Kyrie Irving To Miss Four Weeks
Kyrie Irving will miss four weeks with a broken left index finger, the team announced. The point guard sustained the injury, described as a hairline/non-displaced fracture, in Saturday's game against the Mavericks. He played last night against the Sixers, but was unusually ineffective, scoring just nine points on 4 of 14 shooting. The news puts the Cavs in a tough spot, to say the least, since Irving was off to a strong start, averaging a team-high 22.9 points a game, and played an even greater role in the offense than he did as Rookie of the Year last season.
The Cavs have only Donald Sloan and Jeremy Pargo as point guards on the roster behind Irving, and the poor play of the team's bench has already led coach Byron Scott to hint at a possible move. The Cavs have a full complement of 15 players, but only 12 have guaranteed contracts. Sloan's contract is the only fully non-guaranteed deal, as Samardo Samuels can be bought out for $200K, while Daniel Gibson's $4.79MM contract can be let go for just $2.49MM. Nonetheless, Sloan is one of the two true point guards on the roster, while Samuels has been a part of the rotation, averaging 16.7 minutes per game. Gibson has been seeing minutes, too, and he's played the point at stretches during his career, so there's no obvious answer about whom to let go.
The Cavs, with a payroll of just $47.666MM, have the most cap room in the league with more than $10MM. Yet they could be wary of too significant an expenditure, since they're on the hook for $12.25MM to Baron Davis, whom they amnestied last year, even though that amount does not count against the cap. Few on the list of available free agents would command much more than the minimum salary, however, and though we noted yesterday that they're not interested in reaching out to former Cav Delonte West, their position could change in light of the news about Irving. Cleveland could also pursue a trade, though that might be an uphill battle, since most teams aren't looking to deal at this time of year, and GM Chris Grant and company may be reluctant to make long-term changes to the roster to solve a problem that will last only a month.
Dwight Howard Notes: Silver, D-Will, Nets, Magic
The Dwight Howard saga was the dominant storyline of the year 2012, and while he seems content to be a Laker even as free agency looms this summer, a lot of people are taking a look back on more turbulent times as the Nets prepare to play the Lakers tomorrow night. It seemed for much of the year that Howard would end up in Brooklyn, but Deron Williams was convinced otherwise long before most others, as we detail below.
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel has more on deputy commissioner Adam Silver's comments about the way Howard left the Magic. Silver reiterated that the incentive to keep stars with their original teams is one of the league's aims in CBA negotiations.
Earlier updates:
- While others are looking back, Williams is focused squarely on the present, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. "Dwight was never (an option for the Nets)," Williams said. "I don't think (the Magic) were ever going to trade him to us, so it doesn't matter. When he opted in (to his contract for another season in mid-March), it kind of took that option away."
- Howard seems content to put the Nets, as well as Williams, in his past as well, as Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com documents, and it seems the friendship between the two former Team USA teammates has soured. "That’s my decision," Howard said, presumably referring to his decision to opt in. "My life. If he’s upset because I made a decision for me, then so be it. If he doesn’t want to be friends because I’m on another team, then so be it. There’s no need to smooth things over."
- Deputy commissioner Adam Silver, who will take over for commissioner David Stern in 2014, won't look back fondly on this year's "Dwightmare" for the Magic, reports John Denton of Magic.com (Twitter links). "It's an unfortunate circumstance and I don’t want to sugarcoat it," Silver said, referring to Howard's departure from the Magic. "This is not the way we like to see it happen."
Odds & Ends: D’Antoni, Roy, Fisher, Gasol, Bucks
Mike D'Antoni was expected to make his debut as Lakers coach tonight, but his balky knee forced Bernie Bickerstaff to continue as interim coach for one more night. D'Antoni, who'll try to hit the sidelines again Tuesday, has told Bickerstaff he'll remain on the staff this season, notes Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com. D'Antoni did make one change to the coaching staff, however, bringing brother Dan D'Antoni aboard as expected, the team announced. Here's more from an eight-game day and night around the NBA.
- Knee trouble has kept Brandon Roy out for the past 10 days, and now he'll undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee, reports Jason Quick of The Oregonian (Twitter links). Quick doesn't indicate how long he'll be continue to be out, but says he'll miss what would have been his return to Portland with the Wolves on Friday.
- The Mavs aren't interested in free agent point guard Derek Fisher, since owner Mark Cuban wants to see what the current roster can do, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. That means the team will continue to give backup minutes to Dominique Jones, whom the Mavs twice sought to trade earlier this season.
- Larry Coon of HoopsWorld won't rule out a Pau Gasol trade, but doesn't think the Lakers are likely to pull the trigger (Twitter link).
- "Everyone agreed" the Bucks needed a fast start with GM John Hammond and coach Scott Skiles in the final year of their respective deals, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and at 6-2, the team has delivered.
- Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star calls out Roy Hibbert for his struggles this season, just months after the big man signed a four-year, $58MM deal.
- Before Damian Lillard came into the league, he watched a lot of video of fellow point guard Derrick Rose and picked up a few of the former MVP's habits, observes Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com.
Where 2012 Second Rounders Are Playing
Unlike last year, when No. 5 overall pick Jonas Valanciunas remained in Lithuania, all 30 first-round picks from the 2012 draft are in the NBA this season. Only 20 of the 30 second-round picks from this June have NBA contracts. We looked at the status of the second-rounders back in September, when many of them remained unsigned, but now that the season is under way, all 30 are playing pro basketball somewhere, even if it's not in the Association. This list tells you where those players wound up, and also provides contract details for each of the second-rounders with NBA deals.
- Bobcats: Jeff Taylor (SF, Vanderbilt) — Signed for three years, $2.279MM. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Wizards: Tomas Satoransky (SG, Czech Republic) — Remains with Cajasol Banca Civica in Spain, the team he played for before being drafted.
- Mavericks: Bernard James (C, Florida St.) — Signed for two years at the minimum salary. The second year is not guaranteed.
- Mavericks: Jae Crowder (SF, Marquette) — Signed for three years, $2.305MM. The third year is a team option.
- Warriors: Draymond Green (SF, Michigan St.) — Signed for three years, $2.640MM. The third year is partially guaranteed for $250K.
- Pacers: Orlando Johnson (SG, UC Santa Barbara) — Signed for three years, $2.254MM. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Raptors: Quincy Acy (SF, Baylor) — Signed for three years, $2.369MM. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Nuggets: Quincy Miller (SF, Baylor) — Signed for three years at the minimum salary. The second and third years are not guaranteed. Currently assigned to the D-League.
- Pistons: Khris Middleton (SF, Texas A&M) — Signed for three years at the minimum. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Trail Blazers: Will Barton (SG, Memphis) — Signed for three years, $2.254MM. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Nets: Tyshawn Taylor (PG, Kansas) — Signed for two years at the minimum.
- Bucks: Doron Lamb (SG, Kentucky) — Signed for three years, $2.354MM. The third year is not guaranteed.
- Hawks: Mike Scott (PF, Virginia) — Signed for two years at the minimum. The second year is not guaranteed.
- Pistons: Kim English (SG, Missouri) — Signed for two years at the minimum. The second year is not guaranteed.
- Heat: Justin Hamilton (C, LSU) — Signed with Cibona Zagreb in Croatia.
- Hornets: Darius Miller (SF, Kentucky) — Signed for two years at the minimum. The second year is not guaranteed.
- Jazz: Kevin Murphy (SF, Tennessee Tech) — Signed for two years at the minimum. This year is partially guaranteed for $200K and the second year is not guaranteed.
- Knicks: Kostas Papanikolaou (SF, Greece) — Rights traded to the Blazers in July as part of the Raymond Felton sign-and-trade deal. Remains with Olympiacos Piraeus in Greece, the team he played for before being drafted.
- Magic: Kyle O'Quinn (C, Norfolk St.) — Signed for three years, $2.493MM. The second and third years are not guaranteed.
- Nuggets: Izzet Turkyilmaz (C, Turkey) — Remains with Banvit in Turkey, the team he played for before being drafted.
- Celtics: Kris Joseph (SF, Syracuse) — Signed for two years at the minimum. Neither year is guaranteed. Currently assigned to the D-League.
- Warriors: Ognjen Kuzmic (C, Bosnia) — Playing with FIATC Joventut Badalona in Spain, on loan from Unicaja Malaga, another Spanish club.
- Clippers: Furkan Aldemir (PF, Turkey) — Rights traded the day after the draft to the Rockets in the four-team swap that sent Lamar Odom to the Clippers. Remains with Galatasaray Medical Park in Turkey. He signed a four-year deal with Galatasaray last year.
- Nets: Tornike Shengelia (SF, Georgia) — Signed for two years at the minimum.
- Lakers: Darius Johnson-Odom (SF, Marquette) — Signed for one year at the minimum, with no guarantee. Currently assigned to the D-League.
- Raptors: Tomislav Zubcic (SF, Croatia) — Remains with KK Cibona in Croatia. Last year he signed an extension with KK Cibona that runs through 2014.
- Nets: Ilkan Karaman (PF, Turkey) — Signed with Fenerbache Ulker Istanbul in Turkey.
- Timberwolves: Robbie Hummel (SF, Purdue) — Signed with Obradoiro in Spain.
- Spurs: Marcus Denmon (SG, Missouri) — Signed with Elan Chalon in France.
- Lakers: Robert Sacre (C, Gonzaga) — Signed for one year at the minimum, with no guarantee.
Storyteller's Contracts, ShamSports, Sportando and RealGM.com were used in the creation of this post.
Atlantic Notes: Bynum, Wilcox, Banks, Felton
Andrew Bynum on Sunday confirmed reports that he hurt his left knee while bowling, admitting that the activity, which isn't specifically prohibited in player contracts, probably wasn't wise. "In hindsight, I guess you really shouldn’t go bowling but it’s not anything more than what I’ve done in my rehab," Bynum said to reporters, including John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer. "I’m kind of taking the position that if that happens bowling, what happens while dunking?" As Mitchell writes, that's the question the Sixers have been waiting to have answered all season. Here's more on Philly's Atlantic Division rivals.
- Even though his conditioning is still not right after heart surgery in March, Chris Wilcox has filled a frontcourt need for the Celtics and might be the team's most pleasant surprise, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com. Wilcox is one of five Celtics on minimum-salary deals, as we detailed earlier.
- Wendell Maxey of Ridiculous Upside catches up with former Celtics lottery pick Marcus Banks, who recently signed to play with Panathinaikos in Greece two years after his last NBA action, which came with the Raptors in 2010/11.
- Pacers president of basketball operations Donnie Walsh, formerly in charge of the Knicks front office, said Raymond Felton was the player he most regretted giving up in the Carmelo Anthony deal in 2011, and the executive is glad Felton has returned to the team, notes Mark Berman of the New York Post (Sulia link).
- We passed along more from Walsh's chat with New York media today and a few other Knicks items this afternoon.
Players On Minimum-Salary Contracts
The minimum salary in the NBA is something of a misnomer, since there are actually 11 different minimums based on a player's years of experience. The rookie minimum is $473,604, while the minimum for a veteran of 10 or more seasons is $1,352,181. To offset that disparity and ensure teams don't discriminate against qualified veterans simply based on price, the league compensates teams who sign one-year contracts with veterans who have three or more years experience for the difference between their minimum and the two-year veteran's minimum.
As long as a team hasn't put itself up against a hard cap, it can sign as many minimum-salary players as it wants, up to the 15-man roster maximum. Every team in the NBA has at least one player on a minimum-salary deal, though teams with deeper pockets seem to employ more minimum-salary guys, ironically.
- Hawks: Anthony Tolliver, Mike Scott
- Celtics: Leandro Barbosa, Jason Collins, Darko Milicic, Chris Wilcox, Kris Joseph
- Nets: C.J. Watson, Andray Blatche, Keith Bogans, Josh Childress, Jerry Stackhouse, Tornike Shengalia, Tyshawn Taylor
- Bobcats: Cory Higgins
- Bulls: Nazr Mohammed, Vladimir Radmanovic, Nate Robinson
- Cavaliers: Samardo Samuels, Jon Leuer, Donald Sloan
- Mavericks: Brandan Wright, Troy Murphy, Bernard James
- Nuggets: Julyan Stone, Quincy Miller
- Pistons: Kim English, Khris Middleton
- Warriors: Jeremy Tyler, Charles Jenkins, Kent Bazemore
- Rockets: Greg Smith, Scott Machado
- Pacers: Sam Young
- Clippers: Matt Barnes, Ryan Hollins, Ronny Turiaf, Trey Thompkins
- Lakers: Antawn Jamison, Darius Johnson-Odom, Robert Sacre
- Grizzlies: Josh Selby
- Heat: Rashard Lewis, Dexter Pittman, Terrel Harris, Josh Harrellson
- Bucks: Marquis Daniels, Joel Przybilla
- Timberwolves: Chase Budinger, Louis Amundson, Malcolm Lee, Josh Howard
- Hornets: Roger Mason, Lance Thomas, Darius Miller, Brian Roberts
- Knicks: Kurt Thomas, Ronnie Brewer, Rasheed Wallace, James White, Chris Copeland, Pablo Prigioni
- Thunder: Daniel Orton, DeAndre Liggins
- Magic: E'Twaun Moore, DeQuan Jones
- Sixers: Royal Ivey, Damien Wilkins, Maalik Wayns
- Suns: Jermaine O'Neal, P.J. Tucker, Diante Garrett, Luke Zeller
- Blazers: Ronnie Price
- Kings: Isaiah Thomas
- Spurs: Gary Neal
- Raptors: Dominic McGuire, Alan Anderson
- Jazz: Jamaal Tinsley, DeMarre Carroll, Kevin Murphy
- Wizards: Earl Barron, Cartier Martin, A.J. Price, Shaun Livingston
ShamSports was used in the creation of this post.
Pacific Notes: D’Antoni, Dwight, Rambis, Barnes
Three Pacific Division teams are in action tonight, including the Lakers, who are expected to have Mike D'Antoni on the sideline for the first time. He'll square off against Jeremy Lin and the Rockets, and Howard Beck of The New York Times revisits the brief pairing of the two in New York, one that was beneficial for both, Beck says. We've got more today on D'Antoni, the Lakers, and other news from the Pacific.
- Dwight Howard, who told Howard Beck of The New York Times earlier this week he waived his early termination option last year with the Magic because he "wanted really to make everybody happy," wouldn't have pouted if the Magic had dealt him to the Rockets, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. "I would've gone there and played. I didn't have a problem with it. At the same time, there were two places that I'd rather go to and I'm here at one of them," said Howard, referring to the Lakers and presumably the Nets. "I'm happy. If I would've gone to Houston, I would've played as hard as I could with the Rockets."
- D'Antoni considered hiring former Phil Jackson aide Kurt Rambis as an assistant coach to address the complaints of Jackson's fans, but Rambis' criticism of D'Antoni on ESPN put the kibosh on that, reports Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link).
- Warriors coach Mark Jackson admits he plays "mind games" to help motivate rookie Harrison Barnes, who has begun to pay dividends, observes Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group.
Atlantic Rumors: Bynum, Joe Johnson, Magloire
The latest news on Andrew Bynum provides plenty of reason for worry, writes John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer, and while Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com thinks Bynum could still wrangle a max deal this summer even if he only plays well over the final two months of the season, Moore isn't sure that scenario would leave enough time for the Sixers to mesh as a team this year. Here's more from the Atlantic Division.
- Joe Johnson is feeling less pressure with the Nets because he isn't the No. 1 option on offense that he was with the Hawks, notes Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.
- The Raptors, who cut Jamaal Magloire in training camp, have hired the Toronto native as a basketball development consultant and community ambassador, the team announced via press release.
- The jury's out how Mike D'Antoni will fit in with the Lakers, but Mike Woodson has already proven successful where D'Antoni wasn't with the Knicks, according to Newsday's Al Iannazzone.
- The Knicks were on the right path during their 6-0 start, but they'll have to do more to become a true contender, opines Stephen A. Smith of ESPN.com.
- Thriving in a Knicks uniform, J.R. Smith has changed his on- and off-court personas from his Nuggets days, observes Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post.
- Benjamin Hoffman of The New York Times says the early returns suggest the Knicks made wise investments in Raymond Felton, Jason Kidd and Pablo Prigioni, all of whom combine to make less than Jeremy Lin is earning with the Rockets.
- Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer is impressed with the ability of the Knicks to improve by getting older this offseason, not typically a successful path for an NBA team.
- Rasheed Wallace, on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary deal, has become a part of the Knicks rotation as Marcus Camby stays glued to the bench despite a three-year, $13.1MM contract, as Marc Berman of the New York Post documents.
Hakim Warrick, Hornets Were Working On Buyout
Soon after the Hornets traded Hakim Warrick to the Bobcats for Matt Carroll this week, Carroll and New Orleans began talks about a buyout for the swingman, who's making $3.5MM in the final season of his deal. Lang Greene of HoopsWorld reports the Hornets had been engaged in buyout discussions for Warrick, too.
Warrick, who's making $4MM this year on a contract with a team option for another $4MM next season, had trouble fitting into Hornets coach Monty Williams' style of play, according to Greene. He played in only one regular season game for New Orleans after averaging 14.4 minutes per game in 35 contests for the Suns last year. Warrick came to the Hornets as part of the Robin Lopez trade this summer.
It's not entirely clear why New Orleans seems so intent on engineering a buyout. The Hornets have about $63.941MM in salary commitments this season, so a buyout for Warrick wouldn't have gotten them under the $58.044MM salary cap, just as a buyout for Carroll wouldn't. The team has 14 players on the roster, 12 of whom have fully guaranteed deals.
Royce White Serious About Possible Retirement
Royce White told ESPN's Colleen Dominguez a few days ago that he's ready to walk away from the NBA if he and the Rockets can't resolve their issues, and White tells Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston that his feelings about retiring under those circumstances are "totally etched in stone." Nonetheless, he believes he and the Rockets can hash out an agreement, and isn't considering a recent offer from the Harlem Globetrotters.
In Berman's report, White seemed to indicate he and the Rockets were working on additional contract language that would address his obsessive-compulsive and generalized anxiety disorders.
"The Rockets have been great in saying 'we understand that we don't know a lot here,'" White said. "The Rockets asked me 'what can we do better or how can we support you?' I've been writing some ideas based on what I know about mental illness and what I know about myself of trying to create a nice, sound protocol to add in there. I'm making great progress."
White, who insists the matter isn't one of "Royce versus the Rockets," said he isn't upset about not having played in any of Houston's regular season games so far. Still, he has misgivings about how an assignment to the D-League, which seemed to be in the works earlier this week, would mesh with his disorders.
The rookie, who has been away from the Rockets for more than a week, will meet with general manager Daryl Morey on Monday, but White isn't expecting immediate resolution. He believes he shouldn't have returned as quickly as he did from his absence at the start of training camp, saying the plan he and the team arranged to manage his disorders wasn't complete.
"I think we should have waited until the plan was solid and we had thought out the contingencies and we had made it as fail-proof as possible," White said.
According to White, he began to face adversity when he suffered migraines that forced him to miss the Rockets' game against the Blazers on November 3rd, and the problems continued when communication issues between him and the team surfaced, testing his OCD. White, who was being fined for every day he missed team activities or failed to meet with a therapist commissioned by the Rockets, said he is no longer being fined since he's been meeting with the therapist, Dr. Aaron Fink. White called upon the team to treat his illness as a medical issue, surmising that he wouldn't have been fined if his problems were regarded as such.