Central Rumors: Walton, Jaric, Pistons
The Bulls have had the best record in the NBA for two consecutive seasons, but with Derrick Rose out, they could have a tough time simply recording the best record in the Central Division this year, with the Pacers waiting to pounce. The Bucks, Cavs and Pistons probably aren't division title contenders this year, but they're all arguably improved from last season, meaning the Central figures to be more competitive than it has been in recent years. We'll round up the latest from the division here:
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes that playing without Rose will not be an unprecedented situation for the Bulls. The 2011 MVP missed 27 games in the 2011/12 season.
- Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer tweets that there is a 50-50 chance Cavs coach Byron Scott will begin to cut players from the training camp roster after Cleveland's Tuesday preseason game.
- Luke Walton said this week the Cavs haven't approached him about a buyout, but Bob Finnan of the News-Herald believes it isn't out of the question that the team would let him go. Walton is due $6.091MM this year in the final season of a six-year, $30MM contract.
- Scott is impressed with Walton's conditioning, and the 32-year-old forward says he's in better shape than he's been in the past four years, reports Schmitt Boyer. "Can he make the team? Yeah, I think he can make the team, to be honest with you," Scott said. "We’ve got some other tough decisions that I have to make in the next couple of weeks, but right now I’m enjoying the fact that these guys are making it hard on me, which is good."
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune checks in with Marko Jaric as he tries to return to the NBA with the Bulls. Chicago doesn't have enough money under its $70.307MM hard cap to put Jaric on the regular season roster for opening day, but the Bulls would be able to add him in late November, when the veteran's minimum pro-rates down to a figure that will fit.
- MLive's David Mayo chronicles the struggles that Pistons rookies are having in camp, and says big man Slava Kravtsov appears to be the farthest along of any of them right now.
Central Notes: Cavs, Azubuike, Monroe, Ellis
The Cavaliers picked up an extra first-round pick and some extra payroll flexibility when they sent Ramon Sessions and Christian Eyenga to the Lakers at the deadline for Luke Walton, Jason Kapono, and a first-round pick. However, one downside to the deal is Walton's $6MM price tag for the 2012/13 season. While some might expect the rebuilding Cavs to throw a buyout offer in the forward's direction, he said earlier this week that he has yet to receive one. Here's more on the Cavs and other items out of the Central Division..
- Bob Finnan of The News-Herald takes a shot at projecting the Cavs depth chart going into the team's intra-squad scrimmage today, and also lists the players he thinks won't make the regular season roster (Sulia link). Of note, he believes the team will cut Kelenna Azubuike, who has a guaranteed deal, while retaining the partially guaranteed contracts of Daniel Gibson, Samardo Samuels and Michael Eric.
- There was talk of the Pistons shifting Greg Monroe over to power forward after acquiring two centers this summer, but Monroe says that he'll be staying at the five for the time being, writes David Mayo of MLive.com.
- The Bucks were hesitant to part with Andrew Bogut in order to land Monta Ellis last season, but it's already clear that the sacrifice was worthwhile, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. Ellis was asked about the perception that he would be an ideal sixth man for a contending team, but he dismissed that notion, saying that he could win a starting job on any club.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Central Notes: Bulls, Pacers, Cavs, Pistons
Shams Charania of RealGM had a few interesting tidbits to relay from Bulls camp, writing about how coach Tom Thibodeau personally recruited Nate Robinson, Andre Emmett's fight to earn a contract during training camp and his willingness to sign with the team at any point during the season, and coach Thibodeau's aim to maintain Joakim Noah's minutes during the season. We have quite a few more links to share with news from the Central Division…
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune notes that despite losing many rotation players from last year's team, Thibodeau likes the versatility of the team's new additions and the flexibility of the roster overall.
- Pacers insider Mike Wells of IndyStar.com breaks down what he will pay attention to during the team's scrimmage on Friday, particularly Roy Hibbert's positioning, the play of the reserves, Paul George's ball-handling, and how the rookies fare.
- Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio listed some of his early observations from Cavaliers training camp early on, saying that Dion Waiters' conditioning is not an issue, C.J. Miles is standing out as a perimeter shooting threat, Samardo Samuels and Jon Leuer appear to have earned significant roles, and that the team will have tough roster decisions to make by the end of camp.
- Cavaliers coach Byron Scott appears especially impressed with Leuer, who the team had claimed off waivers in July. "I just don't think he knows how good he can be," said Scott (according to a tweet by Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer). Jason Lloyd of the Beacon Journal elaborates about Samuels' hard work this past summer, shedding 20 pounds since the end of last season and has cut down his body fat from 15 percent to between six and seven percent.
- Jonny Flynn and Terrence Williams, the sixth and ninth picks of the 2009 NBA draft respectively, find themselves vying for guaranteed contracts on the Pistons roster. David Mayo of MLive.com writes about their thoughts on the opportunity as well as head coach Lawrence Frank's firm belief that both are NBA players. Frank says that he's liked what he's seen from Flynn and Williams in camp so far, even pointing out that he sees Williams as a point guard (and not a wing player).
Central Rumors: Gibson, Thomas, West, Kravtsov
- As the Bulls and Taj Gibson make progress toward an extension, Shams Charania of RealGM.com says both sides want to make a long-term commitment (Twitter link).
- Charania also checks in with Malcolm Thomas, the Bulls summer league standout who signed to play in Israel. Before he inked that contract, Thomas had an agreement in place with Dongguan on the Chinese Basketball Association, but the deal fell apart, Charania reports.
- Entering the final year of his contract with the Pacers, David West appears much healthier to start this season than he was a year ago, when he was still feeling the effects of his torn left ACL, writes Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star.
- The Pistons are impressed with Ukrainian big man Slava Kravtsov despite a language barrier that causes some on-court communication problems, as MLive's David Mayo writes.
- Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio shares Cavs coach Byron Scott's thoughts on the new anti-flopping rule, and the coach seems unconcerned, despite the presence of noted flopper Anderson Varejao on the roster. Scott also says he's impressed with second-year man Tristan Thompson, and says he has an edge over Samardo Samuels and Jon Leuer for the starting power forward job.
- Kelenna Azubuike started 51 games for the Warriors in 2008/09, but in large measure because of two surgeries on a torn left patella tendon, he's only played in 12 NBA games since. Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer looks at how he's trying to resurrect his career with the Cavs this season. Valade also passes along a note from Scott hinting that the team may keep both Donald Sloan and Jeremy Pargo as backups to Kyrie Irving.
- Joe Gabriele of Cavs.com chronicles the unconventional path Alonzo Gee took to become an established player in the NBA.
Odds & Ends: Knicks, Walton, D12, Jazz, Wright
As NBA training camps continue, the big stories around the league today involved the Association's new anti-flopping policy and the Knicks finally making Rasheed Wallace's signing official. In spite of the buzz surrounding Wallace's return to the NBA, Knicks coach Mike Woodson tells Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link) that he views 'Sheed as an insurance policy, rather than someone who will play big minutes. Here are a few more odds and ends from around the league:
- There's still a chance Josh Howard ends up on the Knicks, but the team would have to cut someone to make room for him, tweets Zwerling. For now, New York is in "wait-and-see mode" while the team evaluates its current players, a source tells Zwerling (Twitter link).
- If the Cavaliers have made Luke Walton a buyout offer, he isn't aware of it, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Sulia link). According to Amico, Walton leaves such matters to his agent, and is expecting to play out the final year of his contract with the Cavs.
- The timetable for Dwight Howard's potential return keeps moving up, if you ask Howard, who tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that he could play in the preseason.
- While Jazz players like Chris Quinn, Brian Butch, Darnell Jackson, and Trey Gilder are long shots to make the club's roster, coach Tyrone Corbin says everyone has a chance, according to Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News.
- Israeli team Maccabi Rishon LeZion has announced the signing of 2007 lottery pick Julian Wright, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando.
- In an Insider piece, ESPN.com's David Thorpe explores the impact it would have if the D-League evolved into a full minor league system for the NBA.
Cavaliers Notes: Irving, Varejao, Jones
Here's the latest out of Cleveland on a Cavs team that Kyrie Irving thinks is ready to contend for the playoffs:
- Appearing on ESPN 850 WKNR in Cleveland (link via Sports Radio Interviews), Irving talked about his expectations for the team: "I have high hopes for us. Obviously our number one goal is to make the playoffs this year and we’re definitely going to attain that as long as we continue to get better and as long as we compete every single night."
- Irving added that he's excited about the players the front office drafted and acquired in the offseason, and that he's looking forward to starting to play with them.
- Several sources tell Bob Finnan of the News-Herald that they believe Anderson Varejao will be traded by the Cavs at this season's trade deadline.
- Varejao, for his part, said yesterday that he wants to remain a Cav, though he recognizes he doesn't have much control over the situation: "I'm still here. I can't control that. If they trade me, they trade me…. I'm happy in Cleveland. I love the city and I love the fans."
- The Cavs aren't worried about replacing Antawn Jamison's 17.2 points per game, according to head coach Byron Scott.
- Kevin Jones signed a three-year pact with the Cavs, but only $50K of his 2012/13 salary is guaranteed, as Finnan writes. Our list of non-guaranteed contracts shows that a number of Cavs players have partial guarantees on their deals.
Odds & Ends: Morrison, Turkoglu, Lin, Ginobili
Let's round up a few odds and ends from a busy day around the NBA….
- Blazers coach Terry Stotts told the media today that summer signee Adam Morrison has a "legitimate" chance to make the team, according to Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge (Twitter link).
- Hedo Turkoglu says he'd like to finish his career with the Magic, tweets Joshua Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
- Asked about the Knicks' decision to let Jeremy Lin walk in July, GM Glen Grunwald told the media that the Rockets made a commitment to Lin that New York wasn't prepared to make, and that Raymond Felton was a better fit for the Knicks. Marc Berman of the New York Post has the quotes.
- Manu Ginobili expects to return to the Spurs if he continues playing when his contract expires at season's end, tweets Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News.
- Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal poses five burning questions facing the Cavaliers heading into the 2012/13 season. Among Lloyd's five: Whether Dion Waiters was the right choice in June's draft, and whether Anderson Varejao will finish the year with the Cavs.
- Ben Wallace won't be in camp with the Pistons, since the team doesn't want to put him a position where it may have to cut him, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News.
- Appearing on KJR in Seattle, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he didn't think any NBA owner would stand in the way of the city of Seattle getting another NBA franchise (link via Sports Radio Interviews).
- Former NBA veteran Jayson Williams tells ESPN.com's Matt Wong that he's healthy and misses the NBA, but stopped short of saying he's interested in making a comeback.
Cavaliers Sign Justin Holiday
The Cavaliers have added Justin Holiday to their training camp roster, according to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Sulia link). The older brother of Jrue Holiday was part of the Cavs' summer league squad in July.
Holiday, 23, played his college ball at Washington, graduating in 2011. The 6'5" wing went undrafted despite being ranked as the 57th-best prospect in the class by ESPN.com's Chad Ford. He figures to be on a non-guaranteed summer contract with Cleveland and will be an extreme long shot to make the team's regular-season roster.
Cavaliers Sign Kevin Anderson
FRIDAY, 2:32pm: The Cavaliers have formally announced their training camp roster, which includes Anderson, making his signing official.
THURSDAY, 3:25pm: Kevin Anderson will take part in the Cavaliers' training camp, competing to earn a roster spot, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. We had heard earlier this month that Anderson worked out for the Cavs, so the team must have liked what it saw enough to take a flier on the Richmond product.
Anderson, 23, was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Year as a junior before graduating from Richmond in 2011. After going undrafted, the 6'0" point guard played with SIG Strasbourg in France in 2011/12, averaging 12.5 PPG and 3.5 APG.
When Anderson's deal becomes finalized, he'll become the 19th player under contract for the Cavs, though only 13 of the team's deals are fully guaranteed. Daniel Gibson, Micheal Eric, Kevin Jones, and Samardo Samuels all have partial guarantees, while Anderson figures to join Donald Sloan as the two Cavs with no guaranteed money on their deals.
Bulls To Sign Kyrylo Fesenko
9:47pm: K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune notes that the Bulls, who have $758,550 left to spend, could sign another player at the veteran's minimum once it pro-rates to that amount in late November (Twitter link). Mark Deeks of ShamSports suggests via Twitter that the Bulls could waive Fesenko at the end of training camp and re-sign him once they're able. The Bulls could do the same with fellow camp invitee Andre Emmett, but another team, either in the NBA or overseas, would be free to snap up Fesenko and Emmett while they waited.
8:29pm: The Bulls will sign Kyrylo Fesenko by the end of the week, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. He was in Chicago on Monday for a workout after auditioning for the Spurs earlier this month, and reportedly had the Cavs tentatively on his workout schedule as well. He was also said to be in contact with the Hawks and the Heat.
Stein says the 7'1" center will receive a non-guaranteed contract, and Sam Amick of SI.com reports via Twitter that it will be for the minimum. The team doesn't have enough room under its $74.307MM hard cap to retain Fesenko for the regular season, even at the minimum salary, without waiving or trading another one of its players.
Fesenko signed with the Pacers in March for the balance of the 2011/12 season, and appeared in only three regular season games. He scored a total of eight points and grabbed nine rebounds in 17 minutes, and didn't see action in any of the team's playoff games. The Ukraine native averaged 2.3 points and 2.0 rebounds in 8.3 minutes per game during the previous four seasons with the Jazz, upping those numbers slightly when he started nine of the Jazz's 10 playoff games in 2009/10 for the injured Mehmet Okur.