Eastern Notes: Hawks, Allen, Fields, Ilyasova
In this morning's round-up of Celtics items, we linked to ESPN The Magazine's 2012/13 NBA projections, which included the Celtics as a No. 4 seed in the East, behind the Knicks (No. 3). While those ranks are somewhat surprising, the team that ESPN and Basketball Prospectus placed directly behind the top-seeded Heat is even more of a shock: The Hawks will be the East's second-best team, according to the magazine's predictions. We've got updates on Atlanta and a few other Eastern Conference clubs, so let's check them out….
- If and when John Jenkins and Mike Scott officially earn spots on the Hawks' roster, they'll be the team's only draft picks in the last five years besides Jeff Teague to do so, says Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- It's been over three months since Ray Allen officially left the Celtics for the Heat, but the veteran's free agent decision is still a hot topic in both Boston and Miami. Allen appeared on WMEN in Miami recently and said he felt the Celtics put him in a position where he had to leave (link via Sports Radio Interviews). Celtics coach Doc Rivers, meanwhile, says he's over Allen's departure but is still "disappointed" with the way it played out (link via the Boston Herald).
- Landry Fields told reporters, including Al Iannazzone of Newsday (Twitter link) that he lost some of his confidence and comfort level after the Knicks acquired Carmelo Anthony and needed a change of scenery.
- It appears Ersan Ilyasova's new long-term contract with the Bucks has him feeling more comfortable in Milwaukee, writes NBA.com's Steve Aschburner.
- The Cavaliers aren't expected to make their final roster cuts for a few days yet, but it appears one of Donald Sloan or Jeremy Pargo has the upper hand in the backup point guard battle — coach Byron Scott just won't say which, according to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (via Sulia).
- Sam Smith fields Bulls questions on Nate Robinson, Kirk Hinrich, and others in his latest mailbag at Bulls.com.
Cavs Exercise Options On Irving, Thompson
The Cavaliers have officially picked up their 2013/14 options on Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson, the team announced today in a press release. Both Irving and Thompson are currently heading into their sophomore seasons, so the Cavs will have an additional team option on both players in 2014/15.
Considering both Irving and Thompson were top-five picks in 2011, with Irving earning Rookie of the Year honors last season, exercising their third-year options was a formality for the Cavs. Irving is now slated to make a guaranteed $5.61MM in 2013/14, while Thompson will earn about $4.06MM.
Be sure to check out Hoops Rumors' option tracker to follow which rookie-scale players have had their 2013/14 options picked up so far this offseason.
Odds & Ends: Nets, PEDs, Radmanovic, Invitees
Newsday's Roderick Boone says the Nets are a work in progress, but passes along praise from Celtics coach Doc Rivers. "It's like this is a whole new franchise," Rivers said. "It feels like they just plucked this team out of the space, and all of the sudden they've got a hell of a team in our division that wears black uniforms. It's unbelievable. I don't know if they could've done anything better. This is terrific." The Nets also drew admiration from Kevin Garnett, but Brooklyn coach Avery Johnson believes all the talk is just a psychological ploy from the team that's won the Atlantic Division five years in a row, calling it "a straight setup," as Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News documents (Sulia link). As the gamesmanship intensifies and the regular season draws closer, here's more from around the league.
- The head of the World Anti-Doping Agency called upon the NBA to institute testing for human growth hormone, and says there are "gaps" in the league's measures to prevent the use of performance-enhancing drugs, Henry Abbott of ESPN.com reports.
- Bulls offseason signee Vladimir Radmanovic is having trouble adjusting to the physical demands of playing for coach Tom Thibodeau, and might not be a part of the team's rotation come opening night, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld sizes up the chances each team's training camp hopefuls have of making the opening-night roster.
- Micheal Eric and Kevin Jones haven't seen much playing time in preseason games, which makes practice all the more important for the pair, both of whom are trying to make the Cavaliers on non-guaranteed deals, as Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer chronicles.
- Vince Carter appears to be the favorite to assume the sixth-man role that Jason Terry played for the Mavericks before departing via free agency this past summer, according to Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
- Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside identifies six intriguing prospects who are likely to be available in the D-League draft, including Phil Jones, who was in camp with the Timberwolves earlier this month.
Eastern Notes: Heat, Irving, Rasheed, Pistons
We looked at news from the Western Conference already, so here's a trip around Eastern Conference camps, with the start of the regular season just a dozen nights away.
- Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald thought a few days ago that Terrel Harris was a shoo-in for a spot on the Heat roster, but now believes Garrett Temple has a legitimate chance to beat him out (Twitter link). Both guards are on non-guaranteed deals.
- Kyrie Irving did plenty to justify his position as the top pick in the 2011 draft last season, when he won Rookie of the Year honors, but Cavs coach Byron Scott still believes he has a long way to go to realize his potential, as Steve Aschburner of NBA.com writes.
- Marc Berman of the New York Post has details on Rasheed Wallace's contract with the Knicks, and confirms that it's without even a partial guarantee.
- Joe Dumars is the league's third-longest tenured executive in charge of player personnel decisions, as Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors pointed out yesterday, and the Pistons president of basketball operations told Keith Langlois of Pistons.com he's never been as impressed with his players' offseason work as he is this year (Twitter link).
- Nets coach Avery Johnson said he expects free agent signee Jerry Stackhouse, a few weeks shy of his 38th birthday, to make his primary contribution as a locker room presence, a la Juwan Howard with the Heat the past two seasons, as Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News tweets.
Odds & Ends: Magic, Bucks, 2013 Draft, D-League
After rounding up a few stories out of the west this morning, let's turn our attention this afternoon to the Eastern Conference and to a pair of drafts….
- Competition for playing time and roster spots is still wide open, according to Magic coach Jacque Vaughn. "I am completely honest when I say I have not filled out my top 10, top nine, top 12 guys on the team yet," Vaughn told the media, including Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, after last night's game. "And guys should take advantage of that, and tonight was a night that guys should’ve taken advantage of that opportunity."
- Coach Scott Skiles says the Bucks talked "many times" about how trading Andrew Bogut would impact their interior defense, and made it a priority this offseason to add size and length. Truman Reed of NBA.com has the details.
- In an Insider-only piece, ESPN.com's Chad Ford ranks the top prospects out of the Big East for next year's NBA draft. Meanwhile, Ford's No. 1 2013 prospect, Nerlens Noel, has been cleared by the NCAA to practice and play for the Kentucky Wildcats, according to a USA Today report.
- Speaking of drafts, the NBA D-League's 2012 draft will take place on the evening of November 2nd, according to the league's official Twitter account.
- The Cavs won't necessarily keep both Jeremy Pargo and Donald Sloan on their regular-season roster, but neither player has really pulled away as the favorite to earn a roster spot, says Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal.
Cavaliers Waive Kelenna Azubuike
The Cavs have waived Kelenna Azubuike, the team announced via Twitter. Azubuike had a guaranteed minimum-salary deal, meaning the team is still on the hook for $1.07MM. Since his contract covered both 2011/12 and 2012/13, the Cavs have to pay him the full minimum amount based on his years of service, instead of the two-year veteran's minimum of $854,389. The move brings the team's roster down to 17 players.
Cleveland acquired Azubuike in a draft-night trade with the Mavericks, who had signed him in March for the rest of 2011/12 with a team option for 2012/13. The 6'5" shooting guard appeared in just three games for Dallas, scoring a total of seven points in 18 minutes. He saw a little more time with the team's D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, averaging 6.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 12.7 minutes over seven contests. Azubuike had his best days with the Warriors, starting 51 games and averaging 14.4 PPG and 5.0 RPG while shooting 44.8% from three-point range in 2008/09.
The decision to let go of Azubuike's guaranteed deal presumably opens up another roster spot for Micheal Eric, Kevin Jones or Samardo Samuels, all of whom have partially guaranteed deals, and Donald Sloan, whose contract is non-guaranteed. Daniel Gibson has a partially guaranteed contract, too, but the team would be obligated to pay him $2.49MM if they let him go, making him less likely to be cut.
Cavs Notes: Thompson, Leuer, Roster Cuts
As we heard earlier today, the NCAA is investigating agent Rich Paul and Myck Kabongo regarding a trip the Texas guard took to Cleveland this summer. Cavaliers big man Tristan Thompson, who is represented by Paul, was involved in Kabongo's trip, but doesn't think any NCAA rules were violated, as Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal writes (on Sulia).
"I had to pay for it, but then his brother reimbursed me, which is totally fine with the NCAA," Thompson said. "I think everything will work out. I don't see no eligibility issues, but that's for the NCAA to figure out."
Here are a few more Thursday notes related to the Cavs:
- Jon Leuer doesn't appear to be in jeopardy of not making Cleveland's regular season roster, though he may face an uphill battle for minutes, says Bob Finnan of the News Herald.
- Leuer was traded by the Bucks this summer, waived by the Rockets, and eventually claimed by the Cavs on waivers, and says he was caught off guard by all the movement: "I didn't see that coming at all. Milwaukee needed a center and Houston had a million things going on. It was a pretty crazy offseason, kind of a welcome to the free-agency frenzy for a young player."
- The Cavs have 18 players on their roster and will need to cut three more before the season begins. Finnan expects the team to cut one of Donald Sloan or Jeremy Pargo, and one of Luke Harangody, Luke Walton, and Kevin Jones. It's unclear who the last cut could be — perhaps Kelenna Azubuike or Micheal Eric. Finnan suggests that Cleveland may also be willing to move Daniel Gibson for a second-round pick.
- As our list of non-guaranteed deals shows, Sloan, who appears to have a leg up on Pargo, is the only Cav under contract without any sort of guarantee. So Cleveland may end up releasing three players who are all owed guaranteed money.
Central Rumors: Bucks, Leuer, Irving, Bulls
The Cavaliers made a pair of cuts today, letting go of Kevin Anderson and Justin Holiday, both of whom were on non-guaranteed deals. They'll be the first of many players to go from Central Division teams this month, as all five clubs are currently over the 15-man regular season roster limit. Here's more from around the Central.
- The Bucks are counting on several of their offseason additions to improve their ability to protect the basket, as Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel writes.
- Bucks GM John Hammond acquired shot blocker Samuel Dalembert in an offseason trade, but told the Journal Sentinel he wished it hadn't been necessary to part with Jon Leuer to make the deal work financially, as Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal notes. The Rockets wound up waiving Leuer after the swap, and the Cavs successfully claimed him, bringing to an end a whirlwind of movement that's left Cavs coach Byron Scott trying to rebuild Leuer's confidence, Lloyd reports.
- Fourth overall pick Dion Waiters is off to a slow start for the Cavs, as Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer points out.
- As a 1-for-21 shooting performance in the fourth quarter of Tuesday's preseason game showed, the Bulls bench is not what it used to be after a summer of moves that depleted the team's depth, observes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Cavaliers Waive Kevin Anderson, Justin Holiday
After opening camp with the maximum allowed 20 players, the Cavaliers have begun to make cuts. The Cavs formally announced today that Kevin Anderson and Justin Holiday have been released, reducing the team's roster to 18 players.
Anderson, a 23-year-old point guard, graduated from Richmond in 2011 and played overseas in France last season. Holiday, the older brother of Sixers point guard Jrue Holiday, graduated from Washington in 2011 and played in Belgium last season.
With Anderson and Holiday off the roster, the Cavs have just one player, Donald Sloan, on a non-guaranteed contract. Daniel Gibson, Micheal Eric, Kevin Jones, and Samardo Samuels are all on partially guaranteed deals.
Odds & Ends: Samuels, Blair, Mavs, Gordon
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Tuesday night:
- Sam Amico of FoxSportsOhio.com says the Cavs can expect an improved Samardo Samuels this season.
- Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express News reports that the Spurs are impressed with DeJuan Blair's training camp.
- Sean Deveney of the Sporting News previews the Mavericks' season and says that their roster is constructed with future free-agent moves in mind.
- Steve Reed of the Associated Press writes (link via the Detroit Free Press) that the Bobcats are expecting Ben Gordon, acquired from the Pistons this summer, to finish games for them this season.
- Alex Raskin of HoopsWorld.com has a list of training-camp invitees with a shot at making NBA rosters this season.