Knicks Rumors: Jackson, Isiah, Free Agency
Knicks president Phil Jackson mentioned the need to add big men multiple times within an interview with Scott Cacciola of The New York Times, leading Tim Bontemps of the New York Post to speculate that the team is zeroing in on reported target Greg Monroe (Twitter link). Jackson suggested to Cacciola that the team would have drafted a big man, likely either Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor, if it had landed one of the top two picks in the draft. The Zen Master admitted the lottery setback that gave the team only the No. 4 pick resulted in a change of plans that figures to have a ripple effect on the rest of the summer.
“We know there are a limited number of guys we can bring in this year,” Jackson said about free agency. “We think we’ll get competitive guys to play. I think we’ll complement the guys we have here, and we’re going to move forward. We do know we’re going to have big guys in that group. We’re going to have to search out some big men.”
We’ll pass along more revelations from Jackson’s interview with Cacciola here:
- Jackson told Cacciola that he and GM Steve Mills expressed their concerns to owner James Dolan when he presented them with the idea of hiring of former Knicks executive Isiah Thomas as president of the New York Liberty, a move with which Jackson was reportedly uncomfortable. “Jim Dolan had talked to us about it over dinner, maybe a month before it happened,” Jackson said. “We said, ‘Are you cognizant of the fact that this at least has the look of putting the fox in the henhouse?’ Is that a good term? In reviewing the history of it, we were told what the approach was by the Garden and how it went down. Jim said, ‘If you have any suggestions that you want to come back with, I’m open.’ And not being in that field, I didn’t have any information. It’s not where my head is at. So we’re not giving them any advice, and it’s going both ways.
- Mills is “the future of this franchise,” Jackson told Cacciola, making it clear that he envisions a longer tenure for the GM than for himself.
- All of the Knicks players expressed in their exit interviews that they’d like to return to the team, Mills said to Cacciola. The team only has fully guaranteed contracts with Carmelo Anthony, Jose Calderon, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Cleanthony Early.
- Jackson once more touted the triangle and expressed full confidence in his abilities as an executive after subpar results in his first full season in charge of the roster. “Without a doubt,” Jackson said in response to Cacciola’s question about whether he still would have taken the job last year, knowing what he knows now. “I knew it was going to be a challenge. We just didn’t have any room to work last year. We knew that we were going to have to make big changes with the limitations that we had, being in a locked-in situation as far as the salary cap goes. That’s why when I said recently that I didn’t know why I wasn’t given some votes for Executive of the Year, I wasn’t kidding. I was really serious. We had a yeoman’s job of having to get rid of a lot of fat on our roster to get to where we are. I saw Mitch Kupchak got a vote, so I know some people valued what the Lakers were doing obviously.”
Offseason Outlook: Minnesota Timberwolves
Guaranteed Contracts
- Ricky Rubio ($12,700,000)
- Nikola Pekovic ($12,100,000)
- Kevin Martin ($7,085,000)
- Anthony Bennett ($5,803,560)
- Andrew Wiggins ($5,758,680)
- Chase Budinger ($5,000,000)
- Zach LaVine ($2,148,360)
- Shabazz Muhammad ($2,056,920)
- Adreian Payne ($1,938,840)
- Gorgui Dieng ($1,474,440)
Non-Guaranteed Contracts
- Lorenzo Brown — $947,276
Options
- None
Restricted Free Agents/Cap Holds
- Justin Hamilton ($1,147,276) — $1,147,276 qualifying offer2
- Robbie Hummel ($1,147,276) — $1,147,276 qualifying offer3
- Arinze Onuaku ($1,147,276) — $1,147,276 qualifying offer4
Unrestricted Free Agents/Cap Holds
- Kevin Garnett ($18,000,000)
- No. 1 pick ($4,753,000)
- Gary Neal ($4,225,000)
- (Othyus Jeffers $947,276)5
Draft Picks
- 1st Round (1st overall)
- 2nd Round (31st overall)
- 2nd Round (36th overall)
Cap Outlook
- Guaranteed Salary: $56,065,800
- Non-Guaranteed Salary: $947,276
- Options: $0
- Cap Holds: $31,367,104
- Total: $88,380,180
The Timberwolves lay claim to the longest playoff drought in the NBA, but with the luck they’ve seen over the last calendar year, it certainly looks like the tide is turning in Minnesota’s favor. It’s been nearly 10 months since the franchise officially sent Kevin Love to the Cavaliers in exchange for a package that included the reigning Rookie of the Year Andrew Wiggins, who flashed definite superstar potential during his first year in the NBA. With a roster chock full of young talent and the No. 1 selection in the upcoming draft, the Wolves have a chance to be one of the NBA’s best teams in just a few seasons; they’ll just need to manage their resources correctly, beginning with the moves they make this summer.
For the first time in franchise history, the Wolves own the top pick in the draft. There’s always the chance that team president Flip Saunders swings a trade to move down in the order or makes an off-the-wall choice, but odds point to Adam Silver calling either Karl-Anthony Towns’ or Jahlil Okafor’s name as the first overall selection next week. Both of the big men have a chance to become cornerstone players for whatever team selects them, but Towns’ outside shooting and superior low-post defense seemingly make him a better fit alongside back-to-the-basket monster Nikola Pekovic, whom the Wolves inked to a five-year, $60MM deal just two summers back.
Pekovic has had trouble staying healthy since signing his big contract, and while Gorgui Dieng has shown he’s capable of contributing during his absence, Towns’ offensive versatility and defensive prowess could improve the club’s less-than-stellar floor spacing and nearly non-existent rim protection; two components crucial to today’s NBA. Plus, Towns could play alongside either, as his skillset means he could see plenty of time playing the four at the next level. Reports originally pegged Saunders to prefer Okafor, but the latest rumors suggest Towns might be the Wolves’ top choice. A frontcourt consisting of whichever big man they choose alongside Pekovic, Dieng, Adreian Payne, and Anthony Bennett is a solid young group with a chance to be exceptionally deep from top to bottom, especially with mentorship from future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett.
Garnett is entering free agency, but he’s reportedly expected to re-sign with the team for two more years. The Wolves have apparently wanted him to do so since the trade that brought him in from the Nets, and while it seemed in April that KG hadn’t made any definitive decision just yet, that looks like the direction he’s been leaning, and Saunders anticipates that he’ll be back. Just what sort of money Garnett will make isn’t so easy to predict. Minnesota has the Bird Rights necessary to pay him up to the max, but he’s no longer worth that sort of money, and even the $12MM he made this past season seems like a bit much. Perhaps Dirk Nowitzki‘s three-year, $25MM contract with the Mavericks, one that provides an average annual value of about $8.3MM, will serve as an example to follow for Garnett’s two-year arrangement. Nowitzki made tremendous financial sacrifice, but he’s a significantly more productive player than Garnett is at this point, and that was especially so last year when he signed. Such a deal would allow the Wolves plenty of room to use the full $5.434MM mid-level exception without having to worry about the projected $81.6MM tax line.
It would apparently take that mid-level amount to sign Euroleague MVP Nemanja Bjelica, whose NBA rights the Timberwolves own. Bjelica and the Wolves seem to have mutual interest, but shelling out a long-term mid-level deal may well be too rich for Minnesota’s blood. A handful of teams have interest in trading for his rights, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, and while another report casts doubt on any pursuit from one of those teams, the Wolves seem to have a chance to pick up another asset for the future in return for Bjelica, who’s already 27.
Attaching Bjelica to Chase Budinger in trade proposals would ostensibly make it easier for the Wolves to offload the six-year veteran small forward, whom the Wolves reportedly sought to trade early last season and again at the deadline. The Sixers apparently had interest just before the deadline, and given Philadelphia’s affinity for draft-and-stash talent like Bjelica, that could be an avenue for Minnesota to explore this summer. Budinger was somewhat more productive this past season than in 2013/14, so that would help Saunders find a new home for him, though the now 27-year-old did compile the sixth-most minutes on Minnesota’s injury-hit roster this past season.
Trade rumors swirled around Ricky Rubio this spring, with conflicting reports painting different pictures of whether he wants out and whether the Timberwolves would be pleased to accommodate such a wish. Rubio himself said he’d like to stay, and Saunders mentioned Rubio among the team’s building blocks, calling him a “great point guard,” so neither side is giving any public indication of trade interest. It’s unlikely that any player, aside from Wiggins, anyway, is truly off-limits on a team that just finished with the league’s worst record, but with a new four-year, $55MM extension kicking in for next season, Rubio probably isn’t going anywhere, at least until he can prove his health to potential suitors. It’s tough to envision any team wanting to take on a player signed to eight-figure salaries for that length of time who’s coming off a 22-game season and who’s played in only 65% of his team’s games over his career.
Indeed, the Timberwolves have the opportunity to enter next season with much of their roster intact. They’ll have the chance to tender inexpensive qualifying offers to Arinze Onuaku, Justin Hamilton, and Robbie Hummel, with the latter two seemingly the most likely candidates of the trio to return next season. Saunders has shown a fondness for both players, although he declined to make a qualifying to Hummel last year before eventually re-signing him. Given the team’s potential depth down low, it seems like Hamilton is a long shot to be back next year, while Hummel might be offered a one-year, minimum salary pact to stick around, though that’s just my speculation.
The Wolves can begin next season as the first team in NBA history with three consecutive No. 1 picks on their roster, so more optimism is present than usually surrounds a 16-win team. Still, Minnesota has a long way to go to become a contender, particularly in the brutal Western Conference. The Wolves should improve on their record from this past season with better health and continued development of their youthful core in 2015/16, but with limited cap flexibility, especially with Garnett poised to return, a palpable limit exists on just how much better the team can be next season. A Bucks-style leap from the league’s worst record into the playoffs the very next year doesn’t appear to be forthcoming for Minnesota.
Cap Footnotes
1 — Budinger’s salary for 2015/16 was originally in the form of a player option, but in April he formally opted in.
2 — The cap hold for Hamilton would be $947,276 if the Timberwolves elect not to tender a qualifying offer.
3 — The cap hold for Hummel would be $1,144,000 if the Timberwolves elect not to tender a qualifying offer.
4 — The cap hold for Onuaku would be $947,276 if the Timberwolves elect not to tender a qualifying offer.
5 — See our glossary entry on cap holds for an explanation of why players like Jeffers technically remain on the books.
Chuck Myron was a contributing writer to this story. The Basketball Insiders Salary Pages were used in the creation of this post.
Cavs Notes: Blatt, Thompson, Love, Free Agency
David Blatt and LeBron James might not always see eye-to-eye, but Blatt sought to dispel the notion that they can’t get along, as USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt details.
“People sometimes judge things on a game or on a period of time and they forget that we’re in there working together and striving to make the utmost of our team and of our situation day to day,” Blatt said. “And a bond develops over time that is a lot more than what meets the eye. … I can just tell you it’s been a fantastic experience, and I’m looking forward to continuing it.”
Blatt said he’s excited about the chance to begin next season with all or most of the roster intact, and while all 15 Cavs assuredly won’t return, it seems like the team would like to keep its core together. Here’s more on the Eastern Conference champs:
- The Cavs “fully intend” to re-sign Tristan Thompson, GM David Griffin said, as Zillgitt tweets. James last month appeared to lobby for the the team to keep the former No. 4 overall pick who’s entering restricted free agency.
- The deadline for J.R. Smith to decide on his player option is Wednesday, Kevin Love‘s option deadline is Thursday and the deadline for James is June 29th, reports Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group (Twitter link). All three appear likely to opt out and elect free agency, though it appears the trio would nonetheless like to remain with the Cavs.
- Numerous executives from around the league believe it’s obvious that the Cavs will offer a max deal to Love, reports Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. Some executives had begun to doubt that notion during the season, as fellow ESPN reporter Chris Broussard said then, so perhaps Cleveland has warmed to the idea, or it could be a case of some executives having different opinions than others do.
- Several veterans at the end of Cleveland’s bench didn’t contribute much during the playoffs, and Griffin made it clear that he’ll seek to remedy that, as Chris Fedor of the Northeast Ohio Media Group relays. “I think from my perspective relative to the bench, yeah, we’d like to add some younger pieces,” Griffin said. “We’ll have some roster spots that we can change a little bit, and we’d like to get guys that are more in a 26 to 30 [age] range perhaps. Maybe finding the peak of their career.”
Pacers, Bulls, Mavs, Magic Eye Aaron Jackson
JUNE 19TH, 7:56am: The deal between Jackson and CSKA Moscow is official, the team announced (Twitter link). It’s a two-year arrangement, and while it’s unclear whether an NBA out exists, it wouldn’t appear as though he’s returning stateside anytime soon.
JUNE 16TH, 12:44pm: Jackson is set to re-sign with CSKA Moscow, as David Pick of Eurobasket.com hears (Twitter link). That would seemingly put the NBA on hold for now.
2:47pm: The Bulls, Mavericks and Magic have also registered some level of interest in Jackson, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders hears (Twitter link).
JUNE 12TH, 1:04pm: The Pacers are interested in point guard Aaron Jackson, who plays for Russia’s CSKA Moscow, report Chema De Lucas of Gigantes del Basket (translation via HoopsHype). At least three NBA teams are eyeing Jackson, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, adding that the 29-year-old who played collegiately at Duquesne will explore his possibilities to return to North America as a free agent this summer.
Jackson posted 7.4 points, 3.7 assists and 1.1 turnovers in 22.1 minutes per game for his Russian team this season, his third year with CSKA Moscow. He’s played overseas each season since going undrafted in 2009, making stops in Spain and Italy before heading to Russia, though he was with the Pacers for summer league in 2009. The Cavs had him for summer league the next year.
Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird expressed pessimism that his team would retain backup point guard C.J. Watson in free agency this summer, so it makes sense that Indiana would be in the market for a replacement. Still, the Pacers would likely be bereft of cap room if Roy Hibbert and David West opt in, as I noted when I examined the offseason ahead for the team, so Indiana will probably focus on point guards who might come cheaply.
Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 6/18/15
Some of the greatest joys of being a sports fan, besides your favorite team winning the championship, are the debates that arise between fellow sports nuts along the way. It’s with this in mind that we have begun providing a forum for basketball fanatics to voice their opinions, debate trending topics, and simply hang out with like-minded hoops aficionados. We’ve begun been posting a new topic for readers to discuss each weeknight, which we hope that this will become a regular part of your sports day. If you missed our previous discussions you can view them here, or simply head over to the sidebar and select “Hoops Rumors Community Shootarounds.”
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Now that we’ve gotten the preamble and fine print out of the way, it’s time to get to the topic of the day: What should the Knicks do with the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft? New York’s dream scenario of landing the No. 1 overall pick didn’t pan out, and in fact, the franchise was the only one whose draft position worsened as a result of the lottery. Now the team is at the mercy of the Wolves, Lakers, and Sixers, all of whom select ahead of the Knicks. There have been reports that team president Phil Jackson is looking to trade down to secure more assets if one of the team’s top three targets of Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, and D’Angelo Russell are all off the board by the time the franchise is officially on the clock.
Would the team be better served to trade down for a lower pick and either a young veteran player who can contribute right away, or a future pick? Should Jackson stand pat and select the best player available? How about trying to trade for a star player, similar to how the Cavs obtained Kevin Love for Andrew Wiggins last summer? If so, then who do you think would be a reasonable target? Take to the comments section below with your thoughts and opinions on these points and more. We look forward to what you have to say.
Western Notes: Lawson, Jazz, Gordon
If new Nuggets coach Michael Malone is to succeed in Denver, the team will need to part ways with point guard Ty Lawson, Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post writes. “My question to all these guys is going to be: How serious are you about winning? Do you like to win? Or do you hate to lose?” Malone said during his introductory press conference. Lawson doesn’t quite fit the mold of a player who’s truly serious about winning, Kiszla opines, and Malone won’t abide having to coax effort out of his players, which is an issue with the talented point guard. The Mavs are reportedly interested in Lawson, though he’s not at the top of the franchise’s priorities this offseason.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- DeMarcus Cousins, one of Malone’s former players with the Kings, is thrilled that his former coach was hired by the Nuggets, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee relays in a series of tweets. “I was extremely happy. I think he’s one of the better coaches in the league. He’s a great man,” Cousins said. “I learned a lot from him, and I’m just happy he’s getting an opportunity to do what he loves. Like I said, you can’t keep a good man down.”
- The Jazz have workouts scheduled Friday for Janis Berzins (Latvia), Sam Dekker (Wisconsin), Terrence Drisdom (Cal Poly Pomona), Skyler Halford (BYU), Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Arizona), and Rashad Madden (Arkansas), the team announced (on Twitter).
- There was no way that Pelicans guard Eric Gordon would have landed a deal that would pay him more than the value of his $15,514,031 player option for 2015/16, so opting in was his only rational choice, Jimmy Smith of The Times Picayune opines.
- Thunder coach Billy Donovan thinks that Kentucky forward Trey Lyles‘ versatility will pose a major matchup problem for defenders when he arrives in the NBA next season, Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman writes. Lyles is a possibility for Oklahoma City, who own the No. 14 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft.
Eastern Notes: Russell, Porzingis, Raptors
Ohio State playmaker D’Angelo Russell had an under-the-radar workout with the Knicks back on June 11th, shortly before he pulled out of a scheduled workout with the Sixers due to an undisclosed illness, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. There are rumblings that Philadelphia has become enamored with forward Kristaps Porzingis, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress has Philly taking the Latvian with the No. 3 overall pick in his latest mock draft. However, a league source insists the Sixers taking Porzingis over Russell is a reach and they are after the best available player regardless of position, Berman notes. “If you’re basing taking him [Porzingis] because of last week’s workout, you should be fired,’’ the league source told Berman.
Here’s the latest from the East:
- Porzingis met with representatives from the Magic today in Orlando, but did not work out for the team, Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops relays (Twitter link).
- Texas big man Myles Turner has an individual workout scheduled Friday morning with the Hornets, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer relays (on Twitter). The majority of mock drafts predict that Charlotte will select a wing who can score from deep, and though Turner does have the ability to stretch defenses, selecting him could prove redundant in the wake of the team’s acquisition of Spencer Hawes from the Clippers.
- The Raptors held pre-draft workouts today for Terry Rozier (Louisville), R.J. Hunter (Georgia State), J.P. Tokoto (North Carolina), Phil Greene (St. John’s), Tekele Cotton (Wichita State), and Jarekious Bradley (Southeast Missouri State), the team announced.
- Michael Qualls (Arizona), Rashad Vaughn (UNLV), Richaun Holmes (Bowling Green), and Josh Smith (Georgetown) all pulled out of their scheduled workouts with the Nets today, The Brooklyn Game relays (Twitter link). The reason for Qualls’ withdrawal is obvious, with the player having suffered a torn ACL, but it is unclear why the other players declined to attend the showcase.
2015/16 Roster Counts: Memphis Grizzlies
During the offseason it’s OK for teams to carry as many as 20 players, but clubs must trim their rosters down to a maximum of 15 by opening night. In the meantime, some teams will hang around that 15-man line, while others will max out their roster counts. Some clubs may actually have more than 15 contracts that are at least partially guaranteed on the books. That means they’ll end up paying players who won’t be on the regular season roster, unless they can find trade partners.
With plenty more movement still to come, here’s the latest look at the Grizzlies’ roster size, the contract guarantee status of each player, and how each player came to be on Memphis’ roster.
(Last Updated 4-11-16, 12:28pm)
Fully Guaranteed (15)
- Jordan Adams (G) — 6’5″/20 years old. Drafted with No. 22 overall pick in 2014.
- Tony Allen (G) — 6’4″/33 years old. Free agent signing.
- Chris Andersen (F/C) — 6’10″/36 years old. Acquired via trade from Miami.
- Matt Barnes (F) — 6’7″/35 years old. Acquired via trade with Hornets.
- Vince Carter (G/F) — 6’6″/38 years old. Free agent signing.
- Mike Conley (G) — 6’1/27 years old. Drafted with No. 4 overall pick in 2007.
- Bryce Cotton (G) — 6’1/23 years old. Free agent signing.
- Jordan Farmar (G) — 6’2″/29 years old. Free agent signing.
- Marc Gasol (C) — 7’1″/30 years old. Draft rights acquired via Lakers.
- JaMychal Green (F) — 6’8″/24 years old. Free agent signing.
- P.J. Hairston (G) — 6’6″/22 years old. Acquired via trade from Hornets.
- Jarell Martin (F) — 6’10″/21 years old. Drafted with the No. 25 overall pick in 2015.
- Xavier Munford (G) — 6’2″/23 years old. Free agent signing.
- Zach Randolph (F) — 6’9″/33 years old. Acquired via trade with Clippers.
- Lance Stephenson (G/F) — 6’5″/24 years old. Acquired via trade with Clippers.
- Brandan Wright (F) — 6’10″/27 years old. Free agent signing.
10-Day Contracts (0)
- None
TOTAL ROSTER COUNT (16)
Pacific Notes: Clippers, Lakers, Stephenson
The Clippers‘ roster could have been a markedly different one from today’s if not for former team owner Donald Sterling nixing a number of potential franchise-altering deals, James Herbert of CBSSports.com writes. “This is really only my third year but you can make a case this is our second year if you know what I’m saying,” coach/executive Doc Rivers told Beast 980’s Fred Roggin during a radio appearance. “If I someday wrote a book and told you a couple of the trades we had in the first year that we didn’t do because of other reasons, you would fall off your chair.” While Clippers fans ponder what might have been, here’s more from the NBA’s Pacific Division:
- The Kings are bringing in Sam Dekker (Wisconsin), Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Arizona), Mike Caffey (Long Beach State), Duje Dukan (Wisconsin), and Juwan Staten (West Virginia) for a group workout this Sunday, the team announced.
- The Lakers brought in Emmanuel Mudiay (Guangdong) today for a second workout, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News relays (Twitter link).
- The Lakers also have second workouts scheduled for Jahlil Okafor (Duke) on Friday, and D’Angelo Russell (Ohio State) on Saturday, Chad Ford of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter).
- Lance Stephenson‘s failure in Charlotte should make him hungry to rebuild his value while with the Clippers, and trading for Stephenson was a wise move for the team since its salary cap situation makes adding impact players extremely difficult, Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report writes. Ding also notes that there is only one fully guaranteed year left on Stephenson’s deal, which will dampen any financial risk, as well as provide added motivation for the mercurial swingman to perform. Stephenson’s contract includes a team option worth $9.405MM for 2016/17.
Central Notes: Blatt, Bucks, Love
LeBron James‘ attitude and demeanor toward Cavaliers coach David Blatt during the NBA Finals was unbecoming and inappropriate, Marc Stein of ESPN.com writes. Stein references LeBron essentially calling his own timeouts and making substitutions, as well as eschewing Blatt for assistant coach Tyronn Lue. James also nixed a number of plays that Blatt had drawn up during timeouts, which only served to undermine the coach in the eyes of the rest of the team, Stein notes.
Here’s more out of the Central Division:
- While some have speculated that Cavs owner Dan Gilbert might make a play for former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, a number of Cleveland’s front office personnel insist that Gilbert is Blatt’s biggest supporter, Zach Lowe of Grantland tweets. GM David Griffin downplayed any issues between Blatt and James in today’s season-ending news conference, saying, “Sensationalism sells. LeBron said David’s a hell of a coach,” Sam Amico of FOX Sports.com relays (Twitter link).
- Griffin said that he expects James and Kevin Love to both opt out of their deals this summer, but he anticipates that both will re-sign with the Cavs, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group tweets. While this news isn’t a surprise as far as LeBron is concerned, it does run counter to what Love told Haynes back in January that he planned to do.
- The Bucks held workouts today for Josh Gasser (Wisconsin), Keifer Sykes (Wisconsin-Green Bay), Olivier Hanlan (Boston College), Cady Lalanne (Massachusetts), Amere May (Delaware State), and TaShawn Thomas (Oklahoma), the team announced (via Twitter).
- Cavs veteran forward Shawn Marion confirmed today that he is indeed retiring after 16 years in the league, Stein relays in a separate article. “I wanted to go out on my terms,” Marion said. “The biggest thing is having a son. I got attached to him. Seeing him periodically is hard. Watching him grow up on pictures and videos is hard.” The Matrix’s final career numbers through 1163 contests are 15.2 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game.
- Bucks coach Jason Kidd is excited about the team’s possibilities for tweaking its roster this offseason, Genaro C. Armas of The Associated Press writes. “Yeah, I like what [GM John] Hammond has done, the position he has put us in pre-draft,” Kidd said. “We’ll see what happens,” Kidd continued. ”You’ve got a lot of different things, possibilities that you’re not landlocked to get better, and that means not moving a major piece.”