Odds & Ends: Gelabale, Celtics, D-Will, Favors
Amare Stoudemire began his season on the same day we all started a new year, scoring six points off the bench in his 2012/13 debut for the Knicks. Here's more from around the league on the first day of a year the Mayans never counted on.
- While the Wolves recently took a look at Mickael Gelabale and decided to sign Lazar Hayward instead, another, unidentified team has also considered signing the former Sonics small forward, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN.
- There's mistrust between long-tenured Celtics and the team's newer acquisitions, says Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, who echoes Kevin Garnett's uncertainty about whether this year's version of the C's is capable of turning it on for the playoffs.
- Deron Williams admits his shot is still off-kilter from the effects of surgery on his right wrist he underwent in 2011, and he feels as frustrated as he's ever been in his life, as Newsday's Roderick Boone chronicles. "I've had stretches [before] where one or two games, I had off-games," Williams said. "Never like this. I've never been consistently playing this bad."
- The Jazz aren't jumping into a move that would free up more playing time for Derrick Favors, but Favors isn't discouraged when he sees fellow power forward Paul Millsap on the floor down the stretch, as Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune observes.
- Shaun Powell of Sports On Earth examines teams that are near the bottom of the standings and seem destined to stay there for years to come, given their cap situations.
- Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group recounts the rapid ascent of the Clippers and Warriors.
- He spent most of 2012 spearheading the launch of Hoops Rumors as the site's lead writer, but his work with our sister website, MLB Trade Rumors, earned Luke Adams an honorable mention on the list of the year's most influential Canadians in baseball, as compiled by Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun.
Most Disappointing Long-Term Deals Of 2012
There's a long way to go before we'll have the final verdict on whether the teams who signed players to contracts of three years or longer this offseason made mistakes. Nonetheless, with the 2012 part of the 2012/13 season behind us, we have a clear picture of who might have some early pangs of buyer's remorse. Deron Williams has taken plenty of flak of late for his less-than-stellar play after having re-signed with the Nets to a maximum deal in the summer, but there are a few others whose long-term contracts look like even more burdensome albatrosses for their clubs. Here they are, listed in descending order based on the value of their deals.
- Roy Hibbert, Pacers (four years, $58.366MM): He's had his moments this season, but Saturday's scoreless effort against the Hawks seems about as low as it can go for someone who just signed a max contract. Hibbert's production in other categories has been fine, but he's averaging single digits in points, something he hasn't done since his rookie year.
- Ersan Ilyasova, Bucks (five years, $40MM): The 6'9" power forward set career highs in rebounding (8.8) and three-point percentage (45.5%) last season, but this year's numbers are more in line with his career marks of 5.5 RPG and 37.9% from behind the arc. Milwaukee may have gotten caught up in a natural regression to the mean for Ilyasova.
- Jeff Green, Celtics (four years, $36MM): His return from heart surgery was a feel-good story as the season began, and his numbers this season are eerily similar to those from his half-season with the Celtics in 2011. Still, $9MM a year to someone producing 9.8 PPG and 3.2 RPG in 23.7 MPG, particularly for a sub-.500 team, does not sound appealing.
- Courtney Lee, Celtics (four years, $21.35MM): He was supposed to have made up for the absence of Ray Allen's long-distance shooting after knocking in better than 40% of his treys in three of his first four seasons in the league. He's shooting a career-low 30.6% from behind the arc this season as he's been in and out of the starting lineup.
- Landry Fields, Raptors (three years, $18.725MM): It may be a bit premature to include him on this list, since he's only played seven games so far since returning from injury, but he's been ghastly in his limited playing time, averaging just 2.9 points on 31% shooting in 21 minutes per contest. He's registered a 4.3 PER this season. His deal didn't look too promising for the Raptors when he signed it, and it doesn't look any better now.
Central Notes: Pistons, Cousins, Livingston
The only game involving a Central Division team tonight features two clubs that have been linked in trade rumors of late, as the Pistons play host to the Kings. Detroit has drawn mention as a possible landing spot for DeMarcus Cousins, but there's been some doubt about whether GM Joe Dumars would pull the trigger on such a deal. We've got more on that and other news from the Central right here:
- The Pistons consider Andre Drummond "untouchable" and view Greg Monroe almost as highly, notes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, writing for USA Today. Ellis, who thinks the Kings "would be laughed out of the league" if they traded Cousins to Detroit without getting either Drummond or Monroe in return, hears from Pistons officials who confirmed the team has changed its stance on Cousins since 2010, when Detroit tried to move up in the draft to acquire him.
- Even if such a deal isn't going to happen, Cousins doesn't mind his name coming up in the same breath Monroe's, as Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News reveals via Twitter. "I don't like being compared to anybody but it's no disrespect being compared to Greg," Cousins said. "Very underrated player."
- Shaun Livingston wasn't caught off guard when the Cavs claimed him off waivers on Christmas, and now that he has a couple of practices under his belt, coach Byron Scott is ready to insert him into the rotation, as Bob Finnan of The News-Herald details. "I know (coach) Byron (Scott) has been interested in me for the last couple years," Livingston said. When they called, I wasn't totally shocked."
Trade Candidate: Jose Calderon
Jose Calderon might have played his way off the trade block for the moment, but his $10.56MM expiring contract is one of the most intriguing assets that could be up for grabs this year. The team acquiring Calderon has the choice of clearing a significant chunk of cap space, or re-signing a point guard who has finished four out of the last five seasons among the top five players in assists per game. That flexibility may pique interest from a wide selection of teams, and the Raptors wisely appear to be trying to package Calderon with another, less palatable asset, like Andrea Bargnani.
Calderon is by no means a game-changing player. While he has consistently proven his worth as a distributor, which makes him popular figure in the locker room, he's proven incapable of carrying the Raptors on his shoulders, as Toronto has only been a better-than-.500 team once during Calderon's tenure. The eighth-year veteran has never averaged more than 12.8 points per game. His career scoring average sits a hair below double figures at 9.9 PPG. At 6'3", he doesn't provide any help on the boards, having grabbed 2.5 rebounds per game for his career. This year his 44.1% shooting is off from the 48.2% form he displayed over his first seven seasons. That decline, however, is likely a product of the fact he's taking significantly more three pointers than ever, at 4.8 attempts per game compared to his career average of 2.1 coming into the season, and nailing 42.9% of them, a rate that would tie the personal best he set back in 2007/08. His PER, at 18.2 this season and 17.4 for his career, helps show his relatively high value to a team.
Nonetheless, the Raptors have shown consistent reluctance to commit to him as the starter over his career, in spite of the five-year, $45MM deal he received in 2008. He's competed over the years with Jalen Rose, T.J. Ford, Jarrett Jack and now Kyle Lowry for the point guard job, and while he may have nosed in front of Lowry for the moment, history suggests he shouldn't get too comfortable in that role. GM Bryan Colangelo has been in charge of the front office for the vast majority of Calderon's time in Toronto, and he was in place when the Spaniard got his lucrative five-year deal. Yet with uncertainty about Colangelo's future with the Raptors, much less Calderon's, there's no telling whether the Raptors would re-sign Calderon next summer even if he were interested in coming back.
Even with Calderon's contract coming off the books, the Raptors figure to be at or near the salary cap in the offseason, so they'd receive virtually no benefit from letting him walk. Unless the Raptors intend to re-sign him, they're much better off trading him. While there are a number of possible fits, there's been little chatter about any specific team other than the Lakers, for whom Calderon was the "top target" a few weeks ago, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. That might have changed, however, as the return of Steve Nash appears to have reinvigorated the team just as L.A. hoped. The Lakers are standing pat for now, with Steve Blake coming back from his abdominal surgery, their need for Calderon lessens by the day. A more intriguing possibility might be the Mavs, though that's just my speculation. Point guard Darren Collison has been a significant disappointment for Dallas this year, and the Mavs have made no secret of their affinity for contracts that expire next summer. They wouldn't want Bargnani or another of Toronto's long-term contracts, but if GM Donnie Nelson is patient and willing to part with two of the team's three draft picks from 2012, he might force the Raptors into moving Calderon without pairing him with a more burdensome contract close to the trade deadline, when Toronto is left to consider the possibility of losing the point guard for nothing over the summer.
Calderon acknowledges and seems to be at peace with the notion that he could be on his way out of the only NBA city he's ever known. Such a stance also hints that he's ready to move on as a free agent next summer. His contract includes a 10% trade kicker that any club acquiring him will have to pay, but I think eventually Toronto will make it worth a team's while to do so. Lowry is five years younger and is on a better deal. He, and not Calderon, represents the future of the point guard position in Toronto, even if he's been benched for the present time.
Eastern Notes: Cousins, Nets, Hibbert
The Pistons reportedly have plenty of interest in DeMarcus Cousins, but Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News believes GM Joe Dumars has cooled on Cousins as Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond have developed (Twitter link). In another tweet, Goodwill asserts that Detroit won't be dealing any picks and thinks that the Celtics could offer Rajon Rondo in what would be the most attractive trade package for Sacramento. With that aside, here are a few more links we've gathered up out of the Eastern Conference tonight:
- Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun believes the Raptors would have to bite if the Kings offered Cousins for Andrea Bargnani, but he's not optimistic Cousins can overcome his volatile personality (Twitter links).
- Tim Bontemps of the New York Post dissects Mikhail Prokhorov's remarks to reporters on Friday, concluding that the Nets owner is sold on Phil Jackson and would entertain keeping P.J. Carlesimo for the rest of the season if he can't get the Zen Master of Jeff Van Gundy immediately.
- Roy Hibbert got off to a disconcerting start this season after signing a four-year deal for the maximum in the offseason, but his play has picked up of late, as HoopsWorld's Joel Brigham chronicles.
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel believes the Magic, at 12-16, have little chance of landing a high lottery pick, and writes that the team should set its sights on making the playoffs instead. Schmitz also speculates that Stan Van Gundy's next coaching job will be on the West Coast, and doesn't foresee Phil Jackson taking the Nets job.
- In a Q&A with The Plain Dealer's Mary Schmitt Boyer, Cavaliers guard Shaun Livingston discusses the career-altering injury he suffered six years ago, being cut by the Rockets, and playing alongside Kyrie Irving.
James Anderson Close To Deal With NBA Team
James Anderson is nearing an agreement with an NBA team other than the Wolves, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN. Minnesota passed on Anderson after bringing him in Wednesday for a workout, Wolfson said. Anderson was reportedly set to sign in the D-League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers as of two days ago.
Anderson, who spent his first two seasons in the NBA with the Spurs, was in training camp with the Hawks and re-signed with the Spurs in November after Atlanta waived him prior to the start of the regular season. The Spurs let him go last week when injured Kawhi Leonard returned to the lineup.
San Antonio took Anderson with the 20th overall pick in 2010, but declined the third-year option on his rookie deal before the start of the 2011/12 season, making him an unrestricted free agent this past summer. The 6'6" swingman has averaged 6.7 points in 11.3 minutes per game over his NBA career.
Trade Candidate: Anderson Varejao
On the surface, it's hard to imagine why the Cavaliers would trade Anderson Varejao. He's having the best season of his career, is in the middle of a deal that keeps him on the books for less than $10MM a year through 2015, and provides an inside complement to star point guard Kyrie Irving. Still, the 7-24 Cavs are a long way from contention, and there's motivation to sell high, particularly with a player who's 30 years old and has a history of injury such that he's missed 97 of his team's 179 games since 2009/10. One league executive told Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal that he believes Anderson Varejao will be the top target on the market this year if Cleveland puts him on the block, so it's reasonable to suspect that Varejao's trade value will never be higher.
Even if he is the best player who'll be made available, Varejao doesn't fit the profile of the No. 1 trade candidates from years past, like Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard. Varejao's 14.1 points per game this season have him on track to smash the career high of 10.8 PPG he set last year. He's shooting just 47.8%, his lowest mark since 2007/08. This year's 0.6 blocks per game is right in line with his career number of 0.7, despite the fact he stands 6'10" and plays near the basket. His only elite skill appears to be rebounding, as he leads the league with 14.4 boards per contest, which is significantly more than the 12.6 RPG of the league's second-leading rebounder, Zach Randolph.
The Thunder have been frequently mentioned as a potential partner in a Varejao deal. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal reported that the teams have discussed a proposal that would send Perry Jones III, Jeremy Lamb and the Raptors' 2013 first-rounder that Oklahoma City owns to Cleveland for Varejao. The Thunder would have to give up more to make the salaries match for that deal, though. They could accomplish that by throwing in Hasheem Thabeet, Eric Maynor and DeAndre Liggins, but a five-for-one trade would seriously compromise the Thunder's depth if anyone got hurt, and I don't think such a package would be intriguing enough for Cleveland to bite. Lloyd wrote earlier in the month that the Cavs could have their eyes on Serge Ibaka, and Marc Stein of ESPN.com said two weeks ago that rival executives are skeptical Varejao will be dealt because Cleveland's price for Varejao keeps going up.
More recently, HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy said the consensus around the league is that Varejao will be dealt, and Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio pegged Cleveland's asking price as a big man and multiple first-round draft picks. That suggests a three- or four-team deal may be most likely, since a single club may be unable to part with too many first-rounders.
It also points again to the Thunder, since they're owed first-rounders from the Raptors and Mavs and still possess all their own first-round picks. I don't think they'd be willing to part with Ibaka, but GM Sam Presti might try to talk Chris Grant, his Cleveland counterpart, into Kendrick Perkins. If the Cavs are truly focused on the future, they wouldn't mind enduring Perkins' nonexistant offense for the time being if it meant getting the multiple first-rounders they covet. In the short term, Perkins would provide a defensive force to offset the shortcomings Irving and Dion Waiters have on that end, and also serve as a championship-tested mentor to the team's youngsters. Perkins and Varejao have nearly identical contracts, with the most significant difference being that the final year of Varejao's deal is only guaranteed for $4MM, while Perkins' $9.654MM in 2014/15 is fully guaranteed.
The Cavs would stand to gain plenty of cap space when Perkins' deal comes off the books, but that wouldn't be until a year after 2014, the first time LeBron James can get out of his contract with the Heat. A league executive speculated to Aldridge that the Cavs might want to hang on to Varejao to make a more attractive pitch to James that summer, and keeping Varejao would also give Cleveland the option of waiving him and absorbing the $4MM partial guarantee if they need more cap space in 2014.
If the Cavs want to trade Varejao, Oklahoma City is far from their only option. The Wolves and Spurs have recently been reported to have interest, and there are probably many other teams who would welcome the high-energy big man. The key is just how willing the Cavs are to move him. A small complication is that Varejao has a 5% trade kicker on his deal, and since the contract was signed before the current CBA took effect, the team that takes on Varejao would have to come up with the small measure of extra cash. Of greater concern is likely Varejao's health, as he's currently on the shelf for a week with a bruised right knee. If he sustains a more significant injury, the Cavs probably wouldn't be able to move him, and his value could take a hit for future seasons. Given Varejao's fragility, the looming specter of injury is probably the greatest motivation Cleveland has to sell high, and sell soon.
Odds & Ends: Raptors, Jamison, Wolves, Bennett
It's a busy 48 hours on the court, with a dozen games last night and another 11 games on tap this evening. There's plenty of news off the court as well, and we'll round it up here.
- Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears that Andrea Bargnani is "a lock to be moved," and wonders whether the Raptors might try to package him with Kyle Lowry instead of Jose Calderon. The other Raptors appear to prefer playing alongside Calderon, Stein observes, and the team's defense has improved since Bargnani went down with torn ligaments in his right elbow.
- Antawn Jamison expressed confusion about his diminished role with the Lakers 10 days ago, and now he doesn't appear pleased as he continues to stay chained to the bench, as Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports. "It doesn't make sense at all," the power forward said. "They're pretty much telling me my services are no longer needed."
- Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN believes the Wolves may wait to sign a replacement for Josh Howard until January 5th, when teams can begin handing out 10-day contracts. He also thinks Minnesota is high on Mickael Gelabale, whose agent has reportedly been in touch with all 30 teams (Twitter link).
- The Wolves made a half-hearted effort to sign O.J. Mayo over the offseason, making just one phone call, according to Wolfson (Twitter link).
- UNLV power forward Anthony Bennett is gaining momentum with scouts as he contends for No. 1 overall spot in June's draft, tweets Aran Smith of NBADraft.net.
Latest On Phil Jackson, Nets
Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game reported earlier tonight that if Phil Jackson coaches the Nets, it probably won't be this season, yet he remains the team's top candidate, and some of Jackson's friends indicated to Howard Beck of the New York Times that Jackson may indeed have interest in Brooklyn. At least two other teams have approached Jackson about roles that wouldn't include coaching, and "it is believed" he's considering those options, Beck writes.
Jackson's agent Todd Musburger said Thursday that his client has no interest in the Nets opening, but Musburger's statement, which came in the form of a text to TNT's David Aldridge, included the caveat that there was no interest "at this time," and that's been widely interpreted as a hedge, according to Beck. Jackson's friends said money isn't a priority for Jackson, who doesn't expect to equal the $12MM he received in his final season with the Lakers. He instead will seek a role in player personnel decisions and may seek a promise of a front-office job once he retires from coaching. One friend said Jackson wants to make sure any team he coaches has a "path to the championship."
The Nets won't look at any other candidates until they've determined whether Jackson wants the job, Beck notes. Owner Mikhail Prokhorov gave his support to interim coach P.J. Carlesimo this evening, and while Carlesimo characterized himself as "assistant that's minding the store," he didn't rule out the idea of permanently taking over if the owner is willing to discuss the idea.
"Am I anxious to hear what he's got to say? Of course . . . I certainly don't want to lobby for it or anything like that. I'm sorry that I'm in this position right now. I'm very happy to be coaching in the NBA, but I'm sorry that I'm the one sitting up here right now," Carlesimo said, as Newsday's Roderick Boone documents.
Western Notes: Barnes, Douglas-Roberts, White
The Clippers erased a 19-point deficit to the Jazz to win their 16th straight game tonight, but the NBA's best team still only has a one-game lead for the top spot in the Western Conference. The Thunder are tied in the loss column with the Clippers, and the Spurs are just a game and a half back of L.A. As usual, the West is stacked at the top. Here's more on the Clips and the teams trying to chase them down.
- Clippers forward Matt Barnes believes he was "stuck in a bad situation" under former Lakers coach Mike Brown, as Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times writes. "Last year, playing with the Lakers, I was told when I could shoot. If I made mistakes, I'd come out of the game," Barnes said. "This year Vinny (Del Negro) has installed a lot of trust in me. He lets me go out there and play my game. If I mess up, he still sticks with me and that goes a long way with any player."
- New Mavericks swingman Chris Douglas-Roberts, writing on his Tumblr account, chronicles his experiences in training camp with the Lakers this fall. He also reveals his decision to turn down a seven-figure contract from a team overseas to play in the D-League, which he felt offered the fastest route back to the NBA (hat tip to Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com).
- Royce White's grandfather told Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that White expects to work out with the Rockets next week (Twitter link). It's unclear whether that means he'll be formally returning to the team.
- JaVale McGee is playing less than 20 minutes per game after re-signing with the Nuggets for four years and $44MM this summer, but coach George Karl said the team doesn't regret committing so much money to him, HoopsWorld's Bill Ingram tweets.
- Michael Scotto of RealGM.com chronicles the journey of Mavs rookie and former Air Force Staff Sergeant Bernard James, including his early experiences in the NBA.