Central Notes: Henson, Robinson, Pistons, George
With the Bucks hanging on for an overtime win against the Celtics, it was a successful night for the Central Division. The only team to endure a loss this evening was the Cavs, and that came at the hands of the division rival Pacers. Here's the scoop from off the court in the Central.
- Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel checks in with Bucks rookie John Henson, whose lack of consistent playing time belies the team's enthusiasm about the chance to draft him with the 14th overall pick. "I think everybody was surprised he was there," assistant coach Jim Boylan said. "Everybody had him in the top 10 somewhere. But in the draft that happens all the time."
- Nate Robinson's minimum-salary contract is only partially guaranteed for $400K so that it's easier for the Bulls to include him in trades, a source tells K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. It becomes fully guaranteed on or before New Year's Day. The Bulls aren't likely to trade him by then, and the team probably won't cut him either, according to Johnson.
- MLive's David Mayo answers reader questions about the Pistons, and delves into why the team hasn't sent rookie Slava Kravtsov to the D-League, despite Kravtsov failing to have played a minute this season until tonight's blowout win over the Wizards. Mayo theorizes that having to share their affiliate, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, with the Pacers and two other clubs might keep Kravtsov from getting enough minutes. Mayo also says the Pistons, like most teams, prefer having their players practice with the big club rather than rack up minutes in the D-League.
- Ben Golliver of SI.com breaks down Paul George's hot streak, concluding that George, due for an extension on his rookie deal this summer, could become a pricey commodity.
Central Notes: Pistons, Varejao, Bucks, Robinson
The latest news and notes from around the Central Division on Thursday afternoon:
- Keith Langolis of Pistons.com has a new mailbag column in which he answers reader questions about hypothetical trades the team could make for players like Kevin Love and Al Jefferson. Langolis expects the Lakers to make a strong push when Love hits free agency.
- Jessica Camerato of CSNNE.com writes that Anderson Varejao is happy with the Cavs, and wonders whether the Celtics could be a potential trade destination.
- Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley denies reports that he would like to buy the Bucks.
- Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com writes that Nate Robinson is not affected by the fact that his contract with the Bulls isn't guaranteed.
- Joe Gabriele of Cavs.com has a Q&A with Jeremy Pargo, who filled in ably for Kyrie Irving when Irving was injured earlier this season.
D-League Moves: Perry Jones III, Liggins, Knicks
We'll be keeping track of all of today's D-League comings and goings in this post. To keep up with the latest assignments and recalls, check out Hoops Rumors' 2012/13 list right here.
- The Thunder announced they've assigned Perry Jones III and DeAndre Liggins to the Tulsa 66ers. It's the second time they've each been sent down. Liggins has averaged 11.7 points and 8.0 rebounds in three games for Tulsa, while Jones has put up a total of 23 points and seven rebounds in his two D-League contests.
- Forwards Chris Copeland and James White have returned to the Knicks after being assigned yesterday to the D-League's Erie BayHawks, the BayHawks announced via Twitter (hat tip to Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside). Their return was expected when they were sent down, along with Amare Stoudemire, to practice with the BayHawks. Erie is in the midst of a four-day layoff, so none of the Knicks assignees saw game action.
- The Pistons have brought back Khris Middleton and Kim English from the D-League, according to James Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press. Both rookies were sent down to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants a week ago. They were in the starting lineup for three games with Fort Wayne, with English putting up 18.0 points, 5.7 assists and 5.0 rebounds per contest, while Middleton posted averages of 11.0 points and 7.7 boards. Neither of them, both second-round picks this past June, have seen significant minutes for the big club in Detroit.
- The Spurs announced that they have assigned Kawhi Leonard to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League for a medical rehab assignment. Leonard has been sidelined with quadriceps tendinitis in his left knee since November 17th. Prior to the injury, Leonard appeared in nine games for the Spurs, averaging 10.6 PPG, 5.4 RPG and 2.0 SPG in 28.9 minutes. Team doctors will determine a timeline for Leonard's return after he practices with the Toros.
Spears On Jennings, Daye, Smith
Like many NBA writers, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports ranks the 30 NBA teams each week. This time around, Spears peppered his ratings with a few noteworthy rumors, and we'll take a look at those here.
- The Bucks have told Brandon Jennings they'll match any offer he gets in restricted free agency next summer, according to Spears. Jennings is averaging career highs in assists and steals this season after the Bucks turned him down for an extension before the October 31st deadline. The point guard will be one of the gems of restricted free agency in the offseason, and even if a few teams might be scared off by Milwaukee's willingness to match, Jennings could be in line for a maximum offer. In any case, this news would seem to indicate the Bucks aren't looking to trade Jennings, but that's not necessarily set in stone.
- The Pistons are "actively shopping" Austin Daye, according to Spears. I think it would be difficult to find much of a market for the 24-year-old forward, who has appeared for a total of just 40 minutes in six games this season, and the 15th overall pick from 2009 hasn't done much to distinguish himself in four seasons with the Pistons, averaging 5.8 points and 2.9 rebounds per game for his career. MLive.com's David Mayo notes that Daye is returning to the Pistons rotation, and it's possible the team could be making that move simply to try to showcase him.
- Sources tell Spears that Hawks GM Danny Ferry isn't interested in trading Josh Smith. This is in line with what we've heard so far about the mutual satisfaction between Atlanta and the athletic forward. Smith is making $13.2MM this season in the final year of his deal.
Odds & Ends: Billups, Pistons, Aldridge, Blazers
Clippers guard Chauncey Billups says that he would like to keep playing for a few more years and won't rule out a return to the Pistons, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. "You never say never to any situation. I got nothing but great memories about here and winning, and this building was on fire. I would like for my memories to stay like that," said the 36-year-old. Here's more from around the Association..
- The Blazers have said repeatedly that big man LaMarcus Aldridge will be the cornerstone of the franchise for years to come, but Aldridge doesn't see himself as "untouchable", writes Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Aldridge is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2014-15 season.
- The Hawks made a bold move this summer when they traded franchise player Joe Johnson to the Nets in an effort to improve their depth. The Lakers might want to take a page out of their book, writes Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld.
- The Timberwolves may have an abundance of point guards after Ricky Rubio's return, but Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel doesn't see the Heat pursuing them as they want to avoid taking on long-term money. Luke Ridnour will make $4.3MM next season, while J.J. Barea has two additional seasons at more than $9MM total.
- Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld looks at five underrated members of the rookie class, including Nando De Colo of the Spurs and Pablo Prigioni of the Knicks.
Western Notes: Billups, Nuggets, Lakers, Suns
The latest rumblings from around the Western Conference:
- Chauncey Billups thinks the Pistons might still be an elite team if they hadn't traded him to the Nuggets four years ago, as Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News documents. "I still had some great, great years left," the point guard said. "I never wanted to leave, even though I was home (Denver) and it was good to be home, I always wanted to be a Piston. I wanted to retire a Piston."
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com tweets that Nuggets coach George Karl wants to coach in Europe again one day, with his son, Coby Karl, as an assistant.
- Aaron J. Lopez of Nuggets.com writes that JaVale McGee is becoming more efficient for the Nuggets.
- Paul Coro of USA Today points out that the Suns own the Lakers' 2013 first-round draft pick as part of the Steve Nash trade, meaning they could benefit if the Lakers continue to struggle.
Central Notes: Varejao, Derrick Williams, Belinelli
All five Central Division squads are in action tonight, and three of them face stiff tests. The Bulls take on the Nets, the Bucks play host to the red-hot Clippers, and the Cavs visit the Knicks, who are unbeaten at Madison Square Garden. There's plenty of action off the court as well, and here's the latest on Central squads.
- While she acknowledges she's in the minority, Mary Schmitt Boyer of The Plain Dealer doesn't think the Cavs will trade Anderson Varejao, arguing that he's the team's best player and that it might take several years to develop a young replacement who could equal his production.
- In the same Q&A with readers, Schmitt Boyer says she also doesn't think the Cavs will go after Timberwolves forward Derrick Williams.
- Bulls offseason signee Marco Belinelli said he had perhaps the toughest training camp of his life as he struggled to adjust to a new system and a new team, but now he's averaging 19.0 points per game over his last five contests after stepping into the starting lineup for the injured Richard Hamilton. HoopsWorld's Joel Brigham has more.
- In that piece, Brigham also looks at several who could be in line for their first All-Star appearance this season, and Central Division players are well represented. Varejao and Kyrie Irving of the Cavs, Joakim Noah of the Bulls and Brandon Jennings of the Bucks are on the list.
- Pistons GM Joe Dumars has been high on Andre Drummond ever since a pre-draft meeting in which Drummond gave Dumars direct answers to questions about his energy and willingness to play hard, two areas of doubt that had caused other GMs to pass on him. Keith Langlois of Pistons.com has the details.
Eastern Notes: Hawks, Celtics, Asik, Blatche
After rounding up a few Raptors updates earlier this afternoon, let's take a look around the rest of the Eastern Conference:
- One opposing GM points out to Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link) that a successful season for the Hawks would make it difficult for new GM Danny Ferry to bring in his own head coach to replace Larry Drew next year, if that's what Ferry wants to do. League sources also question whether Josh Smith fits the profile of a player Ferry would want to retain long-term, according to Bucher.
- The Celtics inquired on Omer Asik over the summer, head coach Doc Rivers tells A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com (Twitter link). However, the team quickly moved on when it heard Asik's price tag.
- It's looking more and more like Andray Blatche might be this summer's "one [free agent] that got away" from the Heat, says Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- Following up on comments he made last month, Mike D'Antoni clarified to reporters, including Fred Kerber of the New York Post, that he had no regrets about coaching the Knicks, but that he regretted leaving Steve Nash and the Suns.
- In a piece for the Detroit Free Press, Dan Feldman of PistonPowered wonders if Charlie Villanueva is playing well enough to avoid being amnestied next summer.
D-League Moves: Acy, Melo, English, Middleton
Here are Wednesday's D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Raptors have recalled Quincy Acy from their D-League affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam, the team announced today in a press release. Toronto is short-handed, with Kyle Lowry, Andrea Bargnani, Landry Fields, and Mickael Pietrus among the players suffering from injuries, so Acy will provide some depth.
- Fab Melo, who was recalled from the D-League by the Celtics on Monday, has been assigned back to the Maine Red Claws, the team announced today in a press release. The 22nd overall pick has yet to make his NBA debut.
- The Pistons have assigned rookies Kim English and Khris Middleton to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today. The duo is expected to spend a three-game stint with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. English, the 44th overall pick in this year's draft, has appeared in ten games for Detroit, averaging 3.2 PPG in 9.2 minutes per contest. Middleton, the 39th pick, has played in just three games for the club.
Coaching Rumors: Suns, Wizards, Pistons, Kings
We're about a quarter of the way through the NBA regular season, which is enough of a sample size that we can say certain teams have underperformed so far. Sam Amick and Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today take a look at the coaching situations for a few of those teams in their latest piece, examining whether any head coaches are in danger of being let go. We touched on Dwane Casey's situation with the Raptors in a post this morning, but here are the rest of Amick's and Zillgitt's updates:
- After Suns owner Robert Sarver told ESPN.com's Chris Broussard yesterday that Alvin Gentry wasn't on the hot seat, Amick and Zillgitt spoke to Sarver as well. Sarver's vote of confidence in this case was even stronger, as he told USA Today that Gentry's job is safe for the rest of the season.
- Like the Raptors, the Suns may explore an on-court change rather than a coaching move, with Michael Beasley a candidate to be involved — according to USA Today, there's some disagreement between the team and player about what his role should be. However, Sarver still hopes Beasley will work things out in Phoenix: "We're working with him. He's working hard, and we still expect to be able to (salvage the situation)."
- The Wizards are still paying their last head coach, Flip Saunders, so they're unlikely to replace Randy Wittman this year, since it would mean paying three different coaches.
- Pistons owner Tom Gores has high expectations for his club, and wants to see some progress toward the playoffs this year in Detroit, making it a potential make-or-break season for Lawrence Frank.
- Keith Smart's job with the Kings appears safe, though team president Geoff Petrie's future isn't quite so clear.
- The Nets still have faith in Avery Johnson and expect some peaks and valleys with the team's overhauled roster. However, there's an expectation that the team will not only qualify for the postseason but be in position to "make an impact once they get there."
- Despite a slow start for the Pacers, there's still hope in Indiana that Frank Vogel is around to coach the team for years to come.