Stephon Marbury Ready To End Playing Career
After 22 seasons in professional basketball, former NBA All-Star Stephon Marbury is ready to end his career.
In an interview with Marc J. Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated, Marbury — who plays for the Beijing Fly Dragons of the China Basketball Association — said he is ready to hang up his sneakers after the team’s February 11 season finale. With the Fly Dragons out of the CBA’s postseason race, Marbury’s last game could be nine days short of his 41st birthday.
“I’m tired, man. I’m tired. I played 22 years,” Marbury said to Spears. “It’s all good. I’m straight with how it is right now. I like being able to have control over going out the way I want to go out. I’m 100 percent at peace with it. One hundred percent.”
Marbury said he will stay in shape in case an NBA opportunity arises.
In mid-September, Marbury announced via Instagram that he was interested in an NBA comeback. However, he received no interest from NBA teams and signed a one-year deal with the Fly Dragons, a crosstown rival of the Beijing Ducks, the team Marbury spent six seasons with (2011-2017) and led to three CBA championships.
Marbury, the fourth overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, spent 13 seasons in NBA, earning three-All Star nods. The Brooklyn, New York, native suited up for the Timberwolves, Nets, Suns, Knicks, and Celtics.
For his career, Marbury averaged 19.3 PPG, 7.6 APG and 3.0 RPG in 846 games.
A tumultuous end to his NBA career with the Knicks and Nets led Marbury to China, becoming the first major name to play professionally in the country. In addition to three championships with the Ducks, Marbury was also the 2015 CBA Finals Most Valuable Player. Marbury’s popularity in China earned him honors such as becoming the first foreign celebrity to receive a Chinese green card and a statue outside the Ducks’ arena.
Marbury feels his numbers in the NBA and in China are deserving of enshrinement in the Basketball Hall of Fame as an international player. Marbury said playing in China is harder than most people understand, adding that he helped “bridge the gap” for professional basketball between the two nations.
“It’s the Basketball Hall of Fame, not the NBA Hall of Fame,” Marbury said. “So, for basketball, I played in Olympics, I played in the Junior Olympics. With what I’ve done and given to basketball is all Hall of Fame.”
Pelicans Acquire Nikola Mirotic From Bulls
The Pelicans and Bulls have finalized a trade that sends forward Nikola Mirotic to New Orleans, with both clubs confirming via press releases that the deal is official. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link) first reported that the Pelicans and Bulls had reached an agreement in principle.
The two teams appeared to be on the verge of a trade earlier this week, but hit a roadblock in the form of Mirotic’s $12.5MM team option for 2018/19. The veteran forward, who had veto rights unless that option was exercised, wanted New Orleans to pick it up, but the Pelicans were initially unwilling to do so due to concerns about their ability to retain Mirotic and re-sign DeMarcus Cousins without going into luxury tax territory.
The Pelicans have now guaranteed Mirotic’s $12.5MM salary for next season, which clinched the deal, per Wojnarowski (via Twitter). Omer Asik and a future first-round pick are headed to Chicago, as was the case in the initial agreement.
New Orleans needed to include at least one more salary to stay under a hard cap, so Tony Allen heads to Chicago too, according to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Allen will likely be waived by the Bulls, Woj tweets.
The Pelicans will open one extra roster spot by also adding Jameer Nelson to the trade, tweets K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. Nelson may also be cut, but it probably won’t happen immediately, per Johnson, who tweets that the point guard’s future is unclear. Paxson said that there is a week left until the trade deadline so the Bulls still have time to decide on waiving players, Johnson tweets.
In order to complete a three-for-one deal, the Bulls will have to open up a roster spot, since they currently only have a single opening. Quincy Pondexter looks like the strongest candidate to be waived.
[RELATED: Bulls to waive Pondexter]
Speaking of Pondexter, according to Johnson (Twitter link), the Bulls will also be returning the Pelicans’ own 2018 second-round pick to New Orleans after initially acquiring it in a September trade that landed Pondexter in Chicago. That pick served as an incentive to convince the Pelicans to exercise Mirotic’s second-year team option, Johnson notes (via Twitter).
The first-round pick the Bulls are getting in the swap will be the Pelicans’ 2018 first-rounder, and it will have “minimal” protections, tweets Wojnarowski. TNT’s David Aldridge clarifies (via Twitter) that it’ll be top-five protected this year, while Johnson tweets that it’ll be top-eight protected in 2019. Finally, Woj adds that there will be a pick-swapping option in the 2021 draft, with the Bulls having the opportunity to swap their second-round pick for the Pelicans’ second-rounder.
“The draft asset we acquired was far and away the best thing we had got (in talks),” Bulls executive vice president John Paxson said to reporters, including Johnson. “It’s consistent with the direction and plan we talked about this summer.”
Mirotic, who has been the subject of trade rumors throughout the 2017/18 campaign, was sidelined with facial injuries to start the season after being punched by teammate Bobby Portis during an altercation in practice. Mirotic’s camp reportedly issued an ultimatum in the fall in an effort to get the Bulls to trade either Mirotic or Portis, but the power forwards were willing to bury the hatchet and coexist on the court when Mirotic got healthy.
Since returning to action, Mirotic has enjoyed the most productive year of his NBA career, averaging 16.8 PPG and 6.4 RPG to go along with a .474/.429/.823 shooting line. All of those numbers are career highs. Despite his solid play and the club’s improved record, Mirotic was still said to prefer a trade out of Chicago, and was pulled out of action this week as the Bulls attempted to finalize a deal.
As the Bulls explored the market for Mirotic, the Jazz and Pistons were cited most frequently as potential trade partners. However, Detroit landed a bigger fish on Monday, acquiring Blake Griffin from the Clippers, and Utah was reportedly unwilling to include a first-round pick in an offer for the stretch four.
The Bulls, who were said to be seeking a first-rounder for Mirotic all along, will get that pick from the Pelicans, though they’ll have to give up a second-rounder and take on an unwanted contract in the process. Asik, a former Bull, is earning about $10.6MM this season, with a guaranteed salary worth $11.29MM in 2018/19. The veteran center has one more year on his deal in 2019/20, but it’s only partially guaranteed for $3MM. Allen and Nelson are on expiring minimum salaries, so they won’t have any impact on the cap beyond this season.
As for the Pelicans, they’re set to fill the lineup hole created when Cousins went down on Friday with a season-ending Achilles injury, and they may not be done adding frontcourt help. New Orleans has been strongly linked to Greg Monroe, who is being bought out by the Suns, and Scott Kushner of The Advocate tweets that the acquisition of Mirotic won’t adversely affect the club’s pursuit of Monroe. In fact, by clearing a little salary and opening up a pair of roster spots in this deal, adding Monroe may be even more viable for the Pelicans, who have room to add two players on minimum salaries, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks (Twitter link) — still, the team may not be able to offer him as significant a role with Mirotic now in the mix.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Bulls Waive Quincy Pondexter
5:13pm: With the Nikola Mirotic trade now official, Pondexter has formally been waived.
12:57pm: The Bulls intend to waive veteran sharpshooter Quincy Pondexter, reports Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). The move will clear a second roster spot for Chicago, allowing the team to accommodate the incoming players in a three-for-one trade with the Pelicans.
[RELATED: Bulls to trade Nikola Mirotic to Pelicans]
Pondexter, who will turn 30 in March, missed the last two NBA seasons while dealing with health problems that were viewed as potentially life-threatening. However, he was able to get back on the court this season, playing for the Bulls after a September salary-dump trade sent him from New Orleans to Chicago.
Although Pondexter has been able to play again, he hasn’t been his old self — in 23 games (8.5 MPG) for the Bulls, he has averaged just 2.0 PPG with a dismal .286/.136/.824 shooting line. Coming into 2017/18, he owned a career .424 FG% and .365 3PT%.
Pondexter’s $3,853,931 salary will remain on the Bulls’ cap for this season, but that’s not of major concern to the franchise, since team salary remains below the minimum floor for 2017/18. Pondexter’s contract expires at season’s end, so Chicago won’t be on the hook for any future salary.
Warriors Notes: Trade Talks, McCaw, Curry
Although many trade rumors have swirled around the NBA in recent weeks, the Warriors haven’t been the subject of many of them. The defending champions obviously have no plans to break up their core, and there are no glaring holes that must be addressed before next Thursday’s deadline. Still, that doesn’t mean general manager Bob Myers isn’t doing his homework on potential deals.
According to Mark Medina of The Bay Area News Group (Twitter link), Myers said today that he’s “pretty active” and has spoken to about two-thirds of the people around the NBA. Even if Golden State doesn’t complete a trade within the next week, Myers wants to do his due diligence, Medina adds.
Here’s more on the Warriors:
- If the Warriors do make a trade, is second-year shooting guard Patrick McCaw a prime candidate to be moved? Tim Kawakami of The Athletic examines that question, noting that McCaw has struggled with his three-point shot this season, making just 25.0% of his attempts, and hasn’t developed at the rate the Warriors hoped. If Golden State wants to add one more reliable shooter off the bench, McCaw – a restricted free agent this summer – could be a logical trade chip, Kawakami writes.
- After the Clippers traded Blake Griffin just a few months into a five-year mega-deal, Stephen Curry was asked about his own five-year contract, which – like Griffin’s – doesn’t include a no-trade clause. According to Anthony Slater of The Athletic, Curry said that he and the Warriors discussed the NTC possibility during negotiations, but he doesn’t regret not pushing for one. “They try to set a precedent that nobody gets one around here,” Curry said. “But you would hope situations that happened with Blake don’t happen with this team.”
- Earlier today, we passed along an ESPN report suggesting that LeBron James won’t rule out the possibility of meeting with the Warriors in free agency this offseason.
Latest On Greg Monroe
4:20pm: Monroe, whose buyout is now official, has spoken to both the Celtics and Pelicans and could make a decision within the next 24 hours, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. If it comes down to those two teams, Monroe would have to weigh an increased role in New Orleans vs. a greater chance to win a title in Boston.
Scott Kushner of The Advocate tweeted earlier today that the acquisition of Mirotic won’t adversely affect New Orleans’ pursuit of Monroe.
11:06am: The Pelicans have gathered “significant momentum” in their pursuit of Monroe and intend to make an aggressive play for him, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. According to Wojnarowski, Pels head coach Alvin Gentry has already spoken to Monroe, who could decide on his next NBA home as soon as Friday or Saturday. Playing time will be a big factor in the veteran’s decision, Woj adds.
10:43am: The Suns and Greg Monroe reached a buyout agreement on Wednesday, according to multiple reports. However, Monroe has not yet been formally waived by Phoenix. Once he’s cut, he’ll spend two days on waivers before becoming eligible to sign with a new team, so no club with interest in the veteran center will be able to add him right away.
Still, the list of potential suitors for Monroe is growing longer. As we relayed in our initial report on Monroe’s buyout, the Celtics and Pelicans are viewed as two viable potential destinations for the big man, with the Thunder cited as a possible dark horse. TNT’s David Aldridge adds a couple more teams to that list today, tweeting that the Spurs and Wizards also have interest in Monroe.
While there are a number of teams trying to get into the mix, the buzz around the Pelicans continues to be the loudest. According to Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), there’s “strong” mutual interest between the Pels and Monroe, who is a New Orleans native. With DeMarcus Cousins out for the season due to an Achilles injury, major minutes are available in New Orleans’ frontcourt — not every suitor could necessarily offer Monroe that significant a role.
Although the Pelicans could pitch Monroe on regular minutes and the idea of a homecoming, they may find themselves at a disadvantage if other teams offer the 27-year-old more than the minimum salary. New Orleans has portions of its mid-level and bi-annual exceptions available, but is only about $1.2MM away from a hard cap, limiting the team’s ability to sweeten the pot for Monroe. By comparison, a club like the Celtics could offer up to $8.4MM, the value of their disabled player exception (though I’d be very surprised if they do so).
It’s also worth noting that the Pelicans’ reported pursuit of Nikola Mirotic could be affected by how things play out with Monroe — it’s not clear if the club would have interest in adding both players.
Suns Buy Out Greg Monroe
FEBRUARY 1, 4:06pm: The Suns have officially waived Monroe, according to a press release issued by the club. He’s on track to clear waivers on Saturday.
We rounded up several rumors on Monroe’s next landing spot earlier today.
JANUARY 31, 9:53pm: The Suns and Greg Monroe have reached an agreement on a buyout, tweets Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic. Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN adds that there will be “significant interest” around the league in signing Monroe to a rest-of-the-season contract once he becomes an unrestricted free agent.
The timing of the deal is a bit peculiar with the trade deadline about a week away, but Bordow surmises that a worthy deal likely wouldn’t have materialized for Monroe anyway, so the timing really didn’t matter to Phoenix. Wojnarowski adds that the Suns did in fact exhaust all trade possibilities before agreeing to the buyout.
Monroe, who was sent to the Suns earlier this season in the move that landed Eric Bledsoe in Milwaukee, had seen inconsistent minutes since arriving in Phoenix, with Tyson Chandler and Alex Len also vying for minutes at the five. Monroe has been viewed as a candidate to be traded or bought out since the Suns acquired him — a trade would have been challenging due to his $17.88MM cap hit.
Earlier in the evening, John Gambadoro of ArizonaSports.com opined that a buyout could be forthcoming after Monroe was not in attendance for tonight’s game against Dallas. Multiple sources indicate that the Celtics, who possess an $8.4MM disabled player exception, are a team to watch in the Monroe sweepstakes, with Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports reporting that the interest is expected to be mutual.
Helping Boston is the fact that its disabled player exception – acquired as a result of the season-ending injury to Gordon Hayward – does not prorate throughout the season. As detailed by ESPN’s Bobby Marks, this is different from the mid-level exception that most teams would utilize to offer Monroe a salary over the minimum.
In addition to the Celtics, another team said to be interested in Monroe is the Pelicans, per Bordow. New Orleans is in a position to make the playoffs and just lost All-Star DeMarcus Cousins for the rest of the season. Moreover, a potential deal for Nikola Mirotic just fell through after New Orleans refused to guarantee Mirotic’s 2018/19 salary.
New Orleans is over the cap and wouldn’t be able to offer a free agent more than the prorated portion of the bi-annual exception — even that would be tricky due to the team’s hard cap and tax ramifications. Still, Monroe is from the New Orleans area, so the Pelicans may be hoping that he is willing to take some sort of hometown discount. In addition, New Orleans could offer him a starting position, while the Celtics would almost certainly bring him off the bench.
The Thunder could also be a dark horse in the Monroe sweepstakes, according to Mannix. Meanwhile, the Bucks are ineligible to re-sign Monroe after trading him earlier in the league year.
Bulls Plan To Hang Onto Jameer Nelson
As part of the trade that will send Nikola Mirotic to New Orleans, the Bulls will receive three players: Omer Asik, Tony Allen, and Jameer Nelson. While initial reports indicated that the Bulls would likely waive both Allen and Nelson, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets that the club is now planning to keep Nelson on its roster.
K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune first reported (via Twitter) that the Bulls wouldn’t waive Nelson right away, adding that the point guard’s future was “TBD.” Wojnarowski’s reports suggests that Nelson will at least stick around Chicago for the time being, though it’s not clear if the veteran is safe for the rest of the season, or just for the next few weeks. If a player wants to be bought out while retaining his eligibility to play in the postseason for a new team, he must be waived before March 1.
For now, Nelson appears poised to help mentor a young group of Bulls point guards that includes Kris Dunn and Cameron Payne. In addition to providing a solid locker room presence, Nelson has also posted respectable on-court numbers this season, averaging 5.1 PPG and 3.6 APG with a .410/.364/.765 shooting line in a part-time role for New Orleans. He’s on a minimum salary contract.
Assuming the Bulls waive Allen and keep Asik and Nelson on their roster after finalizing the Mirotic trade, the team will be left with one open roster spot.
Isaiah Canaan Fractures Ankle, Out For Season
FEBRUARY 1, 3:24pm: Canaan underwent his surgery this afternoon and will miss the rest of the season, Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic confirms (via Twitter). The Suns expect him to be ready for the start of training camp next season, per Bordow. As noted below though, Canaan’s contract with Phoenix will expire before then.
JANUARY 31, 11:48pm: Canaan has a fractured fibula and will require surgery, tweets John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. The injury seems to be very similar to the one suffered by Gordon Hayward earlier this season, right down to the gruesome nature of the video.
11:23pm: Suns point guard Isaiah Canaan has been diagnosed with a left ankle fracture after taking a brutal fall during the first quarter of Wednesday night’s game against Dallas, the team announced tonight (via Twitter). No recovery timetable was announced for Canaan, but his season appears to be over.
Canaan, 26, initially joined the Suns when the injury-ravaged team was granted a hardship exception to carry an extra player in December. By the time that exception expired, Canaan had earned himself a rest-of-season roster spot, with Phoenix opting to keep him around and waive Mike James instead.
Heading into Wednesday’s contest, Canaan had appeared in 18 games for the Suns, averaging 9.4 PPG and 4.2 APG with a .381/.323/.902 shooting line. He also played in one game for the Rockets at the start of the season before being cut by Houston.
With Greg Monroe having reportedly reached a buyout agreement with the Suns, the team will soon open up a roster spot and could use it to add a replacement for Canaan. Simply waiving the veteran guard is also an option, since Canaan’s contract doesn’t include any guaranteed money beyond this season. Phoenix won’t be able to re-sign James though, since he’s now on a two-way deal in New Orleans.
NBA G League Assignments/Recalls: 2/1/18
Here are Thursday’s G League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- Glenn Robinson III continues to work his way back from left ankle surgery, heading on a G League assignment today to play for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the Pacers announced in a press release. Robinson played 27 minutes in the day game, picking up 12 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Rookie Ike Anigbogu joined GRIII on the G League assignment.
- The Mavericks have assigned Kyle Collinsworth to the G League, per a team release. Collinsworth, who will play for the Texas Legends on Friday, will see his second 10-day contract with the Mavs expire this weekend. Per Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News, the swingman could re-sign with the NBA club after the trade deadline.
- After racking up 32 points and nailing seven three-pointers for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on Wednesday, Troy Williams has been recalled to the NBA by the Rockets, tweets Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle.
- The Hawks have sent Tyler Cavanaugh to the G League, according to a press release from the team. If Cavanaugh’s assignment lasts at least through Friday night, he’ll be able to suit up for the Erie BayHawks tomorrow against Long Island.
- With San Antonio’s affiliate in action tonight, the Spurs have sent Derrick White to the G League, according to a team release. The Austin Spurs have a 9-2 record in games White has played.
- Rookie center Ante Zizic is headed back to the Canton Charge on an assignment, the Cavaliers announced today in a press release. This will be the ninth G League assignment of the season for Zizic, who has bounced back and forth between Cleveland and Canton all year.
- The Warriors have recalled Damian Jones from their G League affiliate in Santa Cruz, the team announced in a press release. Jones has started all 33 gamed for Santa Cruz and has made just one appearance with the NBA squad.
Bucks Rumors: Parker, Kidd, Giannis, Trades
The Bucks made headlines last week by parting ways with head coach Jason Kidd, and another major event for the franchise is right around the corner, as Jabari Parker is set to return on Friday from last year’s ACL injury. With Parker poised to get back on the court, ESPN’s Zach Lowe takes a look at the situation in Milwaukee, sharing a couple interesting tidbits on the 22-year-old’s contract situation.
According to Lowe, the Bucks and Parker discussed an extension last offseason that would have been worth $54MM over three years. The former No. 2 overall pick wasn’t willing to accept that offer, so the two sides discussed other possible deals, including shorter- and longer-term scenarios. However, Milwaukee’s per-year limit was always right around $18MM, says Lowe.
Parker – who views himself as a max player, per Lowe – will now have at least a couple months to prove that he’s worth a massive investment, though it remains to be seen how high the Bucks will be prepared to go this summer when Parker reaches restricted free agency.
Here’s more from Lowe on the Bucks:
- Providing a few more details on Kidd’s ouster, Lowe says that the former Bucks head coach had a “sometimes strained” relationship with the team’s medical staff, and that some players wanted more communication and support from Kidd.
- Although there were reports indicating that Giannis Antetokounmpo was “devastated” as a result of Kidd’s firing, the move isn’t expected to result in a lingering rift between the club and its star player, writes Lowe.
- Prior to acquiring Eric Bledsoe from the Suns, the Bucks discussed a similar deal with the Hawks for Dennis Schroder, league sources tell Lowe.
- The Bucks continue to be active in trade discussions, but talks with the Clippers for DeAndre Jordan haven’t gotten anywhere near serious, according to Lowe. The ESPN scribe suggests that Derrick Favors might be a decent fit for Milwaukee, but isn’t sure whether the team has the right assets to appeal to the Jazz.