Pacific Rumors: Whiteside, Odom, Nash, Dragic
The top three teams in the Pacific Division are all scrambling for playoff position in the season's final two weeks, as the Lakers and Clippers go after the division title while the Suns, who get free-agent-to-be Grant Hill back from knee surgery tonight, are just looking to qualify for the postseason. Here's the latest from the West Coast:
- Kings reserve center Hassan Whiteside will miss the rest of the season with a severe ankle sprain, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (via Twitter). Whiteside has two years left on his contract at less than $1M each, but they're not guaranteed if he's waived before July 15. The 2010 second round pick has played in just 19 games for Sacramento, with much of his action coming in the past two months. He's averaged 2.2 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in just 6.1 MPG this season.
- Lamar Odom has close ties to Warriors assistant coach Jerry DeGregorio, who was the best man in his wedding to Khloe Kardashian, notes Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle. Earlier this week we passed along that Odom is on Golden State's radar.
- Point guards Goran Dragic and Steve Nash will both hit the free agent market this summer, but they aren't letting the notion that they may be competing for dollars get in the way of their mutual admiration from their time together with the Suns, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets.
- Blake Griffin, who'll be a free agent after next season, has taken some criticism this year, and SI.com's Sam Amick takes a lengthy look at how the reigning Rookie of the Year is dealing with increased expectations of himself and the Clippers this season.
Blazers Notes: GM Candidates, Walsh, Thomas
The Blazers are all but mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, but they're a team that figures to make plenty of news in the next several months. They could get a high draft pick from the Nets and will have ample room under the cap to sign free agents this summer, but before they address those matters, they probably need to solidify their front office first. Here's the latest from the City of Roses:
- Team president Larry Miller conducted two more interviews for the GM position by phone while in New York for the Board of Governors meeting, reports Jason Quick of The Oregonian (via Twitter). Miller said earlier in the week that he'd already interviewed a pair of candidates, though he insists the team may simply keep interim GM Chad Buchanan.
- Agent Steve Kauffman says veteran GM Donnie Walsh, currently a consultant with the Knicks, has not interviewed for the position, Quick also tweets.
- Kurt Thomas, at 39, is the league's oldest player and hasn't played in the last seven games as the Blazers take a closer look at second-year man Luke Babbitt and impending free agent J.J. Hickson. Still, he's not thinking retirement, and with one more season left on his current contract, he tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com, "I can definitely see myself playing past this deal, but I'll wait and see how I feel when that time comes.”
Reaction To End For Lamar Odom In Dallas
The timing of their parting was difficult to peg down, but the partnership between the Mavs and Lamar Odom has seemed doomed for a while. When Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said Odom was testing his patience last month, it looked as though that patience was already gone. Here's what people around the league are saying in the wake of this morning's news that Odom will not play anymore this season for the Mavs:
- Brian Kamenetzky of ESPNLA.com (via Twitter) doesn't see Odom rejoining the Lakers.
- Mavs General Manager Donnie Nelson says that everyone from the locker room up to the front office wanted to see Odom succeed in Dallas, tweets Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram.
- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com opines that Odom will go down as one of the biggest disgraces in Dallas sports history. MacMahon believes that Odom's departure could give the defending champs a much-needed morale boost as they enter the playoffs.
- Jeff Caplan of ESPNDallas.com tweets that Mavs players had little to say about the matter today, while Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd avoided the media entirely.
- Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News notes that Odom will continue to draw his salary even though he will not be playing. He was scheduled to make $8.9MM this season, though the lockout cut that down to about $7.16MM.
- The Lakers were going to try to trade both Odom and Pau Gasol right up until the March 15 deadline, but they knew that Odom wouldn't be able to handle the constant trade rumors, Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com tweets.
- Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio wonders, via Twitter, whether Odom will ever play in the NBA again.
- Caplan believes it was a move the Mavs had to make, as Odom, who had an emotionally turbulent offseason, simply wasn't focused on basketball.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Minor Moves: Kelenna Azubuike
The D-League playoffs begin this week, and we'll keep track of today's news from that circuit as well as international developments here:
- Dallas has recalled Kelenna Azubuike from the D-League Texas Legends, according to a press release from the Mavs. Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com originally tweeted the news. The Mavs signed Azubuike March 23 and immediately sent him down to the Legends, where he appeared in seven games and averaged 6.4 PPG and 4.4 RPG in 12.9 MPG.
Cavs Re-Sign Lester Hudson
The Cavs have signed guard Lester Hudson to another 10-day contract, tweets Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Hudson's first 10-day deal expired last night.
Hudson has averaged 12.7 PPG, 3.8 APG and 3.5 RPG in 23.8 minutes a night during his six-game stint with the Cavs. He scored 23 points Friday against the Raptors and 26 on Sunday versus the Nets. Earlier I speculated that the Hornets, in need of a point guard, might try to grab him, but this move blocks them from doing so, at least for the time being.
Perry Jones III To Enter Draft
Baylor coach Scott Drew has confirmed Baylor sophomore power forward Perry Jones III will enter the draft, reports Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com. Goodman tweeted earlier that sources indicated the move was forthcoming.
The 6-foot-11, 220-pound Jones averaged 13.5 PPG and 7.6 RPG for the Bears this season after missing the first six games because of an NCAA suspension for accepting impermissable benefits. ESPN.com's Chad Ford has him ranked ninth in his latest list of the Top 100 prospects based on his versatility, size and athleticism. NBA teams have questioned his toughness and intensity, Goodman says, but he's unlikely to fall out of the lottery. He was widely expected to enter the draft last year.
Draft Notes: Burke, Jones, McCollum
Earlier we passed along that Kansas junior Thomas Robinson is announcing his decision to enter the draft today. Here's more on the draft front:
- Freshman point guard Trey Burke is headed back to Michigan, the school has announced, as Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com reports (Twitter link). He would have been a second-round pick, according to NBADraft.net.
- Goodman also tweets that sources say Baylor sophomore power forward Perry Jones III will enter the NBA Draft. Jones is projected to go ninth overall by Draft Express and 13th by NBADraft.net.
- Lehigh junior C.J. McCollum writes on The Sporting News website that he will return for his senior season. He declared his intent to enter the draft last month, but did not hire an agent. Tomorrow is the deadline for collegians who've declared for the draft to withdraw and still maintain their college eligibility. The hero of 15th-seeded Lehigh's win over No. 2 seed Duke in the NCAA Tournament this year has been projected as the 28th overall pick in this year's draft by NBADraft.net, while Draft Express looks ahead and sees him as the 22nd best prospect for 2013.
- TNT's David Aldridge, writing for NBA.com, takes a look at the point guards in the draft this year, which has plenty of question marks after North Carolina's Kendall Marshall. With McCollum, whom Aldridge calls his sleeper, off the board, it looks even thinner.
- In his NBA.com Morning Tip column, Aldridge also says the league and the NCAA have money in mind when they talk about requiring players to spend more time in college before entering the draft. Schools would benefit from keeping their stars around, and the league wouldn't have to pay them as they develop.
Hornets Looking To Quickly Sign Point Guard
The Hornets want to find a backup point guard who'll be ready to play in the team's game scheduled for 7:00pm Central Time tonight against the Lakers, reports Jim Eichenhofer of Hornets.com. The team announced earlier today that starter Jarrett Jack will miss the rest of the season with a stress fracture in his right foot. Greivis Vasquez is the only other point guard on the roster, and coach Monty Williams suggested the team may have to go with point guard by committee at times tonight.
Lester Hudson, who's scored 23 and 26 points in his last two games with the Cavs, is a free agent after his 10-day contract with the Cavs expired last night, so the Hornets could look to sign him if Cleveland doesn't beat them to it. Another option could be Jeremy Wise, who led the D-League in assists this year and was in training camp with the Heat.
Southwest Notes: Jack, Arenas, Diaw, Jackson
The most pressing news out of the Southwest Division is Lamar Odom's departure from the Mavs, but there are a few more items of note as the Spurs, with an eight and a half game lead over the Grizzlies, close in on the title:
- Jarrett Jack's season is over with a stress fracture in his right foot, the team confirms on its website. Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports originally reported the news via Twitter. The Hornets guard enters the final season of a four-year, $20MM contract next year, when he's scheduled to make $5.4MM. The team currently has 14 players on its roster, so they wouldn't have to let anyone go to bring in an extra point guard for the season's final weeks.
- Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal looks at how recent Grizzlies signee Gilbert Arenas has reinvented himself to fit in with the team.
- Boris Diaw, who signed with the Spurs after the Bobcats bought him out, got his first start with San Antonio on Sunday in the team's win over Utah as coach Gregg Popovich continues to tinker with the lineup, notes Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News. Stephen Jackson, acquired at the trade deadline, did not play.
Magic GM Otis Smith’s Role Shrinking?
10:06am: Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel wonders whether Shaquille O'Neal's support for Dwight Howard is tied to his desire to become the next Magic GM. O'Neal is difficult to take seriously at times, Bianchi notes, but recalls the comments Orlando's original "Superman" had on Bianchi's radio show last week.
“I would love to be the general manager of the Orlando Magic,” O'Neal said. “(Magic CEO) Alex Martins, you’ve got my number. Call me!”
9:07am: After breaking down some second-tier free agents, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld reports that Magic GM Otis Smith has been "removed from the process" with Dwight Howard, and that sources say Adonal Foyle, the Magic's director of player development, was in charge of the team's talks at the trade deadline. According to Kyler, Smith still would have to approve all transactions, but his role has been "radically scaled back."
Howard's front-office interaction comes almost exclusively with CEO Alex Martins, Kyler says. ESPN's Marc Stein wrote in his Weekend Dime that Magic executives look fondly upon Foyle and he's being groomed for a "future role of front office prominence." Kyler's report suggests he's already starting to take charge.
Just last week, we passed along a HoopsWorld report that Smith sat down with Howard and coach Stan Van Gundy, so it's clear Smith isn't completely disconnected from the team or its star player. If Kyler's report is true, though, it points to more turmoil in Orlando and greater power for Howard. While Smith, unlike Van Gundy, has not acknowledged that Howard has asked the team to fire him, reports have suggested D12 wants to be able to determine the fate of his GM as well. Regardless of who's said to be in charge, it increasingly appears as though Howard is by far the most powerful figure in Orlando.