Cavs Notes: Dion Waiters, Alonzo Gee, Bill Walker
The Cavs have a young nucleus heading into the 2012/13 season thanks to key additions through the draft in June. Dion Waiters and Tyler Zeller are set to join Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson giving head coach Byron Scott something to build with as he enters his third season with Cleveland. Let's check in with Bob Finnan of The News-Herald to catch up on the latest news and headlines surrounding the Cavs…
- Waiters made some strong impressions during the Las Vegas Summer League while also showing that he has areas of his game requiring improvement. With Irving set to man the point, Waiters will need to strengthen his play off the ball and develop a jump shot in order to be most effective for the Cavs. Finnan reports that the former Syracuse star is approximately 10 pounds overweight and needs to get in shape prior to Scott's training camp unless he wants to spend his time looking into a garbage can.
- Restricted free agent Alonzo Gee hasn't received any offers this summer as teams are convinced the Cavs will match any reasonable offer made to the small forward. Look for the Cavs attempt to the sign Gee on the cheap given that most teams are running out of cap space. Finnan expects Gee to sign with the Cavs for the team's $2.7MM qualifying offer, which would make the former Alabama star an unrestricted free agent next summer.
- Unrestricted free agent Bill Walker may make some sense for the Cavs as they look to fill out their bench. The 24-year-old small forward played for the Knicks for a portion of the 2011/12 season before being waived by the team.
Central Rumors: Bynum, Scott, Greene, Scalabrine
The Cavs and Bulls have been in the news a lot lately, with talk of a three-way trade that would send Andrew Bynum to the Cavs dominating headlines in Cleveland while the Bulls await the arrival of the offer sheet Omer Asik signed with the Rockets. The Cavs also claimed Jon Leuer off waivers today, while the Bulls are in advanced talks with Marco Belinelli and reportedly pursuing E'Twaun Moore. We've got more on these two busy Central Division teams here:
- Cavs coach Byron Scott denies having a close relationship with Andrew Bynum, which has been cited as a reason why a trade sending Bynum to Cleveland would work, Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer reports. "I don't know who wrote that, but I've read that as well," Scott said. "No, we're not very close. We're not very close at all."
- Donte Greene is in conversations with a few teams, but hopes to sign with the Bulls, tweets Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. The team has yet to make him an offer, Howard-Cooper adds. The Kings declined to tender a qualifying offer to the 6'11" forward in June, making him an unrestricted free agent.
- Free agent Brian Scalabrine will not be back with the Bulls next season, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune notes at the bottom of a larger look at the team's offseason.
Cavs Claim Jon Leuer Off Waivers
10:03pm: The Cavs confirmed their successful waiver claim on the team website.
6:35pm: Zgoda tweets that the Timberwolves didn't put in a claim for Leuer, correcting what he said earlier.
6:02pm: Jon Leuer is headed to Cleveland after being waived by the Rockets earlier this week, reports Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). Zach Lowe of SI.com says the Cavs will simply sign him (Twitter link), but Either way, it appears the 6'10" Leuer will suit up for the Cavs next season, likely on a minimum-salary deal. Zgoda says the Timberwolves also put in a claim, but since the Cavs had an inferior record last season, Cleveland's bid wins out.
The 6'10" power forward averaged 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds with a 15.3 PER in 12.1 minutes a game as a rookie last season for the Bucks, who traded him to the Rockets as part of a deal for Samuel Dalembert. He was the 40th overall pick of the 2011 draft.
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.
Latest On Andrew Bynum
As many Dwight Howard rumors as we've been subjected to over the last few months, it's been easy to overlook that many of those trade rumors also include another All-Star center, who will hit free agency himself at just age 25 next summer. Andrew Bynum's agent David Lee was asked yesterday by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal specifically about whether his client was interested in the Cavs, but Lee spoke to a number of reporters in more general terms as well, including Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com and Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times. Here are the highlights from the two pieces:
- The Lakers have yet to grant any team linked to Bynum, such as the Cavs, Magic or Rockets, permission to speak to Lee.
- "I can't imagine any team foolish enough to do the deal without asking permission to speak to Andrew," Lee said. "That's beyond belief, but strange things happen." Based on Adrian Wojnarowski's report for Yahoo! Sports yesterday though, it sounds more like the Lakers are unwilling to let teams speak to Bynum without having agreed to a trade in principle.
- Lee denied that Bynum has a preferred list of destinations.
- ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (within Shelburne's piece) reports that Bynum is unlikely to sign an extension anywhere except maybe with the Lakers. Again, like the story on Howard last night, that's referring to an in-season extension, which would max out at three years and is unlikely for any star player.
- Extension discussions between the Lakers and Lee have yet to begin, but the agent expects them to get underway soon of the Howard trade talks drag out much longer.
- Also within Shelburne's piece, ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst adds that while the Cavs are interested in Bynum, the club has no choice but to view him as a one-year rental for now.
- The constant trade rumors haven't soured Bynum on the Lakers at all, according to Lee: "He's never had a problem with the organization despite all the things he has gone through. I don't think I've ever heard him offer a negative comment about the (Lakers) organization."
Howard Willing To Commit Long-Term To Lakers
10:10pm: Howard's agent Dan Fegan refuted reports that his client would sign an extension with the Lakers if he is traded to them, writes Ric Bucher of ESPN.com. "Dwight's position has remained unchanged since the end of this past season," said Fegan. "He fully intends to explore free agency at the end of next season, regardless of what team trades for him, including Brooklyn."
Fegan's comment doesn't neccessarily contradict this morning's report as it stated that Howard would "commit long-term" rather than immediately ink an extension. An extension could only give Howard a three-year deal while waiting until free agency could give the big man a five-year pact.
7:56am: After indicating for months that the Brooklyn Nets were the only team he had long-term interest in, Dwight Howard has signaled that he'd be willing to re-up with the Lakers if he were traded to Los Angeles, according to Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com. ESPN.com's Chris Broussard and Ramona Shelburne confirm Rudolph's report, noting that, while the Lakers haven't yet been informed of any change in Howard's thinking, the team has "always figured" he'd come around on a long-term extension if he were dealt to the Lakers.
While the Lakers remain "dogged" in their pursuit of Howard, it appears to be the Magic that are holding up any deal, according to ESPN.com. Orlando is willing to trade D12, of course, but doesn't want to rush into making a trade it isn't 100% sure about. The Magic have discussed the possibility of acquiring Andrew Bynum themselves or re-routing Bynum to a third team such as Houston or Cleveland in exchange for draft picks and cap relief — if Bynum comes to Orlando, Broussard says the young center would want to test the free agent market next summer, which may give the Magic doubts about acquiring him.
In the past, reports have suggested that Howard was reluctant to join the Lakers in part because he didn't want to follow in Shaquille O'Neal's footsteps and in part because he was worried he might take a back seat on a team led by Kobe Bryant. However, according to Rudolph, Howard has moved past those concerns, and is confident he'd play an "integral role" with a team ready to compete for a title.
If Howard were to be dealt to the Lakers, he almost certainly wouldn't sign a new contract immediately. He could maximize his earnings by waiting until the end of the season and then signing a five-year, max-salary deal, like Deron Williams did with the Nets earlier this month. An in-season extension would only lock up him for a maximum of three more years.
Magic, Lakers, Cavs Making Progress In D12 Talks
6:45pm: The Cavaliers are eager partners in the trade talks but won’t proceed until the Lakers grant them permission to talk to Bynum and his agent about the center’s willingness to sign a contract extension, league sources told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Meanwhile, the Lakers want the deal agreed to in principle before letting Cleveland talk to Bynum and his representatives.
2:07pm: David Lee, the agent for Bynum, told Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal that he hasn't been approached by Cavs GM Chris Grant at all about a possible trade, adding, "I would imagine any team involved in this trade would be smart enough to talk to us" (Sulia link).
Asked if Bynum would be open to a long-term deal with the Cavs, Lee declined comment, but said he was baffled by a recent report that named Cleveland as a potential destination for his client in free agency: "I was taken aback by the list considering there is nobody in anybody’s camp he could’ve been talking to. I have no idea where that came about" (Sulia links).
11:03am: The Magic, Lakers, and Cavaliers have the "framework" in place for a trade that would send Dwight Howard to Los Angeles and Andrew Bynum to Cleveland, according to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (via Twitter). While Amico hears that the three teams are moving closer to a deal, a Lakers official denies that anything is imminent (Twitter link). Amico clarifies that there is talk throughout the league that a trade is getting closer, but none of those rumblings seem to be coming from the Magic, Lakers, or Cavs camps (Twitter link).
Overnight reports suggested that Howard has become open to the idea of signing a long-term deal if he's traded to the Lakers, which removes one significant roadblock from the discussions. However, the Magic still don't appear to be in any rush to pull the trigger quite yet. I'd be a little surprised if they finalized a deal before the Rockets get resolution on Omer Asik and are able to make their final offer to Orlando.
The talks involving the Magic, Lakers, and Cavs would reportedly include the Lakers taking on Howard and a bad contract or two, the Cavs acquiring Bynum and perhaps another bad contract, and the Magic getting Anderson Varejao, draft picks, and cap relief.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Wednesday
A morning report yesterday suggested that the Lakers were "pushing hard" for Dwight Howard, but nothing seemed to come of it, as follow-up reports indicated that the two teams had been talking for weeks without making a ton of progress. With a few months before the season begins, the Magic don't seem to be in any hurry to move Howard, but the rumors keep trickling in. Here's Wednesday's latest:
- The Cavaliers have inched back ahead of the Rockets as the potential facilitator for a Magic/Lakers deal, according to ESPN.com's Ric Bucher. Bucher says the Cavs are discussing a three-way trade that would see them land Andrew Bynum for a package that includes draft picks and Anderson Varejao. However, nothing is close.
Earlier updates:
- The Lakers have no interest in taking on Hedo Turkoglu in a deal for Howard, but could be open to taking on Jason Richardson's contract, says Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.
- There was no face-to-face meeting between Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and Magic GM Rob Hennigan yesterday to discuss Howard, according to Ramona Shelburne and Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- While the Cavaliers and Rockets have been involved in trade talks as a potential third-team facilitator, the most substantial talks have been directly between the Lakers and Magic.
- Although Howard will still not commit to signing an extension in Los Angeles, the team is willing to continue its pursuit of him without any assurances. It's not clear if the Magic feel the same way about Andrew Bynum, however.
- The Lakers have been "resistant" to the idea of taking on any bad contracts from Orlando, especially since signing Steve Nash to an expensive three-year deal.
- The latest round of Howard discussions "is starting to hamstring business around the league," and there's a belief that the Lakers or one of the other Howard suitors could pull out of talks at some point this week to focus on other moves, like the Nets did.
- If the Lakers back off of Howard, they'd turn their attention to re-signing Jordan Hill and extending Bynum.
Free Agent Rumors: Timberwolves, Rush, Mills
A couple more notable names came off the free agent market this morning, when Kris Humphries landed a two-year deal from the Nets and Grant Hill agreed to sign with the Clippers. While a number of solid rotation players are still available, the market is rapidly thinning for teams in search of starters. As clubs continue to jockey to sign the remaining available players, we'll track many of today's free agent rumors right here:
- Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune lists who the Timberwolves will target with nearly $14MM in cap space if they lose out on Nicolas Batum, specifically highlighting Courtney Lee, Jordan Hill, and Greg Stiemsma.
- Marcus Thompson of the Contra Costa Times says that despite the delay on an official decision regarding Brandon Rush's future, the Warriors are still likely to retain him.
Earlier updates:
Odds & Ends: Gordon, Cavaliers, Vazquez
- Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago discusses why the Bulls' title window will shrink over the next two seasons.
- Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer describes the progress that Byron Mullens appears to be making with the Bobcats based on his performances at the Las Vegas Summer League.
- 76ers head coach Doug Collins says he feels "very good" about what the team has accomplished during this offseason, writes John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com.