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Month: September 2013

Poll: Was J.R. Smith’s New Deal A Good Idea?

By | at September 7, 2013 8:36 am

The Knicks' top priority this offseason was re-signing swingman J.R. Smith to a new deal.  The unrestricted free agent was garnering a good deal of interest on the open market but the Knicks and agent Leon Rose agreed to a four-year, $24.7MM deal on July 4th.  Done deal, right?  Not quite.

Soon after, it was revealed that Smith would have to undergo offseason knee surgery.  Suddenly, what seemed like a no-brainer deal for the defending Sixth Man of the Year was no longer a slam dunk.  The patellar tendon surgery and arthroscopy for a tear in the lateral meniscus of his left knee will keep Smith out for at least the first few weeks of the 2013/14 season.  After the news of the surgery was disclosed, Smith and Rose got the deal amended to a three-year, $17.95MM pact, which may be a positive for the Knicks, depending on how you look at it.

Yesterday, we learned that Smith will be out even longer than expected after being suspended for a drug violation.  After his knee heals up, Smith will have to be sidelined for an additional five games and given Smith's reported proclivity for partying, one has to wonder if this could be a recurring issue.  

By the same token, Smith is coming off of a career year in which he averaged 18.1 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 2.7 APG in 33.5 minutes per game off of the bench.  It's not easy to find that kind of production elsewhere, especially when you don't have cap space to work with.  All things considered, is Smith's three-year, $17.95MM deal a good idea for the Knicks?

Should The Knicks Have Re-Signed Smith To A Three-Year, $17.95MM Deal?

  • No 54% (320)
  • Yes 46% (278)

Total votes: 598

3 comments Hoops Rumors Polls New York Knicks

Ainge On Pierce, KG, Rivers, Stevens

By | at September 6, 2013 11:08 pm

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge presided over a summer of drastic change for his team, trading Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to the Nets, arranging a deal that saw Doc Rivers head to the Clippers, and making the surprise hire of new coach Brad Stevens. Ainge spoke with Grantland's Bill Simmons about those moves and other subjects for a podcast, and NetsDaily provides a transcript that covers the Brooklyn-related items. We'll pass along some of the highlights from that, along with a few more of Ainge's quotes:

On how the trade with the Nets came to be:

"Like a lot of trades, it evolved from something completely different into a bigger deal. (It was) something that I really didn't think would happen, simply because it takes sort of a special, unique circumstance in order for a trade like that to go through, and the tax ramifications of Brooklyn are I would call unique in today's day and age in the NBA right now with the new CBA. But (the Nets were) a team that was really going for it, and money was not an object, and that was probably the reason why we got a better offer today than we would've even gotten two or three years ago."

On the influence agent Jeff Schwartz had on the Nets deal:

"I also think that Paul has a connection with having the same agent as Deron Williams and Jason Kidd, and I think there probably was some discussion going on there. I don't know that for sure, but my guess is that they had some conversation about it. I know that Paul was the one who talked KG into wanting to do the deal or letting go of his no-trade clause to make the deal happen and that took some convincing to do."

On the current value of Pierce and Garnett:

"I just think it came to the point where those guys as the best two players on a team aren't going to go very far. Those guys as a 3rd and 4th, or 4th and 5th, however you look at it, are pretty dang good still, and I think (Brooklyn) is going to have a terrific team next year."

On losing Rivers:

"I thought Doc would be our coach for a long time. When Doc signed his new contract (with the Celtics), we'd even talked about him being Jerry Sloan, and Gregg Popovich, and breaking Red Auerbach's all-time record as a Celtic coach. We knew that our guys were getting older, but we thought that this time might come, so I had anticipated Doc being around for a long time. I never had any idea that he would want out, but I understand it, and I understand the Clippers have much more to offer right now than we do on the court. I just thought that Doc wanted to continue to participate with me and (owners) Wyc Grousbeck and (Stephen Pagliuca) and (continue) to try to rebuild this thing as we had done before. At the same time, I do understand that that's not fun, and that's not fun (for) coaches."

On his pitch to Stevens and the new coach's lengthy contract with the C's:

"I think that a six-year commitment might have made a difference. I'm not sure. We never had a negotiation. His wife was his agent, and his wife wanted to understand the language in one paragraph that we explained to her, and that was basically the entire negotiation."

0 comments Boston Celtics Brooklyn Nets Los Angeles Clippers

2013 Second-Round Picks Who Remain Unsigned

By | at September 6, 2013 9:46 pm

Today is the deadline for teams to make an offer of at least the minimum salary to this year's second-round picks. Those players would become free agents if their clubs fail to extend the required tender, but in most cases, the deadline is a formality. Twelve of the 30 second-rounders this year have already signed with their NBA clubs, while 11 have agreements with overseas clubs. That leaves seven unresolved cases, as we examine below.

Teams can perpetually retain the NBA rights to second-rounders playing overseas, and it's common practice for them to do so, particularly with players who hail from outside North America to begin with. Clubs can evaluate their second-rounders in summer league, but if they bring them to training camp, they lose the rights to those players if they cut them. 

That can make the tender deadline a little tricky, as Grantland's Zach Lowe examined last month. Second-round picks who sign with NBA teams usually wind up with some amount of guaranteed money, and sometimes get a salary greater than the minimum, so teams can try to push them to sign overseas by making only the one-year required tender. But a second-rounder who is determined to play in the NBA immediately can force a team's hand by accepting the tender, thus daring the club to cut him and forfeit his rights.

Further complicating matters is the growing trend of long-term deals for second-round picks, tying them to their teams at cheap salaries for three and four seasons at a time. If the player pans out, he can become one of the league's most underpaid players, a la Chandler Parsons.

Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors touched on some of the second-rounders without a deal when he wrote about unsigned draft picks last month, but in light of today's deadline, here's an in-depth look at what we know about each of the seven 2013 second-round draft picks without a deal:

  • Grant Jerrett, Thunder (40th overall) — We haven't heard anything about the former Arizona power forward since Oklahoma City acquired his rights from the Blazers at draft time. The Thunder are among the league's most secretive organizations, so perhaps the club and player are quietly negotiating a deal. Eight of the nine second-round picks taken ahead of Jerrett have NBA contracts, though the Thunder hold the rights to the only one who doesn't: Alex Abrines, who'll remain overseas. Jerrett averaged 10.8 points and 3.5 rebounds in 28.6 minutes per game for the Thunder's summer league team.
  • Marko Todorovic, Rockets (45th overall): The Rockets acquired Todorovic via trade from the Blazers, too, and he's also stayed out of the news since then. He's under contract with FC Barcelona after signing a three-year deal last summer, so perhaps the pact either doesn't include an NBA out, or the NBA out is set at a prohibitive price. He didn't play in summer league.
  • Raul Neto, Jazz (47th overall): It appeared shortly after the draft as though Neto wouldn't join the Jazz this season, and he said in July that he'd probably spend the year playing in Spain. GM Dennis Lindsey spoke highly of Neto last month, but it remains undecided where he'll be for the 2013/14 campaign. Neto put up 3.7 PPG and 3.0 APG in 16.2 MPG during summer league.
  • Ryan Kelly, Lakers (48th overall): The Lakers were reportedly expected to sign Kelly, However, he missed summer league while recovering from multiple foot procedures, and the team doubts he'll be ready when camp starts, as Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com wrote this week.
  • Romero Osby, Magic (51st overall): The Magic have made their required tender, and there's mutual interest in reaching an agreement that would bring him to camp this fall. He notched 11.0 PPG, 4.4 RPG and 21.1 MPG in summer league. 
  • Lorenzo Brown, Timberwolves (52nd overall): Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities has twice reported that Brown will likely go to camp and compete for the team's final regular season roster spot. He produced 8.3 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 19.1 MPG in summer league action.
  • Janis Timma, Grizzlies (60th overall): There's been no news on Timma since the Grizzlies made him the final pick of the draft. Luke wrote last month that the Grizzlies didn't have much room on their roster for him, but since then, they've traded Tony Wroten and waived Fab Melo, trimming the roster to 15, with only 13 guaranteed deals. The Latvian small forward wasn't too impressive in summer league, scoring just 2.5 PPG on 20.8% shooting in 13.9 MPG.
0 comments 2013 NBA Draft

Western Notes: Newton, Rockets, Durant

By | at September 6, 2013 8:11 pm

Most of the day's news has come from the Western Conference, where the Trail Blazers signed a player, the Thunder dropped one, the T-Wolves added to their front office. We also asked whether the Jazz are likely to extend Gordon Hayward, Derrick Favors, both, or neither, with a majority of readers who responded feeling as though Utah will get a pair of deals done. There's yet more going on in the West, as we detail:

  • Michael Lee of The Washington Post provides background on new Timberwolves GM Milt Newton, whose hiring became official today. Newton spent the last 10 seasons with the Wizards.
  • The Rockets have four players on their roster currently participating in international competitions, as well as a pair of "draft-and-stash" guys who are also taking part in those events. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle checks in on how all of them are doing, 
  • Kevin Durant gave a qualified no when asked if he'd ever leave the Thunder, and while Royce Young of DailyThunder.com says Durant's "as of now" caveat is noteworthy, Young doesn't think it carries too much significance with KD tied to the team until 2016.
0 comments Houston Rockets Minnesota Timberwolves Oklahoma City Thunder

Thunder Waive DeAndre Liggins

By | at September 6, 2013 7:17 pm

7:17pm: The Thunder are unlikely to sign anyone of note for training camp as a replacement for Liggins, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Still, I'd expect them to bring on a few inexperienced hopefuls, as most teams do as camp draws near.

7:07pm: Liggins was formally charged with seven felonies shortly before the Thunder waived him, reports Matt Dinger of The Oklahoman. The charges include counts of domestic abuse, kidnapping, and domestic assault and battery.

6:16pm: The Thunder have waived DeAndre Liggins, the team has announced via press release. Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman speculated that such a move was on the way this week after reporting Saturday that the former University of Kentucky Wildcat had been arrested for alleged domestic abuse. Liggins was already on shaky ground, with a non-guaranteed contract that seemed expendable when the team was chasing Mike Miller.

Liggins was set to make the minimum salary this season, the second of a two-year deal to which the Thunder inked him last fall. His release drops the team to 15 contracts, only 12 of which are fully guaranteed. Ostensibly, it's a boost for Daniel Orton's hopes of making the team, since the departure of Liggins makes him the only Oklahoma City player without at least a partial guarantee, but the Thunder are likely to invite more players to compete for a spot in training camp.

Orton and Liggins have an extensive shared history. They played together at Kentucky, spent their rookie years with the Magic, and joined OKC last season. Both made frequent trips to the Thunder's D-League affiliate in Tulsa in 2012/13, though Liggins, unlike Orton, saw the majority of his action with the big club. The 6'6" swingman averaged 7.4 minutes per game in 39 NBA contests, and saw increased run in the playoffs as the Thunder dealt with Russell Westbrook's injury, notching 8.5 MPG. Still, Liggins scored only eight total points in eight playoff games, which wasn't much better than his 1.5 PPG during the regular season.

0 comments Oklahoma City Thunder Transactions

Suns, Wizards Lead NBA With 7 Rookie-Scale Deals

By | at September 6, 2013 6:15 pm

The Lakers have glitz, glamour and 16 NBA titles. Still, they're the only team in the league without a player on a rookie-scale contract.

Every other club has at least one generally team-friendly rookie-scale deal on its books. The Suns boast seven such deals, nearly half of the 16 guaranteed contracts on their roster, and it makes sense, given the team's commitment to youth this season. The Wizards also have seven rookie-scale contracts, but they have playoff aspirations this season. One of their rookie-scale guys, John Wall, will be getting a hefty raise soon, since he agreed to a maximum-salary extension earlier this summer. For now, though, he's still a bargain, as is Larry Sanders of the Bucks, who also has signed an extension during the season.

Teams aren't so lucky with every rookie-scale contract. The Celtics gave up Fab Melo via trade with the Grizzlies, and Memphis turned around and waived last year's 22nd overall pick. His deal will still be on the team's books, though we don't list it below.

The Sixers are in the middle of the pack with four rookie deals, but they should be climbing the chart soon, since they have a pair of unsigned 2013 draft picks in Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams. The Spurs haven't signed 28th overall pick Livio Jean-Charles, but he seems likely to play overseas this season, so San Antonio will probably stay with two rookie-scale contracts this year.

Here's the complete list, with the year the contract expires in parentheses:

Phoenix Suns (7)

Washington Wizards (7)

Utah Jazz (6)

Cleveland Cavaliers (5)

Sacramento Kings (5)

Boston Celtics (5)

Milwaukee Bucks (5)

Oklahoma City Thunder (5)

Orlando Magic (5)

Charlotte Bobcats (4)

Golden State Warriors (4)

Minnesota Timberwolves (4)

Philadelphia 76ers (4) #

Portland Trail Blazers (4)

Atlanta Hawks (3)

Denver Nuggets (3)

Detroit Pistons (3)

Chicago Bulls (3)

Houston Rockets (2)

Indiana Pacers (2)

Memphis Grizzlies (2)

New Orleans Pelicans (2)

New York Knicks (2)

San Antonio Spurs (2) #

Toronto Raptors (2)

Brooklyn Nets (1)

  • Mason Plumlee (2017)

Dallas Mavericks (1)

  • Shane Larkin (2017)

Los Angeles Clippers (1)

  • Reggie Bullock (2017)

Miami Heat (1)

Los Angeles Lakers (0)

*—Player has received rookie-scale extension
#—Team has unsigned 2013 first-round pick 

HoopsWorld was used in the creation of this post.

0 comments Los Angeles Lakers Phoenix Suns Washington Wizards

Poll: Will Jazz Extend Favors And/Or Hayward?

By | at September 6, 2013 4:33 pm

As our list of players eligible for rookie-scale extensions shows, six NBA teams entered the season with multiple extension-eligible players on their respective rosters. Of those six clubs though, only a couple have more than one legit extension candidates under contract.

The Wizards and Bucks have already locked up John Wall and Larry Sanders respectively, but it'd be a bit surprising to see Trevor Booker or Kevin Seraphin sign a long-term deal with Washington, and Ekpe Udoh seems unlikely to re-up with Milwaukee quite yet. The Celtics and Grizzlies also don't have two genuine extension candidates on board.

But one team that realistically could extend multiple players is the Utah Jazz. By electing not to re-sign Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson this offseason, Utah committed to a youth movement centered around young players like Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward, Enes Kanter, and Alec Burks. Kanter and Burks are still a year away from being extension-eligible, but Favors and Hayward could be locked up long-term before November.

We heard in mid-August that the Jazz are comfortable heading into the season without new deals for either player, but the team is still engaged in extension talks with both guys, and Hayward tells Zac Keefer of the Indianapolis Star that he'd love to continue his career in Utah. It may also be in the team's best interest to work out deals now, before Favors and Hayward see a huge bump in minutes — and, presumably, in the rest of their numbers.

Utah's books are fairly wide open for the next few years, with no expensive long-term contracts tying up the club's cap space. In a pair of pieces on Favors and Hayward for our Extension Candidate series, Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors suggested both players could be in line for deals in the four-year, $40MM+ range, and the Jazz could afford those easily. On the other hand, perhaps the team prefers to wait and see how its young players respond to the increased responsibility and workload before committing too significantly to them. Without extensions, both guys would still be restricted free agents in 2014, so the Jazz would be able to keep one or both if they wanted to.

What do you think? Will the Jazz sign Favors and/or Hayward to contract extensions by the Halloween deadline?

Will the Jazz sign Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward to contract extensions this year?

  • Both players will be extended 66% (239)
  • Favors will be extended 20% (74)
  • Hayward will be extended 8% (28)
  • Neither player will be extended 6% (20)

Total votes: 361

1 comment Hoops Rumors Polls Utah Jazz

Timberwolves Hire Milt Newton As GM

By | at September 6, 2013 2:50 pm

SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2:50pm: The Timberwolves have officially hired Newton as the team's general manager, the team announced today (Twitter link). Jackson's hiring will likely be announced first thing next week, tweets Zgoda.

AUGUST 29TH, 6:29pm: Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (via Twitter) says that the team won't finalize and announce the hirings until next week. 

AUGUST 28TH, 1:41pm: The Timberwolves are in negotiations to add at least two new faces to the franchise, according to various reports. Both Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune are reporting that the T-Wolves are expected to hire Wizards exec Milt Newton as the team's new general manager, and Bobby Jackson as a player development coach.

Newton and Jackson have both been interviewed for their respective positions and should finalize deals with the Wolves soon, with the hirings set to be formally announced shortly thereafter. Zgoda and Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link) also note that Koichi Sato will likely come from the Wizards along with Newton, and will become Minnesota's new strength coach. Wolves president Flip Saunders worked with Newton and Sato when he coached the Wizards, while Jackson played under current head coach Rick Adelman for several years in Sacramento.

The hirings, when they become official, will essentially signal the end of a busy offseason for the Wolves, barring some smaller moves. In addition to hiring a new president (Saunders) and GM (Newton), the team has also committed the second-most money of any NBA club in free agency this summer, as I detailed yesterday.

1 comment Minnesota Timberwolves Washington Wizards

Odds & Ends: Bucks, Kennedy, Knicks, Hunt

By | at September 6, 2013 2:23 pm

As we continue counting down the days until NBA training camps open, let's round up a few Friday odds and ends from around the Association….

  • In an interesting piece at ESPN.com, Kevin Arnovitz speaks to Bucks executives John Hammond and David Morway about Milwaukee's aversion to tanking, and the team's "build-on-the-go" approach.
  • Sportando passes along a Gazzetta di Reggio report suggesting that Italian team Grissin Bon Reggio Emilia no longer seems to be pursuing D.J. Kennedy, who is focused on landing an NBA camp invite. Justin Holiday, who was released by the Sixers earlier this summer, may be a target for the Italian club, according to the report.
  • Despite the fact that Jeremy Tyler underwent foot surgery and will likely miss the next two months, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com argues (via Twitter) that the Knicks should wait to see how he heals rather than cutting him anytime soon. Begley notes that New York has made a "financial commitment" to Tyler already, though only $100K of the big man's $884K salary is guaranteed.
  • Whether or not the Knicks hang on to Tyler, the team appears likely to add another big man to compete for a roster spot, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
  • It's not out of the question that Gal Mekel turns out to be a better point guard for the Mavericks than Shane Larkin, according to Bryan Gutierrez of ESPNDallas.com, who gives the Mavs a grade of B for the team's signing of the Israeli guard.
  • In addition to working out for the Nets, 6'10" forward Kyle Hunt will also audition for the Pacers, says Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside.
  • Recent Clippers signee Brandon Davies is prepared to make an impression in camp and earn a roster spot, as he tells Eric Patten of Clippers.com.
0 comments Dallas Mavericks Indiana Pacers Los Angeles Clippers Milwaukee Bucks New York Knicks

J.R. Smith Suspended For Drug Violation

By | at September 6, 2013 1:15 pm

The NBA will suspend J.R. Smith for violating the league's substance abuse policy, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Frank Isola of the New York Daily News adds (via Twitter) that the suspension will be for five games, and the NBA has confirmed the news in a press release.

As Isola notes (on Twitter), a five-game suspension, which is identical to the one facing Terrel Harris of the Blazers, would suggest a positive test for marijuana. According to Isola, Smith didn't test positive for a performance-enhancing drug, which would result in a more severe penalty — generally a 20-game suspension.

Smith's status for the start of the season was already in doubt, due to offseason knee surgery, and he'll now miss an additional five games once he's healthy. While missing time with an injury won't affect Smith's pay, the five-game suspension will cost him a small portion of his $5.565MM salary for the 2013/14 season.

2 comments New York Knicks
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