And-Ones: Parsons, Humphries, Bass, Howard
Unrestricted free agent Kris Humphries, who split time last season between the Wizards, Suns and Hawks, is one of the players the Celtics are considering making a run at this offseason, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com relays (on Twitter). The Hawks, Nets, Wolves, Spurs and Hornets are also interested in the big man, Shams Charania of The Vertical tweets.
With free agency now underway, here’s the latest happening from around the league:
- The Trail Blazers intend to make a strong push to ink both Chandler Parsons and Dwight Howard this offseason, Jason Quick of CSNNW.com tweets. Parsons and Howard were former teammates with the Rockets and have remained friends, the scribe notes.
- The Hawks made a strong impression on Howard during their meeting with him today, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical tweets. The scribe adds that the possibility of D12 joining Atlanta is gaining traction.
- The Warriors are looking to bolster their bench and have expressed interest in unrestricted free agent Andrew Nicholson, who spent the past four seasons with the Magic, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders relays (Twitter link).
- Former Wyoming head coach Larry Shyatt is joining Rick Carlisle‘s staff with the Mavericks, Jon Rothstein of CBSSports.com tweets.
- Former Nets forward Sergey Karasev signed a three-year deal with the Russian club BC Zenit Saint Petersburg, the team announced (translation by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). The 22-year-old made 40 appearances for Brooklyn this season and averaged 2.4 points and 1.5 rebounds in 10.0 per contest while shooting .405/.297/.929 from the field.
- Former Wizards forward Chris Singleton has signed with the Greek club Panathinaikos, international journalist David Pick relays (via Twitter). Singleton last appeared in the NBA during the 2013/14 season.
- The Wolves have reached out to free agent power forward Brandon Bass to gauge interest, Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN tweets.
- With the Pacers reportedly reaching an agreement with Al Jefferson, unrestricted free agent big man Ian Mahinmi won’t be returning to the team next season, Nate Taylor of The Indianapolis Star relays (via Twitter).
- The Mavericks have no immediate plans to target Bismack Biyombo or Howard after missing out on Hassan Whiteside, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com relays (ESPN Now link).
Warriors Expected To Retain Barnes If Durant Signs Elsewhere
Kevin Durant is the Warriors’ Plan A in free agency this offseason, and the team will get an opportunity to make its pitch to him on Friday in The Hamptons. However, if Durant ultimately heads back to the Thunder or signs with another rival suitor, the Warriors are expected to focus on bringing back restricted free agent Harrison Barnes.
Adrian Wojnarowski reported as much during The Vertical’s free agency show late on Thursday night (link via RealGM.com), suggesting that the Warriors will likely match any offer sheet Barnes signs with another club. Even if the young forward doesn’t ultimately end up in the team’s long-term plans, Golden State recognizes that his contract would be tradeable, and the club would be able to go over the cap to lock him up.
The 76ers are said to have serious interest in Barnes, and could emerge as the Warriors’ most significant competitor for the 24-year-old, who ranked 12th on our list of this year’s top 50 free agents.
There has been speculation that Barnes will receive a maximum-salary offer sheet, or something very close to it, which would be an awfully steep price to pay for a player who has never averaged more than 11.7 points per game in a season and has struggled in some critical postseason moments. Still, Philadelphia has a huge amount of cap room and could easily afford such a deal, so if the Sixers do pursue Barnes, I’d expect them to make a max offer to put the pressure on Golden State.
Latest On Kevin Durant
The Thunder are in a strong position to keep Kevin Durant as the final minutes tick away toward free agency, writes Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. An unidentified friend of Durant’s says the Oklahoma City star’s decision is “90% made” after a meeting today with GM Sam Presti and assistant GM Troy Weaver. But Durant will go through with his meetings in the Hamptons Friday with the Warriors and Clippers, followed by the Spurs and Celtics on Saturday and the Heat on Sunday. OKC is hoping for another session with Durant after those meetings are done.
Durant was apparently swayed by the Thunder’s status as contenders and the extra cash he can receive by staying put. Oklahoma City can offer a five-year deal at about $30.6MM annually, compared to four years for other franchises with an annual salary in the neighborhood of $28.4MM. If Durant takes a two-year deal with the Thunder and opts out after next season, he could push that annual salary to approximately $40.7MM. According to Spears, that will most likely be Durant’s decision.
Durant hopes to make up his mind “sooner rather than later” after the meetings are wrapped up, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Sources told Stein that today’s sit-down with the Thunder lasted five hours and “went well.”
Even so, the Warriors remain confident as they get their chance to talk to Durant, tweets Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Kennedy describes Durant as “intrigued” by the possibility of joining a team that just broke the regular season record for wins.
Durant likes the idea of joining forces with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, writes Marcus Thompson of The San Jose Mercury News. A source told Thompson that if Durant signs with the Warriors, he would have a say in constructing the rest of the roster and in recruiting veterans to accept a discount for a chance at a title. One area of need could be a new center, as the Warriors have talked about trading current starter Andrew Bogut.
Warriors May Pursue Pau Gasol
- If the Warriors miss out on signing Kevin Durant, the team could shift its focus to unrestricted free agent forward Pau Gasol, Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (ESPN Now link) relays. Shelburne also notes that Gasol isn’t too keen on taking a discounted deal, but market and contender status could sway him.
Warriors Have Interest In Timofey Mozgov
- The Rockets, Heat, Warriors, and Spurs are among the teams with interest in Timofey Mozgov, joining the Cavaliers and Knicks, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today Sports adds (via Twitter) that the Lakers also could be in play for Mozgov, depending on how free agency plays out.
Latest On Kevin Durant
THURSDAY, 7:10am: Stein fills in the rest Durant’s schedule, tweeting that he’ll meet with the Clippers on Friday and the Celtics on Saturday. So KD’s full lineup of meetings will look like this:
- June 30th: Thunder
- July 1st: Warriors and Clippers
- July 2nd: Spurs and Celtics
- July 3rd: Heat
WEDNESDAY, 11:17am: Durant’s meeting with the Heat will occur on Sunday, according to an ESPN.com report from Broussard and Stein.
11:00am: Kevin Durant‘s schedule for the next several days is beginning to take shape, with a handful of reporters filling in the details on the star forward’s free agent tour. According to ESPN’s Chris Broussard (via Twitter), Durant will have his first meeting with his current team, sitting down with the Thunder in Oklahoma City on Thursday.
Once free agency officially begins on Friday, Durant will head to the Hamptons in New York for the rest of his meetings, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated, Durant will meet with the Warriors on Friday afternoon in the Hamptons. Meanwhile, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link) that the Spurs’ pitch to the former MVP is scheduled for Saturday.
In addition to meeting with the Thunder, Warriors, and Spurs, Durant also has sit-downs lined up with the Heat, Celtics, and Clippers, and those meetings will take place over the first few days of July, says Broussard (via Twitter). The ESPN reporter adds (via Twitter) that the Knicks are still receiving consideration for a meeting, while the Lakers won’t get one. There’s no mention of the Hawks, who are also trying to “wedge their way” into the Durant sweepstakes, but it doesn’t look like Atlanta will get an audience with KD.
Durant has said that his top priority for his next destination is competing for a championship, and being able to do so immediately. Wojnarowski recently reported that the 27-year-old has plans to go on a publicity tour starting on July 9th, so he’ll likely make a decision before that date.
While a two-year contract with an opt-out after the first year makes the most financial sense for Durant, who could land a much larger max contract in 2017, there have been increased rumblings that he’s not eager to go through the free agent process again in a year, so it’s possible he’ll sign a long-term contract with the team he chooses.
Warriors Don't Submit QO For McAdoo
- The Warriors submitted qualifying offers to Harrison Barnes ($5,194,227) and Festus Ezeli ($3,013,123), making both restricted free agents, the team announced via press release.
- The Warriors declined to submit a qualifying offer worth $1,180,431 to James McAdoo and the player will now become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group tweets. The team also passed on submitting a qualifying offer worth $1,215,696 to Ian Clark, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle tweets.
Warriors May Seek To Deal Andrew Bogut
The Warriors are growing increasingly frustrated with the unreliability of Andrew Bogut and may look to trade the center this offseason, Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com relays. Golden State may need to clear cap space for a pursuit of unrestricted free agent Kevin Durant and Bogut is the player the team most prefers to part ways with if the need arises, Poole adds. But even if Durant doesn’t join the team, the Warriors may still explore the possibility trading Bogut.
Golden State has grown weary of Bogut’s propensity for injuries, but the team is also not pleased with the production it received from the big man during the postseason when he was on the court, Poole notes. In 52 minutes over the first four games of The Finals, Bogut snagged just 12 rebounds, while Cavs big man Tristan Thompson, who during the same span played 110 minutes, grabbed 37 rebounds and backup center Timofey Mozgov grabbed seven rebounds in 21 minutes, Poole writes. Bogut was sidelined the final two games due to a bone bruise. The team is also displeased with Bogut’s lack of aggressiveness on the offense end, which is something other NBA teams have begun to exploit, according to the scribe.
Bogut, who is entering the final year of his contract, is set to earn $12,681,081 in 2016/17. He appeared in 70 games for the Warriors this season and averaged 5.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 20.7 minutes per outing. His shooting line was .627/1.000/.480.
Stephen Jackson Aiming For NBA Comeback
The Warriors have shown some interest in adding longtime NBA forward Stephen Jackson to their coaching staff, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. However, as Stein tweets, Jackson isn’t interested in transitioning into the next phase of his career quite yet — the 38-year-old, who announced his retirement last summer, hopes to find a spot on an NBA roster for this season.
Jackson himself confirmed as much during an appearance on ESPN’s The Jump (video link), suggesting that he “definitely didn’t leave” on his own terms and that he has been working out and keeping himself in shape in the hopes of making a comeback.
Given how long he has been away from the game, Jackson could likely had be had on a minimum-salary contract, which might interest some teams around the NBA. But even though clubs may kick the tires on the former second-round pick, his multiyear absence from the league will give those clubs pause. Jackson hasn’t appeared on the court since January of 2014, and hasn’t had a real rotation role on an NBA team since the 2012/13 season, when he played with the Spurs.
Over the course of his 14 NBA seasons, Jackson averaged 15.1 points per game in 858 regular-season contests, and appeared in another 72 playoff games. He was also a member of the Spurs squad that won the Finals at the end of the 2002/03 season. However, Jackson’s numbers dipped significantly near the end of his career — in his last three seasons, he averaged 7.4 PPG with a .369 FG% in 111 games with the Bucks, Spurs, and Clippers.
Warriors To Retain Livingston
The Warriors intend to keep Shaun Livingston on the roster for next season, Marc Stein and Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated relay. Livingston’s contract for 2016/17, worth $5,782,450, is partially guaranteed for $3MM and will become fully guaranteed if he is still a member of the team on Thursday, which will now be the case, according to the ESPN duo’s report. “I would love to be back with Warriors next year and feel there is something special cultivating with the organization,” Livingston told the scribes via text message. “The time spent there has allowed me the platform to see the ingredients of winning and the importance of culture.”
- If the Warriors miss out on signing unrestricted free agent Kevin Durant, the team could shift focus and look to add a proven big man, Stein and Spears relay in the same piece. Potential targets could include Pau Gasol, Joakim Noah, David West and Timofey Mozgov, the duo note.