didn't attend camp.
Attended camp, got cut (14 players)
- Josh Akognon
- Lazar Hayward
- Damion James
- Chris Johnson (of Dayton)
- Chris Johnson (of LSU)
- Travis Leslie
- Jerel McNeal
- Shelvin Mack
- Shavlik Randolph
- Henry Sims
- DaJuan Summers
- Terrence Williams
- Chris Wright (of Georgetown)
- Jarvis Varnado
Survived camp (10 players)
- Lou Amundson
- Josh Harrellson
- Terrel Harris
- Kris Joseph
- Dominic McGuire
- Scott Machado
- Jannero Pargo
- Jeremy Pargo
- Donald Sloan
- Maalik Wayns
Didn't attend camp (8 players)
- Chris Andersen
- Justin Dentmon
- Mickael Gelabale
- Juwan Howard
- Mike James
- Kenyon Martin
- Malcolm Thomas
- D.J. White
The Hoops Rumors 10-Day Contract Tracker and RealGM.com were used in the creation of this post.
Celtics Invite Damen Bell-Holter To Camp
The Celtics are adding an off-the-radar prospect, having invited undrafted Damen Bell-Holter to training camp, the power forward tells A.J. Jankowski of the Ketchikan Daily News. Germany's Telekom Baskets Bonn had just declined to renew Bell-Holter's three-week tryout contract when the Celtics extended their offer to agents Mitchell Butler and Toby Bailey. Bell-Holter indicates to Jankowski that he'll accept the invitation.
The Alaskan-born Bell-Holter wasn't highly regarded coming out of Oral Roberts this year. Neither DraftExpress nor ESPN.com listed him in their prospect rankings, and we didn't hear of any NBA team bringing him in for a predraft workout. The 6'9" power forward didn't take part in NBA summer league action after averaging 15.5 points and 9.4 rebounds in 31.5 minutes per game as a college senior this past season. NBA scouts may have been most familiar with him from his work at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament this spring, where he put up 7.7 PPG and 4.3 RPG in nearly 24 minutes of action per contest against other NCAA seniors.
The 23-year-old was sorting through offers before the Celtics called, and he said he was probably going to accept one from a team in Greece. Instead, Bell-Holter will have a shot, however remote, at making the Celtics regular season squad next month. His addition will give the Celtics 19 players, one short of the training camp roster limit. The deal is non-guaranteed, Bell-Holter confirms to Jankowski.
If Bell-Holter survives camp cuts, he'll become just the second player born in Alaska to appear in an NBA regular season game, joining Mario Chalmers.