Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Bryant, McGee, Speights

December 21st, 2015 at 9:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kobe Bryant will not continue his career in Europe following his retirement from the NBA after this season, as he said in a conference call and as Bill Oram of the Orange County Register relays. The Lakers swingman doesn’t think he could endure the rigors of another season, so he has ruled out that option, Oram continues. “I would have loved to play overseas for a season,” Bryant said. “But it’s not going to happen. … My body won’t let me.” Bryant reiterated his desire to play for USA Basketball in the Summer Olympics next summer, Oram adds.

In other news around the Western Conference:

JaVale McGee is gradually carving out a rotation spot with the Mavericks, Tim MacMahon of ESPN.com reports. McGee is still trying to get in top shape and wants to shed another 10-15 pounds, MacMahon continues. The backup center had 10 points, five rebounds and three blocks in 18 minutes against the Grizzlies on Friday, a sign that he’s making progress, MacMahon adds. “He’s got really unusual length for a guy like that and he’s got great athleticism, too,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle told the team’s media. “Look, he’s worked hard. It’s taken a while. We’ve got to be a little bit careful about how long we play him in terms of stretches of minutes.”
Marreese Speights hasn’t been as efficient as he was last season, and if he doesn’t turn that around, the Warriors will look for another stretch four, posits Monte Poole of CSNBayArea.com. Golden State is studying the trade market, Poole writes, though it’s unclear if the team is looking into deals involving Speights.
The Spurs recalled point guard Ray McCallum from their D-League affiliate in Austin, the team’s website reports. McCallum has appeared in four D-League games, as well as 12 games with San Antonio.
The Thunder recalled small forward Josh Huestis from their D-League affiliate on Monday, according to the team’s website. Huestis, who is still looking to make his NBA debut, has started 10 games with Oklahoma City Blue, averaging 10.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 32.8 minutes.

Western Notes: Bonner, Lakers, Gasol

December 20th, 2015 at 7:16pm CST by Will Joseph

Longtime Spurs power forward Matt Bonner has no plans to retire after this season as long as there is still interest in him, Jabari Young of the San Antonio News-Express relays. Bonner is 35 and re-signed with the Spurs in July for one year at the veteran’s minimum. Bonner was reportedly thinking about retirement last spring, though he said last year that he wanted to play for several more seasons. Bonner told Young that he would like to retire as a member of the Spurs, however.

“The Spurs are my first option every summer, which is terrible business on my end to put that out there,” Bonner said. “I’m not negotiating for max deals. I’m basically a vet minimum guy, unless someone out there wants to pay me a lot more money.”

Here’s more out of the Western Conference:

Ed Davis, who signed a three-year, $20MM deal with the Blazers in July after spending last season with the Lakers, told Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders that the biggest difference between the two franchises is Portland operates with more stability and with more of a long-term plan (Twitter link).
Lakers coach Byron Scott believes the development and performance of some of the Lakers’ core young players such as D’Angelo Russell, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson will help lure free agents to the team in the future, Bill Oram of the Orange County Register relays. “They’ll see that we have three young guys that, from day one to game 82, have shown big-time improvement,” Scott said. “And if they can continue to improve that way, then the future’s pretty bright.”
Marc Gasol told Zach Lowe of ESPN.com in a wide-ranging and entertaining Q&A that he didn’t know he would ink the new five-year max deal with the Grizzlies that he signed in July until last season was completed. “Just because I didn’t put that much time into it,” Gasol said. “You have to look at things from afar and get perspective on things. That’s when you know. So that’s what we did. We flew back, we went away from basketball for a little bit, and it just kind of happened.”

Pacific Notes: Brown, Durant, Suns, Walton

December 20th, 2015 at 1:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Seventeen career NBA minutes weren’t enough to prepare Lakers rookie Anthony Brown for the task of guarding Kevin Durant Saturday, writes Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. With Kobe Bryant out with a sore shoulder, the task of checking Durant fell to the second-round pick out of Stanford. The Thunder star gave Brown a tough NBA lesson, torching him for 14 first-quarter points on the way to a 22-point night and a 40-point blowout victory. “He’s 7 feet and handles like he’s 6’2″,” Brown said of Durant after the game.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

Durant’s free agency is sure to be among the top stories of the 2016 offseason, and the Lakers are expected to be one of the primary suitors, according to Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. L.A. has had little success in attracting top-shelf free agents over the past two seasons, but GM Mitch Kupchak is hoping young players like Julius Randle and D’Angelo Russell will get Durant’s attention. “We have to develop our core players,” Kupchak said. “When you’re recruiting a veteran free agent, especially a free agent that may have to take less money to come to your city, they want to know who they’re going to play with.”
The Suns have been successful when they have offseason free agent addition Tyson Chandler and Alex Len both available to share the minutes at center, writes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Phoenix is 7-1 when they combine for 45 minutes, but injuries and illness have often kept Chandler out of the lineup.
Warriors interim coach Luke Walton tells Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald that he hasn’t gotten much advice from his Hall of Fame father Bill during Golden State’s 26-1 start. “We email and text, but he’s more in a supportive role,” the coach said. “He loves the way we play. It reminds him of some of his old teams, and he’s proud. But that’s pretty much where that conversation ends.”

And-Ones: Holmes, D-League, Butler

December 18th, 2015 at 10:26pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kings coach George Karl says that he had spoken with small forward Caron Butler weeks ago about his decreased playing time, and he cited the solid play of Omri Casspi as the primary reason for the change, Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee relays in a series of tweets. The coach thinks of Butler as insurance at small forward, and he is aware that the veteran has spoken to team executive Vlade Divac about the situation, Jones notes. Jones also relays that all indications still point to the team trading Butler, as was reported by Marc Stein of ESPN.com earlier this week.

Here’s more from around the league:

Lakers camp cut Jonathan Holmes underwent surgery today to repair a torn labrum and he is expected to require approximately five months of recovery time, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays in a series of tweets. Holmes had suffered a dislocated right shoulder during the preseason and as a result Los Angeles will be on the hook for his entire salary of $525,093 for the 2015/16 campaign, not just his partial guarantee of $100K, Pincus notes. The combo forward is expected to be ready for action in time for summer league play, the Basketball Insiders scribe adds.
Front office officials have been unusually reluctant to talk trades recently because so many teams are so close together in the standings, giving rise to playoff hopes around the league, an NBA GM said to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
The Mavericks have reassigned center Salah Mejri and swingman Justin Anderson to the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com relays (on Twitter). This will be the fourth jaunt to the D-League on the season for both players.

Los Angeles Notes: Randle, Wilcox, Brown

December 18th, 2015 at 8:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite being a major part of the Lakers‘ future, coach Byron Scott has been utilizing Julius Randle primarily as a reserve, a strategy that the second year player has had to come to accept, Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News writes. “I don’t make decisions with playing time,” said Randle. “The thing that I always tell you guys is I control what I can and I go out there and play hard. I let our coaches decide who’s in and who’s not.” The shift to the bench has yielded mixed results for the power forward, with Randle struggling to find the basket with his shots, but he insists he won’t be discouraged by his recent difficulties, Medina adds. “You guys [media members] were asking if I was discouraged about the shots I was missing,” Randle said regarding his recent slump. “I’m getting those same shots I’m making. I’m never going to get discouraged.”

Here’s more from L.A.:

When the Clippers want to assign C.J. Wilcox to the D-League, they start down the list of teams with affiliates and place calls to see whether any of them will promise to give him enough minutes while on assignment, and whoever says “yes” first gets him, Clippers coach/executive Doc Rivers said, according to Rowan Kavner of NBA.com. The Clippers, who don’t have an affiliate, have sent Wilcox to the D-League teams of the Suns and Cavs so far this season.
Despite only appearing in five games thus far this season, Lakers small forward Anthony Brown is encouraged by what he is able to glean sitting on the sideline, Janis Carr of The Orange County Register writes. “It’s encouraging,” Brown said. “You can learn a lot, not only sitting, but when guys come off the bench, you can talk to them, pick their brain. It’s pretty good. It’s one thing to be behind the bench, but it’s another to be able to see everything that’s going on. In some ways you’re kind of an assistant coach in terms of being able to watch and learn what to do and what not to do.“
The Lakers have assigned Ryan Kelly and Tarik Black to their D-League affiliate, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders relays (on Twitter). This will be the second assignment to the D-Fenders for both players this season.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Central Notes: Jennings, Ellis, Bucks

December 17th, 2015 at 9:29am CST by Chuck Myron

Brandon Jennings plans to return to the lineup for the Pistons on December 29th in a game against the Knicks in New York, according to Vincent Goodwill of CSNChicago.com (Twitter link), but Jennings said Wednesday that an 80% chance exists that he plays on D-League assignment first, notes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy has appeared to publicly encourage Jennings to accept a D-League assignment, which would require both Jennings and the union to consent because he has more than two years of experience, but the point guard appears willing.

“I don’t care. I just want to play, man. I just want to get out there and hoop and see where it’s at,” Jennings said, according to Ellis.

A D-League trip for Jennings would represent the fifth time this season that a veteran player and the union have given the OK to a D-League trip. That happened with three Sixers, as I noted earlier this month, and this past weekend with Jeremy Evans of the Mavericks. See more from the Central Division:

Pacers free agent signee Monta Ellis is still recovering from offseason knee surgery, he told Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star, and he and assistant coach Nate McMillan are confident he’ll start playing better as the season goes on, as Buckner details. Head coach Frank Vogel believes the struggles of Ellis are a result of adjusting to a new role, not his advancing age, Buckner adds.
Bucks coach Jason Kidd said he spoke with Greg Monroe, Khris Middleton, O.J. Mayo and Miles Plumlee, all of whom showed up in TMZ Sports videos depicting them in a Los Angeles strip club late at night before the team’s loss to the Lakers this week, relays Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Kidd said he didn’t think their partying was a contributing factor to the loss, but, coincidentally or otherwise, the Bucks are reportedly the likely trade destination for veteran leader Caron Butler.
Bucks preseason cut Marcus Landry has signed with San Sebastián Gipuzkoa of Spain, a source told international journalist David Pick. Radio Marca Donostia first reported the signing would take place (Twitter link; translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia).

Pacific Notes: Kerr, Monroe, Kobe, Lieberman

December 16th, 2015 at 2:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Steve Kerr isn’t thinking at all about sitting out the entire season and believes he’ll return from his leave of absence at some point before it’s over, as he said to Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group. The progress the Warriors coach has made of late in his recovery from two back surgeries is plain to see, observes Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle.

“He’s acting more like himself and joking more like himself,” interim coach Luke Walton said Tuesday, as Simmons relays. “As far as what that means for his return, we still have no idea — but it’s nice to see more of his old self.”

See more from the Pacific Division:

The Lakers focused on basketball in their free agent pitch to Greg Monroe, unlike their ill-fated business-oriented approach to LaMarcus Aldridge, Byron Scott said Tuesday, as Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News relays (Twitter link). “There wasn’t anything they did wrong. I just made the best decision for me,” Monroe said to Medina about his choice of the Bucks over the Lakers and others. “It wasn’t anything they didn’t do or did do.”
Kobe Bryant is playing much better of late, and that has to do with his greater comfort with the Lakers‘ young players, Scott believes, as Bill Oram of the Orange County Register details. No. 2 overall pick D’Angelo Russell is also looking improved, and that has Scott looking smart, at least for now, Oram writes. “So [Kobe]’s kind of … stepping to the side a little bit and letting them have a little more say in what they do out there,” Scott said. “There’s a lot of times in the game where he just kind of defers to those guys.”
George Karl had thought about hiring a female assistant coach for years before he and the Kings brought Nancy Lieberman onto the staff this past summer, notes Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee. “I think it’s been good,” Karl said. “Sometimes I think we [head coaches] have been too macho about this for too long. Everybody connects with people differently, and some players communicate better with women. That’s why you want three or four assistants. With Nancy, obviously she knows the game. But the best thing she does is connect one-on-one with the players. She can take hard subjects and go to a player, and that’s very unusual in a young coach.”

Heat, Bulls, Celtics Make Pitches For Cousins?

December 16th, 2015 at 10:43am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 10:51am: The Celtics and Kings still haven’t had any conversation about Cousins, tweets Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald. Kings GM Vlade Divac indicated that he hasn’t received a ton of calls about Cousins and again signaled that he has no intention of trading the star center, according to Sam Amick of USA Today (on Twitter).

3:37pm: Heat sources who spoke with Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel deny any link between Whiteside and Cousins (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 2:19pm: The Heat, Bulls and Celtics are actively pursuing DeMarcus Cousins, though the Kings have no plans to make a deal, league sources tell Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops. The teams are nonetheless actively pursuing the Sacramento center, and Miami is offering Hassan Whiteside, Justise Winslow, plus others with enough salary to make a deal work, according to SheridanHoops founder Chris Sheridan. Miami would have to give up significantly more salary than the $3,463,068 that Whiteside and Winslow make to reel in Cousins, who makes nearly $15.852MM, however. The Heat are a taxpaying team, so they can’t take in any more than 125% plus $100K of what they give up in a swap.

A source tells Scotto that the Bulls are looking to find more playing time for rookie Bobby Portis, who’s stuck in a crowded frontcourt that features Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol, who can both become free agents this summer, along with Taj Gibson and Nikola Mirotic. Noah and Gibson are available, according to Scotto, though Bulls sources insist to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders that a Noah trade is not a consideration. The Celtics have copious draft assets, with as many as five extra first-round picks coming their way, though it’s unclear exactly what they’re willing to put on the table.

Cousins is signed through 2017/18, unlike Whiteside, who’s poised for free agency this summer. The Heat only have Early Bird rights on Whiteside, so they can’t exceed the cap to pay him more than the estimated average annual salary for next season, an amount that’s likely to come in far beneath his market value. Sacramento or any team that would trade for Whiteside would inherit those rights, so the Kings wouldn’t necessarily have any easier time re-signing him than the Heat would.

The Kings have held steadfast to Cousins in recent months after a flurry of rumors over the summer. They would have taken D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle and a late first-rounder from the Lakers in exchange for Cousins in the offseason, but the Lakers were unwilling to do such a deal, according to Sheridan.

Hoops Rumors Community Shootaround 12/15/15

December 15th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lakers coach Byron Scott plans on continuing his strategy of limiting the minutes of the team’s younger players despite the team’s poor record, according to Robert Morales of the Long Beach Press-Telegram. Scott’s philosophy has not been met with unanimous enthusiasm by fans of the team, nor the front office, which acknowledged the conflict between Kobe Bryant’s high usage and the need for young players like D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle to see minutes and touches. Morales also noted that part of the team’s plan is to use Bryant as an example of the sort of work ethic they want their young players to adopt.

This brings me to today’s topic: What is your opinion of Byron Scott’s player usage thus far this season?

The argument could be made that Scott is paid to win basketball games, and since part of his job security is tied to his won-loss record, he should play who he believes gives him the best chance to win. Plus, with Bryant in his last season, should the team not try and milk the farewell tour for all that it’s worth? After all, he is making $25MM for the season, so Los Angeles may as well let him work for it. Of course, the other side of the debate is that the franchise needs to do all it can to develop its young assets. This will not only help in identifying areas that need to be addressed via the draft and free agency. Plus, I’m sure many Lakers fans would rather see Russell and Randle on the court as much as possible, warts and all.

Which side of the fence do you sit on? Take to the comments section below to share your thoughts, opinions or rants against whomever in the Lakers organization you wish. We look forward to what you have to say.

And-Ones: Grant, LaVine, D-League

December 15th, 2015 at 10:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak said during a live chat on Lakers.com (h/t to Eric Pincus of The Los Angeles Times) that the team has no immediate plans to make any trades. “The trade deadline’s not for a couple of months. We’ll sit and monitor our team — make calls, take calls, see where where we are a month from now,” Kupchak said. “If something comes up that we think will help us down the road, we’ll look at it.” Here’s more from around the league:

Knicks coach Derek Fisher doesn’t want rookie point guard Jerian Grant to take his first game not in the Knicks lineup to heart, and says that learning to deal with adversity will be good for the young player, Fred Kerber of The New York Post writes. “For your entire career there are going to be [these] ups and downs that can break you or make you,” Fisher said. “When the opportunity comes back around, you capitalize, and that shows a level of professionalism and sustainability that as a young player you have to develop. So there isn’t anything he’s doing wrong, it’s just night to night I’m going with what fits best.”
Wolves interim coach Sam Mitchell wants to get Zach LaVine more minutes but he is finding it difficult because of the team’s depth at the position, Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune writes. “We have Kevin Martin, who has to play,” Mitchell said regarding the calls for LaVine to have an increased role. “We have Shabazz Muhammad, who has to play. And so, I understand when everybody is sitting there and tweeting and blogging about it. But come put my shoes on. It doesn’t work like that. We have a team. We have a cohesive locker room. And we have to keep it that way. Eventually, all this stuff gets worked out. Until it gets worked out, it’s my job to manage the minutes, manage the egos and keep everyone playing at as high a level as possible.”
The Thunder have assigned Josh Huestis and Cameron Payne to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Huestis’ sixth stint with the Blue on the season and Payne’s second.