Odds & Ends: T-Wolves, Yi, Arroyo, Rockets
Let's round up a few of today's odds and ends from around the Association….
- The Timberwolves ultimately signed Louis Amundson to a minimum-salary deal to bolster their frontcourt, but were also seriously considering Sean Williams and were close to signing Yi Jianlian, tweets Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500. Yi ended up signing in China, where he presumably received a larger guarantee.
- Two and a half months after urging management to make roster upgrades, Kevin Love says he's happy about the changes and is optimistic about the Timberwolves' playoff chances, according to an AP report (via NBA.com).
- According to a Primera Hora report (Spanish link), longtime NBA point guard Carlos Arroyo is still debating whether to join an NBA team's training camp or play in Turkey.
- The Rockets announced a series of coaching and basketball operations hirings and promotions today, including a pair of assistant coaches.
- There has been so much turnover in New Orleans in recent years that Jason Smith, who joined the team almost exactly two years ago, is now the longest-tenured Hornet. Smith spoke to Jim Eichenhofer of Hornets.com about the club's offseason acquisitions and his expectations for the coming year.
Rockets Waive Fortson, Sign McCamey, Fogg
5:34pm: The Rockets have made the series of transactions official in a press release.
1:24pm: Before training camp opens next week, the Rockets will waive Courtney Fortson and his non-guaranteed contract, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). That will reduce the team's roster to 18 players, at which point Houston will fill its last two roster spots by signing Demetri McCamey and Kyle Fogg, says Feigen.
We heard back in June that the Rockets had decided to bring back Fortson for this season, but the 24-year-old's contract ensured that Houston actually had to make two decisions on whether or not to retain him. As Mark Deeks of ShamSports explains, Fortson's deal included a team option for 2012/13, but despite that option being exercised, Fortson's contract was still non-guaranteed, meaning the Rockets won't take a cap hit by releasing him.
McCamey, 23, went undrafted out of Illinois in 2011, despite being ranked as the 53rd-best prospect of the class by ESPN.com's Chad Ford. The 6'3" point guard played in Turkey last season before joining the Bulls' summer league squad this July. Another 6'3" guard, Fogg went undrafted out of Arizona this June. The 22-year-old averaged 13.5 PPG in his senior year with the Wildcats, and played for the Rockets' summer league team in July.
Assuming the deals for McCamey and Fogg are fully non-guaranteed, the Rockets now have 18 contracts on their books that are at least partially guaranteed. Shaun Livingston, Greg Smith, and Scott Machado will all require small buyouts if they don't make the team's final roster and aren't traded.
Ingram On MVP Award, Rockets
Hoopsworld.com's Bill Ingram writes about several NBA related issues in his latest column. Let's take a closer look.
On MVP Award: Ingram believes that given last year's too-close-to-call MVP race between Kevin Durant and LeBron James, it might be time for the league to institute a dual MVP award. Ingram believes that since the goal for every player in the league is to win a championship, whoever wins the NBA Finals MVP might as well be the true indicator of who the league's best player is. He suggests that for the regular season, two MVP awards should be distributed to the best player in each conference.
On the Rockets: With a loaded roster heading into training camp, the Rockets have seven or eight players guaranteed a spot, and nearly 10 others who'll be fighting to make the team. Ingram writes that with a wide open power forward position, players such as Patrick Patterson, Royce White, and Donatas Motiejunas will fight for a starting spot.
Bobcats To Sign Jeff Adrien, Eyeing Three Others
4:44pm: The Bobcats have agreed to terms with Adrien on a non-guaranteed contract, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. According to Spears, the Rockets, Clippers, Lakers, Spurs, and Celtics also showed interest in the forward.
3:53pm: Looking to bring at least 17 players to their training camp, the Bobcats are finalizing agreements with a handful of players expected to compete for a spot on the team's roster. According to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer, Paris Horne, Josh Owens, Jeff Adrien, and DaJuan Summers are expected to be added to the Bobcats' roster in the near future.
Horne, 25, played in Germany last season after graduating from St. John's in 2011. He's a 6'3" guard. Owens, a 6'9" forward out of Stanford, was eligible for this year's draft and was ranked as a top-100 prospect by ESPN.com's Chad Ford, but went undrafted. Both players were part of the Bobcats' summer league squad.
Adrien and Summers both have previous NBA experience. The 6'7" Adrien, a UConn product, received limited playing time for the Warriors in 2010/11 and the Rockets in 2011/12. Summers, meanwhile, was drafted 35th overall in 2009 and has since played for the Pistons and Hornets. The 24-year-old forward has averaged 3.4 PPG in 81 career contests.
If the Bobcats finalize deals with these four players, they're likely to be non-guaranteed contracts. With 13 Charlotte players on guaranteed deals, there could be a roster spot or two available on the team for players who impress in training camp.
Southwest Notes: Cunningham, Mayo, Lin, Spurs
Most training camps don't start until October 1st, though a few begin September 29th. Still, many players are getting a jump on the league calendar by organizing workouts with their teammates. We've got news on a few who changed teams this summer and are getting in some extra work for Southwest Division clubs:
- Jared Cunningham, the 24th pick in the draft this June, didn't suit up for the Mavericks in summer league because of a right hamstring injury, and is anxious to get going as he works out with several of his new teammates, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes. In a crowded backcourt, Cunningham will compete for playing time at both guard spots, Sefko says.
- Many with the Mavericks, including owner Mark Cuban, have high hopes for O.J. Mayo this year, as Sefko notes in a separate piece. “I think he can be a star and I think O.J. knows that this is his make-or-break, who-am-I-really-going-to-be-in-this-league year," Cuban said."And Coach [Rick Carlisle] is going to give him that opportunity. We’ll see what happens.”
- The Associated Press (via The New York Times) checks in with Jeremy Lin as he settles into Houston for workouts with the Rockets. It's the second straight year Lin has been in Rockets camp, but circumstances are much different this time around.
- John Hollinger of ESPN.com is rolling out his projections and scouting reports for each player in the league, releasing two teams each day. Today, it's the Spurs and the Celtics (Insider only).
Rockets Waive Diamon Simpson
The Rockets, who at one point this offseason were carrying the maximum 20 players, continue to move toward paring down their roster to 15. The team has officially waived Diamon Simpson, according to a press release. The move occurred earlier in September, so Simpson has since cleared waivers and become an unrestricted free agent.
Simpson, who turned 25 this month, was signed by the Rockets near the end of the 2011/12 season to a contract that included a non-guaranteed year in 2012/13. Assuming there was no partial guarantee on Simpson's deal, the Rockets should be able to clear his minimum-salary contract from their books without taking a cap hit.
Although the Rockets released Simpson, the team also signed Scott Machado to a partially-guaranteed deal at the same time, so the team's roster count still stands at 19. By October 31st, Houston will either need to make four more cuts or make trades to reduce the roster to 15 players.
Southwest Rumors: Mavs, Gasol, McHale
The Southwest Division should again be one of the league's toughest this season, with the Spurs, who've won the division twice in a row, bringing back their key parts and the playoff-tested Grizzlies doing the same. The Mavericks made plenty of changes but still figure to be in the playoff mix as long as Dirk Nowitzki is around, and the Hornets brought in No. 1 pick Anthony Davis, 2011/12 Most Improved Player Award winner Ryan Anderson, and others. The Rockets appear to be the division's soft spot, but they could be in the mix for a marquee player closer to the trade deadline with their stockpile of youth and draft picks. Here's the latest, with preseason on the horizon:
- After a summer of change, the Mavericks' roster for the start of the regular season appears set, but beyond that there's plenty of uncertainty, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News examines.
- Marc Gasol spoke about his desire to remain long-term with the Grizzlies to the Spanish website Marca.com (translation via HoopsHype). Gasol still has three years left on the four-year, $57.5MM deal he signed after the lockout last December, so it doesn't seem like he's going anywhere soon.
- Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle heard from Rockets coach Kevin McHale about the team's overhauled and largely inexperienced roster as he prepares for the first full training camp of his coaching career.
Texas Rumors: Mayo, Brand, Collison, Spurs
"The Texas Triangle" has long been the NBA's equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle, as teams have rarely gone undefeated on a three-game swing through Houston, Dallas and San Antonio. It might not be as much of a challenge this year, with the Rockets in flux, but if road-weary teams have to go to Houston on a back-to-back after facing the Spurs or Mavs, the Rockets could pick up a few extra wins this year. Here's the latest Lone Star news:
- Chauncey Billups, recalling his growth under coach Rick Carlisle when they were together with the Pistons, persuaded O.J. Mayo to sign with the Mavs, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes.
- Elton Brand is entering the final year of his deal after the Mavs claimed him off amnesty waivers from the Sixers, but he told the Ben and Skin show on ESPNDallas 103.3 that he'd be willing to come off the bench, something he's done only 30 times in 860 career regular season games.
- Mavs point guard Darren Collison, also heading into a contract year, spoke about his goals for the season with HoopsWorld, as part of a larger roundup by Bill Ingram.
- The Spurs announced via press release that the Austin Toros, their D-League affiliate, have hired Taylor Jenkins as head coach.
- Carmelo Anthony gives the Rockets front office credit for snaring Jeremy Lin away from the Knicks, as we noted earlier.
Atlantic Rumors: Knicks, Green, Lin, Brooks
An active offseason for Atlantic Division teams continued this week, with the Knicks bringing in a handful of training camp invites, the Nets finalizing deals with Josh Childress and Andray Blatche, the Celtics signing Rob Kurz, and the Raptors inking Dominic McGuire. The Sixers didn't make any signings, but we heard Tony DiLeo has become a candidate to replace Rod Thorn as GM. Our Transactions page will fill you in on any signings you may have missed, and we've got the latest rumors out of the Atlantic right here:
- Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com hears the Knicks are prioritizing a big man as they seek to make one more signing, a point he reiterated in a chat today, but Ian Begley, his ESPNNewYork.com colleague, says the team is still deciding between a big and a wing (Twitter link).
- Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com passed along comments from Celtics forward Jeff Green, who spoke about the perception that he's playing under pressure after signing a sizable, four-year, $36MM deal so soon after heart surgery. "You guys put the pressure on me," Green said to reporters. "There’s no pressure on myself. What I went through, it’s a blessing in disguise, it allowed me to sit back, see things from a different point of view. Now I have to go out there and play basketball."
- Carmelo Anthony says the Knicks are still trying to get over the loss of Jeremy Lin, as the Associated Press reports, via ESPN.com. "I know it was kind of hard for the Knicks to let him go," said Anthony, in Puerto Rico with his charitable foundation. "(The Rockets) played the free agents' market to a T."
- Zwerling checks in with Nets guard MarShon Brooks, who's traveling in Russia as part of the Basketball Without Borders tour. Brooks and owner Mikhail Prokhorov met for the first time as part of the trip, Zwerling reports.
Odds & Ends: Tolliver, Rubio, Knicks
Anthony Tolliver has been working out with several Timberwolves players, namely Brandon Roy and Chase Budinger (Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune tweets). Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (via Twitter) looks at it as a sign that Tolliver "badly" wants to remain in Minnesota next year. In another tweet, Zgoda caught Nikola Pekovic's thoughts regarding Ricky Rubio, saying that while the Spanish point guard looks good and hopes to be running again next week, he is still aiming for a return in December. We've had quite a bit of updates tonight, so be sure to check out the newest tidbits from around the league here..
- Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com tweets that Trail Blazers guard Elliot Williams is scheduled to undergo surgery on Friday to repair a ruptured achilles tendon.
- Justin Verrier of ESPN talks about Chris Bosh's willingness to continue playing center after contributing to a successful title run at that position with the Heat.
- Free agent Maurice Evans remains confident in the leadership ability he can bring to a team, says Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. Although a source suggested that the Wizards offered him a position in their front office, Evans says that he believes he still has value as a player.
- ESPN's Chris Broussard writes that Hakeem Olajuwon is slated to visit with the Knicks for several days next week to continue working out with Amare Stoudemire in addition to helping Carmelo Anthony, Tyson Chandler, and Marcus Camby. On another matter, Tracy McGrady's health looked "good" during his workout with the team (Ian Begley of ESPN New York tweets).
- According to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com, Dwight Howard's rehab is going well, although he won't be ready for the start of training camp or the start of pre-season. Earlier, Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register reported (via Twitter) that the Lakers were expected to make an announcement today regarding an update of Howard's recovery from back surgery.