Odds & Ends: Nowitzki, Collison, Humphries, Hill
NBA superstars are often reluctant to take a back seat to anyone, but that's just what Mavs coach Rick Carlisle wants to see Dirk Nowitzki do. For the Mavs to contend for a championship again, someone other than Nowitzki must be the best player on the team, Carlisle told radio station 1070 the Fan in Indianapolis (via the Dallas Morning News). Of course, after missing out on Deron Williams, it doesn't appear like Nowitzki will have to relinquish his status as the team's alpha dog any time soon, unless Dallas somehow jumps to the forefront of Dwight Howard trade talk. We've got more news and analysis from around the league here:
- Mark Bartelstein, the agent for Warriors free agents Brandon Rush and Dominic McGuire, will speak with Wolves GM David Kahn this weekend, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
Earlier updates:
- Carlisle, in the same interview, also said he's excited to see what the extra motivation of a contract year will do for the play of point guard Darren Collison, acquired in a trade with the Pacers.
- Brian Kamenetzky of ESPNLosAngeles.com looks at the effect re-signing Jordan Hill will have on the Lakers. He also notes that the team doesn't have any money committed beyond 2013/14, except for the final season of Steve Nash's contract.
- Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News examines how agent Dan Fegan patiently waited for the market to turn in favor of client Kris Humphries, who re-signed with the Nets on a two-year, $24MM deal, taking advantage of the team's inability to acquire Dwight Howard.
- With Humphries, Deron Williams, Joe Johnson, Gerald Wallace and Brook Lopez, the Nets are believed to be first team with five players making at least $10MM a year, writes Chris Bernucca of SheridanHoops.com.
- The Spurs are high on 6'9" free agent Eric Dawson, who signed a pair of ten-day contracts with the team last season, and he's a candidate to return, says Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News. It might be tough for him to make the team right out of camp, though, since the team already has five big men under contract, as McDonald notes (Twitterlinks).
- The offseason is only a few weeks old, but Ben Golliver already has a list of free agency winners and losers on CBSSports.com. The Heat, Nets, Pacers, Lakers, Mavs and Nuggets have come out on top, Golliver says, while the Magic, Knicks, Bulls, Suns, Rockets and Trail Blazers didn't fare so well.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Friday
Last night, we heard from agent Dan Fegan that Dwight Howard would not be signing an in-season extension with any team that acquires him this year. This news comes as no surprise — even if Howard had been dealt to his preferred destination in Brooklyn, it would have been shocking if he'd immediately finalized a three-year extension, rather than waiting until next summer to ink a more lucrative five-year contract. And as many writers have pointed out, even a promise that he'd re-sign when he becomes a free agent is technically against NBA rules.
Regardless, if sounds like Howard is becoming more amenable to signing long-term with the Lakers, so it's hard not to consider L.A. the current frontrunner in the D12 sweepstakes. Here are today's Howard updates, with the latest news up top:
- Amico elaborates on the difficulty the Magic have been presenting possible trade partners, saying they keep changing the terms of potential deals at the last minute. A source tells Amico that Nets GM Billy King thought he had finalized a trade with the Magic at one point earlier this summer before the Magic pulled back.
- Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio reiterates that it's the Magic, rather than Bynum's or Howard's representatives, that are complicating a potential deal (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- The three-team talks involving the Magic, Lakers, and Cavaliers are running into the same problems that plagued Orlando's talks with the Nets, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. The Magic aren't convinced that this is the best they can do for Howard, while the Cavs are reluctant to get too serious until they find out if Andrew Bynum would be open to committing long-term to Cleveland.
- Berger hears from one source that Howard was convinced to waive his early termination option in March by Magic officials that said if things didn't work out for Dwight in Orlando, the team would trade him to Brooklyn. However, another source tells Berger that no such promise was made to the star center.
- The Magic, Lakers, and Cavs are still "far" from finalizing any deal, but aren't deterred by comments made by Fegan or Bynum's agent David Lee, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Sulia link).
- Kris Humphries said today that he was never approached about accepting a sign-and-trade to the Cavs, so the Magic/Nets talks didn't advance that far, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
Warriors Interested In Andrei Kirilenko
The Warriors are seeking a backup forward and have been linked to Carl Landry, Kenyon Martin, Shelden Williams, and others. Today, Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group adds another name to the team's wish list, reporting that Golden State is interested in Andrei Kirilenko, though Thompson cautions the Russian forward would be a long shot for the Warriors.
Earlier today, we passed along comments Kirilenko yesterday in which he suggested he could end up on the Nets or back in Russia with CSKA Moscow. As I wrote at the time, the Nets could only offer the veteran's minimum. The Warriors have the flexibility to offer at least double that amount, but it's not clear if that would be enough or if Kirilenko would have interest in the Warriors.
Based on Kirilenko's comments about potentially returning to the NBA, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link) wonders if the Timberwolves, another team that could offer more than the Nets, would be interested in the veteran forward.
Nets Re-Sign Kris Humphries
FRIDAY, 11:39am: The Nets have officially signed Humphries, the team announced today (Twitter link).
TUESDAY, 10:43am: Humphries' deal with Brooklyn is fully guaranteed, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Spears adds that Charlotte offered Humphries a three-year, $28MM deal.
9:19am: The Nets and Kris Humphries have reached an agreement on a two-year contract worth $24MM, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter). The deal will pay Humphries a flat rate of $12MM in each season, says Howard Beck of the New York Times (via Twitter). Stein tweeted last week that the Nets were believed to be offering Humphries $24MM for three years, so the reported agreement represents a nice pay bump for the power forward.
Odds & Ends: Kirilenko, Hill, Green, Grizzlies
After spending 10 productive seasons (19.1 career PER) with the Jazz, Andrei Kirilenko played overseas last season, but was widely viewed as a good bet to return to the NBA for 2012/13. Now, it's not clear whether or not Kirilenko will return to the Association, with one report suggesting he was on the fence, while another indicated a decision was likely by August 1st.
The latest on the Russian forward? NetsDaily passes along comments Kirilenko made to a Russian reporter, where he suggested that the Nets are still a possibility for him. It's hard to imagine Kirilenko settling for the veteran's minimum, which is all Brooklyn could offer at this point, so I still think CSKA Moscow is the 31-year-old's likeliest destination, but we'll have to wait out his decision.
Here are a few more Friday morning odds and ends from around the NBA:
- Grant Hill expected to re-sign with the Suns this summer, but only received a minimum-salary offer from the team, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
- While the Celtics have received some criticism for signing Jeff Green to a four-year, $36MM deal, agent David Falk insists there were other teams willing to make big offers for his client, as he tells Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.
- According to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal, commissioner David Stern thinks an official decision regarding Robert Pera's purchase of the Grizzlies is still a couple months away.
- The decision is still pending a Board of Governors vote, but the NBA will likely begin including small advertisements on uniforms beginning in 2013, as ESPN.com's Paul Lukas writes.
Nets Close To Deal With Mohammed
THURSDAY, 6:43pm: The Nets will entertain Mohammed this weekend and are likely to sign him soon after, tweets David Aldridge of TNT.
WEDNESDAY, 6:46pm: The Nets are close to signing free agent center Nazr Mohammed, a source tells Alex Kennedy of Hoops World (via Twitter). The big man will likely sign for the veteran's minimum in the next 24 hours.
Mohammed, 34, logged just 11.0 minutes per contest in 2011/12, his lowest in a healthy season since 1999/00. For his career, the veteran has averaged 6.6 PPG and 5.2 RPG across his 13-year career. Last night, David Aldridge of TNT suggested that the Nets' next move could be to sign a backup center like Mohammed or Ryan Hollins.
Nets Re-Sign Keith Bogans
The Nets announced that they have officially re-signed guard Keith Bogans. Earlier this week it was reported that the Nets expected to retain the veteran.
Bogans, 32, sat out the early part of the NBA season as he waited for his phone to ring with an opportunity. The guard hooked on with the Nets in February as they were desperate for backcourt help but he wound up playing just five games before suffering a fractured left ankle. For his career, Bogans has averaged 6.7 PPG and 2.9 RPG for the Magic, Bobcats, Rockets, Bucks, Spurs, Bulls, and Nets.
Odds & Ends: Delfino, Jamison, Knicks, Lopez
The Celtics have expressed some interest in Bucks swingman Carlos Delfino with O.J. Mayo off the market and Courtney Lee likely being too pricey, a source tells A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (via Twitter). Delfino, a restricted free agent, averaged 9.0 PPG and 3.9 RPG in 28.5 minutes per game last year for Milwaukee. Here’s more from around the Association..
- Antawn Jamison had a two-year $8MM offer to play for his hometown Bobcats, but agent Makhtar N’Diaye’s reminder about the forward’s will to win pushed him to choose the Lakers instead. The veteran reportedly signed for the veteran’s minimum.
- The Knicks will be forced to fill out their roster with minimum contracts and Jared Zwerling of ESPN.com has a list of players that could fit the bill. Among them are Delfino, Ronnie Brewer, Maurice Evans, Jodie Meeks, Mickael Pietrus, Sonny Weems, and Marco Belinelli.
- Spurs coach Gregg Popovich indicated to reporters, including Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio News-Express (via Twitter), that contract talks with Tim Duncan were rather simple. “He was just as big a pain in the neck as he was went he almost went to Orlando,” said the coach, referring to the big man’s brief flirtation with the Magic during the summer of 2000.
- Nets center Brook Lopez plans to use this summer’s Dwight Howard trade talk as motivation in 2012/13, writes Roderick Boone of Newsday.
Clippers Sign Grant Hill
WEDNESDAY, 2:05pm: The Clippers have officially signed Hill, the team announced in a press release. Los Angeles will use its bi-annual exception on Hill, putting his two-year contract in the neighborhood of $4MM.
TUESDAY, 12:21pm: The Clippers will add Hill using either the bi-annual exception or a sign-and-trade, meaning he'll make more than the minimum salary, tweets SI.com's Sam Amick. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports adds that it'll be a two-year contract.
11:40am: The Clippers have reached an agreement to sign Grant Hill, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). John Gambadoro of 620 KTAR Phoenix first tweeted that Hill was headed to the Clippers. Wojnarowski adds (via Twitter) that the two sides are still finalizing the details of the contract, but says Hill has committed to sign with Los Angeles.
Four Teams In Running For Darko Milicic
No team submitted a bid for Darko Milicic when the Timberwolves placed him on amnesty waivers, but the former second overall pick is drawing interest now that he's a free agent. According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter), the Heat, Clippers, Bulls, and Nets are the frontrunners to sign Milicic.
We heard yesterday that the Nets and Clippers are targeting backup centers, so their interest comes as no surprise. The Heat are also in the market for a big man, after adding a pair of shooters, Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, in free agency. The most interesting team of the four is the Bulls — K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune wonders (via Twitter) if Chicago's interest in Darko is a hint that the team might let Omer Asik go to Houston.
While Milicic certainly hasn't had the sort of career that the other top-five picks in 2003 have, the 27-year-old is one of the more attractive centers left among this summer's unrestricted free agents. Nazr Mohammed, Ben Wallace, and Ryan Hollins are a few of the other available options.
With the T-Wolves still paying him for the next two years, Milicic is a good bet to sign a minimum-salary deal this summer.