Poll: Best One-Year Deal Of The Summer?
Earlier today, our own Chuck Myron compared this summer's one-year free agent deals to those of last summer and found a significant drop off in dollars. Last summer, Chris Kaman cashed in a one-year, $8MM with the Mavs, Nick Young got $5.6MM from the Sixers, Chauncey Billups and the Clippers agreed to a $4.3MM pact, and J.J. Hickson signed for $4MM with the Blazers after a strong second half with Portland. This year, it's a different story.
The complete list of 2013's one-year deals (excluding the ones for the veteran's minimum) is headlined by a deal that would have been in the middle of the pack last year:
- Elton Brand, Hawks, $4MM.
- Al-Farouq Aminu, Pelicans, $3.75MM.
- Chris Kaman, Lakers, $3.183MM.
- Greg Stiemsma, Pelicans, $2.676MM.
- Jermaine O'Neal, Warriors, $2MM.
- Toney Douglas, Warriors, $1.6MM.
These free agents may not have gotten as much money as they would have hoped, but they're all notable names who can boost their value for the summer of 2014 and beyond. For the teams that signed them, they could be getting a tremendous value on a player who wants to impress in their walk year. Based on how you expect them to perform while also taking their salary into account, we want to know how you rank these signings – from the club's perspective – from best to worst.
Click here for the results.
Southeast Notes: Heat, Stevenson, Henderson
Earlier today, we learned that the Heat are still interested in free agent point guard Sebastian Telfair. Telfair would help shore up Miami's depth chart, but they're hardly alone in their pursuit of the Brooklyn native. Both the Knicks and Thunder have been tied to Telfair this summer and it seems likely that the guard will land somewhere in the next couple of weeks. Here's more on Miami and the rest of the Southeast Division..
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel figures that the Heat should be able to convince most of their remaining targets to take the minimum, so he doesn't foresee the team using its mini mid-level exception.
- DeShawn Stevenson took to Twitter to lobby for an opportunity to play for the Heat this season, but that could be a poor fit for a number of reasons. Jeff Caplan of NBA.com recaps the most notable reason of all – Stevenson's previous animosity with two-time MVP LeBron James.
- Gerald Henderson met with reporters in Charlotte today, expressing his excitement about the Bobcats' offseason moves and explaining why he convinced the team to give him less money in exchange for a player option in the final year of his new contract. "I’ve improved every year and I believe I’ll continue to improve," Henderson said. "I have that much confidence in myself." Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer has more.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Hoops Links: Henderson, Johnson, Howard
Forty years ago, Julius Erving was traded by the Virginia Squires with Willie Sojourner to the New York Nets for George Carter, draft rights to Kermit Washington, and cash. Erving and his magnificent afro would go on to lead the Nets to ABA titles in 1974 and 1976.
Got a fantastic basketball blog piece that you want featured on Hoops Rumors? Send your submissions to HoopsLinks@gmail.com. Here's this week's look around the web..
- Rufus On Fire discusses Gerald Henderson's value to the Bobcats.
- Pounding The Rock runs down the best of the rest, including Ivan Johnson.
- Hoops Addict says Dwight Howard has too much baggage.
- The Basketball Post updates us on the whereabouts of Maciej Lampe.
- Posting And Toasting looks at how Andrea Bargnani can help the Knicks.
- Hardwood Paroxysm wanted to know exactly who the Pistons are.
- Golden State Of Mind explains why Andre Iguodala is a fit for the Warriors.
- SLC Dunk asks if there are any worthwhile point guards left.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached here.
Week In Review: 7/29/13 – 8/4/13
The Pistons made a big upgrade at the point guard position this week, landing Brandon Jennings in a sign-and-trade swap with the Bucks in a deal involving Brandon Knight. Jennings has been frustrated with the Bucks for some time and Joe Dumars & Co. are hoping that a change of scenery will put him in a better mood. Here's our look back at the week that was..
- The Pistons might not be done trading up yet: they still have interest in the Celtics' Rajon Rondo.
- The top free agent in August, Greg Oden, decided to sign with the Heat. There were reportedly five other finalists for the big man, including the Spurs and Pelicans.
- The Magic waived Al Harrington.
- John Wall wanted max money and he got it. The Wizards gave their star point guard a five-year contract this week.
- The Raptors are still talking with Julyan Stone.
- Antawn Jamison met with the Clippers last night.
- The Mavericks and Mike James are discussing a deal.
- Shavlik Randolph got cut by the C's.
- The Raptors reached a two-year deal with Austin Daye.
- The Mavs officially welcomed back Devin Harris, for real this time.
- LeBron James could be eyeing the top NBPA position for players.
- Beno Udrih and Mo Williams are talking with the Grizzlies.
- The Hawks waived DeShawn Stevenson.
- The Cavs signed their second-round pick to a four-year pact.
- The Suns' second-round choice inked a deal in France.
- DaJuan Summers is headed to Ukraine.
- Mike Muscala signed overseas.
- Ryan Gomes has a one-year deal with the Thunder.
- DeJuan Blair seems to think he has signed with the Mavericks.
Hoops Rumors Originals
Here's a look back at the original reporting and analysis from the Hoops Rumors staff this week..
- I chatted with Andrei Kirilenko about the conspiracy theories surrounding his deal with the Nets.
- Luke Adams examined the best remaining three point shooters on the open market.
- Chuck Myron ran down the signees making the most non-guaranteed money. Don't spend it all in one place, because you might not get it.
- Here's the highest paid player on each team, courtesy of Luke.
- Opinions are split on whether Andrew Bynum or Greg Oden is the better deal for an injured center.
- Dude, you missed Luke's weekly chat? Again? You know it's at 4pm central on Mondays. Luckily for you, I have the transcript right here.
- Nearly 60% of you said that Mo Williams is the top remaining free agent in Michael Pina's poll.
- Most of you like OKC to win the West.
- Chuck looked at the most and least active teams in free agency.
Odds & Ends: Bledsoe, Jennings, Janning, Collins
LeBron James is the odds-on favorite to win this year's MVP trophy (again) but who is in the hunt for the MIP award? Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld ran down this year's candidates for Most Improved Player, starting with newly-acquired Suns guard Eric Bledsoe. Even if he doesn't start at the beginning of the season, Brigham expects him to carve out a significant role for himself by the end of the 2013/14 campaign. Here's more from around the Association..
- Even though this season might not be a landmark one for the Bucks, they're finally on the right path after purging themselves of Brandon Jennings' ego, opines Michael Hunt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
- Former D-Leaguer Matt Janning has an NBA out clause in his new contract with Croatia's Cibona Zagreb, according to Sportando. The guard signed a multi-year deal with the Suns in 2010 after going undrafted but wound up getting cut in November before he ever appeared in a game.
- In his weekend mailbag, Doug Smith of the Toronto Star writes that he expects to see Jason Collins land a deal before the start of the season.
Heat Notes: Oden, Harrington, Stevenson
The player who wound up being the top free agent in August hasn't suited up since December 5th, 2009. Former No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden was courted by several teams this summer and made his choice last night when he agreed to sign with the Heat. Here's more on Oden and other notes out of Miami..
- The ESPN.com staff went five-on-five to break down what Oden's signing could mean for the Heat. The roundtable starts by asking where Oden should have landed this summer and more than one scribe suggests that a team that draws less media scrutiny would have been a better fit for the big man has be attempts another comeback.
- In today's mailbag, a reader asks Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if there are new free agent options opening for the Heat. Winderman could envision could envision Al Harrington with the Heat if he is healthy and in shape. Meanwhile, DeShawn Stevenson might not be a fit because of his history with LeBron James.
- Bruce Ely of The Oregonian takes a photographic walk down memory lane, looking back on Oden's time in Portland.
Pacific Notes: Redick, Clippers, Gasol, Kings
Antawn Jamison is one of the top names remaining on the free agent market and Doc Rivers hopes to steer him to Clipperland. Tonight, the 37-year-old will meet the Clippers coach/president of basketball ops for dinner and the club hopes it will vault L.A. higher on his list than the Bobcats, Grizzlies, and Bulls. Here's more out of the Pacific Division..
- Agent Arn Tellem was five minutes from closing a deal for J.J. Redick with another team when Suns exec Lon Babby convinced Tellem that the three-team deal that sent Redick to the Clippers could work, reveals Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Coro's piece, running in the USA Today, contains plenty of detail on that swap, and portrays former GM Lance Blanks as a poor fit in the Phoenix front office.
- Pau Gasol tells Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times that he doesn't hold a grudge against Mike D'Antoni for his decreased role on the team this past season, and hinted that he'd like to re-sign with the Lakers next summer. "I would love to play for the franchise that I love playing for, that I'm proud to be a part of," Gasol said. "It would be great to continue to play for the Lakers."
- Tony Bizjak of The Sacramento Bee has the latest on a group's effort to challenge Sacramento's plan to fund a new arena for the Kings.
- The Kings hired one of their former players Friday as an assistant coach, bringing University of Central Arkansas head man Corliss Williamson aboard, the team announced.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Latest On Ivan Johnson
Free agent forward Ivan Johnson has been engaged in preliminary talks with six NBA teams, a source close to the player told Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. However, Haynes is told that there isn't anything imminent at this point with Greg Oden, Lamar Odom, and Antawn Jamison still available on the open market.
We learned yesterday that the Knicks are among the clubs interested in the former Hawk and the two sides are discussing a potential deal. The 29-year-old boasts a career 51.7% shooting percentage with averages of 6.5 PPG, 3.9 RPG, and 0.8 SPG in 15.8 minutes per contest. In addition to two NBA seasons with the Hawks, the power forward has also had stops in the D-League and in Korea.
Hawks Waive DeShawn Stevenson
The Hawks have waived DeShawn Stevenson, a league source tells Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter). The move clears the way for Atlanta to officially sign DeMarre Carroll to a to a two-year, $5MM deal.
The guard signed a three-year pact with the Hawks last summer which paid him $2,240,450 per season, though only the first season was guaranteed. The veteran, known primarily for his tough defense, averaged 5.1 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 20.7 minutes per game for the Hawks last season.
In 13 seasons for the Jazz, Magic, Wizards, Mavericks, Nets, and Hawks, Stevenson has career averages of 7.2 PPG and 2.2 RPG.