Shane Battier Sure He Will Retire
Heat veteran Shane Battier has already said this would “probably” be his last year, but it appears that his pending retirement is now a certainty. Battier told reporters including Ethan J. Skolnick of Bleacher Report last night that his mind is made up (Twitter link). “It would take an act of God to change it and that act of God hasn’t come,” said Battier.
Battier is playing out the last year of the 3-year, $9.4MM deal he signed with Miami after the team lost in the 2011 Finals. The small forward has been instrumental in the Heat’s two subsequent championships, providing both the long-range shooting ability and defensive versatility that coach Erik Spoelstra has needed to fit his offensive and defensive schemes built around the unique strengths of LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
Battier has long been considered a player whose value isn’t evident in the box score, and was an early darling of the advanced metrics community. Still, his performance has waned of late. He spent much of last year’s title run out of the rotation, and is averaging career lows in minutes, points, and field goal percentage this season.
Latest On Dario Saric
Dario Saric will almost certainly declare for this year’s draft, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress, who writes in a series of tweets. This contradicts earlier information that Saric would not be entering the draft on the heels of agreeing in principle to a three-year, $8.27MM contract with his European team. Yesterday, we noted that the agent critical of Saric’s decision-making was expected to part ways with the Croatian forward, but Givony tweets that the agent’s relationship with Saric had ended before making the comments, and asserts that the criticism was based more on a personal grudge than accurate information.
Givony also casts doubt on the report of Saric’s contract agreement in Europe, saying that the news is “bogus” and comes from former agents who have an ax to grind. The deal that Saric was to have signed didn’t include an NBA escape clause until 2016, when he would have been automatically eligible for the draft.
Whatever Saric decides will significantly impact how the 2014 draft shakes out. The 6’10” scorer is ranked 9th overall by Givony at DraftExpress, and 14th on ESPN Insider Chad Ford’s top 100. He could always enter the draft and still opt to remain overseas, so clarity on whether he intends to jump to the NBA immediately would certainly help his draft stock, as most teams with lottery picks would want to avoid selecting a talent they couldn’t immediately begin developing. If he does declare and slide down draft board, he could be appealing as a value for teams with the luxury to wait on a “draft and stash” prospect.
Kevin Love Has Interest In Bulls
A source familiar with Kevin Love‘s thinking tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com the All-Star is intrigued by the Bulls as a destination, adding to the forward’s known interests in the Lakers and Knicks. At this point, there has been no indication that the Bulls front office has made any preparations for a Love pursuit, which would have to occur via a trade before the 2014/15 season’s trade deadline, or in free agency before the 2015/16 season, when Love is expected by most to decline his $16.7MM player option.
The Lakers have been considered the favorite to land Love if he were to depart from the Timberwolves either as a free agent or in a pre-emptive trade if Minnesota looks to avoid losing him for nothing. However, Love’s public statements about the Lakers have been less than glowing in recent months. Last night, after scoring a triple double in a beatdown of the Lakers, Love blamed the Lakers speculation on his upbringing in Los Angeles and no more. In an earlier interview with GQ, Love rejected the notion that the Lakers roster is more attractive than the roster he’s surrounded by in Minnesota.
Depending on what the Bulls do this summer, they may not have enough cap flexibility to obtain Love by trade or by signing him if and when he becomes a free agent demanding a max salary. Carlos Boozer‘s contract runs through next season but could be amnestied, Nikola Mirotic could be bought out from his European team and brought to Chicago, and other free agents could be added for next year and beyond, including some improbable scenarios involving Carmelo Anthony. If Minnesota opened a bidding war for Love, the Lakers are set up to have better draft assets to deal over the next couple of years, but don’t have any young pieces as valuable as Chicago’s Taj Gibson or Jimmy Butler.
The speculation around Love’s future has heated up since the All-Star break, as the Wolves have slid further out of playoff contention. The team was built to break into the playoffs for the first time in Love’s six years with the franchise that drafted him, with expectations boosted by free agency acquisitions including Kevin Martin and full, healthy seasons from both Love and Ricky Rubio.
Lakers Notes: Love, Nash, Kaman
The Lakers lost in embarrassing fashion to the Timberwolves last night, giving up 143 points on 67.1% overall shooting. The rumors surrounding Los Angeles aren’t very positive, either. Let’s take a look:
- Kevin Love downplayed questions about joining the Lakers in the future when speaking with reporters including Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News after he led the Wolves in drubbing the purple and gold. “You know, my parents live there and they had me there. It’s not my fault,” Love said. “So, I don’t really care about that right now. I just go out there and play and don’t think about it.”
- Steve Nash told reporters including Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com that how his health will affect the rest of this season and his career is a virtual unknown to the 40-year-old. “Frankly, I don’t know if I’ll play again or if I’ll play every game [the rest] of the year,” Nash said. “I think the bottom line right now is this is a situation where I want to play; that’s the only reason I played tonight. But I also want to go into this summer healthy.” Nash has repeatedly said he wants to play out the final year of his contract and avoid a scenario where the Lakers exercise the stretch provision on his contract.
- Chris Kaman admitted to having frustration with his lack of playing time for the Lakers, telling reporters including Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times he doesn’t understand coach Mike D’Antoni‘s explanation. “It’s a frustrating situation all around. Maybe he thought he was going to go with the young guys, but Steve Nash is 40 years old. He stayed with him so I’m not sure that’s par for the course,” said Kaman, who was the subject of trade rumors earlier this year and will become a free agent this summer. “It’s hard for a player to know what to think, know what to do and what to say. I’m just trying to be cool about it and stay positive, but it’s definitely difficult.”
Draft Rumors: Wiggins, Robinson, Harrison
Chris Mannix of SI.com released a new mock draft, with Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid, and Jabari Parker in the top three spots. Here are more rumors surrounding the draft:
- Several executives tell Mannix that the poor tournament performances of Wiggins and Parker won’t impact their draft stock, but that concerns over Embiid’s back injury could significantly affect his value.
- Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times discusses how Wiggins would fit with the Bucks in a video interview.
- Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com thinks Zach LaVine is over-hyped as a prospect, saying that the guard out of UCLA looks like a D-League player despite his first-round projections (Twitter link).
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com thinks that Michigan’s Glenn Robinson III needs to finish the tournament with a big performance, because his lack of assertiveness and spotty play has caused him to slip down draft boards from a potential lottery pick to a late first-rounder.
- Scouts tell Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that Kentucky’s Andrew Harrison would go in the 25-30 range in the draft, and that he needs to stay for another year and improve his stock (Twitter link).
- Chris Mannix agrees with that take, tweeting that Harrison has the tools to become a lottery pick in the 2015 draft.
- An NBA scout tells Mannix that UConn’s Shabazz Napier already has better ball handling ability than a lot of NBA backup point guards (Twitter link).
- An NBA executive tells Mannix that Baylor’s Isaiah Austin is another player who should stay in school for another year, pegging the center as a late first rounder at best in the 2014 draft class (Twitter link).
- Louisville’s Russ Smith made the right choice to stay in college after last year’s national championship, writes Adi Joseph of USA Today. Smith will likely be selected in the second round of the draft, and Joseph envisions him as a bench player who could eventually earn a starting job in the NBA.
Pistons Rumors: Dumars, D-League, Singler
While Isiah Thomas was non-committal in addressing the potential he would join the Pistons in the near future, Detroit’s sitting president of basketball operations Joe Dumars declined to be interviewed at all before the Bad Boys celebration tonight, per Larry Lage of The Associated Press. Dumars has reportedly been on rocky ground all season, with speculation about his job security only growing as the Pistons continue to pile up loses following the firing of former coach Maurice Cheeks. Here’s a roundup of the rest of tonight’s notes out of Detroit:
- David Mayo of MLive.com answers a mailbag question about Dumars’ visibility, saying that Dumars is indeed ducking media consistently.
- In another answer, the MLive.com scribe says he believes Dumars’ run of decisions that haven’t panned out isn’t abnormal for a long-tenured GM to endure, but thinks that the big contracts given to Charlie Villanueva and Ben Gordon were the most egregious mistakes that could cost Dumars his job.
- Answering a question about the Pistons planned one-to-one D-League affiliate, Mayo writes that the new arrangement will give the team a lot more freedom to develop players. Mayo speculates that Detroit will utilize the D-League much more often with the new setup.
- Mayo says that Kyle Singler vastly outperforms his $1MM contract, and that the Pistons would love to keep the forward beyond his rookie contract. Singler is eligible to become a restricted free agent before the 2015/16 season.
Semaj Christon To Declare For Draft
Xavier sophomore Semaj Christon has announced that he will declare for the 2014 NBA Draft, telling Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com of his decision (H/T Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv). “It’s been my lifelong dream of playing in the NBA,” said Christon. “Xavier has been a great experience, but now it’s time for me to move onto a different chapter in my life for me and my family.” Christon is currently projected as a secound round pick, with Chad Ford of ESPN.com ranking him as the 45th best prospect, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress projecting him at 43rd overall. A veteran scout tells Zagoria that area in the second round is Christon’s range. The scout adds that Christon would likely spend time in the D-Leauge next year.
The 6’3″ point guard averaged 16.2 points and 4.4 assists per game for his college career with a .462/.388/.670 slash line. Christon finished sixth in Big East scoring this year at 17.0 points per game, earning Big East first-team honors. Christon’s length, athleticism, and ball handling are strengths he has displayed as an NBA prospect. He projects as a good defender and scorer, but hasn’t established himself as a distributor or shooter.
Central Notes: Pacers, Fredette, Dellavedova
Danny Granger thinks some of the Pacers’ recent struggles could be due to a team hangover following the trade that sent him to the Sixers, he tells Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. “You mess up the … it’s not messing, you change the chemistry of the team. It can have different effects that are unforeseen. I think that may have had something to do with it,” said Granger. “The fact they added two new players, it’s hard to come in in the middle of the season with a new team regardless of how good you are, that’s very difficult to do.” Here’s more from the Central Division:
- In a mailbag answer, Sam Smith of Bulls.com says that the Bulls likely won’t want to keep all of their draft picks this summer, and guesses that GM Gar Forman will see if the picks will help pry away a star level player from another team. The Bulls will almost surely have the Bobcats’ first rounder to go with their own first round pick, and are also expected to try and bring Nikola Mirotic over from Europe.
- Despite playing only four minutes per game in five appearances with the Bulls, Jimmer Fredette tells K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune he doesn’t regret signing with Chicago. “It’s a great culture here,” Fredette said. “Everyone plays as hard as they can and for the team and for each other. Hopefully, I can be a big part of what we do here moving into the playoffs.”
- With Kyrie Irving out, Cavs rookie point guard Matthew Dellavedova has come through with improved offense to add to his defensive strengths, and he tells Bob Finnan of The News-Herald it’s not come by accident. “We put a lot of time in shooting the ball,” Dellavedova said. “I started well this season and then had a drop-off. It picked up lately. You have to keep refining it and keep taking good shots. I work on my 3-point shot and watch a lot of game tape. I stuck with it. It feels pretty good right now.”
And-Ones: Abdul-Jabbar, CBA, Ennis, Grant
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar told Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News that he has some interest in becoming a part of the Bucks ownership group. “The team very likely will change hands and there are a number of people that are interested, and I’ve had some people approach me. But there’s nothing yet,” said Abdul-Jabbar. “I talked with [Bucks owner] Mr. Kohl, but he’s talked to a lot of people. The team isn’t doing well and not making money.” More from around the league:
- While the Sixers are derided for approaching the worst losing streak in NBA history, Jeré Longman of The New York Times looks at how many members of the young and unproven roster are fighting more for a career than a record-halting win. “It’s an audition for the whole team,” said guard James Anderson. “A lot of people, all they see is the streak, but we’re out here fighting, trying to stick around in this league.”
- Nate Duncan of Basketball Insiders believes that the current CBA has had unintended consequences that have hurt small market and mediocre teams. Duncan thinks the harsh repeater tax, meant to deter big market teams from exceeding the salary cap, only widened the gap in salary flexibility since the tax is an even greater deterrent for small market teams that otherwise might splurge during a window of title contention. Duncan also covers changes in contract extensions and trade regulations that have weakened mediocre teams and resulted in dull trade deadlines.
- Multiple league sources tell Chris Broussard of ESPN.com that they are concerned an over-reliance on advanced statistics is blocking NBA former players from getting as many front office jobs, since they aren’t as devoted to metrics as “stat guys” with a background in analytics or finance. “Generally speaking, neither the [newer generation of] owners nor the analytic guys have basketball in their background,” one longtime league executive told Broussard. “This fact makes it easy for both parties to dismiss the importance of having experience in and knowledge of the game.”
- Jim Boeheim tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv it could be a while before freshman Tyler Ennis and sophomore Jerami Grant make their decisions on whether to declare for the draft or return to Syracuse. “I don’t think there will be any word on them for a while,” said Boeheim. ”You never know in this business. They’ll figure it out somehow.”
Western Notes: Mavericks, Lakers, D’Antoni
With their loss tonight, the Nuggets were eliminated from playoff contention, ending a 10-year streak of postseason action in Denver. Here’s more from out West:
- Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW writes that the Mavericks will prioritize the center and small forward positions in free agency this summer, looking for cheaper options to fill their other gaps.
- In a video with HoopsHype, Mark Heisler says the Lakers front office has a rebuilding plan in place, but that everyone with important ties to the organization has lost confidence in the plan. Heisler is pessimistic that the Lakers can truly turn the team around until the 2015/16 season or later, when they could start landing marquee free agents.
- Heisler also speculates that coach Mike D’Antoni won’t last beyond this season, even though he will be a scapegoat for problems he isn’t responsible for.