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Top Scorers Still On The Market

August 13th, 2014 at 11:29am CST by Chuck Myron

Many NBA teams are largely finished with their free agent shopping, but most clubs probably wouldn’t mind adding a scorer or two to supplement their benches. Taking a flier on a summer league standout or an undrafted rookie can pay dividends, but there are plenty of proven veteran scorers still on the market as well.

Below is a list of the top 15 remaining free agents by points per 36 minutes. It’s no surprise that Eric Bledsoe, the No. 4 player in the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, is at the top as his restricted free agency drags on. Fellow sought-after restricted free agent Greg Monroe is on this list amid conflicting reports about whether he’s going to sign his qualifying offer. Ray Allen has been the subject of plenty of chatter even though he trails Mike Harris, a much less ballyhooed free agent, in this category.

Each player’s rate of points per 36 minutes during the 2013/14 campaign is listed in parentheses. To qualify, these free agents must have averaged at least 10 minutes per game and appeared in at least 20 contests this past season.

  1. Eric Bledsoe (19.4)
  2. Michael Beasley (18.9)
  3. Andray Blatche (18.3)
  4. Jordan Crawford (17.2)
  5. Greg Monroe (16.7)
  6. Ramon Sessions (16.6)
  7. Andrew Bynum (15.7)
  8. Leandro Barbosa (14.7)
  9. Jordan Hamilton (14.3)
  10. Jermaine O’Neal (14.2)
  11. Anthony Randolph (14.1)
  12. Mike Harris (13.4)
  13. Ray Allen (13.0)
  14. Darius Morris (12.3)
  15. Antawn Jamison (12.2)

Honorable mention:

  • Earl Clark and Chris Douglas-Roberts would have been next on the list, as both averaged 12.0 points per 36 minutes.
  • The No. 3 position would have gone to Charlie Villanueva, who notched 18.4 points per 36 minutes, but he was 20 total minutes shy of meeting the qualifying criteria.
  • MarShon Brooks (18.1), Byron Mullens (16.4) and Al Harrington (15.9) scored at rates that would have put them in the top 15, but they’ve all agreed to deals with overseas teams.
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Hoops Rumors Features

August 13th, 2014 at 9:30am CST by Chuck Myron

Hoops Rumors passes along the latest news and rumors on NBA player movement 365 days a year, but those aren’t the only updates you’ll see on the site. On our right sidebar, you’ll find a number of additional features and featured posts. Here’s a rundown of a few of them:

  • Two of the top 10 free agents as listed in our Free Agent Power Rankings remain unsigned, and other notables are a part of our full list of 2014 free agents. We’ve profiled several of them with our Free Agent Stock Watch series.
  • We’re also keeping track of the 2015 free agents as the ability for LeBron James, Kevin Love, Rajon Rondo, Marc Gasol and others to hit the market next year begins to affect the landscape of the league.
  • Our agency database is a handy reference point for determining the representation for virtually every NBA player.
  • Several NBA teams can pay no more than the minimum salary to any free agent signee for the coming season. Our updated list identifies these clubs.
  • See how far each team has come toward accomplishing the goals we outlined in our Offseason Outlook series, which provides a detailed look at where all 30 NBA teams stood going into the summer.
  • Our list of outstanding traded player exceptions is updated whenever a trade exception is created, used or expires.
  • Eddie Scarito recapped and graded the draft from the perspective of every team. He broke it down into divisions (Atlantic, Central, Southeast, Southwest, Northwest, Pacific).
  • Eddie’s also looking back on notable trades from the past several years to see how they’ve panned out over time. He recently examined the deals that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers, Deron Williams to the Nets, and Kevin Garnett to the Celtics.
  • Using our 10-day contract tracker, you can find any 10-day contract signed this year or in any season since the 2006/07. You can sort by player, team, year and other variables.
  • We give you a turn in the spotlight when we showcase the best reader comments with our Hoops Rumors Featured Feedback posts.
  • On Mondays at 4:00pm CT, I answer reader questions in a live chat. You can check out transcripts of our past discussions here.
  • We’re tracking each team’s use of the amnesty clause. Our complete table shows which clubs have used the provision and which still have it available.
  • The Hoops Rumors glossary helps explain some of the more complex concepts in the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement. Recently, I added entries on summer contracts and Exhibit 9 contracts, the sorts of deals that teams will hand out with frequency in the next couple of months.
  • Zach Links rounds up the best of the blogosphere with Hoops Links on Sundays.
  • If you’re looking to catch up, our Week in Review posts compile the top news and rumors from the past seven days, while our Hoops Rumors Originals posts recap the site’s original content for the week. Both roundups are published every Sunday.
  • Be sure to check out the Featured Posts section on the right sidebar for more original pieces from the Hoops Rumors writing team. Recently, we looked at how salary matching rules affect the structure of the Kevin Love deal, detailed the many moves required for the Pelicans to acquire Omer Asik, and explored why Brendan Haywood‘s oddly structured contract represents a valuable trade chip for the Cavs.
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Extension Candidate: Ricky Rubio

August 12th, 2014 at 8:29pm CST by Charlie Adams

Former Timberwolves GM David Kahn chose not to offer Kevin Love a five-year extension for the maximum salary in 2012, thereby leaving the team’s Designated Player title unused, presumably so the team could bestow it upon Ricky Rubio. The decision drew heavy criticism and caused tension between Love and the front office, but management figured it would all be kosher if Rubio could develop into the superstar that Kahn envisioned. Unfortunately for Timberwolves fans, the now-dismissed Kahn’s decision backfired, as Minnesota is set to trade away the disgruntled Love, and whether or not Rubio has the track record to warrant a maximum deal likely worth more than $84MM remains highly questionable.

Rubio, the former fifth-overall pick, tore his ACL late in his rookie campaign, resulting in missed time over the course of his first two seasons. The Spanish point guard has been playing pro basketball since he was 14 years old but has only experienced one full season in the NBA. In spite of a relative lack of NBA minutes, Dan Fegan, Rubio’s agent, is still seeking the Designated Player title for his client. It might seem like a stretch, but Rubio has proven himself to be a more than capable contributor when healthy. He fills up highlight reels with his extraordinary passes, and his knack for finding the open man is reflected in his nightly average of 8.1 assists against just 2.7 turnovers. It’s rare to hear any knocks on Rubio’s killer playmaking instincts, and at just 23 years old, he’s still got even more room to grow.

Rubio’s been more than just a playmaker, however, as he’s been top-notch on the other side of the ball, too. Many European players struggle to defend in the NBA, but Rubio has led the league in steal percentage each of the last two seasons. Having a point guard who can play excellent defense is especially critical in today’s NBA, where almost all of the top teams carry a floor general who can score from all over the court. Again, Rubio should continue to refine his lockdown defensive skills as he matures.

The most frequent dig at Rubio’s game is his notoriously awful jump shot. A career 36.8% shooter, he’s just 427 field goal attempts away from being statistically qualified to have the lowest field goal percentage since the ABA-NBA merger. His awful shooting has kept him from scoring more than 10.7 points per contest in any of his three seasons, leaving some to wonder if he can truly develop the superstar skills that a max contract would imply. While Rubio’s mechanics certainly aren’t pretty, it’s a bit perplexing that his field goal percentage could fall so low, given that he’s proven he can drop buckets in from behind the charity stripe with ease, posting a 80.1% free throw percentage over his career. Perhaps his aptitude for hitting free throws means he has the potential to develop a respectable stroke from the floor, but teams generally want to see more than just potential before they fork over packages in excess of $84MM.

Minnesota is open to giving Rubio a deal similar to the four-year, $44MM pact that Stephen Curry signed in 2012, but his agent’s desire for max money has the potential to keep the two sides from agreeing to any sort of extension. Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors predicted that there wouldn’t be a compromise between the Wolves and Rubio’s camp and that the Spanish point guard will probably hit restricted free agency next summer as a result. The 2015 free agent market is currently set to feature Rajon Rondo and Goran Dragic, but beyond that, no real impact point guards. The dearth of big name floor generals means a team that misses out on either of the aforementioned could be willing to float serious cash to Rubio in an attempt to make a splash signing, which would leave Minnesota with a tough decision on whether or not to match the offer. Of course, this all assumes the Wolves and Rubio won’t be able to reach an agreement, so it might be too early to start concocting such scenarios.

The path of restricted free agency actually might not be so bad for either side, however. It gives the Wolves another season to determine whether Rubio’s game is progressing enough to warrant a max contract, and it allows Rubio the chance to open up a bidding war between the Wolves and any rival suitors. However, the latter case is easier said than done, as we’ve seen so far this summer with Eric Bledsoe. Teams are often shy about temporarily tying up cap space by making players big offers that might eventually be matched.

Given that the Wolves are set to roster Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine, both lottery picks from this year, it might be premature to give Rubio the five-year, maximum extension. Signing Rubio to a five-year extension would prevent the team from doing so with either Wiggins or LaVine, and it’d be tough to sell fans on such a large investment in Rubio, especially given that the Wolves have yet to appear in the playoffs during his time heading the point. It’d be certainly unfair to solely blame Rubio for the club’s consistent lack of success, but handing over the Designated Player title to Rubio while the team features so much young talent might be seen as a mistake.

Handling the Love debacle is definitely the biggest issue Flip Saunders has been faced with during has time as Wolves president of basketball operations, but determining the best course of action for Rubio’s future with the team is probably the next most crucial on the list. Refusing to pay for a guy who’s a triple-double threat every night could come back to bite Minnesota, especially if Rubio improves his shooting as he ages. On the other hand, dumping that sort of money into a guy who’s yet to fully demonstrate his superstar potential could be a recipe for even more mediocrity for the Wolves. Whatever Saunders and company decide to do, it will greatly affect the future of the team going forward.

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Free Agent Stock Watch: Andray Blatche

August 11th, 2014 at 10:30am CST by Chuck Myron

It’s worth wondering why Andray Blatche is without an NBA contract in the middle of August. He’s 27 years old, stands 6’11”, and is coming off a season in which he averaged 11.2 points and 5.3 rebounds in 22.2 minutes per game with an 18.8 PER for a Nets team that went to the conference semifinals. He’s an unrestricted free agent, without the encumbrance of restricted free agency that’s holding up deals for Eric Bledsoe and Greg Monroe and without the strong leads on a job that Shawn Marion has. He’s not considering retirement like Ray Allen. There are questions about his character, dating back to his pre-amnesty days with the Wizards and reverberating most recently in a report about the Heat’s longstanding reservations about his maturity and behavior. Another dispatch asserted that Blatche’s midseason absence this past year was a de facto suspension meted out by then-coach Jason Kidd, a punishment that left Nets management impressed with the coach. But such trouble has not kept lesser players out of the league.

There could easily be more than meets the eye to Blatche’s locker room issues, but those reports may also be the extent of it. His continued free agency might stem simply from a demand for more money than the market is bearing. He turned down a player option to stay with the Nets for a salary of nearly $1.438MM, slightly more than the minimum, so he probably envisioned a raise, which wouldn’t be easy to find at this stage of free agency. He’s been linked to a few teams in some form or fashion this summer, dating back to a mid-June report that he and the Pelicans had mutual interest, though a follow-up indicated that Blatche was the only party eyeing such an arrangement. Around the start of July, Blatche had apparently been telling many around the league that he would end up in New Orleans, but there’s been no movement toward that end.

The Raptors were reportedly to have met with Blatche about a week or so into free agency, but Toronto appears to have moved on. There was a report that he would work out along with a few other big men of note for the Clippers, but agent Andy Miller quickly dismissed that as false. Whether or not the Clippers enter the picture legitimately at any point, it seems a reunion with the Nets isn’t forthcoming. Blatche was the only one of the team’s free agents to whom GM Billy King declined to reach out at the start of free agency, a strong signal that there’s little, if any, interest from the club.

That might have more to do with the emergence of Mason Plumlee and the expected return to health of Brook Lopez than any shortcoming of Blatche’s. Kidd is gone, having jumped ship to Milwaukee, so any clash between Blatche and his coach is no longer germane. Brooklyn had its greatest success last season playing small ball, so an abundance of big men probably isn’t what the team has in mind.

Blatche’s minutes and production increased slightly this past season over 2012/13, his first in Brooklyn, though his PER and per-minute output went a hair in the other direction. He’s still at an age that suggests he’s entering his prime, if he’s not already there, and he still has a few more years before any precipitous decline should start to set in. He’s not the shot blocker he was in his early 20s, swatting fewer shots per game last season than he did in any season except for when he only saw 6.0 MPG as a rookie. Still, his defensive win shares have exceeded his offensive win shares every season of his career, demonstrating his impact when the other team has the ball. The Nets were slightly better defensively when Blatche was off the court than when he was on it in each of the past two seasons in terms of points allowed per 100 possessions, according to NBA.com, but each year the team’s net rating went up when he played.

The 49th overall pick from 2005 seems to be a plus on the floor, so unless teams have universally decided his off-court reputation is simply too much to bear, which doesn’t seem likely, there are certain to be NBA teams in touch with Miller as the summer wanes. The Lakers joined a list of 11 other teams I recently outlined as being limited to paying the minimum salary for this coming season, but while Blatche’s options for a non-minimum deal are dwindling, they aren’t gone yet.

There’s no urgency for either Blatche or teams to come to an agreement with training camp still about six weeks off, and as the Paul George injury showed, a need could crop up at any time to spur the market for someone who can fill it. The unresolved situations of Bledsoe and — for Blatche in particular — Monroe loom over part of the landscape. So, perhaps a team like the Hawks, who have cap space and have been linked to Monroe, could look to Blatche should the Pistons big man end up elsewhere. It was a little surprising to see his agent so quickly deny the Clippers rumor, so maybe there’s traction with other teams that such news would jeopardize, though that’s just my speculation. In any case, Blatche probably would find a guaranteed minimum-salary deal to sign this week if he wanted to, but he’s probably best advised to continue to wait until the pace of the market quickens and teams are more aggressively filling their rosters for the season ahead.

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Hoops Rumors Featured Feedback

August 11th, 2014 at 8:58am CST by Chuck Myron

We value your input on the news we cover here at Hoops Rumors. That’s why we’re passing along some of the best insight from our comments and the Hoops Rumors Facebook page. Share your reaction to and insight on the news and rumors around the league, and you’ll have a chance to see your name here.

If you haven’t commented at Hoops Rumors before, it’s easy to sign up and start. First, read our Commenting Policy. Then, scroll to the bottom of any post, and you’ll see the word “Login” on the right side atop the comments section. Click the word and choose whether you want to comment using a Disqus account or your existing Facebook, Twitter or Google account. If you don’t have a Disqus account and you want to create one, just choose that option and click “Need an account?” at the bottom right of the box that pops up.

One of the most compelling stories of late in the NBA involves Becky Hammon, who will become just the second woman ever to serve as an assistant coach for regular season NBA games when she does so on the Spurs bench this year. Reader TRAPstar hopes for a day when such news is routine: 

  • Interesting and good for her. However, we make too big a deal of these “groundbreaking achievements” by race and gender. I hope that it opens up a path for all of the smartest minds in basketball (i.e. Lisa Leslie, Sue Bird) to pass their knowledge along as coaches, regardless of gender.

Shawn Marion seems more likely to sign with the Cavs than anyone else, including the Pacers, who’ve also been in pursuit. Still, Kevin Alberda believes that there’s pressure on Indiana to change that.

  • Yeah, they need Marion really badly. Can’t possibly run out a SF depth chart of [Chris] Copeland and Solomon Hill and expect to win. Just can’t do it. Assuming Monroe is back, I don’t see any way the Pacers are realistically better than the Pistons. Should be a fight for that eighth seed between those two and maybe the Knicks.

The Cavs reportedly offered a first-round pick to the Nuggets for Timofey Mozgov, and while Cleveland would have to add salary to its proposal make a trade possible, LBCknickerbocker3 thinks Denver will be reluctant to give up the 7’1″ center.

  • Mozgov has been steadily improving over the years and has made himself a pretty good player. He would be a nice fit for Cleveland. I don’t see the Nuggets giving him up for a first-rounder though. Timmy is a favorite of Brian Shaw‘s and I know the Nuggets are looking to bounce back this year, which they can do with everyone healthy.

Check out what more readers had to say in previous editions of Hoops Rumors Featured Feedback. We appreciate everyone who adds to the dialogue at Hoops Rumors, and we look forward to seeing more responses like these from you!

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Hoops Rumors Originals

August 10th, 2014 at 3:51pm CST by Zachary Links

A look back at the original analysis generated by the Hoops Rumors staff this week..

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Trade Retrospective: Kevin Garnett To Celtics

August 10th, 2014 at 11:00am CST by Eddie Scarito

The trade that will send Kevin Love to the Cavaliers for Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and a future first round draft choice cannot be made official for another two weeks. That is when the 30-day required time period from when Wiggins inked his deal expires.

In light of the Timberwolves deciding to part with their franchise player, I’ve been taking a look back at past blockbuster deals to see how each team involved fared after these trades. So far I’ve looked at the deal that sent Dwight Howard from the Magic to the Lakers, and the trade that saw Deron Williams go from the Jazz to the Nets. Neither of those trades has worked out especially well for any of the franchises involved.

The next one I’ll be revisiting is the 2007 trade that saw the Wolves ship Kevin Garnett to the Celtics. Let’s start by looking at the players and assets that changed hands.

  1. The Celtics received Garnett.
  2. The Timberwolves received Ryan Gomes; Gerald Green; Al Jefferson; Theo Ratliff; Sebastian Telfair; the Celtics 2009 first-rounder (used to select Wayne Ellington at No. 28); the return of the Wolves’ 2009 first-round pick that was sent to Celtics as part of the Ricky Davis—Wally Szczerbiak trade (used to select Jonny Flynn at No. 6); and cash considerations.

I’ll begin with the Celtics’ end of the deal, which worked out as well as anyone in Boston could have hoped. The Celtics record the year prior to the trade was 24-58, and the franchise had not been to the playoffs since the 2004/05 season. In Garnett’s first year in Boston, he earned Defensive Player of the Year honors, and helped the franchise capture their first NBA title in 22 years. During Garnett’s six seasons in Boston, the franchise’s cumulative record was 314-161.

Garnett’s season averages were:

  1. 2007/08=18.8 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 3.4 APG. His slash line was .539/.000/.801.
  2. 2008/09=15.8 PPG, 8.5 RPG, and 2.5 APG. His slash line was .531/.250/.841.
  3. 2009/10=14.3 PPG, 7.3 RPG, and 2.7 APG. His slash line was .521/.200/.837.
  4. 2010/11=14.9 PPG, 8.9 RPG, and 2.4 APG. His slash line was .528/.200/.862.
  5. 2011/12=15.8 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 2.9 APG. His slash line was .503/.333/.857.
  6. 2012/13=14.8 PPG, 7.8 RPG, and 2.3 APG. His slash line was .496/.125/.786.

Garnett was the heart and soul of the Celtics during his tenure, and I don’t think anyone can make an argument that the trade wasn’t an enormous success for the franchise. His time with Boston came to an end in June of 2013 when Garnett was traded to the Nets.

That deal saw the Nets receive Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry. The Celtics in return received Kris Humphries, Gerald Wallace, MarShon Brooks, Kris Joseph, Keith Bogans, and 2014 (James Young), 2016, and 2018 first-round picks. The Celtics also have the ability to swap first-rounders with Brooklyn in 2017.

From the Timberwolves’ perspective, this deal hasn’t worked out very well for the franchise, and just might be a harbinger of things to come once Love finally dons a Cleveland jersey. The franchise’s record since the trade has been a dismal 135-341, with zero playoff appearances.

One telling fact about how poorly the trade worked out for Minnesota, is that not one of the original players or draftees are still with the team. Let’s take a look at what each player provided the Wolves and where they ended up.

Ryan Gomes spent three seasons in Minnesota, where he was primarily a starter. His season averages were:

  1. 2007/08=12.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, and 1.8 APG. His slash line was .457/.330/.830.
  2. 2008/09=13.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, and 1.6 APG. His slash line was .431/.372/.807.
  3. 2009/10=10.9 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 1.6 APG. His slash line was .447/.372/.825.

In June of 2010, Gomes was traded to the Trail Blazers along with the draft rights to Luke Babbitt for Martell Webster. Gomes was subsequently waived by Portland. In his two seasons in Minnesota, Webster averaged 8.3 PPG and 3.4 RPG.

Theo Ratliff didn’t provide much for the Wolves, appearing in only ten games during the 2007/08 season, averaging 6.3 PPG and 3.9 RPG. Ratliff was waived in February of 2008 and then finished that season with the Pistons.

The Wolves used the 2009 first rounder they acquired from Boston to select Wayne Ellington with the No. 28 pick. Ellington never developed into the scoring threat the team had hoped he’d become. His season averages with Minnesota were:

  1. 2009/10=6.6 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 1.0 APG. His slash line was .424/.395/.871.
  2. 2010/11=6.6 PPG, 1.7 RPG, and 1.2 APG. His slash line was .403/.397/.792.
  3. 2011/12=6.1 PPG, 1.9 RPG, and 0.6 APG. His slash line was .404/.324/.800.

Ellington’s time in Minnesota came to an end when he was dealt to the Grizzlies for Dante Cunningham, in July of 2012. In two seasons with the Wolves, Cunningham has averaged 7.5 PPG.

Sebastian Telfair had his two best seasons as a pro while with the Wolves. Telfair had entered the NBA out of high school, and never realized his potential. He was one of the pieces Minnesota had hoped would energize the franchise, but poor shooting and on-court decision-making have always hampered his game. Telfair then became a part of the revolving door of point guards the Wolves have either drafted or traded for since the Garnett deal. Telfair’s season averages in Minnesota were:

  1. 2007/08=9.3 PPG, 2.3 RPG, and 5.9 APG. His slash line was .401/.281/.743.
  2. 2008/09=9.8 PPG, 1.7 RPG, and 4.6 APG. His slash line was .383/.346/.819.

The Wolves re-signed Telfair to a three-year, $7.5MM deal after the 2007/08 season, but then Minnesota selected both Jonny Flynn and Ricky Rubio in the 2009 NBA Draft, thus making Telfair expendable. He was dealt along with Craig Smith and Mark Madsen to the Clippers, in return Minnesota received Quentin Richardson. A few weeks later, Richardson was dealt to the Heat for Mark Blount. Blount never played a game for Minnesota, and was waived the following March.

The selection of Jonny Flynn with the No. 6 pick in the 2009 NBA Draft was a head-scratcher for many. Not because of Flynn’s talent level, but because the Wolves had just selected Ricky Rubio with the No. 5 pick. The franchise knew there was a better than average chance that it would be a few seasons before Rubio would make the jump from international competition to the NBA, but when selecting that high, redundancies can severely hinder a franchise.

At the risk of making Timberwolves fans even more upset, look at who they passed on to select Flynn. Available at the time were Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday, Ty Lawson, Jeff Teague, Brandon Jennings, and Darren Collison. All have had better career numbers than Flynn.

Here’s what Flynn provided during his two seasons in Minnesota:

  1. 2009/10=13.5 PPG, 2.4 RPG, and 4.4 APG. His shooting numbers were .417/.358/.826.
  2. 2010/11=5.3 PPG, 1.5 RPG, and 3.4 APG. His slash line was .365/.310/.762.

Flynn’s tenure came to an end with a trade during the 2011 NBA Draft. This transaction is a bit complicated to break down since it set off a number of subsequent deals. Here’s the chain of events that resulted:

  1. Flynn was traded to the Rockets along with the rights to Donatas Motiejunas for Brad Miller; the rights to No. 23 pick Nikola Mirotic; a second-rounder (No. 38); and a 2013 first round pick (Andre Roberson). The Rockets would later buy back the No.38 pick from the Wolves. And whom did they select with that pick? Chandler Parsons. Ouch!
  2. The Wolves then dealt the rights to Mirotic to the Bulls for the rights to No. 28 pick Norris Cole and the No. 43 pick in the draft (Malcolm Lee).
  3. Then Minnesota dealt Cole to the Heat for the No. 31 pick (Bojan Bogdanovic); a future second-rounder; and cash.
  4. Bogdanovic was later traded to the Nets for a 2013 second-rounder (Lorenzo Brown) and cash.

Gerald Green was another player who entered the league right out of high school. He has always had amazing athletic ability, but hasn’t been able to translate that into the production expected of him, with the exception of the 2013/14 campaign he spent with the Suns.

Green found himself buried on the bench behind numerous players, and only appeared in 29 games for the Wolves during the 2007/08 season, averaging 5.1 PPG on 33.1% shooting. He asked for a trade via his agent, which the Wolves granted.

On February 21, 2008, Green was dealt to the Rockets for Kirk Snyder; a 2010 second-rounder (used to select Paulao Prestes); and cash. Prestes never played in the NBA, and Snyder spent one season in Minnesota, averaging 8.4 PPG and 4.2 RPG. That was Snyder’s last year in the NBA, and he’s been playing overseas since then.

Lastly, I come to Al Jefferson, who was the most productive player that Minnesota acquired. Jefferson passed up the chance to test out restricted free agency, and in November 2007, he inked a five-year, $65MM extension with the Wolves. While it didn’t translate into wins, Jefferson did provide the franchise with some excellent numbers.

  1. 2007/08=21.0 PPG, 11.1 RPG, and 1.5 BPG. His slash line was .500/.000/.721.
  2. 2008/09=23.1 PPG, 11.0 RPG, and 1.7 BPG. His slash line was .497/.000/.738.
  3. 2009/10=17.1 PPG, 9.3 RPG, and 1.3 BPG. His slash line was .498/.000/.680.

It could be argued that based on pure stats, Jefferson almost made up for Garnett’s departure offensively. But on the defensive, intangibles, and leadership fronts, it wasn’t possible to recoup what “The Big Ticket” provided.

Jefferson’s tenure in Minnesota came to an end on July 13, 2010, when he was dealt to the Jazz for Kosta Koufos; a 2011 first rounder (used to select Motiejunas) and a 2012 first round pick. The 2012 first-rounder was subsequently traded to the Rockets for Chase Budinger and the rights to Lior Eliyahu, and Houston used the pick to select Terrence Jones. Eliyahu has never played in the league, and in two seasons with Minnesota, Budinger has averaged 8.0 PPG.

That was a whole lot of player movement to track. I think it illustrates quite well the dangers involved with trading away a franchise player, and it’s a situation the Wolves are facing yet again with Love.

The biggest difference this time out for Minnesota is in what they are getting in return. The biggest piece they acquired for Garnett was Jefferson, who while productive, has never been thought of as an anchor-type player who can carry a franchise to a title. While it may be a bittersweet consolation to the franchise’s fans, I think the Love trade has the potential to work out slightly better.

Wiggins has superstar potential, and Bennett looked much improved in Summer League play. If both players can reach their ceilings in the next few seasons, and if they do in fact obtain Thaddeus Young from the Sixers, then there is a chance the Wolves can break their run of missing the playoffs. Cleveland, though, might follow Boston’s lead and use the trade to capture an NBA title. Time will certainly tell.

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Extension Candidate: Tristan Thompson

August 9th, 2014 at 8:37pm CST by Cray Allred

Perhaps more than any other rookie scale extension candidate, Tristan Thompson‘s fate with the Cavaliers could be decided by variables outside of his play. Both the return of LeBron James and the pending acquisition of Kevin Love should factor heavily into Cleveland’s decision to either extend the power forward or let him hit restricted free agency next summer.

On the court, Thompson has been a solid but unspectacular player, posting career averages of 11.7 PPG and 9.2 RPG in three seasons since being selected No. 4 by the Cavs in the 2011 draft. His production has been very steady in those years, without major spikes in hardly any category. The most significant changes have come in his blocks (down from 1.6 per-36 as a rookie to just 0.5 per-36 last season) and free throw proficiency. Thompson switched shooting hands in 2013/14, a rare shift for a professional to pull off. His free throw shooting benefited, jumping to a respectable .693, but his percentage from the floor dropped. His career slash line is .474/.000/.630.

Averaging a near double-double in the NBA is no small feat, but of the 19 players that scored over 10 points and collected at least 9 rebounds per game in 2013/14, Thompson ranked near the bottom in win shares (16th), PER (19th), effective field goal percentage (16th), and defensive rating (17th).  Defense is a particularly concerning area for Thompson, as he gave up a generous 59.1% while defending the rim last year.

Three frontcourt players from Thompson’s draft class received extensions prior to this summer, and the production and/or potential for DeMarcus Cousins, Larry Sanders, and Derrick Favors earned each annual salaries of at least $11MM in those deals. Sanders was on the low-end of those extensions, inking it after a 2012/13 season in which his per-36 numbers were significantly better than Thompson’s were this year. Sanders is also an athletic phenom in an altogether different class than Thompson, who is reportedly looking for salary in the $10MM range for an extension.

In a vacuum, Thompson’s market value would make it debatable he would even get an extension, let alone something in the ballpark of some of the league’s young post players with higher upside. Our own Chuck Myron predicted that Thompson will end up with no extension by the deadline in the Hoops Rumors Rookie Extension Primer, and how other teams would value Thompson as a free agent is unknown. The Warriors did see Thompson as a potential trade piece for a deal involving Harrison Barnes, although those were very preliminary rumblings that wouldn’t necessarily indicate a one-to-one valuation of the players, or any long-term salary considerations.

Thompson’s game doesn’t compare favorably to some fellow extension candidates that Chuck deemed long shots to receive a deal from their respective teams: Enes Kanter is a more effective low-post scorer; Markieff Morris a better all-around offensive force; and Bismack Biyombo a much more intimidating interior presence. Thompson’s agent might argue that it’s more relevant to compare his counting stats to those of Kenneth Faried, whose per-game averages aren’t significantly greater than Thompsons, but Faried was much more efficient, contributing similar numbers in fewer minutes per game. And again, Faried’s athletic prowess dwarfs that of Thompson.

With Love’s arrival, Cleveland has no shortage of offensive firepower, nor will they lack for rebounding ability with one of the game’s premier rebounding talents suiting up in wine and gold. Thompson’s moderate production in those categories is redundant to Love’s, to say the least. The Cavs’ biggest uncertainty is defense, especially after giving up Andrew Wiggins in the Love deal as expected. While LeBron is capable of playing elite defense and guarding every position on the court, center Anderson Varejao is a constant health risk, and if Love is capable of providing average interior defense, he hasn’t shown it in his time with Minnesota. New coach David Blatt is known as an offensive whiz, but whether his transition from Euroleague to the NBA will include effective defensive schematics remains to be seen.

So the presence of Love would appear to weigh heavily against Cleveland’s decision to invest in Thompson, as he is a superfluous cog on offense and a below-average defender on a team with major defensive concerns. However, Love’s arrival also speaks to one factor in Thompson’s favor: the influence of LeBron. James is said to have been instrumental in working between Love and Cleveland’s front office leading up to the trade, and he shares an agent with Thompson in Rich Paul.

Before LeBron’s return, Thompson was a trade candidate. As we noted prior to James’ return, the four-time MVP’s arrival would give Thompson leverage in seeking an extension. Sure enough, Thompson’s name was absent from trade rumblings involving Love following LeBron’s return, despite being a young, frontcourt talent whom the team was open to dealing in prior months. In an appearance on the B.S. Report podcast, Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com speculated that the Cavs will “probably” give Thompson an extension above his market value because of his shared representation with James. He suggests it will have been a “wink-wink” investment that would have been informally agreed upon to go along with LeBron’s signing in Cleveland. Such an agreement would be illegal under the CBA, but this wouldn’t be the first case of a convenient side-deal. Last summer, John Wall‘s agency negotiated a surprisingly lucrative four-year contract for teammate Martell Webster just before wrapping up a max extension for Wall in Washington.

If Thompson does receive an extension, it could be an indicator of just how influential LeBron’s management team is for the Cavs. While James isn’t expected to leave Cleveland anytime soon, his two-year deal, which includes a player option next season, gives him continued leverage with the organization. If James wields far-reaching power in Cleveland, it wouldn’t be the first case of a superstar doing as much. Phil Jackson‘s recent hiring as Knicks president ended an era in New York in which Creative Artists Agency, representing Carmelo Anthony, had its tentacles throughout the franchise, even getting J.R. Smith‘s brother an eyebrow-raising contract last season.

With plans of keeping James, Kyrie Irving, and Love for the long term, a multiyear commitment to Thompson would be a huge gamble. That All-Star trio is already slated to take up around $60MM in cap space in the coming years, and the team also faces a decision on whether to extend Dion Waiters to a rookie scale extension by next fall. On paper, the wise choice seems to be straightforward: don’t tie up most of your remaining long-term money to a player that doesn’t project to bolster your title hopes. Even if James’ camp exerts pressure on the Cavs to extend Thompson, Cleveland brass would do well to remember that the Heat just lost James in part due to cap limitations that prevented them from improving around the world’s best player, and he walked away as their championship window appeared to be closing.

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Trade Retrospective: Deron Williams To Nets

August 9th, 2014 at 12:18pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The soon-to-be blockbuster trade that will send Kevin Love to the Cavaliers for Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and a future first-rounder, is just awaiting the 30-day moratorium from the date that Wiggins signed his contract to pass before the trade can become official. While the Timberwolves have no choice but to trade their star player, lest they risk losing him in free agency for nothing after the season, there is always a danger in dealing away a player of Love’s talent.

I’ve begun looking back at past trades involving big name superstars being dealt, and the results of these deals for all parties involved. Previously I had examined the four-team trade which sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers, and the outcomes for all the teams involved turned out to be less than stellar.

The next trade that I’ll be looking back at is the February 2011 deal that sent Deron Williams from the Jazz to the Nets. Let’s first recap the pieces that changed hands:

  1. The Nets received Williams.
  2. The Jazz received Derrick Favors; Devin Harris; a 2011 first-round pick (used to select Enes Kanter); a 2013 first-round pick (which was later traded along with Utah’s No. 14 overall pick for the rights to Trey Burke); and $3MM.

Note: The Nets also traded forward Troy Murphy and a 2012 second-round pick to the Warriors for center Dan Gadzuric and forward Brandan Wright the same day. This deal was announced at the same time, but wasn’t part of the Jazz-Nets transaction.

This deal came together after Williams had expressed his displeasure with playing in Utah, and his season-long friction with then coach Jerry Sloan, which had a direct influence on Sloan resigning from his long-time position with the team. The Nets made this deal after being unsuccessful in their numerous attempts to land Carmelo Anthony from the Nuggets, who forced his way into being traded to the Knicks instead.

From the Nets’ perspective, it would be safe to say that this trade hasn’t quite worked out for the franchise as planned. Williams has been hobbled by injuries for much of his time in New Jersey/Brooklyn, and his production hasn’t quite been worth the assets surrendered, nor the subsequent 5-year, $98MM extension he signed with the team in July of 2012.

Let’s look at Williams’ numbers since joining the Nets:

  1. In 2011/12, Williams averaged 21.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, and 8.7 APG. He appeared in 55 games that year, and his slash line was .407/.336/.843.
  2. In 2012/13, he appeared in 78 games, averaging 18.9 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 7.7 APG. His slash line was .440/.378/.859.
  3. In 2013/14, Williams played in 64 contests, putting up 14.3 PPG, 2.6 RPG, and 6.1 APG. His shooting numbers were .450/.366/.801.

His numbers the first two seasons were very respectable, but arguably not in line with the level of his contract, nor the perception of him being a franchise player. Injuries have had much to do with this, and he underwent surgery this May on both of his ankles. Both the Nets and Williams hope this will alleviate the pain he was forced to play through, and perhaps help him regain some of the explosiveness that he has lost since his days in Utah. Williams still has three years and $63.1MM remaining on his contract, so Brooklyn certainly hopes it helps.

From Utah’s perspective, the trade looks better every time Williams hobbles up and down the court, and I’m sure they’re happy not having to pay max-level money for his decline years. But the deal hasn’t helped them advance in the standings. Since dealing Williams, the Jazz have gone 104-126, and have made it to the postseason just once, and were ousted in the first round by the Spurs that year. During the same time period, Brooklyn sits at an even 115-115, with two playoff appearances.

As for the players they received in return, the results have been mixed. Both Favors and Kanter have improved with each season, and have the potential to anchor a productive frontcourt for years to come. But neither player has performed at an All-Star level. Let’s look at their numbers since arriving in Utah.

Favors:

  1. During the 2011/12 season, Favors averaged 8.8 PPG, 6.5 RPG, and 1.0 BPG. His slash line was .499/.000/.649.
  2. In 2012/13 he averaged 9.4 PPG, 7.1 RPG, and 1.7 BPG, while shooting .482/.000/.688.
  3. Last season, Favors put up 13.3 PPG, 8.7 RPG, and 1.5 BPG. His slash line was .522/.000/.669.

Kanter:

  1. Back in 2011/12, as a rookie he put up 4.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 0.3 BPG. His slash line was .496/.000/.667.
  2. During the 2012/13 campaign, Kanter provided 7.2 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 0.5 BPG. His shooting numbers were .544/1.000/.795.
  3. Last year’s numbers were 12.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG, and 0.5 BPG. Kanter’s slash line was .491/.000/.730.

Harris played one full season in Utah, and averaged 11.3 PPG, 1.8 RPG, and 5.0 APG. He was then traded during the offseason to the Hawks for forward Marvin Williams. Williams was a productive rotation piece for the Jazz, averaging 7.2 PPG and 3.6 RPG during the 2012/13 season, and 9.1 PPG and 5.1 RPG last year. Williams signed a two-year, $14MM deal with the Hornets this offseason.

The last piece of the deal for the Jazz was the 2013 first-rounder they received, which ended up being the No. 21 overall pick. Utah packaged that selection along with their own first-rounder (No. 14) in a draft night trade with the Timberwolves. The Jazz received the rights to point guard Trey Burke, whom Minnesota had taken 9th overall.

The Wolves used those selections to take Shabazz Muhammad (No. 14) and Gorgui Dieng (No. 21). Nether of those players have set the league on fire, but Dieng has showed flashes of potential and could become a productive rotation player in Minnesota. Muhammad has been a bust thus far, displaying maturity issues, and his offensive game hasn’t developed as hoped.

Burke has easily been the most productive player involved in that deal. In his rookie season, he averaged 12.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 5.7 APG. His slash line was .380/.330/.903. Burke’s shooting was abysmal, but he displayed some improvement towards the end of the season. He also brings a number of intangibles to the table, which can’t be discounted. He is a high-character player, who outperforms his athletic ability.

His role as a starter could be in jeopardy though, seeing as the Jazz picked Dante Exum with the 5th overall selection in this year’s draft. Exum will likely begin his career as a shooting guard, pairing with Burke in the backcourt, but Exum views himself as a point guard, and if he develops quickly, could push Burke into a role off the bench.

As with the Howard trade, this is another example of neither franchise “winning” the deal. If Williams had remained healthy, and put up similar numbers to his days in Utah, then the Nets would have come out on top. A star player in the NBA is worth far more than a number of good rotation pieces.

But in light of Williams’ injury issues, and him being unlikely to regain his past explosiveness at the age of 30, coupled with his enormous contract and resulting cap hit, Utah did reasonably well here. Kanter and Favors could anchor a solid, if unspectacular frontcourt for the next few seasons, and if Burke can improve his outside shooting and keep Exum at shooting guard, then this trade will look much better from the Jazz’s perspective.

That’s a lot of ifs, and it only serves to illustrate the risks involved when franchises deal away their star players. Like the Jazz had with Williams, Minnesota has very little choice but to deal away Love, lest they risk getting nothing to show for their troubles. But while they might acquire some pieces that can help, even acquiring a player of Wiggins’ potential doesn’t mean they’ll be selling playoff tickets any time soon.

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Length Of Stay For Each Post-Merger No. 1 Pick

August 8th, 2014 at 3:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kevin Love is the headliner in the trade agreement that will send him to the Cavs, but there will be at least two other historically significant players in the transaction once it becomes official. Andrew Wiggins will become just the third No. 1 overall pick to be traded before playing a regular season game for the team that selected him. Chris Webber and David Thompson are the others, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com pointed out today via Twitter. The inclusion of Anthony Bennett, last year’s No. 1 overall pick, is fairly noteworthy, too. He’ll pair with Pervis Ellison as the only top picks since the NBA-ABA merger to have been traded after only one season with the team that drafted them.

In many ways, Wiggins and Webber stand alone. Thompson signed with the Nuggets, then an ABA team, rather than the Hawks after Atlanta made him the NBA’s No. 1 pick in 1975. Thompson’s rookie season was the last of the ABA before the merger. The Rockets, who had the first overall pick in 1976, parted ways with draftee John Lucas two years later because the rules at that time held that teams had to give up players as compensation when they signed another club’s free agent. So, that’s why this look at the length of time each No. 1 overall pick has spent with his team starts with Kent Benson, the top pick in 1977. Player movement rules have evolved gradually since then, but the first draft after the first post-merger season seems an appropriate place to begin.

Since that time, top picks have spent an average of six and a half seasons with their teams. That takes into account active players who still remain with the clubs that drafted them and assumes Bennett and Wiggins will indeed spend just one and zero seasons, respectively, as Cavs. This post counts years in which a draftee didn’t play for his team due to injury, but not seasons during which a player was retired. In cases where teams traded their top picks midseason, it goes down as a half-season for the purposes of this post.

Here’s the complete list, since 1977, with the number of seasons the top pick played for his team in parentheses.

  • 2014: Andrew Wiggins, Cavaliers (0) — Trade agreement in place to send Wiggins to the Timberwolves once he becomes eligible to be traded on August 23rd.
  • 2013: Anthony Bennett, Cavaliers (1) — Trade agreement in place to sent Bennett to the Sixers once Wiggins becomes eligible to be traded on August 23rd.
  • 2012: Anthony Davis, Pelicans (2) — Still with team
  • 2011: Kyrie Irving, Cavaliers (3) — Still with team
  • 2010: John Wall, Wizards (4) — Still with team
  • 2009: Blake Griffin, Clippers (5) — Still with team
  • 2008: Derrick Rose, Bulls (6) — Still with team
  • 2007: Greg Oden, Trail Blazers (4.5) — Waived March 15th, 2012.
  • 2006: Andrea Bargnani, Raptors (7) — Traded to Knicks on July 10th, 2013.
  • 2005: Andrew Bogut, Bucks (6.5) — Traded to Warriors on March 13th, 2012.
  • 2004: Dwight Howard, Magic (8) — Traded to Lakers on August 10th, 2012.
  • 2003: LeBron James, Cavaliers (7) — Signed-and-traded to Heat on July 10, 2010.
  • 2002: Yao Ming, Rockets (9) — Played entire career for Rockets.
  • 2001: Kwame Brown, Wizards (4) — Traded to Lakers on August 2nd, 2005.
  • 2000: Kenyon Martin, Nets (4) — Traded to Nuggets on July 15th, 2004.
  • 1999: Elton Brand, Bulls (2) — Traded to Clippers on June 27th, 2001.
  • 1998: Michael Olowokandi, Clippers (5) — Signed with Timberwolves on July 16th, 2003.
  • 1997: Tim Duncan, Spurs (17) — Still with team.
  • 1996: Allen Iverson, Sixers (9.5) — Traded to Nuggets on December 19th, 2006.
  • 1995: Joe Smith, Warriors (2.5) — Traded to Sixers on February 17th, 1998.
  • 1994: Glenn Robinson, Bucks (8) — Traded to Hawks on August 2nd, 2002.
  • 1993: Chris Webber, Magic (0) — Traded to Warriors on June 30th, 1993 (draft night).
  • 1992: Shaquille O’Neal, Magic (4) — Signed with Lakers on July 18th, 1996.
  • 1991: Larry Johnson, Hornets (now Pelicans) (5) — Traded to Knicks on July 14th, 1996.
  • 1990: Derrick Coleman, Nets (5.5) — Traded to Sixers on November 30th, 1995.
  • 1989: Pervis Ellison, Kings (1) — Traded to Bullets (now Wizards) on June 25th, 1990.
  • 1988: Danny Manning, Clippers (5.5) — Traded to Hawks on February 24th, 1994.
  • 1987: David Robinson, Spurs (14) — Played entire career for Spurs.
  • 1986: Brad Daugherty, Cavaliers (8) — Played entire career for Cavaliers.
  • 1985: Patrick Ewing, Knicks (15) — Traded to SuperSonics (now Thunder) on September 20th, 2000.
  • 1984: Hakeem Olajuwon, Rockets (17) — Traded to Raptors on August 2nd, 2001.
  • 1983: Ralph Sampson, Rockets (4.5) — Traded to Warriors on December 12th, 1987.
  • 1982: James Worthy, Lakers (12) — Played entire career for Lakers.
  • 1981: Mark Aguirre, Mavericks (7.5) — Traded to Pistons on February 15, 1989.
  • 1980: Joe Barry Carroll, Warriors (7.5) — Traded to Rockets on December 12th, 1987.
  • 1979: Magic Johnson, Lakers (13) — Played entire career for Lakers. Was retired from 1991/92 season through 1994/95 season, but returned during 1995/96.
  • 1978: Mychal Thompson, Trail Blazers (8) — Traded to Spurs on June 19th, 1986.
  • 1977: Kent Benson, Bucks (2.5) — Traded to Pistons on February 4th, 1980.

Basketball-Reference was used in the creation of this post.

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