Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Links: Thunder, Nuggets, T’Wolves, Jazz

October 4th, 2012 at 10:52pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK reports that Kevin Durant appears to have significantly added strength and bulk to his frame and could possibly find more playing time at the four spot this season. Mayberry also writes that an emphasis has been placed on rebounding at Thunder camp, and provides a collection of brief observations from practice today. Here are tonight's links from the Northwest division…

Brad Miller was invited by Rick Adelman to Timberwolves camp in Mankato for a few days as a special assistant coach, although Adelman is unsure if the former center will maintain a recurring role with the team once they return to Minnesota (Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune reports).
Randy Hollis of the Deseret News says that Mo Williams will bring much needed leadership to a Jazz locker room that features several players in their early 20s with limited NBA experience.
Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post takes note of Ty Lawson's development as seen by veteran guard Anthony Carter, who was a member of the Nuggets during Lawson's rookie season and finds himself back in Denver training camp after stints with New York and Toronto. In another article, Hochman says that according to George Karl, center Kosta Koufos has been the team's "best big guy in camp so far."
Even without Ricky Rubio in practices, the Timberwolves haven't deviated from the "corner offense" that coach Rick Adelman installed last season. Adelman also lauded the shooting prowess of rookie Alexey Shved and the surprising passing ability of center Nikola Pekovic during Thursday's scrimmages (Ray Richardson of TwinCities.com reports). On a side note, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune tweets that Malcolm Lee missed practice due to groin tightness.
Heading into his third year in the NBA, Jazz forward Jeremy Evans says that he understands his role and "knows what to expect now" (Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune writes).
Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune reflects on how youth basketball coach Sandy Pyonin helped turn around Randy Foye's life around, as well as provides some background on how the Jazz guard refined his shooting abilities.

Northwest Notes: Aldridge, Nuggets, Thunder

October 4th, 2012 at 11:36am CST by Zachary Links

Here's a look at some items out of the Northwest Division..

A free agent in 2015, Blazers big man LaMarcus Aldridge says that he's happy with the direction of the organization, writes Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge. "I'm fine with it," Aldridge said. "We have some guys who are really, really good. They're young. Give them one or two years and we should be good to go." The 27-year-old has yet to advance in the playoffs with Portland and finds himself without a bonafide No. 2 star to play with as he enters his prime.
For the first time in three years, the Nuggets could go four months without a significant roster overhaul, writes Matt Moore of CBSSports.com. It remains to be seen how long that will last, however, with Ty Lawson in line for an extension, Andre Iguodala holding an option for 2013/14, and GM Masai Ujiri in a contract year.
Thunder guard Daequan Cook doesn't expect James Harden's contract talk to be a distraction for the team this season, writes Susan Bible of HoopsWorld. Earlier this week, Harden says that he's confident that he'll get a deal done with Oklahoma City.
After a slow rookie season, Derrick Williams appears to be on the right track heading int0 2012/13, writes Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press. The Timberwolves reportedly tried to trade the former Arizona star and two first-round picks to the Blazers over the summer for Nicolas Batum.

Northwest Rumors: Roy, Miller, Thunder, Blazers

October 3rd, 2012 at 9:13pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Northwest Division produced the Western Conference champion last year for the first time since it was created, and this year it figures to be one of the NBA's most competitive groupings, as four of the five teams figure to have a shot at a playoff berth. The Blazers are the fifth team, but with a healthy LaMarcus Aldridge and a breakout season from rookie Damian Lillard, they'll be no easy out. We've got notes on every team from the division right here:

The Timberwolves are only two days into training camp, but Brandon Roy has yet to feel any pain or discomfort in his knees, and the team has been encouraged by what they've seen from him so far, as Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.
Brad Miller retired this summer after being used as a trade chip in a pair of deals, and now he's lending a hand at Timberwolves camp for a few days to see if he wants to get into coaching, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
The backup point guard job for the Thunder is an open competition between Reggie Jackson and Eric Maynor, coach Scott Brooks said, and Jackson's summer league experience is helping him, as John Rohde and Darnell Mayberry of the The Oklahoman write.
DeAndre Liggins explains how his non-guaranteed deal with the Thunder came about in a Q&A with John Rohde of The Oklahoman.
Blazers coach Terry Stotts retreated from earlier indications that J.J. Hickson would start at center, and the starting job appears to be an open competition between Hickson, Joel Freeland and Meyers Leonard, as Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge writes in his breakdown of all three candidates for the position.
Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com looks at Andre Iguodala as he embarks on his first training camp with the Nuggets.
Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune examines the logjam in Utah, where nine Jazz players averaged at least 30 minutes a game at some point in their careers. That's a group that doesn't include young big men Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter, who'll push for more time this season.

Northwest Notes: Jazz, Millsap, Carter

October 2nd, 2012 at 6:39pm CST by Zachary Links

Israeli point guard Gal Mekel wasn't talked about much as a possibility for the NBA this summer but yesterday we learned that the Jazz have their eye on him. However, visa complications would make it difficult for Mekel to get into camp on time and make his case for a roster spot. If the 24-year-old does wind up with the Jazz or another club, he would become the league's second Israeli player after Cleveland's Omri Casspi. Here's more on the Jazz and other notes out of the Northwest division..

Paul Millsap reiterated yesterday that he'd "absolutely" like to re-sign with the Jazz next summer, but it's unclear whether the Jazz will commit to both Millsap and Derrick Favors long-term, writes Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune. Over the summer, the Jazz reportedly offered Millsap a three-year, $25MM contract extension.
Millsap is among the players to keep an eye on as they enter a contract year, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. The 27-year-old has shown progress in every season and another significant step forward can put him in line for a major payday in the summer. As it stands now, the powerful big man looks to be one of the bigger gets in the 2013 free agent class.
Fan favorite Anthony Carter is excited to be back with the Nuggets in camp, even though he is fighting to crack the roster during this go 'round, writes Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post. Denver's signings of Carter and Ben Uzoh yesterday brought the roster count to 17. The two are now in a three-horse race with point guard Julyan Stone for the final spot with the club.

Atlantic Links: Sixers, Ujiri, Wayns, White, Nets

October 2nd, 2012 at 2:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Before the 76ers promoted Tony DiLeo to general manager last month, we heard a report that the Sixers had made a run at Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri. However, Nuggets president Josh Kroenke said on Monday that Philadelphia's interest in Ujiri didn't get the Sixers far. According to Kroenke, the Nuggets didn't allow the Sixers to even talk to their GM, as Adrian Dater of the Denver Post writes.

"You hire good people for a reason, and sometimes other people take notice of that," Kroenke said. "But we never gave permission to Philly to talk to Masai."

Here are a few more Tuesday updates out of the Atlantic Division:

76ers backcourt mainstays Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner both had praise for Maalik Wayns, who grew up a Sixer fan and is excited to be in Philadelphia. Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News has the details.
Even though the offseason didn't play out exactly how the Celtics anticipated, team president Danny Ainge feels like "the things that we lost we were able to replace in a big way" (link via CSNNE.com).
James White tells Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside that he doesn't expect to play in the D-League if he fails to earn a roster spot with the Knicks.
According to Nets GM Billy King, the Magic were "determined to send [Dwight Howard] west" when Brooklyn was trying to land D12. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes that King has done well to build a contender in the East without acquiring Howard.
Nets forward Kris Humphries has hired Arn Tellem of Wasserman Media as his agent, according to Bloomberg's Scott Soshnick.

Nuggets Notes: Lawson, McGee, Karl

October 1st, 2012 at 4:03pm CST by Luke Adams

We haven't heard many updates on Ty Lawson's contract negotiations with the Nuggets since the point guard expressed optimism back in July that the two sides would work out an extension this offseason. But both Lawson and the Nuggets stay positive about a deal getting done, as GM Masai Ujiri indicated at media day.

"Talks are good," Ujiri said, according to Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post. "We continue to talk. It never gets really serious until that date (October 31st) comes."

Here are few other Nuggets-related notes from media day:

According to Ujiri, JaVale McGee was working out with the team even before re-signing, and never seriously explored other opportunities or offers (Twitter link via Matt Moore of CBS Sports).
Lawson said that he feels as if the Nuggets are the best team in the West, according to Hochman. I'm not sure many pundits would agree with his assessment, but I do think Denver is the best bet to unseat the Lakers, Thunder, or Spurs as a top-three team out west.
Ujiri acknowledged that the Nuggets are still a "growing team," but both he and coach George Karl like the direction the club is headed, as Adrian Dater of the Denver Post writes. "I can't deny that this (was) the best September with the Denver Nuggets that I've had since I've been here," Karl said. "We had more guys in the gym and more committed guys to exactly how we're going to play."

Nuggets Sign Anthony Carter, Ben Uzoh

October 1st, 2012 at 11:52am CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets have signed Anthony Carter and Ben Uzoh to deals that will bring the pair of point guards to training camp, according to Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post (Twitter link). The additions bring Denver's roster count to 17 players.

Both Carter and Uzoh played for the Raptors in 2011/12, though their career trajectories don't have much in common besides that. Carter is 37 years old and averaged just 8.7 minutes per game in his 24 contests last season. Uzoh, meanwhile, made his NBA debut just two seasons ago and has split time between the NBA and the D-League since then. It appeared the 24-year-old was heading overseas for the year before he parted ways with French team Cholet last week.

Of the Nuggets' 17 players, 14 are on guaranteed contracts. Besides Uzoh and Carter, the only other player without a full guarantee is third-string point guard Julyan Stone, which seems to suggest that both Uzoh and Carter will receive the chance to outplay Stone this month and earn that final roster spot.

George Karl On Acquisitions, Centers, Iguodala

September 30th, 2012 at 9:55am CST by Chuck Myron

Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri has been lauded for his moves of late, in particular his involvement in the Dwight Howard/Andrew Bynum blockbuster that netted the team Andre Iguodala. Coach George Karl is also regarded as one of the league's best, and he spoke about the team's moves and how he expects to use a roster he described as "a big bucket of talent" to Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post. Here are a few highlights from the Q&A:

About the summer and the team's offseason moves:

"We just had a summer of constant positive momentum. The Olympics were great. And then you get (JaVale) McGee signed and Andre (Miller) signed, both really important to our team. All our young guys had good summers — (Danilo) Gallinari had a good summer with the Italian national team, Timo (Mozgov) was kind of a superstar for Russia (at the Olympics). And of course, the Iguodala trade was the (big) piece that makes us a better basketball team, though to get a good player you've got to give up good players. We'll miss Arron Afflalo. There will be some games in which we'll say, "I wish we had Arron out there." But in the end, we think we made a step forward, and hopefully a step to get into the top-eight teams in basketball, maybe a little bit further. Our goal in the next three to four years is to build this thing and make steps toward a championship."

On who will start at center:

"Training camp is going to tell me who plays. My idea right now is Mozgov would start with (Kenneth) Faried and JaVale would stay with (backup point guard) Andre Miller. But again, I don't (care) about starting lineups, and (the media is) already stirring the pot. It's all about how many minutes you play, who you play with, how well you play and how we play (when you're on the court). Kosta Koufos is in the mix, too. Let's make sure you understand that. In the last 15 to 20 games of the season, when Timo got hurt, Kosta not only played well but good enough to get us to the playoffs."

Regarding the way Iguodala fits into the team's system:

"I don't think there's any question that defense is what we need to get better at. I don't think we're a bad defensive team, but I don't think we're a top-notch defensive team. We gave away Kenyon Martin and some of the "A" defenders that we used to have, and last year we weren't good enough defensively. We get a guy who fits how we play — he's an athlete, loves to run, he's a play-maker, but also a top-10 defender in the game. So how we build our defense with a great defender who can (defend) point guard, shooting guard, small forward and probably power forward."

Western Notes: Warriors, Lakers, Davis

September 27th, 2012 at 9:39pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group summarized Warriors GM Bob Myers' meeting with the local media today, and writes that the team has very important decisions to make in the near future. Thompson mentions that Golden State has the ability to significantly be under the salary cap in two years, but will also have to deal with the possible contract extensions of Stephen Curry and Andrew Bogut in addition to deciding the futures of players that are still on their rookie-scale deals. "The players can stay as long as they want if we win…but if we don't win, maybe some things do get turned over," said Myers.

With that being said, we have a few more links to share with you tonight out of the Western Conference:

Andrew Bogut is on schedule to play on opening night and possibly in some pre-season games, although the Australian center has not yet been cleared for five-on-five scrimmages yet, writes Rusty Simmons of SF Gate. GM Bob Myers also talked about Festus Ezeli, adding that he is a "team-first" guy who gives multiple efforts make him a quality prospect. Myers chose to remain neutral on Andris Biedrins not showing up for voluntary pre-training camp workouts, but added that he will have the opportunity to compete in camp and that his role will ultimately be left up to head coach Mark Jackson.
Arash Markazi of ESPN Los Angeles thinks that the last three roster spots on the Lakers will ultimately be decided between Andrew Goudelock, Darius Morris, Darius Johnson-Odom, and Robert Sacre (Twitter link). In another tweet, Markazi says that Goudelock seems to be the odd man out at this point.
Hornets rookie Anthony Davis spoke about what he took away from his experiences at the Olympics, teaming with Robin Lopez this season, and head coach Monty Williams' expectations (Jimmy Smith of the Times-Picayune reports).
Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com spoke with Nuggets assistant coach Melvin Hunt to evaluate Jordan Hamilton's rookie season and what he was told to work on this summer.

Washburn On Ujiri, Fisher, Williams, Barnes

September 23rd, 2012 at 12:40pm CST by Chuck Myron

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe caught up with Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri, who received plaudits this summer after trading for Andre Iguodala but still faces an uphill battle in a stacked Western Conference. He has more to share from around the league, and we'll hit the highlights here.

Washburn believes free agent point guard Derek Fisher could be a consideration for the Celtics, though we heard yesterday that A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com doesn't think the team will pursue him. Boston is thin at point guard following the retirement of Keyon Dooling.
Hawks GM Danny Ferry's decision to buy out Jordan Williams was curious, according to Washburn, who wonders why they didn't try to dangle him in a trade offer. The Globe scribe says at 6'10" and 260 pounds, with the ability to rebound and play center, Williams shouldn't remain a free agent for long. One report has linked Williams to the Knicks.
Washburn also heard from Matt Barnes, who recently signed with the Clippers, about his experience on the other team in L.A. "I think you really learn a lot about yourself, playing for the Lakers, you are on the biggest stage in the world,” the forward said. “All eyes are always on you. You’re never supposed to miss a shot and you’re never supposed to lose. You really have to control your feelings and emotions when people try to jump on you, because they expect 82-0 and they expect titles every year. It’s not a bad tradition to live up to, but you definitely find out a lot about yourself.”