Odds & Ends: Barnes, Mavs, Rockets, Pistons
Only one contract agreement has been reached so far on the first night of the NBA's 2013 free agent period, but that doesn't mean we weren't treated to plenty of news and rumors. Here are a few more odds and ends from a busy Sunday night:
- In addition to all the other players they reportedly contacted tonight, the Lakers reached out to Matt Barnes, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter).
- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com reports that the Mavericks have expressed interest in Jose Calderon and Mo Williams. Even though MacMahon's report came before news broke that Dallas had agreed to sign Gal Mekel, it makes sense that the team would continue to seek a veteran point guard to complement rookies Mekel and Shane Larkin.
- MacMahon adds (via Twitter) that now that Mekel is under contract, the Mavs are likely to trade the rights to 2009 second-round pick Nick Calathes, something that GM Donnie Nelson has hinted at.
- After an encouraging meeting with Dwight Howard in Los Angeles, the Rockets will target players to complement him rather than fall-back options, says Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The team will meet with Corey Brewer and Mike Dunleavy next, according to Feigen (Twitter links).
- Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press spoke to Pistons owner Tom Gores about the process of hiring head coach Maurice Cheeks, the team's long-term vs. short-term prospects, and free agency.
- Several NBA teams have expressed interest in point guard Bobby Brown, who played for four clubs between 2008 and 2010, tweets Shelburne.
- Since they weren't released on or before June 30th, the 2013/14 contracts for E'Twaun Moore (Magic), Chandler Parsons (Rockets), Jason Smith (Pelicans), and Rodney Stuckey (Pistons) have become fully guaranteed. Paul Pierce's contract also became fully guaranteed, so it can be used in the Nets/Celtics swap that will be finalized later this month.
- ESPN.com's Marc Stein rounds up the latest on a few early free agency rumors. We've already heard about most of the stories Stein addresses, such as the Nets leading the race for Kyle Korver, the Pelicans pursuing Tyreke Evans, and the Timberwolves and Bucks targeting Kevin Martin. However, there are a few notable tidbits from Stein, including word that the Thunder's odds of retaining Martin are dwindling.
Several Teams Interested In Chase Budinger
9:44am: There is strong mutual interest between Budinger and the Bucks, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times.
12:48am: As expected, Flip Saunders and a Timberwolves contingent is meeting with free agent wing Chase Budinger in San Diego, as Sean Deveney of the Sporting News tweets. However, the Wolves aren't the only team interested in signing Budinger.
According to Sam Amick of USA Today (via Twitter), the Pelicans, Bucks, Pacers, and Mavericks all have some level of interest in Budinger. Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News adds the Lakers to that list of potential suitors (Twitter link), though Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times hears that Budinger will likely receive more than the $3.18MM mini mid-level that the Lakers can offer (Twitter link).
Budinger, 25, missed most of the 2012/13 season with a knee injury, but provides excellent outside shooting when healthy.
Lakers Rumors: Farmar, Garcia, Young, D12
We rounded up a few Lakers notes earlier tonight, but now that free agency has begun, there are plenty more updates out of Lakerland. Here's the latest:
- There's been contact between the Lakers and former guard Jordan Farmar, and there's mutual interest between the two sides, a source tells Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). However, a reunion would likely be dependent on the team's other moves.
- There is also mutual interest between the Lakers and Francisco Garcia, tweets McMenamin.
- The Lakers have inquired on unrestricted free agent Nick Young, agent Mark Bartelstein tells McMenamin (Twitter link).
- Wayne Ellington's agent also received a call from the Lakers, tweets McMenamin.
- In addition to calling Dwight Howard, GM Mitch Kupchak wanted to briefly meet with free agent big man, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter). Bresnahan adds in a follow-up tweet that Kupchak was able to make that happen.
- We heard earlier tonight that the Lakers reached out to Earl Clark and inquired on Chris Copeland.
Free Agency Notes: Smith, Evans, Blazers, Kaman
It's officially the start of free agency! Here's the latest as we enter July..
- A source tells Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News (Twitter link) that the Pistons will absolutely not offer Josh Smith a max deal. We learned earlier today that Detroit is among the teams targeting the Hawks free agent.
- The Pelicans will have a sizable offer sheet ready for Tyreke Evans when they meet with him tonight, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com. We learned earlier tonight that New Orleans was set to be the first team to meet with the Kings guard. Meanwhile, sources tell Marc J. Spears of Yahoo (Twitter link) that while the Pelicans got the first meeting with the 23-year-old, he will still do his due diligence on teams and the Kings are still in the mix.
- The Blazers and the reps for center Chris Kaman are expected to meet face-to-face now that free agency is underway, tweets Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. Both the unrestricted free agent and the club feel that it would be a "great fit" (link).
- The Jazz and Lakers were the first two teams to inquire on Knicks free agent Chris Copeland tonight, tweets Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
Lakers Notes: Howard, Kobe, Nash
Here's the latest out of Los Angeles as the Lakers prepare their pitch to Dwight Howard..
- Howard's camp is unsure if Kobe Bryant will be there for the Lakers' pitch meeting as they've heard both yes and no, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld. Howard will meet with the Hawks, Rockets, Mavericks, and Warriors, but the Lakers will get last licks per their request.
- Meanwhile, Steve Nash is expected to be a part of the meeting, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- After reaching the Finals four years ago, Howard desperately wants to get back to championship contention. Being able to play for a title is at the top of the big man's priority list, a source tells Shelburne and Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
- League sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that the Rockets are the frontrunners for Howard. Howard doesn't want this process to extend long beyond his final meetings on Tuesday and could have a decision before the end of the week, sources said.
- A source close to Howard says that the big man isn't going to ask the club to do anything on his behalf in terms of additions or changes, tweets Mark Medina of the L.A. Daily News.
- Earlier tonight, the Rockets shipped Thomas Robinson to the Blazers, freeing up enough room to allow them to offer Howard a max deal.
Several Teams In On Andrew Bynum
There will be no shortage of interest in free agent center Andrew Bynum when the clock strikes midnight tonight, sources tell Yannis Koutroupis of HoopsWorld. One source specifically mentioned the Trail Blazers and Cavaliers as two teams expected to reach out to Bynum along with all of the franchises with cap space that are pursuing center Dwight Howard.
Howard will meet with the Hawks, Mavericks, Lakers, Warriors and Rockets. Of those five, the Hawks, Mavs, and Rockets have the necessary space under the cap to make a max, or near max, offer without needing to do a sign-and-trade.
Bynum, of course, missed all of last season with the Sixers due to serious knee problems. However, his people have been on the record saying that he'll be ready for the start of training camp. Despite his issues, Bynum will be the most talented center on the market once Howard signs.
Rockets Waive Delfino, Brooks
JUNE 30TH: Houston has waived Delfino and Brooks, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, taking his cue from Rockets GM Daryl Morey, who bid them farewell via Twitter. The Rockets were reportedly trying to trade both of them before their contracts became guaranteed at the end of today, but apparently found no takers.
JUNE 16TH: The Rockets have told the agents for Carlos Delfino and Aaron Brooks that the team will not pick up the options on their contracts for next season, reports Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle. The same is true for Francisco Garcia, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston reported last month that the team will decline his option as well. The result is a savings of $11.908MM that the Rockets plan to put toward their pursuit of a marquee free agent.
Technically, Delfino and Brooks have non-guaranteed contracts for next season that would become fully guaranteed if they're not waived by June 30th, according to ShamSports.com. Essentially, that amounts to a team option on both. Delfino was set to make $3MM and Brooks $2.508MM, while Garcia's team option is worth $6.4MM next season.
The moves could be some of the last under the current phase of the team's roster construction, as Feigen details. If the team signs a big-time free agent this summer, with Dwight Howard as its primary target, it will shift toward an emphasis on veterans. The Rockets would prefer to avoid the luxury tax in coming seasons, but they're willing to go deep into the tax to keep many of their own players who are set to hit free agency in 2015, including Omer Asik, Jeremy Lin, Chandler Parsons and Patrick Beverley.
GM Daryl Morey and company will emphasize to free agents that the team has all of its future first-round picks, after having given up this year's first-rounder, and note that those draft choices can be traded for veterans. They'll also point to the mid-level and bi-annual exceptions the team will have once it goes over the cap as a means to acquire additional veterans.
In the past few seasons, Houston has turned over its roster in pursuit of superstars, but the team appears confident it will soon have a core it can build around for the long haul. The team pursued a similar veterans-first strategy in the early days of Morey's leadership, when Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming were star players.
Western Notes: Rockets, Iguodala, Clippers
The Rockets have been expected to waive Carlos Delfino and Aaron Brooks before their salaries become fully guaranteed at the end of today, but Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears the team is still pursuing 11th-hour trade possibilities for the two, despite the slim chance they'll find a deal (Twitter links). That's just one of many news items out of the West with free agency less than 12 hours away:
- With a host of teams vying for Andre Iguodala, Nuggets GM Tim Connelly and coach Brian Shaw will meet with Iguodala on Monday in Los Angeles, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
- Doc Rivers is downplaying talk of a trade involving Eric Bledsoe or anyone else, as Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times notes. The Clippers have interest in retaining Lamar Odom and Matt Barnes, Turner reports, adding that the Lakers are also high on Barnes.
- Though the Clippers reportedly prefer Andrea Bargnani to DeMar DeRozan, Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun notes that Rivers has always held DeRozan in high regard (Twitter link).
- O.J. Mayo is expected to turn down his $4.2MM player option for next season, and while his preference is to return to Dallas, the Mavs won't receive a discount, tweets Tim McMahon of ESPNDallas.com.
- Carl Landry's first priority will be to re-sign with the Warriors, but he believes there will be about half a dozen teams pursuing him, and he expects the Blazers to be one of them, the power forward tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Landry reciprocates Portland's interest.
- The Suns won't be in the market for big-ticket free agents, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. The team prefers to keep its cap flexibility to accomodate an enticing trade possibility or next year's crop of free agents. The Suns will be in contact with Wesley Johnson, one of their own free agents, Coro says.
- New Kings GM Pete D'Alessandro is promising an "aggressive" approach to the offseason, as Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee observes. The Kings won't simply let restricted free agent Tyreke Evans go without matching his offer or working out a sign-and-trade, writes Voisin, who pegs his market value at between $8MM and $10MM per year.
- Yesterday was the deadline for the Spurs to waive Matt Bonner before his $3.945MM salary for next season, which had been partially guaranteed for $1MM, became fully guaranteed. So, Bonner will be back, unless the team waives him via amnesty, as Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News points out as he examines the Spurs' offseason.
Odds & Ends: Howard, Haslem, Mavericks
Dwight Howard's upcoming courtship with a host of teams, both longshots and more realistic destinations, is the talk of the league tonight and probably will be moving forward as we come up on the start of the NBA's free agency period, starting with the July moratorium from the 1st to the 9th.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports put a column up earlier tonight stipulating that Howard's first discussion will be with a large, and star-studded coterie of the Rockets' former Hall-of-Famers, current stars, coaches and executives, but next up will be with the Warriors and Hawks on Monday and Mavericks and Lakers on Tuesday.
ESPNLosAngeles.com's Arash Markazi believes it'll be former coach, Phil Jackson, and his fiancee Jeanie Buss, who could be the final piece as to whether or not Howard stays with the Lakers or leaves for one of the other teams with the cap room to absorb a max deal (Twitter). Phil recently met with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, but both remained tight-lipped about what they discussed in that meeting (Twitter).
Let's look at more from Howard and others from around the league in yet another helter-skelter night in the NBA:
- Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News writes that the Warriors are long shots in their bid to acquire Howard, and they'd likely have to dismantle some of the nucleus that reached the Western Conference Semifinals this past postseason. Kawakami also notes that despite their long odds at landing the big man, Warriors owner Joe Lacob has won a mini-victory just earning a spot on Dwight's free agency list this summer (Twitter).
- Another possible Howard destination is with the Mavericks, and Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that any possible trade for the Celtics' Rajon Rondo would have to wait until after the Mavericks secure Howard because of salary cap stipulations.
- If Howard doesn't sign with the Mavs, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News has plans for other free agent signings for the team this offseason.
- Udonis Haslem revealed to the Associated Press today that he spent the second half of last season with the Heat suffering from a torn meniscus in his knee, which will require surgery soon. He's expected to be ready for training camp in the fall.
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel notes that the Magic will guarantee guard E'Twaun Moore's contract for next season, after opting not to extend a qualifying offer to DeQuan Jones.
- Al Iannazzone of Newsday says the Knicks GM Glen Grunwald will have to get creative this offseason if he's going to improve the Knicks' roster.
- Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports the Wizards have promoted Pat Sullivan to assistant coach.
- The newly-named Pelicans will look at small forwards in free agency this offseason, writes John Reid of the Times-Picayune.
Western Links: Brown, Mavericks, Clippers
The deadline for the Suns to waive Shannon Brown in order to pay half of his $3.5MM salary for the 2013/14 season has passed, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter). Brown was re-signed to a two-year deal worth $7MM with excess Suns' cap room in July of 2012.
The Suns could waive Brown and only eat half of his $3.5MM contract if they did so before whichever occurred first: 36 hours after 11:59 pm the day of the 2013 NBA Draft, or June 30th. That first deadline has passed, so now the Suns are on the hook for the full amount.
Here are some more notes on the Western Conference, including Kobe Bryant's thoughts on Dwight Howard's free agency:
- Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News writes that no matter when the Mavericks see Howard, they'll have a captive audience.
- But fellow Dallas Morning News columnist, George Diaz, wants his Mavs readers to remember that Howard cherishes fun over titles.
- Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets that the Mavs don't expect to hear from Shawn Marion today, since they'll only be notified if he elects to opt out of the final of his contract, and they expect the deadline to pass quietly. Marion has an early termination option for the last year of a deal that will pay him $9.32MM next season (w/ some performance bonus'). SI's Chris Mannix confirms he's not going to opt-out (Twitter).
- According to Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune, DeMarre Carroll is hoping to get a longer stay with the Jazz.
- ESPNLosAngeles.com writers Ramona Shelburne and Arash Markazi debate whether the addition of Doc Rivers makes the Clippers championship contenders.
- Shelburne also says the Clippers are taking their time before making any moves after bringing on Doc Rivers (Twitter), so they're going to take their time with possible Eric Bledsoe and DeAndre Jordan moves.
- Dan McCarney of the Express-News checks in with the Spurs' Euro stash.
- Mike Trudell of Lakers.com spoke with the Lakers' Kobe Bryant about Dwight Howard's impending free agency, and sent out a few tweets with Kobe's answers.