Indiana Pacers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacers Eyeing Shooting Guards

March 13th, 2012 at 1:00pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers "continue to have a great deal of interest" in acquiring a shooting guard, according to Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld. However, Indiana isn't inclined to break up the core of its roster to bring in a two guard.

O.J. Mayo was nearly traded to Indiana at last year's deadline, and the Pacers maintain interest in him, but the Grizzlies don't appear likely to move the USC product this season. If Memphis makes a deal, it will likely be a smaller move designed to get the team below the luxury tax line.

According to Ingram, the Pacers also have some interest in Courtney Lee, whose agent would like to relocate his client to a team where he might sign an extension. The Rockets, who should clear a good deal of cap space this summer, don't appear to have much interest in bringing back most of their players on expiring contracts, including Lee. Still, Houston figures to ask for a young player or a draft pick for Lee, a price Indiana may not want to pay.

The Pacers have a huge amount of cap space they could use to facilitate a deal, but with no obligation to spend to reach a salary floor, Indiana won't make a trade just for the sake of it. For what it's worth, Danny Granger and other Pacers players don't believe the team needs to make a deal, as Granger told Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld.

Augustin Drawing Interest From Pacers, Others

March 12th, 2012 at 1:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers aren't the only team talking to the Bobcats about the possibility of acquiring D.J. Augustin. According to Sean Deveney of the Sporting News (Twitter link), the Pacers are also among the clubs who have inquired on Augustin. Deveney says (via Twitter) the Bobcats would want to package a bad contract with Augustin if they were to trade the point guard.

Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld reported in January that the Bobcats weren't shopping Augustin, but were willing to listen if it meant gaining draft picks or financial flexibility. Unloading a contract like Corey Maggette's or DeSagana Diop's would certainly qualify as gaining flexibility.

Augustin, whose cap figure for 2011/12 is just $3.24MM, will be eligible for restricted free agency this summer. So the team he finishes the season with would be able to match any competing offers and keep him, if it so chooses. In 28 games this season, the former ninth overall pick has averaged 12.2 PPG and 6.5 APG in 30.8 MPG.

Assessing Stocks: Indiana Pacers

March 11th, 2012 at 11:31pm CST by Jesse Blanchard

Portfolio Review: Believe it or not, the Indiana Pacers stand at somewhat of a crossroads. This is a young, up-and-coming team with an incredibly deep assortment of talent at more than reasonable contracts. But right now, unless Paul George takes an early Tracy McGrady-like leap in quality of play, this is a team with a very definite ceiling.

Larry Bird has done a tremendous job of not only putting together assets, but assets that mesh well together. Furthermore, with each player, there is depth to replace them. This leaves the entire roster flexible. This is a team that is already a third or fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, but will always remain behind Miami and Chicago. Right now it has the liquid assets, the cap space, and the potential to be more. But flexibility of this magnitude is a temporary luxury in the
NBA and what the Pacers can be will determined over the next few months.

Prime Assets: Cap space and solid, young talent at every position. Indiana is not exactly a prime free agent destination, but fortunately the Pacers have enough cap flexibility and depth to put together a Carmelo Anthony-like deal without gutting their team like the New York Knicks did. The Pacers can put together a solid package with any combination of their roster.

Worthless Stock: Many NBA general managers are past the stage of offering max contracts to the likes of Michael Redd or Kenyon Martin. The remaining few already have their salary caps tied up in the likes of Joe Johnson. Danny Granger is the quintessential non-franchise player paid like a franchise player. As such, he represents one of the few Pacers hard to move. Too talented to give up for scraps, too overpaid to appeal other teams.

But then again…: Danny Granger and George Hill for Carmelo Anthony works too, should the Knicks rethink last year's trade.

Central Notes: Jones, Pacers, Bulls, Cavs

March 9th, 2012 at 4:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The Bucks may be open to offers on Andrew Bogut, and the Bulls have been "quietly deliberating" whether to make a play for Dwight Howard. Those are a couple of the more intriguing rumors we've heard out of the Central Division today. Now let's take a look at a few more under-the-radar stories:

The Pacers could look into signing Solomon Jones for help at center, tweets Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star. The Hornets declined to sign Jones for the rest of the season when his second 10-day contract expired, agreeing to a 10-day deal with Jeff Foote instead.
Sam Smith of Bulls.com fields reader questions in his Friday mailbag, discussing Richard Hamilton, Carlos Boozer, and plenty of Bulls trade possibilities.
The Cavaliers should look to the Thunder as a model franchise to emulate, writes Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Stein’s Latest: Howard, Turkoglu, Pacers, Kaman

March 9th, 2012 at 2:13pm CST by Luke Adams

This week's installment of Marc Stein's Weekend Dime is up at ESPN.com, so let's dive in and check out Stein's latest rumors….

Amidst talk of a quiet trade deadline, Stein says similar pessimism has preceded flurries of deals in the past. However, there's a league-wide expectation that Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol, and Rajon Rondo will stay put.
The Magic continue to pursue non-Howard deals, bringing up Hedo Turkoglu's name frequently. One front office source tells Stein that a team would have to received at least two future first-round picks to take on Turkoglu's contract.
Meanwhile, a Western Conference exec says he doesn't expect Orlando to even consider shopping Howard until deadline day. While that may seem a little too last-minute, the Magic are already aware of most of their trade options, meaning a deal could be worked out quickly, a source tells Stein.
Teams around the league seem to be valuing first-round picks more than ever, particularly 2012 selections, since this year's draft class is expected to be a deep one. A club with cap space like the Pacers could acquire players without sending out any salaries, but Indiana is extremely reluctant to part with its future first-rounders in any such deal.
It still appears that David Stern and the NBA-owned Hornets have no interest in buying out Chris Kaman's contract if the big man isn't traded. If Kaman was bought out and signed with a team like the Heat, he could impact the NBA Finals and further deplete the Chris Paul haul for the Hornets, neither of which would look great for the league.
There has been speculation that the Mavericks could be interested in Kaman in a deal involving Lamar Odom, but Stein says not to expect such a move, noting that Mark Cuban is committed to riding out the season with Odom.
As I speculated earlier, the Wizards are considering moving JaVale McGee on the condition that Andray Blatche is included in the deal as well. While both players have a ton of upside, the pair wouldn't exactly improve any team's chemistry.

The Celtics’ Asking Price For Ray Allen

March 9th, 2012 at 1:48pm CST by Luke Adams

The Pacers could use an upgrade at two guard, and president of basketball operations Larry Bird knows his old team in Boston has a good one who might be available. But Bird told Jackie MacMullan of ESPNBoston.com that the Celtics' asking price for Ray Allen was too high for his liking.

"When [Celtics GM] Danny [Ainge] and I talked about trading for Ray, he wanted Tyler Hansbrough and a first-round pick," Bird said. "If that's the value he's putting on Ray Allen, he ain't getting it. That tells me he's in no hurry to trade him."

While the Celtics' asking price for Allen could drop before next Thursday, Bird predicted that Boston's Big Three would remain intact for the rest of this season. Allen and Kevin Garnett are earning a combined $31MM+ in the final year of their deals, so simply letting those contracts expire would clear a good chunk of cap space for the Celtics this summer.

Latest On Chris Kaman

March 9th, 2012 at 11:38am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets continue to explore possible trades for Chris Kaman, according to SI.com's Sam Amick. The Rockets, Pacers, Warriors, Heat, and Celtics are among the teams still interested in the Hornets' center.

According to Amick, the Rockets and Warriors are reluctant to make a move for Kaman until they know more about Dwight Howard's situation — both teams are interested in acquiring Howard, even without assurances that he'd be around long-term.

Even if Houston, Golden State turn their focus to Kaman, they may have trouble finding a deal that works. With new ownership not yet in place, the NBA-owned Hornets are seeking draft picks or young players, and it seems unlikely any team will meet the league's demands at this point. Rival executives have complained about the complications that come with dealing with league officials in trade negotiations, according to Amick.

While Kaman is the Hornets' most likely trade candidate, virtually anyone on the roster is available for the right long-term assets, sources tell Amick.

Pacers Still Covet Kaman

March 8th, 2012 at 6:36pm CST by Sean Highkin

The Indianapolis Star's Mike Wells reports (via Twitter) that Chris Kaman is still the Pacers' top target for the trade deadline. However, due to Pacers' strong salary-cap flexibility (they are about $14.5MM under the cap), they don't consider it worth giving up a first-round pick for Kaman's expiring deal, which is by all indications what the Hornets are asking for.

Kaman has been on the trading block since the start of the season after being shipped from the Clippers to the Hornets as part of the Chris Paul trade. The Pacers have long been thought to be the most interested suitor, and with the trade dealine a week away, a decision one way or the other appears to be forthcoming.

Jamal Crawford Rumors: Thursday

March 8th, 2012 at 4:32pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves and Trail Blazers may be discussing a deal involving Jamal Crawford and Luke Ridnour, while the Pacers also have some interest in Crawford, as we learned yesterday. This morning, we also heard that the T-Wolves appear to be the frontrunner for the Blazers shooting guard. We'll continue to track the latest updates on the Crawford sweepstakes here throughout the day, with the newest additions up top:

Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge reports that the Pacers and Blazers have discussed Crawford, with Portland asking for A.J. Price and a first-round pick. A source tells Golliver that "the first team to give Portland a first round pick for Crawford will have him" (Twitter links).
The Blazers' asking price for Crawford includes a first-round pick in addition to either Ridnour for the Wolves or Eric Bledsoe for the Clippers, says Ken Berger of CBS Sports. That could pose a problem for the Clips, who have already traded both first-rounders they owned for 2012.
Timberwolves GM David Kahn is downplaying the team's interest in making a deadline deal, says Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Kahn says the Wolves are "not looking to address anything this season" and that he doesn't mind having three point guards in Ricky Rubio, J.J. Barea, and Ridnour. The GM did leave the door open slightly though, noting that there's still an "eternity" until next Thursday's deadline.
Asked if he was feeling affected by the trade rumors, Crawford told Haynes: "I wouldn't say me so much me, but the people around me for sure. Because decisions like that just don't affect you, they affect everybody."

Jamal Crawford Rumors: Wednesday

March 7th, 2012 at 1:34pm CST by Luke Adams

The Trail Blazers have slipped to tenth place in the Western Conference standings, and Jamal Crawford reportedly intends to opt out of his contract at season's end, so it's no surprise that the 31-year-old's name has popped up in recent trade rumors. The Clippers and Timberwolves are among the most interested teams, and the Bucks, Kings, and Raptors are also said to have kicked the tires. Here's the latest on Crawford:

In his latest ESPN.com chat, Chad Ford reports that he believes the Blazers and Timberwolves are talking about a swap involving Crawford and Luke Ridnour.
Ford also adds the Pacers to the list of teams interested in Crawford. Unlike the Clippers and T-Wolves, Indiana has the cap space necessary to acquire Crawford without having to send Portland any salary in return.