Celtics Rumors: Rondo, Bayless, Crawford
Celtics GM Danny Ainge denied earlier this season that any team had so much as inquired about Rajon Rondo‘s availability via trade, and while that seemed a little far-fetched, he isn’t changing his story much.
“I actually did have a team call me and say, ‘Hey, would you have any interest in trading Rondo?’ Before he even offered me a package,” Ainge said to Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe. “And I said no. And that’s it. That’s as long as the conversation happened.”
There’s plenty more from Ainge amid our look at the latest on the Celtics:
- The Celtics boss also tells Holmes that the trade rumors about Rondo have emanated from outside the organization. “It’s just people, like I think recently, somebody, one of the national media guys, made a comment like, ‘Oh, I was talking with some NBA people on the road and they all think Danny is going to trade Rondo,'” Ainge said. “Well, it’s not like there’s a source. It’s just people that have their own opinion, sitting around, having a Diet Coke, talking about what I’m going to do with Rondo. Which is fine.”
- Ainge says he’s hesitant to build around a single player, whether it’s Rondo or anyone else. “Nobody is ‘the future of the franchise,'” Ainge said to Holmes. “A franchise is bigger than any one individual. But we love him. That’s what [the extension offer] explains.”
- Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com examines what Rondo could make on an extension if he signed one now, and compares it to the more lucrative alternatives of signing an extension this summer or waiting to ink a deal as a free agent in 2015.
- Jerryd Bayless shares his impressions of the Celtics since coming to Boston via trade earlier this month and reiterates his desire to remain with the team long-term in a blog post on his personal website (hat tip to Forsberg).
- Ainge let Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald know that part of the motivation to trade Jordan Crawford was to open up more playing time for Phil Pressey. Still, Ainge says he remains high on Crawford and MarShon Brooks, who also departed in that deal, and Ainge added that he’ll keep an eye on both when they hit free agency this summer.
- The Celtics have six extra draft picks between this year and 2018, and that’s a reflection of a long-held philosophy that Ainge explains to Bulpett. “I’ve always believed that you build through the draft,” he said. “And whether those drafted players are Al Jefferson, who you love, and Delonte West, who we developed and loved, and then move them for Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen — or whether those draft picks turn into Rajon Rondo or Paul Pierce and they’re with you forever.”
Celtics Have Talked Extension With Rajon Rondo
The Celtics and Rajon Rondo have discussed an extension, as GM Danny Ainge told Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb of 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston this morning. Ainge suggested the talks aren’t ongoing, but he said the team would negotiate again this summer and “most likely the summer after.”
“In the collective bargaining agreement, there are limits on what can and can’t be done,” Ainge said. “Really it’s not that Rondo doesn’t want to accept an extension, but it’s just not financially smart for him to accept it right now.”
The Celtics could only add two years onto Rondo’s deal if they sign him to an extension now. They could give him a three-year extension starting July 1st, but that’s still fewer than the five years they could commit to him if they re-sign him when he hits free agency in the summer of 2015. The client of BDA Sports Management could sign a four-year deal with another team in free agency.
Though Ainge acknowledges that an extension is unlikely, it’s a signal that the Celtics intend to keep Rondo through the trade deadline. Ainge has consistently batted down the notion that he’s looking to trade the All-Star point guard, in spite of rival executives who believe the Celtics will shop Rondo.
Latest On Rajon Rondo
Celtics GM Danny Ainge isn’t shopping Rajon Rondo, but he isn’t turning away calls, either, sources tell Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Still, Ainge has consistently rejected offers for the All-Star point guard, according to Berger. The only time the Celtics came close to trading Rondo was in a deal that would have landed them Chris Paul, Berger writes, presumably referring to a 2011 proposal.
Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders gets the sense from his time around the C’s that they want to keep Rondo around and gauge how well he can become a leader. It’s a role they envisioned for their newly appointed captain before the departures of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, so it appears they’re invested in him for at least the foreseeable future. A weekend report from Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News nonetheless indicated that executives around the league believe the C’s will try to trade Rondo at the deadline or before the draft in June. That echoes what Chad Ford of ESPN.com wrote last week.
Rondo has been at the center of several rumors since the Garnett/Pierce trade this summer, but most of the recent suggestions that he’s on the block appear to be coming from outside the Celtics organization. Ainge has been steadfast that Rondo isn’t a trade candidate, so perhaps the idea that he could be on the move is just wishful thinking from other teams.
Rondo’s contract runs through next season, when he’ll make a little more than $12.9MM, a bargain for a top point guard. It’s unlikely he’ll sign an extension, Berger writes, noting the limitations in the latest collective bargaining agreement that make it unappealing for most star players to do so. Berger says that Rondo can only add two years to his deal if he signs an extension this summer, and while he can actually add up to three years via extension come July, it would nonetheless be to Rondo’s advantage to wait until he becomes a free agent in the summer of 2015. Then, he could re-sign with the C’s for up to five seasons, or ink a deal for as many as four years with another team.
Celtics Sign Vander Blue To 10-Day Deal
WEDNESDAY, 10:26am: The Celtics have officially announced their 10-day contract with Blue.
TUESDAY, 8:53pm: In the wake of Avery Bradley‘s injury, the Celtics are set to sign Vander Blue out of the D-League, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Blue was claimed by the Delaware 87ers one week ago. It’ll be a 10-day deal, according to Wojnarowski’s latest update.
The former Marquette guard was waived by Maccabi Rishon LeZion of Israel just before the New Year and was clearly on the NBA radar. Blue was in camp with the Sixers over the summer and had a partially guaranteed deal, so he received a $55K severance from Philly when he was let go.
The 6’5″ shooting guard helped lead Marquette to the Elite Eight in last season’s NCAA tournament, averaging 18.3 PPG in the team’s four March Madness games. He then left the Golden Eagles one year shy of his expected graduation date.
Atlantic Notes: Nets, Olynyk, Patterson
Fans who made it out to the Barclays Center tonight are being treated to a competitive game as the Nets are up 46-42 on the Magic at halftime. Joe Johnson, or Joe Jesus as Kevin Garnett calls him, leads the way with 10 points for Brooklyn while Glen Davis has 8 points and 6 boards on the other side. Tonight’s look at the Atlantic..
- The Nets got the rights to Eden Bavcic in the Tyshawn Taylor trade with the Pelicans, but GM Billy King says that we shouldn’t expect to see him in the NBA, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. The 29-year-old is currently plying his craft in the Greek League.
- Peter Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com grades the Celtics at the midway point of the season. Rookie Kelly Olynyk gets a C despite the considerable hype he had coming into the season. Meanwhile, Kris Humphries, who came over in the blockbuster with the Nets, gets a B+ for his play. Recently, Hump said that he wants to remain with the C’s beyond this season.
- The Raptors also got a report card thanks to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. Patrick Patterson gets an A- for his work in Toronto even though he struggled for the first part of the season with the Kings. GM Masai Ujiri gets a B for pulling the trigger on the Rudy Gay deal but Wolstat notes that there’s still a great deal of work to be done.
Daniel Orton To Join Celtics D-League Team
Free agent center Daniel Orton will sign with the D-League and play for the Maine Red Claws, the affiliate of the Celtics, USA Today’s Sam Amick reports (Twitter links). The Red Claws are acquiring his D-League rights via trade from the Tulsa 66ers, according to Amick. Orton had offers from Chinese teams, Amick adds, but he will instead showcase his skills within the range of most NBA observers.
The Sixers waived Orton earlier this month, just before his contract would have become guaranteed for the rest of the season. Philadelphia had picked him up during the preseason a few days after the Thunder cut him loose. The 6’10” Orton was the 29th overall pick of the 2010 draft out of the University of Kentucky, but he missed the 2010/11 season with injury and has yet to blossom. He’s appeared in a total of 51 NBA games so far, with career numbers of 3.0 points and 2.8 rebounds per game with a 10.6 PER.
He hasn’t fared too much better when his NBA teams have assigned him to the D-League, putting up 12.4 PPG and 7.8 RPG in 27.8 minutes per game over 31 contests. If he impresses this time around, the Celtics will have the flexibility to sign him to the big club, since they have only 13 guaranteed contracts. Orton will nonetheless remain eligible to sign with any NBA team.
Atlantic Rumors: Carmelo, Nets, Rondo
Players and coaches around the league share the general feeling that Carmelo Anthony will leave the Knicks in free agency, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, who believes the star is weary of the team’s losing. Anthony and other Knicks embraced Nets coach Jason Kidd after Brooklyn’s blowout win over their crosstown rivals yesterday, and Isola sees it as evidence that the club misses Kidd and other veterans on last year’s roster who are no longer around. Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- The Nets created trade a small trade exception as part of their swap with the Pelicans today, worth $788,872, equivalent to Tyshawn Taylor‘s salary. They don’t get one as part of their deal with the Bulls, since Marquis Teague is making more than Tornike Shengelia.
- Boston anticipated Rajon Rondo would someday become the leader of the team, and so the Celtics have groomed him for that role, one GM Danny Ainge believes he’s better prepared to embrace now that he’s adopted a calmer demeanor, observes Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.
- The Celtics appear high on Zeke Marshall, as the team’s front office pushed to acquire his D-League rights via trade earlier this year, according to Mike Taylor, Marshall’s coach with Boston’s D-League affiliate. Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon Journal has more on the already well-traveled prospect who went undrafted out of the University of Akron this summer.
- SB Nation’s Tom Ziller names the Knicks and Nets as two of the league’s most desperate teams, suggesting much is at stake for the New York City franchises between now and the trade deadline.
Kris Humphries Wants To Stay With Celtics
Kris Humphries seemed open to a trade earlier this season, around the time a report indicated the Celtics would “love to move” the 10th-year big man. A few more months around the team appears to have changed Humphries’ attitude, and now he tells Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe that he’d like to stick around.
“I want to be a part of this whole, building this team and doing all that stuff with the new coach and all that, I want to be here,” he said. “You never know if they want you or they don’t want you or what their plans are, but I like Boston, my teammates. I’m just getting a chance to play with [Rajon] Rondo a little bit now.”
Humphries, a free agent at season’s end, has developed a friendship with Rondo, and teammates have grown to respect the willingness of Humphries to play hurt, Washburn writes. Increased minutes have no doubt played a role in the newfound contentment Humphries has found in Boston, as he’s seen his minutes gradually escalate over the course of the season. He’s spent most of the season as a bench player, but he’s started the team’s last seven games.
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.
Eastern Notes: Bogans, Bucks, Nets, Rice
A source tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Globe that Keith Bogans intends to “stick it out” with the Celtics this season, seemingly indicating the guard isn’t thinking buyout (Twitter link). The C’s and Bogans agreed to have the 33-year-old stay away from the team as Boston pursues takers for him via trade. It wouldn’t really be a surprise if Bogans doesn’t want to do a buyout, since that would mean giving up some of his more than $5MM in guaranteed salary for the season, the largest take of his career. Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- Bucks owner Herb Kohl is signaling to the team’s management that he’s ready to give up the pursuit of a playoff berth this season, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com writes in his latest Insider-only “Tank Rank” column. That contradicts what we heard earlier from Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio, who says the team would be “more than willing” to trade for veteran help.
- Mark Deeks of ShamSports breaks down the trade agreement between the Bulls, Nets and Pelicans in a piece for SB Nation, noting that the cash Brooklyn is sending to New Orleans will be enough to cover the rest of Tyshawn Taylor‘s contract, which expires at season’s end. He also says the Nets briefly looked into a deal for Jazz point guard John Lucas III, echoing a report from July.
- The Wizards assigned Glen Rice Jr. to the D-League today, the team announced (Twitter link). It’s a rehab stint for the rookie as he makes his way back from a fractured right wrist, coach Randy Wittman says, according to Michael Lee of The Washington Post. Wittman also says it’s possible the team will send No. 3 overall pick Otto Porter to the D-League at some point, too.
- The Sixers will decide within the next two or three days whether to bring back Dewayne Dedmon on a second 10-day deal, coach Brett Brown told reporters, including Tom Moore of Calkins Media (Twitter link). The center’s deal expires after Thursday night.