Western Notes: Timberwolves, Grizzlies, Gasol
The Grizzlies are looking to upgrade their small forward spot via trade, according to Sam Amick of USA Today. Tayshaun Prince is starting for them there, having easily the worst shooting season of his career and contributing to Memphis’s lack of spacing issue offensively. Here’s more from around the West:
- Flip Saunders, Timberwolves president of basketball operations, says that he isn’t hearing anything “imminent” on Minnesota’s trade front, per Andy Greder of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Saunders says the hype surrounding upcoming drafts is a barrier to transactions, “Either everyone wants to keep their picks or if you want to trade players, people are trying to get your pick and people aren’t as apt to do something like that — not only this year, but next year, too.”
- Saunders also downplayed the importance of trades in general, citing research the Timberwolves have conducted on 189 trades over the last 10 seasons. Only 14 percent of teams trading with a .500 or worse winning percentage go on to make the playoffs, and only 55 percent of teams with winning records have held or improved their record after trading over that period. “When you look, I think a lot of time teams make trades to satisfy fans, to make them look like they are really trying to do something to make their team better. And I think sometimes teams make trades to make it look to their owners like they are working.” Hard to disagree with him there.
- The Lakers couldn’t convince the Suns to send a first round pick in return for Pau Gasol during recent trade talks, per Mitch Lawrence of The New York Daily News. Although a deal wasn’t reached and Gasol is missing time with a groin injury, Lawrence says the teams are expected to pick trade talks back up.
- Terry Stotts is having a strong season as coach of the Trail Blazers, but team sources say he could improve his locker room standing by strengthening his relationship with star LaMarcus Aldridge, according to the same Lawrence article. Stotts’ contract is up this year, and he hasn’t had any extension talks with the team.
Pacific Notes: Warriors, Suns
The Warriors and Suns clash tonight, and the winner will come away with the better record and second spot in the Pacific Division, good for the 6th playoff seed. Let’s look at some of the notes from these Pacific rivals:
- The opinion of rival executives is that the Warriors would be willing to trade any of their players other than Stephen Curry and Andrew Bogut, per Sam Amick of USA Today. Amick says the Warriors have one of the most aggressive front offices in the NBA, and GM Bob Myers acknowledged the possibility of making moves with their “healthy amount of assets” in a Q&A last month.
- Curry talked to Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune about the 2009 draft, where he was passed up by the Timberwolves for point guards Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn. Curry says his first choice to land was actually with the Knicks: “I wouldn’t have known what would have come to pass here or in New York, which is where I kind of had my sights set on going in the draft. I would have tried to make the best of wherever I landed.”
- Curry also said that playing alongside Ricky Rubio would have been fun, had the Timberwolves chosen him instead of Flynn: “The dynamic of that combination would have been fun, I’m sure. But it didn’t work out that way. Looking back, this is a spot here where good things definitely have happened.”
- Curry also dismissed the idea that the Timberwolves were hesitant to draft him due to his preference for a warm weather destination: “It is nice to be in the Bay Area, where it’s 65, 70 degrees today. But even in New York and the East Coast, it’s snowy and 12, 20 degrees… I had the same situation here as with Minnesota: I didn’t come work out for the Warriors, met with the GMs back then. I would have been happy to be in the league and not have been some spoiled little brat who manipulated his way into the league somehow. I would have been cool whenever I was drafted.”
- If the Suns can land a star, they’d prefer a perimeter player, per Amick’s piece. This is one reason Rudy Gay has their attention in addition to the reports of interest in post players Pau Gasol and Thaddeus Young.
Eastern Notes: World Peace, Sixers, Bobcats
Giannis Antetokounmpo is having a strong rookie campaign, but the Bucks sit at 9-40 and hold the worst record in the NBA. Tony Kalkavouras of Sheridan Hoops sat down with Antetokounmpo and the young forward admitted he was tired of losing, though he’s trying to remain optimistic. It’s been a tough season for Milwaukee, but a high draft pick this summer paired with some young talent already present on the roster could help turn the team’s fortunes around down the road. Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Metta World Peace has discredited any reports suggesting he wants to be traded (Twitter link). We heard yesterday that World Peace is allegedly frustrated with his role in the Knicks rotation, but apparently it’s nothing serious.
- Marc Zumoff of CSNPhilly.com opines that Brett Brown‘s desire to helm a strong defensive team will affect the way that the Sixers approach free agency and the draft in the future. Brown became Philadelphia’s head coach last August.
- Steve Clifford of the Bobcats is another first year coach helping change the perception of his team. Matt Moore of CBSSports.com profiles Clifford and observes that despite a very similar roster to last year’s squad, Charlotte has been able to redefine themselves and become a potential playoff unit.
- The Cavaliers’ decision to fire GM Chris Grant might have been too harsh, suggests Bud Shaw of the Plain Dealer. Shaw thinks Grant made some impressive moves during his time in Cleveland and that his presence will be missed around the trade deadline.
Draft Notes: Ennis, Embiid, Wiggins
Let’s have a look at the latest on the 2014 NBA draft..
- Tyler Ennis didn’t start his season as a projected lottery pick, but his stock has risen over the course of the year and the latest 2014 mock draft from Draft Express predicts that the Syracuse guard will be selected 9th overall. Eric Koreen of the National Post profiles Ennis and explains why he has NBA teams “salivating” over his potential.
- One scout tells Adam Zagoria of The Knicks Blog that if Ennis was in the NBA today, he would be a better point guard than Raymond Felton.
- Cole Aldrich thinks Joel Embiid would benefit from staying another year at Kansas, but he acknowledges that doing so might harm his draft stock. Zagoria has the full story at ZagsBlog.
- In the same piece, Zagoria passes along that Aldrich believes both Embiid and Andrew Wiggins have the potential to be effective in the NBA next year, should they choose to enter the draft.
Odds & Ends: Bradley, Dumars, D-League
The Celtics have seen Avery Bradley make a leap in production this year, and the third-year guard tells Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders he’s focusing on his play while his restricted agency looms over this summer: “Just like any other process, you try not to worry about it–it’s just like the trade deadline and all that stuff. You just don’t worry about it. You can only control your play and your attitude, and that’s all I am focused on.” Here are more notes from around the league:
- Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders says it’s time for teams to part ways with Evan Turner, Greg Monroe, Pau Gasol, Kyle Lowry, and Omer Asik. Hamilton argues that the time for bluffing and driving up values has passed, and that it is always better to be compensated by pre-empting the inevitable loss of players likely to move on in the coming offseason.
- Sasha Pavlovic has agreed to play in Serbia with the Partizan Belgrade team, per Novosti.rs (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). The 10-year NBA veteran was released by the Blazers this offseason and failed to land with another team after scoring 2.6 points on .353 shooting and 13.5 minutes per game last year.
- Joe Dumars is still running the Pistons front office, but is a rumored candidate for the GM opening with the Cavs, per a tweet from HoopsHype. Dumars is in the last year of his contract, and is reportedly under pressure after splurging this offseason to construct an atypical, playoff-hopeful roster that hasn’t stopped Detroit’s losing woes to this point.
- Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report says that, despite the trend to rely on drafting and under the CBA’s tax structure, the Lakers‘ strongest advantage and best strategy as an organization lies in their ability to draw free agents to Los Angeles. Ding contrasts the gambles and limitations small market teams like the Cavs and Thunder have to take to secure and keep talent like Andrew Bynum and James Harden with the ability the Lakers have to sign stars and afford luxury tax payments. Ding says the Lakers should be optimistic they can bounce back faster than teams in major rebuilding modes, keeping up their championship history.
- Howard Beck and Reese Waters of Bleacher Report discussed the Bucks‘ options heading into the trade deadline with a disappointing league-worst record. Beck thinks the only untouchable player in Milwaukee should be rookie forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.
- Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders sees a lot of parallels in the Magic‘s current rebuilding process with the successful rebuild that brought the Thunder to the top of the Western Conference. Orlando isn’t winning many games this year, but their roster is filled with promising young players, and another high pick likely awaits them in the upcoming 2014 draft. The Thunder perfected the art of bottoming out while acquiring and developing assets, and the Magic hope to duplicate their success.
- Dakota Schmidt of Ridiculous Upside provides a nice rundown of the pro prospects that will be featured in the D-League All-Star festivities. Schmidt looks at young players looking to get their first real shot at the NBA like Pierre Jackson and Justin Hamilton, players who have spent some time with NBA teams this year like Hilton Armstrong, Seth Curry, Dewayne Dedmon, Manny Harris, and Malcolm Thomas (currently on the Jazz roster), along with players looking to revive their NBA careers like DeAndre Liggins, Chris Wright, and Kevin Jones.
LeBron Notes: Outlook In Miami, Cleveland, L.A.
The unprecedented build up and meltdown surrounding LeBron James‘ decision to sign with the Heat four summers ago dwarfs the current speculation on the four-time MVP’s next venture into free agency, which is likely to occur if James opts out of his contract for next year and maximizes his earnings. James admitted in to Sean Highkin of USA Today that the team’s struggles in his first year after joining forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh caused him to question his unpopular decision at the time, “We weren’t playing good basketball, we were out of sync, and me and D-Wade were looking at each other like, ‘Did we make the right choice, man?'” Three finals appearances and two championships later, James is now easily at peace with the choice. Here are some more rumors on James’ future:
- Bill Reiter of FOX Sports writes that the dysfunction surrounding the Cavs this year is due in large part to the ongoing void and desperation that remain from LeBron’s departure. Reiter says that the tantalizing possibility of a James homecoming next season played a significant part in the re-hiring of coach Mike Brown and the top overall draft selection of Anthony Bennett this year. The Cavs’ playoffs-or-bust goals for the season were an attempt to impress James and lure him back to a winning franchise, but basing the team’s identity around that hypothetical has led to the reports of locker room disarray and underperformance in Retier’s mind.
- While most of the chatter around LeBron’s future centers on his decision to stay, and whether Wade and Bosh remain with him, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel [subscription-only] wonders if James could actually lure more talent to join him on the Heat in upcoming offseasons.
- In the same space, Winderman still can’t rule out the possibility of James returning to the Cavs. The firing of GM Chris Grant could be the first of many moves that make the franchise a more appealing destination, including a new coach or a knockout draft choice.
- Howard Beck and Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report discussed whether a sign-and-trade to the Clippers is a realistic possibility. The odds are stacked against such a move due to the Clippers’ lack of cap room, general legacy concerns for James, and a perceived aversion to the Clippers’ unpopular owner Donald Sterling.
Atlantic Notes: Nets, Knicks, Moultrie
The Nets are still looking to improve their chances at a deep playoff run this season, and Bojan Bogdanović could be the most likely of the few tradable assets they have to be traded away for immediate help, according to Alex Raskin of The Wall Street Journal. The 24-year-old Croatian is currently playing in Istanbul, and while the Nets own his rights, it isn’t a given that they can outbid European teams to add him next year since they are limited to offering the $3.278 million mid-level exception. Here’s more from the Nets and the rest of the Atlantic Division:
- In the same piece, Raskin says Nets centers Brook Lopez and Mason Plumlee are the most likely trade candidates after Bogdanović. Lopez, a former all-star and tremendously skilled 7-footer, is injured for the rest of the year, and Plumlee has shown promise in his first year, sporting the highest PER of any rookie so far this year.
- Later in the piece, Deron Williams, who has had a voice in front office decision making before, is quoted as saying he doesn’t think the Nets will make a trade, while adding, “The last time I said that, I think, I got traded.”
- While Knicks coach Mike Woodson and star Carmelo Anthony both worked last night to put a positive spin on the coach’s standing and the team’s chances of improving, J.R. Smith gave a more mixed account of the situation to Ian Begley of ESPN New York. When asked if his teammates support Woodson, Smith said, “Yeah, I believe so. It’s kind of hard to tell. “Of course, nobody wants to show their whole hand. I think guys really care about him. I think guys care about this team, care about winning.”
- Arnett Moultrie is spending some time in the D-League for the Sixers due to conditioning concerns, and Nick Menta of Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia thinks Philly fans should be alarmed at his slow development. Moultrie was obtained in a draft-day deal with the Heat in exchange for a first round pick that now belongs to the Celtics. The pick is lottery protected through next year, and becomes two second rounders after that. The Sixers also still owe a first rounder to the Magic (with staggered protections through 2018) from the Andrew Bynum deal from 2012. Menta says these “outstanding debts” that new GM Sam Hinkie and coach Brett Brown inherited from the previous regime are the reason the Sixers are demanding draft picks in return for trade candidates Evan Turner, Spencer Hawes and Thaddeus Young.
Western Notes: Kaman, Williams, Nuggets
After months of setbacks and disappointments, Steve Nash looked great in his second game back in the Lakers‘ lineup last night. The all-time great played 29 minutes on his 40th birthday, scoring a season high 19 points. After the game, Nash said, “I love the game and when you realize it’s almost gone, you love it more,” per Dave McMenamin of ESPN LA. He here’s a look at what else is happening with the Lakers and around the West:
- Lakers center Chris Kaman told reporters he doesn’t care if he’s traded before the February 20 deadline, according to another article from McMenamin. “I honestly don’t care,” said Kaman, who has been frustrated with a lack of playing time much of this year. “It’s not something that I want to do, but it’s not going to make me go to sleep at night and have to stay awake all night tossing and turning thinking about it. I don’t care. If they want to trade somebody, trade me, trade the next guy, it don’t bother me. It’s part of the business. The sooner that you realize it’s a part of the business, the better off you’re going to be.”
- Shawne Williams opened up to reporters about his recent return to the Lakers via a 10-day contract, per McMenamin in another piece. Williams was toiling in the D-League before an injury to Nick Young created a need on the Lakers. Of his initial release by Los Angeles a month ago, Williams said, “It was like a funeral. It was like somebody died. I ain’t even going to lie.”
- Despite the fact that disgruntled Nuggets point guard Andre Miller is selling his home in anticipation of being dealt, Denver GM Tim Connelly tells Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post that nothing “definitive” is planned for Miller’s future. “It’s not ideal,” Connelly said. “I talk to Andre quite a bit. It’s a situation where we have to make sure whatever decision we make it’s the best for the organization.” Many thought that injuries to point guards Nate Robinson and Ty Lawson would force the team to go ahead and reactivate the veteran, but that didn’t happen and Lawson has returned to action.
- Ken Berger of CBS Sports adds to the analysis of the Knicks/Nuggets trade centered around Carmelo Anthony three years ago, painting a fairly bleak picture for both organizations. Berger agrees with the sentiment that there is no clear trade winner yet, but notes that both teams have messy, less than ideal roster situations that have been compounded since the deal. The Nuggets lack what they gave up–a true superstar–and the Knicks have depleted their assets and still have combustible elements swirling around the future of Carmelo and coach Mike Woodson.
Bulls Notes: Gibson, Augustin, Boozer
The Bulls have continued to look like a playoff team in the East despite the loss of Derrick Rose to another season-ending injury and the cap-relief trade that sent Luol Deng to the Cavs. Their salary concerns remain as well. After paying the luxury tax for the first time in franchise history last year, the Deng move signaled the front office’s aim to avoid paying the dreaded repeater tax enforced under the current CBA. Decisions surrounding their current roster will play a large role in whether their plans can accomodate a buyout of Nikola Mirotic‘s overseas contract and/or another major free agent addition this summer. Here are some recent rumblings in Chicago:
- Taj Gibson receives a $250K bonus if he makes either the first or second All-Defensive team this season, and that appears to be having an effect on the Bulls personnel decisions as they try to keep from crossing the tax line, writes Mark Deeks of ShamSports. Still, the Bulls have enough room under the tax to add to their roster even if Gibson earns the bonus, so Deeks surmises that the Bulls are worried another bonus, as yet unreported, could tip the scales. Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors also examined Chicago’s tax dilemma a few weeks ago.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times thinks that Gibson’s steady improvement as a player, coupled with Carlos Boozer‘s recurring injuries, makes the Bulls’ option to amnesty Boozer more attractive. Gibson is averaging career highs in points, blocks, and minutes per game.
- In another piece, rejuvenated Bulls point guard D.J. Augustin tells Cowley he would like to stay with the Bulls. ‘‘I definitely would like to be here [for the] long term.” Augustin said. “I want to be on a winning team, I want to be in a winning organization. Chicago is definitely those two things. When the summertime comes, that’s when I’m going to have to weigh everything.’’ It might take a home-town discount for the Bulls to retain Augustin, as Cowley points out that coach Tom Thibodeau’s penchant for getting the most out of his players ends up driving up their price when they hit free agency. Augustin fits that bill, and the Bulls might need him to spurn their competitors if they wish to retain the 26-year-old. “I’m definitely thankful for the opportunity Chicago gave me,’’ Augustin said. ‘‘You remember things like that, just that they gave me a chance.”
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Knicks Notes: Woodson, Metta World Peace
The Knicks won convincingly over the Nuggets tonight, but it will take a prolonged convincing stretch of winning basketball to silence all the chatter surrounding the team in the middle of a hugely disappointing season. Here’s the latest from tonight:
- Coach Mike Woodson spoke to reporters before tonight’s win against the Nuggets, saying, “I am still the head coach of the Knicks and I proudly say that,” per Al Iannazzone of Newsday. This comes on the heels of mounting reports that he will be, and expects to be, fired. Woodson added: “Do I think I’m the guy for the job? Absolutely I do.”
- Carmelo Anthony turned in a great performance in the win, and confirmed that he had met with Knicks owner James Dolan, though he claims the conversation didn’t involve Woodson’s fate as speculated, per Frank Isola of New York Daily News (via Twitter). “Just talking. I had tea. We had tea. That’s it. We didn’t get into details about anything.”
- Melo also gave his support to Woodson, saying the Knicks players need to “help” the coach get off the hot seat with improved play, per a tweet from ESPN New York’s Ian Begley.
- Metta World Peace isn’t worried about being traded, according to The New York Post’s Marc Berman. “That’s up to my agent. I don’t worry about it. I’m optimistic about my future. I don’t want to rush anything and I’m not going to complain.” A person close to the veteran tells Berman that he wouldn’t mind getting moved, citing his frustration with a lack of playing time in coach Mike Woodson’s rotation. His agent, Marc Cornstein, told Berman that he hasn’t been given an answer as to why his client has seen such limited time on the floor: “Usually, I’ll get an answer, not always the one I want to hear. But I don’t have an answer for you on this.’’