Central Notes: Butler, Monroe, Brooks, Felder
Jimmy Butler indicated that he has been in contact with Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade and he believes the trio can make it work on the Bulls, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune passes along in a series of tweets. “Everybody has to sacrifice a little something. We all just to win. They have done it. I want to do it,” Butler said. “But I’m not going to take a step backward because I have new players on my team. I’m going to still be aggressive.” Butler added that expects the pair of veteran guards to hold him accountable on and off the court.
Here’s more out of the Central Division:
- Butler is aware of the trade rumors surrounding him, but he remains focused on elevating his game, as Johnson tweets. “Whoever I play for is gonna get my best effort. If it’s the Bulls, which I think it will be, I’m coming at everybody,” Butler said.
- With Bucks center Miles Plumlee locked up to a new four-year deal, Greg Monroe remains available in trade talks, says ESPN’s Marc Stein (Twitter links). Stein suggests that Monroe and Kings forward Rudy Gay are two of the NBA’s most prominent veterans known to be on the trade block.
- The Pacers hope newly signed point guard Aaron Brooks will be a more effective passer than Ty Lawson was off the bench, Nate Taylor of the Indianapolis Star writes. The arrival of Brooks gives the team 16 players under contract and Taylor believes Shayne Whittington, whose contract won’t become fully guaranteed until August 1, is the player most likely to be waived.
- Kay Felder had an impressive Summer League and Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders believes the No. 54 overall pick has a real shot at making the Cavs‘ roster. Felder averaged 15.3 points and 3.9 assists over seven games this summer.
- Keith Langlois of NBA.com examines how the Pistons were able to revamp their collection of small forwards over the last 13 months. The team drafted Stanley Johnson in the 2015 draft and acquired Marcus Morris last offseason before trading for Tobias Harris this past season.
Thunder Rescind Dion Waiters’ Qualifying Offer
The Thunder have rescinded Dion Waiters‘ qualifying offer, allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). Without the threat of Oklahoma City matching an offer sheet, the appeal of signing the 24-year-old becomes greater, especially for the Sixers and Nets, Wojnarowski adds on Twitter. Both teams have previously shown interest in the Philadelphia native.
Oklahoma City still holds Waiters’ Bird Rights and it’s possible that the team could still re-sign the shooting guard. Wojnarowski added (Twitter link) that the team wanted the cap-space flexibility, possibly to renegotiate a deal with Russell Westbrook.
The Thunder reportedly reached an agreement to bring Alex Abrines stateside earlier today. That, coupled with the draft night trade for Victor Oladipo, could signal the end of Waiters’ time in Oklahoma City since there may not be enough minutes in the backcourt to go around.
Waiters played 27.6 minutes per game last season, accumulating 9.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.0 steals per contest. He shot a respectable 35.8% from behind the arc and while his shot selection wasn’t exemplary, it was better than in any of his previous seasons.
Kings Notes: Temple, Cousins, Rookies
The Kings are expecting Garrett Temple to be a major contributor this season, which is something the shooting guard is excited to embrace, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes. “[The Kings] were adamant that they envision me being an integral part of the team and that was obviously great to hear, especially with my background. Being valued as a guy who can produce and will be relied on every night is something that I’ve been waiting for a long time,” Temple tells Kennedy. “Coach [Dave] Joerger believes in my abilities and that I can produce, so I’ll be on the court a good amount this year.”
Here’s more from Sacramento:
- DeMarcus Cousins remains critical of the Kings‘ draft this year, as Sean Cunningham of Sacramento’s ABC10 tweets. “I can’t control [who the team drafted]. I control what I can control. I don’t really understand it, but I do my job,” the big man said.
- Cousins didn’t not attempt to influence the Kings‘ decision making this offseason, including whether or not they should bring back Rajon Rondo, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee tweets. “I do my job and I let them do theirs,” he said.
- Cousins has been working with Malachi Richardson out in Vegas and he’s very high on the No. 22 overall pick, Cunningham passes along (Twitter link).
- Cousins is impressed with how Skal Labissiere played during Summer League and he loves the addition of Matt Barnes, as Cunningham passes along via Twitter. The Kings brought Barnes in on a two year, $12MM deal.
Pacific Notes: Durant, Garnett, Williams
Kevin Durant didn’t consider signing with the Lakers because the timing wasn’t right, Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com passes along (Twitter links). “Nothing against the Lakers, but I already had my eyes set on who I wanted to talk to,” Durant said. “I really respect their team, but I just thought they were a couple years away from where I wanted to be.”
Here’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The Suns have hired Marlon Garnett as an assistant coach/ player development coordinator, reports Marc J. Spears of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Garnett previously worked for the Spurs as a video coordinator.
- Alan Williams‘ Summer League performance could guarantee him a roster spot on the Suns, Matt Petersen of NBA.com speculates. The big man earned first team honors out in Vegas, pulling down 11.2 rebounds per game.
- Patrick McCaw proved that he deserves to make the Warriors‘ roster with his play out in Summer League, Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders argues. The No. 38 overall pick accumulated 15.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game out in Vegas.
Kevin Garnett To Retire?
Kevin Garnett would like to play one more season, but he is unsure whether his body can endure the grind of the 82-game schedule, Steve Aschburner of NBA.com writes. “Yes, theoretically, he’d like to play. But he has some doubts of his knees holding up,” owner Glen Taylor said. “I think he’s worried if he can play. I worry about that too. When I talked to him last year, I said, ‘Is it your knees or what?’ He said, ‘It’s my whole leg.’ ” Garnett also told Taylor that he’d really like to play next year because he expects Minnesota to make the playoffs.
New president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau said earlier in the week that he is giving Garnett as much time as he needs to make a decision because “the great ones deserve time.” Garnett has $8MM and one season remaining on his current deal and Aschburner notes that the team likely won’t use that cap space if he does retire, so it can wait on the big man’s decision.
Garnett’s agent, Andy Miller, told Aschburner that he hasn’t heard anything that would make him believe Garnett would not return. Aschburner notes that one of the reasons Garnett was willing to waive his no trade clause back in 2015 to come back to the Wolves was because the late Flip Saunders pitched Garnett with the idea of buying an ownership share of the franchise.
Taylor recently sold 15% of the franchise and he said he never had conversations with Garnett about a potential ownership stake. “I never participated in that. Kevin said it to some reporter and it got into the paper. I thought it was inappropriate for me to talk to him about it because he was a player. I never had that discussion with Kevin at all. But I sort of believed it because I assumed he was saying, that was his goal,” Taylor said. However, Taylor did not rule out the possibility. “I’m always open to something like that,” Taylor said, “because he would kind of represent a Minnesota owner.”
Taylor also insinuated that if Garnett decided to retire, a good portion of his $8MM salary would be made available to him via a buyout, so that the future Hall of Famer wouldn’t have to return for the money, Aschburner adds. Taylor knows retirement will be difficult for the power forward. “When he retires, he’s got to figure out a nice way to do it. I don’t know what it is, but I want to help him,” Taylor added. “The transition won’t be easy.”
Garnett saw only 14.6 minutes per contest over 38 games last season. The team went 14-24 in games he played and 15-29 in games he did not.
And-Ones: Pachulia, Powell, Bogut
The Wizards were close to an agreement with Zaza Pachulia on a two-year deal worth $20MM, sources tell J. Michael of Comcast Sportsnet. According to Michael, Washington became noncommittal, which caused the big man to look elsewhere. Pachulia ended up signing a one-year, $2.9MM contract with the Warriors and the Wizards signed Ian Mahinmi.
Here’s more from around the league:
- Despite doling out a four-year, $64MM deal to Mahinmi, the Wizards don’t have any plans to trade starting center Marcin Gortat, Michael reports in the same piece.
- The Nets considered making a four-year, $48MM offer to Dwight Powell, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com reports. Powell ended up re-signing with the Mavericks on a four-year, $37MM deal and the team has high hopes for the big man. “The last two years we’ve been working toward this period where we could get him signed to a longer-term deal and integrate him to our everyday rotation,” coach Rick Carlisle said.
- The Rockets were willing to make the same deal that Dallas made for Andrew Bogut and the Warriors allowed Bogut to choose which team he wanted to go to, sources tell MacMahon. MacMahon adds that although the Sixers were very interested in acquiring Bogut, Golden State never seriously considered sending the Australian to Philadelphia.
- Executives around the league are giving mixed reviews on the Mavericks‘ plan to heavily utilize Harrison Barnes on the offensive end with one anonymous Western Conference executive saying Barnes is “at best a third option,” MacMahon adds in the same piece.
- Shabazz Napier, who was recently traded to the Blazers, is hoping to find a long-term home in Portland, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes. Napier also acknowledged that he got off to a rough start to his career because of the circumstances in which the Heat drafted him. “We all understood why I got drafted to the Miami Heat. It was to keep one of the best players on the team,” Napier said. “I think that’s what kind of started off this rough patch, but with every closed door another one opens.”
Celtics Notes: Okafor, Griffin, Yabusele
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge would still like to add one more big piece and he will make one of the Brooklyn’s picks available for the right player, a source tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. “Danny will make it available in the right situation, but he’s not going to give it up with core players, too,” the source told Bulpett. “That’s going to be a good draft, and that’s going to be a high pick.”
Executives within the league believe Ainge will end up making a significant trade with one rival GM telling Bulpett that Jahlil Okafor may best fit on the trade market. “I still wouldn’t be surprised if something happened [with the Celtics and Okafor],” the anonymous GM said.
Here’s more from Boston:
- There is still no traction between the Celtics and Clippers for a deal that would send Blake Griffin to Boston, Bulpett adds in the same piece. Furthermore, a source tells Bulpett that teams are having concerns over Griffin’s health. “I still think there’s a concern with his leg,” an opposing team executive told Bulpett. “We looked into him, and we’re hearing that’s a pretty serious thing. I’m not saying you don’t go after him, but you’d better be really sure about that leg before you go making any big commitments.”
- The Celtics were willing to offer the No.3 overall pick and one player from their rotation, but the Bulls wanted two players and Ainge wasn’t willing to make that deal, a source tells Bulpett in that same piece.
- Whether or not No.16 overall pick Guerschon Yabusele will play overseas is dependent upon the Celtics making a trade and opening up a roster spot, a source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter links). Yabusele could play overseas during the 2016/17 campaign even if there is a trade, Himmelsback adds.
- James Young is on the Celtics‘ roster bubble, Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald writes. “I think James is doing fine, but we have a lot of decisions to make,” Ainge said. “A lot is dependent on what deals we’re able to do or not do, like do we sign or not sign another free agent?”
- Out of all the Celtics whom participated in summer league, Young made the weakest case for a roster spot, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com contends.
L.A. Notes: Durant, Zubac, Johnson
Jeanie Buss believes the Lakers‘ situation just wasn’t right for Kevin Durant, which is why he didn’t join the team in free agency, as she tells Hannah Storm of ESPN (video link). Buss added that she feels the free agents that Los Angeles did land will be able bring the franchise back to its historic level of play. The team added Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng in free agency this summer.
Here’s more from Los Angeles:
- The Lakers have reason for excitement because of how their young core performed during summer league, Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com writes. The team believes they have several players on the summer league roster who will become contributors down the line.
- The biggest surprise from summer league may have been Ivica Zubac‘s game and the Lakers believes he has a chance to become a great player in the league, Baxter adds in the same piece. “He knows how to play,” assistant coach Theo Robertson said. “It’s hard to teach that size. He establishes good position. He has soft hands. He can do a variety of things, whether it’s pop out to the 3-point corner, hit those types of jump shots. I feel like he can be a percentage free throw shooter and he has good touch around the rim. He’s starting to feel more power and understand the level of physicality that it takes to be successful in this league.”
- Being part of a winning culture was a key factor in Wesley Johnson‘s decision to re-sign with the Clippers, Rowan Kavner of NBA.com writes. “Just being around those guys every day, getting to know them at practice, getting to know their families, I think that all factored in,” Johnson said. Johnson also added that his foot injury, which caused him to be limited toward the end of last season, is feeling “100% better.”
Bulls Sign Denzel Valentine
The Bulls have reached an agreement with Denzel Valentine, according to a team press release. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it is likely for 120% of the rookie scale.
Chicago drafted Valentine with the No. 14 overall pick in this year’s draft. Valentine was named the National Player of the Year during his senior season at Michigan State, in which he accumulated 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game. He also shot 46.2% from the field and 44.4% from behind the arc for the Spartans.
The Bulls may have playing time immediately available for Valentine on the wing after trading away Mike Dunleavy. Dwyane Wade and Jimmy Butler will likely start at the two and three with Doug McDermott presumably being one of the first players to come off the bench. Valentine’s main competition for minutes will be Tony Snell, who had an abysmal 2015/16 campaign.
Western Notes: Morrow, Mavs, Jazz
Anthony Morrow‘s contract for this season became fully guaranteed today, as Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman points out on Twitter. Morrow will make slightly under $3.5MM for the Thunder during the 2016/17 campaign.
Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Kyle Collinsworth and Giovan Oniangue will be at the Mavericks‘ veteran camp, international journalist David Pick reports (Twitter link). Pick adds the Rodrigue Beaubois may also participate.
- Joe Johnson is excited to be part of an up-and-coming Jazz team and he believes he will be able contribute for several more seasons, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel passes along. “I feel great, man,” Johnson said. “I just finished my 15th season and I feel I’ve still got a lot of basketball left. I feel like I’ve got a lot I can contribute to this team for it to be successful.”
- The Jazz wanted to test Trey Lyles during summer league to see what he is capable of and the power forward has impressed, Jody Genessy of the Deseret News writes. Utah made Lyles the focal point of the offense and he responded by scoring 23.3 points per game this summer. Lyles will likely battle newly acquired forward Boris Diaw for minutes off the bench this season.