Heat, Kyle Lowry Share Interest In Deal
There’s mutual interest between the Heat and Kyle Lowry, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, who spoke this morning in an appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter (video link; scroll ahead to the 3:45 mark). Grantland’s Zach Lowe wrote in late December that the Heat would “love a shot” at the Raptors point guard. Still, Lowry’s comments have indicated a preference to remain with the Raptors, though he hasn’t explicitly said so.
The Heat would target Lowry as an addition should LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all opt out of their contracts and re-sign for lower salaries, as was rumored with regard to Miami’s interest in Carmelo Anthony, Windhorst says. The latest estimates have pegged Lowry’s value at around $11MM per year, which would require the Heat’s trio of stars to accept not much more if Miami is to accommodate an attractive deal for Lowry under the salary cap.
Raptors GM Masai Ujiri and CEO Tim Leiweke have identified Lowry as a priority, and Leiweke answered affirmatively when asked in April if the team would re-sign the Andy Miller client. That’s no guarantee, of course, but given the affection that Lowry and the Raptors seem to share for one another, the Raptors look well-positioned to retain him. Considering the long shot nature of the idea that all three of Miami’s stars will agree to deep discounts, it would be a surprise if the top point guard in this year’s free agent class winds up in South Beach.
Mavs To Pursue Chris Andersen
The Mavs will ask Chris Andersen‘s representatives about his interest in playing in Dallas, but the Birdman prefers to remain with the Heat, according to Bleacher Report’s Ethan Skolnick (Twitter link). Andersen is reportedly set to opt out of his contract and hit free agency next month.
Andersen proved even more valuable to the Heat this year than he did in 2012/13, when he joined Miami at midseason and helped the club to a championship. He averaged 19.4 minutes per game, his most in four years, and his 5.9 rebounds per contest in the playoffs were second on the team behind LeBron James, as Andersen outdid starting center Chris Bosh in that category.
Andersen is a native of Iola, Texas, a town in between Dallas and Houston. Still, Dallas almost certainly sees the Mark Bryant client as a secondary priority, as the Mavs are again poised to go after marquee free agents. Andersen was on a minimum-salary contract with Miami, but his decision to opt out gives the Heat more cap flexibility, and it’s quite conceivable that Miami, which owns Andersen’s Early Bird rights, winds up bringing the Birdman back once the futures of Bosh, James and Dwyane Wade are resolved.
Alec Burks Available As Jazz Seek To Trade Up
Alec Burks can be had in the right deal that would allow the Jazz to move up to draft Jabari Parker, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders hears. Kyler also indicates that there’s a decent chance the team is willing to give up some of the draft picks it acquired as part of last year’s three-team trade with Golden State and Denver.
The Jazz’s affection for Parker is well-documented, as Parker is of the Mormon faith that’s predominant in Utah, making him a naturally marketable centerpiece. The small forward from Duke is also widely regarded as one of the top three players available in the draft, so it’s unlikely that he winds up slipping to the Jazz at the No. 5 pick.
Burks showed improvement in a greater amount of playing time this past season, his third since the Jazz drafted him 12th overall in 2011. The shooting guard averaged 14.0 points in 28.1 minutes per game with a 15.8 PER, all career highs. Still, he shot just 35.0% from behind the three-point arc, making it tough for the Jazz to pair him with Gordon Hayward, who shot just 30.4% from three-point range in 2013/14. Burks is eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer.
The Jazz have the No. 23 pick in this year’s draft from the Warriors as a result of last year’s trade, and Golden State also owes them a 2017 first-rounder. Utah also netted a trio of second-round picks in that deal. Still, the top three players in this year’s draft appear to be a cut above the rest, and it seems a long shot that any team would want to give up a potential star for Burks and draft picks that are either in the late first round or at least two years away from being conveyed.
Ford’s Latest: Love, Celtics, Kings, Nuggets, Bulls
We just passed along the latest on the willingness of the Sixers to trade up to draft Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid‘s meeting with the Cavs, but there are a few more highlights of note from the latest update to the Insider-only mock draft from Chad Ford of ESPN.com. They involve the draft as well as more wide-ranging NBA topics, so let’s dive in:
- The Celtics are dangling the sixth and 17th picks, future first-rounders and young players in their attempt to trade for Kevin Love, according to Ford. A source suggests to Ford that Boston’s package for the power forward is likely to be the strongest the Wolves will find, though Minnesota reportedly isn’t high on what Boston has to offer. There’s also been speculation that Wolves executive/coach Flip Saunders prefers experience over youth in any trade involving Love.
- The Kings are actively attempting to trade the No. 8 pick, Ford writes, adding that multiple sources tell him that Sacramento is more likely to trade the pick than to hold on to it. That’s something of a switch from Ford’s earlier report that the Kings were merely listening to offers for the selection. The Hawks have reportedly been involved in talks for the eighth pick.
- The Nuggets and Bulls are still discussing the 11th pick, according to Ford, whose earlier report indicated that Chicago’s picks at No. 16 and No. 19 were also a part of the conversation. The Bulls would draft either Gary Harris or Nik Stauskas at No. 11, and they’re leaning toward Stauskas, Ford writes. If the Bulls can’t move up, they have a slight preference for Shabazz Napier over Tyler Ennis, Ford hears.
Sixers Aggressively Pursuing Andrew Wiggins
The Sixers are doing whatever they can to draft Andrew Wiggins, sources tell Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Chad Ford of ESPN.com seconds that notion in his latest Insider-only mock draft, echoing his own report that the Kansas forward is Philly’s top target. The Sixers have inquired with the Cavs about moving up to No. 1, as Ford noted in his earlier piece, though his latest dispatch indicates that the most likely scenario involves Wiggins falling to Philadelphia at No. 3.
If a trade would be necessary for the Sixers to land Wiggins, a deal in which Philly would send the No. 3 pick and Thaddeus Young “isn’t totally out of the question,” Ford hears. Still, that’s contingent on the Cavs believing that Joel Embiid would get past the Bucks, who pick second overall, as Ford writes. Embiid’s workout and interview last week for Cleveland were major successes, according to Ford, who hears Embiid’s physical for the Cavs went well, too.
Dante Exum appears to be in the mix for the Sixers at No. 3 should they fail to move up and Wiggins is off the board by the time they pick. The Philadelphia brass believes Exum is a strong fit next to Michael Carter-Williams in the backcourt, Ford writes, though he reported earlier that the team has thought about trading Carter-Williams to accommodate the Australian prospect.
Knicks, Patty Mills Have Mutual Interest
Patty Mills would like to play in New York and see more minutes than he saw this past season, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. The Knicks have long had their eyes on the Creative Artists Agency client and are looking to use the taxpayer’s mid-level on a starting point guard, according to Berman. Knicks president Phil Jackson denied a report that he’s told Raymond Felton to expect a trade, but Berman insists that the team will try to trade its incumbent starting point guard.
Mills, who’ll hit free agency next month, is riding a high after a strong performance as the backup point guard on the Spurs, having helped the team to the championship after losing weight at the behest of coach Gregg Popovich. The 25-year-old notched 10.2 points in 18.9 minutes per game during the regular season with impressive 42.5% three-point shooting, though his paltry 1.8 assists per game demonstrate that he’s not a pass-first point guard. Still, he was an efficient player, recording an 18.7 PER.
The Knicks are also reportedly likely to pursue Steve Blake as they seek to upgrade at the point with their limited flexibility. They’ll almost certainly be capped out to begin the offseason regardless of what Carmelo Anthony chooses to do, and they also seem destined to wind up in the tax, particularly if Anthony returns. That means they’ll probably be limited to the $3.278MM taxpayer’s mid-level to sign free agents from other teams at more than the minimum salary. It’ll be tough to find a starting point guard on that money, so going after a career backup like Mills who’s nonetheless on the upswing and might be ready to take on a starting role seems like the best bet.
San Antonio has Bird rights on Mills, so the Spurs can outbid the Knicks if they deem the point guard worthy of a significant raise on his $1.134MM salary. It’ll be interesting to see if Jackson, whose affection for Mills might not run as deep as others in the Knicks front office who have close ties to Mills’ agency, is willing to commit the full taxpayer’s mid-level to force the Spurs into a tough decision. The Zen Master’s preference for players and coaches with whom he’s familiar, as witnessed by his hiring of coach Derek Fisher and the Lamar Odom signing, could prompt him to lean toward Blake rather than Mills.
Eastern Rumors: ‘Melo, Fisher, Cavs, Chalmers
The Heat won their fourth straight Eastern Conference championship this year, but like the last team to pull that off, the 1986/87 Celtics, they fell short of an NBA title. Miami certainly hopes it doesn’t repeat the fate that befell Boston, which failed to win another Eastern Conference title for 21 years after that. Here’s the latest from the East:
- Carmelo Anthony would prefer to stay in New York, but he knows his best chance to win would be to leave, a source tells Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. ‘Melo is reportedly leaning toward signing with a team other than the Knicks this summer.
- Derek Fisher‘s contract to coach the Knicks runs for four years instead of five, as had been initially reported, according to TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip column for NBA.com. Another report indicated the deal contains at least one team option, so perhaps it’s guaranteed for four seasons with a team option for the fifth, though that’s just my speculation.
- It’s logical to suspect that David Blatt would prefer a head coaching job to an assistant’s post, but it seems he won’t wait around on the Cavs opening if they dally, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports explains. The Warriors and some close to the former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach believe that he’ll accept a job on Steve Kerr‘s Golden State staff if Cleveland doesn’t move quickly to hire him after its face-to-face interview with him this week, Wojnarowski hears.
- The Cavs continue to pursue high-profile college coaches behind the scenes, Wojnarowski also writes in the same piece.
- The Heat benched the slumping Mario Chalmers in Game 5, but the soon-to-be free agent hasn’t soured on Miami, as he tells fellow Yahoo! Sports scribe Marc J. Spears. “I hope we stay together,” Chalmers said. “I think we have a good thing going.”
Draft Notes: Bucks, Parker, Embiid, Hornets
The Bucks aren’t having any trouble getting a look at the top prospects. Milwaukee is reportedly set for a pair of workouts with Andrew Wiggins, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears that Jabari Parker will work out again for the club this week after having done so last week (Twitter link). Joel Embiid was already apparently slated to audition for the club, and GM John Hammond also met with the Kansas big man last week, Ford tweets. The Bucks appear to be the only team with which Wiggins, Parker, Embiid and Dante Exum have all agreed to visit and work out, Ford notes (Twitter link). Here’s more on the draft, now just 10 days away.
- Jerami Grant, De’Mon Brooks, Josh Davis, Jarell Eddie and Mike Moser are among the draft prospects showing off for the Hornets today, the team announced via press release.
- The Heat are auditioning Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.
- Keith Appling, Dave Dudzinski, Markel Starks, Tyler Stone and Jermaine Marshall are showing off for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com notes via Twitter. Marshall will also audition for the Cavs, Sportando reports (via Twitter).
- Roscoe Smith has the Raptors and Mavs on his agenda, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv hears (Twitter link).
- Richard Harris of NBADraft.net adds the Bulls to the list of teams for which Johnny O’Bryant III has worked out. O’Bryant also has auditions slated with the Rockets, Heat, Hornets, Bucks, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons, Harris reports.
- Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic adds the Sixers, Mavs, Rockets and Heat to the list of teams that are getting a look at Jordan Bachynski (Twitter link).
- Jahii Carson, Kendrick Perry, Earnest Ross and Alec Brown are all performing for the Rockets, Scotto tweets.
- The Lakers are one of more than a dozen teams for which Ronald Roberts Jr. is working out, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
- The Warriors are auditioning Eric Moreland, Roberto Nelson and Travis Bader, according to Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter links).
Non-Bird Rights
Players and teams have to meet certain criteria to earn Bird rights and Early Bird rights, but Non-Bird rights are something of a given. They apply to players who’ve spent a single season or less with their teams, as long as they end the season on an NBA roster.
Teams are permitted to sign their own free agents using the Non-Bird exception for a salary starting at 120% of the player’s previous salary or 120% of the minimum salary, or the amount of a qualifying offer (if the player is a restricted free agent), whichever is greater. Contracts can be for up to four years, with 4.5% annual raises. The cap hold for a Non-Bird player is 120% of his previous salary.
The salary limitations that apply to Non-Bird rights are more severe than those pertaining to Bird rights or Early Bird rights, so in many cases, the Non-Bird exception isn’t enough to retain a well-regarded free agent. For instance, the Mavs have Non-Bird rights with Devin Harris, who signed a one-year, minimum salary contract with the team in the summer of 2013 after playing with the Hawks in 2012/13. Dallas can only use Non-Bird rights to sign him for 120% of what he made in 2013/14. The guard nearly signed a three-year, $9MM contract in 2013 with the Mavs before a toe injury scuttled the deal, so it’s reasonable to suspect that Harris is in line for a heftier raise than his Non-Bird rights can provide. That would force the Mavs to use another exception or cap room if they’re to re-sign him, which could prove tricky, given the team’s plans to use cap space to attract marquee free agents.
Non-Bird rights might not be of help to the Mavs and Harris, but there are cases in which the exception proves useful. Jermaine O’Neal signed a one-year, $2MM deal with the Warriors in the summer of 2013 after finishing up 2012/13 with the Suns. Golden State can offer up to $2.4MM for 2014/15, 120% of his 2013/14 salary. That gives the Warriors an advantage over other teams for a still-valuable backup who’ll probably command more than the minimum salary.
Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.
Earlier versions of this post, written by Luke Adams, appeared on April 20th, 2012 and April 26, 2013.
Shane Battier Retires
Shane Battier confirmed last night that he’s retiring from the NBA, removing any sliver of doubt he may have left in previous statements foretelling the end of his 13-year career, notes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The 35-year-old Heat forward’s contract is up this summer, and he apparently has no intentions of signing a new one.
“I’ve given everything I can to the game and I don’t have any more to give,” Battier said. “And I’m OK with it.”
Battier averaged career lows in points, rebounds, assists and minutes per game this season as he wound up an NBA journey that began when the Grizzlies made him the No. 6 overall pick in the 2001 draft. He also played for the Rockets before joining the Heat, earning praise as the “No-Stats All-Star” along the way for his subtle contributions best appreciated among members of the advanced metrics community. He finished with career averages of 8.6 PPG and 4.2 RPG in 30.7 MPG, numbers that belied his value.
The Jim Tanner client made nearly $56.6MM in the NBA, according to Basketball-Reference. He took in $3.72MM with the Heat this season, and Miami will likely renounce his Bird rights to clear his $6.213MM cap hold if the team elects to dip under the cap this summer.