Author: Zachary Links

A look back at the week that was..

• Kobe Bryant is exploring every alternative, but it sounds like he’s done for the season after suffering a torn rotator cuff.
• The Nets reportedly weren’t as close to trading Brook Lopez to the Thunder as they seemed.  Brooklyn apparently didn’t want Lance Stephenson, who would have come from Charlotte in a three-way proposal, or Kendrick Perkins. Still, a Lopez trade remains a possibility and the Nuggets are expected to make another run at him.
• Heat president Pat Riley denied that he made an offer for Lopez.
• Shawn Marion says that he’ll retire after this season.
• The Wizards are making numerous calls on Ray Allen and they’ve been pushing the hardest to sign the 39-year-old free agent.  LeBron James paid a visit to Allen recently to try to lure him to Cleveland.
• Tom Benson’s daughter and two of his grandchildren have filed suit seeking control of the Pelicans and the NFL’s Saints.
• The Rockets have tried to trade for Goran Dragic this season, but it’s unclear how recently they went after the Suns guard.  Meanwhile, he seems to have an affinity for the Lakers and Knicks.  Dragic will be a free agent next summer.
• The Grizzlies signed Tyrus Thomas to a 10-day contract.
• LaMarcus Aldridge has a radial collateral ligament tear in his left thumb it looked like he would miss six to eight weeks.  However, he’s decided to play through the pain.
• The Knicks would like to trade Pablo Prigioni and the Clippers are among the teams that are interested.
• George Karl still wants to return to coaching in the NBA.
• The Lakers topped Forbes Magazine’s list of NBA franchise valuations.
• Kenyon Martin will sign on with the Bucks for the rest of the season after inking his second 10-day deal.
• The Pistons had “significant fear” that Brandon Jennings suffered a torn left Achilles tendon during Saturday’s game and earlier today, that fear was confirmed.
• The Cavs are keeping an eye on Will Bynum and Bobby Brown.
• Norris Cole is on the trade block as the Heat prefer to forge ahead with 2014 first-round pick Shabazz Napier.
• Nets forward Mirza Teletovic will miss the rest of the season while he undergoes treatment for multiple blood clots in his lungs.
• Multiple teams have interest in Nate Robinson but it doesn’t sound like the Cavs will go hard after him.
• The Cavs won’t pursue Jordan Farmar either.
• If the Celtics don’t trade Tayshaun Prince, a buyout is likely.
• A number of NBA teams have made trade inquiries regarding the Sixers‘ Robert Covington, but Philadelphia intends to hold onto the forward.
• Celtics big man Kelly Olynyk is expected to miss at least a month of action.
• Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday is expected to miss two to four weeks of action after tests revealed that he has developed a stress reaction in his lower right leg.
• The Jazz and Elijah Millsap agreed to a three-year deal.
• The Raptors, Bulls, Jazz and Pistons have reached out to one-time Cavs swingman D.J. Kennedy.
• The Celtics and Andre Dawkins reached agreement on a deal for a 10-day contract after meeting earlier in the week.
• The Knicks are eyeing Tobias Harris.
• The Clippers signed Dahntay Jones to another 10-day deal.
• The Pelicans signed Nate Wolters to another 10-day deal.
• Lou Amundson and Lance Thomas agreed to second 10-day contracts with the Knicks.
• Jamaal Franklin will play for the D-League affiliate of the Lakers.
• James McAdoo agreed to sign a 10-day deal with the Warriors.
• The Pistons are “strongly considering” signing Lorenzo Brown.
• Sixers guard Tony Wroten was diagnosed with a partially torn ACL in his right knee.
• The D-League affiliate of the Thunder has acquired former Wizards forward Chris Singleton.

The West continued to get stronger when the Grizzlies acquired forward Jeff Green from the Celtics Monday in a three-team trade that also included the Pelicans. Shortly thereafter, the Clippers reached a deal with the C’s to acquire Austin Rivers. While we wait to see if more Western Conference teams make moves to bolster their depth as the trade deadline approaches, let’s take a look back at the week that was..

• Mikhail Prokhorov has reportedly put the Nets up for sale.
• The Heat have strong interest in Brook Lopez, but they’re far from alone.  The Thunder were active in talks with the Nets and the Rockets are also keeping an eye on things.
• The Nets would have strong interest in trying to flip Kendrick Perkins for Thaddeus Young if they acquire Perkins in a Lopez deal with OKC.  The Nets and Wolves have spoken about Young in recent weeks.
• The Blazers and Clippers are among the many teams who have strong interest in acquiring Wilson Chandler.
• The Nuggets are getting multiple inquiries on Arron Afflalo.  The Heat, Clippers and Hornets have all called Denver.
• Kevin Love plans to opt in and remain with the Cavaliers for 2015/16.
• The Nuggets are engaged in trade talks regarding Randy Foye.
• The Kings want to upgrade their frontcourt and they’re willing to deal Nik Stauskas.
• The Sixers have had exploratory talks regarding Michael Carter-Williams with several other teams.
• The Cavs offered Tristan Thompson a four-year, $52MM extension this past fall before the October 31st deadline for rookie scale extensions passed.
• The Lakers have asked the Pistons about Greg Monroe and Brandon Jennings in the past month.
• The Knicks are active in attempts to trade Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani.
• The Celtics and trade acquisition Nate Robinson completed a deal on a buyout.  The C’s acquired Robinson from Denver in exchange for Jameer Nelson.  Multiple teams have interest in Robinson and the Clippers appear to be in the lead.
• The C’s and Tayshaun Prince are discussing a buyout.  There’s mutual interest between Prince and the Clippers.
• The NBA has suspended Larry Sanders without pay for a minimum of 10 games for a violation of its anti-drug policy.
• There is interest around the league in Brandon Bass, but the Celtics have yet to draw any serious offers for him on the trade market.
• The Clippers signed Dahntay Jones to a 10-day deal. Originally, it looked like the Clips would be signing Darius Miller, but that didn’t come to fruition.
• The Bucks are likely to retain Kenyon Martin for the rest of the season.
• Magic GM Rob Hennigan won’t guarantee Jacque Vaughn‘s job security.
• The Pelicans signed Nate Wolters to a 10-day deal.
• The Heat re-signed Tyler Johnson to a 10-day pact.
• The Kings talked about a swap of Ramon Sessions for Jordan Farmar.  The deal didn’t go down, however, and the Clippers wound up waiving Farmar with a buyout.  The Cavs have interest in the newly minted free agent.
• The Pistons are seeking a trade partner who’ll take on Gigi Datome.
• Eric Maynor is headed to Italy.
• Amar’e Stoudemire isn’t sure that he wants to remain with the Knicks amid a rebuilding effort.
• Andre Dawkins has signed with the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
• The Jazz signed Elijah Millsap to a second 10-day contract.
• Glen Rice Jr. has joined the D-League affiliate of the Rockets.
• Former Sixers and Nets power forward Brandon Davies signed with Elan Chalon of France.
• The Delaware 87ers, Philadelphia’s D-League affiliate, have acquired Jared Cunningham via the D-League waiver process.
• Former Nuggets small forward Quincy Miller was set to meet with the Pacers, Hawks, Thunder, and Spurs but ended up signing with the Kings.
• The Sixers signed Larry Drew II to a second 10-day deal.
• The Knicks signed Langston Galloway to another 10-day pact.
• Elliot Williams inked another 10-day contract with the Jazz.
• Kendall Marshall is going to miss the rest of the year with an ACL injury.
• The Spurs signed JaMychal Green to a 10-day pact and cut ties with Austin Daye to make room.
• The Warriors signed James McAdoo to a second 10-day deal.
• The Bulls. Pistons, Wizards, and Clippers are among the teams eyeing Damion James.
• The Wolves brought Miroslav Raduljica back for another 10-day contract.
• Kobe Bryant admitted retirement after this season has crossed his mind, although he doesn’t peg it as very likely.
• The Celtics waived Chris Douglas-Roberts