Suns Not Pursuing Josh Smith
FRIDAY, 7:49am: According to John Gambadoro of 620 KTAR in Phoenix (Twitter link), the Suns have "zero" interest in trading for Smith. Gambadoro adds in a second tweet that the Suns have not even had a conversation with the Hawks about Smith.
THURSDAY, 5:02pm: Having missed out on Rudy Gay and Eric Gordon, the Phoenix Suns are making an effort to trade for Josh Smith, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reports. Kennedy writes that the Suns are intent on acquiring a max-level star to make into a cornerstone of their franchise, and have had preliminary discussions with the Hawks regarding possible trade packages.
Kennedy reports that a Suns package would likely be based around center Marcin Gortat, as well some combination of the expiring contracts of Jermaine O'Neal, Wesley Johnson, Shannon Brown, and Sebastian Telfair. Luis Scola could be involved as well, although since he was claimed off amnesty waivers, any deal including him would have to be a sign-and-trade made after July 1. The Suns also own multiple first-round picks, including their own, one from Minnesota, and two they received from the Lakers in last summer's Steve Nash trade.
In the past week, speculation is growing around the league that Smith's tenure with the Hawks may be coming to a close. Executives believe that he does not intend to re-sign with Atlanta this summer, when he will be an unrestricted free agent.
Kyler’s Latest: Pierce, Josh Smith, Redick, Lakers
HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler chimed in with roundup of trade rumors in advance of the Rudy Gay deal, and though his info about that swap quickly became outdated, he delivered much more from around the league. Let's hit the highlights here:
- The Celtics were entertaining offers for Paul Pierce before Rajon Rondo went down with a torn ACL, but for the moment they want to evaluate their team in the wake of the injury before making a move. Pierce wants to retire with Boston, and Celtics basketball president Danny Ainge and company will consider his special place in the team's history in deciding whether to move him. The C's will seek deals for their other players first.
- Though rumblings seem to indicate Josh Smith may be on his way out of Atlanta, the Hawks haven't considered any deal for him to this point. Still, Kyler believes that if they decide to deal Smith, they already know where they can send him. According to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun, the Raptors probably aren't one of the teams that would make a deal for the power forward (Twitter link).
- More than half the league has tried to trade for J.J. Redick, but the Magic have rebuffed all offers for the soon-to-be free agent. The Magic front office has kept Redick informed about all the possible deals, and it seems more than likely he'll opt to re-sign this summer.
- The Lakers continue to discuss Pau Gasol deals, but as it stands now, they're more likely to hold off until the summer, when they'll know whether Dwight Howard, a free agent, will be back.
- Kyler also shares Lang Greene's pre-trade video interview with Raptors coach Dwane Casey, and catches up with Greivis Vasquez and new Grizzlies big man Jon Leuer, who revealed that it was former teammate Kyrie Irving who broke the news to him about last week's trade.
Hawks Leaning Toward Trading Josh Smith?
Within his power rankings for Yahoo! Sports yesterday, Marc J. Spears included an interesting nugget in reference to the Hawks, noting that "expectations are growing" that the team will trade Josh Smith before the deadline. While Spears didn't specify whether he was alluding to expectations around the league or within the Hawks' organization, it certainly doesn't seem like a sure thing that Smith will be back in Atlanta next season.
Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News follows up on Spears' report with one of his own, tweeting that he's hearing Smith doesn't intend to re-sign with the Hawks, and will be moved "very soon" by the club. The timing of the reports is interesting, as Smith and the Hawks were expected to meet this week to discuss the forward's future in Atlanta. It's not clear whether that discussion has taken place yet, but if Spears' and Goodwill's reports are accurate, it sounds as if perhaps Smith has expressed, or will express, a preference to be moved.
One report earlier this month suggested that the Hawks remain committed to Smith, following an incident that earned him a one-game suspension from the team. On the heels of that suspension, agent Wallace Prather met with GM Danny Ferry to discuss what Prather called "a lot of frustration" on Smith's part. Neither Smith nor his agent requested a trade at the time, but Ken Berger of CBSSports.com wrote that the Hawks had at least taken calls from teams interested in acquiring the 27-year-old.
When I asked last week whether the Hawks will trade Smith before the February 21st deadline, the votes were split nearly right down the middle. Over at SI.com, Ben Golliver and Rob Mahoney debated Smith's future today, with both scribes suggesting that a trade probably makes more sense for Atlanta than risking losing the longtime Hawk over the summer, when he'll be seeking a max contract.
Odds & Ends: Josh Smith, Suns, Iverson, Stuckey
A few Tuesday afternoon odds and ends from around the Association….
- There's a growing expectation that the Hawks will end up moving Josh Smith before the trade deadline, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Smith and the team are expected to meet this week to discuss the forward's future in Atlanta.
- After researching 25 years of NBA franchise methods, the Suns concluded that a full-fledged rebuild was an impractical approach. So while the Suns' current place in the standings may indicate that a rebuild is underway, Phoenix is hoping for a quicker turnaround, as owner Robert Sarver tells Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
- In announcing that he wouldn't be taking the Mavericks up on their offer to join their D-League affiliate, Allen Iverson hinted that he still wants to return to the NBA. Manager Gary Moore confirms that, telling Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today that his client is working out and may explore NBA opportunities later this season. "He's going to continue to work very hard to get his mind and his body back to a place where he can help a team in the future," Moore said. "Sooner more so than later."
- Rodney Stuckey's name often comes up when teams call the Pistons about trades, but despite the latest incident in Detroit, the team says no deal involving Stuckey is in the works, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
Smith, Hawks To Discuss Future This Week
There has been no shortage of updates on the Josh Smith situation of late, as just yesterday we learned that Smith expects a max deal. Earlier this week, Hoops Rumors' Luke Adams asked readers whether the Hawks will trade Smith and in more than 800 votes, it is almost exactly split down the middle.
Fortunately, as Chris Broussard tweets, it looks like we may be able to find out more at some point this week. Broussard says that, according to sources, Smith's representatives will speak with Hawks GM Danny Ferry this week about Smith's future in Atlanta. This situation promises to be a hot topic leading up to the trade deadline, as Smith will surely be one of the more high profile players to be dealt in season in recent memory if it happens.
Josh Smith Wants Max Deal
Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, and he has made it clear that he wants to be paid like a superstar. Smith tells Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he believes himself worthy of a five-year, $94MM max contract:
“I feel like I’m a max player,” Smith said Friday. “I feel I bring a lot to the table. I have a lot of versatility. For what I do and what I give this ball club, I feel like I’m worth it.”
Smith adds that he does not believe the Hawks should be dissuaded from giving him a max contract by the fate of the last player they maxed out, Joe Johnson, whose contract became such an albatross that they dealt him to the Brooklyn Nets this past summer.
“There shouldn’t be any hesitation. I’m Josh Smith, I’m not anybody else. I ‘m not Michael Jordan, I’m not LeBron James, I’m not Brook Lopez. I’m Josh Smith. You can’t look at what might’ve happened with another person. Let’s say Joe. You can’t say, ‘I’m skeptical of giving another person that’ because of whatever they feel like happened."
In a recent article examining Smith's value, Zach Lowe of Grantland pointed out that, as a nine-year veteran, it may be smarter for Smith to sign a one-year deal with the Hawks and qualify for the higher maximum amount that 10-year veterans may receive. Lowe writes that as a 10-year veteran, Smith's next contract could pay him as much as $105MM over five seasons.
Berger’s Latest: Lakers, Lowry, Gay, Suns, Seattle
Ken Berger of CBSSports.com has a new column in which he examines the Lakers' options at the trading deadline. Berger attributes at least some of Dwight Howard's struggles this season to having only had a limited amount of time playing in the pick-and-roll with Steve Nash, and suggests that standing pat could be an option. He goes into further depth about the Lakers' options as well as some other topics from around the NBA as the deadline approaches.
- The Jazz, Raptors, Hawks, and Timberwolves are among the teams Berger says have interest in trading for Pau Gasol, although none of them have an ideal set of pieces to make a deal with the Lakers.
- Berger doesn't believe the Lakers will trade Howard because they have a lot of leverage to keep him in the form of a bigger contract they can offer him than any competitor.
- Kyle Lowry may be on the trade market, as people within the Raptors organization are not pleased with him. Berger lists the Mavericks and Hawks as two teams that could be interested in trading for him.
- Although talk has cooled in recent weeks, Berger hears from executives around the league that the Grizzlies are still open to trading Rudy Gay, either before the trade deadline or during the summer.
- Suns GM Lance Blanks and president Lon Babby could have their job security depend on Lindsey Hunter's success as interim head coach over the rest of the season.
- A bankruptcy lawyer is claiming that Kings minority owners should be given an opportunity to match the offer the Maloof family accepted to sell the team to the Chris Hansen-led Seattle ownership group.
Lakers Rumors: Nash, D’Antoni, Howard, Gasol
The Lakers' disastrous first half has been one of the major stories for most of the NBA season, but the situation has somehow seemed to get even worse within the last few days. Yesterday, the Lakers "went at each other a little bit" in a team meeting, and then lost in Memphis to fall to 5-15 on the road and 17-25 overall, closer to the Western Conference basement than the eighth playoff spot. What's next? Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports has the latest on the Lakers….
- The biggest issue Lakers vice president Jim Buss had with the possibility of choosing Phil Jackson over Mike D'Antoni as the team's head coach was the idea that offseason signee Steve Nash would be marginalized in Jackson's Triangle offense, says Wojnarowski. "The way this turns out," one league source told Wojnarowski. "You've chosen not only Steve Nash over [Pau] Gasol, but maybe over Gasol and Dwight [Howard]."
- The Mavericks and Hawks have called the Lakers to inquire on Howard, and have been told the big man isn't available, and that the stance won't change before the trade deadline.
- Sources tell Wojnarowski that the only reason Howard might hesitate about re-signing with the Lakers is the presence of D'Antoni. According to the Yahoo! scribe, the Lakers coach "fundamentally doesn't believe in post play."
- When he was coaching the Knicks and a possible pursuit of Howard was discussed, D'Antoni told the Knicks front office that USA Basketball preferred Tyson Chandler to Howard, and that "the Knicks would be wise to adopt that thinking," according to Wojnarowski.
- Gasol, who has been marginalized in D'Antoni's system, is upset and privately expects to be traded, says Wojnarowski.
- The Lakers are very unlikely to fire D'Antoni, since it would leave them paying $25MM to coaches no longer in Los Angeles (D'Antoni and Mike Brown). But if they did make a change, Wojnarowski suggests that Bernie Bickerstaff may be the Lakers' best option, since he simplified the offense and had the club playing solid defense during his interim stint.
Poll: Will The Hawks Trade Josh Smith?
Josh Smith has been the subject of off-and-on trade rumors for years, but even as the Hawks' roster changes around him, Smith has remained a fixture in Atlanta. His contract is finally set to expire this summer though, and with a month remaining until the trade deadline, it's not entirely clear what the veteran forward's future holds.
For most of this season, Smith expressed satisfaction with new general manager Danny Ferry and the Hawks' direction. However, a recent slide by the team has frustrated the 27-year-old, something agent Wallace Prather conveyed to Ferry last week. Neither Smith nor his agent requested a trade, and a weekend report suggested that the team was still committed to the longtime Hawk, but Smith's frustration and a one-game suspension doled out by the club seemed to bring some of those old issues back to the surface.
Zach Lowe tackles the possibility of the Hawks trading Smith in his latest piece for Grantland, noting that there are a number of factors in play. Potential suitors could be reluctant to give up much of value for a player on an expiring contract, and the Hawks may not want to part with Smith if they intend to pursue Dwight Howard this summer, since the two are good friends. Nonetheless, Lowe sees a few teams as real candidates to be trade partners if Atlanta explores deals over the next few weeks. The Rockets, Mavericks, Suns, and Nuggets top Lowe's list.
So what do you think? Is this the year we finally see Smith on the move, or will the Hawks hang on to him, hoping to re-sign him to a long-term contract this summer?
Will the Hawks trade Josh Smith before the deadline?
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Yes 51% (430)
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No 49% (420)
Total votes: 850
Aldridge On Hawks, Smith, Batum, LeBron
NBA.com's David Aldridge has his new weekly column up, and as usual, it's packed full of interesting notes, quotes, and stories. Let's take a look at some highlights….
- The Hawks' Larry Drew was the NBA's Coach of the Month in December, but as we saw with Avery Johnson, that doesn't always guarantee job security. The Hawks have dropped eight of their last ten and there has been speculation around the league that GM Danny Ferry is waiting for the end of the season to remove Drew and hire Mike Brown. For his part, Ferry says that he has enjoyed working with Drew and plans to discuss his future with him after the season.
- Ferry acknowledged that he made decisions this summer with the idea of freeing up cap space down the line. It was a plan that he knew wouldn't yield a world-beating Hawks team in 2012/13. "I had no preconceived notions," Ferry said. "We were in a situation where we had six guys back and we were going to have to fill the roster with six guys to stay under the tax. Ownership gave me permission to go over the tax, but I didn't think there was anything we were going to be able to do to be a contender even over the tax."
- Prior to his suspension, Josh Smith told Aldridge that he had a great deal of confidence in the Hawks' core and believed that they could be a couple pieces away from contending.
- Nicolas Batum's says that his lucrative new deal hasn't put pressure on him and has instead left him feeling liberated. The forward is averaging 16.8 PPG with 5.9 RPG per game this season which are both career highs.
- There has been some buzz about a possible return to the Cavaliers for LeBron James in 2014, but Aldridge believes that Cleveland will still be more than two years from contending with a core including Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters.