Northwest Notes: Hayward, Durant, Plumlee, Davis
The Jazz are “poking around” the market for a point guard, several league sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN.com. It’s not entirely clear if such efforts are related to the team’s reported 10-day deal with Erick Green, though it would seem given the timing of that agreement, so soon after Raul Neto suffered a concussion Monday, that the team had already been looking. The Heat reportedly rebuffed Utah when it tried to engage them in Mario Chalmers trade talks over the offseason, but the Jazz’s interest in Chalmers was minimal, according to Lowe. The ESPN scribe speculates about other options, including Jrue Holiday, whose leg issues leave teams “petrified” and whom the Pelicans are reluctant to deal, anyway, Lowe reports. Lowe also believes Jeff Teague would be a fit for Utah, but reports that the Hawks have had “major trust issues” with backup Dennis Schröder and are focused on contending this season. In any case, the Jazz appear reluctant to pilfer from their store of future picks, which includes the Warriors unprotected 2017 first-rounder as the relative cost of rookie scale contracts becomes cheaper amid the rapid salary cap escalation, Lowe writes.
“Picks are that much more valuable,” GM Dennis Lindsey said to Lowe.
See more from Utah:
- The impending financial realities threaten the core of the Jazz, as Lowe details in the same piece, and Gordon Hayward, who can opt out after next season, acknowledged to Lowe that they cast a shadow on his future. “I’m constantly thinking about that,” Hayward said. “Contracts are so short now. A lot of our guys are on their rookie deals, and they’ll come up for extensions. It all might determine whether or not I stay in Utah.”
- The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater examines the surprising lack of legitimate rumors about Kevin Durant‘s impending free agency, writing that the idea of the Thunder star signing a deal that would allow him to opt out after just one season “has gained traction.” It’s not clear whether that idea is growing on Durant himself or if more people are simply realizing that it would likely represent the most lucrative path for the former MVP. That would allow him to take advantage of a projected $108MM cap for the summer of 2017 and a higher maximum-salary tier, since he’d be a 10-year veteran.
- The playmaking ability of Trail Blazers offseason acquisitions Mason Plumlee and Ed Davis has helped alleviate the pressure from incumbent guards Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, as Mike Richman of The Oregonian examines. Plumlee will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the offseason.
Eastern Notes: Blatt, Anderson, Hawks
Echoing the sentiment expressed by many around the league, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra expressed concern and seemed shocked over the firing of former Cavs coach David Blatt, of the Miami Herald relays. It is uncommon for Spoelstra to make any sort of comment that has any connection to LeBron James, as Skolnick points out.
“It’s very disturbing for the coaching profession,” Spoelstra said. “Look, you have to be able to go through collective adversity and accountability together, for you to make strides, and have breakthroughs in this league. It’s really a shame. He had an incredible run, a great record. It just doesn’t make any sense to any of the coaches around the league, and hopefully it doesn’t make sense to a lot of people in our league.”
Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Alan Anderson, who has yet to play for the Wizards after signing a one-year, $4MM deal in the offseason, has increased his workload and that suggests his first full practice with Washington is not too far away, J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.com details. Anderson is still wearing a soft cast, however.
- The Sixers are 5-8 and have experienced an uptick in scoring since acquiring Ish Smith and Celtics coach Brad Stevens isn’t surprised the point guard has provided Philadelphia a lift, Kevin O’Connor of CSNNE.com relays. “He’s always been a guy that gives people fits because of his speed and because of his ability to get inside the teeth of the defense,” Stevens said to reporters Sunday. “He’s really ignited their offense here. That’s clear.”
- Hawks point guard Jeff Teague attributed his down season, which he is experiencing one year after he made his first All-Star appearance, to an ankle injury, Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Teague has lacked consistency and over the past seven games he has 34 assists and 18 turnovers, Vivlamore points out.
Pistons Interested In Al Horford?
The Pistons might have interest in someone like Al Horford to offset a lack of leadership, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press hears (Twitter link). Brandon Jennings pointed to a leadership void after Thursday’s blowout loss to the Pelicans, saying that he and fellow point guard Reggie Jackson should give their teammates more direction, as Ellis writes in a full story. It’s unclear whether the Pistons are indeed eyeing the Hawks big man or if the idea would be to pursue him via trade or after his contract expires at season’s end. Horford is No. 5 in the latest Hoops Rumors 2016 Free Agent Power Rankings.
A free agent pitch would appear more likely than a trade, since the Hawks would no doubt be reluctant to break up a team that’s just two games behind second place in the Eastern Conference with a deal that sends out a player they reportedly view as a building block for now and the future. Horford is a longtime client of the Wasserman Media Group, the firm that was home to super agent Arn Tellem before he left this past summer to become vice chairman of Palace Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Pistons. The former third overall pick dumped the Wasserman agency for Bill Duffy of BDA Sports after Tellem’s departure but quickly backtracked and rejoined Wasserman. Jason Glushon of Wasserman is Horford’s primary representative, according to RealGM.
The Pistons are reportedly keen on acquiring a power forward who would bump Ersan Ilyasova to the bench and plan to target Ryan Anderson and Donatas Motiejunas this summer. Horford, who turns 30 in June, has swung between power forward and center for much of his career. He’s added a 3-point shot to his game this season, nailing 32.6% of his 129 attempts. That’s a modest percentage, but the sudden addition of this component to Horford’s game (he’s taken more 3-pointers this year than his first eight seasons put together) makes him more of a fit for Stan Van Gundy‘s preferred one-in, four-out style.
Van Gundy clearly wasn’t pleased with his players after Thursday’s game, describing the performance as “deplorable” and saying the Pistons “look like a team that is firmly committed to trying to be mediocre,” as Ellis relays. Jennings pointed to the leadership role he assumed in the wake of Van Gundy’s decision to waive Josh Smith last season, Ellis notes, though that was when Jennings was the starting point guard, a job Jackson holds now.
“We’ll say things here and there, but mostly it’s just coach talking and it has to come from the players and we have to police ourselves,” Jennings said, according to Ellis. “Guys get into it, guys tell how they feel. We don’t have any of that. Maybe it needs to be done. Just let it out and let’s go on from there.”
The Pistons are 23-20, tied with the Heat for sixth place in the East. Detroit has only about $48MM in guaranteed salary committed against a projected $89MM cap for next season, but that doesn’t include $8MM in non-guaranteed salary for Ilyasova, whom the Pistons reportedly intend to keep, and a cap hold of about $8.180MM for Andre Drummond. That would give the Pistons roughly $64MM in commitments, not counting other, smaller cap holds, which would make it a tight squeeze to fit in Horford. He’s eligible for a projected $24.9MM maximum salary.
Southeast Notes: Hennigan, Spoelstra, Hawks
Despite the Magic experiencing a recent rough patch, GM Rob Hennigan is pleased with the progress made by the young team, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel relays. “Clearly our play over the past few weeks has been choppy and inconsistent, which has been frustrating,” said Hennigan. “We’re continuing to search for that balance and rhythm that we had earlier in the season. We’ve shown we’re capable of doing it. Now it’s a matter of harnessing it consistently and executing the plan that Scott and his staff are laying out each night. But if you take a step back and look at the big picture, I’d say, by and large, we’ve made considerable progress. The next step for us is obviously doing a better job of closing out those games, and I think the key thing to remember is we’re doing it primarily with players in their first, second, third, fourth and fifth years.”
The GM also indicated that Orlando would be active at the trade deadline, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the team will make any trades, Robbins adds. “We’ll be very active in our discussions,” said Hennigan. “It’s our job to constantly search for ways to improve the team. It doesn’t mean that those discussions will necessarily lead to action. We’re in a position where a lot of teams like our players, and so we’ll certainly have options. If something makes sense for us, we’ll be aggressive. But it needs to make sense for both the long and short terms. So we’ll stay equally as disciplined in our decision-making as we are active in our discussions.”
Here’s more out of the Southeast Division:
- In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel opines that Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has been stubborn about adapting his gameplan and turning Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside loose more on the offensive end, but the team’s lack of outside shooting may be partially to blame for the coach’s sometimes questionable rotations.
- The Hawks are still recovering the scandal brought on by the racially insensitive remarks of former GM Danny Ferry and former owner Bruce Levenson, but the franchise is excited about the inroads made in the community regarding tolerance, Charles Odum of The Associated Press writes. “Because of this city, because of what happened, we have an opportunity to do something amazing and that’s what excites me,” Grant Hill, who is part of the team’s ownership group, said. “Don’t get me wrong. We want to win … but the chance to make an impact on this city, that’s what excites me.“
And-Ones: Davis, D-League, CBA
Baron Davis has cleared D-League waivers after going unclaimed by the league’s 19 teams, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). In other words, no team thought he was worth a waiver claim. Davis now goes into the league’s available players pool, Stein adds. With an interesting point, Adam Johnson of D-League Digest tweets that some team would have likely taken a shot on Davis if this situation happened a few years ago, if only for marketing purposes, because the D-League had independent teams then.
Here’s more from around the basketball world:
- Either side may opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement after the 2016/17 season, but commissioner Adam Silver is encouraged by already having direct conversations with the Players Association and is optimistic that a lockout will be avoided, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports tweets.
- Jae Crowder is putting up career-best numbers across the board and after re-signing with the Celtics this past summer for five years and $35MM, he is looking like one of the league’s top bargains, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com writes. Crowder was the prize in the trade that sent Rajon Rondo to the Mavs and is flourishing this season as the Celtics’ starting small forward, Forsberg adds.
- The Hawks recalled Lamar Patterson and Edy Tavares from the D-League, Atlanta announced in an emailed press release.
- The Magic will recall Devyn Marble from the D-League, John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com reports (on Twitter).
Heat Rumors: Udrih, Whiteside, Wade
Beno Udrih‘s improved play may force the Heat to shake up their rotation once Goran Dragic returns from injury, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Udrih, who was acquired in a November 10th trade with Memphis, has taken over as the starting point guard with Dragic out of action. Dragic was sent home from the team’s current road trip with a calf strain. He will be re-evaluated after the Heat return home tonight, but there is no timetable for his return. Winderman speculates that if Udrih continues to play well, he could turn Tyler Johnson from a combo guard into just a shooting guard and perhaps eat into the minutes of Gerald Green and Justise Winslow.
There’s more Heat-related news today:
- An ideal situation for Miami would be for free agent center Hassan Whiteside to accept an Early Bird salary of about $6MM next season and then receive a maximum deal the following year, Winderman writes in the same piece. However, the columnist adds that there’s virtually no chance of that happening, as Whiteside can expect at least an $80MM offer this summer.
- That payday will be extra sweet for Whiteside, according to Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders, as the 26-year-old center spent two full years out of the NBA before getting a chance with Miami midway through last season. Now that he has a shot at a huge contract, Whiteside listed a few basic things he will be looking for. “I want to go to a team that’s about winning,” he said. “[A team] that has a good understanding of what it takes to win and a good city with a good fan base.” Blancarte expects the Hawks, Celtics, Hornets, Bulls and Lakers to compete with the Heat for Whiteside.
- Earning an All-Star spot is still important to Dwyane Wade at age 34, writes Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. Wade, who signed a one-year, $20MM deal with the Heat last summer and is headed for free agency again, is fifth in the overall voting with two days remaining. He said the results show he has staying power with the public. “I’m turning 34 years old, and the fans still want to see me in the All-Star Game,” said Wade. “It’s a pretty cool thing. Besides my first All-Star, it probably means the most.”
Southeast Notes: Whiteside, Zeller, Horford
Hassan Whiteside is set to become a free agent this summer and he conceded he factors that in a bit when determining whether or not to play through certain injuries, Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post details in a Q&A with the Heat center. When asked if he weighs his upcoming free agency into his decision-making regarding the fine line between resting and playing through injuries, Whiteside told Lieser, “It has something to do with it, but I’m not really thinking about that too much. I’m just trying to think of now.” Whiteside is battling tendinitis in his right knee, but he has missed only two of the Heat’s 40 games this season.
Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:
- Speaking of Whiteside, who is one of the league’s top big men, the 26-year-old said he will be looking to sign with a team that will give him the best opportunity to secure a championship, Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders relays. “I want to go to a team that’s about winning,” Whiteside said. “[A team] that has a good understanding of what it takes to win and a good city with a good fan base.”
- Cody Zeller, on whom the Hornets exercised their 2016/17 rookie scale team option in November, has a decent shot to secure the role of Charlotte’s center of the future, Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer opines. Zeller is thriving as the team’s center because of his unusual quickness at the position, Fowler writes. Adding to the idea that Zeller will be the team’s center for the long haul, Fowler surmises that Al Jefferson, who is out with a knee injury and is set to be a free agent this summer, likely won’t be back with the team next season.
- There will be shortage of teams to compete with for the services of Al Horford, a 2016 free agent, but the Hawks remain as good a bet as any to re-sign him because of their solid management structure and recent success, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders writes.
And-Ones: Wall, D-League, Pelicans
Wizards point guard John Wall expressed appreciation for what agent Dan Fegan of Relativity Sports did for him, but is excited about the possibilities his new agent, Rich Paul, will provide, J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic writes. “The people I was with, it was a great partnership for the five years I was with it. Did a lot of great and positive things for me but it’s just a situation where I felt me and my team wanted to go different ways in how we wanted to build out team,” Wall told Michael. “It was a decision I made to part ways with them. … I think just getting it off my chest was kind of a relief.”
Wall, whose shoe deal with Adidas expired earlier this season, says the agent change wasn’t about that particular endorsement opportunity, Michael adds. “It doesn’t factor in at all. That wasn’t even part of the decision why I wanted to make that. It’s just something that I’ve been thinking about for a while and I’m still open to every shoe company,” Wall said. “I’m going to talk to all those guys through the process, figure out what I can do. I still have interest in Adidas. … I’m just wearing what’s comfortable for my feet and protecting my feet for right now. I’m still weighing my options.”
Here’s the latest from around the league
- Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry isn’t sure how active the team will be at the trade deadline because the rash of injuries the roster has suffered makes it difficult to discern the team’s needs, Sam Amick of USA Today relays. “Well the first thing is that, you know, we’ve never really had our entire team on the floor, not for one single day,” Gentry told Amick. “So to anticipate that we would like to make changes or do something like that is really difficult to do because we really don’t know the team that we have, and one of the things we felt like is that last year the success they had is something that we could build on and grow on, so we’re not so eager to just all of a sudden start making trades. Now if there’s something that makes sense for our franchise, or is going to make us a much better team, I’m sure it’s something that [GM] Dell [Demps] and I will talk about and there will be a decision made, obviously, that we think is in the best interests of our club.”
- The Hawks have assigned swingman Lamar Patterson and center Edy Tavares to the D-League, the team announced via a press release. Both players will report to the Austin Spurs as part of the league’s flexible assignment rule since Atlanta doesn’t possess its own affiliate.
- The Bulls have recalled power forward Cristiano Felicio from the D-League, the team announced (via Twitter). This was Felicio’s first trip to the D-League on the season.
And-Ones: Rose, Lillard, Bazemore, Labissiere
Derrick Rose has said in the past that he wants to play with the Bulls for the rest of his career, and while he raised eyebrows with his comments on media day that indicated he was looking forward to hitting free agency in 2017, he recently told Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com he still intends to stay put. The same is true for Damian Lillard, who said Friday that he plans to remain with the Trail Blazers until his playing days are over, calling his relationship with the organization “a hand-and-glove fit” for the way the Blazers have embraced him as a player and a person, as Jason Quick of CSNNW.com notes. Lillard is fresh off signing a five-year extension in the summer, so the matter of his free agency isn’t as pressing as Rose’s, though Lillard’s remarks are nonetheless soothing for Portland, given its history of star defections, Quick posits. See more from around the NBA:
- Rose also told Friedell for the same piece that he doesn’t have any contact with Tom Thibodeau and doesn’t even think about his former coach, despite having had a “good relationship” with him, because he’s focused on adjusting to new Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg. He also spoke fondly of Jimmy Butler, despite reports of friction between the two, answering affirmatively when Friedell asked if Butler is the most talented teammate he’s ever had.
- The Hawks unsurprisingly view 2016 free agent Al Horford as a building block for the long-term, writes Zach Lowe of ESPN.com, though he’s not the only player the team will have to pay if it wants to retain this summer. Estimates of the starting salary Kent Bazemore will be able to command on his next deal range from the mid-level, which tops out at $5.628MM, to $12MM, according to a dozen league executives to whom Lowe spoke.
- The top three, including LSU combo forward Ben Simmons, are unchanged in the latest 2016 draft prospect rankings from Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider only), but Marquette big man Henry Ellenson is up to No. 4 from No. 6. Kentucky big man Skal Labissiere, who was Ford’s previous No. 4 and once a serious challenger for the No. 1 pick, has dropped to No. 10.
Southeast Notes: Kilpatrick, Skiles, Schröder
The Wizards strongly considered signing shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick prior to inking Jarell Eddie back in December, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN relays (via Twitter). Kilpatrick, 25, was in training camp with the Pelicans this season, and he is currently lighting up scoreboards for the Delaware 87ers, Philadelphia’s D-League affiliate. The guard has made 20 appearances for Delaware this season and is averaging 26.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 38.1 minutes per contest. With teams becoming eligible to sign players to 10-day contracts Tuesday, look for Kilpatrick to end up in the NBA at some point this season, Wolfson adds.
Here’s more from the Southeast Division:
- The Magic have slowed since getting off to a solid start to the 2014/15 campaign, and coach Scott Skiles may have run out of buttons to push with the current roster, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel writes. The team’s lack of elite talent has made it difficult for the coach to maintain a consistent rotation, and there appears to be no obvious solution with Orlando’s current crop of players, Schmitz opines.
- Despite Shelvin Mack taking over backup point guard duties during the Hawks‘ last two games, coach/executive Mike Budenholzer insists that Dennis Schröder is not in the doghouse, Matt Winkeljohn of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. “No. He keeps competing in practice, doing what he’s doing,” Budenholzer said when asked if Schröder has fallen out of favor. “Part of it is Shelvin’s been busting his butt, working hard. I think to give guys opportunities and to develop all 15 guys is important. Dennis will get his opportunities.”