Nets, Hawks Finalize Joe Johnson Deal

JULY 11, 5:03pm: The deal is now official, according to a press release by the Nets.

JULY 11, 4:40pm: Nets GM Billy King posted "Welcome Joe Johnson" on his Twitter account, presumably meaning the trade has been finalized.

JULY 2, 4:51pm: DeShawn Stevenson's sign-and-trade deal that puts him on the Hawks is for three years and $6.9MM, but only the first year, at $2.3MM, is guaranteed, Chad Ford of ESPN.com reports via Twitter

4:39pm: Wojnarowski now says the deal likely happens regardless of where Deron Williams signs (Twitter link).

4:18pm: The Nets and Hawks have agreed to terms on a trade that would send Joe Johnson to Brooklyn, tweets Chris Broussard of ESPN.com, who says the deal is contingent on Deron Williams agreeing to return to the Nets. However, David Aldridge of TNT says the Nets would agree to the deal regardless of Williams' status (Twitter link). Broussard adds that the deal would put the Nets out of the running of Dwight Howard, as it wouldn't leave enough cap room.

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Pistons Sign Kyle Singler

JULY 11TH: The Pistons have officially announced the signing of Singler, according to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com (via Twitter).

JUNE 29TH: The Pistons will sign 2011 second-round draft pick Kyle Singler on July 11, the first day free agents can officially ink contracts, said Joe Dumars, the team's president of basketball operations, as Larry Lage of The Detroit News reports. Singler played the 2011/12 season in Spain after Detroit took him with the 33rd overall pick last June. The 6'8" forward averaged 16.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game in his final season of a four-year stay at Duke.

Blake Griffin Intends To Sign Max Extension

JULY 9TH: Griffin has been excused from Team USA practice today to take care of his contract extension, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Not that I'm accusing Griffin of playing hooky, but his extension can't become official until the moratorium ends, so it should still be a couple days before the deal is formally finalized.

JUNE 30TH: Blake Griffin has informed Clippers officials that he intends to sign a five-year contract extension with the team, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Team president Andy Roeser will formally make the offer when rules allow at 11pm Central time tonight, Shelburne says. Griffin is unable to sign the extension until July 11, when the moratorium period ends.

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Week In Review: 7/2/12 – 7/8/12

The first week of free agency has been a busy one around the NBA, even though most moves can't become official until July 11th. In case you missed a day or two, you can catch up on all the week's big news in this post.

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International Moves: Krstic, Kirilenko, Wafer

Behind 25 points from Ike Diogu, Nigeria defeated the Domincan Republic on Sunday for the final spot in the Olympics.  The international game will garner plenty of attention over the next month or so, and tonight there's news about a few former, and perhaps future, NBA players as they make their decisions concerning pro teams overseas. Here's the latest: 

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Kings Reach Agreement With Jason Thompson

The Kings and Jason Thompson have agreed to terms, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. It's a multi-year deal worth $6MM per season, Jones tweets, while the precise length of the contract remains unclear The two sides had been close to an agreement earlier today, so the move comes as little surprise. The move will become official after the moratorium on signing ends Wednesday.

Geoff Petrie, the team's president of basketball operations, indicated the Kings aren't done dealing in the wake of the Thompson agreement and missing out on Ryan Anderson, who agreed today to go to the Hornets in a sign-and-trade

 

 

 

 

Wojnarowski On Howard, Bynum, Nets

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports took to Twitter earlier today to write about Andrew Bynum's interest in the Mavericks, Cavaliers and Rockets as the Lakers center looks forward to free agency next summer. Wojnarowski has also been on top of the latest developments in the Dwight Howard saga today, and his latest story reveals plenty about arguably the two best centers in the NBA. We've got the highlights here:

  • The Magic have "a strong distaste" for prolonged trade discussions about Howard, Wojnarowski reports, and the front office is united in its desire to find the best deal for Howard and send him on his way. 
  • Bynum's reluctance to commit to the Magic long-term if he were to be traded to Orlando has made the Nets the frontrunner for Howard, since the Magic don't want to acquire Bynum just to lose him next summer. The Lakers also compromised their ability to make a deal for Howard by sending their 2013 and 2015 first-round picks to the Suns in the Steve Nash deal.
  • If Bynum is still with the Lakers after Howard is traded, he'll have "strong incentive" to sign an extension to remain in L.A. for the long term, sources told Wojnarowski.

J.J. Redick’s Contract To Become Guaranteed

The Magic have until 11:00pm Central time tonight to waive J.J. Redick without having to pay his $6.19MM salary for next season, but the team will keep him aboard, tweets Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. This coming season will be the last year of a three-year, $20.19MM deal, and the Magic could use his expiring contract as a trade chip, as Robbins notes (Twitter link).

A.J. Price To Become Unrestricted Free Agent

The Pacers will renounce their rights to A.J. Price, making him an unrestricted free agent, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. The Pacers had tendered a qualifying offer of about $1.09MM to Price, but presumably that deal is now off the table. The move should have a neglible effect on Indiana's ability to match the Blazers' offer sheet to Roy Hibbert and go after other free agents.

Kevin Love Urges Wolves To Upgrade Roster

Kevin Love tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that if the Timberwolves don't starting winning more often this season, he isn't sure how long he'll want to remain in Minnesota.

"My patience is not high," said Love, in Las Vegas this week to practice with the U.S. Olympic team. "Would yours be, especially when I'm a big proponent of greatness surrounding itself with greatness? All these [Team USA] guys seem to have great players around them. It's tough seeing all these guys that are young and older who have all played in the playoffs. When they start talking about that, I have nothing to talk about. If I don’t make the playoffs next year I don’t know what will happen."

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