A person close to Ray Allen told J. Michael of CSNWashington.com that “nothing has changed” for the veteran shooting guard, who has yet to decide whether to retire or join up with one several teams seeking his services. The Cavs remain the front runners for Allen, and GM David Griffin was in contact with Allen’s people a few days ago according to Michael. Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference, including more on the Allen front:
- The CSNWashington.com scribe reveals that the Thunder and Bucks have contacted Allen’s representatives, in addition to previously reported interest from the Cavs, Wizards, Bulls, and Spurs. Michael notes that Milwaukee’s homecoming pitch fell flat.
- Michael doesn’t think a starting role with the Wizards while Bradley Beal recovers from his wrist injury will make Washington any more enticing to Allen. A source also tells Michael that Wizards won’t pursue a “knee-jerk” trade, which jibes with early reporter reactions to news of Beal’s injury.
- While Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer doesn’t expect the Sixers to be a good team in the near future, coach Brett Brown tells Pompey that he sees “daylight” ahead for the club. “I see a big bright light at the end of this,” Brown said. “I see [Dario] Saric around the corner. I see [Joel] Embiid getting healthy. I see more draft picks. I see [Michael] Carter-Williams and Nerlens [Noel] getting older. I see an abundance of money and flexibility to look at free agents.”
- Sam Amick of USA Today (video link) asked 27 GMs around the league whom they would start their team with, if given the choice, and the majority of them selected LeBron James despite cornerstones like Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis having youth on their side.