D-League Notes: Nets, Rockets, Kings
While the Nets, Rockets, and Kings are busy preparing for their games this evening they also remain busy with their respective D-League affiliates..
- The Nets announced they have recalled forward Tornike Shengelia from the D-League Springfield Armor. Shengelia was assigned to the D-League only two days ago and will join the Nets for their game against the Pacers this evening. Shengelia has not had a chance to play in the NBA this season due to the depth on the Nets’ bench but averaged 1.6 PPG in 4.9 MPG in 19 games for Brooklyn last season. It’s likely Shengelia is in the lineup due to Andrei Kirilenko and Kevin Garnett‘s ailments.
- Scott Rafferty of SB Nation wonders if Tyshawn Taylor, another young Nets player who is struggling for minutes, will crack Brooklyn’s NBA rotation this year. Taylor was also sent down to Brooklyn’s D-League affiliate, the Springfield Armor, this week. Last year Taylor played in 38 games for the Nets, averaging 5.8 MPG and 2.2 PPG.
- The Rockets announced via Twitter they have named Gianluca Pascucci the GM of their D-League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Pascucci was the Rockets’ Director of Player Personnel last season.
- Ray McCallum, rookie point guard for the Kings, has been inactive the first three games of the Kings’ season but not due to his lack of ability according to coach Michael Malone. Although earning praise from his coach as a “very good defensive player,” Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee suspects it will be hard for McCallum to find minutes that are currently going to Greivis Vasquez and Isaiah Thomas and that the D-League may be a better option. Jones predicts that’s where McCallum will find himself once the Kings’ D-League affiliate, the Reno Bighorns, begin their season Nov. 22nd.
Eastern Notes: Pacers, Nets, Sanders, Knicks
We rounded up a few items out of the Western Conference this morning. Now it’s time to head east and check in on the latest from the NBA’s only undefeated team and a few of their Eastern rivals….
- While they aren’t a taxpaying team, the fact that the Pacers are only a couple million dollars away from that threshold signals that owner Herb Simon is shoving his chips all-in, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. So far, so good for the 5-0 Pacers.
- The Nets became the second team in the NBA to assign players to the D-League this season, announcing in a press release that Tornike Shengelia and Tyshawn Taylor are ticketed for the Springfield Armor.
- The Bucks had been hoping that after signing a lucrative long-term extension this offseason, Larry Sanders would come into the year feeling comfortable about his future, which would help his on-court performance. As Sean Deveney of the Sporting News details, that’s certainly not how the season has played out for Sanders so far, but there’s plenty of time to turn things around.
- In a piece for The Score, Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com points to the Andrea Bargnani trade as one reason why the Knicks find themselves without a decent fill-in for Tyson Chandler. Deeks also notes that Kenyon Martin‘s contract will become non-guaranteed if K-Mart misses 15 or more games due to preexisting knee injuries.
Atlantic Notes: Lopez, Brooks, Woodson, Raptors
Entering the 2013/14 NBA season, the Atlantic Division was generally predicted to contain at least two playoff teams: the Nets and Knicks. So far in the early goings of ’13/14, neither team looked overly dominant. The Nets saw an impressive win over Miami before a 21-point loss to Orlando in their next contest. The Knicks have lost three straight and center Tyson Chandler was just sidelined for at least four weeks. It’s been a rough start for the two teams projected to finish at the top of the division.
Here some notes from around the Atlantic Division:
- With so much attention being placed on the blockbuster trade that sent Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to the Nets, Zach Braziller of the New York Post points out that Brook Lopez is too often left out of conversations related to the Nets. Lopez, the team’s only All-Star last season, is signed through the 2014/15 season and has a player option for ’15/16. Lopez leads the team in points, blocks, and FG%.
- Jessica Camerato of HoopsWorld notes in her piece on MarShon Brooks that Brad Stevens has been pleased with Brooks’ attitude throughout training camp and the early stages of the season. Stevens’ kind words didn’t stop the Celtics from declining Brooks’ option for the ’14/15 season.
- The Knicks have started out slowly after finishing 54-28 last season and winning the Atlantic Division. Still, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN New York reports that Mike Woodson is not worried about losing his job.
- LeBron James was asked by a Toronto reporter about the likelihood of joining the Raptors this offseason. “I’m not answering free agent questions,” replied James, grinning. While James almost certainly won’t be joining Toronto for the ’14/15 season, Eric Koreen of the National Post points out that the Raptors will need to stick to playing their best five players if they want to win now rather than enter another rebuilding situation.
Odds & Ends: Ewing, Oriakhi, Jackson
The divergent paths the Nets and Pacers took to upgrade their teams this summer underscores how the current collective bargaining agreement allows deep-pocketed owners to further their advantage, opines Mark Deeks of ShamSports in a piece for HoopsWorld. Indiana steadfastly refuses to pay the luxury tax, while Brooklyn is set to pay about $80MM in penalties on its $100MM+ payroll this season. Still, the Pacers are the NBA’s lone unbeaten team and my pick to win the championship. Here’s more from a nine-game NBA evening:
- There were 13 coaching vacancies this past offseason, and Patrick Ewing didn’t receive an interview for any of them, notes Fred Kerber of the New York Post, who catches up with the Bobcats assistant pining for a chance to lead a team.
- Alex Oriakhi, whom the Suns drafted 57th overall this summer, is leaving the French team Limoges, but he wants to continue to play somewhere in Europe, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.
- This year is crucial for Reggie Jackson, as he’ll have a chance to prove his worth as a sixth man. The Thunder believe he can lead their second unit, but they must find out for sure before he becomes extension-eligible in the summer, as The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater examines.
- Larry Sanders is averaging just 17.3 minutes per game after signing a four-year, $44MM extension with the Bucks this offseason, but he simply hasn’t earned any more playing time with his performance so far, the Journal Sentinel’s Michael Hunt argues.
Odds & Ends: Bynum, Deng, Nets, D-League
Andrew Bynum had the best game of his first week with the Cavaliers last night, scoring 10 points and blocking three shots in 18 minutes. While he’s starting to move better, he told reporters that he doesn’t think his explosiveness will come back, according to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio. Bynum added that he’s having “little sharp” pains in his knees here and there. The big man’s status is worth watching over the next two months, since the Cavs will have to guarantee him another $6MM if he’s on the roster beyond January 7th.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA:
- ESPN.com’s Marc Stein has weighed in with eight bold predictions relating to the NBA season. Among them: This will be Luol Deng‘s last season with the Bulls, Gordon Hayward will get a max offer sheet next summer, Jerry Sloan will replace Tyrone Corbin as the Jazz head coach, and veterans like Lamar Odom, Stephen Jackson, Baron Davis, and Jason Collins will return to the NBA.
In his latest column for Grantland, Zach Lowe takes an extended and informative look at restricted free agency. Lowe concludes that the current CBA provides little downside for teams who prefer to pass on extensions for fourth-year players in favor of letting them hit the open market. - The Nets are working to turn their D-League affiliate, the Springfield Armor, into a contending team, while also developing players and coaches, as NetsDaily details.
- Speaking of the D-League, Mark Porcaro of Secret Rival has training camp rosters for each of the league’s 17 clubs, based on what’s been reported and announced so far. Porcaro is also keeping tabs on where last months’ NBA camp invitees are landing.
Atlantic Notes: Love, Teletovic, Sixers, Raptors
While some rumors popped up last night suggesting that a Steve Nash trade between the Lakers and Raptors is a possiblity, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld is skeptical that such a deal is realistic. As Kyler notes (Twitter links), Toronto’s old regime had interest in Nash, having pursued him during the summer of 2012, but there hasn’t been any indication that the team’s new leadership group has that same level of interest.
Here’s more from around the Atlantic:
- Following up on Kevin Love‘s assertion that he “loves” New York City, Zach Braziller of the New York Post points out that Love will likely hit free agency in the summer of 2015, at the same time the Knicks will free up a ton of cap space.
- Mirza Teletovic acknowledged to Bosnian newspaper Daily Azaz that the thought of returning to Europe has crossed his mind, but says he still hopes to succeed in the NBA with the Nets. NetsDaily has the details on Teletovic’s early-season frustrations.
- Tom Ziller of SBNation.com argues that as long as the Sixers keep winning, there’s nothing GM Sam Hinkie can do. In Ziller’s view, Hinkie can’t and won’t seriously attempt to move veterans like Evan Turner and Spencer Hawes until the team starts to struggle.
- League sources tell Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio that former coach Doug Collins may have been a reason that Andrew Bynum never wanted to be a Sixer.
- Doug Smith of the Toronto Star answers a handful of Raptors-related questions in his latest mailbag.
Atlantic Rumors: Nets, Anderson, Hardaway
One outgrowth of the Nets‘ record spending spree is depth, and that was on full display on Friday when Brooklyn knocked off the Heat. Paul Pierce, one of the team’s veteran starters who stands to benefit from a bench capable of allowing him to play fewer minutes, acknowledged the advantage to Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News.
“It was huge,” Pierce said. “One to 10, one to 15, we match up pretty much with anybody in the league and we have more depth than anybody in the league, especially when you talk about Andray Blatche, Reggie Evans, Andrei Kirilenko, Shaun Livingston, Alan Anderson.”
Here’s more on a member of the Nets bench and other notes from Brooklyn’s Atlantic Division rivals:
- Anderson was the last piece of the Nets regular season roster to join the team, but his versatility has allowed him to produce like he was one of the team’s first priorities, as Tim Bontemps of the New York Post examines.
- Tim Hardaway Jr. lasted until the 24th pick this past June, but the Knicks rookie is already making an impact in J.R. Smith‘s absence, notes fellow Post scribe Fred Kerber.
- We heard yesterday that Sixers camp invitee Gani Lawal was close to signing in Italy, and agent Errol Bennett tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com that Lawal has put pen to paper with Olimpia Milano, turning away interest from a Turkish team in the process.
Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Bradley, Lawal
The stripped-down Sixers have somehow managed to start 2-0, with wins over the Wizards and Heat. Still, not all is rosy in Philadelphia, where Evan Turner and GM Sam Hinkie appear to be suffering from a disconnect. Turner has spoken about feeling unwanted with coach Brett Brown, who doesn’t think the issue will cause problems for the team this year, as Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer observes. Here’s more on the Sixers and their Atlantic Division rivals:
- Avery Bradley isn’t worried that he and the Celtics couldn’t come to a deal on an extension, and neither is GM Danny Ainge, notes Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald. “It doesn’t mean anything other than we talk next summer,” Ainge said. “He’s a big piece of our future.”
- The Sixers waived camp invitee Gani Lawal last week, and he’s headed back to Italy, where he played last season. Lawal has agreed to a deal with Olimpia Milano, reports Chema de Lucas of Gigantes (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia).
- Paul Pierce knew weeks before the Celtics traded him to the Nets this summer that his time in Boston was short, writes Chris Mannix of SI.com, who examines the attitudinal adjustment Pierce and Kevin Garnett have brought to the Nets.
- Executives from rival teams are convinced the Celtics have some sort of clause in their six-year contract with Brad Stevens that would allow them to recoup money in case Stevens leaves early, according to Ian Thomsen of SI.com. That’s an indication of the unusually high stature Stevens has as he enters his first NBA job.
Odds & Ends: Bledsoe, Turner, Bradley
The Suns might not get a discount on Eric Bledsoe this summer after passing on an extension for him last night, but team president of basketball operations Lon Babby would be OK with seeing Bledsoe’s price tag escalate if he has a breakout year. Matt Petersen of Suns.com shares that and more from Babby in the wake of last night’s extension deadline.
“I can’t say that we received an unqualified declaration of [Bledsoe wanting to stay in Phoenix long-term], but I wouldn’t expect that,” Babby said. “That’s part of the issue. He’s only been with us for a short time. But if you’re asking me is there any indication he’s not happy here, absolutely not. I think he’s very, very happy and we’ll do everything we can to make sure he’s happy. He’s an important part of this franchise for a long, long time to come.”
There’s more on a pair of players who’ll also hit restricted free agency this summer as we round up the latest from the Association:
- Evan Turner said earlier that he and Sixers GM Sam Hinkie didn’t have any talks about an extension, and that silence extends to any mention of Turner’s future in Philadelphia, as Turner told reporters, including Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News. Turner isn’t sure if that future includes the Sixers after seeing the team trade Jrue Holiday, a player he called a “walking legend.” (Twitter links).
- Avery Bradley isn’t concerned that the Celtics passed on what reportedly would have been a four-year extension, telling Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald and other assembled media today that he’d love to stay in Boston.
- We already knew that the Rockets had protected B.J. Young from tonight’s D-League draft, and Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle notes the team did the same for fellow camp casualties Jordan Henriquez and Troy Daniels (Twitter link).
- In an interview with the YES Network, Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov shared his enthusiastic response when informed of the prospect of the Kevin Garnett/Paul Pierce trade and explained that his desire for a non-traditional coach led him to Jason Kidd. Newsday’s Roderick Boone has the details.
- Commissioner-in-waiting Adam Silver spoke with Jared Weiss of CLNS Radio about the this season’s leaguewide rollout of SportVU cameras, expressing the league’s desire to create a level playing field in terms of the data and technology available to teams.
Eastern Links: Knicks, Sanders, Cavs, Heat
As we look forward to Derrick Rose and the Bulls hosting the Knicks in Chicago tonight, let’s round up a few Eastern Conference notes….
- For the Knicks to become a legit title contender, the team has to acquire a second star to complement Carmelo Anthony or hope that Iman Shumpert develops into that second star, writes Ian O’Connor of ESPNNewYork.com.
- In his Q&A with Larry Sanders, Grantland’s Zach Lowe spoke to the Bucks big man about his contract extension, the lawsuit filed against his new agency by old reps, and his goals for the coming season.
- Dan Gilbert called his team’s signing of Andrew Bynum “a pretty easy decision” shortly before Bynum appeared in a game last night for the first time in more than 17 months. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal has a full transcript of Gilbert’s comments.
- Heat camp invitees Justin Hamilton, Larry Drew II, and Jarvis Varnado have joined the D-League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (via Twitter).
- Early returns could indicate whether the Nets‘ star-studded approach will fulfill its promise, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.