Nets Considering Jason Collins
SUNDAY, 10:54am: With the rumor that the Clippers will be signing Glen Davis when he clears waivers later today, this makes it more likely that Collins will sign with the Nets. Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles (Twitter Link) has heard that Collins and the team have a meeting scheduled for this afternoon.
FRIDAY, 4:40pm: The Nets will wait to see if they can sign Glen Davis, for whom they appear to be competing against the Clippers, before further investigating the idea of signing Collins, write Marc Stein and Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com.
THURSDAY, 6:00pm: The Nets are looking at Collins but also have interest in Ivan Johnson and other bigs, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com.
5:01pm: The Nets worked out Jason Collins this week in Los Angeles and are giving strong consideration to signing him to a 10-day deal, according to Ohm Youngmisuk and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. A deal would make Collins the NBA’s first openly gay player.
Sources with knowledge of the situation say the Nets, after letting today’s trade deadline pass without a deal for Lakers big man Jordan Hill, are weighing the addition of another big man and have identified Collins as a prime candidate. Collins last stepped on an NBA court almost a year ago as a member of the Wizards.
On a conference call this afternoon, Nets GM Billy King acknowledged that he’ll be looking to add a big man via free agency, tweets Rod Boone of Newsday. He mentioned that the club has guys on the radar in the D-League and elsewhere.
Collins’ name resurfaced in the media this month when NFL draft prospect Michael Sam came out of the closet, putting him in contention to be the first openly gay active athlete in one of North America’s big four leagues. If Collins puts pen to paper with Brooklyn, he’ll take ownership of that title.
The Nets and Pistons were among the clubs giving Collins consideration over the summer but neither team would up signing him.
Magic Waive Glen Davis In Buyout Arrangement
SUNDAY, 10:37am: Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter Link) has heard that the Nets have been told that Davis will sign with the Clippers once he clears waivers at 5 p.m. today.
SATURDAY, 1:58pm: The Nets and Clippers remain the frontrunners to sign Davis, but the Heat might be interested in him as well, says Marc Stein of ESPN. Stein also hears that all of the teams with rumored interest in Big Baby expect him to make a decision on where to sign before the end of the weekend (Twitter links).
FRIDAY, 7:05pm: You can add the Bulls to the list of teams that may be interested in Davis, according to David Aldridge of NBA.com (Twitter Link).
6:20pm: According to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter Link), the Magic will not be using the stretch provision on Davis, and will take the full hit on his $6.6MM salary during the 2014/2015 season. Kyler also tweeted that the team had told Davis of their intention to waive him and buy out his contract last weekend.
1:51pm: Kevin Garnett is recruiting Davis as part of a hard push from the Nets to convince him to sign with Brooklyn, Wojnarowski tweets.
1:45pm: The Magic have officially announced that they’ve come to a buyout arrangment and waived Davis. It’s unclear how much of his salary Davis is relinquishing.
1:04pm: The team has yet to make an official announcement, but the release of Davis has been finalized, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link).
12:43pm: There’s a sense around the league that Davis and Rivers already have what amounts to an agreement for Big Baby to join the Clippers once he clears waivers, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com writes. The Magic are expected to officially release Davis this afternoon, tweets Brian K. Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel.
THURSDAY, 9:43pm: Along with the Clippers, the Heat, Spurs, Nets, and Warriors are expressing interest in Big Baby, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.
6:58pm: The Magic and Glen Davis have reached agreement on a buyout, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). The buyout should be official tomorrow morning.
Orlando was dangling the big man at the deadline but they were unable to find a taker. Davis was due the remainder of his $6.4MM salary this season and $6.6MM in 2014/15. The 28-year-old is coming off of a year in which he averaged 15.1 PPG and 7.2 RPG with a 15.0 PER in an injury-shortened season. So far in 2013/14, Davis has been bitten by the injury bug once again. He’s putting up 12.1 PPG and 6.3 RPG in 30.1 minutes per contest this season.
The Clippers figure to be a strong frontrunner for Davis now that he’s available, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Los Angeles makes a lot of sense for Davis who has a relationship with Doc Rivers and presumably would like to join a contender. For Orlando, the buyout should open up playing time for Andrew Nicholson and Kyle O’Quinn as they look to the future.
Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.
Hawks Release Cartier Martin
FRIDAY, 8:00am: Atlanta has yet to officially announce the move, but Martin’s deal was set to expire at the end of the day Thursday, so he is no longer with the Hawks, one way or another.
THURSDAY, 5:05pm: The Hawks will release Cartier Martin ahead of the expiration of his 10-day deal to make room for the newly-acquired Antawn Jamison, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Though Vivlamore says the team will waive Martin, he won’t actually go on waivers. Teams can terminate 10-day contracts at any point, and when that happens, the player becomes a free agent immediately.
Atlanta acquired Jamison earlier today along with cash considerations from the Clippers. The 37-year-old veteran may not be staying in Atlanta for long, however, as the Hawks are thinking about buying him out.
Martin, 29, has seen time in 31 games this season for the Hawks, averaging 6.7 PPG and 2.0 RPG in 17.1 minutes per contest. His 10-day contract was to expire at the end of tonight anyway, and since the Hawks don’t have a game, the early termination of his deal is of little effect.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Odds & Ends: Pacers, Smith, Deng, Lowry
We saw plenty of trades go down before the deadline and Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders looked at the winners and losers. The Pacers top the list of winners for their acquisition of former No. 2 overall pick Evan Turner. While the Wizards and Warriors also get nods, Koutroupis says that the Lakers and Knicks should have done more. Here’s tonight’s look around the league..
- Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders has six trades that should have happened at the deadline. Among Brigham’s more interesting proposals: a hypothetical swap that would have sent Josh Smith from the Pistons to the Cavs in exchange for Luol Deng.
- Kyle Lowry wasn’t moved at the deadline today and Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun takes that as a sign that Raptors GM Masai Ujiri believes that he will re-sign him after this season.
- The trade deadline didn’t have a lot of stars changing uniforms in part because teams are zeroed in on the summer of 2015, writes Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. “More and more you have teams that are already looking ahead to (the summer of 2015),” one GM said. “You are going to see teams really be reluctant to give out long-term deals going forward, and it is because everyone wants to keep their cap flexible to see if they can shake something out next year.”
- Josh Akognon is headed to the Delaware 87ers of the D-League, according to Gino Pilato of D-League Digest.
- Kobe Bryant was sad to see Steve Blake go, writes Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times.
Pacers Waive Orlando Johnson
Within tonight’s press release welcoming Evan Turner to the organization, the Pacers announced that they have waived Orlando Johnson. Indiana had to cut someone loose in order to make the trade work.
Johnson, a second-year player out of California-Santa Barbara, was a draft-night acquisition in 2012. He was originally drafted by the Kings with the 36th overall pick in that draft. In 38 games for Indiana this season, Johnson averaged 2.4 PPG and 1.3 RPG in nine minutes per contest. He also saw a stint with the D-League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants.
“Orlando is a great kid,” said Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “We appreciate everything he’s done for us and hope he has a long and successful career.”
Recap Of Deadline Trades
Let’s get you caught up on all of the deadline deals that went down..
- The Sixers traded Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen to the Pacers for Danny Granger and a 2015 second-round selection.
- The Wizards acquired Andre Miller in a three-team deal that will also see the Nuggets receive Jan Vesely and Philly get Eric Maynor plus two second-round picks.
- In the first deadline deal, the Nets acquired Marcus Thornton from the Kings for Jason Terry and Reggie Evans.
- The Sixers and Cavs agreed to a trade that sends Spencer Hawes to Cleveland for Earl Clark, Henry Sims, and two second-round picks.
- The Bobcats acquired Gary Neal and Luke Ridnour from the Bucks in exchange for Ramon Sessions and Jeff Adrien.
- The Warriors acquired Steve Blake from the Lakers in exchange for Kent Bazemore and MarShon Brooks.
- The Nuggets are sending Jordan Hamilton to the Rockets for Aaron Brooks.
- The Clippers traded Antawn Jamison and cash to the Hawks for the draft rights to 2005 second-round pick Cenk Akyol.
- The Clippers sent Byron Mullens and a future second-round pick to the Sixers for a conditional second-rounder.
- The Spurs and Raptors swapped Nando De Colo and Austin Daye.
- The Heat sent cash and Roger Mason Jr. over to the Kings for a second-round pick that they’ll never see. Mason was subsequently waived.
Odds & Ends: Durant, Brooks, Nuggets
With tax season approaching, Thunder star Kevin Durant is looking to get his house in order. Durant is suing his former accountant for $600K over what he says were mistakes on his previous taxes, according to the Associated Press. More from around the Association..
- Aaron Brooks could have blocked the trade sending him from the Rockets to the Nuggets but he had a change of heart late in the game, tweets Mark Berman of FOX 26. “I changed my mind after talking to [Denver exec] Jared Jeffries, the (Nuggets) GM and the coach,” said the guard. Brooks also says that the need for him to play in the final year of his deal motivated him to say yes, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
- Nuggets GM Tim Connelly offered a very rational take of today’s deal to acquire Jan Vesely from the Wizards. “It’s not often you get a chance to get a 30-game look at the sixth pick in the draft from a couple years ago,” said the GM, according to Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post (on Twitter).
- Center Hamed Haddadi inked a deal in Iran after finishing his season in China, tweets Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
- Former Nets guard Tyshawn Taylor has signed in Puerto Rico, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Taylor was traded to the Pelicans earlier this year but was promptly cut loose.
- The Pelicans‘ inability to get back into the first-round of the 2014 draft at the deadline was disappointing, writes Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune.
Southeast Rumors: Miller, Wizards, Turner, Hawks
With the buyout of Glen Davis, Jameer Nelson is only remaining member of the Magic who played alongside Dwight Howard, tweets Brian K. Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel. A quick look at the Southeast Division..
- Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld told reporters in a conference call, including Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders, that he didn’t like the way Eric Maynor ran the point guard position for the club and jumped at the opportunity to get a floor general like Andre Miller. Miller, 37, has averaged 13.6 points, 7.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.3 steals over the course of his career, which has spanned 14 and a half seasons in the NBA.
- The Bobcats were heavily linked to Evan Turner, but, ultimately, they weren’t interested, tweets Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer.
- The Hawks may recall guard Jared Cunningham from the D-League to help replenish their thinned ranks, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The club is set to release Cartier Martin after acquiring Antawn Jamison, who may also be on his way out.
Central Rumors: Turner, Bulls, Pacers, Cavs
NBA executives are praising the Pacers for their acquisition of Evan Turner because it improves their team, reduces payroll, and gives them leverage with Lance Stephenson when he’s a free agent next summer, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. This may prove to be just a short-term rental for the Pacers as they swapped one pending free agent for another, but it’s definitely an upgrade for their club in the here and now. Here’s more out of the Central..
- Despite some rumors to the contrary, the Bulls showed no desire to move Mike Dunleavy because he’s an affordable rotation player who fits next season, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. For his part, Tom Thibodeau is satisfied with what was a quiet deadline for the Bulls.
- The Cavs have a vacant roster spot and will fill it through free agency or a D-League signing, but GM David Griffin says that he’ll take his time to identify the club’s biggest need, tweets Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
- With the Turner deal, the Pacers have sent a strong message to the Heat that they are ready to take it all this season, writes Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. Turner will allow the Pacers to play small at times, matching up with teams that use quick lineups. More importantly, he brings serious ball-handling skills to the table, which should help round out the Indiana offense nicely.
- While the addition of Turner could be a boost on paper, Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders fears that the Pacers could be making a mistake by messing with their chemistry.
- With the smart (but painful) trade, the Pacers put themselves in great position for the remainder of the year, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
- If Roger Mason Jr, clears waivers, he could be a candidate for the Bulls when Jarvis Varnado‘s 10-day pact expires, tweets K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
- In today’s presser, a reporter asked Griffin if he considers Cavs star Kyrie Irving an untouchable. He explained that his philosophy is that no one is untouchable, tweets the Plain Dealer. Meanwhile, Griffin says that he wasn’t close to a deal for Luol Deng, tweets Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio, but he added that if he didn’t listen, he wouldn’t be doing his job.
- Amico gives Griffin a thumbs up for his first trade deadline as Cavs GM.
Clippers Trade Antawn Jamison To Hawks
The Hawks announced that they have acquired Antawn Jamison and cash considerations from the Clippers in exchange for the draft rights to Cenk Akyol. Sending Jamison to Atlanta saves Los Angeles $884,293 toward its tax bill.
The 37-year-old has been averaging 3.8 PPG and 2.5 RPG in a career-low 11.3 minutes per game this season for Los Angeles. For his career, the veteran has averaged 18.5 PPG and 7.5 RPG across 16 NBA campaigns.
We learned earlier this week that the Clippers were dangling Jamison and others for frontcourt help. Jamison signed a one-year, minimum salary deal with the Clippers over the summer and despite his impressive resume, he hasn’t had the kind of impact that Doc Rivers & Co. were hoping for. Meanwhile, Jamison may not be staying it Atlanta for long as the club is said to be considering a buyout for the veteran forward.
Akyol, a 6’7″ forward, was the Hawks’ second-round draft pick in 2005 but has never appeared in the NBA and now plays in the Turkish Basketball League. It’s extremely unlikely that he’ll wind up in the NBA.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com first reported the deal. Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter) added details.