Western Notes: Marshall, Corbin, Crawford
Sean Highkin of USA Today looks at how Kendall Marshall is doing his best to shed his “bust” status. After being traded and cut just a year after being selected with the 13th pick in the 2012 draft, Marshall has worked his way from the D-League to the Lakers, and has performed better in coach Mike D’Antoni‘s offensive system. “I think it’s been great,” says Marshall. “It fits what I do well, it helps me get guys involved, and hopefully makes the team better.” Here are some more notes from around the Western Conference:
- The fire under Tyrone Corbin‘s hot seat isn’t blazing, as league sources say that the Jazz like their coach despite the team’s struggles, per Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
- League executives think that newly-acquired guard Jordan Crawford can benefit the Warriors, Amico writes. The 25-year-old is playing for his fourth team in his fourth season, and will become a restricted free agent this summer.
- The Kings are still being very active in trade talks with GMs around the league, according to ESPN Insider’s Chad Ford [subscription only].
- David Aldridge of NBA.com sees the Mavs as a potential suitor for Luol Deng, especially if the veteran forward leads the Cavs to a playoff spot before he hits free agency this summer.
Eastern Notes: Green, Heat, Melo
Sam Young has signed with the Vaqueros de Bayamon team in Puerto Rico, per Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The former Pacers wing is currently playing in Australia, and will play out his season there before joining the Puerto Rican league. Here are some notes from around the Eastern Conference:
- League executives believe the Celtics want to trade Jeff Green, according to Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Smith suggests Boston is “probably trying to persuade someone to take Gerald Wallace along with Green” at this point, but that he could be moved on his own eventually.
- The opinion around the league is that the Heat – after bringing in guard Toney Douglas and shipping out center Joel Anthony – are not done dealing, per NBA.com’s David Aldridge. League sources believe Miami is looking to add another wing before February’s trade deadline.
- Carmelo Anthony says he’s not losing hope that he can win a championship with the Knicks, per Al Iannazzone of Newsday. The star will opt out of his deal and become a free agent this summer, and there has been much speculation on whether he truly intends to re-sign with the Knicks at that point.
D-League Notes: Canaan, Roberson, Rice Jr.
Playoff teams in both conferences have tweaked their rosters with some recent D-League maneuvers. Here’s a look at the moves the Rockets, Thunder, and Wizards are making with their rookie players..
- The Rockets have re-assigned point guard Isaiah Canaan to the Rockets’ D-League affiliate Rio Grand Valley Vipers, according to the Rockets’ official Twitter account. Canaan has spent a third of this season at Rio Grand Valley.
- The Thunder called up shooting guard Andre Roberson from the Tulsa 66ers D-League squad, per NBA.com. Roberson is only averaging 8.4 MPG, but has made four starts in place of Thabo Sefolosha when the latter has sat out due to injury.
- The Wizards are sending shooting guard Glen Rice Jr. down to the Iowa Energy, per The Washington Post’s Michael Lee, in what head coach Randy Wittman described as a rehabilitation stint.
Joel Embiid Unsure If He’ll Enter Draft
Joel Embiid’s entry into the 2014 draft isn’t a certainty, according to a report by ESPN’s Dana O’Neil. The 7-foot center has been a consensus top-five pick all year, and recently rose to the number one overall spot on ESPN Insider Chad Ford’s Big Board [subscription only]. Despite performing at a high level and gaining momentum with scouts, the Cameroonian says he isn’t sure this will be his last season with Kansas.
“I don’t know if I feel like I’m ready for all of this,” Embiid is quoted as saying, acknowledging his inability to drive a car, eat well, and other elements that go along with the pro game. His hesitancy is not just based on life practicalities, either. He has studied other skilled big men that have thrived in the league, concluding: “All of the great big men went to college at least two or three years. I think it’s a big factor. I don’t know if it will always work, but I think it’s the best choice.”
Embiid is averaging 11 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks in his freshman year. The report of his uncertainty comes on the heals of the news that NBA executives are increasingly expecting fellow top-5 projected prospect Jabari Parker to stay at Duke another year as well.
Wizards Expected To Pursue Greg Monroe
The Wizards are interested in the Pistons’ Greg Monroe, either by trade this season or as a restricted free agent in the offseason, per Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. The Wizards have cap room next year, when an extension for Monroe would kick in. Marcin Gortat, the Wizards’ current starting center, will also be a free agent at that point.
When the Pistons signed Josh Smith last summer, it created a very big starting five in Detroit, with Andre Drummond at center, Monroe at power forward, and Josh Smith at small forward. This lineup has had spacing issues in a league increasingly dependent on the three-point shot. Smith is near the bottom of the league’s long-distance shooters at .239 from deep, and the team’s 17-24 start hasn’t silenced questions about the long-term viability of the unconventional roster.
Drummond is highly prized and on the second year of his rookie deal, and Smith has three years remaining after this season on his four-year, $54MM contract. The 23-year-old Monroe will be a restricted free agent next year, and has averaged 13.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 1.2 steals over his three-plus years in the league. Our readers voted Monroe the most likely to be traded from the Pistons yesterday, and Kennedy says the Pistons’ front office is considering whether to do just that: “Rival executives have said that there is “turmoil” within the organization and that they haven’t decided what to do as the deadline approaches.”
The Pistons are still in contention for the eighth seed in the weak Eastern Conference, and they are expected to be active before the trade deadline. Whether the front office tries to bolster the current foundation, or deconstructs some of the “ill-fitting pieces” such as Monroe could be determined by the team’s performance in the near term.
Western Notes: Miller, Aldridge, Warriors
Rudy Gay says he is happy to be in Sacramento and in a Q&A on the Kings‘ website, he said being traded along with two teammates he’s close with helped make for an easy transition. When asked what he is bringing to his new team, he responded, “People pretty much know what I can do – bring leadership, scoring and all those things I’ve been doing my whole career.” Here are some more notes from around the Western Conference:
- Andre Miller still hasn’t played for the Nuggets since his public confrontation with coach Brian Shaw, but the rift between the two isn’t as profound as it’s been portrayed to be, Shaw told reporters, including Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. “He’s dealing with what he needs to deal with. I’m focusing on the team and what’s best for the team right now,” Shaw said. “As I’ve said, I’m willing to coach any(body) and everybody who wants to put the team first. I have nothing but respect for him.”
- LaMarcus Aldridge seemed to want out of Portland over the summer, but he’s changed his mind and is thinking about signing an extension because the Trail Blazers have become a more successful team, he tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. “[GM] Neil [Olshey] did a great job of bringing in what we needed,” Aldridge said. “He worked with me throughout the process. I’m happy. We’re winning and we look good. Look, I just want to win.”
- The Warriors D-League affiliate Santa Cruz Warriors have signed Scott Machado, according to Rusty Simmons of The San Fransisco Chronicle (via Twitter), making official what Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports reported was forthcoming earlier today.
- Suns rookie Archie Goodwin shared his thoughts with SNYtv.com’s Adam Zagoria on prospects Willie Cauley-Stein, Andrew Harrison, Aaron Henderson, and Julius Randle, comparing the latter to Josh Smith. Goodwin believes he would have been drafted much higher than 29th last year had his Kentucky Wildcats team made an NCAA tournament run instead of losing in the first round of the NIT tournament.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Poll: Where Will Andrew Bynum Sign?
Last Tuesday, Andrew Bynum was released by the Bulls on the other side of the trade that sent Luol Deng to the Cavs. While there has been buzz around many potential suitors, he still remains unsigned days after clearing waivers. The 26-year-old 7-footer had worked his way back to playing 20 MPG after losing all of last season to chronic knee injuries. The big man was reportedly prepared to be choosy with where he signed, wanting the best combination of playing status, contending opportunity, and salary available.
However, in recent days Bynum’s choices have been dwindling. Interest from the Heat and Clippers has waned. The Mavericks, who pursued Bynum as a free agent last summer before winding up with Samuel Dalembert, now seems to be a possibility with the latest comments from owner Mark Cuban. Dallas could only offer the minimum salary exception. The Heat and Clippers are contenders that could benefit from frontcourt depth, but are also already in the luxury tax, so a Bynum signing would cost them more than his contract figure. The Clippers have gotten improved play from DeAndre Jordan this year, and the Heat already have two reclamation projects on their roster in Michael Beasley and Greg Oden. The Pacers were linked to the situation, but their presumed motivation of keeping him away from the Heat would disappear if the Heat have truly moved on. The Knicks and Nets are also tax teams, but are more desperate to establish playoff position after rocky starts to the season and a rash of injuries to their frontcourt starters. The Nets are reportedly staying away from the situation, but the Knicks have shown interest.
The short-lived stint with the Cavs was considered Bynum’s shot at proving he could stay motivated and perform at a high level in order to cash in later on a more rewarding contract. Since he didn’t make it through round one of the non-guaranteed contract window, it’s possible that there aren’t any successful franchises willing to let their team become another proving ground for him. It doesn’t make sense for most teams further down the standings to take that risk, since the short-term benefit of a half-season of solid Bynum production would worsen their odds in the vaunted upcoming draft, without any guarantee of the long-term services of Bynum should he play well.
Where do you think he ends up? If and when he’s signed, where will it be?
Where Will Andrew Bynum Sign?
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He will remain unsigned through this season 26% (356)
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Heat 22% (301)
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Mavericks 13% (186)
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Knicks 11% (146)
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Nets 9% (126)
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Clippers 7% (96)
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Other 7% (94)
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Pacers 6% (79)
Total votes: 1,384
Odds & Ends: Deng, Miller, Kings
The Kings are playing much better than they did in last year’s awful campaign or to open this season, routing the Magic and Cavaliers after beating the Blazers last week. While the playoffs are still a long shot, FOX Sports Ohio’s Sam Amico sees signs of promise. The team has improved around DeMarcus Cousins, Isaiah Thomas, and now Rudy Gay as the roster has shaped up around the talent at the center, point guard, and swingman positions. Here’s a look around the rest of the league:
- Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports wonders if the Cavs could put off contract talks with Luol Deng in an effort to land LeBron James next summer. A league source tells Spears that the Cavs are interested in keeping Deng long-term, but also know there is plenty of time to evaluate him and begin extension talks. Deng says he understands that contract talks could be placed on hold as long as Cleveland has any hope for a James homecoming.
- ESPN Insider’s Amin Elhassan [subscription only] looks at a hypothetical Andre Miller trade that could be a nice fit, sending him to the Wizards for a second round pick.
- The storyline that has played out between Miller and Nuggets coach Brian Shaw is nothing new in the NBA, writes The Salt Lake Tribune’s Steve Luhm in a post lamenting the common necessity for new coaches to move on from an older veteran.
- The Mavericks’ D-League affiliate Texas Legends are planning to add P.J. Hairston off wavers, Spears tweets. Hairston recently filed paperwork to join the D-League after North Carolina booted the junior from its NCAA squad due to an investigation of rule violations. He cannot be an NBA call-up for any team until next season, since he wasn’t ever draft-eligible this year.
Aldridge Open To Signing Extension
Rumors of LaMarcus Aldridge‘s satisfaction with the Blazers have gone from pegging the MVP candidate as disgruntled, to appeased, to content in recent years, with speculation about his willingness to stay with Portland long-term settling down as the team has surprisingly stayed near the top the Western Conference standings this season. Now Aldridge is going on the record as wanting an extension, telling Kerry Eggers of The Portland Tribune that he’s ready to sit down with GM Neil Olshey and begin negotiating a new contract:
“I would like to re-sign here,” Aldridge says. “If they want to talk about it, I would talk about it. They haven’t yet, but I’m looking forward to the chance to do that.”
The two-time All-Star is scoring (23.6 PPG) and rebounding (11 RPG) at a career-best rate, and is likely to make his third straight appearance this year. It seems like a no-doubter that the Blazers, who have desperately constructed their roster to meet Aldridge’s desire to be on a competitive team, would extend the 28-year-old to a max deal, although Olshey says the “appropriate” time for those negotiations hasn’t arrived yet. Olshey wouldn’t reveal to Eggers when that time would be, saying, “It’s not a conversation that’s going to play out in the media in January.”
Aside from the Blazers’ success in the win-loss column this year, Aldridge cites a growing level of trust with coach Terry Stotts, the support of Portland fans, and the unselfishness of his teammates as reasons he wants to stick around with the team that acquired him on 2006’s draft night, when the Bulls made him the second-overall pick and dealt him to the Blazers for Tyrus Thomas and Viktor Khryapa.
Eastern Notes: Bynum, Pacers, Heat
A quick look at the Eastern Conference..
- The Pacers are a team that highly values and thrives with team chemistry, which would lead many to assume they wouldn’t target a player like Andrew Bynum. But that might not stop them from pursuing the free agent big man: ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter) confirms Indiana is a potential suitor, backing up The Plain Dealer’s Mary Schmitt Boyer, who first mentioned the possibility yesterday.
- Stein says (Twitter link) that the Pacers‘ interest in Bynum is likely motivated more by a desire to keep him off of the rival Heat‘s roster than to tinker with the Pacers’ chemistry.
- Pacers veteran Rasual Butler was among those who managed to keep his job following last week’s contract guarantee deadline, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. “People had written him off,” Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. “He made up his mind that he wasn’t done yet, that he was going to keep working and keep trying. . . . It’s a good story.“
Zach Links contributed to this post.