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Pacific Notes: Clarkson, Gudaitis, Iguodala

October 2nd, 2015 at 10:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson has chosen Jeff Austin and Chris Emens of Octagon Sports to represent him, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News reports. Clarkson was previously represented by Mike George of Excel Sports Management, which reportedly broke off its relationship with the young guard back in September. The young combo guard was reportedly frustrated with the agency’s communication and felt he received conflicting information about marketing opportunities, according to an earlier report by Medina. Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press first reported the split. Clarkson is eligible to become a restricted free agent next summer.

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

Lithuanian big man Arturas Gudaitis, whose draft rights are held by the Kings, said that Sacramento has expressed interest in signing him for next season, according to a report by Donatas Urbonas of 15min.It (translation by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Gudaitis, who is signed to a multi-year deal with the Lithuanian club Lietuvos Rytas, said his dream is to play in the NBA, and that he will travel to Sacramento to work out for the team after his season is completed, Urbonas notes.
The Warriors intend for veteran swingman Andre Iguodala to continue his role as a top reserve during the 2015/16 season, Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group writes. “Nothing is set in stone, but we won 67 games, so I don’t think we’ll change the starting lineup to start the season,” coach Steve Kerr had said prior to taking his leave of absence due to back related issues. “Why would we? Why would we change what we did last year when we had as much success as we did?“
Jamal Crawford has been the subject of numerous trade rumors throughout the offseason, but he says that his time spent in New York as a member of the Knicks prepared him for the daily barrage of questions from the media, Janis Carr of The Orange County Register writes. “That time [in New York] prepared me for this,” Crawford said. “It’s a business and in a day, you can only control what you can control and worry about how you can get better.” The veteran shooting guard also noted that he is extremely happy to still be a member of the Clippers, Carr adds. The franchise was reportedly exploring trades involving the two-time Sixth Man of the Year shortly before the draft, with other reports this summer indicating that the Heat, Cavs and Knicks have held interest, but Doc Rivers recently said that the team was unlikely to deal Crawford.

Pacific Notes: Johnson, Morris, Barnes, Collison

September 30th, 2015 at 2:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Wesley Johnson grew tired of the individualism on the Lakers last season and sought a change this summer, as Janis Carr of the Orange County Register details. Johnson signed with the Clippers, citing the persistence of the front office that took a similar tack in its pursuit of Josh Smith, and the swingman praised the clear set of expectations that Doc Rivers has laid out for him, contrasting it to what he thought was a disjointed Lakers offense, Carr observes.

“You would go out there and want to play the right way, but everyone wanted to prove themselves,” Johnson said, according to Carr. “So nobody really knew what was going on. Nobody ever knew, so it was hard for anyone to come in and get into a good rhythm or flow. Nobody was playing together.”

See more from the Pacific Division:

Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic finds the sudden change of heart from Markieff Morris hard to believe, but Morris and Suns officials recently engaged in a lengthy conversation and expressed a mutual desire to make their partnership work, sources tell Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders. “I’m excited. Happy to be back. Happy to be with my team,” Morris told Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link).
Harrison Barnes would have been pleased to sign for $10MM a year as of this past June, a source told Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group. The former seventh overall pick more recently turned down a four-year, $64MM offer from the Warriors, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported.
Darren Collison signed with the Kings in 2014 chiefly so he could start, but he’s a long shot to remain the team’s starter this season with new signee Rajon Rondo aboard, as Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee examines. Collison wants to start, but he’s not about to rock the boat, either, Voisin writes.
Robert Upshaw was red-flagged over concerns about the health of his heart during predraft workouts, and though doctors eventually cleared him, he believes the time he had to step away from draft prep set him back, as he explains to Pincus, who writes in a piece for the Los Angeles Times. Upshaw went undrafted and signed a partially guaranteed minimum-salary deal with the Lakers. “It was zero basketball activity, zero activity,” Upshaw said. “It’s hard to get in shape and it’s easy to get out of shape. I got out of shape really fast, it was a month’s time where I was just barely doing anything.”
The contracts that Juwan Staten and Tony Mitchell signed with the Warriors are non-guaranteed for the minimum salary and cover only one season, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). Ben Gordon‘s full contract details are still unclear, but half of his salary becomes guaranteed if he sticks for opening night, according to former Nets executive Bobby Marks (on Twitter).

Clippers Notes: Rivers, Stephenson, Smith

September 30th, 2015 at 1:39pm CST by Chuck Myron

The specter of the Donald Sterling saga hurt the Clippers in free agency last summer, Doc Rivers says, but after this past offseason, one in which Rivers had owner Steve Ballmer behind him, the onus is on Rivers the coach to deliver on what Rivers the executive set up, writes Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times.

“The first summer was tough. We didn’t have an owner in place. Recruiting was near-impossible,” Rivers said. “You go in and talk to free agents and their agent would say, ‘Well, we don’t even know who’s going to own your team. Why would we commit to you guys?’ That was a hard summer for us.”

Ballmer’s riches didn’t play too much of a role this year, since Paul Pierce taxpayer’s mid-level exception deal was the only outside signing for more than the minimum that salary cap rules allowed the Clippers to make, but Rivers also made noise via trade, as we examine more closely amid the latest on the Clips:

Rivers still held out hope that his Spencer Hawes signing from 2014 would pan out and didn’t want to mess with his team’s strong play at the time when he passed on a deal that would have brought in Lance Stephenson midway through last season, according to Dan Woike of the Orange County Register. Rivers ultimately traded Hawes in this summer’s deal for Stephenson.
Clippers offseason signee Josh Smith is enthusiastic about what Stephenson can do for the team, calling him a “walking triple-double” who was simply misplaced in Charlotte, as Woike notes in the same piece. “I think it was the wrong fit,” Smith said of Stephenson on the Hornets. “It’s all about a player being comfortable and happy in a situation. Me in Detroit, it was kind of a similar situation. I think he looks at this as a breath of fresh air.”
The Clippers were the first team to contact Smith in free agency this summer, and that helped impress upon him that the Clippers wanted him more than the Rockets, who also made an offer, Smith said, according to Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com. Persistence from GM Dave Wohl also paid dividends, according to Rivers. “I give Dave credit,” Rivers said. “He didn’t stop. He called every single day, like 21 days in a row. He kept calling, and Josh called Dave and said, ‘I’m coming.’ Then Dave called me. That’s how we got the news. I just think the opportunity, he looked at our team and what we had, and I think that’s what sold him.”

Northwest Notes: Kanter, Arthur, Miller, Pekovic

September 29th, 2015 at 12:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

Enes Kanter hoped to stay with the Thunder even as he signed an max offer sheet with the Trail Blazers this summer, creating a tense three days before the Thunder matched, notes Erik Horne of The Oklahoman.

“The three days was definitely tough, because I really wanted to be here,” Kanter said. “That three days was really tough, really difficult. I never experienced anything like that before. In the end, it worked out. [I’m] really happy to be here. It’s really nice [to have] your team’s trust in you. It means a lot.”

See more from the Northwest Division:

Darrell Arthur nearly left for the Clippers this summer before ultimately deciding to re-sign with the Nuggets, observes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post (Twitter links). “I was pretty close. It was a tough decision to make,” Arthur said. “But with this [Nuggets] team I felt that I could possibly make a difference in trying to help this team make it to the playoffs.” The money couldn’t have hurt, either, as Arthur received a two-year deal worth almost $5.755MM from Denver, about $3.08MM more than the two-year minimum salary offer that the Clippers were limited to.
Andre Miller visited the Bulls in free agency before signing with the Timberwolves this summer, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (on Twitter).
Nikola Pekovic said he’ll miss roughly the first month of the season, but the Timberwolves expect Ricky Rubio will be healthy enough to play on opening night, even though he’s not quite 100% yet, observes Marcus R. Fuller of the Pioneer Press.
Timberwolves GM Milt Newton expressed a desire to use the D-League more often this season, pointing to No. 24 pick Tyus Jones, but the GM said he’d want the point guard to go to a D-League team that would give him some playing time, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune relays (on Twitter). The Timberwolves, who don’t have a D-League affiliate and would have to send Jones on assignment with another team’s D-League club, haven’t made progress toward their own D-League partner, Zgoda notes.
Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey expressed optimism about his point guards on Monday, jibing with earlier reports that the team is content for now even without the injured Dante Exum, but he wouldn’t rule out spending to acquire another point guard if the performance at that position is lacking, notes Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter links).

Pacific Notes: Cousins, Bryant, Warriors

September 28th, 2015 at 10:16pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kings center DeMarcus Cousins and coach George Karl called their relationship “solid” during the team’s annual media day on Monday, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee reports. While Karl reportedly wanted to trade Cousins after he took over as the head coach late last season, they seem to have ironed out their differences, Jones continues. Cousins called Karl “my man” and said their offseason meeting in Las Vegas was vital to establishing a relationship. “When we met in Vegas, we came to a head and we talked our differences out like men,” Cousins said to Jones. “And at the end of the day, it’s about winning games. That’s one thing me and him can agree on – we want to win and that’s our goal and that’s all that really matters, winning.” Karl gave Cousins an A-plus for his offseason training and said Cousins has shown maturity, Jones adds. “I see a different player,” Karl said. “I see a different substance of character in this guy right now.”

In other news around the Pacific Division:

Kobe Bryant feels more uncertainty about this season than any other in his career with the Lakers, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. Bryant is unsure how the team will blend together after the franchise made a number of offseason moves and drafted D’Angelo Russell as their point guard, Medina continues. “It’s a big question mark,” Bryant said during the team’s media day. “We have a lot of young guys. It’s a good mix. We have some veterans as well. But guys have never played together before, so it remains to be seen.” Bryant is also unsure how he fits into that mix after enduring three season-ending injuries in as many seasons, Medina adds.
Small forward Harrison Barnes claims that extension talks with the Warriors are “going well,” Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Barnes reportedly turned down a four-year, $64MM offer but expressed confidence during the team’s media day that a contract can be finalized before the Nov. 2nd deadline, Simmons continues. GM Bob Myers said last week that he expects the negotiations to go down to the wire, Simmons adds.
Veteran power forward Nikoloz Tskitishvili, who is in training camp with the Clippers, feels he’s ready for the NBA again after playing in six countries over a nine-year span since leaving the United States, according to Rowan Kavner of Clippers.com. “I’m just enjoying what I do,” he said to Kavner. “With this mentality, I got better. All of a sudden, I was like, ‘Yeah, I can do this.’ I think I’m ready for it.”

Heat Sign John Lucas III

September 28th, 2015 at 10:51am CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 28TH, 10:51am: The signing is official, the Heat announced via press release.

3:30pm: Lucas has agreed to a non-guaranteed training camp deal with the Heat, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel reports (Twitter links). Lucas was close to signing a deal with the Clippers prior to Los Angeles adding Pablo Prigioni, Winderman also relays.

SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2:55pm: Eight-year veteran John Lucas III is working out in the Heat’s practice facility with players from the team as they ready for the start of training camp, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s not uncommon for free agents to work out in team facilities during the offseason, but that usually ends around Labor Day. Stein’s report doesn’t specify whether the Heat are auditioning him, but he’s a “natural roster target” for Miami, given that the team is said to be seeking guard depth, Stein tweets.

Chatter about the Bernie Lee client has been quiet since mid-July, when Stein reported that the Magic, Spurs, Mavericks and Clippers were interested in him, as were the Pistons, with whom Lucas finished this past season. Lucas joined Detroit on a pair of 10-day contracts before signing on a deal that covered the rest of 2014/15, as our 10-Day Contract Tracker shows, averaging 4.7 points and 2.9 assists against 0.8 turnovers in 12.9 minutes per game in 21 contests.

The Heat have 13 fully guaranteed contracts, four non-guaranteed deals, and Tyler Johnson, who’s assured of at least half of his one-year veteran’s minimum salary. Johnson figures to serve as the third point guard, but he’d be in line as the primary backup to Goran Dragic if Miami trades Mario Chalmers, which the team hasn’t ruled out doing as soon as next month, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald recently reported. Thus, the Heat would be in need of a point guard like Lucas.

Would Lucas be the right guy for the Heat? Leave a comment to let us know.

L.A. Notes: Hibbert, Hayes, Bass

September 27th, 2015 at 8:45pm CST by Will Joseph

The last spot on the Clippers‘ 15-man roster will be a training camp battle between Chuck Hayes, Luc Mbah a Moute and Nikoloz Tskitishvili, Arash Markazi of ESPN.com relays (on Twitter). Markazi believes Hayes is the favorite because the Clippers are looking for someone with the versatility to play both power forward and center.

Here’s more from around Los Angeles:

Roy Hibbert will resurrect his career after the center agreed to waive part of his 15% trade kicker to join the Lakers, opines Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times in a list of questions and answers about the team. Hibbert’s scoring average of 10.6 points per game last year was the lowest since his rookie season. He will be a free agent next summer.
Brandon Bass should help the Lakers improve their defensive efficiency that ranked 29th out of 30 teams this season, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. It is unclear if Bass or Julius Randle will be the team’s starting power forward, Medina adds.
The Lakers attempted to hire Steve Nash to a similar position in which he joined the Warriors following his acceptance of Golden State’s offer, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports tweets.

Pacific Notes: Ezeli, Butler, Crawford

September 26th, 2015 at 1:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Warriors center Festus Ezeli, who is eligible to sign a rookie scale extension prior to the deadline this fall, wants to remain with Golden State long-term, Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group writes. “I don’t want to leave,” Ezeli said. “I love this team. I love my teammates. The fans here are unbelievable. I’m inspired to come in every day and see even our best player, Stephen Curry, just working really hard. So this whole team and being here, the chemistry that we have, you can’t buy this anywhere. You can’t get it anywhere else.” Hoops Rumors’ Chuck Myron took an in-depth look at Ezeli’s extension candidacy earlier this month, which can be viewed here.

Here’s more out of the Pacific Division:

Metta World Peace‘s one-year, minimum salary deal with the Lakers doesn’t include any injury protection or guaranteed salary, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
Kings swingman Caron Butler, who signed with the team this offseason, says he is looking forward to the challenge in Sacramento, and noted that he was offered more money from other teams, Deuce Mason of Sports 1140 relays (on Twitter).
With the Clippers‘ offseason additions adding depth to the team’s rotation, swingman Jamal Crawford‘s minutes are likely to suffer, a sacrifice that he is willing to make for the good of the team, Robert Morales of InsideSoCal.com relays. “I think it will be a lot of sacrifice, obviously, to sacrifice minutes, whatever it may be,” Crawford said. “Your common goal has to be winning.“ The Clippers were reportedly exploring trades involving the two-time Sixth Man of the Year shortly before the draft, with other reports this summer indicating that the Heat, Cavs and Knicks have held interest, but Doc Rivers recently said that the team was unlikely to deal Crawford.
Rivers noted that the Clippers now possess the most talent that they have had since he’s been a part of the organization, Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times tweets.

Clippers Sign Nikoloz Tskitishvili For Camp

September 25th, 2015 at 7:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

SEPTEMBER 25TH, 7:50pm: The Clippers have officially announced the signing.

SEPTEMBER 14TH, 10:50am: The RealGM transactions log confirms the signing took place, but the Clippers still haven’t made an official announcement.

SEPTEMBER 10TH, 1:06pm: The Clippers have signed 2002 No. 5 overall pick Nikoloz Tskitishvili to a non-guaranteed deal that covers one season, reports international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). The team has yet to make a formal announcement. It’ll be for the minimum salary, since that’s all the Clippers have to offer. The deal nonetheless represents a comeback for a player considered one of the all-time draft busts. Tskitishvili, 32, has been eyeing another go at the NBA of late, having been out of the league since 2006, as Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post recently chronicled.

The 7-footer averaged just 2.9 points and 1.7 rebounds in 7.2 minutes per game during his four-year NBA career, spent mostly with the Nuggets, who made that fateful draft pick, passing over Amar’e Stoudemire, among others. He also played for the Warriors, Timberwolves and Suns, passing briefly through the hands of the Trail Blazers before a camp deal with the Knicks in the fall of 2006 that was his last NBA contract.

Tskitishvili spent the past season with Champville of Lebanon, racking up 21.0 points and 11.6 rebounds in 37.6 minutes per game, as Pick notes (on Twitter). He told Dempsey that he hoped that the Nuggets would give him the chance to come back to the NBA and erase the memories of his earlier flameout in Denver, but instead it’s the Clippers who will give him an opportunity.

“You can blame me or you can find some reasons to blame,” Tskitishvili said to Dempsey. “When they draft you as a No. 5 pick, really I shouldn’t have taken it, and stayed in Europe a couple more years. But you can’t say no to the No. 5 pick. You might never come to the NBA. I was afraid for the future. This was my opportunity to be in the NBA. This was guaranteed. I had to take it. If I played overseas for a couple years or three years [though], I would be much better.”

The Clippers have 14 fully guaranteed contracts plus a non-guaranteed deal with Chuck Hayes, and they’re also reportedly bringing undrafted center Yanick Moreira to camp. So, Tskitishvili has at least a somewhat reasonable chance to make the opening night roster nearly a decade after his last regular season game.

Do you think Tskitishvili will finally make an impact in the NBA, or will his comeback be short-lived? Comment to tell us.

Clippers Sign Luc Mbah a Moute

September 25th, 2015 at 7:48pm CST by Eddie Scarito

FRIDAY, 7:48pm: The signing is official, the team announced.

THURSDAY, 6:16pm: The Clippers have reached an agreement with unrestricted free agent forward Luc Mbah a Moute, Dan Woike of The Orange County Register reports (Twitter link). The terms of the arrangement are not yet known, though Woike refers to it as a training camp deal, which likely means that it includes little or no guaranteed money. The addition of Mbah a Moute will give Los Angeles a roster count of 17 players.

Mbah a Moute had previously signed a deal with the Kings, but that agreement was voided after the forward failed his physical. The National Basketball Players Association was reportedly going to file a grievance against the Kings questioning how valid it was for the franchise to void the deal. Mbah a Moute’s representatives at Wasserman Media Group and NBPA officials, using independent medical examinations that say Mbah a Moute was cleared to play, and disputed the legitimacy of the Kings’ procedure and conclusion, according to the report by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.

The forward made 67 appearances for the Sixers last season, including 61 as a starter. He averaged 9.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.0 assist to go along with a slash line of .395/.307/.589. His career numbers through seven NBA seasons, which include stints with the Kings and Bucks, are 6.8 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 1.0 APG.