Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Hire Arturas Karnisovas As Assistant GM

July 13th, 2013 at 4:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Nuggets have reached an agreement with Rockets director of player personnel Arturas Karnisovas to bring him aboard as assistant GM in Denver, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports. Karnisovas will join new GM Tim Connelly with the Nuggets, who've overhauled their front office this summer. The Rockets, too, are enduring changes, having already lost executive vice president Sam Hinkie to the Sixers, where he's the new GM.

Karnisovas joined the Rockets as an international scout in 2008 after a playing career that gave him insight on the landscape in North America as well as overseas. The Lithuanian played collegiately for P.J. Carlesimo at Seton Hall before embarking on a professional career that saw him reach the Euroleague Final Four on three occasions.

The Nuggets lost GM Masai Ujiri to the Raptors this spring, while Pete D'Alessandro, Ujiri's top aide, became the new GM of the Kings. The team also replaced coach George Karl with Pacers assistant Brian Shaw.

Northwest Notes: Mozgov, Iggy, Splitter, Wolves

July 12th, 2013 at 10:10am CST by Luke Adams

With the Thunder and Nuggets still looking strong, and the Timberwolves and Trail Blazers adding reinforcements, the Northwest could have four playoff contenders in 2013/14. Here's the latest out of the division:

The Nuggets are getting "increasingly close" to an agreement with restricted free agent big man Timofey Mozgov, according to GM Tim Connelly (link via Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post).
The Nuggets' failure to re-sign Andre Iguodala wasn't for lack of trying. Within a piece about the Warriors' newest acquisition, Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle says Iguodala passed on a front-loaded five-year, $60MM offer from the Nuggets, and nearly agreed to sign a lucrative deal with the Mavericks just an hour before reaching a deal with the Warriors.
According to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com, the Trail Blazers reached an agreement with Tiago Splitter on a four-year, $36MM offer sheet. However, the team backed off when it became apparent that the Spurs would match.
Now that the Timberwolves have traded Luke Ridnour, agents for free agent point guards will begin reaching out to the team, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Nate Robinson's camp figures to be among those in contact with the Wolves, though Wolfson doesn't see a fit there.
The Jazz hope to use their remaining cap space to take on another contract and pick up another draft pick, as they did in their deal with the Warriors, tweets Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune.

Nuggets Sign J.J. Hickson

July 11th, 2013 at 2:52pm CST by Zachary Links

JULY 11TH: The Nuggets have officially announced the Hickson signing in a press release.

JULY 7TH: The Nuggets have reached agreement with J.J. Hickson on a three-year, $15MM deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). The forward is a client of Andy Miller, according to the Hoops Rumors Agency Database.

The 24-year-old has had multiple stops in the league during his short career and after he was cut loose by the Kings in March of last year, his stock didn't look so hot. However, he was picked up by the Blazers and as a featured player for the final quarter of the season, he averaged 15.1 PPG and 8.3 RPG.

He had another strong season in 2012/13, putting up 12.7 PPG and 10.4 RPG in 80 games, all of which he started.

Chris Copeland Signs Pacers’ Offer Sheet

July 11th, 2013 at 10:22am CST by Chuck Myron

JULY 11TH, 10:22am: Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com tweets that Copeland officially signed his offer sheet with the Pacers yesterday. I assume that even though the Knicks can't legally match the offer, the three-day period still must expire before Copeland formally becomes a Pacer.

JULY 5TH, 9:05pm: The precise figure of Copeland's two year deal is close to $6.2MM, a source tells Shams Charania of RealGM.com, who also hears that no other team offered nearly as much as the Pacers (Twitter link).

7:27pm: The deal is fully guaranteed, Begley also tweets. Presumably, the Pacers are using a portion of their mid-level to get the deal done.

7:13pm: The deal is a two-year agreement worth $6MM, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com, so the Knicks can't match.

7:00pm: The Pacers and Chris Copeland are finalizing an agreement on a two-year deal, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Since he's a restricted free agent, the Knicks will have three days to match once the deal becomes final next week, following the end of the league's July Moratorium. However, since the Knicks only have about $1.75MM left on their mini mid-level exception after committing a portion of it to Pablo Prigioni, the Pacers have the ability to make Copeland an offer New York can't match.

There were several teams in play for the John Spencer client. Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com today added the Grizzlies to the list of suitors for Copeland, tweeting that the Lakers, Bucks, Jazz, and Pelicans all remained in the mix along with the Pacers. The Nuggets and Cavs were also among the teams involved, Spencer tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link).

Nuggets Acquire Randy Foye In Three-Way Deal

July 10th, 2013 at 4:37pm CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 4:37pm: The Nuggets and Jazz have issued press releases officially announcing the three-way deal. Denver will send the Jazz a future second-round pick, as previously reported, but will also receive a future second-rounder from the Warriors in the deal. As I predicted yesterday, Golden State's trade with Utah has also been rolled into this one. In all, the deal looks like this:

Utah receives Andris Biedrins, Richard Jefferson, Brandon Rush, two first-round picks (2014 and 2017 from Warriors), three second-round picks (2016 and 2017 from Warriors, 2018 from Nuggets), and cash (from Warriors).
Denver receives Randy Foye (via sign-and-trade) and a second-round pick (2018 from Warriors).
Golden State receives Andre Iguodala (via sign-and-trade) and Kevin Murphy.

TUESDAY, 3:30pm: The Nuggets, not the Warriors, will send the Jazz a 2018 second-rounder in the trade, according to Genessy (via Twitter).

This strongly suggests to me that the Warriors and Jazz will be folding their earlier agreement into this deal, since not doing so would mean there are no outgoing pieces coming from Golden State. As noted below, folding the two deals into one should allow the Warriors to keep a $11MM+ TPE rather than a $9MM one.

MONDAY, 3:20pm: The Warriors, Nuggets, and Jazz have agreed to a three-way trade that will send Randy Foye to Denver and Andre Iguodala to Golden State via sign-and-trades, according to Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. Genessy reports that the Jazz will receive a 2018 second-round pick from the Warriors in the deal. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported late last night that the three teams were involved in "advanced discussions."

According to Wojnarowski's initial report, Foye will receive a three-year, $9MM contract from the Nuggets, with a team option on the third season. ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported late last night that Foye and the Nuggets were closing in on a verbal agreement. Meanwhile, the deal will mean yet another pick headed to Utah from the Warriors, who are already set to send the Jazz multiple picks in another trade agreement.

Over the weekend, I explained why the Warriors would likely pursue a sign-and-trade agreement with Denver rather than sign Iguodala outright, despite having already agreed to a four-year contract with him. In that piece, I suggested that Golden State would take on Iguodala using the $11,046,000 trade exception the team will create by moving Richard Jefferson, allowing the club to retain its other TPEs and the full mid-level. However, by incorporating Utah into this deal, the Warriors may be able to combine their two agreements with the Jazz into one trade, allowing them to keep the slightly larger Jefferson TPE rather than the $9MM exception for Biedrins.

For Denver, the agreement will allow the team to add Foye and create a trade exception worth Iguodala's new salary. Since the Nuggets project to be an over-the-cap team, it looks like they'll have to use some of that Iguodala TPE in order to acquire Foye, but there still should be $8MM+ left on it when the dust settles.

Wolves Closing In On Deal With Corey Brewer

July 10th, 2013 at 12:43pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves are closing in on a three-year deal with Corey Brewer worth something in the $15MM range, reports ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via Twitter). The details of whether the Wolves would be able to sign Brewer outright or negotiate a sign-and-trade are still being worked out, according to Stein (via Twitter).

Meanwhile, there are no doubts that Kevin Martin remains on track to join the Timberwolves, according to Stein, who tweets that Martin has agreed to delay his signing to allow Minnesota the chance to obtain Brewer. We heard earlier today that the Thunder and Nuggets were resisting accommodating sign-and-trade deals for Martin and Brewer, respectively, but "rumbles persist" that Luke Ridnour could go to OKC as part of a possible sign-and-trade for Martin, according to Stein (via Twitter).

Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reported today (via Twitter) that sign-and-trade talks involving Martin and Brewer are being pushed by Relativity Sports, the agency for both players.

Spurs Made Run At Andrei Kirilenko

July 10th, 2013 at 8:13am CST by Luke Adams

The Spurs explored the possibility of acquiring Andrei Kirilenko from the Timberwolves via a sign-and-trade deal, but talks between the two sides appear to have ended without an agreement, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

Although San Antonio seriously considered a multiyear offer for Kirilenko, the club doesn't have the cap space or exception room to add the Russian forward without a sign-and-trade. So far though, Timberwolves president Flip Saunders has shown little, if any, inclination to assist Kirilenko in securing a significant financial commitment from another club, sources tell Wojnarowski.

Kirilenko and the Spurs had been discussing an annual salary worth about $8-9MM, and Minnesota was unwilling to take back the salary necessary to complete a sign-and-trade for that amount, says Wojnarowski. Doing so would have compromised the Wolves' ability to add free agents Kevin Martin and Chase Budinger, and would have affected their continued pursuit of Corey Brewer.

According to Wojnarowski, the Thunder have resisted the idea of accommodating a sign-and-trade for Martin, while the Nuggets have been similarly reluctant to work out a sign-and-trade involving Brewer. Denver isn't interested in acquiring Luke Ridnour or J.J. Barea, which would likely be necessary for Brewer to earn a $5MM annual salary with the Wolves, notes Wojnarowski.

Although the Nuggets were also very interested in re-signing their own free agent swingman, the team has been unwilling to go as high as the Wolves on an offer for Brewer. With other teams also in the mix, it now appears unlikely that Brewer will return to Denver, according to Woj.

Odds & Ends: Assistants, SVG, Brewer, Lakers

July 9th, 2013 at 3:47pm CST by Luke Adams

As teams continue to finalize their coaching staffs for the 2013/14 season, a pair of clubs made official announcements today. The Kings have formally hired Dee Brown and Micah Nori, who spent the last four seasons as an assistant in Toronto, while the Raptors have made a hire of their own, announcing that Nick Nurse, coming off a D-League championship, will join Dwane Casey's staff.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the Association:

Former Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida that it's "very possible" he won't return to an NBA bench for the 2014/15 season, adding that there's no guarantee he'll ever coach again. Tomasson's piece includes plenty of interesting tidbits and quotes from Van Gundy, including word that four teams contacted him in the spring about coaching vacancies.
We passed along reports today indicating that the Timberwolves are eyeing Corey Brewer, and Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune adds another detail, writing that Minnesota is exploring its options for a potential sign-and-trade deal with the Nuggets.
Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com hears that Raja Bell, Kenyon Martin, and Bobby Brown are among the free agents with interest in the Lakers, though it's not clear if that interest is mutual (Twitter link).
In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel addresses whether or not it makes sense for the Heat to save their amnesty clause until next year.
Before they decide whether or not to use their amnesty provision this year, the Raptors will wait to see exactly what the luxury tax threshold is, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun.
Grantland's Zach Lowe takes an extended and interesting look at how the Pelicans' offseason moves will shape the team going forward.

Stein’s Latest: Ellis, Jennings, Teague, Fredette

July 8th, 2013 at 8:32am CST by Luke Adams

As we noted already this morning, ESPN.com's Marc Stein was the first to pass along word that the Nuggets and Randy Foye were nearing a verbal agreement. Stein also includes a number of somewhat related tidbits in his latest entry on ESPN's TrueHoop blog, so let's dive in and round them up….

An agreement between Denver and Foye would likely take the Nuggets out of the running for Monta Ellis, which would seem to open up the Hawks' lead for the free agent guard. Stein reported over the weekend that Ellis was Atlanta's top target.
However, an alternative scenario appears to be in play for the Hawks. According to Stein, Atlanta and Milwaukee have discussed a deal that would send Jeff Teague to the Bucks and Brandon Jennings to the Hawks, both via sign-and-trade. If those talks get serious, Stein says Atlanta would likely rescind its interest in Ellis, considering an Ellis/Jennings backcourt didn't take the Bucks far last season. Milwaukee's interest in Teague was reported at the very start of free agency last week.
The Kings also remain in the hunt for Ellis, according to Stein, who says Sacramento has been shopping Jimmer Fredette and Chuck Hayes to the Cavaliers in an effort to clear the necessary cap room.
As Stein notes, Hayes may not appeal to the Cavs, who are attempting to retain as much 2014 cap space as possible. The veteran forward is owed close to $6MM in 2014/15, while Fredette has a team option worth about $3.11MM.

Warriors, Nuggets, Jazz In Advanced Trade Talks

July 8th, 2013 at 8:02am CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors, Nuggets, and Jazz are in "advanced discussions" on a three-way deal that would result in two players being signed-and-traded, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. According to Wojnarowski, the move would involve Andre Iguodala heading to Golden State via sign-and-trade, Randy Foye going to Denver via sign-and-trade, and a Warriors second-round pick heading to the Jazz.

If the deal were to be agreed upon, Foye would receive a three-year, $9MM contract from the Nuggets, with a team option on the third season, says Wojnarowski. ESPN.com's Marc Stein first reported late last night that Foye and the Nuggets were closing in on a verbal agreement. Meanwhile, the deal would mean yet another pick headed to Utah from the Warriors, who are already set to send the Jazz multiple first- and second-round picks in a separate agreement.

Over the weekend, I explained why the Warriors would likely pursue a sign-and-trade agreement with Denver rather than sign Iguodala outright, despite having already agreed to a four-year contract with him.

In that piece, I suggested that Golden State would take on Iguodala using the $11,046,000 trade exception the team will create by moving Richard Jefferson. That would create a trade exception worth the same amount for the Nuggets, though they may have to use a portion of it to acquire Foye. We'll have to wait to see if an agreement is reached before determining how all the cap details will work.