Magic Not In Hurry To Trade Dwight Howard
3:44pm: The Magic hope to have a deal by early August, reports Sam Amick of SI.com (Sulia link).
3:04pm: Magic officials continue to hold out for the best Dwight Howard deal, and are unlikely to trade him in the next few days, Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld writes. The Rockets, a major player in trade talks, will be tied up while waiting for the Bulls to decide whether to match their offer sheet to Omer Asik, and it won't be clear what kind of cap space and assets Houston will have available until that situation is resolved, Kennedy says.
The Rockets and Lakers have been forced to bid against each other for Howard, and the Magic will weigh their final offers once the Bulls make their decision on Asik, according to Kennedy. Asik has signed the offer sheet but the Bulls have yet to see it, meaning the three-day period Chicago has to match is not yet under way. Last night, Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio also noted the Magic's patient approach, but heard from an opposing team's GM who said there's no way the Magic can bring Howard to training camp in late September. I'm not sure if that deadline holds much weight, however, since Howard and the Magic already co-existed last season amid plenty of trade speculation, and there's no guarantee Howard's back will be healthy enough to allow him to make the start of camp anyway, though the big man insists he'll be ready for the season.
If Howard is still with the Magic come January 15th, when the Nets can trade Brook Lopez, Newsday's Rod Boone believes Orlando and Brooklyn would reinitiate talks, but obviously much can happen between now and then (Twitter link).
The Magic remain focused on their coaching search in the meantime, which is down to assistants Jacque Vaughn of the Spurs, Michael Curry of the Sixers and Lindsey Hunter of the Suns, Kennedy says. With the second round of interviews complete, Vaughn still appears to be the frontrunner, reports Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, with Hunter the next choice. The next step involves meeting with the DeVos family, the owners of the team (Twitter links).
Celtics Acquire Courtney Lee
5:49pm: The second-round picks the Blazers will get are both for 2013, tweets Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. They'll receive the Celtics' own selection, along with the Timberwolves' pick that the C's acquired in an earlier deal. Freeman also passes along word from Blazers GM Neil Olshey, who says he is hopeful Pavlovic will make the team out of camp (Twitter link). Freeman confirms, via Twitter, that the Celtics will send the Blazers cash to cover Pavlovic's salary, which will likely be the veteran's minimum. Pavlovic's 2012/13 contract is non-guaranteed, so he could be waived without the Blazers taking a cap hit, Freeman confirms in an email to Hoops Rumors.
4:05pm: In making their own official announcement about the trade, the Trail Blazers noted that they'll acquire two future second-rounders from the Celtics, rather than just one (Twitter link).
2:12pm: The Rockets have officially announced the Lee sign-and-trade agreement in a press release. Based on the team's announcement and a tweet from Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe, the deal looks like this:
- Celtics receive: Courtney Lee (sign-and-trade from Rockets)
- Rockets receive: JaJuan Johnson, E'Twaun Moore, Sean Williams, Bobcats' 2013 second-round pick (from Celtics), and the rights to Jon Diebler (from Trail Blazers)
- Trail Blazers receive: Sasha Pavlovic, second-round pick (from Celtics)
According to ESPN.com's John Hollinger (via Twitter), Lee will earn exactly $5MM in his first year, making his total contract worth the same as the maximum mid-level exception (four years, $21.35MM). The Rockets, meanwhile, are expected to waive Moore and Williams in the very near future. Diebler, the player whose rights Houston receives from Portland, was selected by the Blazers 51st overall in 2011 and spent last season overseas.
Cavs Claim Jon Leuer Off Waivers
10:03pm: The Cavs confirmed their successful waiver claim on the team website.
6:35pm: Zgoda tweets that the Timberwolves didn't put in a claim for Leuer, correcting what he said earlier.
6:02pm: Jon Leuer is headed to Cleveland after being waived by the Rockets earlier this week, reports Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). Zach Lowe of SI.com says the Cavs will simply sign him (Twitter link), but Either way, it appears the 6'10" Leuer will suit up for the Cavs next season, likely on a minimum-salary deal. Zgoda says the Timberwolves also put in a claim, but since the Cavs had an inferior record last season, Cleveland's bid wins out.
The 6'10" power forward averaged 4.7 points and 2.6 rebounds with a 15.3 PER in 12.1 minutes a game as a rookie last season for the Bucks, who traded him to the Rockets as part of a deal for Samuel Dalembert. He was the 40th overall pick of the 2011 draft.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Friday
Last night, we heard from agent Dan Fegan that Dwight Howard would not be signing an in-season extension with any team that acquires him this year. This news comes as no surprise — even if Howard had been dealt to his preferred destination in Brooklyn, it would have been shocking if he'd immediately finalized a three-year extension, rather than waiting until next summer to ink a more lucrative five-year contract. And as many writers have pointed out, even a promise that he'd re-sign when he becomes a free agent is technically against NBA rules.
Regardless, if sounds like Howard is becoming more amenable to signing long-term with the Lakers, so it's hard not to consider L.A. the current frontrunner in the D12 sweepstakes. Here are today's Howard updates, with the latest news up top:
- Amico elaborates on the difficulty the Magic have been presenting possible trade partners, saying they keep changing the terms of potential deals at the last minute. A source tells Amico that Nets GM Billy King thought he had finalized a trade with the Magic at one point earlier this summer before the Magic pulled back.
- Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio reiterates that it's the Magic, rather than Bynum's or Howard's representatives, that are complicating a potential deal (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- The three-team talks involving the Magic, Lakers, and Cavaliers are running into the same problems that plagued Orlando's talks with the Nets, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. The Magic aren't convinced that this is the best they can do for Howard, while the Cavs are reluctant to get too serious until they find out if Andrew Bynum would be open to committing long-term to Cleveland.
- Berger hears from one source that Howard was convinced to waive his early termination option in March by Magic officials that said if things didn't work out for Dwight in Orlando, the team would trade him to Brooklyn. However, another source tells Berger that no such promise was made to the star center.
- The Magic, Lakers, and Cavs are still "far" from finalizing any deal, but aren't deterred by comments made by Fegan or Bynum's agent David Lee, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Sulia link).
- Kris Humphries said today that he was never approached about accepting a sign-and-trade to the Cavs, so the Magic/Nets talks didn't advance that far, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
E’Twaun Moore Headed To Bulls?
E'Twaun Moore was just traded to the Rockets in the three-team Courtney Lee deal, but by all accounts Houston is likely to waive the 6'4" guard soon. According to Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com, Moore already has a new team lined up, saying he expects to wind up with the Bulls.
Moore would have to clear waivers before signing with the team of his choice, so it's unclear whether Chicago is simply his preference or if the Bulls have given him indication they'll claim him off waivers. He has a non-guaranteed deal for the minimum salary for next season that becomes guaranteed if he's not waived by the end of summer league this weekend.
Moore, the 55th overall pick in the 2011 draft, averaged 2.9 points and made 37.8% of his three-point attempts in 38 games for the Celtics last season.
Latest On Andrew Bynum
As many Dwight Howard rumors as we've been subjected to over the last few months, it's been easy to overlook that many of those trade rumors also include another All-Star center, who will hit free agency himself at just age 25 next summer. Andrew Bynum's agent David Lee was asked yesterday by Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal specifically about whether his client was interested in the Cavs, but Lee spoke to a number of reporters in more general terms as well, including Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com and Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times. Here are the highlights from the two pieces:
- The Lakers have yet to grant any team linked to Bynum, such as the Cavs, Magic or Rockets, permission to speak to Lee.
- "I can't imagine any team foolish enough to do the deal without asking permission to speak to Andrew," Lee said. "That's beyond belief, but strange things happen." Based on Adrian Wojnarowski's report for Yahoo! Sports yesterday though, it sounds more like the Lakers are unwilling to let teams speak to Bynum without having agreed to a trade in principle.
- Lee denied that Bynum has a preferred list of destinations.
- ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (within Shelburne's piece) reports that Bynum is unlikely to sign an extension anywhere except maybe with the Lakers. Again, like the story on Howard last night, that's referring to an in-season extension, which would max out at three years and is unlikely for any star player.
- Extension discussions between the Lakers and Lee have yet to begin, but the agent expects them to get underway soon of the Howard trade talks drag out much longer.
- Also within Shelburne's piece, ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst adds that while the Cavs are interested in Bynum, the club has no choice but to view him as a one-year rental for now.
- The constant trade rumors haven't soured Bynum on the Lakers at all, according to Lee: "He's never had a problem with the organization despite all the things he has gone through. I don't think I've ever heard him offer a negative comment about the (Lakers) organization."
Howard Willing To Commit Long-Term To Lakers
10:10pm: Howard's agent Dan Fegan refuted reports that his client would sign an extension with the Lakers if he is traded to them, writes Ric Bucher of ESPN.com. "Dwight's position has remained unchanged since the end of this past season," said Fegan. "He fully intends to explore free agency at the end of next season, regardless of what team trades for him, including Brooklyn."
Fegan's comment doesn't neccessarily contradict this morning's report as it stated that Howard would "commit long-term" rather than immediately ink an extension. An extension could only give Howard a three-year deal while waiting until free agency could give the big man a five-year pact.
7:56am: After indicating for months that the Brooklyn Nets were the only team he had long-term interest in, Dwight Howard has signaled that he'd be willing to re-up with the Lakers if he were traded to Los Angeles, according to Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com. ESPN.com's Chris Broussard and Ramona Shelburne confirm Rudolph's report, noting that, while the Lakers haven't yet been informed of any change in Howard's thinking, the team has "always figured" he'd come around on a long-term extension if he were dealt to the Lakers.
While the Lakers remain "dogged" in their pursuit of Howard, it appears to be the Magic that are holding up any deal, according to ESPN.com. Orlando is willing to trade D12, of course, but doesn't want to rush into making a trade it isn't 100% sure about. The Magic have discussed the possibility of acquiring Andrew Bynum themselves or re-routing Bynum to a third team such as Houston or Cleveland in exchange for draft picks and cap relief — if Bynum comes to Orlando, Broussard says the young center would want to test the free agent market next summer, which may give the Magic doubts about acquiring him.
In the past, reports have suggested that Howard was reluctant to join the Lakers in part because he didn't want to follow in Shaquille O'Neal's footsteps and in part because he was worried he might take a back seat on a team led by Kobe Bryant. However, according to Rudolph, Howard has moved past those concerns, and is confident he'd play an "integral role" with a team ready to compete for a title.
If Howard were to be dealt to the Lakers, he almost certainly wouldn't sign a new contract immediately. He could maximize his earnings by waiting until the end of the season and then signing a five-year, max-salary deal, like Deron Williams did with the Nets earlier this month. An in-season extension would only lock up him for a maximum of three more years.
Rockets Waive Jon Leuer, Jerome Jordan
The Rockets have waived Jon Leuer and Jerome Jordan, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). When the two players clear waivers, the Rockets will have the necessary roster space to finalize their offer sheet for restricted free agent Omer Asik.
Both Leuer and Jordan were acquired by Houston in recent trades for salary-matching purposes. Leuer came from the Bucks in the June deal that sent Samuel Dalembert to Milwaukee, while Jordan arrived from New York in the Marcus Camby sign-and-trade.
I believe both players were on non-guaranteed contracts for 2012/13, so the Rockets shouldn't have to take a cap hit for releasing either one. The pair will become unrestricted free agents in 48 hours, assuming both of them clear waivers.
Southwest Notes: Lin, Mavericks, Grizzlies
Earlier today, we rounded up a number of pieces reacting to the Knicks' decision to let Jeremy Lin sign with the Rockets, but the Lin updates continue to pour in. ESPN's J.A. Adande argues that Houston is the ideal spot for Lin to thrive, while the day's most interesting Lin piece came from Pablo S. Torre of SI.com, who chronicles the point guard's free agency process.
"Honestly, I preferred New York," Lin told Torre. "But my main goal in free agency was to go to a team that had plans for me and wanted me. I wanted to have fun playing basketball. … Now I'm definitely relieved."
As the newest Rocket arrives in Houston, here are a few more items out of the Southwest Division:
- The Mavericks are still scouring the free agent market for bench options, GM Donnie Nelson tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "We're always looking. It's one of those situations where free agents have to be looking out for their best interest, and it's our job to look out for the Mavericks' best interest. We're looking at trying to get the best possible talent that we can."
- While the Mavs could still choose to re-sign Delonte West, Jeff Caplan of ESPNDallas.com wonders if the club should turn its focus to a rebounder instead, and lists a few potential targets.
- The Grizzlies' front office is happy with how the roster is shaping up, says Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Tillery adds that the team still expects to send Dante Cunningham to Minnesota for Wayne Ellington, and that the trade could be finalized any day. I imagine the Timberwolves are still waiting for resolution on Nicolas Batum's offer sheet.
Dwight Howard Rumors: Wednesday
A morning report yesterday suggested that the Lakers were "pushing hard" for Dwight Howard, but nothing seemed to come of it, as follow-up reports indicated that the two teams had been talking for weeks without making a ton of progress. With a few months before the season begins, the Magic don't seem to be in any hurry to move Howard, but the rumors keep trickling in. Here's Wednesday's latest:
- The Cavaliers have inched back ahead of the Rockets as the potential facilitator for a Magic/Lakers deal, according to ESPN.com's Ric Bucher. Bucher says the Cavs are discussing a three-way trade that would see them land Andrew Bynum for a package that includes draft picks and Anderson Varejao. However, nothing is close.
Earlier updates:
- The Lakers have no interest in taking on Hedo Turkoglu in a deal for Howard, but could be open to taking on Jason Richardson's contract, says Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.
- There was no face-to-face meeting between Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and Magic GM Rob Hennigan yesterday to discuss Howard, according to Ramona Shelburne and Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- While the Cavaliers and Rockets have been involved in trade talks as a potential third-team facilitator, the most substantial talks have been directly between the Lakers and Magic.
- Although Howard will still not commit to signing an extension in Los Angeles, the team is willing to continue its pursuit of him without any assurances. It's not clear if the Magic feel the same way about Andrew Bynum, however.
- The Lakers have been "resistant" to the idea of taking on any bad contracts from Orlando, especially since signing Steve Nash to an expensive three-year deal.
- The latest round of Howard discussions "is starting to hamstring business around the league," and there's a belief that the Lakers or one of the other Howard suitors could pull out of talks at some point this week to focus on other moves, like the Nets did.
- If the Lakers back off of Howard, they'd turn their attention to re-signing Jordan Hill and extending Bynum.