Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Iguodala Wants To Stay With Nuggets

January 25th, 2013 at 5:15pm CST by Sean Highkin

Andre Iguodala can opt out of the final year of his contract this summer and become an unrestricted free agent, but the veteran forward tells Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post that he would like to remain with the Nuggets long-term. He says that he is undecided about opting out, and that decision will come down to how much he thinks he can command on the open market:

“A lot of players have done it where they’ve gave up a large bulk of their contract, say, giving up $16 million to get $60 million,” Iguodala said. “In the grand scheme of things that makes sense. But if you give up $16 million and you get $20 million (it doesn’t make sense). So it’s all about playing your cards right and seeing where you’re at. At the end of the day winning takes care of everything, so if we win here, then hopefully the organization and myself will come to an agreement and we’ll continue to build on what we have here.”

Iguodala's player option pays him $16.1MM for the 2013/14 season. He is averaging 13.3 PPG, 5.5 RPG, and 4.5 APG in his first season with the Nuggets since being traded from Philadelphia as part of the four-team trade that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers.

Nuggets Notes: Mozgov, Trades, Ujiri

January 25th, 2013 at 12:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Having gone 16-3 at the Pepsi Center so far this season, the Nuggets are in good position to gain some ground in the Western Conference standings, as their next six games will all be at home. Still, head coach George Karl doesn't want his club to take anything for granted, as he tells Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post.

"We're a young team trying to become a good team — a really good team," Karl said. "I think we all think we can get there, but sometimes I think we need a lot more work than (the players) think we do."

Here's the latest out of Denver:

Since the beginning of the year, teams have been calling the Nuggets about acquiring Timofey Mozgov, who is unlikely to be with the Nuggets past the trade deadline, says Dempsey.
While Mozgov says that he'd like to remain in Denver, that comes with a caveat: "More than I want to stay, I want to play." With Kosta Koufos and JaVale McGee seeing most of the minutes in the middle, Mozgov is averaging a career-low 9.6 minutes per game in 24 contests.
Although Masai Ujiri is in the last year of his three-year contract with the Nuggets, the two sides aren't expected to explore an extension for the general manager until after the season, reports Dempsey.

Northwest Notes: Olshey, Wolves, McGee, Jazz

January 20th, 2013 at 1:44pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the Northwest Division on Sunday afternoon:

The Blazers, who've lost five in a row, are hamstrung by their substandard bench, but GM Neil Olshey isn't planning to compromise the team's long-term cap flexibillity to improve its depth this season, The Oregonian's Jason Quick writes. Nonetheless, the GM regrets not adding bench strength over the summer.
Yesterday's 10-day signees Mickael Gelabale and Chris Johnson made an instant impact for theWolves, as Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune documents.
Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post chronicles the slow development of Nuggets center JaVale McGee, who's averaging fewer minutes than all but two other players who, like him, make at least $10MM a season. "He's got to understand that lazy and crazy isn't going to make it work," coach George Karl said. "We want solid and we want fundamental, and we want spectacular but only when it happens, not forcing the action where sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't."
Kurt Kragthorpe of the Salt Lake Tribune is impressed with the way Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin is magaging is players' minutes.

Amico On Gay, Kings, Millsap, West, Oden

January 20th, 2013 at 8:38am CST by Chuck Myron

The latest piece from Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio is brimming with juicy material, so let's dive right in.

Even though the Grizzlies are reportedly in a "holding pattern" regarding trades, Memphis is still talking to other teams about moving Rudy Gay. The clubs engaged most heavily in those discussions are the Bobcats, Timberwolves, Suns and, more recently, Hawks. Nonetheless, a source tells Amico not to expect a Gay trade until after the All-Star break.
Speaking of holding patterns, that appears to be the current state of any potential Kings sale, Amico writes. Whatever happens, it's "pretty clear" this is the final season for Geoff Petrie as GM. He's in the final year of his deal, and the 64-year-old reportedly wants to retire.
We heard Friday about the Nets' possible interest in Paul Millsap, and Amico confirms Brooklyn, along with the Bucks and Nuggets, are among teams that could make a push for Millsap at the deadline. Most of the teams in that mix would want to offer Millsap an extension immediately upon acquiring him, since he's in the final year of his contract.
Like Millsap, David West is another power forward set to hit the unrestricted free agent market, but the Pacers are confident they can re-sign him, Amico reports. That's why the team is largely ignoring trade offers for him.
Greg Oden hopes to sign with a team around the All-Star break or right after the trade deadline. Interested clubs include the Celtics, Heat, Mavericks and Cavaliers.

Odds & Ends: Grizzlies, Redick, Magic

January 19th, 2013 at 7:24pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Ric Bucher of CSN Bay Area (Sulia link) hears that the trade rumor involving Rudy Gay to the Suns in exchange for Jared Dudley and Michael Beasley was leaked in order to facilitate more offers from around the league. In terms of the Grizzlies dealing Gay for luxury-tax purposes, Bucher notes that the Wizards and Warriors only have trade pieces that would relieve Memphis of the super luxury tax in two years, but not after this season. You can find more of tonight's miscellaneous notes from the Association here:

David Baumann of Bright House Sports Network tweets that the Celtics covet J.J. Redick as a possible trade target before February's trade deadline.
Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel provides a primer of what the Magic front office has to think about heading into next month's deadline. He thinks that GM Rob Hennigan might want to deal for more young players and draft picks while shedding salary, adding that Redick, Glen Davis, Arron Afflalo, Jameer Nelson, and Josh McRoberts are among the team's most tradeable assets. Lastly, Robbins thinks that Orlando is unlikely to part with Nikola Vucevic and that the team has almost no interest in dealing for Rudy Gay.
Noting that Chris Johnson had been a member of Timberwolves' training camp before the season, Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press says that his familiarity with the team provided an advantage during the team's search for help at center.
The recent struggles of Nuggets swingman Andre Iguodala prompted him to admit after today's practice that he's "probably behind the curve" and has had trouble finding his comfort level this season (Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post reports).
HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy (Sulia link) anticipates a quiet trade deadline for the NBA considering a busy offseason that saw 31 deals involving 96 players.
Alex Raskin of HoopsWorld looks at Jeff Teague, one of four players who are guaranteed to remain in Atlanta beyond this season, as a viable long-term investment for the Hawks.

Northwest Notes: Nene, McGee, Miles

January 18th, 2013 at 7:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Thunder have an eight-game lead on the Nuggets in the Northwest Division, but that says more about Oklahoma City's brilliance this season than it does about their competition in the Northwest. It's the only division with four teams above .500. The Timberwolves, at 16-20, might be a winning team, too, if not for all their injuries. Before news broke that the league will allow Minnesota to sign an extra player to compensate, we rounded up several Wolves rumors. Now we'll do the same for a couple of their Northwest Division rivals.

Nuggets coach George Karl said last year's trade of Nene Hilario "had to be made," explaining that, among other factors, the team needed him to be more assertive, as Michael Lee of the Washington Post details. "The situation came down to, when you’re reshaping a team, it’s better to go younger and that’s the choice management made and I was supportive of that," Karl also said.
JaVale McGee was the younger player the Nuggets received in that deal, and in a separate piece, Lee rounds up Karl's comments about what JaVale McGee needs to do to earn minutes in line with the team's expectations after signing him to a $44MM deal this summer.
Cavs small forward C.J. Miles said over the summer that comments he made suggesting a disconnect between Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin and his players were taken out of context. As he prepares to face his former team, Miles added that he has "nothing but love" for his former boss. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal has the story.

Odds & Ends: Roy, Jones, Nene, PEDs

January 17th, 2013 at 10:51pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Friday evening:

Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press writes that Brandon Roy has shown no indication of thinking about retiring from the Timberwolves.
Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel talks to Magic rookie DeQuan Jones about his unlikely path to the NBA.
Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com revisits the Nuggets' trade of Nene Hilario to the Wizards for JaVale McGee.
In light of the recent steroids controversies surrounding cyclist Lance Armstrong and the Baseball Hall of Fame, HoopsHype has a new column by former D-League player Rod Benson about the relative lack of performance-enhancing drug use in the NBA.
Larry Coon has updated his invaluable Salary Cap FAQ with a new entry on rules regarding international players and some corrections.

Western Notes: Brewer, Suns, Bledsoe, Rush

January 16th, 2013 at 4:26pm CST by Luke Adams

Among the highlights on tonight's NBA schedule: A pair of Western Conference showdowns, as the Spurs host the Grizzlies and the Thunder look to extend their Conference lead with a win against the Nuggets. While we wait for those games to get underway, here are a few links from around the West:

Corey Brewer tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Sulia link) that he'd like to re-sign with the Nuggets in July when his contract expires. "Yeah, I’d like to be here," Brewer said. "I like the fans, I like the city, I like the system, I like George Karl’s system, I like my teammates. So it’s a good situation for me."
Given the Suns' current record and place in the standings, coach Alvin Gentry acknowledges that it may be time to look to the future and give his younger players more minutes, as Bob Young of USA Today writes.
Eric Bledsoe wants to be a starting point guard in the NBA at some point, but for now he's happy to learn from Chris Paul and Chauncey Billups on the Clippers, says Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times.
Agent Mark Bartelstein tells Ken Berger of CBS Sports that his client Brandon Rush underwent successful knee surgery today and is expected to make a full recovery (Twitter links).. With his health not a given this summer, I'd imagine Rush will exercise his $4MM player option for 2013/14 and remain with the Warriors.
Mavericks guard Mike James spoke to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about the challenge of making an impression while playing on a 10-day contract.
Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld recognized the Trail Blazers multiple times in his picks for the NBA's best offseason moves, giving Portland the nod for best first-round pick (Damian Lillard) and best coaching hire (Terry Stotts).

Heat Could Pursue Timofey Mozgov

January 14th, 2013 at 7:14pm CST by Luke Adams

7:14pm: Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel tweets that there are no rumors about a trade of Mozgov to the Heat, indicating that Mozgov's comments were simply in response to a question about the Heat's need for a center.

12:22pm: We heard in mid-December from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports and Zach Lowe of Grantland that the Nuggets were making Timofey Mozgov available, and it appears that stance hasn't changed in the last month. Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida also reports that Denver is looking to deal Mozgov, and it sounds like the 26-year-old is fully aware that he could be on the move.

"It think it’s logical, you can see that, trading me," Mozgov told Tomasson. "I’m in my contract year. So if they can get something for me… I don’t think it would be a surprise for me (to be traded)."

One team that always seems to be in the market for a big man, and could use some rebounding help, is the Heat. Tomasson writes that the Heat could pursue Mozgov, though it's not clear what could of package they could put together that would entice the Nuggets. One of the team's top potential trade chips, Norris Cole, may not interest Denver since the Nuggets already have Ty Lawson and Andre Miller at the point. Miami could also dangle the 76ers' (lottery-protected) 2013 first-round pick, and multi-team deals are possible, as Tomasson notes.

Mozgov's inexpensive salary ($3.14MM) may make it more palatable for the Heat or another team to acquire him. Miami isn't a likely suitor for pricier bigs, since the club would probably need to include undesirable contracts like Mike Miller's or Joel Anthony's to match salaries, but Mozgov could potentially be had for one or two less expensive players.

Rudy Gay Rumors: Friday

January 11th, 2013 at 3:46pm CST by Luke Adams

In Hoops Rumors' live chat yesterday, I picked Rudy Gay as the biggest name I think will be on the move before this year's trade deadline. With nearly six weeks still remaining until February 21st arrives, I don't expect anything to be finalized soon, but that doesn't mean the rumors aren't continuing to swirl around Gay. Here's the latest:

Sam Amick of USA Today adds a new team to the mix for Gay: the Clippers. According to Amick, a package that includes Caron Butler, Eric Bledsoe, and picks could provide exactly what the Grizzlies are seeking. The Clippers are "justifiably wary" of making a move that would affect their chemistry, and are reportedly not looking to move Bledsoe before the deadline, but the club would at least consider Gay, says Amick.
The Nuggets, Kings, and Rockets, three teams that have been mentioned as potential suitors, don't appear to have any interest in Gay at the moment, according to Amick.