Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Rumors: Fogg, Shaw, Connelly

September 30th, 2013 at 4:14pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's the latest news out of Denver..

The Nuggets announced their complete training camp roster which includes a new name in guard Kyle Fogg. The 6'3" guard averaged 6.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists for the D-League's Rio Grande Valley Vipers last season. Fogg averaged 13.5 PPG in his senior season at Arizona in 2011/12, but went undrafted.
Coach Brian Shaw won't say that this year's Nuggets squad will finish with less wins than last year (57), but he does acknowledge that there will be a focus on player development, writes Terry Frei of The Denver Post. The coach was also asked about a timetable for the return of Danilo Gallinari, but that's still an unknown at this point.
General Manager Tim Connelly says that Denver was lucky to land Nate Robinson because he was being pursued by playoff teams, tweets Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post. The GM also acknowledged that the team isn't where he'd like it to be as the season draws near. While he likes the players he has, he won't hesitate to make a change if one is needed.

Northwest Notes: Corbin, Shaw, Nuggets, Jazz, Biedrins

September 29th, 2013 at 5:30pm CST by Zachary Links

Josh Howard's 2012/13 campaign with the Timberwolves lasted just eleven games before he tore his ACL and now he's looking to figure things out for the upcoming season. The forward, who was once a prominent member of the Mavs, has had good workouts with the Spurs and Rockets, but hasn't gotten a training camp invite yet. Here's today's look at the Northwest Division..

Agent Steve Kauffman said he hasn't begun negotiating an extension for client Tyrone Corbin with the Jazz and tells Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune that he doesn't expect such a deal to get done. Instead, Kauffman would rather Corbin receive a new, long-term contract with the team next summer.
Brian Shaw is obviously happy to have his head coaching opportunity, but life has gotten quite busy since he joined the Nuggets, writes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. "It's been crazy," Shaw said. "It's been unusual. I wouldn't have imagined all of the stuff that doesn't really have to do with basketball that I've had to do. I knew administratively it would be a little different than what I was accustomed to, with the obligations."
While Andris Biedrins and Richard Jefferson are several years past their primes, the Jazz are hopeful they can bounce back to their old form and provide veteran savvy, writes Jody Gennesy of the Deseret News. Utah is also optimistic that Brandon Rush can be a "3 and D" player who can help stretch defenses with his outside shooting and guard opposing two-guards vigorously.

Northwest Notes: Jazz, T-Wolves, Clibanoff

September 28th, 2013 at 9:53pm CST by Spencer Lund

Tyrone Corbin is entering his fourth year as the coach of the Jazz. We mentioned earlier ESPN Insider Amin Elhassan's belief Corbin is on the coaching hot seat this season, with front court nucleus Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson gone in free agency to the Hawks and Bobcats, respectively.

Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune profiles Corbin as he enters the final year of his contract with the Jazz "where an extension is unlikely." Corbin will shepherd an inexperienced group unlikely to cause much of a ruckus in the tough Western Conference. His place as part of the rebuilding Jazz is murky, at best.

Here's what else is happening around the Northwest division on a jam-packed Saturday night as NBA training camps finally open…

The Deseret News' Jody Genessy details the 20 training camp Jazz invites, including Justin Holiday, the older brother (Twitter) of Pelicans point guard Jrue Holiday.
Justin Holiday, Genessy adds via Twitter, is one of 7 players who will be in Jazz camp with non-guaranteed deals, as well as the 13 players (Twitter) already with guaranteed deals.
Jerry Zgoda of the Star-Tribune details the five major issues facing the Timberwolves as they enter training camp. The primary issue is health with their nucleus of Nikola Pekovic, Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio, all missing time last season as the 'Wolves again failed to reach the playoffs.
Zgoda also goes through the uncertain contract status of power forward Derrick Williams. If the 'Wolves don't exercise their option paying him $6.33MM next season, the former No. 2 overall pick will become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
With the 'Wolves facing a lot of contract unknowns in the near future Williams place with them is uncertain.
The Timberwolves' Chase Budinger may miss 6-8 weeks as swelling and discomfort continue in the same left knee that sidelined him for all but five games last season, Zgoda reported earlier today. An MRI revealed, according to coach Flip Saunders, "a little something in there." The news comes fresh after Budinger re-signed with the 'Wolves for three years and $15MM this summer.
Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman asked Thunder players Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka what nicknames they'd put on their jerseys if the NBA allowed the practice.
Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski tweets that the Nuggets have hired Jim Clibanoff as Director of Scouting. Previously, Clibanoff ran a respected private scouting service.

Western Notes: Aldridge, Kanter, Gallinari, Pau

September 26th, 2013 at 7:23pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Ben Golliver of BlazersEdge relays a portion of the transcript from a radio interview between Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports and John Canzano of 750 AM The Game as it relates to trade rumors surrounding LaMarcus Aldridge. Wojnarowski believes that while the circumstances could change, he can't imagine Aldridge leaving Portland in the foreseeable future and adds that the team hasn't shopped him. He's also not sure if the market is currently presenting anything worth trading for and doesn't think Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey is likely to deal the 6'11 big man for pennies on the dollar. Here are more miscellaneous notes out of the Western Conference tonight, including a handful of injury updates:

Tim Cowlishaw of SportsDayDFW thinks that while the Mavericks could be okay this year, he's concerned about two to three years down the line when the team might not have any young stars to build around.
In a piece for The Oregonian, Canzano says that he wants someone from the Trail Blazers to step up and guarantee a playoff berth.
Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune reports that Jazz big man Enes Kanter has looked great in workouts, has had no issues with his shoulder, and participated in 5-on-5 scrimmages today for the first time since his injury (Twitter links).
Nuggets head coach Brian Shaw wouldn't commit to any projected recovery timetable for injured forward Danilo Gallinari, saying that it isn't "anything that anyone can determine at this point" (Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post).
Mark Medina of InsideSocal passes along an injury update from Lakers forward Pau Gasol, who looks to be fully healthy heading into this season after a summer of much-need rest and rehab.
In a piece for Sports Illustrated, Ben Golliver made note that Rockets guard James Harden believes that he is a top-10 player (hat tip to Comcast Sportsnet Houston): "For sure. Last year I got a chance to prove it, I kind of broke out of the shell a little bit. Even though it was my first year (as a starter), I've got a lot more to prove. I've always kind of been the underdog, always been looked over, so it's nothing new."
Sean Meagher of OregonLive.com provides season previews for the Thunder and Jazz with help from Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK and Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune, respectively.
Jim Eichenhofer of Pelicans.com continued his list of reasons to be excited about training camp in New Orleans, listing a fresh start for Tyreke Evans at number five.

Odds & Ends: Jazz, Hawks, Nuggets, Grizzlies

September 23rd, 2013 at 9:59pm CST by Zachary Links

The league and the NBPA are still far apart on a testing policy for human growth hormone (HGH), sources tell Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Stern wanted something in place before the start of the 2013/14 season, but that doesn't seem terribly likely at this point. Officials from the league office and the union met earlier this month to continue discussions on the matter, but a person familiar with the talks told Berger, "Nothing is anywhere near being agreed to." Here's tonight's look around the Association..

Forward Joe Trapani is working out with the Jazz this week, a source told Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (on Twitter). The 25-year-old Boston College product has been playing in Italy for the last few years.
Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution sat down with Al Horford of the Hawks for a wide-ranging interview. Atlanta is in a rebuilding phase, but the big man says that he trusts GM Danny Ferry.
Andre Iguodala feels that he deserves a good amount of credit for the Nuggets' improved defense last season, writes Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post.
The Grizzlies have officially finalized their coaching staff, announcing the hirings of four assistants, including Elston Turner.

Western Rumors: Budinger, Lakers, Vasquez

September 20th, 2013 at 9:12pm CST by Chuck Myron

A handful of teams were reportedly suitors of Chase Budinger this summer, but after just a single injury-shortened year in Minnesota, the Timberwolves had already won his heart, as he told reporters today, including Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (video link).

"It was a fairly easy decision." Budinger said of re-signing with the Wolves. "I just fit perfectly in Rick Adelman's system. He trusts me. I know the coaching staff. I know what they expect of me. Just all in all, I was very comfortable here, and that was the main reason why I came back."

Zgoda's video also shows Budinger and Dante Cunningham talking about the club's offseason additions. Here's more from Minnesota's Western Conference rivals:

Dave Murphy of Forum Blue & Gold confirms that Nick Minnerath will pass up a training camp invitation from the Lakers to play for Obradoiro in Spain (hat tip to Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times). We suspected as much when the Spanish team announced its deal last month with the undrafted former University of Detroit forward.
Greivis Vasquez hasn't yet played a game for the Kings, who acquired him via trade from the Pelicans this summer, but the team already faces a decision about whether to extend his rookie-scale deal. Sacramento GM Pete D'Alessandro is among those who praises the Venezuelan point guard in Alex Kramers' piece for Kings.com, which chronicles Vasquez's unlikely journey to the team.
The Kosta Koufos trade figures to open up the Nuggets starting center job for JaVale McGee, but Timofey Mozgov is also in line for more playing time as the primary backup at the position after inking a new three-year deal in the offseason. The big man recognizes the opportunity before him, as he tells Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com.

Jared Jeffries To Join Nuggets’ Front Office

September 17th, 2013 at 8:48am CST by Luke Adams

After 11 seasons in the NBA, Jared Jeffries is transitioning from his playing career into an executive role, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, who reports that Jeffries has accepted a front office job with the Nuggets. The 31-year-old will begin in a scouting role, a source tells Wojnarowski.

Last summer, Jeffries was part of the sign-and-trade deal that sent Raymond Felton from the Blazers to the Knicks. While sign-and-trade rules dictated that he had to sign for at least three years, only the first year of his contract was guaranteed, so Portland released him at season's end. Since then, we haven't heard any rumors connecting him to NBA teams, so it makes some sense that he would pursue an off-court position, even at age 31.

As Wojnarowski notes, Jeffries has a strong history with new Nuggets GM Tim Connelly. Jeffries played for the Wizards for the first four seasons of his career, from 2002 to 2006, when Connelly was in Washington's front office.

While the Yahoo! report doesn't technically mention retirement, it appears unlikely that the versatile veteran will return to the court for an NBA team. Assuming Jeffries has played his last game, he'll finish with averages of 4.8 PPG and 4.1 RPG in 629 career contests for the Wizards, Knicks, Rockets, and Blazers. According to Basketball-Reference, he earned a little over $40MM over the course of his NBA career.

Odds & Ends: Nunnally, Kirilenko, Brownlee, Rocks

September 16th, 2013 at 4:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

D-Leaguer James Nunnally's name has come up in connection with a handful of NBA teams of late, having drawn the attention of the Spurs, Jazz, Suns and Pelicans. The Grizzlies may be most intrigued by the 6'7" swingman out of UC-Santa Barbara, as they've invited him to camp, reports Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside. Still it doesn't sound like Nunnally has accepted that invitation yet, as he'll work as scheduled out this week for Utah and New Orleans. Here's more from this afternoon in the NBA:

An NBA investigation into Andrei Kirilenko's discount contract with the Nets has cleared the team of any wrongdoing, a source tells Fred Kerber of the New York Post. Complaints from at least one other team triggered the probe.
The Knicks are thinking of inviting small forward Justin Brownlee to camp after watching him play for their summer league squad this year. The 25-year-old from St. John's will work out for the team this week, tweets Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
Agent Burton Rocks tells Hoops Rumors that the players union has certified him and his Burton Rocks LTD firm, which boasts a dozen baseball clients, as the MLB Trade Rumors Agency Database shows. Rocks is breaking into hoops by repping former Stony Brook standout Muhammed El-Amin.
Villanova assistant coach Billy Lange has turned down the Rockets' offer to become the head coach of their D-League affiliate, but he's considering a job with the Sixers, reports Dana O'Neil of ESPN.com.
The Grizzlies traded for Kosta Koufos this summer, and they've coveted the former Nuggets big man for more than a year, as TNT's David Aldridge writes as he hits on a wide range of subjects for his weekly NBA.com column.
Forbes today published its list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, and Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen leads all sports owners in net worth, notes Darren Rovell of ESPN.com.
John Schuhmann of NBA.com examines some of the data teams will be able to use under the league's new SportVU camera deal.

Nuggets To Bring Reginald Becton To Camp

September 13th, 2013 at 7:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Nuggets have signed undrafted University of Mississippi power forward Reginald Becton, tweets Mark Deeks of ShamSports. Becton is an unexpected choice for a training camp addition, since Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress had him as only the 53rd best senior in the 2013 draft, and he didn’t take part in NBA summer league play.

The 6’9″ Becton made his mark as a shot-blocker for Ole Miss, recording 2.7 blocks in 28.4 minutes per game last season. He swatted away shots at an even better rate at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, a predraft gathering of many of the top college seniors where he recorded 2.3 BPG in 15 MPG.

Becton, who’s presumably on a non-guaranteed minimum-salary camp deal, gives the Nuggets 17 players, 14 of whom have fully guaranteed contracts. Quincy Miller‘s deal is partially guaranteed, while Damion James has a non-guaranteed pact, as Deeks reported this morning.

Nuggets Sign Damion James

September 13th, 2013 at 8:17am CST by Luke Adams

Free agent swingman Damion James will be in camp with the Nuggets this fall, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com, who reports (via Twitter) that Denver has signed James to a fully non-guaranteed contract.

James was traded from the Hawks to the Nets on draft night in 2010 after being selected with the 24th overall pick. Since then, he has bounced back and forth between the two teams — after spending the first two seasons of his NBA career in New Jersey, he was in camp with the Hawks last year. Atlanta cut him before opening night, but James signed with the Nets later in the season and appeared in a pair of games for the club.

For Denver, the 25-year-old will compete for a roster spot in camp, though it figures to be an uphill battle. The Nuggets are already carrying 14 guaranteed contracts, and also have Quincy Miller on a partially guaranteed deal. Miller didn't make much of an impression in his rookie year, but I'd be a little surprised if the Nuggets cut ties with him already, particularly since the team is already on the hook for $150K of his salary.