Celtics Frontrunners To Sign Hollins
The Boston Herald is reporting that the Celtics are considered by league sources to be the frontrunners to land free agent center Ryan Hollins when he clears waivers.
Hollins was waived on Tuesday by the Cavaliers, and the Celtics have been rumored to be interested, especially in light of the news that Jermaine O'Neal will miss the remainder of the season.
Hollins, 27, averaged 3.7 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 24 games with the Cavaliers this season. He is in the final year of a three-year deal worth $7MM, and is making $2.4MM this season. He will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Odds & Ends: Kaman, Gee, Arenas
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Wednesday night:
- NBA.com's David Aldridge reports (via Twitter) that the Hornets' stated plan to finish out the season with Chris Kaman, rather than pursuing a buyout, has not changed.
- Cavaliers coach Byron Scott told the Plain-Dealer's Tom Reed (Twitter link) that the team views Alonzo Gee as a long-term piece going forward. Gee is set to become a restricted free agent this summer.
- Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace told radio host Chris Vernon (Twitter link) that the seed for his signing of Gilbert Arenas was planted by a blog post that was sent to him.
Buyout Updates: Hickson, Hollins, Cook
Boris Diaw is the latest player to be bought out by his team, as he and the Bobcats parted ways today. Rumors continue to swirl about where he and other free-agents-to-be could land, with the latest report suggesting Diaw could be headed for San Antonio. Here are the most recent updates on where bought-out players could sign, and who might receive a buyout next:
- J.J. Hickson is still expected to sign with the Warriors if and when he clears waivers, tweets SI.com's Sam Amick.
- In addition to sharing a few notes on what the Cavaliers' offseason could bring, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio provides an update on Ryan Hollins in his weekly chat — the big man is drawing interest from the Celtics and Mavericks, according to Amico.
- Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star adds the Pacers to the list of potential suitors for Hollins (Twitter link).
- Brian Cook is unlikely to pursue a buyout from the Wizards, his agent tells Michael Lee of the Washington Post.
Cavaliers Waive Ryan Hollins
8:16 pm: The decision to part ways was mutual, writes Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. Lloyd also characterizes the move as a buyout, meaning Hollins was motivated enough to leave the team that he was willing to give back a part of his $2.48MM salary.
11:56am: The Cavaliers have placed Ryan Hollins on waivers, the team announced today. The move reduces Cleveland's roster to 14 players.
The Cavs have been busy since Thursday's trade deadline, adding guards Donald Sloan and Manny Harris on rest-of-season contracts, and waiving Jason Kapono. The Hollins move is a little surprising — although the 27-year-old wasn't a key contributor for Cleveland, he was averaging 15+ MPG this season, and has a cap figure of $2.48MM in the final season of a three-year contract.
Hollins will join J.J. Hickson and Ronny Turiaf on the big man market as a potential target for contenders. Though he's shown flashes of promise in the past, the 7'0" center struggled this season, averaging 3.7 PPG, 2.3 RPG, and just 7.0 PER in his 24 games.
Cleveland will look for another big man to fill out its roster, according to the Plain Dealer (Twitter link).
Latest On J.J. Hickson
After failing to find a trade at last week's deadline, the Kings parted ways with J.J. Hickson yesterday, buying him out of the remainder of his contract. Hickson is expected to land in Golden State, but still needs to clear waivers, and may have other teams interested in him. Here's the latest on Hickson, with the newest updates up top:
- Hickson will likely pick the Warriors over the Suns because Golden State can offer him a larger role, says Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
- As we covered earlier, the Pacers, Cavaliers, and Raptors, who all have enough cap space to easily absorb Hickson's $2.35MM salary, won't be placing waiver claims, according to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld.
- In an interview with Cowbell Kingdom, Hickson acknowledged he's considering the Suns in addition to the Warriors: "We’re still talking and hopefully I can find the right situation for myself and then we’ll go from there."
- A Warriors exec told Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group that he's not sure why Hickson has fallen off so much, "but we want to find out."
- The Nets aren't interested in Hickson, says Fred Kerber of the New York Post.
Kyler On Arenas, Hickson, Turiaf, Fisher, Powell
In his latest NBA AM piece for HoopsWorld, Steve Kyler checks in on a few free agents and free-agents-to-be, providing updates on their potential destinations. Let's round up the highlights….
- Gilbert Arenas is expected to take a physical and finalize his deal with the Grizzlies today.
- The Pacers, Cavaliers, and Raptors, who all have enough cap space to easily absorb J.J. Hickson's $2.35MM salary, won't be placing waiver claims.
- A number of teams are interested in Ronny Turiaf but "word is" the forward will likely decide between the Celtics and Heat. Like Hickson, he doesn't figure to be claimed on waivers by clubs with cap space.
- The Lakers have extended an offer to Derek Fisher to join the team's basketball operations staff. However, it doesn't appear Fisher is ready to retire just yet. We heard earlier today that the Thunder and Heat are the favorites to land the longtime Laker.
- Josh Powell is drawing interest from the Suns and Celtics, as Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reported last night. I believe Powell signed in Switzerland late in February, and I haven't seen any reports that indicate he's parted ways with Neuchatel. The Swiss regular season has ended though, so perhaps Powell is lining up an NBA job for when he returns. Since he hasn't played for an NBA team this season, he can sign after March 23rd and still be eligible for the postseason.
Finnan On Sessions, Kapono, Walton, Boykins
Three games behind the surging Knicks in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, the Cavaliers have a vastly different roster than they did a week ago heading into the final stretch of the season. They'll play host Sunday afternoon to the Hawks amidst a full slate of NBA action. Let's take a look at what The News-Herald's Bob Finnan has to say about the current state of the Cavaliers in the wake of what was a busy trade deadline for the club.
- Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak is very pleased to have been able to acquire Ramon Sessions from the Cavaliers for a first-round pick projected in the mid-20s. "In terms of the draft picks, I don't think we could've found a Ramon Sessions if he were available in the 20s this year in the draft," Kupchak said.
- The Cavs' decision to cut Jason Kapono wasn't a premeditated move by the team but rather a numbers game given that the Cavs needed to find a roster spot for Manny Harris. As part of the Sessions trade, the Lakers provided the Cavs with enough money to cover the cost of waiving Kapono.
- Much of the criticism surrounding what the Cavaliers received from the Lakers stems from Luke Walton's $6.1MM contract for next year. The hefty price tag for adding a first-round pick hasn't deterred Cavs head coach Byron Scott from feeling optimistic about the team's standing heading into the draft. "I'm very excited about what we did as far as getting another first-round pick, which is very exciting for us to go along with the one we have and our two second-round picks," Scott said. "So, like I said in the short term and in the long term, it was the best thing for us to do and we feel pretty good about it."
- If the Cavs didn't resign Harris, they would have seriously considered adding Earl Boykins to the mix. Boykins, 35, was serviceable last season with the Bucks where he averaged 7.2 PPG in limited action.
Central Notes: Nocioni, Pistons, Kaman, Walton
The Bulls are the class of the Central Division and the league, topping the NBA with a 36-10 mark heading into tonight's game with the Sixers. Here's what's happening with a couple of other teams in the division trying to build toward what Chicago has now:
- Don't expect to see Andres Nocioni back with the Bulls as the team would add a shooting guard or a big man if they were to make an addition, tweets Mike McGraw of the Daily Herald. The Sixers released the forward this morning.
- According to Keith Langlois of Pistons.com, the Pistons were not in the running for Patrick Mills, who is close to joining the Spurs (Twitter link). That contradicts an earlier report from Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
- Langlois also looks at the patient approach of Pistons GM Joe Dumars and passes along that Detroit may look to sign Chris Kaman, a Michigan native, as a free agent in the offseason.
- New Cav Luke Walton, acquired this week in the Ramon Sessions deal, said he and Lakers coach Mike Brown "weren't on the same page" in L.A., according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. Nonetheless, Walton was still caught off guard by the trade. Cleveland coach Byron Scott is complimentary of Walton's skills and basketball IQ, but isn't sure what his role will be, Amico writes.
Cavs Waive Kapono, Sign Harris
The Cavs have waived forward Jason Kapono and signed guard Manny Harris, the Associated Press confirms. The moves had been anticipated last night.
Harris returns to the team after signing a pair of 10-day contracts earlier this year. His contract, likely for the minimum salary, will be guaranteed for the rest of the season. Harris played 54 games with the Cavs last year and with the team in training camp before this season began, but was cut after suffering a bizarre freezer burn injury at Nike facilities in Oregon. The 6'5", 185-pound University of Michigan product has averaged 5.8 points, 1.5 assists and 2.5 rebounds in two seasons.
Kapono, acquired in the deal that sent Ramon Sessions to the Lakers, is a three-point specialist who's fallen on hard times. A career 43.4% three-point shooter, his long-distance accuracy has slipped to 25.7% over the last two seasons.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first tweeted last night that Kapono would likely be waived. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal reported via Twitter that Harris would replace him. Tom Reed of The Plain Dealer added detail.
Cavs To Waive Jason Kapono, Sign Manny Harris
9:01pm: Cleveland is expected to sign Manny Harris to replace Kapono on the roster, tweets Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. The team had signed Harris to a pair of 10-day deals earlier this year, so his latest contract will be for the rest of the season. With signing of Donald Sloan earlier today, Harris would put the Cavs roster back at 15 players.
7:12pm: The Cavs plan to waive small forward Jason Kapono, whom they acquired from the Lakers via trade yesterday, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Tom Reed of The Plain Dealer adds detail in a story.
Kapono is on a one-year minimum-salary deal, making $1,223,166. He counts for $854,389 against the cap, which the Cavs will still be on the hook for unless someone puts in a claim for him. Their post-trade payroll of $70.5MM is well over the cap, but because $18MM of that is a cap hold for the expired Wally Szczerbiak, they are nowhere near the luxury tax threshold.
The 6'8", 213-pound Kapono's specialty has been the three-point shot, having made 43.4% of his long-range attempts throughout his nine-year career. This year, though, the 30-year-old's three-point percentage is only 29.6% in spot duty for the Lakers. He averaged 2.0 points in 10 minutes a game for L.A.