Atlantic Notes: Rondo, Nets, Sixers
Celtics guard Rajon Rondo has suffered a broken hand, and had surgery to repair it earlier today, Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe reports (Twitter link). The player injured it in a fall at his home according to the team’s official statement regarding the matter. Rondo is expected to miss six weeks, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports adds. That would slot Rondo’s return to be during the second week of the season. This development certainly complicates any possible deals for the veteran for the time being.
Here’s the latest from the Atlantic Division:
- Boston had been considering waiving John Lucas III today, but Rondo’s injury could change those plans, Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today notes (Twitter link).
- Alan Anderson said he turned down an offer for more money to re-sign with the Nets, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News reports (Twitter link). Anderson inked a two year, $2.6MM deal with Brooklyn in July.
- New Nets coach Lionel Hollins said that he never considered adding Lawrence Frank to his staff, Bondy tweets. Frank had a falling out with former coach Jason Kidd, and appears to be on the way to the Clippers as an assistant after reaching a buyout arrangement with Brooklyn.
- The Sixers are set to hire Blazers analytics manager Ben Falk for a role that will put him second in command to GM Sam Hinkie in the team’s front office, according to The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman. Grantland’s Zach Lowe believes it’s another in a series of shrewd hires of late for Philadelphia’s front office (Twitter links).
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Eastern Notes: Garnett, Vogel, Heat, Walker
Kevin Garnett finally dismissed all doubt that he would return for the coming season, telling reporters that while he considered retirement, he’s once more decided to put it off, notes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). A report in June indicated that Garnett would be back with the Nets, but Garnett hadn’t spoken publicly about his plans. Retirement could be a ways off, as the 38-year-old said he won’t rule out playing beyond this season, the final year of his contract, as Bondy also relays (via Twitter). Still, Garnett’s comments gave Tim Bontemps of the New York Post the sense that he’s planning to hang it up next summer (Twitter link). There’s more from the player once known as The Kid as we detail the latest from the Eastern Conference:
- Garnett was in touch with Paul Pierce as the Wizards signee went through free agency and called his departure for Washington “bittersweet,” as Bontemps chronicles (Twitter links). KG said he was in the dark during former coach Jason Kidd‘s exit from the Nets, however, as Andy Vasquez of The Record tweets.
- Frank Vogel is entering the final year of his contract to coach the Pacers, but he tells Scott Agness of Vigilant Sports that he’d like to remain in the job “forever.” President of basketball operations Larry Bird has suggested that the team is open to negotiating an extension with Vogel before this season begins, as Agness points out.
- The Heat never made offers to veterans Andray Blatche, Ramon Sessions, Jordan Crawford, Wayne Ellington and others, team president Pat Riley and GM Andy Elisburg say, according to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. Winderman surmises that the frustration that many veterans stuck at the end of the Heat’s bench expressed last year made the team wary of adding too many players with expectations of playing time.
- The Hornets are just beginning extension talks with Kemba Walker, but GM Rich Cho indicated to reporters Thursday that he’s pleased with the point guard’s growing maturity, as Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders points out.
Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Sanchez, Nets
The Celtics versatile roster offers coach Brad Stevens a wealth of rotation possibilities, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com notes. “If you go through it, like really go through it, there’s about 150 variations of this you can go with. And more so than last year,” said Stevens. “I thought last year we were pretty hard to figure out. It’s been a fun puzzle to think about. But it’s a puzzle that’s going to figure itself out once we start practice.” The Celtics used 24 different starting lineups last season, which isn’t a great recipe for success in the NBA.
Here’s what else is happening in the Atlantic Division:
- If Orlando Sanchez doesn’t make the Knicks opening night roster, one possibility is for him to join the New York’s D-League affiliate in Westchester, Keith Schlosser of SNY.tv writes.
- Sanchez is loving the triangle offense that the Knicks are implementing this season, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. Sanchez said, “I think my game fits the triangle very well. I’ve picked it up quickly so far. My ability to shoot, handle and pass shows in this offense. I would like to make the Knicks roster out of camp, but I also understand going to Westchester is a possibility. I think it would be a positive situation, because the team will practice at the Knicks facility and I can develop with the coaching staff.’’
- The Nets are bringing 17 players to training camp this year. Reed Wallach of SB Nation runs down the names of the recent invitees and what they bring to the court.
No Camp Deal For Nets, Michael Jenkins
SEPTEMBER 25TH, 4:01pm: The Nets released their training camp roster today, and Jenkins’ name isn’t on it, so presumably he won’t be with the team.
JULY 21ST, 1:21pm: Shooting guard Michael Jenkins has accepted a training camp invitation from the Nets, agent Daniel Moldovan of Entersport tweets (hat tip to Sportando’s Enea Trapani). The deal is likely the standard non-guaranteed one-year deal for the minimum salary that most camp invitees receive.
The 6’4″ shooting guard had his first taste of NBA experience this month with Brooklyn’s summer league team, having pursued his career overseas since going undrafted out of Winthrop in 2008. He averaged 6.8 points in 15.7 minutes per game across five summer league contests for the Nets, and this past season he averaged 10.3 PPG and 25.9 MPG with 39.9% three-point shooting for Pallacanestro Cantu of Italy.
It appears for now that he’ll stand a puncher’s chance of making the opening-night roster for Brooklyn, which has 12 players under contract, including free agent signee Alan Anderson. Bojan Bogdanovic seems destined to become the 13th, leaving Jenkins to compete with Markel Brown, Xavier Thames and Cory Jefferson, Brooklyn’s trio of second-round picks from last month.
Nets, Lawrence Frank Reach Buyout Deal
The Nets and former assistant coach Lawrence Frank have reached a deal on a buyout that will allow the sides to part ways after a contentious one-year stint, reports Chris Mannix of SI.com (Twitter link). Frank appears headed to the Clippers, as the team is expected to name him one of its assistant coaches in the coming days, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register (on Twitter). Brooklyn reassigned Frank in December into a role in which he filed daily reports for the club, in spite of a contract that had called for him to make more than $1MM a year for six seasons as an assistant coach under coaching neophyte Jason Kidd.
The buyout is no surprise, since Frank had reportedly hired “high-powered” attorney David Cornwell to try to negotiate a way out of his deal shortly after his reassignment late last year. It’s unclear whether that sort of legal counsel was ultimately involved in the buyout, but this summer’s departure of Kidd, with whom Frank apparently clashed, didn’t seem to repair the relationship between Frank and the team. Nets GM Billy King said in April that it was his decision, and not Kidd’s, to strip Frank of his coaching duties.
The Clippers have been eyeing Frank for a while, as A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com reported earlier this summer that they were considering him for their staff, and Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com wrote earlier this month that Frank was expected to join the team. Clippers head coach/executive Doc Rivers had reportedly sought Frank as an assistant coach in the summer of 2013, too. Frank served as an assistant under Rivers for the 2010/11 season on the Celtics bench.
The 44-year-old Frank’s greatest success in coaching came in his first stint with the Nets, when he guided the team to the playoffs four straight years as head coach. He also served as a head for the Pistons, and is 279-335 in parts of nine seasons as an NBA head man.
Nets Sign Willie Reed For Camp
THURSDAY, 8:47am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.
TUESDAY, 6:17pm: It’s a one-year, non-guaranteed pact, reports Zach Links of Hoops Rumors (Twitter link).
MONDAY, 12:03pm: The Nets will make Willie Reed their final addition for training camp, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. It’ll almost certainly be a minimum salary arrangement, since the Nets can’t give him any more, though it’s conceivable that the deal might cover multiple seasons and include a nominal guarantee. The client of Bell Management International had been a free agent since the Kings cut him loose in June.
Reed, a 6’9″ power forward, has twice signed during the regular season with NBA teams, but he’s never made an appearance in an official NBA game. The Grizzlies signed him just before the end of the 2012/13 season, and the Kings did the same as this past season came to a close. Both contracts included non-guaranteed salary for the following year, but Memphis waived him in training camp last fall, while the Kings released him just before this summer’s leaguewide free agency rush. Reed put up 9.2 points and 5.6 rebounds in 20.0 minutes per game for the Pacers in summer league play this year, while he averaged 14.7 PPG and 9.9 RPG in 31.1 MPG in the D-League this past season.
The 24-year-old will seemingly compete against fellow big men Jerome Jordan and Cory Jefferson for a spot on the Nets opening-night roster, with Brooklyn already carrying 13 fully guaranteed deals. Jefferson’s contract is partially guaranteed for $75K while Jordan has a non-guaranteed arrangement. Point guard Jorge Gutierrez‘s non-guaranteed deal becomes guaranteed for $25K if he makes it past Friday with the club, and while it appeared during the summer that shooting guard Michael Jenkins would camp with Brooklyn, it’s starting to sound as if the Nets won’t be signing him after all, if Reed is truly the final addition. Brooklyn was also set to bring Hamady Ndiaye to camp, but he failed his physical and the Nets voided his contract.
No Deal For Sixers, Malcolm Lee
SEPTEMBER 29TH: Lee is not among the players listed on the preseason roster the team sent via press release, so presumably the deal is off.
SEPTEMBER 24TH: The Sixers have reached agreement with Malcolm Lee, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (Twitter link). Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it’s likely a standard non-guaranteed camp deal for the 24 year-old out of UCLA. This brings Philadelphia’s preseason roster count to 18, with eight of those players having fully-guaranteed contracts, and four whose deals carry partial guarantees.
The 6’5″ shooting guard worked out for the Lakers and the Nets during the Summer, and his most recent appearance in the league was with the Timberwolves during the 2012/13 campaign. In 35 career games, including 12 starts, Lee has averaged 4.0 PPG, 1.9 RPG, and 1.5 APG. His career slash line is .385/.294/.703.
Lee will get a look in camp at the the wing as a potential backup to projected starter Tony Wroten, and with the Sixers expected to challenge the league record for losses in a season, the roster is wide open for Lee to stick around through opening night.
And-Ones: Union, Ariza, Wizards, O’Neal, Nets
Players union executive director Michele Roberts is making $1.2MM this year, the first of a four-year contract, reports Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg.com. Roberts, who officially began the job this week, tells Soshnick that she can earn an additional $600K each year of the pact via bonuses. Either way, it’s significantly less than the $3MM that predecessor Billy Hunter was making per year. Still, Roberts’ salary is on par with what first-year executive directors for the NFL and Major League Baseball players unions have made of late, as Soshnick points out. There’s more on Roberts amid the latest from around the league, as we pass along:
- Roberts didn’t mince words with Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News in declaring her intention to establish credibility with players and not follow the path of Hunter, whose tenure ended amid allegations of corruption. “I’m sure there are people thinking, ‘Ahh, another politician-like person coming in trying to sell us a bunch of bull,’” Roberts said. “And that’s my job to win them over, to tell them, ‘No, this time it will be different or fire me. I want you to if I even dare replicate my predecessor.’”
- Trevor Ariza was asking for $10MM salaries from the Wizards, but GM Ernie Grunfeld wouldn’t go that high in part because he was pursuing Paul Pierce, writes J. Michael of CSNWashington.com.
- Rasual Butler‘s similarities to Pierce helped him earn a spot on the Wizards preseason roster, but Xavier Silas and Damion James each has a better shot at making it to opening night, as Michael adds in the same piece.
- Warriors GM Bob Myers spoke with veteran center Jermaine O’Neal on Monday, but Myers tells Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle that he still doesn’t have much clarity about whether O’Neal will retire or re-sign with Golden State.
- Jerome Jordan‘s deal with the Nets becomes partially guaranteed for $100K should he remain on the roster through October 25th, not $150K as previously reported, a source tells Robert Windrem of Nets Daily (Twitter link).
- Spurs assistant coach Sean Marks is moving off the bench and returning to the front office in a new role as assistant GM, the team announced. Marks spent two years as an executive before San Antonio made him an assistant coach last season.
Cray Allred contributed to this post.
Nets Notes: Pierce, King, Kidd
The Nets are looking to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Miami in the Conference Semifinals, but they’ll have to move forward into the new season without Paul Pierce, who spurned Brookyln to sign a deal with the Wizards earlier this summer. The Nets and Pierce couldn’t reach an agreement on a new contract, and we’ve detailed the reasons why below, amid tonight’s look at the latest out of Brooklyn..
- Nets GM Billy King said money was a factor in the team’s decision not to re-sign Pierce and acknowledged that the team is trying to reign in its spending as he spoke to reporters, including Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. “We did [want to bring Pierce back]. That was the plan of attack and I think as we started negotiating, the numbers that they asked for were, you know,” King said. “And I thought at one point that he was definitely leaving. And then you started switching gears because you start hearing that he’s going to end up at a different place. So then you start preparing. And then when he came back to us [to try to negotiate again], we already moved on.”
- Furthermore, Jason Kidd‘s departure from the Nets had no bearing on Pierce’s decision to skip town, according to Robert Windrem of NetsDaily, who hears that the 36-year-old initially sought a two-year deal worth $10MM from Brooklyn (Twitter link). The Nets weren’t about to shell out that much, and they were also concerned about his deteriorated defensive abilities, Windrem says.
- The Nets expect to finish as a top four team in the East, tweets Rod Boone of Newsday, noting that Brooklyn had the same goal last season. An improved Eastern Conference will challenge the Nets’ chances, but Brooklyn will have an opportunity to improve on last year’s sixth-place finish if its players can stay healthy.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Nets Notes: Bogdanovic, Agents, Camp Invitees
The Nets are entering a season of unknowns for the franchise. They have a new head coach in Lionel Hollins, Paul Pierce is with the Wizards, Kevin Garnett hasn’t officially stated that he’s returning yet, and the usual injury concerns for Deron Williams and Brook Lopez cloud Brooklyn’s outlook for 2014/15. Robert Windrem of Nets Daily looks at a number of items for Brooklyn’s hoops team:
- Zeljko Obradovic, the coach of Fenerbahce in Istanbul, has been referred to as the “Phil Jackson of Europe” due to his enormous success and having won eight Euroleague titles with four different teams. Obradovic coached Bojan Bogdanovic the last two seasons and lauds his former player’s potential, saying, “He’s maybe 40 percent of what he can be. He still has lot of room for improvement and it’s all up to him. Bojan knows what I think about him, I told him everything. I really wish he will stay as long as he can in NBA, but I wish he stays as someone who could leave deep imprint in the league and be very important player.” Good news for the Nets who are hoping Bogdanovic can help make up for the loss of Shaun Livingston in free agency.
- The article also looks at the player agents who have the closest ties to the Nets, with Arn Tellem of Wasserman Media Group being the most influential. Tellem reps four players on Brooklyn’s roster including Joe Johnson, Brook Lopez, and Bogdanovic.
- The complete list of training camp invitees hasn’t been announced yet, and according to Windrem, the official list should be published later this week. But for those hoping to be dazzled, team sources have said that there won’t be any headline grabbing names added to the 17 players currently on Brooklyn’s preseason roster.