Knicks Notes: Stars, Harris, Randle
The Knicks are heading into the offseason the ability to carve out cap space for two max contracts. Kevin Durant has long been rumored as a target, though he isn’t the only star they will shoot for.
The team is hopeful about getting a meeting with Kawhi Leonard, sources tell Marc Spears of The Undefeated. New York also has interest in Kemba Walker and Kyrie Irving.
Whispers that the Knicks wouldn’t look to the next level of stars should they strike out on the top of the market began to surface recently. However, Spears hears that the front office is interested in Tobias Harris and Nikola Vucevic, both player that GM Scott Perry knows from his time in the Magic organization.
While Harris and Vucevic are considered a tier below the Durant-Leonard-level stars, both players are expected to garner max contracts on the open market. Here’s more from Spears on the Knicks:
- New York and Julius Randle have a mutual interest, sources tell Spears. Randle has previously been linked to the franchise.
- DeMarcus Cousins, DeAndre Jordan, Markieff Morris, and Marcus Morris are among the players on the Knicks’ radar, Spears writes. Jordan is reportedly a target of the crosstown Nets.
- The Knicks‘ reputation has come a long way in just two years. No. 3 overall pick R.J. Barrett openly declared that he wanted to be in New York leading up to the draft. Team president Steve Mills said that in 2017, several Kentucky prospects didn’t want to meet with the team during the pre-draft process. “It was frustrating for me because I had never been in a situation where, especially rookies, there was a narrative amongst the young guys that they didn’t want to come play for the Knicks,” Mills said. “They didn’t want to meet with us in Chicago. I said, ‘We’ve got to change that and start with the young guys.’ ”
- Mills added that the front office has the green light to take a patient approach this offseason should the team miss out on stars. “If the right guys are there for us, great, because we still have all the young pieces and draft picks to move forward,” Mills tells Spears.“And if they’re not, we’re going to keep building our plan, drafting our guys, playing well and potentially being trade partners. We feel really good about where we are going.”
Western Notes: Thompson, Spurs, Allen
Klay Thompson would be open to a meeting with the Clippers should the Warriors not present him with a max salary offer at the start of free agency, Adrian Wojnarowski said on the network’s free agency special. Thompson is expected to re-sign in Golden State.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- San Antonio could be a fit for Trevor Ariza, Jabari Young of The Athletic writes. Ariza earned $15MM last season on a one-year deal and the Spurs had interest in him last summer, Young hears. Ariza is a candidate for the mid-level exception.
- The Spurs have kept a close eye on Amir Johnson since he played in Toronto, Young adds in the same piece. Young speculates that the 32-year-old big man could be a fit in San Antonio, citing his close relationship with DeMar DeRozan and Rudy Gay.
- Grayson Allen, who was traded to the Grizzlies in the Mike Conley deal, aims to improve his defense during Summer League, as he tells David Cobb of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “When I tell you I’m going to work on defense this summer, I don’t think many people picture guys in summer workouts doing defensive slides,” Allen said. “…But for me it’s going to be continuing to work on that footwork on the defensive end, getting my body in great shape, great conditioning going into summer league and the season.”
Rockets To Pursue Sign-And-Trade For Jimmy Butler
The Rockets‘ top priority this offseason will be to recruit Jimmy Butler via sign-and-trade to Houston, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com.
The Rockets are unlikely to carve out enough cap room to sign Butler outright, so a sign-and-trade is the most feasible option to bring the four-time All-Star to Texas, as Wojnarowski details. In that scenario, Philadelphia would receive players back as opposed to losing Butler for nothing had he signed with a team with cap room.
Clint Capela and Eric Gordon would likely leave Houston in a potential sign-and-trade with a third team possibly getting involved due to Base Year Compensation rules, Woj writes. Of the two, Gordon would be the better fit for Philadelphia, particularly if the team believes J.J. Redick may depart in free agency.
We recently detailed some of the roadblocks standing in the way of a potential Butler acquisition by the Rockets after The Houston Chronicle first reported that the team would pursue the standout swingman.
[RELATED: Why NBA Sign-And-Trades Are Rare]
Butler could receive a four-year, max deal from Houston worth roughly $141MM. The Sixers plan to be aggressive in their attempts to retain Butler and the franchise could offer him the full five-year, $190M max deal at the start of free agency to trump any rival offer.
Houston previously pursued Butler when he was in Minnesota. The franchise reportedly offered four first-round picks in exchange for the wing.
And-Ones: Marbury, Rush, Zoosman, FAs
Former NBA star Stephon Marbury has been named the head coach of the Beijing Royal Fighers in the Chinese Basketball Association, writes Kevin Wang of ESPN.com.
Marbury, a former fourth overall pick who made All-Star teams for New Jersey and Phoenix during his 13-year NBA career, has enjoyed a second act over the last decade as a star in China. As a player for Chinese teams, including the Beijing Ducks, Marbury won three CBA titles and was named a CBA All-Star six times. Now he’ll remain in China as a head coach in Beijing, having reportedly signed a three-year contract with the team, per Wang.
“Thank you for the opportunity. I will give everything I have on the sidelines just like I gave everything inside the lines,” Marbury wrote on his Weibo social media account. “The end is another start, I am back, are you with me?”
Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- Brandon Rush hasn’t played in an NBA game since the 2016/17 season, in part due to a heart infection, but he hasn’t given up hope on making a comeback, per an Indianapolis Star report. Rush is currently playing in the BIG3 in the hopes of proving he’s capable of returning to the NBA. “That’s the main goal for me right now,” Rush said. “I just want to show people that I can still hoop. I just want to show my athletic ability, showing that I still got a little bounce to me. (Show) that I can still shoot the ball and defend at a high level.”
- Undrafted free agent Yovel Zoosman, who has spent the last several seasons playing in Israel, has reportedly received a four-year offer from Maccabi Tel Aviv, but remains primarily focused on finding a deal with an NBA team, a source tells JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link).
- ESPN’s Kevin Pelton (Insider link) shares his top-30 list of 2019 NBA free agents, with Jeremy Lamb, Delon Wright, and Tyus Jones among those who place higher than expected on the analytically-influenced rankings.
- Jeffrey David, the former Kings executive who was accused of siphoning $13.4MM from the team and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, has been sentenced to seven years in prison, writes Samantha Maldonado of The Associated Press.
Magic Extend Qualifying Offer To Khem Birch, Amile Jefferson
The Magic have extended qualifying offers to both Khem Birch and Amile Jefferson, the team announces in a press release. Orlando had until June 29 to make a decision on the pair.
Birch, who appeared in 50 games for Orlando last season, is reportedly generating substantial interest on the market. As a restricted free agent, the Magic would have the right to match any offer sheet he receives. His qualifying offer is worth roughly $1.82MM.
Jefferson played under a two-way contract last season, appearing in just 12 games with the franchise. He spent much of his time in the G League for the team’s affiliate. Jefferson’s qualifying offer will be for another two-way contract with $50K of it guaranteed.
Cavs Turned Down J.R. Smith Offers On Draft Night
The Cavaliers entered draft day last Thursday hoping to trade J.R. Smith to pick up an extra asset or two, but ended up declining offers that would have landed the team a first-round pick, league sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.
According to Fedor, the Cavaliers are still attempting to make a deal involving Smith, whose partially guaranteed contract is the last of its kind signed under the league’s previous Collective Bargaining Agreement. As I outlined back in March, that makes Smith an intriguing trade target for teams looking to create cap room.
Smith’s $15.68MM salary for 2019/20 will become fully guaranteed after June 30, so he’ll almost certainly be waived in the coming days, either by the Cavs or a new team.
In my previous examination of the Smith contract, I noted that the Cavs’ proximity to the luxury tax may ultimately prohibit the team from finding a deal that makes sense. Fedor confirms that the tax is the primary concern for Cleveland, reporting that the club would like to stay below that line in 2019/20 and avoid getting hit with repeater taxpayer penalties.
Trading Smith for an unwanted contract would make it difficult for the Cavs to avoid the tax without waiving-and-stretching one or two of their expiring deals, which would compromise their future cap flexibility. On top of that, many players available on the trade market for Smith have contracts that extend beyond 2019/20, creating additional complications for Cleveland.
Fedor points to the Bucks’ Tony Snell salary dump as one deal the Cavs probably could’ve gotten in on using Smith. However, acquiring Snell would’ve increased the cost of Cleveland’s 2019/20 roster to $139MM+ and added an extra $12MM+ to the club’s 2020/21 cap, all for the No. 30 overall pick. The tax line is projected to be around $132MM in ’19/20.
The Cavs later agreed to acquire the No. 30 pick another way, sending $5MM and a handful of second-round picks to Detroit for the rights to Kevin Porter Jr.
“There’s a pain threshold of doing it, going into the tax, which we would have to do in terms of taking back money and the rest of the NBA knowing that we’re in the tax and my job would be getting us out of the tax,” GM Koby Altman said after the draft, per Fedor.
“Is there enough value there to do that, to put ourselves out there like that?” Altman said. “I think that’s something we are weighing these last few days. There’s opportunity to do it. It’s just how deep do we want to go into the tax to bring back an asset? Also, what does it take us out of into the year? We’re still looking to add assets throughout the year, so using J.R. now might take us out of that.”
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports (video link) believes the Lakers will be a top suitor for Smith if and when he’s eventually released.
Latest On Kawhi Leonard
Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri expressed confidence today that his team will be able to re-sign Kawhi Leonard, telling reporters that he believes the franchise has “built a trust” with the All-NBA forward and adding that there have been positive discussions between the two sides.
Still, there will be plenty of rival suitors looking to lure Leonard back south of the border. Here are the latest rumblings on a few of those contenders:
- A meeting between Leonard and the Clippers is tentatively scheduled for July 2, Frank Isola of The Athletic hears (Twitter link). Teams technically aren’t permitted to contact free agents to set up meetings until June 29, but it won’t be surprising if some plans are in the works before then. We’ll have to wait to see if this is one of them.
- Chris Broussard of FOX Sports has heard that the Lakers won’t be in the running for Leonard, even if they can create enough cap room to offer a max or near-max contract (link via Wil Leitner of FOX Sports Radio).
- Despite rumblings that the Mavericks are confident about getting a meeting with Leonard, Mike Fisher of 247Sports.com says it’s “premature” to go that far. According to Fisher, the Mavs would love to meet with Kawhi, but “don’t know yet” if he’ll consider them.
- The Knicks remain hopeful about getting a meeting with Leonard in free agency, a source tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated.
Celtics Emerging As Kemba Walker Suitor
2:53pm: Updating his earlier report, Stein indicates that Boston is no longer a “stealth” suitor for Walker, tweeting that the Celtics and Mavericks will be at the front of the line for Kemba when free agency begins.
12:03pm: With the Celtics‘ roster and cap situation in a state of flux, the team is emerging as a “stealth suitor” for All-NBA point guard Kemba Walker, reports Marc Stein of The New York Times (via Twitter).
The Celtics’ situation is a fluid one, according to Stein (via Twitter), who acknowledges that the team will weigh a number of options to address both its backcourt and frontcourt. Kyrie Irving and Al Horford are expected to sign elsewhere and Aron Baynes is heading to Phoenix, while Terry Rozier and Marcus Morris are also free agents.
If the Celtics renounce all those players, they should have enough cap room to make a maximum-salary offer to a player like Walker, adding him to a core that features Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward, Jaylen Brown, and Marcus Smart. However, it sounds like that’s just one of the options that president of basketball operations Danny Ainge will consider.
The Mavericks and Lakers are among the teams believed to be eyeing Walker, who has also been frequently linked to the Knicks. For his part, Kemba has said that the Hornets remain his first priority and has indicated he’s open to accepting less than the super-max to return to Charlotte.
That super-max deal would be worth a projected $221MM+ over five years. A standard max with the Hornets projects to be worth just shy of $190MM over five seasons, while a rival suitor could offer Walker up to about $141MM for four years.
Beal Interested In Extension, Not Expecting Trade
A report last week indicated that the Wizards will likely offer Bradley Beal a three-year contract extension later in the offseason. On Monday night, Beal told Ben Golliver of The Washington Post that he’s “definitely” open to discussing such an extension, which would begin in 2021/22 and projects to be worth about $111MM.
“I have thought about it, but I haven’t really full-out processed it,” Beal said, per Golliver. “I still have two years left. We just drafted Rui [Hachimura] and I want to see what we do in free agency before I make the ultimate decision. I haven’t even been offered it officially. Until that happens, I’ll wait and think about it. I’ll have an ample amount of time to process everything and make a decision when the time is right.
“I’d be naive to say I wouldn’t be [interested in extension talks],” Beal continued. “Washington is where I’ve been the last seven years, going on eight. It would be great to play in one place forever. But at the same time, you want to win and make sure you’re in a position to do so. I’m definitely going to evaluate who we hire as the GM and who we pick up on the team. All that plays a factor.”
For the time being, Tommy Sheppard continues to serve as the interim general manager for the Wizards, whose owner Ted Leonsis indicated recently that the club won’t hire a new head of basketball operations prior to free agency. As Golliver relays, Beal trusts Sheppard to “run the show until Ted makes his decision,” but with the Wizards’ front office still in state of flux, it makes sense that the All-Star guard isn’t ready to make any long-term commitments quite yet.
Given the Wizards’ place in the lottery last season, Beal’s name has frequently come up in speculation about potential trade candidates, but he tells Golliver that he has been told separately by Leonsis, Sheppard, and head coach Scott Brooks in recent weeks that he’s not going anywhere.
“They’ve been very transparent and that’s been great,” Beal said. “They’re not keeping me in the dark about anything, even about the trade rumors. . . . It’s great having that peace of mind.”
Meanwhile, Beal’s backcourt mate John Wall, who continues to recover from surgery on his torn Achilles, will begin jogging in about two weeks, he told Chris Miller of NBC Sports Washington on Monday night.
“I’m able to move, do ladder steps, doing those types of things,” Wall said. “Just taking my time and progressing and letting everything heal the right way so I don’t force myself back and get another injury.”
Blazers Issue Qualifying Offer To Jake Layman
The Trail Blazers have tendered a qualifying offer to forward Jake Layman, the team announced today (via Twitter). ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski first reported (via Twitter) that Portland would give a QO to Layman to make him a restricted free agent.
Layman, 25, has spent the first three years of his NBA career with the Blazers, but didn’t emerge as a reliable rotation player for the club until 2018/19. In 71 games (33 starts) last season, the former Maryland standout averaged 7.6 PPG and 3.1 RPG on .509/.326/.704 shooting in 18.7 minutes per contest.
The Blazers hold Layman’s Bird rights, so there will be no cap restrictions preventing the club from re-signing him. Portland does project to be a potential taxpayer though, so luxury tax considerations could dissuade the team from going too high on Layman if he draws interest from other suitors. His qualifying offer is worth $1,931,189, as we noted in our look at the Blazers’ cap situation last month.
Layman was the only Blazer eligible for restricted free agency this summer, so no further QOs are forthcoming. He’ll join teammates Al-Farouq Aminu, Seth Curry, Rodney Hood, and Enes Kanter – all of whom are unrestricted free agents – on the open market.