Latest On Carmelo Anthony
Knicks team president Phil Jackson appears to be pressuring Carmelo Anthony to waive his no-trade clause, but the public campaign is making the 9-time All-Star’s desire to stay with New York even stronger, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reports. “[Jackson]’s underestimating ‘Melo’s willingness to stay,” a source told Wojnarowski.
Anthony has privately told some of his teammates that he won’t let Jackson run him out of town, according to Wojnarowski. The scribe adds that the Knicks have contacted the Clippers, Celtics, and Cavs about an Anthony deal, but the teams have put together underwhelming proposals that include only role players. Anthony has privately indicated an interest in those three teams, but the Knicks haven’t found a package they are willing to accept.
Boston hasn’t shown much interest in Anthony. The franchise is much more enamored with Jimmy Butler and Paul George since they are both younger and their games are more well-rounded, Wojnarowski adds.
The Knicks may search for trades outside those three teams and attempt to persuade Anthony to waive his no-trade clause to go to another team, though New York hasn’t yet begun that process. Wojnarowski adds that if Jackson had employed more transparent approach, Anthony would have been more open to finding an agreeable solution, which may have included agreeing to a trade. However, Jackson’s antics have severely damaged the relationship and it may be beyond repair.
Rockets Rumors: Dunleavy, Chalmers, Jack, Ibaka
While some players around the NBA are lobbying their respective front offices for roster reinforcements, James Harden told reporters today that he’d be content with the Rockets standing pat at this month’s trade deadline.
“I love what we have, love it,” Harden said, per Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. “From top to bottom, we have depth. You can throw any guy in there and they know their role, that’s important. I’m going to ride with these guys for sure.”
Harden may be content with Houston’s current 15-man squad, but general manager Daryl Morey is always exploring ways to upgrade his roster, and figures to be busy over the next two weeks. Here’s more from Watkins on avenues the Rockets are exploring:
- The Rockets engaged in serious talks with Atlanta about acquiring Mike Dunleavy, and while those discussions ultimately didn’t result in an agreement, the team remains on the lookout for another shooter, writes Watkins. K.J. McDaniels would have been part of the deal if the Rockets had worked something out for Dunleavy.
- The Rockets would like to add another ball-handler to their roster to take some pressure off of Harden and Patrick Beverley. The club has looked at veteran free agents Mario Chalmers and Jarrett Jack to potentially fill that role, per Watkins.
- According to Watkins, the Rockets have “some interest” in Serge Ibaka, who could provide rim protection, rebounding, and an outside shot, making him a good fit in Houston. The Magic’s asking price for Ibaka is believed to be quite high, however.
- Given how well the club has played, Rockets officials think it will be tricky to make a deal that improves the roster without disrupting team chemistry, says Watkins. Morey has publicly expressed a similar sentiment.
Agents: Jackson’s Behavior May Sour FAs On Knicks
Phil Jackson‘s veiled criticisms of Carmelo Anthony have raised eyebrows around the NBA, and player agents have taken notice of the Knicks president’s behavior. Multiple “prominent agents” have told Ian Begley of ESPN.com that Jackson’s handling of the Anthony situation would turn off their own clients – and others – to the idea of joining the franchise in free agency.
According to Begley, several people in the Knicks’ front office think that the team would be best off trading Anthony in order to focus on building around players like Kristaps Porzingis and Willy Hernangomez. While that may be true, Anthony has a no-trade clause and has expressed a strong preference to remain in New York.
Rather than accepting that stance and exploring other ways to improve the club’s outlook, Jackson appears to be prodding Anthony in an effort to encourage him to waive that no-trade clause. The merits of that approach are debatable — Jackson has been known to use the media in the past to manipulate certain situations and motivate players. However, those tactics looked savvier when he was presiding over championship rosters and getting quantitative results. Based on Begley’s conversations with agents, it seems as though players around the league are unimpressed with Jackson’s actions this season.
With or without Anthony, the Knicks will likely head into the offseason armed with a good deal of cap room and some holes to fill on their roster. If the team is willing to make Joakim Noah-esque contract offers to certain free agents, perhaps Jackson’s behavior won’t be a factor, but the Knicks president may want to reevaluate his motivation tactics as the summer nears.
Bulls Expected To Retain John Paxson, Gar Forman
The Bulls’ front office has received some criticism for its roster construction, but the men in charge of assembling the squad aren’t in danger of losing their jobs, according to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Sources familiar with ownership’s thinking tell Johnson that executive VP John Paxson and GM Gar Forman are safe, and that’s expected to continue even if Chicago misses the playoffs this spring.
Last summer, the Bulls added veteran free agents Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade to their roster after trading Derrick Rose, creating a questionable mix of backcourt players who aren’t three-point threats. The moves have produced mixed results for the Bulls, who are currently in the No. 7 spot in the East with a 26-26 record. Chicago has looked good at times, but has suffered its share of bad losses, and recently saw three of the club’s marquee players publicly criticize teammates — Wade and Jimmy Butler were critical of the Bulls’ young players, prompting Rondo to fire back at the duo.
Despite the Bulls’ problems, Jerry and Michael Reisendorf remain loyal to the current management group, and continue to hold the team’s talent evaluation in “high regard,” a source tells Johnson. According to Johnson, there’s also an internal feeling that this season represents the start of a new era for the franchise, following the Rose trade — team ownership wants to give the front office a chance to reshape the roster over multiple seasons.
With only about $46MM in guaranteed salary on their books for 2017/18, the Bulls should have the opportunity to make some major moves in the offseason, particularly if Wade turns down his player option. For now, it seems as though Paxson and Forman will once again be in charge of those roster decisions.
Dragan Bender To Undergo Ankle Surgery
11:50am: Bender will undergo ankle surgery, but the timeline for his return has yet to be determined, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7, who tweets that Bender hasn’t necessarily been ruled out for the year.
I’d expect the Suns to play it safe with Bender and shut him down for the season, rather than trying to get him back on the court for the lottery-bound franchise down the stretch, but we’ll await official word from the team.
11:14am: Dragan Bender‘s rookie season will come to an early end, according to Croatian journalist Bernard Jurisic, who reports that the Suns big man will require surgery on his injured ankle (English link via Sportando). Although the team has yet to make a formal announcement, international basketball reporter David Pick has heard the same thing, tweeting that Bender will undergo a season-ending procedure on his ankle today.
Bender, 19, hasn’t made a major a splash in his first NBA season, averaging 3.2 PPG nad 2.2 RPG in 38 regular season contests (12.7 MPG). Still, despite coming off the board fourth overall last summer, Bender wasn’t viewed as a player who would make an immediate impact, so the Suns certainly remain optimistic about his long-term future.
As Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer wrote this week, Suns general manager Ryan McDonough said his front office was “almost split down the middle” on whether to take Bender or Marquese Chriss with the No. 4 pick in the 2016 draft. Phoenix ultimately opted for Bender, but was able to snag Chriss as well after acquiring the No. 8 pick from Sacramento.
Within O’Connor’s piece, McDonough praised Bender’s maturity and suggested that the Suns are happy with what they’ve seen from him so far.
“I know people look at the raw stats,” McDonough said. “But more for us, when we look at him defensively, him moving the ball, him making the right play, and being in the right position, he does all those things at a very high level for a 19-year-old guy.”
Ramon Sessions Expected To Miss 4-6 Weeks
FEBRUARY 8: Although Sessions had hoped to avoid surgery, he went under the knife to repair his lateral meniscus tear, the Hornets announced today in a press release. According to the team, Sessions is expected to be sidelined for about four to six weeks.
FEBRUARY 3: Ramon Sessions has a meniscus tear in his left knee, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer reports. Sessions will miss Saturday’s game against Utah and will be reevaluated upon returning to Charlotte, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.
To this point, Sessions hasn’t missed a game all season; most recently playing against the Warriors on Wednesday. Sessions’ ailment was initially reported as “knee soreness,” preventing the 30-year-old from practicing on Friday. A timetable has yet to be released for the injury, but torn meniscus injuries typically result in multi-week absences.
Now in his 10th NBA season, Sessions has averaged 6.2 points with 2.6 assists through 50 games with the Hornets.
New York Notes: Lopez, Nets, Knicks, Jackson
Brook Lopez is no stranger to trade rumors, and joked this week that he “wouldn’t be comfortable” without the constant speculation, as Brian Lewis of The New York Post writes. Reiterating his desire to remain with the Nets, Lopez said that he’ll be happy as long as the team keeps him in the loop.
“I realize there’s a possibility of both things (staying with the Nets or being traded). I’ve said what I’d prefer,” Lopez said. “They’re going to make their decision, but I would hope that I’d be informed, and I have the confidence they would inform me if they were thinking [of doing] something or something was going down.”
Here’s more on New York’s two teams:
- The Nets have reached an agreement with enterprise software company Infor to display their patch on Brooklyn’s jerseys, according to Bloomberg’s Scott Soshnick. Soshnick hears from a source that the Nets will receive $8MM annually from Infor under the NBA’s three-year pilot program for jersey sponsorship. The company will also provide the franchise with “data analytics and technology to support the team’s business operations, fan experience initiatives and player performance,” per Soshnick.
- Asked about the possibility of Knicks management blowing up the roster and focusing on the future, Courtney Lee admits that he couldn’t blame the front office for considering that route. “But I’m still confident in the group, man,” Lee added, per Ian Begley of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- Mike Vaccaro of The New York Post interprets Phil Jackson‘s Tuesday subtweet to Carmelo Anthony as a sign that the Knicks president wants out of New York.
- With the Clippers in town to face the Knicks, New York will be closely monitoring Austin Rivers, who could be part of an Anthony deal with L.A. Marc Berman of The New York Post has the story.
Hawks Re-Sign Lamar Patterson
10:26am: The Hawks have re-signed Patterson, the team formally announced this morning in a press release.
8:16am: After his 10-day contract with the Hawks expired last night, veteran guard Lamar Patterson will sign a new deal with the team, keeping him under contract for at least another 10 days, reports Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution. If Atlanta wants to hang onto Patterson once his second 10-day deal expires, the team would need to sign him to a rest-of-season contract.
[RELATED: Hoops Rumors’ 10-day contract tracker]
Patterson, 25, appeared in 35 games for the Hawks last season before getting another shot with the team this year. The former Pittsburgh standout appeared in three games during his first 10-day contract, averaging just 2.0 PPG and 1.3 RPG in 6.7 minutes per contest. Patterson’s new contract with the team will expire during the All-Star break, but he’ll have a chance to be active for four more games before then.
With Patterson still under contract, the Hawks will continue to carry a full 15-man roster, with 14 players on guaranteed deals and Patterson on a 10-day contract. If Atlanta doesn’t re-sign Patterson when his new pact expires, it would create an opening on the roster, giving the club a little flexibility leading up to this month’s trade deadline.
Timberwolves Sign Lance Stephenson
FEBRUARY 8: After announcing yesterday that they were bringing him in for a workout, the Wolves have now confirmed that they’ve signed Stephenson to a 10-day contract (Twitter link).
FEBRUARY 7: The Timberwolves are set to sign Lance Stephenson to a 10-day contract, according to Shams Charania of The Vertical. Minnesota had been carrying 14 players, so the club won’t need to make a corresponding move to create an opening on its 15-man roster.
Stephenson, 26, was one of several veteran free agents to participate in a workout last week for the Cavaliers, but his deal with Minnesota will ensure that he’s not an option for Cleveland — at least for the next 10 days.
After signing a one-year contract with the Pelicans last summer, Stephenson got off to a solid start for the club, averaging 9.7 PPG and 4.8 APG in his first six games this season. However, a groin injury sidelined him in November, at which point he underwent surgery and was waived by New Orleans, since the team needed to use his roster spot to add reinforcements.
Now healthy following that procedure on his groin, Stephenson will provide the Timberwolves with some depth at the wing position. Minnesota saw Zach LaVine suffer a torn ACL on Friday, which will keep him out of action for the remainder of the 2016/17 campaign.
While Stephenson’s signing will bring Minnesota’s roster to 15, the team will retain some roster flexibility. Stephenson’s deal will be a 10-day pact, so the Wolves could opt to let him go after February 16 if they want to go in another direction. Additionally, the Wolves have the option of pursuing medical retirement for Nikola Pekovic and opening up another roster spot. Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link) hears that the club continues to monitor other available options.
Adreian Payne Out Indefinitely
The Wolves announced that Adreian Payne will be out indefinitely with a blood disorder, as USA Today passes along. The team said that Payne has thrombocytopenia, a condition that results in a low platelet count. It can cause bleeding, bruising and slow blood clotting after an injury, according to the publication.
Minnesota said that Payne has a good prognosis for recovery and he should be able to play basketball again once that happens. He’s currently receiving care from team doctors.
Payne hasn’t played much this season, seeing action in just 12 games. He was drafted by the Hawks with the 15th pick in the 2014 draft and Atlanta traded him to the Wolves during the 2014/15 season.