Knicks, Raptors Show Interest In Kenneth Faried
7:42pm: The Knicks also continue to show interest in Faried, tweets Kennedy. New York is still willing to send off Iman Shumpert in exchange for Faried, but their attempts to create a similar deal earlier this season fell through.
11:28am: Raptors GM Masai Ujiri has expressed interest in Kenneth Faried, whom he drafted for the Nuggets, reports Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The Knicks made plays for Faried at multiple points this season, but the Nuggets appeared to hold out for significant draft compensation.
The Nuggets have denied that they’re making Faried available on multiple occasions, but the sense remains that they’d be open to dealing the third-year player. Denver is apparently reluctant to shell out major money for Faried, who’s extension-eligible this summer, unless he improves his defense.
Faried’s playing time down this year amid a crowded front court in Denver. He’s seeing just 24.7 minutes per game, and the 24-year-old’s per-minute numbers aren’t much better than they were last season.
Pelicans Open To Signing Pierre Jackson
The Pelicans are open to signing D-League standout Pierre Jackson, tweets Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. Amico earlier today added the Wizards to a list of teams looking to trade for the 5’8″ guard that already includes the Cavaliers and the Nuggets.
Jackson has thrived in the D-League this year, but he can’t sign with any team other than the Pelicans, who hold his rights. The Sixers drafted him in the second round this past summer, and traded him to New Orleans, which has elected not to sign him.
The Pelicans have 15 guaranteed contracts, so they’d have to either trade someone or waive one of those deals to sign Jackson. The 22-year-old is averaging 29.1 points and 6.2 assists for the Idaho Stampede. New Orleans have given Jackson’s representatives permission to seek trades, though no deal appears imminent.
The league is poised to give New Orleans a disabled player exception worth more than $4MM, so perhaps the Pelicans will use part of that to sign Jackson.
Lakers, Mavs Consider Kevin Love Trades
The Lakers and Mavs are attempting to put together trade offers for Kevin Love, but the Timberwolves have given no indication they’ll consider moving the All-Star big man by Thursday’s deadline, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. The Lakers are the favorites to land the former UCLA standout when he hits free agency in the summer of 2015, a source tells Berger. It’s “widely known” around the league that Love and agent Jeff Schwartz are determined to find a large market team for the sixth-year veteran, Berger writes.
Other teams are “feverishly pursuing” a top-flight first-round pick they could offer to the Timberwolves for Love, according to Berger. Still, a source close to Wolves president Flip Saunders insists Minnesota will not deal its star by Thursday. USA Today’s Sam Amick hears rival teams have the impression that any of the Wolves aside from Love is available as Minnesota seeks upgrades capable of appeasing its power forward (Twitter link).
Any trade offer from the Lakers would have to include Gasol, Berger says, adding that rival GMs believe Gasol’s primary suitors are teams that believe they can re-sign him to a cheaper deal this summer, rather than clubs that view him as a rental. Berger speculates that the Lakers would also offer their 2014 first-round pick, almost certainly a lottery selection.
The Mavs have pursued top-level free agents the past two summers and appear ready to do so again this year. Given the trade interest from the Lakers, Dallas and other teams may feel they have to strike now to give themselves the best chance at Love before L.A. acquires him and his Bird Rights.
Heat Turning Away Calls For Norris Cole
Several teams have inquired about Norris Cole, but the Heat are vehemently rejecting offers for their backup point guard, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.com. Most rival teams view him as a starting-caliber player, according to Charania.
Cole is in the third season of his rookie scale contract, making slightly more than $1.1MM. That bargain price could go up soon, as he’ll be eligible for an extension this summer, when starting point guard Mario Chalmers, among many others on the Heat, is set to become a free agent. Cole will make about $2MM next season, the final year before an extension or a new contract would kick in.
Kahn Fronts Group Seeking Share Of Bucks
3:27pm: Lowe cautions that he didn’t run into either Kahn or anyone from the Bucks this past weekend, so he hasn’t independently confirmed the story, even though he’s heard the rumor over the past few days (Twitter link).
3:20pm: Grantland’s Zach Lowe seconds the report, having heard plenty of chatter about the news at All-Star weekend (Twitter link).
2:53pm: Former Timberwolves GM David Kahn is the front man for a group that’s looking to buy a share of the Bucks from owner Herb Kohl, tweets Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link). Woelfel reported nearly a month ago that there were four “serious suitors” who were considering bids for the team, but Kohl appears to be seeking to add minority owners for now.
Milwaukee might be the league’s most unstable franchise, given the desire of Kohl and the NBA for a new arena. The team’s lease at the Bradley Center, the team’s home for the past quarter-century, expires in 2017. Milwaukee civic leaders have been reluctant to fund upgrades to the existing facility, and while Kohl is “obsessed” with building a new home for the team, as Woelfel wrote last month, it appears securing public funding will be an uphill battle. Concerns about the viability of the Milwaukee market is making the league hesitant to expand to Seattle or anywhere else in the near future.
It’s unclear just how large a stake Kahn and his partners are looking for, or just how much of a role any minority ownership will play in the team’s quest for a new arena. Woelfel pegged the value of the team at anywhere from $380MM to $500MM in his earlier report.
Knicks Pursue Jeff Teague, Still Eyeing Lowry
1:02pm: Ken Berger of CBSSports.com also downplays New York’s pursuit of Teague, though he says it’s because of the Knicks’ lack of assets (Twitter link).
TUESDAY, 8:24am: Marc Berman of the New York Post throws cold water on the story, writing that the Knicks are expected to pass on Teague out of concerns about his long-term deal. He also hears that the Raptors, Hawks and Knicks didn’t have talks about the three-way deal involving Lowry, whom Toronto probably won’t trade, according to Berman. Still, the Knicks would love to flip Shumpert for a point guard, and that desire has grown stronger than the team’s pursuit of a backup center, Berman writes.
MONDAY, 3:27pm: The Knicks view Andre Miller as a fallback option, though their preference is for someone younger like Teague or Lowry, Stein writes in his full story.
2:02pm: New York is continuing to try to pry Lowry away from the Raptors, offering packages that include Felton, Iman Shumpert and Beno Udrih, Begley reports. The Knicks have been reluctant to offer Tim Hardaway Jr. or a first-round draft pick, but the Raptors are believed to be demanding at least one of the two, Begley writes. The Knicks, Raptors and Hawks have had preliminary discussions about a three-team deal that would provide the Raptors with the first-rounder they’re apparently seeking, according to Begley. Such a deal would send Teague to the Raptors, Shumpert to the Hawks and Lowry to the Knicks, sources tell Begley, who notes that it’s also still a possibility that Teague winds up with the Knicks.
1:03pm: The Knicks are focusing on upgrading their point guard position at the deadline, and Jeff Teague is a new target, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com seconds the report, via Twitter. Hawks GM Danny Ferry apparently isn’t enamored with the four-year, $32MM offer sheet that Teague signed with the Bucks this past summer, goading the Hawks into matching it. Because the Hawks matched the offer sheet, Teague can veto any trade this season, as Stein points out (on Twitter).
New York renewed efforts to extract Kyle Lowry from the Raptors last week, but the Knicks have become convinced the Raptors won’t deal him, Stein tweets. Incumbent Knicks point guard Raymond Felton is averaging a career-low 10.4 points as New York sits two and a half games out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Teague, by contrast, is putting up a career-best 15.6 points per game, and he’s also matching his high of 7.2 assists per contest. The Hawks are fifth in the East, but are below .500 at 25-26.
Ford’s Latest: Magic, Cavs, Bobcats
Victor Oladipo may be the only Magic player unavailable for a trade, according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com, who adds that the team is looking for multiple first-round picks or young players for Arron Afflalo. Ford believes Orlando will indeed find a taker for Afflalo, but that’s in contrast to a report from Sam Amick of USA Today indicating the Magic aren’t that eager to trade him and aren’t hearing from any team with strong interest (Twitter link). The Magic’s price is much lower for Glen Davis and Jameer Nelson, Ford writes, and while Amick tweets that the Magic is focusing most of its trade attention on those two, Orlando hasn’t gotten anywhere with either of them yet, Amick says.
Ford has much more in his latest Insider-only piece, and we’ll hit the highlights here:
- The Cavs and Bobcats appear to be the only teams capable of trading away a 2014 lottery pick that would actually do so, according to Ford. If the Cavs are determined to make a playoff push, they’ll offer Dion Waiters and their 2014 first-round pick in search of veteran help, Ford writes.
- There’s nothing major happening on the Ersan Ilyasova front, Ford hears, naming Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour as the Bucks most likely to be traded. Milwaukee is reluctant to let go of Caron Butler, who’s a native of nearby Racine, Ford adds.
- The Sixers want “significantly” more than just a first-round pick for Thaddeus Young, which has been dissuading some teams from trading for him, Ford writes.
- Jeff Green and Brandon Bass are the names that come up most frequently in trade discussions involving the Celtics, according to Ford.
- Several GMs tell Ford that the Lakers appear willing to discuss any player on their roster short of Kobe Bryant.
- Everyone outside of DeMarcus Cousins, Rudy Gay and Isaiah Thomas is available from the Kings, with Marcus Thornton, Jason Thompson, Carl Landry and Jimmer Fredette the primary bait, Ford writes.
- It’s unlikely the Jazz trade Gordon Hayward, Ford says, naming Marvin Williams as the team’s most likely trade candidate.
- Teams are looking to acquire a package of both Greg Monroe and Rodney Stuckey, but the Pistons remain unwilling to deal Monroe, as multiple GMs tell Ford.
Amico’s Latest: Terry, Sixers, Cavs
Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio seconds Monday’s reports of discussions between the Cavs and Nets about Jarrett Jack, but the Cavs have no interest in Jason Terry, whom the Nets would apparently be relinquishing as part of the deal. The trade appears to be on the back burner for now, but there are plenty of other rumors involving the Cavs and others around the NBA, and Amico passes along more in his latest piece:
- People around the league tell Amico that Thaddeus Young is more likely to be traded than Sixers teammates Spencer Hawes and Evan Turner, who aren’t garnering strong interest. Philadelphia is reportedly looking for more in return for Young than for Hawes and Turner, lending credence to the notion that Young has greater market value.
- New Cavs GM David Griffin is active, but most around the league believe he’ll pull off a small-scale deal rather than another foundation-shaking move, Amico writes.
- C.J. Miles‘ camp is bracing for a trade, Amico hears, though that appears to be based out of the recognition that his $2.225MM expiring contract is a fungible asset more so than any knowledge that the Cavs are shopping him.
Bobcats, Lakers Talk Gasol, But Trade Unlikely
The Bobcats and Lakers have spoken about Pau Gasol, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, but Bonnell’s source cast the notion of a trade between the teams as unlikely. Charlotte is wary of giving up a “significant” first-round pick for Gasol, who’s on an expiring contract and might not want to re-sign, Bonnell writes.
Still, the ‘Cats are aggressively pursuing deals as the deadline nears. They were moving closer to a deal to acquire Caron Butler and Gary Neal from the Bucks but those talks fell apart in recent days, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets. They’ve been connected to Evan Turner, Brandon Bass, Taj Gibson and others in the past few weeks.
Most of the chatter surrounding Gasol of late has involved the Suns. Phoenix and the Lakers appear to be in a standoff regarding draft compensation, though those teams have been expected to rekindle talks before the deadline.
Latest On Rajon Rondo
The Knicks are making one last push to acquire Rajon Rondo from the Celtics, but they’re convinced it’s a futile attempt even as they do so, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. It sounds as if New York is doing its due diligence to make sure the four-time All-Star is truly out of reach as the trade deadline nears. Sources tell Sean Deveney of The Sporting News there’s “very little chance” the Celtics find a suitable trade partner for Rondo, and that’s consistent with most reports. Here’s more from Deveney:
- Boston is looking for a young player with All-Star potential plus multiple first-round draft picks for Rondo, Deveney says, adding that some would-be suitors are scared off by Rondo’s ACL injury last year. Teams that have called often abandon their pursuit once they realize the asking price, as Deveney explains.
- The Kings highly value Ben McLemore, one of the players reportedly in their proposed Rondo trade, but the C’s would want a more well-established player in return, according to Deveney.
- The Raptors don’t possess the assets to land Rondo, unless they get involved in a multi-team deal, Deveney writes.