Western Notes: Gasol, Love, Mavs, Deng
The Lakers have officially renounced the rights to Pau Gasol along with an entertaining list of long-retired players, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports (via Twitter). Prepare for a stroll down memory lane. The Lakers renounced the rights to Horace Grant, Ron Harper, Jim Jackson, Karl Malone, Ira Newble, Theo Ratliff, Mitch Richmond, John Salley, Brian Shaw, Joe Smith, and Shammond Williams. The Lakers had to drop the rights to those players in order to help make the Jeremy Lin trade possible. For more on cap holds, check out our cap holds entry in the Hoops Rumors Glossary. More out of the West..
- The main holdup in the Kevin Love talks between the Wolves and Warriors is obviously Klay Thompson, but there’s more to it, as Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News explains. The Wolves don’t regard David Lee and Harrison Barnes as highly as Golden State does, thanks to Lee’s hefty contract and Barnes’ down season in 2013/14.
- Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak told reporters, including Bill Oram of the Orange County Register, that he wasn’t banking on landing Carmelo Anthony this summer. “We always felt like it was a longshot,” Kupchak said. “We gave it our best shot and we’re happy to accomplish what we did and we still have more work to do.”
- Lance Stephenson could prove to be this summer’s Monta Ellis for the Mavericks, tweets Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. The Mavs weren’t necessarily high on Ellis last summer but he fell to them at a great price after everyone else passed.
- The Cavaliers’ re-signing of James complicated Deng’s situation, as sign-and-trade options that could have led to a bigger payday for him were no longer available and James’ decision to sign a two-year deal set a new precedent on the market that came into play, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. The Mavericks‘ preference to go after Stephenson if they can’t land Chandler Parsons also limited Deng’s options.
Lakers Acquire Jeremy Lin
SUNDAY, 12:22pm: The trade is now official the Lakers have announced via their website. Los Angeles will receive Lin, plus Houston’s first-round pick in 2015, and the 2015 second-round pick that the Rockets had acquired from the Clippers. The Rockets in turn receive the rights to Sergei Lishchuk.
FRIDAY, 1:59pm: The Rockets and Lakers have reached agreement on a deal that sends Jeremy Lin to the Lakers, reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported earlier that the teams were finalizing such a deal, while Marc Stein of ESPN.com broke the story about the talks. A future first-round pick is also headed to the Lakers, Goodman confirms, while Wojnarowski’s previous reporting indicated other draft considerations will go from Houston to the Lakers, too. The Lakers will send out cash and the rights to a draft-and-stash prospect who’s playing overseas, Wojnarowski also reported, but no salary will go Houston’s way, helping clear room for Chris Bosh, who’s nearing a commitment to the Rockets.
The first-rounder headed to the Lakers is Houston’s 2015 pick, tweets Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. It’ll include protections, and the Rockets will also send a second-rounder the Lakers’ way, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).
The deal indicates that the Lakers are ready to move forward and focus on next summer’s free agent group, since they’re committing nearly $8.4MM of their cap space to Lin. They missed out on LeBron James, and while Carmelo Anthony reportedly hasn’t told the Lakers they’re out of the running for him, another report indicates that ‘Melo has narrowed his choice to the Knicks and Bulls.
Western Notes: Suns, O’Neal, Jazz
The Suns recent contract agreement with Isaiah Thomas has puzzled some since the team already has point guards Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic, and recent draftee Tyler Ennis on the roster. But Phoenix believes they have only strengthened their “dual-playmaker” offense with the acquisition, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. GM Ryan McDonough said, “We feel like the strength of our team is the backcourt. We feel like this move has made us even stronger in the backcourt. We were very good when Dragic and Bledsoe were on the court, and we think Isaiah is that caliber of player where if you can have one or two of those guys on the court at all times, you really don’t have any dropoff scoring-wise. You always have multiple weapons. You have guys who can run pick-and-rolls from either side of the floor and can push the floor in transition.”
Here’s more from the western half:
- Jermaine O’Neal is expected to make a decision on his retirement soon, reports Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). O’Neal appeared in 44 games for the Warriors last season, averaging 7.9 PPG and 5.5 RPG while playing 20.1 minutes per contest.
- Warriors coach Steve Kerr has spoken with Klay Thompson and David Lee about the trade rumors surrounding both players, writes Leung. According to the article Kerr said, “They both get it. I told them, I know you get it. It doesn’t make it any easier. But this is why you really get paid. I mean, you get paid all this money, is it really for coming into a gym for two hours a day and shooting jump shots? We’ve been doing that for free our whole life, you know? You get paid because you can get traded, and you have to uproot your family. You can get hurt, you can get booed, and people on the message board are crushing you. That’s where you actually earn your money in this league, where it actually feels like work.“
- Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey was noncommittal when asked what Gordon Hayward‘s new contract would mean for Alec Burks and Enes Kanter and any discussions on signing those players to contract extensions, notes Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune (Twitter link).
- With the Lakers seemingly striking out on all the big name free agents this summer, the team will have to turn to “Plan B,” writes Bill Oram of the Orange County Register.
Eastern Rumors: Knicks, Miller, Deng, Ariza
With Carmelo Anthony set to re-sign with the Knicks, New York can now focus on setting up a supporting cast to play alongside him. One name they’re interested in re-signing is Toure’ Murry, tweets Chris Herring of the Wall Street Journal. Here’s more from around the East:
- Phil Jackson is said to be willing to include Iman Shumpert as part of a deal to dump the contracts of Amar’e Stoudemire, Andrea Bargnani, or J.R. Smith, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
- There is a gap between what the Cavs can offer and what Mike Miller is seeking, but not enough to end their talks, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
- In contrast to an earlier report of the Hornets interest in Lance Stephenson, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer tweets that Charlotte has shown no such signs.
- The Heat are now open to bringing free agent Mario Chalmers back at the right price, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinal. Miami drafted point guard Shabazz Napier, and was reportedly looking to sign-and-trade Chalmers before LeBron James elected to take his talents away from South Beach.
- The Hawks have re-engaged talks with Luol Deng, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. We heard earlier that the two sides had reached an impasse on salary for the veteran small forward.
- Kent Bazemore was in contract discussions with the Lakers when he agreed to join the Hawks, but Atlanta’s urgency precluded Los Angeles from re-signing the guard on their time table, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
- Trevor Ariza received the same offer from the Wizards as he agreed to with the Rockets, but the difference in taxes between Washington and Houston will save him approximately $3MM, tweets Michael Lee of The Washington Post.
- Ariza asked for an annual salary of $10MM to stay with the Wizards, sources tell J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Michael says that Washington declined to meet Ariza’s demands in order to maintain cap space in 2016, when Kevin Durant will become a free agent.
Charlie Adams contributed to this post.
Pau Gasol, Bulls Close To Agreement
4:28pm: Gasol is close to joining the Bulls, but it won’t be through a sign-and-trade, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
3:23pm: Dunleavy won’t be included in any sign-and-trade for Gasol, tweets Wojnarowski. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle hears the Rockets’ most likely role in the suggested deal would be to take on expiring contracts (Twitter link).
3:04pm: The Lakers appear to be in line to get “one or two picks” in a sign-and-trade for Gasol, writes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter), who adds that Houston might be involved in the deal in some fashion as well.
10:30am: The sign-and-trade discussions with the Lakers have involved sending Dunleavy and the non-guaranteed contracts of Mike James, Louis Amundson, and Ronnie Brewer to Los Angeles for Gasol, reports K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. The possibility remains that the Bulls could work out agreements to acquire both Gasol and Anthony, but appears increasingly slim, per Johnson.
10:24am: A deal should be complete today, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com. The mechanics of the deal, along with the ultimate implications for Chicago’s pursuit of ‘Melo, are still unknown.
8:12am: Free agent Pau Gasol is working with the Bulls on completing an agreement, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link), confirming an earlier report from Spanish newspaper Marca.com. The deal would rely on the Lakers agreeing to a sign-and-trade with Chicago, and sources tell Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com that Los Angeles is holding out for draft compensation to participate in such a deal. LA received a future first-round pick in Friday’s agreement to acquire Jeremy Lin, and the ESPN duo’s sources say the Lakers are looking for the same in exchange for paving Gasol’s path to Chicago.
If the Bulls can’t work out a sign-and-trade for Gasol’s services, the Spurs are still poised as front-runners to acquire the skilled big man, per Stein and Shelburne. The talks indicate that the Bulls have lost optimism of signing Carmelo Anthony, despite reports that they are the Knicks’ only competitor to land the New York free agent, and that the Lakers are resigned to losing Gasol after having several contract offers rejected by him. The Thunder and Knicks are both likely out of the running for Gasol, the ESPN scribes write.
The Bulls have been hoping to find a willing partner to take back the final year of Carlos Boozer‘s contract rather than amnesty him, and Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders has tweeted out his cap calculations that show a Gasol deal including Boozer is possible, albeit complicated (Twitter links). Pincus also identifies Mike Dunleavy‘s contract as a piece that would make the deal work.
Carmelo Anthony Deciding Between Knicks, Bulls
SATURDAY, 11:33pm: Anthony is still torn between Chicago and New York, and a decision is expected by Monday, tweets Zwerling.
2:40pm: The Lakers get the sense that Anthony is indeed down to just the Knicks and Bulls, but since they haven’t heard from him, they’re holding out hope, tweets Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
2:06pm: The Lakers haven’t been told they’re out of the running for Anthony, a source tells Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).
FRIDAY, 12:15pm: Carmelo Anthony has narrowed his choices to the Knicks and Bulls, a source close to the star forward tells Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling (Twitter link). Presumably that means the Lakers are out of the hunt, though it seems Anthony, who was reportedly expected to re-sign with the Knicks as of two days ago, is a ways off from a decision. He isn’t going to make his call today, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
The Rockets and Mavs also met with Anthony last week, but they were already reportedly out of the running. The primary focus of free agency shifts to Anthony, No. 2 on the Hoops Rumors Free Agent Power Rankings, now that LeBron James, No. 1 on that list, is headed to the Cavs.
The Bulls would have to make a series of moves to clear the necessary cap space to sign Anthony, and if the Lakers are truly out of the picture, that would seem to make it more difficult for the Bulls to coerce the Knicks into a sign-and-trade. He’s eligible for a starting salary of nearly $22.5MM, and while the Knicks have offered that salary, plus the maximum 7.5% raises over the length of a five-year deal, Anthony has indicated that he’d be willing to take less. He’d have to take significantly less to sign with the Bulls, particularly if the Knicks don’t agree to a sign-and-trade.
Latest On Pau Gasol
SATURDAY, 12:13am: The Lakers made a pair of offers to Gasol prior to today that were even higher than the two-year, $10MM figure Wojnarowski cited, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). They were worth $23MM over two years and $29MM over three years, and Gasol rejected them both.
FRIDAY, 11:05pm: According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link), the top two contenders for Gasol are the Bulls and the Spurs. If the Bulls can’t work out a sign and trade with Lakers, it’s likely he goes to Spurs, notes Shelburne.
10:00pm: If Gasol ends up in Chicago, it’s unlikely to be as part of a sign-and-trade with Los Angeles for Boozer, tweets Wojnarowski.
7:40pm: The Hawks are making an aggressive pitch for Gasol, tweets Wojnarowski. Atlanta is reportedly offering $11MM per year, but Gasol will likely pass on the offer, adds Wojnarowski.
FRIDAY, 5:47pm: Gasol has turned down a two-year, $10MM per year deal with the Lakers, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
10:33am: Gasol met Wednesday night with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
THURSDAY, 8:15am: The Spurs are moving closer to the front of the pack for Gasol, Wojnarowski tweets. The Bulls remain a favorite, as Wojnarowski suggests, and sources indicated to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune that the Bulls hope to pursue a sign-and-trade with the Lakers involving Gasol and Carlos Boozer. It’s unlikely that the Bulls would give Gasol a deal longer than three years, Johnson adds.
TUESDAY, 2:16pm: The Knicks aren’t entirely out of the running for Gasol, but they’re way behind the Bulls, Thunder and Lakers, a source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). The Spurs are on the “periphery,” Berger adds.
1:55pm: The Bulls and Thunder remain the front-runners for Pau Gasol, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter), but Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com conflicts that report as far as the Thunder go, hearing that Oklahoma City believes it merely has a long shot hope for the free agent big man (Twitter link). The Lakers are “lurking” as a possibility for Gasol while the Spurs continue to forge ahead with their pursuit, Wojnarowski adds.
The Yahoo! scribe identified the Bulls and Thunder as Gasol’s most favored destinations late last week, and the 34-year-old met Monday with Thunder coach Scott Brooks. Confusion over Oklahoma City’s standing in the race for Gasol isn’t new, as multiple reports painted different pictures last week. In any case, it seems that Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have also been recruiting the Arn Tellem client, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported last week.
The Bulls have pitched Gasol on the idea that he would start for them, while the Lakers have used the notion that he’ll be back with them next season as part of their recruiting efforts with other free agents, confident he’d return if they can sign Carmelo Anthony or LeBron James. The Spurs envision signing him for the $5.305MM mid-level exception, and Gasol would reportedly consider San Antonio if he decides to sign for less than he could receive elsewhere. The Thunder also appear to be in the mix at the mid-level unless they can work a sign-and-trade, but the Bulls might be able to offer more if they amnesty Carlos Boozer, and the Lakers hold his Bird rights.
Western Notes: Clippers, Billups, Blazers
The judge in the trial to determine whether Shelly Sterling has the right to sell the Clippers to Steve Ballmer put the proceedings on hold until later this month at the request of Donald Sterling’s lawyers, as Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com details. Still, it’s likely that Ballmer will move back a July 15th deadline to finalize the sale, Markazi adds. Shelly Sterling said in testimony Thursday that her husband asked her to sell the team when it became apparent the league would seize control of it otherwise. Donald Sterling has said he has no intention of selling the team and has vowed a lifelong legal fight against the NBA.
More from the west:
- Chauncey Billups engaged in a “wide-ranging” discussion with Nuggets president Josh Kroenke and GM Tim Connelly recently in Denver, though it’s not clear whether they talked about a playing role or a front office job, as Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post reports.
- Blazers GM Neil Olshey said Thursday that he doesn’t anticipate making another offseason move, as The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman observes. Freeman doesn’t mention the fate of Mo Williams, who remains unsigned, though agent Mark Bartelstein told Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com this week that there was still a chance that Williams would re-sign with Portland.
- Pau Gasol‘s interest in returning to the Lakers was contingent upon Carmelo Anthony coming to Los Angeles, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News . Now that the Lakers have used up their available cap space, it’s likely that Gasol’s days with the team are at an end.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Rockets, Lakers Close To Jeremy Lin Deal
1:53pm: The Lakers would send cash and the rights to a draft-and-stash prospect playing overseas, but no salary, to Houston, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
1:50pm: A future first-round pick and other draft considerations would accompany Lin from the Rockets to the Lakers as part of the deal the teams are nearing, Wojnarowski adds (on Twitter).
1:40pm: The Rockets and Lakers are finalizing a deal that would send Lin to the Lakers, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
12:54pm: The Rockets are attempting to trade Jeremy Lin to the Lakers, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). A report earlier this week indicated that Houston had a deal in place to send Lin to the Sixers, though Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News wrote earlier today that the sides were merely discussing such a deal. Houston is trying to get rid of Lin’s salary in an effort to clear cap room for Chris Bosh, whom the Rockets believe will commit to them soon.
The Lakers missed out on LeBron James, and it seems as though Carmelo Anthony has narrowed his choices to the Knicks and Bulls, so that might motivate the Lakers to take on Lin’s expiring contract and concentrate instead on next summer’s free agent market. Lin’s cap hit for the coming season will be close to $8.4MM, but because of his backloaded deal signed via the Gilbert Arenas Provision, he’ll make close to $15MM in actual salary.
Free Agent Rumors: ‘Melo, LeBron, Morrow, Blake
Phil Jackson might be expecting Carmelo Anthony to rejoin the Knicks, but ‘Melo hasn’t ruled out the Bulls just quite yet, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Meanwhile, the Heat expected to have had an answer from LeBron James by this point, according to Bleacher Report’s Ethan Skolnick. James was frustrated with some of coach Erik Spoelstra‘s strategy during the Finals this year and wasn’t impressed with team president Pat Riley‘s end-of-season press conference last month, Skolnick adds.
While the NBA world waits on the decisions of superstars like Anthony and James, let’s round up the latest from free agents all around the league..
- Anthony Morrow has received interest from several teams, but it appears he’s deciding between joining the Clippers, Heat, Wizards, Raptors and Suns, reports David Aldridge of NBA.com, who adds that each of the teams Morrow is considering would be willing to use some or all of their mid-level exception to sign him (Twitter links). Given that the Clippers and Heat have both used up the full amount of their mid-level exceptions, signing Morrow would likely require a sign-and-trade to complete.
- The Warriors took “another” look at DJ White today, notes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (on Twitter), thereby implying it’s at least the second time Golden State has looked at the big man. White had his rights renounced by Charlotte earlier today.
- Other teams submitted much stronger bids for Steve Blake but he “desperately” wanted to play for the Blazers, as he agreed to do today, a source tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com (Twitter link). The Lakers weren’t among the teams making an aggressive play for the point guard, as they offered only the minimum salary, tweets Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times hears.
- The Jazz, Pelicans, Rockets, and Nets are interested in Francisco Garcia, a source tells Haynes (Twitter link).
- The Wolves are making an effort to sign Evan Turner to one-year deal, a source tells tells Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN.com. Turner played poorly last season after being shipped to Indiana at the trade deadline.
- The matter of whether Mike Miller will re-sign with the Grizzlies will likely come down to contract length rather than salary, according to Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal, who writes in subscription-only piece. Memphis wants him back on a two-year deal, but Miller is pushing for three or four seasons.
- Rockets GM Daryl Morey has been in contact with Paul Pierce‘s representatives at Excel Sports Management, but it’s unlikely the veteran forward ends up in Houston, tweets Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle.
Alex Lee and Chuck Myron contributed to this post.