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Month: November 2013

Mavs To Target Bosh In Free Agency?

By | at November 27, 2013 1:17 pm

Brian Windhorst’s latest column at ESPN.com focuses primarily on LeBron James‘ possible options as he approaches potential free agency in 2014, but the piece includes an interesting tidbit about one of LeBron’s teammates as well. According to Windhorst, league executives expect the Mavericks to target Chris Bosh in free agency next summer.

As I noted yesterday, the Mavs only have about $25MM in guaranteed salary committed to their books for 2014/15. That doesn’t include cap holds for Dirk Nowitzki and other free-agents-to-be like Shawn Marion and Vince Carter, but nonetheless, the team should have the flexibility to re-sign Dirk and add another impact free agent.

Some cap maneuvering could put the Mavs in position to be a player in the LeBron sweepstakes, but Bosh, a Dallas native, appears to be the team’s more likely target in the eyes of rival execs. Like James, Bosh will have the chance to opt out of his deal in 2014, though he’s not a lock to do so. Whereas LeBron would undoubtedly receive a new long-term, maximum-salary contract in free agency, there’s no guarantee Bosh would receive the same kind of offers.

Bosh, who will turn 30 later this season, is averaging just 15.5 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 13 contests this season, the lowest averages since his rookie year. The Georgia Tech product remains an efficient scorer and a productive big man, but he may ultimately be better off playing out his contract with the Heat, which would pay him $20.59MM in 2014/15 and $22.11MM in 2015/16. The 29-year-old also indicated earlier this year that he’d like to spend the rest of his career in Miami.

3 comments Dallas Mavericks Miami Heat

Players Still Not Trade-Eligible After Dec. 15th

By | at November 27, 2013 11:45 am

We’re not even a full month into the 2013/14 season, but already trade rumors have been swirling around several teams for weeks, with the first swap of the season having been finalized yesterday. Derrick Williams may be off the market, but big-name trade candidates like Omer Asik and Iman Shumpert remain available, and it looks as if we may see more deals than usual completed well in advance of February’s trade deadline.

However, as has been noted several times on Hoops Rumors and elsewhere, many teams won’t start seriously discussing trades until after December 15th. That’s the day when most players who signed free agent deals this offseason become eligible to be traded. The Mavericks, for instance, signed nine players as free agents this summer, so they’re currently unable to trade more than half the players on their roster. That doesn’t mean they can’t make a move in the next couple weeks, but they’ll certainly have more flexibility to do so after December 15th.

Not all players in the league will be trade-eligible even after December 15th though. The rules for trading recent signees state that the player can be dealt after three months or after December 15th, whichever comes later. That means players signed between September 16th and today will have to wait the required three months before becoming eligible for a trade.

Additionally, if a player entered the 2013 offseason as an Early Bird or Bird free agent, and his over-the-cap team re-signed him to a raise of 20% or more, the player can’t be moved until after January 15th.

Here’s the full list of players who fall under one of these two categories, and are therefore ineligible to be traded until the date indicated in parentheses:

ShamSports and RealGM were used in the creation of this post.

5 comments Uncategorized

Central Notes: LeBron, Cavs, Bulls, Bucks

By | at November 27, 2013 10:13 am

LeBron James and the Heat play in Cleveland tonight, which means we’re in for another round of rumors and speculation about the possibility of the reigning MVP returning to the Cavaliers next summer. However, Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer believes becoming fixated on the idea of signing LeBron next summer is the worst thing the Cavs and their fans can do. As Pluto notes, James may not even hit free agency in 2014, since he has the option to continue playing under his current contract. “Staring starry-eyed at James” won’t fix what’s wrong with the Cavs, who need to explore the trade market in hopes of upgrading their roster, writes Pluto.

Here’s more from around the Central:

  • If the Cavs are hoping to entice LeBron back to Cleveland, they’ll have to encourage him to use his imagination, since the team hasn’t looked good on the court, says Bud Shaw of the Plain Dealer.
  • Asked after the Bulls‘ Monday loss to the Jazz if he thought entering rebuilding mode was a viable option for his team’s front office, Joakim Noah replied, “I think it’s possible. I mean, yeah.” Still, GM Gar Forman insists the Bulls won’t make any “rash decisions.” Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times has the details and more quotes from Forman.
  • Luol Deng also acknowledged that he’s probably more likely to be traded following Derrick Rose‘s injury, but said he’s trying not to listen to speculation, tweets Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago.
  • A fan website, SaveOurBucks.com, has started a fundraising campaign in the hopes of securing a high-visibility billboard encouraging the Bucks to tank. The campaign is already more than 80% of the way to its $5,000 goal. Bucks owner Herb Kohl has publicly stated that he doesn’t believe in bottoming out in a rebuild, but given Milwaukee’s record, roster, and arena situation, along with the tantalizing 2014 draft class, all signs point to it being in the team’s best interests.
2 comments Chicago Bulls Cleveland Cavaliers Milwaukee Bucks

Kobe Bryant Defends Contract Extension

By | at November 27, 2013 8:37 am

Many of the early reactions to Kobe Bryant‘s two-year, $48.5MM extension suggested that the contract could cripple the Lakers’ ability to construct a contending roster around him, and questioned whether he took a significant enough pay cut. After hearing much of that criticism, Kobe shot back last night in a series of tweets and in a conversation with Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, defending his deal.

“Most of us have aspirations for being businessmen when our playing careers are over,” Bryant told Wojnarowski. “But that starts now. You have to be able to wear both hats. You can’t sit up there and say, ‘Well, I’m going to take substantially less because there’s public pressure,’ because all of a sudden, if you don’t take less, you don’t give a crap about winning. That’s total bull—-.”

On Twitter, Kobe pointed out that it was the “billionaire owners” who pushed hard during the 2011 lockout to create a new CBA that restricted the earning power of superstars, creating public pressure for players to be “selfless.” In Bryant’s view, he’s fortunate to play for an organization that still finds a way to take care of its stars.

“Most players in this league don’t have that,” Bryant said. “They get stuck in a predicament – probably intentionally done by the teams – to force them to take less money. Meanwhile, the value of the organization goes through the roof off the backs of their quote, unquote selfless players. It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard.”

Kobe has a point, and the fact that he remains perhaps the most marketable player in the NBA supports his argument — as many observers have noted this week, even if he’s no longer worth $24MM+ based on talent alone, his value to the Lakers organization extends far beyond his on-court play. He certainly shouldn’t be obligated to negotiate a deal worth less than what the team offered. However, it’s also fair to wonder if spending $24MM+ per year on a 36-year-old coming off an Achilles injury is the best use of the Lakers’ cap space, no matter how those cap rules came to be.

1 comment Los Angeles Lakers

Odds & Ends: Kobe, Bulls, Heat, Wizards

By | at November 26, 2013 11:14 pm

Kobe Bryant says he gave no thought to leaving the Lakers in free agency, and defended himself against criticism that his extension will hurt the team, as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt observes. Most Hoops Rumors readers agree, believing the Lakers will sign another max free agent in either 2014 or 2015. Here’s more from the Association:

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

1 comment 2014 NBA Draft 2019 World Cup Chicago Bulls Los Angeles Lakers Memphis Grizzlies Miami Heat New York Knicks Washington Wizards

Offseason In Review: Memphis Grizzlies

By | at November 26, 2013 9:58 pm

Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.

Signings

Extensions

Trades

  • Acquired Kosta Koufos from the Nuggets in exchange for Darrell Arthur and the No. 55 pick in 2013.
  • Acquired the rights to Nick Calathes from the Mavericks in exchange for a fully unprotected 2016 second-round pick. The Mavs had already acquired that 2016 second-rounder, but it had previously been top-55 protected. Calathes was subsequently signed for two years, $1.31MM via the minimum salary exception (second year is non-guaranteed).
  • Acquired Fab Melo and $1.66MM in cash from the Celtics in exchange for Donte Greene. Melo was subsequently waived.
  • Acquired a 2014 second-round pick (31-50 and 56-60 protected) from the Sixers in exchange for Tony Wroten.

Waiver Claims

Draft Picks

Camp Invitees

Departing Players

Rookie Contract Option Decisions

  • None

Rarely is there so much turmoil for a team that just had its best regular season and playoffs in franchise history. For the first time, the Grizzlies won 56 games and made the Western Conference Finals, but the front office chain of command isn’t clear. Chris Wallace has the title of GM, but his powers appear greatly reduced from what they had been under former owner Michael Heisley. CEO Jason Levien, vice president of basketball ops John Hollinger and even new owner Robert Pera all appear to have some say-so in the day-to-day decisions that shape the roster, along with Wallace. Whoever’s in charge clearly wasn’t a fan of Lionel Hollins, whom the team decided not to re-sign in spite of his success. Hollins clashed with the team’s new analytics-heavy approach, and the Grizzlies found one of his assistants, Dave Joerger, more willing to apply advanced statistics on the floor. Joerger’s installation as head coach is probably the most significant change to a veteran roster that has a shot at the championship, but still must exceed expectations to make it happen.

The key task the Grizzlies had to complete this summer to remain in the championship race was bringing back free agent Tony Allen, an All-NBA defender each of the past three seasons. At least a half-dozen other teams were after the 31-year-old, but it seemed his heart was in Memphis all along. The Grizzlies nonetheless wound up paying market price, if not a little more, for a swingman who excels on defense while creating spacing problems on offense with his lack of long-range shooting. He’ll be 35 by the time the fully guaranteed four-year deal is up, so it’s worth wondering if age will cause him to lose his ability to keep up with opponents by the back end of the contract. The move also used up most of the flexibility the team had beneath the luxury tax line, the space the team tried so hard to create with the Rudy Gay trade and other moves in 2012/13. Allen is nonetheless an elite defender, the likes of whom the team would struggle to replace, and a contract with an average annual salary of $5MM — slightly less than the full value of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception — isn’t too much to pay.

Memphis snagged another sought-after free agent when it picked up Mike Miller after he cleared amnesty waivers from the Heat. As with Allen, half-dozen other teams were also linked to Miller, but all it took was a guaranteed one-year deal for the minimum salary to bring the 33-year-old aboard. Concerns about his health likely prevented any team from making an offer for more than one guaranteed season, since his long list of ailments nearly provoked him to retire in 2012. A report suggested he was considering fusion surgery on his back this summer, though that might have been a ruse to dissuade the Cavaliers from claiming him off waivers and keeping him from free agency, as our Luke Adams suggested. Injuries nonetheless kept Miller off the court for most of his tenure with the Heat, though he surfaced at the most opportune moments. The Grizzlies have been giving him heavy minutes so far, hoping his three-point stroke will offset the spacing issues the Allen signing perpetuated. It’s unclear how long he’ll hold up, but if he can sustain his contribution, he’ll be a serious bargain.

Conversely, an injury to Marc Gasol has magnified the benefit of another of the Grizzlies’ offseason moves. While Gasol recovers, Memphis has Kosta Koufos to insert as the starting center, reprising the role he played for the Nuggets last year before Denver traded him for Darrell Arthur and a late second-round pick. The trade made financial sense for the Grizzlies as well, since Koufos is slightly cheaper than Arthur, and only $500K of his $3MM salary for 2014/15 is guaranteed. Arthur has a player option on his deal for next season. The trade seemed driven by Denver’s front office, which sought to clear the way for JaVale McGee to see starter’s minutes. Memphis has been the beneficiary, acquiring a 24-year-old seven-footer who’s averaged double-digit rebounds per 36 minutes in each of the past three seasons.

Memphis invested in another young player with its extension for Quincy Pondexter. The 25-year-old showed enough improvement last season to apparently convince the Grizzlies that he may be an eventual replacement for Tayshaun Prince at small forward, or at least a capable rotation-level player. His 39.5% three-point accuracy in 2012/13, a rate that jumped to 45.3% in the playoffs, might be the key metric. He’s off to a slow start from behind the arc this season, but if he can regain his form from last spring, he’ll be well-worth the sub-$4MM salaries he’ll see over the course of his new deal. Teams and former first-round picks don’t often agree to extensions for such small amounts, but Koufos is another example of a player who did, and his deal has proven team-friendly. Locking up promising non-stars for the long-term could emerge as a cost-effective strategy for the small-market Grizzlies.

The team made another move for its future with its acquisition of Nick Calathes, a 2009 second-round pick and former University of Florida standout who had been playing overseas. The cost was another late second-round pick, so the Grizzlies clearly believe Calathes will outperform most players taken long after many draft-watchers have lost interest. He’ll slot in as a third-string point guard behind Mike Conley and Jerryd Bayless, and his development will likely determine whether the team re-signs Bayless, its putative sixth man, next summer.

The Grizzlies poked around at the fringes of the market this summer, claiming Josh Akognon off waivers from the Mavs and waiving him before opening night. They also traded Donte Greene for Fab Melo in what amounted to a money-grab, waiving the former Syracuse center just two weeks after acquiring him. Memphis took on Melo’s slightly larger cap hit, which is guaranteed money that remains on the team’s books, but acquired enough cash to cover his salary and then some. The result was slightly less room underneath the tax line this season, but a little extra money for a skinflint franchise bent on making the most of its limited resources.

The team’s creativity surfaced again in its use of the mid-level exception, usually a tool for signing veterans. The Grizzlies instead committed a part of it to second-round pick Jamaal Franklin, allowing themselves to lock him up for three years and have full Bird rights when he’s eligible for restricted free agency. Most over-the-cap teams are limited to the minimum-salary exception for their second-rounders, leading to the sort of inflated offer sheet that former Bull Omer Asik signed with the Rockets via the Gilbert Arenas provision.

The new Grizzlies regime is carefully studying every move it makes, a hands-on approach that cost it a proven coach. The team’s strategy is not for everyone, but traditional methods can only take a small-market team so far. What’s happening in Memphis will probably have ripple effects across the league. If Joerger loses the locker room and the team’s careful penny-pinching doesn’t move it any closer to a title, the analytics movement will take a hit. If Memphis can take the next step despite not having a superstar, the NBA will be full of number-crunching copycats.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

0 comments Memphis Grizzlies Offseason In Review

Central Links: LeBron, Deng, Bulls, Scola

By | at November 26, 2013 8:43 pm

It’s not easy to build a six-and-a-half game lead in less than a month, but that’s what the Pacers have done in the Central Division, where they’re the only team above .500. The Bulls are in second place, and the hole they’re in would have been somewhat of a challenge to overcome even if Derrick Rose were coming back this season. It’s probably impossible now that he’s done for the year, though Chicago at least has a strong chance of making the playoffs in the watered-down Eastern Conference. Here’s more on Indiana and the Central Division also-rans:

  • Anderson Varejao would welcome former Cavaliers teammate LeBron James if the four-time MVP decides to re-sign with Cleveland this summer, a prospect Varejao believes could become reality, as Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio observes. The Brazilian big man thinks James will likely return to the Cavs at some point, even if it’s not for next season.
  • Other reports suggest Luol Deng isn’t going anywhere soon, but executives from around the league who spoke to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune expect trade talks involving the Bulls small forward to pick up.
  • Johnson also notes in his piece that the Bulls chose to sign Mike Dunleavy over Marco Belinelli because they believed Dunleavy was a better fit with Rose. That points to the challenge the team faces opposed to last year, when they went into the season knowing Rose would be out. Despite his latest injury, Bulls GM Gar Forman says he’d be OK with Rose playing in the basketball World Cup this coming summer, according to Johnson.
  • Pacers coach Frank Vogel is impressed with offseason acquisition Luis Scola, and didn’t expect the 33-year-old would defend as well as he has so far, writes Michael Pointer of the Indianapolis Star.
  • The Bucks had the most turnover of any NBA team this summer, but they didn’t expect to have the worst record in the Eastern Conference a month into the season, as Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel examines.
1 comment 2014 World Cup Chicago Bulls Cleveland Cavaliers Indiana Pacers Miami Heat Milwaukee Bucks San Antonio Spurs

Several Have Endured Multiple Trades This Year

By | at November 26, 2013 7:12 pm

Trades are a part of NBA reality for players, who sign their contracts knowing that their teams can send them elsewhere just about any time, usually without their consent. Kobe Bryant, Dirk Nowitzki, Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett are the only four players with no-trade clauses written into their contracts, though the Celtics received Garnett’s OK to send him to the Nets this summer. Players who re-sign with a team on a one-year contract also have veto power over trades, through a quirk in the collective bargaining agreement, though sometimes those guys consent to trades, too, as Marreese Speights did last season.

Still, few if any players would be on board with getting traded for a second time in a year, as Luc Mbah a Moute was today. He’s the ninth player to endure more than one trade since the start of the 2012/13 season. Malcolm Lee has gone through three trades, though he wasn’t with the Warriors long, since Golden State acquired him and shipped him out on the same night. Those trades happened at the draft, and unless a veteran like Lee was involved, draft-night trades aren’t accounted for on this list, since they happen before any of the incoming rookies have signed their contracts. I also didn’t count J.J. Redick, because the second swap he was involved in was a sign-and-trade transaction that facilitated his new deal with the Clippers, and the trade wouldn’t have happened without his approval.

Here are the well-traveled nine:

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California Rumors: Kobe, Odom, Kings

By | at November 26, 2013 5:59 pm

The Kings are the only California-based team beneath .500, and after completing their trade with the Timberwolves today, they’re still trying to make moves and improve. Here’s more on them and a couple of their in-state rivals:

  • Kobe Bryant says his two-year extension will “probably” be his final contract, as Bill Oram of the Orange County Register notes via Twitter. Bryant had been leaning toward retirement after the 2013/14 season before tearing his Achilles last spring, but admits that the injury pushed him to extend his career, Oram writes in a subscription-only piece.
  • Clippers coach Doc Rivers says he’ll stay in touch with Lamar Odom, and the two could sit down for a meeting later this week, tweets Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. A source tells HoopsWorld’s Alex Kennedy that Odom has been “extremely positive” about his recent workouts and expects to sign soon.
  • Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro tells Kennedy, for the same piece, that he sees newly acquired forward Derrick Williams as a “matchup problem” for other teams and is confident a fresh start can help the former No. 2 overall pick reach his potential.
2 comments Los Angeles Clippers Los Angeles Lakers Sacramento Kings

Poll: Will Lakers Add A Max Free Agent?

By | at November 26, 2013 4:31 pm

Since Kobe Bryant signed a two-year extension with the Lakers yesterday, reactions have poured in, with many observers questioning whether the team will be able to build a championship-caliber roster around Kobe’s massive salary. GM Mitch Kupchak believes L.A. still has enough flexibility to put together a contender (Twitter link via Howard Beck of Bleacher Report), and Kobe’s deal still leaves the club with room for another max-salary free agent in 2014.

However, having the room to add a free agent doesn’t necessarily ensure one will sign in L.A. LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony are frequently cited as the team’s two likeliest targets, but LeBron currently looks like a long shot to leave Miami, and Carmelo would probably have to turn down more years and money from New York if he chose the Lakers.

Outside of those two stars, there are several other players who could be free agents in 2014, and could receive a salary at or near the max: Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Luol Deng, Rudy Gay, Eric Bledsoe, Greg Monroe, and Gordon Hayward are among them. But none of those players are assured of max deals, and many will be restricted free agents, meaning their current teams could match any offer sheets from the Lakers.

As Kevin Pelton observed today in an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, there may be better fits for the Lakers on the market in the summer of 2015. Kevin Love is expected to hit free agency at that point, and players like Brook Lopez and Rajon Rondo could be available as well. The Lakers won’t have the flexibility to add a max free agent in 2014 and another one in 2015, but if they hang on to their cap space for an extra year, they could make a big splash in ’15.

What do you think? Will the Lakers land a max free agent in 2014 or 2015? Or will they make do with several smaller, complementary pieces around Kobe until his new deal expires?

Will the Lakers add a max free agent?

  • Yes, in 2014. 42% (346)
  • Yes, in 2015. 30% (250)
  • No, not before Kobe's contract expires in 2016. 28% (228)

Total votes: 824

1 comment Hoops Rumors Polls Los Angeles Lakers
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