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Goran Dragic, Suns Agree To Four-Year Deal

July 5th, 2012 at 12:47am CST by Luke Adams

12:47am: The deal is for four years and $30MM, with $1MM bonuses if Dragic makes the All-Star team, says Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter).

12:00am: Shortly after agreeing to send Steve Nash to Los Angeles in a sign-and-trade deal, the Suns have filled their opening at point guard with unrestricted free agent Goran Dragic. Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (via Twitter) that the Suns and Dragic have agreed to a four-year contract worth $34MM. According to SI.com's Sam Amick (Twitter link), the fourth year is a player option.

Free Agent Rumors: Hill, Dragic, McGee, Shved

July 4th, 2012 at 10:32pm CST by Luke Adams

Happy Fourth of July to all of our American readers! Even though it's a holiday, we're expecting more free agent developments, so we'll be providing our usual updates all day long. Here are a few of Wednesday's more minor free agent rumors, with the latest items added to the top of the page throughout the day….

Frank Isola of the New York Daily News tweets that Grant Hill will either join Steve Nash in signing with the Lakers or retire.
Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic tweets that the Suns are unwilling to offer Goran Dragic the $10MM per year he is reportedly seeking.
Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) hears that negotiations between JaVale McGee and the Nuggets are "going well."

Earlier updates:

Latest On Goran Dragic

July 4th, 2012 at 8:45pm CST by Sean Highkin

8:45pm: CBSSports.com's Ken Berger reports (via Twitter) that the Charlotte Bobcats have been in contact with Dragic's camp and will be making him an offer tonight. He adds in another tweet that the Mavericks, Raptors, and Suns are also pursuing Dragic and that he is still "far apart" in talks with the Rockets.

8:41pm: With Deron Williams re-signing with the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday and Steve Nash's stunning trade to the Los Angeles Lakers earlier today, the Rockets' Goran Dragic is arguably the best point guard remaining in free agency. ESPN.com's Marc Stein tweets that, following the Nash trade, the Phoenix Suns will be aggressively pursuing Dragic.

Raptors Still Trying To Acquire Kyle Lowry

July 4th, 2012 at 4:08pm CST by Luke Adams

The Raptors continue to try to acquire Kyle Lowry from the Rockets, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Raps appear to be fading in the Steve Nash sweepstakes, but even if they're able to land Nash, the team will still have interest in trading for Lowry, says Stein.

Dwight Howard Rumors: Wednesday

July 4th, 2012 at 10:16am CST by Luke Adams

Yesterday's round of Dwight Howard rumors was fairly eventful, featuring reports that the Magic are discussing deals with a number of teams, including the Lakers and Nets. The Nets still appear determined to put together a complicated package for Howard, though their increasing cap figure will make it difficult. The Lakers, meanwhile, seem willing to offer Andrew Bynum, but only with Metta World Peace in the deal as well, and only if D12 agrees to sign a long-term deal. I don't think that package gets it done for a Magic team looking for cap relief.

We'll round up today's Howard updates right here, so check back throughout the day for the latest:

Courtney Lee Becomes Unrestricted Free Agent

July 3rd, 2012 at 7:33pm CST by Michael Pina

7:33PM: Yahoo! Sports columnist Marc J. Spears reports that several teams are interested in Lee's services, including the Bulls, Pacers, Wizards, Mavericks, and Clippers.

6:56PM: The Rockets have withdrawn their qualifying offer to shooting guard Courtney Lee, making him an unrestricted free agent, tweets ESPN.com's Marc Stein. The team previously had the right to match any offers for Lee's services.

Jeremy Lin To Meet With Rockets

July 3rd, 2012 at 5:43pm CST by Luke Adams

5:43PM: In a tweet from Hoopsworld.com's Alex Kennedy, Houston may make a three-year "poison pill" offer to Jeremy Lin that pays Lin $5MM, $5.2MM and $13.8MM. The move would be similar to what the Rockets did earlier this week with restricted free agent Omer Asik.

1:51PM: Restricted free agent Jeremy Lin will visit the Rockets tomorrow, tweets ESPN.com's Chris Broussard. The meeting is yet another indication that Houston is increasingly pessimistic about bringing back Goran Dragic. The Rockets are expected to offer a contract similar to the one Dragic turned down, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.

Dwight Howard Rumors: Tuesday

July 3rd, 2012 at 4:43pm CST by Luke Adams

4:43pm: The Magic haven't ruled out trading Howard to the Nets, and continue to talk to the Lakers, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.

12:54pm: The Lakers are prepared to offer Bynum and Metta World Peace in exchange for Howard, providing Dwight agrees to sign an extension, tweets Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com. Based on Wojnarowski's report, I'd be a little surprised if Orlando agreed to that deal. Plus, it would hinge on both big men agreeing to sign new contracts.

The Magic would include Jason Richardson in any Howard deal, Rudolph adds in a second tweet.

12:49pm: The Magic are focusing on Lakers center Andrew Bynum as their top target in Howard trade talks, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. However, the Magic would likely want more than just Bynum for Howard, and they'd need assurances that Bynum, who is also entering the final year of his contract, would sign an extension.

Wojnarowski adds that there's another trade scenario that involves a "significant player" that intrigues the Magic, but the team and player are unknown.

8:42am: There's not "great enthusiasm" within the Magic front office that the Nets can put together the most appealing offer for Howard, tweets Wojnarowski. However, the Magic also haven't received an offer from any team that they feel is enough to seriously consider trading Howard now, Wojnarowski adds in a second tweet.

8:03am: For progress to be made on the Magic/Nets talks, a third team would need to agree to take Humphries in the deal, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

7:49am: The Magic and Nets have re-engaged in talks on a possible deal for Dwight Howard, reports ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (all Twitter links). According to Broussard, the two sides are discussing a trade that would send Howard to Brooklyn in exchange for Kris Humphries, Brook Lopez, MarShon Brooks, and three first-round picks (2013, 2015, 2017).

Such a trade would be tricky financially, particularly if the Nets also take on Hedo Turkoglu, as Chris Mannix of SI.com suggests they're willing to (Twitter link). Sign-and-trades for Lopez and Humphries would be subject to Base Year Compensation — if their new salaries are more than 20% larger than their old salaries, then the Nets would use either their previous salary or 50% of their new salary (whichever is greater) for trade purposes, while the Magic would use their full salary. For instance, if Lopez signed for $10MM in year one, it would act as $5MM for the Nets' salary-matching purposes.

Ken Berger of CBS Sports confirms the talks between the Magic and Nets, but says those aren't the only discussions Orlando is having (Twitter links). According to Berger, GM Rob Hennigan is also trying to engage the Hawks, Rockets, Lakers, and possibly Mavericks. Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld hears that Dallas has been aggressive in pursuing Howard, but says the Lakers and Clippers are reluctant to deal without assurances D12 would sign an extension (Twitter links).

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Rockets Pessimistic About Re-Signing Dragic

July 3rd, 2012 at 10:18am CST by Chuck Myron

TUESDAY, 10:18am: Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle confirms that a Dragic/Rockets reunion appears very unlikely, noting that yesterday's meeting ended with a "thanks and good luck" kind of exchange (Twitter links).

MONDAY, 11:19pm: The Rockets are offering $8MM a year, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.

O.J. Mayo Seeking More Than Mid-Level

July 3rd, 2012 at 9:24am CST by Luke Adams

O.J. Mayo has informed teams he's interested in signing for more than mid-level money, according to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald and Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. According to Kyler, Mayo's representatives view the 24-year-old as a consolation prize for teams who miss out on Eric Gordon – potentially the Pacers, Rockets, Suns, and Hornets.