Odds & Ends: Brand, CP3, Obradovic, Rush
Let’s round up a few odds and ends from around the Association….
- Elton Brand tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he was “a little surprised” that the Mavericks didn’t re-sign him this summer. However, the veteran big man added that Dallas had been in the mix: “They had to get their cap situation straight and they did tender an offer.”
- Appearing on Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (video link), Chris Paul admits that he could see himself retiring a little earlier than expected in order to spend more time with his children (hat tip to Matt Moore of Eye on Basketball). Of course, the Clippers guard just signed a five-year deal with the club this summer, so he’s not about to call it a career anytime soon.
- Rigas Dardalis of Eurohoops.net translates an interview with longtime Panathinaikos coach Zeljko Obradovic on Greece’s OTE TV. Shortly after the 2012/13 NBA season ended, Obradovic said he’d consider taking an NBA job if a playoff team reached out to him, but he tells OTE TV that while a couple clubs were considering interviewing him, none ended up contacting him directly.
- After recently working out at the Lakers facility, former NBA vet Kareem Rush is prepared to rejoin the team’s D-League affiliate, the L.A. D-Fenders, he tells Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). Rush appeared in seven games for the D-Fenders in 2011/12.
Mavs Waive Balkman, Ebanks, Kennedy, Melo
5:02pm: The Mavs have waived Renaldo Balkman, Devin Ebanks, D.J. Kennedy and Fab Melo, the team announced via press release. The move makes official the news about Balkman that he himself revealed earlier today, and leaves Mickey McConnell as the team’s only camp invitee left. McConnell, a 24-year-old guard, was the only player without NBA experience that Dallas brought to camp, but it appears as though he might have made the strongest impression. Still, it seems unlikely he’ll remain with the club through the end of the week, since the Mavs would have to cut someone on a fully guaranteed deal to keep him.
It’s the second time in two months that Melo has hit waivers, after the Grizzlies let him go in late August. That was shortly after Memphis acquired him from the Celtics, and it appears the NBA career of the center whom Boston drafted 22nd overall in 2012 is in jeopardy. Ebanks turned down a $650K offer from China to sign with the Mavs, so perhaps he’ll head overseas, if the Chinese club is still interested. An Italian team had interest in Kennedy before he indicated he would prefer to sign in the NBA, so he could be headed for international ball, too.
Balkman admits his violent incident while playing in the Philippines last year could make some front offices squeamish, but his camp stint with the Mavs, where coach Rick Carlisle counted him as a welcome presence, could help his chances of returning to the NBA at some point. All four players the Mavs waived today were on non-guaranteed deals, so the team isn’t on the hook for any of their salaries.
4:57pm: Renaldo Balkman has told Puerto Rican radio station TAB Deportes 101.3 that the Mavs have let him go (Twitter link; translation via Sportando). The team has yet to officially announce the move, but the subtraction would be no surprise, since he’s one of five players with non-guaranteed deals on the Mavs, who have 15 others on fully guaranteed contracts, as our roster counts show.
Odds & Ends: Knicks, Wolves, Hummel, ‘Cats
Carmelo Anthony says he doesn’t expect Kobe Bryant to woo him to the Lakers, but Frank Isola of the New York Daily News is convinced the two have already spoken about teaming up, and interprets Anthony’s statement this week that he wants to test free agency as a warning shot designed to spur the Knicks into improving the team around him. We’ll have to wait until summer to find out what ‘Melo winds up doing, but there are plenty of moves to be made around the league between now and then. Here’s the latest:
- The Timberwolves are exploring potential trades and free agent signings as well as internal candidates to replace Chase Budinger while he recovers from left knee surgery, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. Minnesota continues to debate whether Derrick Williams can back up Corey Brewer at small forward or whether the former No. 2 overall pick should stick to playing power forward.
- Shooting is Robbie Hummel‘s specialty, but he has more weapons in his arsenal as he attempts to make the Wolves, as Bruce Brothers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press examines.
- The Bobcats don’t appear nearly as high on Bismack Biyombo as they were when they drafted him seventh overall in 2011, and the onus is on him to show improvement, writes Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer. He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension after this season.
- Toure Murry looks like he’s eclipsed C.J. Leslie as the favorite for a spot on the team, but scouts from other clubs, including the Heat, are monitoring him in case the Knicks let him go, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- Mark Cuban is particularly excited about Mavs free agent signee Monta Ellis, and told reporters, including Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News, that the organization has been impressed with his passing.
Knicks Notes: Carmelo, Woodson, Shumpert
The biggest NBA headline yesterday involved Carmelo Anthony, who told the New York Observer that he was looking forward to testing free agency, strongly implying that he’d turn down his player option for 2014/15 and hit the open market next summer. Anthony spoke to the media today about those comments, so let’s round up today’s highlights related to Carmelo and the rest of the Knicks…
- While Anthony acknowledged that there’s a good chance he opts out next summer, he told reporters, including Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com, that it doesn’t mean he plans to leave New York. “Me leaving never came across in my mind,” Anthony said. “[Free agency] was just an experience that I thought would be an experience I’d want to experience.”
- Asked about Carmelo’s situation, coach Mike Woodson replied, “I don’t see him leaving. That’s just my thought,” according to Begley.
- Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reads into Carmelo’s response to a question about the Lakers, predicting that L.A. will be the Knicks’ primary competitor for the star forward’s services next summer.
- In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Amir Elhassan provides an FAQ for Anthony’s upcoming free agency, in which he speculates that the Mavericks, Pistons, and Bobcats could also try to make a run at Carmelo.
- Exploring a subject that doesn’t involve Anthony, Chris Herring of the Wall Street Journal wonders why the Knicks’ front office seems somewhat lukewarm on Iman Shumpert. The third-year guard will be eligible for a long-term extension next offseason.
Southwest Links: Melo, Mavs, Rockets, Leuer
Let’s round up a few Wednesday notes out of the Southwest Division….
- Fab Melo‘s size should give him a chance to make the Mavericks‘ opening night roster, though the fact that Dallas is carrying 15 guaranteed contracts will make it an uphill battle, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News. According to Sefko, if Melo were to displace a player with a guaranteed deal, Bernard James would likely be the odd man out.
- While the Mavs will have to cut at least five players from their current 20-man roster eventually, head coach Rick Carlisle tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he’s in no rush to do so.
- Most NBA players are happy to land multiyear contracts rather than annually revisiting the free agent process. But as Mark Deeks explains in a piece for HoopsWorld, longer-term deals that are heavily non-guaranteed are far more advantageous to teams than players. Deeks points to the Rockets as a team that frequently takes advantage of the benefits of non-guaranteed deals, using Omri Casspi‘s two-year pact as an example.
- When the Grizzlies first acquired Jon Leuer from the Cavaliers, he looked like a throw-in in a cost-cutting deal. However, Memphis re-signed Leuer to a three-year contract with two guaranteed seasons this summer, and as he tells Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the former Wisconsin Badger is “really happy” with his situation.
Western Notes: Jazz, Gortat, Bogut, Ebanks
Trey Burke is set to have surgery on his broken right finger tomorrow, and Jody Genessy of the Deseret News hears from the rookie’s agent that the injury could sideline Burke for more than eight weeks. It’s bad news for the Jazz, who don’t have a ton of point guard depth, but the team isn’t rushing to find a replacement, and is still in info-gathering mode, according to Genessy (via Twitter).
One option that doesn’t appear to be on the table for Utah is bringing over second-round pick Raul Neto. According to GM Dennis Lindsey, via Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune, Neto’s team in Spain (Lagun Aro) is in a similar building process to the Jazz, so Utah wouldn’t try to lure away one of its best players (Twitter links).
Here’s more on the Jazz and a few other Western teams:
- Luhm adds in another tweet that Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said today there are a couple of free agents who are looking for more than what the club is willing to pay.
- Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic spoke to Marcin Gortat about entering a contract year and the possibility of remaining with the Suns long-term.
- Andrew Bogut reiterated to Sam Amick of USA Today that he likes playing for the Warriors and wants to stay in Golden State beyond this season, but noted that Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry probably felt the same way before they signed elsewhere. In other words, Bogut hopes to remain with the Warriors, but recognizes anything could happen next summer in free agency.
- On the heels of a report indicating Corey Maggette figures to retire if he’s waived by the Spurs, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld notes (via Twitter) that the veteran has long been interested in an executive job. Maggette participated in the NBPA’s Leadership Development Program, which prepares players for front office roles.
- The NBA announced today that Devin Ebanks has been suspended two games for pleading nolo contendere to driving under the influence of alcohol. Ebanks is currently trying to earn a spot on the Mavericks‘ regular-season roster — he was already a long shot, but his suspension certainly doesn’t help his chances.
Odds & Ends: Wolves, Teague, Sims, O’Quinn
The Timberwolves, like the Jazz, have shown interest at one point or another in Bulls point guard Marquis Teague, a league source tells K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Johnson doesn’t make it sound as though the Wolves are currently pursuing Teague, but if the Bulls aren’t sold on him, that bodes well for the chances that 38-year-old point guard Mike James makes Chicago’s opening night roster on his non-guaranteed deal. The Tribune scribe checks in with James, who would be the league’s fourth oldest player if he makes the squad, and we’ve got more from around the NBA:
- Injuries have created an opportunity for Henry Sims, who’s more or less functioning as the Cavs backup center for now, writes Jodie Valade of The Plain Dealer, who examines the 23-year-old’s thrust to make the opening night roster on a non-guaranteed contract.
- Kyle O’Quinn‘s contract is non-guaranteed, but he’s been starting preseason games for the Magic. Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel examines Jacque Vaughn‘s curious decision to start O’Quinn over Tobias Harris.
- Knicks coach Mike Woodson says no decision is imminent regarding which of the team’s big men in camp will stick around for the regular season, hinting that it will take most or all of the preseason for the club to make its call, Newsday’s Al Iannazzone notes.
- Spencer Hawes is entering the final year of his contract with the Sixers, just as he was in the autumns of 2010 and 2011, but he says he’s learned from experience and isn’t “psyching” himself out the way he feels he did before, notes Tom Moore of The Intelligencer.
- Renaldo Balkman believes some coaches and GMs hold his troubled past against him, but Mavs coach Rick Carlisle isn’t among them, and Balkman is determined to use his non-guaranteed deal with Dallas to prove that he belongs in the NBA. Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has the details.
Odds & Ends: Burke, Jefferson, NBPA
Jazz rookie Trey Burke fractured his right index finger and will be evaluated on Monday tweets Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. Genessy notes, via Twitter, that Scott Machado has been given the most time behind Burke and John Lucas III at point guard this preseason.
Genessy also wonders, in a tweet, whether the Jazz will bring someone else in depending on the severity of Burke’s injury, and mentions Jamaal Tinsley as a possibility. Marc Stein of ESPN tweets that he’s heard of interest from the Jazz about the Bulls’ Marquis Teague, and postulates they may revisit that with Burke going down. The Jazz will find out Monday whether Burke’s fractured finger will require surgery, Stein adds (Twitter).
Here are a smattering of other links from around the league tonight:
- After the Bobcats‘ big free agent, Al Jefferson, severely sprained his ankle, he told the AP in Milwaukee that he’s trying to be back for opening night, tweets the Charlotte Observer’s Rick Bonnell.
- That’s 18 days away, Bonnell adds on Twitter, and he wonders in his next tweet whether the Bobcats might look to add a center in the interim.
- The Mavericks pickup of DeJuan Blair this summer might be huge for them, as we noted earlier tonight. Blair is looking forward to playing his former team, the Mavs intra-state rival Spurs, writes the Star-Telegram’s Dwain Price.
- Blair’s bitterness about his time in San Antonio is evident when he tells Price, “[the Spurs] didn’t give me nothing when I was there. I mean, the fans gave me everything, but everything else, it is what it is. I don’t look at that. I look for us to get a win.”
- Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News reports that the NBPA will not pay their new union head the $3MM annually that former executive director Billy Hunter made before he was ousted. Union sources say the annual pay will be around $1.5MM for the new executive director.
- The Knicks lost to the Celtics by 30 tonight in preseason action, but Touré Murry and Ike Diogu both made a case for a roster spot, writes ESPN New York’s Ian Begley.
Western Notes: Blair, Durant, ‘Wolves
With Brandan Wright out indefinitely after a left shoulder injury, free agent signee DeJuan Blair, is learning both the power forward and center assignments with the Mavs, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
The 6’7″ Blair is under-sized for a center, but as he told Sefko, “I’ve been playing five all my life against 7-footers.” Blair was largely relegated to the Spurs bench the last season. He only started 16 games and played only 76 minutes during their run to the Finals last year. So look for him to be extra motivated if given a significant opportunity in Dallas.
Here’s more from around the West tonight:
- As mentioned previously, the Oklahoman’s Darnell Mayberry spoke with Thunder coach Scott Brooks about Kevin Durant‘s minutes with Russell Westbrook expected to miss the first quarter of the season.
- Assuming Durant appears in at least 79 games this season, at 38 minutes a night, that would have him playing over 3,000 regular season minutes for the fourth time in five seasons. Ben Wallace in 2004/05 was the last player to win a title after playing over 3,000 minutes during the regular season.
- But it’s a workload Brooks plans to manage with off days and practice time and Durant appears up to the challenge, as long as it helps them win.
- Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman is looking for more continuity from his starters in preseason despite the second straight game without Kevin Martin, he tells Jerry Zgoda of the Star-Tribune.
- But, Zgoda tweets that Adelman has no idea if a week of rest will get Martin back on the court, though he certainly hopes so.
- Zgoda goes on to say that Othyus Jeffers, A.J. Price, Robbie Hummel and Lorenzo Brown are battling for what will likely be two spots when the team waives Chris Johnson.
- But Adelman says the Wolves could add players cut from other training camps once teams pare down their rosters in the final week of preseason.
- Adelman is also happy former ‘Wolves assistant Bill Bayno was hired as lead assistant for the Raptors (Twitter).
Western Notes: Ridnour, Blazers, Jazz, Mavs
HoopsWorld’s Jabari Davis looks at how five of the most compelling additions to Western Conference teams are already influencing their new franchises just a couple weeks into the preseason. One of them is Eric Bledsoe, who faces extra pressure with a Halloween deadline to work out an extension with the Suns. Phoenix’s front office already has plenty on its hands, needing to get rid of at least one fully guaranteed contract within the next two weeks. Point guard Ish Smith leads a tight race among voters in our poll on which of the 16 Suns with guaranteed deals is most likely to be waived. Here’s more news related to Western Conference teams:
- Luke Ridnour is with the Bucks this season, a fact his former coach with the Wolves regrets, notes Charles F. Garnder of the Journal Sentinel. “We didn’t really want to get rid of Luke,” Rick Adelman said. “We had to make some moves, and he was the one that everybody wanted, and I know why.”
- New Blazers point guards Mo Williams and Earl Watson both spent last season with the Jazz, but neither begrudges the team’s decision not to sign any of its free agents and instead focus on its youth, observes Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune.
- Brandan Wright‘s shoulder injury creates opportunities for others on the Mavericks, including Fab Melo and Renaldo Balkman, who are on non-guaranteed deals, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News examines.