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Free Agent Rumors: Mavs, Dragic, Orton, Blazers

July 3rd, 2012 at 8:27pm CST by Luke Adams

Day 3 of NBA free agency is underway, and the July free agent period hasn't lacked for action so far. We'll use this space to track a number of updates on second- and third-tier free agents as the day continues. Here's the latest:

The Warriors, Lakers, and Bobcats are all interested in Antawn Jamison, tweets Yahoo! Sports columnist Marc J. Spears.
The Mavericks might clear cap space for next summer when Dwight Howard and Chris Paul are unrestricted free agents, tweets Yahoo! Sports columnist Adrian Wojnarowski.
Ersan Ilyasova's agent has said his client is seriously considering a "big offer" from a European club, according to HoopsHype.com.
The Timberwolves continued negotiation with Nicolas Batum, Greg Stiemsma, and Jordan Hill on Tuesday, but no deal was reached, writes TwinCities.com's Ray Richardson.

Earlier updates:

Chauncey Billups and Spencer Hawes won't be possibilities for the Trail Blazers, says Jason Quick of the Oregonian (Twitter links).
The Thunder, Hornets, and Wizards have expressed interest in Roger Mason, tweets ESPN.com's Chris Broussard.
Brandon Roy met with the Warriors in the Bay Area on Sunday, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
The Cavaliers and Knicks have expressed some interest in restricted free agent Sonny Weems, says Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
The Pacers may be a long shot for Jamal Crawford, but the club has "legitimate interest" in Carlos Delfino, tweets Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star.
GM David Kahn and the Timberwolves like Greg Stiemsma and "talked numbers" with his agent, but no offer was made, says Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). The two sides will meet again on Friday.
The Clippers continue to have interest in Jason Terry and J.R. Smith and are talking with both players' reps, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. I imagine the Clips view those players as alternate options if they miss out on Jamal Crawford and Ray Allen.
The Pacers are expected to meet with Gerald Green and Ian Mahinmi in the coming days, tweets Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star.
Antawn Jamison will meet with the "very interested" Bobcats on Thursday and Friday, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Jamison has previously talked about a desire to finish his career in his hometown of Charlotte.
The Trail Blazers have reached out to Chauncey Billups, who is exploring all his options, says Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
If the Pacers decide not to match Portland's offer sheet for Roy Hibbert, they'll turn their attention to Chris Kaman and JaVale McGee, according to ESPN.com's Ric Bucher.
J.R. Smith's brother tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com that he expects J.R. to return to the Knicks.
Terrence Williams is drawing interest from the Kings, Pistons, and Suns, writes Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.
Daniel Orton has emerged as a potential free agent target for the Thunder, tweets Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman.
The Suns are still meeting with Goran Dragic and will likely meet with him again in the next few days, tweets Sean Deveney of the Sporting News.
Now that Deron Williams is headed to the Nets, the Mavericks will target Steve Nashand Jeremy Lin, and focus on re-signing Jason Kidd, tweets ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Dallas is not sure whether or not they'll go after Goran Dragic.

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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.

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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Nine Assured Of Team USA Spot; Odom Withdraws

July 3rd, 2012 at 11:41am CST by Chuck Myron

TUESDAY, 11:41am: Blake Griffin is expected to take Chris Bosh's spot on the U.S. roster, tweets Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com. As Goodman adds in a second tweet, that would leave five players competing for the final two spots.

Clippers In Advanced Talks With Jamal Crawford

July 3rd, 2012 at 9:46am CST by Zachary Links

TUESDAY, 9:46am: The Clips are meeting with Crawford today and are considered the frontrunner for him, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. Los Angeles reportedly intends to offer Crawford a three-year deal worth the $5MM mid-level exception, and I wouldn't be surprised if he accepts it.

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.

Ray Allen Rumors: Tuesday

July 3rd, 2012 at 9:10am CST by Luke Adams

So far during the free agent period, we've heard that the Heat are considering offering Ray Allen their full mini mid-level exception, the Grizzlies are offering their full mid-level exception, and the Celtics are offering more than either team. With a number of teams in the hunt for Allen, we'll round up all of today's rumblings on the veteran sharpshooter right here, with any new updates added to the top of the page throughout the day….

Dwight Howard Rumors: Monday

July 2nd, 2012 at 11:30pm CST by Luke Adams

The first day of free agency was a busy one on the Dwight Howard front, as reports suggested D12 was upset with the Magic and that Orlando was discussing potential trades with the Lakers, Nets, and Rockets. Howard denied saying that the Magic "blackmailed" him and told Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com that he was tired of hearing reports cite unnamed sources when discussing his situation, but also said he'd only re-sign with one team if he were traded — presumably the Nets. We'll track the latest on Howard throughout the day, with the latest updates on top of the page:

The Mavs' offer for Howard could include some combination of Rodrigue Beaubois, Vince Carter, Dominique Jones and Brandan Wright, Jared Cunningham, Bernard James and Jae Crowder, plus draft picks and a sign-and-trade of Ian Mahinmi, a source tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Earlier updates:

Ric Bucher of ESPN.com hears the Nets are not out of the running for Howard, with the Mavs and Nets sharing space atop the big man's wish list (Twitter link).
With the Nets likely no longer an option for Howard, the Mavs have replaced Brooklyn as D12's single preferred destination, tweets Ric Bucher of ESPN.com.
The Nets would have preferred to deal for Howard instead of Joe Johnson, ESPN's Chris Broussard says, but the Magic were unwilling trade partners. Howard's decision to opt in with the Magic in March scuttled any chance of him going to the Nets, a source tells Broussard (Twitter links).
Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld points out the Nets could still acquire Howard by doing a sign-and-trade that sends Brook Lopez to Orlando (Twitter link). However, as Al Iannazzone of Newsday tweets, the Magic hasn't wanted Lopez.
In spite of Howard's request to be traded to Brooklyn, there's no Nets deal that interests the Magic, tweets TNT's David Aldridge.
Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com tweets that the Warriors have "been there, done that" regarding Howard trade talks, and suggests there's nothing going on now.
A source tells SI.com's Sam Amick that there's no chance Howard is traded to the Clippers if the Magic ask for Chris Paul or Blake Griffin, which of course they would.
Magic GM Rob Hennigan confirmed today that Howard asked to be traded and prefers the Nets, tweets David Baumann of BHSN and News 13. According to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link), Hennigan said teams have shown "significant" interest in Howard, but talks are still preliminary.
David Pingalore of WKMG Orlando adds the Sixers to the list of teams that have discussed a possible Howard trade with the Magic.
The Warriors are still willing to trade for Howard even with no assurances that he'd re-sign, tweets ESPN.com's Chris Broussard.
The Nets are determined not to "wait around" for a Howard deal to materialize, says Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. As Berger writes, both the Nets and Rockets appear to be moving forward with alternate plans.
Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld adds the Clippers to the list of team that have expressed interest in Howard. According to Kyler, the Magic will likely look to deal Howard quickly, though there is no internal rush to make a bad deal.

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Clippers To Make Offers To Crawford, Billups

July 2nd, 2012 at 8:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Clippers, who'll meet Tuesday with Jamal Crawford, plan to make him an offer for the $5MM mid-level exception, and will offer Chauncey Billups a one-year, $4MM contract, reports Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. The team is also eyeing center Ryan Hollins.

Free Agent Rumors: Terry, Lewis, Bass, Young

July 1st, 2012 at 1:46pm CST by Luke Adams

As the first day of free agency continues, reports continue to pour in on teams reaching out to certain players, perhaps to schedule meetings or make contract offers. We've rounded up plenty of those items already today, but we'll use this space to follow a few more updates, as they come in….