Northwest Notes: Rubio, LaVine, Ingles, Blazers
A year ago, when his name came up in trade rumors, Ricky Rubio wanted to meet with management to discuss his role with the Timberwolves. However, this time around, Rubio is finding it easier to shrug off those rumors, like the one about Minnesota “actively shopping” him.
“My name or every name is going to be out there at some point, but you can only worry about things you can control,” the Timberwolves’ point guard said, according to Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune. “Right now, what I can control is playing my best and do what I’ve been doing.”
Here’s more on the Wolves and some of their Northwest rivals:
- While Rubio’s name has surfaced in trade talks, one team that spoke to the Timberwolves recently was told that Minnesota “will not entertain” any trade discussions about Zach LaVine, per Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- The Jazz have no shortage of depth at wing, but Joe Ingles‘ strong effort on defense has earned him a role in Utah, and he’ll continue to see plenty of playing time with Rodney Hood sidelined, as Jody Genessy of The Deseret News writes. Ingles, who is shooting a career-best 46.0% on three-point attempts, will be eligible for restricted free agency in the summer.
- According to Brett Koremenos of RealGM.com, the Trail Blazers are one of the NBA’s teams that finds themselves in no-man’s land, not good enough to contend for a title, but not bad enough to land a strong draft pick. Koremenos takes a closer look at how Portland got here, and what the next step is for a team that finds itself somewhat hamstrung financially.
Carmelo Would Consider Waiving NTC If Knicks Ask
As one of just three NBA players with a formal no-trade clause in his contract, Carmelo Anthony wields an unusual amount of leverage. While Anthony prefers to remain a Knick and can’t be dealt without his approval, the nine-time All-Star tells Al Iannazzone of Newsday that he’d be willing to consider waiving that NTC if the front office wanted to move him.
“I think it will be more on the front office,” Anthony said. “I have the power, but still I would talk to them. We would be in communication if they feel like they want to go in a different direction, they want to start rebuilding for the future. If they tell me they want to scrap this whole thing, yeah, I have to consider it.”
Anthony reiterated that he has no interest in leaving New York, and wants to win with the Knicks. However, as he suggests, the idea of a multiyear rebuilding project probably doesn’t appeal much to him, so if the Knicks were to tear things down, he’d be more open to accepting a deal. Otherwise, he’d like to stick with the club, even in a season that has been disappointing so far.
“When you’re in the middle of battling, whether we’re winning or losing, me personally, it’s hard to even sit down and say, ‘[Expletive], I want to get out of here,'” Anthony said. “There’s a part of me that also would feel like I’m being selfish to the guys that are on the team right now, in the midst of us losing to just try to figure a way to escape from everything. For me personally, it would be more of something I would really have to think about and consider. Put it all on the table and figure it out.”
Following the publication of a column by Charley Rosen of FanRag, a longtime Phil Jackson confidant, that was extremely critical of Anthony, the Knicks forward met with the team president earlier this week. During that sit-down, Anthony informed Jackson that he wants to remain with the franchise, while Jackson distanced himself from the criticisms in Rosen’s piece.
Pau Gasol Plans To Opt In, Will Undergo Hand Surgery
JANUARY 20, 1:54pm: Gasol will undergo surgery today to repair the fracture in his hand, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. The timeline for Gasol’s recovery still hasn’t been announced, and will depend on how his hand heels, Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter).
JANUARY 19, 8:26pm: Spurs center Pau Gasol intends to opt in for the final year of his two-year contract, Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News reports. Shortly after informing Young of his intentions, Gasol suffered a fracture on his left hand during warmups on Thursday night, according to a team tweet.
The timetable for Gasol’s return to action will be determined at a later date, a team release added. He fractured his left fourth metacarpal.
Gasol has a player option worth $16MM this summer and doesn’t see any reason why he should enter the free agent market for the second straight year.
“My intention is to continue here, and to be here as long as I can,” he told Young.
Gasol, who turns 37 this summer, is averaging a career-low 11.7 points and 7.9 rebounds in 26.4 minutes with San Antonio. But he has no regrets about signing with one of the Western Conference’s top teams.
“It was a great decision,” he told Young. “I came here to have a chance to win a title and we’re second in the league right now, second best record, so that puts you in a position to win a title. That was a priority, and it still is.”
Clippers Notes: Griffin, Rivers, Paul, Mavericks
The Clippers are hoping Blake Griffin will be able to play during their upcoming road trip, according to Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. The star forward has been sidelined since undergoing surgery in December to clear some “loose bodies” in his right knee. Griffin underwent stress tests on the knee Thursday and is expected to participate in some contact work today. The team is hoping he will be medically cleared for game action during the five-game trip, which extends through February 1st.
There’s more Clippers news out of Los Angeles:
- Coach Doc Rivers suspected a problem with Griffin’s knee when he noticed the All-Star forward wasn’t getting past defenders as easily as he normally does. Rivers told Rowan Kavner of NBA.com that Griffin is starting to regain that ability again. “He looks great,” the coach said. “I don’t think the timeframe has changed. I know he feels wonderful. He looks like he’s explosive again.”
- Rivers is planning to use several players to make up for the loss of Chris Paul, who will be out six to eight weeks following thumb surgery, Woike writes in a separate story. That means increased minutes for Raymond Felton, Jamal Crawford, J.J. Redick and possibly Austin Rivers. “It’s still next man up,” Doc Rivers said. “You take the top two players from any team, it makes it harder, but I don’t agree that it means that you struggle. You lose two guys, there’s nothing you can do about it. I think our guys have handled it well.”
- The Mavericks have a surplus of point guards who might interest the Clippers, suggests Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News. Dallas could offer Deron Williams, who will be a free agent after this season, Devin Harris, who is signed for one more year at a little more than $4.4MM, or J.J. Barea, who has two seasons left at about $3.9MM and $3.7MM.
Cavaliers Notes: Smith, Korver, Tucker, Shumpert
It will be a long time before J.R. Smith is back in uniform for the Cavaliers, writes Joe Vardon of The Cleveland Plain Dealer. Smith, who broke his right thumb December 20th, has a doctor’s appointment today and hopes to be cleared to start cardio work. But basketball drills are a long way off as the thumb continues to heal. Smith was given a 12- to 14-week prognosis after suffering the injury, which would put him on track for a return in late March or early April, right before the playoffs begin. “I need to be able to do something to get my heart rate up before I can even think about playing again,” said Smith, who signed a four-year, $57MM deal before the season started. “It’s crazy cuz it’s still a long ways away. From when I start being able to work out, it’s still a long ways away from me being able to get on the court.”
There’s more news out of Cleveland:
- Smith gave his approval to the deal that brought Kyle Korver to the Cavs, Vardon writes in the same piece. Korver is averaging 8.4 points in five games since the trade and has given the team another outside shooter to make up for Smith’s absence. “He’s good,” Smith said. “Space the floor. Gives a great effort on the defensive end. And we really need the shooting.”
- The Cavaliers are among the teams rumored to be interested in Suns’ forward P.J. Tucker, but Sam Amico of Amicohoops doesn’t see Tucker as a good fit in Cleveland. Phoenix is looking for young players and draft picks, which the Cavs don’t really have to offer, and he wouldn’t be guaranteed playing time with Cleveland’s current roster.
- Iman Shumpert has scored in double figures in all three games since replacing DeAndre Liggins in the starting lineup last week, notes Chris Fedor of The Plain Dealer. Shumpert had a season-high 17 points in Thursday’s win over Phoenix. “He started off the season shooting the ball great and I thought in the second lineup trying to have him play the backup point asking him to do too much,” said coach Tyronn Lue. “Now he’s back in his comfort zone.”
Stein’s Latest: Nurkic, Millsap, Gay, Tucker
The latest column from ESPN.com’s Marc Stein is filled with fresh rumors as next month’s trade deadline approaches. We’ve already shared the Bulls’ interest in Chris Bosh and the Magic’s offer for Goran Dragic. Here are some more intriguing trade tidbits:
- Nuggets big man Jusuf Nurkic is almost certain to be traded before the February 23rd deadline. Denver officials admitted that pairing Nurkic with Nikola Jokic didn’t work, and they want to ship him to a team where he has a chance to be a starting center.
- Teams are very skeptical about the Hawks‘ assertion that All-Star forward Paul Millsap has been pulled from trade consideration. The 31-year-old has a player option worth nearly $21.5MM for next season and is expected to test the free agent market.
- The Kings had numerous offers for Rudy Gay, mostly during the offseason but also more recently, but elected to keep him in hopes of earning a playoff spot. The Thunder, Heat and Blazers were the most interested teams last summer. Gay is out for the season after tearing an Achilles tendon Wednesday night.
- The Kings would like to find teams willing to take Ben McLemore and Arron Afflalo.
- The Clippers offered the Suns a future second-round pick for P.J. Tucker, but Phoenix is holding out for a first-rounder. The Clippers owe their first-round pick this year to Toronto and in 2019 to Boston, so the next first-rounder they could offer would be in 2021.
- Tucker and Brandon Knight are considered the most available Suns. Coach Earl Watson said this week that the team will not trade veteran center Tyson Chandler.
- The Nuggets would like to sign Alonzo Gee to another 10-day contract once Mo Williams clears waivers. Gee’s first 10-day contract expired Wednesday, the same day Williams was waived after being acquired in a trade with the Hawks.
Magic Offered Heat Vucevic For Dragic
Orlando tried to pick up Miami point guard Goran Dragic, offering center Nikola Vucevic and a future first-rounder in return, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
Miami rejected the offer as the Heat already have Hassan Whiteside manning the middle on a maximum deal he signed in July. Still, it confirms persistent rumors that Orlando has interest in acquiring Dragic.
The Heat don’t seem to be interested in dealing Dragic before the February 23rd deadline, Stein adds. The 30-year-old still has three seasons and more than $54MM left on his contract. Vucevic, who has been in and out of the starting lineup this season, is signed for two more years at $25MM.
Bulls Interested In Chris Bosh
The Bulls will be “at the front of the line” to sign Chris Bosh if the veteran forward can play next season, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Chicago is already making plans to recruit Bosh, who will turn 33 in March, Stein adds.
Bosh hasn’t played since last season’s All-Star break after doctors discovered blood clots for a second time. He failed a physical right before training camp and his NBA future remains in limbo.
Miami is expected to petition the league to get the final two seasons of Bosh’s contract removed from its salary cap, but sources are telling Stein they don’t expect that to happen before March 1st to make sure he’s not playoff-eligible for another team. The Heat can make the move any time after February 9th, which is the one-year anniversary of his last game for Miami.
Nets Re-Sign Quincy Acy To Second 10-Day Deal
JANUARY 20: The signing is official, the team announced today (Twitter link).
JANUARY 19: The Nets will re-sign power forward Quincy Acy to a second 10-day deal after his current one is set to expire, Shams Charania of The Vertical reports (on Twitter).
The Nets signed Acy on January 10th after Brooklyn waived Anthony Bennett. Acy was playing for the D-League’s Texas Legends at the time of the move. Acy appeared in four games with the Nets during his initial contract, playing in more than five minutes in a single contest just once. He played 20 minutes in a blowout loss against the Rockets. Acy is averaging 6.3 points and 2 rebounds per game with the Nets.
Acy, who had his best season while being a member of the Knicks in 2014/15, began this season with the Mavericks, but was waived in November when backcourt injuries forced the team to add another guard. Shortly thereafter, Acy joined Dallas’ D-League affiliate. He averaged 17.3 PPG and 8.1 RPG in 12 contests for the Legends, making a strong case for an NBA call-up.
Bulls Notes: Wade, Butler, Grant, Rondo
Dwyane Wade calls his first half season in Chicago “average” and says he’s still adjusting to life with the Bulls, relays Nick Friedell of ESPN.com. Wade is still playing at an All-Star level, averaging 18.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists a game, but the team has been disappointing at 21-22. Because his $47MM deal includes a player option for next season, Wade will face another decision on his future this summer. Wade admits he left his “comfort zone” after 13 seasons in Miami. “Whenever I feel a certain way about anything, I always think about that, that I made the decision, and it’s a challenge that I wanted for myself,” he said. “Like I said maybe in the [introductory] presser or somewhere, the easiest for me to [have done is] to just ride off into the sunset in my comfort in Miami. And no one [would have] judged me at all. … But I made it a little more difficult than that because I’m a competitor, so I challenged myself.”
There’s more this morning from Chicago:
- Wade’s future with the Bulls may be tied to Jimmy Butler‘s, Friedell writes in a separate piece. There are internal discussions in the organization about committing to a rebuilding process, which Wade wouldn’t be interested in at age 35. He said Butler played a key role in recruiting him to Chicago and will affect his decision when free agency arrives again. “One of the main reasons I’m here is Jimmy,” Wade said. “He’s the one who called me and got me to come here. So that’s a big part of my decision and everything else, is what Jimmy’s doing, what his future looks like and all that. And I’ve made it very clear. So I have no idea from that standpoint. You just have to wait and see and then see what works out.” Butler is signed through the 2019/20 season, but was the subject of multiple trade rumors last offseason.
- Horace Grant, who serves as special advisor to president and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf, says Chicago doesn’t need any drastic moves to reach the postseason. In a video posted on CSNChicago, the former Bull says the team just needs its key players to stay healthy. “I wouldn’t worry about trading anyone,” Grant said. “I wouldn’t worry about trading Jimmy or anything. I will find a way with the pieces that we have now, which I sincerely think that we’re going to make the playoffs, that we’re going to make a push.”
- Rajon Rondo, who has had several run-ins with his coaches, would like to be an NBA head coach when he’s done playing, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune.