Lowe On Howard, Wizards, Teague, Pelicans
The surprise of the summer might not have been Dwight Howard's departure from the Lakers, but the quickness with which he decided to join up with the Rockets. We're just a week into the free agency period, but executives are already taking the time to survey the entire landscape outside of their own milieu. Zach Lowe of Grantland checked in with basketball people to get their take on things and unearthed some very interesting tidbits..
- Lowe wonders why more clubs didn't put their toe in the water for Dwight Howard. His educated guess after poking around is that the Wizards gave it a go while the Bulls, who were once a rumored trade destination, did not. The Bulls have a stern culture, very good talent already on hand, and a tax complication, so Howard would have been a longshot and maybe not the best idea anyway.
- The Jazz could have used their cap space this summer to sign Jeff Teague, who sources say is nearly unwanted in the Hawks organization. We've heard previously that the point guard was upset with the lack of communication he's had with Atlanta this summer.
- Pelicans owner Tom Benson has told the front office that the team needs to take a significant step forward this season, according to several sources around the league. That would help to explain their sizable commitment to Tyreke Evans this summer.
- Other execs have pointed out that the Rockets tend to be sort of annoying, especially around draft day. Daryl Morey & Co. make many, many phone calls, poking the market and chasing tiny deals that move them two spots up in the draft or add an extra second-round pick. People knocked Morey for burning up the phone lines to chase the No. 9 seed a year ago and didn't seem long for Houston, but he has turned a roster with zero top-50 talent into a roster with two top-15 players.
- As much as Houston says they want to hang on to center Omer Asik, Lowe would be surprised to see him finish the year with the Rockets.
Andrew Bynum Meeting With Cavs, Hawks, Mavs
1:58pm: Bynum has also lined up face-to-face meetings with the Hawks and Mavericks this week, tweets Stein. According to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio, the big man would like to have a contract agreement in place within the next few days.
MONDAY, 11:30am: Bynum is scheduled to be in Cleveland today for a face-to-face meeting with the Cavs, according to Stein (via Twitter).
SUNDAY, 10:48pm: The Cavaliers have joined the Mavericks as a team to watch in the race to sign free-agent center Andrew Bynum. Sources close to the process told Marc Stein of ESPN.com that the Cavs are legitimate contenders to sign Bynum, who now finds himself as the top available center on the market despite not playing a minute in 2012/13.
Indications are that Cleveland won't offer more than a one-year deal to Bynum so that they can make a free agent splash in the summer of 2014, a class that includes LeBron James. But the Cavs have ~$15MM in available right now and sources say they have legitimate interest in the former All-Star.
The Mavs have serious interest in Bynum as well but they have begun an "exhaustive" evaluation process regarding his problematic knees and want to know that everything checks out before they think about a multi-year pact. The Hawks also like Bynum, but Monta Ellis is a bigger priority for them right now.
Brandon Jennings Seeking $12MM Per Year?
With many of the top-tier unrestricted free agents off the board already, the focus this week may shift to the big restricted free agents still available, such as Nikola Pekovic and Brandon Jennings. Although we didn't hear a ton of news or rumors on Jennings during the first week of free agency, Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times passes along an update today, tweeting that Jennings is seeking an annual salary of $12MM. According to Woelfel, the Bucks are "starting to cave," offering Jennings just over $11MM per year.
Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reported last Tuesday that Jennings' representatives at Excel Sports had presented the Bucks with an undisclosed figure that the 23-year-old would be willing to accept to re-sign with the team. If we connect the dots and assume that the undisclosed amount was $12MM annually, and that Jennings is looking for a long-term deal, that would work out to $48MM over four years, or $60MM for five.
While re-signing Jennings is one option for the Bucks, it sounds as if it's not the only scenario the team is exploring. ESPN.com's Marc Stein reported overnight that Milwaukee and Atlanta are discussing a sign-and-trade deal that would send Jennings to the Hawks and Jeff Teague to the Bucks. If the two sides were able to reach an agreement, there'd be a new-look backcourt of Teague and O.J. Mayo in Milwaukee, with Jennings, Monta Ellis, and J.J. Redick all seemingly headed elsewhere.
Stein’s Latest: Ellis, Jennings, Teague, Fredette
As we noted already this morning, ESPN.com's Marc Stein was the first to pass along word that the Nuggets and Randy Foye were nearing a verbal agreement. Stein also includes a number of somewhat related tidbits in his latest entry on ESPN's TrueHoop blog, so let's dive in and round them up….
- An agreement between Denver and Foye would likely take the Nuggets out of the running for Monta Ellis, which would seem to open up the Hawks' lead for the free agent guard. Stein reported over the weekend that Ellis was Atlanta's top target.
- However, an alternative scenario appears to be in play for the Hawks. According to Stein, Atlanta and Milwaukee have discussed a deal that would send Jeff Teague to the Bucks and Brandon Jennings to the Hawks, both via sign-and-trade. If those talks get serious, Stein says Atlanta would likely rescind its interest in Ellis, considering an Ellis/Jennings backcourt didn't take the Bucks far last season. Milwaukee's interest in Teague was reported at the very start of free agency last week.
- The Kings also remain in the hunt for Ellis, according to Stein, who says Sacramento has been shopping Jimmer Fredette and Chuck Hayes to the Cavaliers in an effort to clear the necessary cap room.
- As Stein notes, Hayes may not appeal to the Cavs, who are attempting to retain as much 2014 cap space as possible. The veteran forward is owed close to $6MM in 2014/15, while Fredette has a team option worth about $3.11MM.
Odds & Ends: Morrow, Ellis, Rivers, Collison
Here's tonight's look around the Association..
- The Grizzlies, Warriors, and Bobcats are the latest teams to show interest in Anthony Morrow, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. The Lakers, Spurs, Suns, Rockets, and Knicks have all reached out as well.
- Nothing is imminent at this point between the Hawks and Monta Ellis, but the two sides are engaged in talks, Kennedy tweets.
- Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck took a shot at former coach Doc Rivers, telling Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald that "Doc left us, period." Still, Grousbeck is confident his team can rebuild, as Bulpett observes in a separate piece.
- Many around the league are surprised that the Clippers were able to snag Darren Collison for a starting salary of just $1.9MM, Grantland's Zach Lowe tweets.
- The Spurs called 6'8" sharpshooter James Southerland to see if he would consider playing overseas next season if they took him with the 58th pick in last month's draft. Southerland turned down the offer and went undrafted, and is trying to prove himself with the Sixers and Warriors in summer league, as Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
- Josh Smith's agreement with the Pistons shatters the notion that marquee free agents won't come to Detroit, observes MLive's David Mayo, who examines how Smith fits on the team and what moves might be next for Joe Dumars and company.
Cavs Notes: Clark, FA Targets, Korver, Dunleavy
The Cavaliers made a couple of moves this week, agreeing to terms with Earl Clark and Jarrett Jack, as our Free Agent Tracker Shows. They still figure to have close to $15MM in cap space remaining, so they're not done yet. Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer, amid his look across the spectrum of Cleveland sports, passes along news on the Cavs' summer so far and what might be next, as we detail here:
- Pluto has the value of Clark's deal at $8.5MM, slightly smaller than the $9MM total that Sean Deveney of The Sporting News originally reported.
- The Cavs are in the hunt for a swingman who can shoot and a true center, according to Pluto. They were considering Kyle Korver before he agreed to re-sign with the Hawks, Pluto adds.
- Pluto also confirms Marc Stein's ESPN report that Marco Belinelli passed up more money from the Cavs to go to the Spurs, and says that Mike Dunleavy did the same when he agreed to head to the Bulls.
- Fellow Plain Dealer scribe Mary Schmitt Boyer answers reader questions in her mailbag column, and she touches on the notion of LeBron James returning to the Cavs.
Latest On Monta Ellis, Andrew Bynum
Top-tier free agents are going fast, leaving Monta Ellis and Andrew Bynum among the best options remaining on the list of available players. Marc Stein of ESPN.com has the latest on teams in line for them:
- Ellis is the top target for the Hawks, according to Stein, who figures the team could make an offer with a starting salary around $10MM based on its available cap space. GM Danny Ferry and company have also given thought to signing Andrew Bynum.
- Bynum is the primary focus for the Mavs, Stein reports, adding that Dallas doesn't appear to have enough cap space left to make a competitive bid on Ellis, whom they've also been eyeing.
- The Nuggets also covet Ellis, Stein observes, and that's fueling the team's desire to trade Andre Miller.
- If Ellis hasn't signed elsewhere by the time the July Moratorium is over on Wednesday, Stein says the Bucks would have to renounce his rights to clear enough room to officially bring aboard free agents O.J. Mayo and Zaza Pachulia, with whom they have agreements.
Devin Harris To Sign With Mavs
10:27pm: Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com reiterates our contention that Harris will likely spend a lot of time at shooting guard next to Calderon in the Mavs' backcourt. MacMahon notes that Harris spent half his time next to Jeff Teague at shooting guard last season with the Hawks, so the transition won't be difficult. Acquiring Harris also allows the Mavs to bring their rookie guards, Shane Larkin and Gal Mekel, along more slowly.
8:04pm: Although the deal can't be made official until Wednesday when the NBA's July moratorium is lifted, ESPNDallas.com's Tim MacMahon says the Mavs struck a deal today to bring Devin Harris back to Dallas for a three-year deal in excess of $9MM. With Harris' and Jose Calderon's deal, the Mavs have solved their backcourt problems from last year.
The 30-year-old Harris averaged 9.9 PPG and 3.4 APG in 24.5 MPG during part-time starting duties with the Hawks last year. But Harris primarily played as the off-guard when Jeff Teague was in the game at the same time. This might be how the Mavs choose to use him in conjunction with Calderon.
6:40pm: Marc Stein of ESPN.com is hearing that Hawks unrestricted free agent Devin Harris is "closing in" on a deal to go back to the Mavs for a three-year deal worth $9MM plus (Twitter).
Harris is repped by Excel Sports Management, as shown in the Hoops Rumors Agency Database.
Free Agent Rumors: Bynum, Teague, Kirilenko
Free agents continue to reach deals with teams across the NBA in advance of Wednesday, when agreements can become official. Here's the latest on the moves that could be next:
- The Mavs were in contact with Andrew Bynum even before Dwight Howard turned them down, and Stein tweets that Dallas is indeed pursuing the oft-injured Bynum now that Howard is out of the picture. Still, the Mavs will make a detailed and careful evaluation of the big man's health before reaching an agreement, according to Stein.
- Jeff Teague's camp is becoming increasingly frustrated with the Hawks, who have yet to engage in meaningful negotiations on a new deal, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links). The point guard is a restricted free agent, so Atlanta controls his destiny.
- The Kings aren't considering Andrei Kirilenko, tweets Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.
- The Knicks remain in play for Elton Brand, as do other teams, but a decision could come this weekend, a source tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link).
- The Jazz and Grizzlies also made offers to Dorell Wright, who wound up agreeing to join the Blazers instead, tweets Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. The Thunder also made an offer, as previously reported, Haynes notes.
- Decision makers within the Blazers front office have led The Oregonian's Joe Freeman to expect that the team won't re-sign Elliot Williams (Twitter link).
- Joe Dumars, fresh off his agreement to sign Josh Smith, has his sights on a perimeter sharpshooter for the Pistons, according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio (on Twitter). Keith Langlois of Pistons.com agrees, and hints that the team could hit the trade market as well (Twitter link).
Free Agent Rumors: Kirilenko, Andersen, Collison
It's been a busy night in NBA free agency, as Dwight Howard has decided, after much back-and-forth, that he'll sign with the Rockets. His decision appears to have set in motion a domino effect, with Jose Calderon heading to the Mavs and a pair of ex-Jazz players agreeing to terms with the Hawks. Here's more on the latest from around the league:
- The Wolves and Andrei Kirilenko didn't speak about the notion of a return today, but the team hasn't given up and retains his Non-Bird Rights, as Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reports via Twitter.
- With several teams showing interest in him, Chris Andersen remains in "decision mode," according to Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com. Andersen, who was expressed a desire to re-sign with the Heat, figures to make a decision early next week, says Zwerling (Twitterlinks).
- Darren Collison will be prioritizing winning over salary or a starting role in free agency, sources tell Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld. According to Ingram, Collison has been in contact with the Cavs, Kings, Spurs, and Clippers so far. We had previously heard about Cleveland's interest, but the rest of that list of potential suitors is new.
- The Blazers are still pursuing Dorell Wright, but they're one of several teams with strong interest, according to The Oregonian's Jason Quick. (Twitter link). His agent, presumably Greg Lawrence, tells Quick a decision is coming soon.
- Though the Hawks used up some of their cap space on agreements with Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll tonight, Atlanta remains the team most likely to make a lucrative offer to try to lure Nikola Pekovic from the Wolves, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
- The Hawks were considering an offer to Mo Williams before they decided to do a deal with Millsap instead, tweets HoopsWorld's Yannis Koutroupis.
- The Knicks had strong interest in re-signing Chris Copeland, but never made him an offer before he chose the Pacers instead, notes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter).
- The Nets are still seeking to sign a backup point guard, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.