Jazz CEO On Trade Deadline, CBA, Silver
Jazz CEO Greg Miller did a lengthy Q&A with Matt Moore of CBS Sports, covering Utah’s young roster, the upcoming draft, and more. The whole thing is worth checking out, but here are some of the highlights:
On the quiet Jazz trade deadline, and contentment with the team as constructed:
“I’d say that this has been a very good developmental year. Going into the season, we stated openly our plan is to go young and develop the young guys into a championship contender. I think the development we’ve seen has been exactly what we’ve hoped for. And I’m happy with it.”
On relating to his players:
“I consider them all friends. I think we’re all blessed to have gentlemen on and off the course. They’re good for the community; they represent the franchise well. I try not to get too close to any of them because it’s the nature of the business that it’s fairly dynamic in terms of personnel moves. It’s tough enough without having that added dimension. Having said that, I feel like I’ve made an effort to express my appreciation to the guys who are going to be part of my guys in the future. I’d include Derrick Favors, [Trey] Burke, [Alec] Burks, Gordon [Hayward], Enes [Kanter] and others. When I see them at games, I feel comfortable around them and I think they feel comfortable with me.”
On new commissioner Adam Silver:
“I’ve had the benefit of having known Adam for a little over five years and worked with him as deputy commissioner. I’ve been impressed with him; the more I’ve gotten to know him the more impressive he’s become. He’s very thorough in whatever issues he’s about to tackle. He does his homework. He knows the strategy he wants to employ and what he wants to get done. I think he’ll be different from David in that he’s a little more even-tempered, but he’s articulate. He’s got some big shoes to fill, which I can relate to. My dad set the bar very high in our organization. I’ve always felt that we have that in common. We’re both successors to people who did their jobs very, very well. I think Adam is the right man for the job. David served the league and the fans and the owners really well for 30 years. And he certainly did his part to build the game of basketball and build the value of NBA franchises. It’ll be Adam’s turn to see what he can add. I’m excited to be a part of it.”
On whether the new CBA is helping small market teams stay competitive:
“I think it’s had the effect of leveling the playing field. The luxury tax is now so punitive that even the markets with deeper pockets would have to be really crazy to go into that. I can tell you that as long as our family owns the team and the current tax structure, you’ll never see the Jazz go into the luxury tax. The playing field has been leveled somewhat. I think it’s a good thing for small markets. I think it’s a little too new to have a completely clear picture of the impacts. I think based on what we’ve seen, it’s been good for small markets and good for the league.”
Spurs Notes: Daye, Free Agents
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich told reporters, including Josh McDonald of San Antonio Express-News, that Nando De Colo‘s request for San Antonio to move him to a better situation was the impetus for GM R.C. Buford to trade him to the Raptors last week. Popovich says Buford was working to accommodate De Colo’s wishes for some time (Twitter links). Here’s more from San Antonio:
- Popovich said in the same session that he isn’t feeling very anxious about what free agents the Spurs could add, per Mike Monroe of San Antonio Express-News (Twitter links): “R.C. and the boys are doing their due diligence but there’s nothing there we’re super excited about.” The Spurs have been linked to multiple players on the buyout market, but haven’t landed any to this point.
- Austin Daye, whom the Spurs acquired in the De Colo trade, tells Vince Ellis of Detroit Free Press that turbulence with the Pistons during his few years in the league helped him mature: “I saw a lot of things usually a lot of first-year guys don’t see, second-year guys don’t see—guys getting into it with coaches and stuff like that and all type of different stuff going on. It was tough when guys didn’t want to go to shootaround and all that stuff,” says Daye. “I kind of had to grow and mature as a player and as a person. I think I was able to do that my third to fourth year. Just be mature, come into work every day and beat somebody out for their spot. Just earn your minutes as best you can, instead of expecting stuff.”
- Daye hopes to make enough of an impression for the Spurs to guarantee the final year of his contract next season, worth $1.1MM. He wants a chance to succeed like other Spurs reclamation projects have. “Look at what happened to [Danny Green]. He wasn’t playing at all in Cleveland, never sniffed the floor when he was there. He came into this system and the system really helps players like that. It helps players with perhaps a special skill-set or maybe even one skill-set,” says Daye. “I think it’s a great chance for me—I don’t think it’s the last chance for me. If that’s what they’ve been saying, that’s what they can think. I know I’m a good player in this league, I know I can play in this league.”
Eastern Notes: Muscala, Jennings, Raptors
Updating an earlier note, former Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo reveals that the 2011/12 season is when he tried to tank the team’s performance for a better draft pick, according to Sam Amick of USA Today. Colangelo says the losing mentality was limited to the roster’s assembly. “I didn’t ‘come out and say, ‘Coach (Dwane Casey), you’ve got to lose games.’ I never said that. I wanted to have him establish a winning tradition and a culture and all of that, but I wanted to do it in the framework of playing and developing young players, and with that comes losing.” Here’s more from the Eastern Conference, home to a few teams suspected of tanking this year:
- Dwane Casey is still the Raptors coach, and declined to comment on the tanking season in retrospect, per Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun (via Twitter).
- Mike Muscala spoke with Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constituation about joining the Hawks earlier than expected. “I was surprised. I was playing in Spain and my agent called me and told me about it last week. My whole thought process was to play the entire year (in Spain) so it was definitely a surprise.” Muscala said he is pushing through nerves, uncertainty, and inexperience in an NBA system to gain the most from the final stretch of the season. “I’m not sure in terms of a role but what I should be focusing on is putting more pressure on the rim offensively and defensively, getting rebounds offensively and defensively, playing with the skill I have in the pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop situation.”
- Brandon Jennings doesn’t think fired Pistons coach Maurice Cheeks received a fair shot before Detroit let him go, he tells David Mayo of MLive.com. “You give a coach a half-a-season, with new faces and new chemistry, that’s not enough time, I don’t think. I felt like he was basically in a losing situation.” Jennings is frustrated with Detroit’s struggles this season, after an offseason that was meant to turn them into a playoff team. “It’ll be very disappointing and kind of embarrassing, the fact that with myself coming over here, and Josh coming over here, and us making these moves, and we don’t get it done–it’s going to be real disappointing.”
- Jennings also told Mayo he doesn’t know whether the rumors of Chauncey Billups and Josh Smith playing a part in Cheeks’ firing are true.
Los Angeles Notes: Marshall, Kupchak, Clippers
Aside from Danny Granger‘s official signing with the Clippers earlier today, a lot more is happening in Southern California. Here are some notes from L.A.:
- Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com says that the Clippers trade deadline was a success, although it appeared to have fizzled out at the time. After merely subtracting Antawn Jamison and Byron Mullens from the roster during deadline week, the Clippers actually made room for buyout additions Glen Davis and Granger without giving up significant players or hiking up their team salary.
- Rockets GM Daryl Morey was asked at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference who the best negotiator in the league is, and immediately named Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, according to Richard Deitsch of SI.com (via Twitter).
- Kendall Marshall uses the criticism and disregard he’s received from media and teams as motivation to improve, he tells Mark Medina of Los Angeles Daily News: “I made a list of things in my phone and things that drive me that people said I couldn’t do. I recite those things to me every single day.” Marshall has already surpassed his totals from last season for games started, minutes, points, and assists in just 22 contests with the Lakers this year. The Suns traded him before the season to the Wizards as part of the Marcin Gortat deal. Washington promptly released him, making Marshall the rare early first-rounder who doesn’t make it to the second year of his initial rookie contract. “Part of it came with hitting rock-bottom and being out of the league. You can’t go anywhere but up from here. They already think you can’t shoot. So you’re either going to solidify what they think or you’re going to surprise them.”
Eastern Notes: Gooden, Casey, Bulls
Derrick Rose has begun running for the first time since tearing a meniscus earlier this year, according to a note from the Associated Press on NBA.com. Despite the good news, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau again reiterated that Rose will remain out for the rest of the season. Here’s more from the East:
- Thibodeau says that it’s possible the Bulls could add a veteran from the buyout market, he tells Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago: “We could. I know [GM Gar Forman] and [executive VP] John [Paxson] are looking at the market and watching how it shapes up. Again, if something is a good fit for us and we think can help then we may take a shot at it.”
- Drew Gooden is ready to contribute in his second stint with the Wizards, he tells J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. “I’ve been spectating. I’m thirsty. I’m hungry. Definitely there’s a reset button that’s been hit.” Gooden is more enthusiastic about his time in Washington this time around than last, when the team struggled following the Gilbert Arenas locker-room gun incident. The Wizards appealed to him because of their commitment to winning. “When I first came in it seemed like the whole league was eager to win a championship. It wasn’t really realistic but they made those moves and those efforts to win. I see a handful of teams doing that now and I believe the Washington Wizards is one that wants to win. That’s why they added me for depth going into the playoffs.”
- The Raptors have a looming decision on whether to sign breakout point guard Kyle Lowry to a lucrative deal when he becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer, but the decisions don’t end there, writes Eric Koreen of The National Post. Coach Dwane Casey‘s contract also expires at the end of the year, and he has also performed above expectations in guiding the Raptors to the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference. GM Masai Ujiri isn’t one to reveal which way he’s leaning, but this doesn’t faze Casey. “I promise you, I don’t even think about that,” Casey said. “That’s one thing that I can’t control. The only thing I can control is preparing this team each and every game.”
Knicks Notes: ‘Melo, Woodson, Felton
LeBron James is impressed with Carmelo Anthony‘s willingness to take less money with the Knicks in order to get more talent around him in New York, he tells Marc Berman of The New York Post. “What I got out of it is, he wants to win,’’ James said. “Everyone says they want to win, but that’s what it’s about.’’ James, who spurned New York for the Heat in “The Decision” four summers ago, made it clear that he was rooting for Anthony, and not the Knicks: “I don’t worry about their franchise. I worry about Carmelo Anthony. I always want him to win and succeed. Obviously he’s been playing great basketball. I don’t like seeing him lose like they’ve been losing, but I really don’t care about the franchise.’’ Here’s more from the team that continues to make headlines for its struggles:
- Coach Mike Woodson‘s next three to five games could be another perilous stretch, a source tells Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report (via Twitter). The source believes that owner Jim Dolan could make a knee-jerk firing if it appears New York is truly, finally out of playoff contention soon.
- The Knicks tried to trade Raymond Felton to the Magic for Jameer Nelson before the trade deadline, per John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com. The decision by Orlando to turn down the offer made sense at the time, but it looks even better now considering Felton’s recent legal troubles.
- Harvey Araton of The New York Times thinks that the failures and foibles of the Knicks supporting cast around Anthony are drawing blame away from Anthony and owner Jim Dolan, whom Araton believes are equally at fault for the team’s struggles this year. Araton cites the 2011 trade for ‘Melo that stripped the Knicks of valuable assets and ‘Melo’s failure to develop into a player who makes his teammates better as reasons the Knicks haven’t developed into contenders.
Pacific Notes: Johnson, Lakers, Barnes
Pau Gasol and Mike D’Antoni have clashed at times with the Lakers, and D’Antoni wasn’t happy about Gasol’s latest complaints to the media after the team lost another game, according to Mark Medina of Inside the Lakers. “The thing I don’t appreciate is, I think every coach, you keep it in house,” D’Antoni said. “It’s very easy to come over and talk about your frustrations. We’ll try to work something out and figure something out. To go to you guys and do it in the papers, that’s disturbing. I don’t think that’s the way to go. I understand we’re all trying to solve the same problems. So let’s put our head together and do the best we can.” Gasol’s ongoing dissatisfaction with his role and the Lakers’ style of play under D’Antoni could factor into his decision making as an unrestricted free agent this summer. Here’s more from around the Pacific Division:
- Although Chris Kaman‘s minutes are down and his name was floated around before the trade deadline, Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com tweets that there are no talks of a buyout between Kaman and the Lakers (link). Shelburne says that Kaman enjoys playing for L.A.
- Harrison Barnes tells Diamond Leung of San Jose Mercury News there was helpful communication between him and the Warriors front office leading up to the trade deadline, and that he used the rumors surrounding him as motivation to play better. “They just told me obviously teams are inquiring, that’s pretty much it. I wasn’t really trying to like look through reports, figure out where I was going to go,” says Barnes. “It focuses you in a little bit more, keeps you locked in on what you’re doing and doesn’t really allow you to let your mind wander. Obviously I’ve been playing better as of late, so I obviously want to continue to do that.”
- The Kings hope that Orlando Johnson, whom they just signed to a 10-day contract, will immediately make his presence known with Sacramento, reports Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Coach Michael Malone told Johnson to push his new teammates, something he’s prepared to do. “I knew what I was coming here for,” Johnson said. “I want to go at everybody. I’m coming in to stick and I’m going to show them I’m going to be a player in this league.”
Western Notes: Brooks, Nuggets, Granger
After a long, frustrating stretch to begin the season, Donatas Motiejunas is happy to be getting extended playing time for the first time, he tells Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. In his second NBA season, Motiejunas has continued to work and prove that he belongs: “It’s much harder when you get no attention when you’re working day-by-day really hard. That was happening for the most part of the season, almost half of the season. Right now, I get my chance. Whatever it takes, I try not to blow it away.” Here’s more from the Western Conference:
- Aaron Brooks told Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com that he declined the deal that sent him to the Nuggets last week before changing his mind and waiving his no-trade clause: “I have a lot of family and friends in Houston. I was there almost five years total in my career. The connection I have with them was real close. It’s funny because I actually declined (the trade) at first and then went back and thought about it and OK’d it. Denver’s an up-and-coming team. They have talent and I thought it was a good opportunity.”
- Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post thinks the Nuggets made the right choice in keeping their roster mostly intact through last week’s trade deadline. Dempsey doesn’t think the team that has been ravaged by injuries could improve much through trades this season, and was wise to take more time to evaluate its young players through the summer and hope to add a difference maker with a lottery pick in the draft.
- Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN reiterated that the Clippers and Spurs are the top suitors for Danny Granger following his buyout. Stein and Shelburne say the Clippers have the edge, since they can offer more playing time to Granger. The report also notes that Granger has an offseason home in Los Angeles.
- Shelburne also says that the Clippers are not a lock since Granger wants to keep the process open, although Granger’s representatives were present at the Clippers/Rockets game to meet with Los Angeles officials (Twitter links). Shelburne adds that the Rockets’ push to sign Granger could have something to do with his representatives’ presence.
- Clippers coach Doc Rivers said that he would take part in recruiting Granger, per a tweet from Arash Markazi of ESPN LA.
Deveney’s Latest On The Draft: Exum, Austin
We’re just a few weeks away from March Madness, when a handful of college players will have a chance to make their mark in front of a national audience, and could even increase their draft stock with an impressive tournament run. Sean Deveney of Sporting News has some interesting things to report surrounding this year’s draft class in his latest article. Here are some highlights:
- Some front office executives around the league are worried that Dante Exum will try to force his way onto the Lakers, per Deveney. “When you hear some of what he says, it does make you wonder how the process is going to go as far as workouts and that sort of thing,” one anonymous GM said. “We have seen this story before, of course. I am not sure a player can have that kind of control, though.” The Australian point guard, ranked fourth overall on Chad Ford’s big board, could refuse to work out for teams he wants to avoid, or even threaten to remain in Australia if drafted by a team other than Los Angeles. Of course, if the Lakers land a high enough pick in the draft, they might have an open path to Exum anyway.
- In the same piece, Deveney quotes Celtics GM Danny Ainge from a local radio appearance. Ainge thinks that the 2014 draft class has been overrated, considering the mediocre performances from some of the hyped lottery prospects during the college season. “Yes, from the very beginning,” Ainge said. “It’s just all hype. It’s a bunch of young kids out playing in AAU basketball and high school and making all sorts of assessments and then they watch them play on the real stages and they’re not quite as good. College is a big jump from high school and I think reality has hit.”
- A scout tells Deveney that Baylor’s Isaiah Austin made a mistake in not entering last year’s draft, and believes the potential first-rounder has likely fallen into the second round: “I could still see him going in the first round somewhere, based on his size and potential. But he does not get the ball enough, he does not hit the post enough, he is not assertive enough. More likely, he will be a second-rounder.”
D-League Notes: Knicks, Magic, Rice Jr.
The Knicks are planning to create their own D-League affiliate in White Plains next year, replacing the hybrid arrangement they currently have with the Erie BayHawks, according to Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside. If approved by the league, the five-year proposal would give the Knicks complete control over both basketball and business operations with the new affiliate. They only control basketball development with the BayHawks. Here’s more from the D-League:
- The Magic are in talks with a current D-League team to establish a one-to-one hybrid relationship as early as next season, Orlando CEO Alex Martins tells Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando currently shares an affiliation with five other NBA teams. Martins wouldn’t name which team is the potential affiliate, but the Erie BayHawks are a possibility, since the Knicks appear to be moving on.
- D-League president Dan Reed tells Robbins the D-League is looking at expanding soon, likely prioritizing the Northeast region of the country: “We will expand relatively soon, but it will be a measured expansion. We’re not going to grow by 13 teams in a year or two. Our mantra is ‘steady, sustainable growth.’ But we are at the point where it’s time to grow the league based on the stability of the league and the interest that we’re seeing out in the markets.”
- The Wizards have assigned rookie Glen Rice, Jr. to the D-League for a second time this season, the team announced.
- The Warriors D-League affiliate traded Scott Machado to the Blazers affiliate in exchange for the rights to Justin Holiday, per Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Holiday’s only NBA action to this point was in nine games with the Sixers last year alongside his brother Jrue. Machado also has limited time in the NBA so far in his career, averaging just 3.5 minutes over six games with the Rockets last year.
- Gino Pilato of D-League Digest takes a look at some players who have received NBA contracts this season after playing with the Rockets D-League affiliate Rio Grand Valley Vipers. The team uses an extreme run-and-gun system that outpaces the already fast-paced D-League, and some have wondered whether the system is beneficial to the developing players beyond inflating their possessions and stats. James Johnson, Troy Daniels, and Chris Johnson have all inked NBA deals after spending time with the Vipers in 2013/14.