Atlantic Rumors: Knicks, Shumpert, MWP, Celtics
The latest out of the Atlantic Division, where the Knicks remain in last place..
- The Knicks would prefer to keep Iman Shumpert out of a deal for Kyle Lowry for the purpose of including him in a future trade and perhaps packaging him with Amar’e Stoudemire, a source tells Frank Isola of the Daily News. Isola adds that the Knicks’ play over the next 48 hours could determine whether or not they make the deal with injuries playing a major factor.
- If the trade talk is getting to Knicks veteran Metta World Peace, then he’s not letting on to the public. “There’s nothing to deal with,’’ World Peace said, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. “It’s like, ‘What am I dealing with? I’m getting paid to play basketball.’ Some guys take trade rumors more personal. What am I dealing with? I work hard. I still can play. I love challenges. All the teams that called me, I wanted an adventure — China, Knicks, Arena Football. This is an adventure. This is good. You have to be ready for the unpredictable. I’m glad I can go through unpredictable situations.’’
- The Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett gives credit to the Celtics‘ bench, featuring newcomers Phil Pressey and Vitor Faverani.
Southeast Notes: Wade, Hawks, Dwight
With Dwayne Wade’s recent admission that he’s not the same player that he once was, a reader asks Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if that candor will translate to the bargaining table when he’s a free agent. Wade sacrificed not only to add LeBron James and Chris Bosh in 2010, but also to keep Udonis Haslem, so it’s possible that he’ll be open to another pay cut to help the Heat prosper in the next few years. Today’s look at the Southeast Division..
- Hawks point guard Shelvin Mack isn’t bitter toward the Wizards, who waived him twice last season, as he tells Michael Lee of the Washington Post. “I wouldn’t say the opportunity wasn’t there. They had a lot of playmakers, so it was hard trying to fit in and see where you’re going to get shots. You had John, being a playmaker. Jordan Crawford. Nick [Young]. A lot of guys were playmakers and needed the ball a lot,” Mack said. In Atlanta, “we’ve got me, Jeff [Teague], and Lou [Williams] the primary playmakers, so we are in position to make plays coming off the pick and roll and shoot. Here, it’s more for the point guard to be aggressive. In DC, you’re more setting up guys.”
- The Cavaliers still haven’t recovered from losing LeBron James, and they serve as a reminder that the Magic‘s rebuilding plan after trading Dwight Howard isn’t necessarily destined to work, writes Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
- Speaking of the Magic, Maurice Harkless and Glen Davis are upset with their lack of playing time, Schmitz writes.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Bulls Met With Nikola Mirotic
Real Madrid forward Nikola Mirotic met with the Bulls yesterday in Madrid, according to HoopsHype (via Twitter). Mirotic, whose draft rights are owned by Chicago, is expected to have another pow wow with the club today (link).
The Bulls selected Mirotic with the 23rd pick in the 2011 draft. Since then, the forward has blossomed into a superstar in Spain with one NBA scout recently calling him “the best player not in the NBA right now”. If Mirotic is brought over to the states, it could have a dramatic effect on the rest of the Bulls’ plans and might make it more likely that they will use the amnesty clause on Carlos Boozer.
So far this season, Mirotic is averaging a career-high 16.2 PPG with 6.7 boards per contest.
Lakers Open To Re-Signing Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol‘s frustrations, offensive struggles, and impending free agency have the Lakers considering trade options for the big man. However, sources tell Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter) that the team is still open to re-signing him at season’s end. Los Angeles believes that Gasol can succeed in coach Mike D’Antoni‘s system and hopes that he does.
D’Antoni held a team meeting Friday to address the rising tensions between him and Gasol in which he urged the forward or anyone else who had an issue with his coaching to speak to him directly. With a relationship that is still termed as “professional,” one has to imagine that there’s at least a chance for reconciliation between the two.
As for the trade possibility, sources tell Shelburne and Marc Stein of ESPN.com that the Lakers would be reluctant to surrender their hard-fought financial flexibility in a deal for Gasol or any other player. Yet it is believed the Lakers would consider taking back salary commitments for the 2014/15 season if they received a strong offer featuring a player who could significantly help them this season and beyond or other assets to help them reload around Kobe Bryant.
The Lakers have yet to engage other clubs in talks for Gasol and have told him that they’d like to work out a new deal, sources tell the ESPN.com duo. That could be easier said that done given Gasol’s friction with D’Antoni and Kobe’s brand new two-year, $48.5MM deal.
Kings Acquire Rudy Gay
The Kings have officially acquired Rudy Gay from the Raptors along with Aaron Gray and Quincy Acy, Toronto announced via press release. Greivis Vasquez, John Salmons, Patrick Patterson and Chuck Hayes are headed north of the border. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports originally reported last night that the swap would take place (Twitter links).
“We thank Rudy, Aaron and Quincy for their time here. They were great professionals and strong community ambassadors of the Raptors,” Toronto GM Masai Ujiri said in a statement. “The trade gives us good flexibility and more certainty as we plan for our future.”
The Kings plan on using Gay as a stretch-four and see Gay and the recently-acquired Derrick Williams as being capable of guarding either forward position, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports tweets. With Williams and Gay, the Kings are buying low on two notable names that have depreciated in the eyes of many evaluators.
“We’re excited to welcome these additions to our team,” Sacramento GM Pete D’Alessandro said, according to a release from the Kings. “In Rudy we’ve acquired one of the league’s proven scorers while Aaron and Quincy provide size and depth in our frontcourt. We also appreciate the contributions and efforts that John, Chuck, Greivis and Patrick made to the Kings organization. We all wish them the very best moving forward.”
Gay, 27, boasts career averages of 18.0 PPG and 5.9 RPG, but newer metrics such as PER have shown that his efficiency leaves much to be desired. It’s not just fans and front office execs that have taken notice, either. After a November game in which the small forward took 37 shots and scored 29 points, LeBron James remarked that he would put up 60 points “easy” if he attempted such a gaudy number of shots.
While the Kings gain at athletic wing in Gay, the Raptors free up a good amount of money for 2015 and gain a couple of interesting pieces along the way as well. As for the financial part of things, the only guaranteed 2015 money that came back in the deal is Hayes’ $5.9MM contract. Beyond that, they can clear $14.5MM by declining options/qualifying offers for Vasquez, Salmons, and Patterson.
Last month, it was reported that Ujiri was exploring trade options for Gay and others with Jonas Valanciunas, 2011′s fifth overall pick, the only real untouchable of the bunch. Gay was the team’s most obvious chip since he’s still capable of being a top scorer for a team and could be a rental since he has a player option for 2014/15 that he could turn down in favor of a longer deal. With a $17.89MM salary, however, finding a home for Gay hasn’t been easy. Gay’s player option for 2014/15 is worth $19.2MM.
Vasquez, 27 in January, took a major step forward with the Pelicans last season when he put up career best averages of 13.9 PPG and 9 APG. Today’s news means that Vasquez has now worn three different jerseys in this calendar year – the guard came to Sacramento in July as a part of the three-way Tyreke Evans deal. While Vasquez has fans in the Kings front office, they clearly felt that this was a trade they had to make to get a dominant wing. It also has the added benefit of clearing up the Kings’ backcourt logjam.
Patterson, 24, is also in his third career trade with today’s deal. The power forward has had an up-and-down career through Houston and Sacramento and hasn’t been off to a blazing start this season. Patterson is putting up just 6.9 PPG and 5.8 RPG while shooting 41% from the floor.
Salmons, 33, has been seeing almost 25 minutes per contest with the Kings this season but is putting up some of his weakest per 36 minutes averages of his career. Only $1MM of Salmons’ $7MM salary in 2014/15 is guaranteed and it’s a safe bet that he’ll be let go. Acy, 23, hasn’t seen much burn this season, playing 8.7 minutes per contest across seven games.
More than three-quarters of Hoops Rumors readers said that they expected Gay to be traded before the deadline. It certainly helped that Ujiri and D’Alessandro have a history after working together in Denver. By trading Andrea Bargnani and Gay, Ujiri has cleared ~$20MM off of the books next season.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Grizzlies To Work Out Seth Curry, Others
MONDAY, 7:40am: Kendall Marshall will also work out for the Grizzlies, Wojnarowski tweets. The former 13th overall pick is coming off a near triple-double in his debut for the D-League affiliate of the Sixers.
SUNDAY, 10:53pm: The Grizzlies are bringing in several guards to workout early this week, including Darius Morris, Reggie Williams, and Seth Curry, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Memphis has been ravaged by injuries early on in the season, requiring extra depth in the backcourt.
Morris was cut loose by the Sixers earlier this season along with Kwame Brown. The guard, 23 in January, has an offer in hand from Turkey but might be able to ply his craft in the U.S. this season if he can impress Memphis brass.
Williams, 27, was a victim of a numbers crunch in Houston, where the Rockets cut his 50% guaranteed contract at the end of the preseason to get under the 15-man roster limit. He worked out for the Bulls last month but didn’t wind up inking a deal.
Curry, of course, is the younger brother of Warriors star Stephen Curry. The Duke University product is currently with the Warriors’ D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz after missing the cut in training camp over the summer.
Hoops Links: Williams, Nets, Woodson, Raptors
On this date in 1999, Rockets forward Charles Barkley’s storied career came to an end in Philadelphia, when he attempted to block a shot by the Sixers’ Tyrone Hill. Barkley, who scored 23,755 points (13th in NBA history) and grabbed 12,545 rebounds (14th in NBA history), tore the left quadriceps tendon away from the kneecap in the first quarter of Houston’s 83-73 loss to Philadelphia. After the game, Barkley held a news conference and paid tribute to former teammates Julius Erving, Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney, and Bobby Jones, who Barkley said initiated him in the ways of the NBA in his early years with the 76ers. Barkley would return to play token minutes in the last game of the regular season, which would then be the final game of his career.
Got a great basketball blog post that you want featured on Hoops Rumors? Send it to Zach at HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here’s this week’s look around the blogosphere..
- Toronto Sports Daily has 12 reasons why a small market finals would be great.
- Hardwood Paroxysm talks Derrick Williams and expectations.
- The Brooklyn Game went on the YES Network to discuss the current state of the Nets.
- Posting and Toasting wants to know what happens if Mike Woodson gets canned.
- Raptors HQ says the Raptors showed a lack of identity in their loss to Phoenix.
- Orlando Magic Daily talks Maurice Harkless and more on their latest podcast.
- Red94 wonders if Thad Young is really an upgrade.
- Peachtree Hoops explains the Hawks’ options when it comes to the Nets’ picks.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, email Zach at HoopsLinks@gmail.com.
Minor Moves: Baynes, De Colo, Spurs, Conroy
Today’s minor moves..
- The Spurs assigned center Aron Baynes, guard Nando De Colo, and forward Malcolm Thomas to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League. Baynes has appeared in 11 games for the Spurs this season, averaging 1.5 points and 2.2 rebounds in 7.9 minutes. De Colo has seen action in six contests this season for the Silver and Black, averaging 2.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 9.0 minutes. Thomas was recently signed by the Spurs on Dec. 3 and will make his first appearance for the Toros this season. To keep up with all of this year’s D-League assignments, check out Hoops Rumors’ running list.
- Point guard Will Conroy has signed to play in Germany with BBC Bayreuth, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia notes. Conroy appeared in four games with the Timberwolves last season, but the close friend of Brandon Roy wasn’t in an NBA camp this fall.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Raptors, Kings Discussing Rudy Gay Deal
6:08pm: The two sides are nearing agreement on a deal, Wojnarowski tweets.
6:02pm: The Raptors and Kings are discussing a deal centered on Rudy Gay, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski and Marc. J Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).
Last month, it was reported that GM Masai Ujiri is exploring trade options for Gay and others with Jonas Valanciunas, 2011′s fifth overall pick, the only real untouchable of the bunch. Gay looks like the most obvious chip since he’s still capable of being a top scorer for a team and could be a rental since he has a player option for 2014/15 that he could turn down in favor of a longer deal. With a $17.89MM salary, the Raptors will have to take some serious salary back in any trade.
More than three-quarters of Hoops Rumors readers say that they expect Gay to be traded before the deadline.
Hoops Rumors Originals
Here’s this week’s look back at the original analysis produced by the Hoops Rumors team..
- Chuck Myron examined Omer Asik as a trade candidate.
- Luke Adams rounded up the players on de facto expiring deals.
- More than 70% of you think this is Pau Gasol‘s final year with the Lakers.
- Here’s a look at acquisitions who have yet to debut in 2013/14.
- Jonathan Nehring looked at the signings that went down using only a team’s cap space.
- The Bulls will have to be creative to find the right deal for Luol Deng, Chuck writes.
- Here’s a look at trade kickers, courtesy of Chuck.
- Luke has the early updates on the 2014 first round picks.
- Opinions are split on who will win the Atlantic. “No one” wasn’t an option.
- If you missed Luke’s chat on Monday, check out the transcript here.
- Play nice, everyone. Here’s a review on our commenting policy.
- The 2013/14 Trade Candidate series is underway, check ’em all out here.
- Here’s how you can follow specific players on Hoops Rumors.