Stein On Pau, Raptors, Varejao, Jazz, Gentry
ESPN.com's Marc Stein has published his Weekend Dime, and leads off the jam-packed column with a look at a handful of players that are candidates to be dealt before February 21st's trade deadline. Here are the highlights on those guys, and from the rest of Stein's piece:
- The Lakers continue to recognize that they're unlikely to get fair value for Pau Gasol, given his health, salary, and performance, and would prefer to avoid another major shakeup anyway. So for now, they're still not seriously considering a Pau trade.
- Multiple front-office sources view the Raptors as the team most motivated to make a move. The team would like to make Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon in tandem, but Bargnani's elbow injury may force Toronto to deal Calderon on his own. The Lakers and Mavericks have interest, though neither team is an obvious match for Calderon's $10.5MM+ salary.
- NBA teams believe Anderson Varejao is "highly available," but are skeptical he'll be dealt, since the Cavaliers' high asking price is only increasing. Cleveland is seeking multiple young assets for Varejao, according to Stern, who says the Thunder, a potential match, have exhibited little interest.
- Teams around the league aren't sure whether the Jazz would be more inclined to trade Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson, but the general consensus suggests one of the two will be dealt by the deadline for a front-line point guard.
- Stein lists a few other names that come up repeatedly in talks with sources as trade candidates: Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, Derrick Williams, Luke Ridnour, J.J. Barea, Michael Beasley, Courtney Lee, and D.J. Augustin.
- Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley may already be interested in buying another team, with the Bucks as a potential target, according to Stein.
- Robert Sarver's assurances that Alvin Gentry will keep his job as Suns head coach shouldn't be viewed as a "dreaded" vote of confidence. Sources tell Stein that Sarver likes Gentry "too much personally to make an in-season change."
Eastern Notes: Hawks, Celtics, Asik, Blatche
After rounding up a few Raptors updates earlier this afternoon, let's take a look around the rest of the Eastern Conference:
- One opposing GM points out to Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link) that a successful season for the Hawks would make it difficult for new GM Danny Ferry to bring in his own head coach to replace Larry Drew next year, if that's what Ferry wants to do. League sources also question whether Josh Smith fits the profile of a player Ferry would want to retain long-term, according to Bucher.
- The Celtics inquired on Omer Asik over the summer, head coach Doc Rivers tells A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (Twitter link). However, the team quickly moved on when it heard Asik's price tag.
- It's looking more and more like Andray Blatche might be this summer's "one [free agent] that got away" from the Heat, says Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- Following up on comments he made last month, Mike D'Antoni clarified to reporters, including Fred Kerber of the New York Post, that he had no regrets about coaching the Knicks, but that he regretted leaving Steve Nash and the Suns.
- In a piece for the Detroit Free Press, Dan Feldman of PistonPowered wonders if Charlie Villanueva is playing well enough to avoid being amnestied next summer.
Odds & Ends: Mayo, Terry, Pacers, Knicks
Reports last season suggested the Celtics were involved in serious trade talks with the Grizzlies that would have sent to O.J. Mayo to Boston. According to one subsequent story, it was Mayo's unwillingness to play for the C's that led to the deal falling apart, but with the Mavericks in Boston last night, Mayo addressed that rumor. The 25-year-old's understanding was that an internal debate in Boston about Ray Allen resulted in the trade not happening.
"I was pretty much set to come here and something fell through at the very last second," Mayo said. "A couple of the guys wanted to keep Ray, and management wanted to make the trade."
Mayo added that he got a call from the Celtics during free agency this summer, but was happy with the way things ultimately worked out. Here are a few more Thursday odds and ends from around the NBA:
- Current Celtic and former Maverick Jason Terry told reporters, including Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, that he would like to take Mark Cuban up on his offer to bring Terry back to the organization once his playing career ends.
- The changes the Pacers made to the bench over the offseason haven't been upgrades, and the team will need to make more moves if it hopes to contend in the playoffs, opines Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star.
- Steve Nash was close to making a decision to sign with the Knicks in July, which would likely have meant the team re-signing Jeremy Lin as well, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. However, as Berman notes, the team's point guard Plan B of Jason Kidd and Raymond Felton has worked out pretty well so far.
- ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (Insider link) identifies a few potential landing spots for Dwight Howard next summer if D12 decides he doesn't want to return to the Lakers.
Odds & Ends: Knicks, Harden, Terry, Draft
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Wednesday night:
- Al Iannazzone of Newsday.com writes that Mike Woodson has been more successful at coaching Carmelo Anthony than Mike D'Antoni was.
- James Harden was indifferent in his reaction to reports that the Wizards had rejected an offer from the Thunder to send him to Washington.
- Jason Terry did not rule out a return to the Mavericks later in his career, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com.
- ESPN.com's Chad Ford took a variety of questions from fans relating to the 2013 NBA Draft in a live chat.
- SNY.com's Adam Zagoria reports that Jabari Parker, the second-rated prospect of the 2014 Draft, is down to Duke and Michigan State in his choice of colleges.
- Chris Broussard of ESPN.com reports that John Wall will have his knee re-examined on Friday.
- Sam Amico of FoxSportsOhio.com writes that youth is not an excuse for the Cavs' poor play.
- D.J. Augustin has been a disappointment since signing with the Pacers this summer.
- Sean Michael Meager of the Oregonian has an interview with Trail Blazers rookie Will Barton about his recent D-League assignment and the adjustment from college to the NBA.
- Brandon Jennings was perhaps the best player up for a rookie-scale extension who didn't get one, but he's drawing comparisons to Chris Paul and Mike Conley from Bucks coach Scott Skiles for his play this season, as Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel documents.
- Stephen Curry is feeling happy with his level of play this season and is not disappointed with his contract extension, he tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
D-League Moves: Acy, Melo, English, Middleton
Here are Wednesday's D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Raptors have recalled Quincy Acy from their D-League affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam, the team announced today in a press release. Toronto is short-handed, with Kyle Lowry, Andrea Bargnani, Landry Fields, and Mickael Pietrus among the players suffering from injuries, so Acy will provide some depth.
- Fab Melo, who was recalled from the D-League by the Celtics on Monday, has been assigned back to the Maine Red Claws, the team announced today in a press release. The 22nd overall pick has yet to make his NBA debut.
- The Pistons have assigned rookies Kim English and Khris Middleton to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today. The duo is expected to spend a three-game stint with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. English, the 44th overall pick in this year's draft, has appeared in ten games for Detroit, averaging 3.2 PPG in 9.2 minutes per contest. Middleton, the 39th pick, has played in just three games for the club.
Odds & Ends: Terry, Mayo, Belinelli, Crawford
We heard earlier today that Mavs owner Mark Cuban would have liked to have kept Jason Terry, who signed with the Celtics. Terry said he was disappointed that the first call he fielded this summer wasn't from the Mavs, as Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram details. Cuban also claims that he vetoed a deal former Mavs coach Don Nelson had set up during the 2004/05 season that would have sent Terry to the Jazz for Raul Lopez, Price notes. That one seems far-fetched, but if it's true, you'd have to give Cuban credit for quite a save. Here's the rest from a busy day and night in the NBA.
- O.J. Mayo can opt out of his contract this summer, but Cuban hopes he'll stay with the Mavs even longer than the eight years Terry was around, Price tweets.
- Chris Paul and former Hornets teammate Marco Belinelli are close friends, but Paul didn't recruit Belinelli to join the Clippers this summer because he thought the Bulls would be a better fit for the Italian sharpshooter, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune observes (Sulia link).
- The Bulls went hard after Jamal Crawford before last season, but wound up giving the money they had set aside for him to Richard Hamilton instead, according to Johnson (Sulia link).
- Though Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo was telling reporters Monday that coach Dwane Casey's job is not in jeopardy, Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun wonders whether that will be Colangelo's call to make, surmising everyone in the organization except Jonas Valanciunas shouldn't get too cozy.
- Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times corrects his earlier statement about the draft pick the Lakers owe the Suns, detailing the protections on that and other draft picks that will prevent L.A. from drafting in the first round next June.
- Sean Deveney of The Sporting News gauges the early returns on the rookie-scale extensions handed out before the season, and believes Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday and DeMar DeRozan are the steals of the bunch.
- SB Nation's Tom Ziller goes in depth on the Maloof family dynamics at play as the fate of the Kings, the team they own, hangs in the balance.
Lowe On Lin, Anderson, Suns, Lee, Thompson
Most players that signed new contracts over the summer will become eligible to be traded as of this coming Saturday, so Grantland's Zach Lowe took the opportunity to take a look around the league at some potential trade candidates. Here are a few of the highlights from Lowe's piece:
- Even though the Rockets didn't expect to land Jeremy Lin this summer, and didn't expect to acquire another star ballhandler in James Harden, it's still "extremely unlikely" that they'd move Lin.
- There's no indication that the Hornets would consider dealing Ryan Anderson, who Lowe clarifies (via Twitter) becomes trade-eligible this month rather than next month, as we'd previously thought.
- Teams around the league are eyeing the Suns to see if they can extract some value there, but Phoenix almost certainly won't move Goran Dragic and can't trade amnesty pickup Luis Scola. Lowe also notes that "you can count on zero hands" the number of clubs interested in acquiring Michael Beasley.
- It's not out of the question that Courtney Lee could become a trade candidate if the Celtics are seeking a big man.
- Jason Thompson is "coveted around the league" due to his reasonable long-term salary, and is blocking Thomas Robinson in Sacramento, so the Kings could attempt to gauge his value.
- The Mavericks may be a buyer rather than a seller, but they'll be wary of adding any salary that would affect their cap flexibility next summer.
- The Sixers will be in the market for a big man once trade talks pick up.
- Rival executives are wondering if it's too early for GM Neil Olshey and the Trail Blazers to explore the trade market for LaMarcus Aldridge.
D-League Moves: Lamb, Orton, Melo
We'll track the day's D-League assignments and recalls right here:
- Jeremy Lamb and Daniel Orton have been recalled from the D-League by the Thunder, tweets Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman. The duo have been up and down between the Thunder and the Tulsa 66ers so far this season, having just been assigned to the 66ers on Saturday.
- The Celtics have recalled Fab Melo from the Maine Red Claws, the team announced today in a press release. Melo had been assigned to Boston's D-League affiliate back on November 14th. Although the C's have assigned and recalled Kris Joseph to the Red Claws multiple times already, this is Melo's first recall of the season. For Maine, he averaged 6.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 2.2 BPG in five contests.
Pacific Notes: Gortat, Curry, Gasol, Jamison
According to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, Suns starting center Marcin Gortat might be becoming "restless" in Phoenix, noting that he has tallied a total of just 50 minutes over the last two games despite not being in foul trouble. While Robbins references a "Polish-language publication" that suggested Gortat would welcome a trade to the Celtics, Bulls, Mavericks, or even back to the Magic, he also mentions that Phoenix hasn't given the impression that they're willing to deal him at this point. With that aside, here's the rest of tonight's tidbits coming from the Pacific Division:
- Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles looks at the success and production of the Clippers' second unit, which has started to gain some popularity with the nickname "A Tribe Called Bench."
- Warriors coach Mark Jackson firmly believes that Stephen Curry is an All-Star based on his performance after 20 games this season. It's hard to disagree, as the 24-year-old Davidson product is averaging 19.7 PPG, 6.5 APG, 1.7 SPG, and nearly 4 RPG for the fifth-seeded team in the Western Conference. Jeff Zillgit of USA Today also mentions that Curry has been worry-free about the ankle problems that had sidelined him for all but 16 games last year.
- Mike D'Antoni hints that Pau Gasol could play on Tuesday if his pain has lessened enough (Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer tweets).
- Compared to his experiences in Cleveland and Washington, 15-year-veteran Antawn Jamison isn't rattled by the Lakers' slow start. As of late, he has been one of the team's most consistent performers, hitting double figure scoring in six of the last eight games: "I'm comfortable, not thinking at all, having fun, competing and doing the things I normally do. So it's a lot easier. I was getting frustrated, but now I'm just out there playing" (Schmitt Boyer reports).
- Mike Monroe of Spurs Nation revisits the 1996 trade that sent then Charlotte-draft pick Kobe Bryant to the Lakers in exchange for Vlade Divac.
- In addition to the Rockets and Nuggets, the Lakers cracked HoopsWorld's list of most surprising teams this season from the Western Conference.
Eastern Notes: Cavaliers, Green, Lopez
Jason Lloyd of the Beacon Journal debunks the misconception that the Cavaliers will be forced to spend big in free agency this summer as a result of the NBA's minimum team salary floor requirement. Next season, teams will be required to spend at least 90 percent of the league's salary cap number next year. Although Cleveland's total amount of committed salaries could fall short of that number, Lloyd points out that the Cavs will be allowed to make up for the difference by dispersing the remaining required amount to its players. Here's more out of the Eastern Conference tonight:
- After initial struggles, Jeff Green appears to be looking more like the player the Celtics envisioned when they inked him to a 4-year, $36MM deal this summer, says A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com
- Brook Lopez's recovery from a sprained right foot hasn't progressed as quickly as the Nets have hoped, writes Mike Mazzeo of ESPN New York.
- Count George Karl among those who thinks that Knicks star Carmelo Anthony is primed to eventually win an NBA title (Matt Ehalt of ESPN New York reports).
- Pacers head coach Frank Vogel is considering more playing time for guard Ben Hansbrough and forward Jeff Pendergraph at the expense of those who have been struggling in Indiana's current second unit lately.
- Several of HoopsWorld's analysts weighed in on who they feel are the most surprising teams in the NBA thus far. Out of the Eastern conference, they referenced the Knicks' dominance, the Bobcats' improvement compared to last season, and the Raptors' difficulty in living up to expectations.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times says that the ticket to Bulls forward Jimmy Butler earning playing time has been his defensive versatility.
- John Denton of NBA.com examines the niche that Moe Harkless has found with coach Jacque Vaughn, who likes the progression his rookie has made in the starting rotation. Denton also provides a minor update the current statuses of Hedo Turkoglu and Al Harrington, saying that while Turkoglu still appears to be out indefinitely, Harrington could return in the next two weeks.
- Raptors guard Alan Anderson went through his workout today without any pain and believes that he is one practice away from returning (Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun reports).