Odds & Ends: Kobe, Thibodeau, Suns, Sixers
With every NBA reporter alive seemingly grabbing each player, coach or executive they can get their hands on and asking them about the Dwight Howard trade, Kobe Bryant actually offered some helpful and interesting insight. Bryant, soon to be 34, said that he will probably play "two, three more years" with the Lakers and once he is done "the team is his," undoubtedly referring to Howard (via Sean Deveney on Twitter). While hardly definitive, it's notable that Bryant has a retirement time in mind. As the reactions, analysis and quotes regarding the big trade pour in, lets look at them as well as some of the other stuff going on in the NBA:
- Per ESPN Chicago, Doc Rivers said today that he is pulling for his former assistant and now successful Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau to receive a lucrative contract extension from the team. Although "Thibs" has been relatively quiet regarding the contract situation, Rivers said he knows from experience that coaching on a one-year deal can be tough.
- Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic takes a look at what options the Suns have for their final roster spot, which will likely go to a center. While Coro puts together a sizeable list, the pickings are pretty slim.
- Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com takes an inside look at how the Andrew Bynum deal came to fruition for the 76ers, who got involved in the talks with a phone call to Orlando about the availability of Howard. Moore also clarifies, via Twitter, that Philadelphia owes the Heat a first round pick from a draft day trade before they can send one to Orlando. Both future picks are lottery protected.
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel says that Magic fans shouldn't be piling on new general manager Rob Hennigan for the final outcome of the Howard situation. Schmitz says the ire of the Magic faithful should be rightfully pointed towards Howard for creating the situation in the first place.
- Jonathan Feigen of Ultimate Rockets gives his take on where the Rockets went wrong in their D12 pursuit, and where the franchise should go from here.
Lakers Likely To Sign Ebanks, Meeks
Having officially acquired Dwight Howard today, the Lakers have likely made the last of their blockbuster moves in 2012. However, the team still remains active in filling out the rest of its roster. According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld (Sulia link), now that the dust has settled on the Howard trade, Devin Ebanks is expected to re-sign his qualifying offer to return to the Lakers. The club also appears likely to sign unrestricted free agent Jodie Meeks, says Kyler.
The Ebanks update isn't new, as we heard last month that the 22-year-old was prepared to sign his qualifying offer to remain a Laker. The team reportedly asked him to hold off on officially signing his deal, since he potentially could have landed a larger deal as part of a sign-and-trade as a piece in a Howard trade. But now that the deal has been completed without his involvement, the path is clear for him to re-sign with L.A.
The Lakers' interest in Meeks has also been well-documented. When I examined potential free agent wings for the team, I identified the former Sixer as perhaps the best fit among the available options, given his solid outside shooting and defense. However, Meeks reportedly wasn't interested in signing for the veteran's minimum, while the Lakers weren't interested in using their $3.09MM mid-level exception, so we'll have to see if one of the sides has budged.
Four Teams Finalize Dwight Howard Blockbuster
1:34pm: Ken Berger of CBS Sports has tweeted a number of the details on the traded draft picks in the deal. We've updated the list below to reflect the protection on those picks.
12:19pm: The Magic, Lakers, Nuggets, and 76ers have completed their trade call with the league office, making Dwight Howard a Los Angeles Laker, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). The Magic officially announced the transaction in a press release this afternoon.
The details of the massive four-team swap can be found in our post from yesterday that tracked updates as they came in. But here's a quick recap of how the deal looks from each team's perspective based on what's been reported so far, with players' 2012/13 salaries in parentheses. If anything changes when the teams make their official announcements, we'll update this post to reflect that.
Orlando Magic
Acquire: Arron Afflalo ($7,750,000), Al Harrington ($6,687,400), Josh McRoberts ($3,135,000), Maurice Harkless ($1,731,960), Nikola Vucevic ($1,719,480), Christian Eyenga ($1,174,080), protected 2014 first-round pick from Nuggets1, protected 2015 first-round pick from Sixers2, protected 2017 first-round pick from Lakers3, Warriors' 2013 second-round pick from Nuggets, conditional 2015 second-round pick from Lakers4
Trade: Dwight Howard ($19,536,360), Jason Richardson ($5,799,625), Chris Duhon ($3,250,000), Earl Clark ($1,240,000)
The Magic also create a trade exception worth about $17.8MM in the deal, as outlined here.
Denver Nuggets
Acquire: Andre Iguodala ($14,968,250)
Trade: Arron Afflalo ($7,750,000), Al Harrington ($6,687,400), protected 2014 first-round pick from Nuggets1, Warriors' 2013 second-round pick
Philadelphia 76ers
Acquire: Andrew Bynum ($16,889,000), Jason Richardson ($5,799,625)
Trade: Andre Iguodala ($14,968,250), Maurice Harkless ($1,731,960), Nikola Vucevic ($1,719,480), protected 2015 first-round pick2
Los Angeles Lakers
Acquire: Dwight Howard ($19,536,360), Chris Duhon ($3,250,000), Earl Clark ($1,240,000)
Trade: Andrew Bynum ($16,889,000), Josh McRoberts ($3,135,000), Christian Eyenga ($1,174,080), protected 2017 first-round pick3, conditional 2015 second-round pick4
1 The lesser of the Nuggets' and Knicks' first-rounders.
2 Top-14 protected in 2015, 2016, top-11 in 2017, top-8 in 2018; if the pick still hasn't been conveyed after four years, the Magic will receive 2018 and 2019 second-rounders instead of a first-rounder. The pick cannot be conveyed until the Sixers meet their draft pick obligations to the Heat, which could delay the Magic from getting a first-round pick until 2017.
3 Top-5 protected in 2017 and 2018, unprotected in 2019. The pick cannot be conveyed until the Lakers meet their draft pick obligations to the Suns, which would prevent the Magic from getting a first-round pick if the Lakers fail to make the playoffs the next three years. If that takes place, the Magic will receive 2017 and 2018 second-rounders instead.
4 Top-40 protected; if the pick isn't conveyed in 2015, the Magic will not receive it.
Howard To Lakers, Bynum To 76ers In 4-Team Deal
11:18am: SI.com's Sam Amick tweets that McRoberts will be heading to Orlando in the deal, rather than to Denver. Wherever McRoberts ends up, it seems the Lakers will be shipping him out to make the salary figures work.
10:55am: Coon corrects himself (via Twitter), suggesting that Bynum's and Eyenga's salaries aren't quite enough to absorb Howard's and Duhon's. Here's how it looks from the Lakers' perspective, by my calculations:
- The team's $1,422,207 traded player exception acquired via Walton can absorb Clark's $1.24MM option.
- Bynum's $16,889,000 salary and Eyenga's $1,174,080 total $18,063,080. The Lakers can take back 125% (plus $100K) of that amount: $22,678,850.
- Howard's and Duhon's salaries ($19,536,360 and $3,250,000, respectively) total $22,786,360, just barely too much for the Lakers to absorb. So in order to take on both players, Los Angeles will have to either include another player (perhaps McRoberts or Ebanks) or figure out another way to organize the deal. Assuming, of course, that all the public salary figures for these players are accurate.
We should hear shortly how the Lakers ultimately work things out, since the conference call with the league to finalize the trade is expected to begin momentarily, tweets Ken Berger.
10:26am: Cap expert Larry Coon clarifies (via Twitter) that the trade exception the Lakers acquired when they dealt Luke Walton to the Cavaliers is big enough to absorb Clark's salary, so Los Angeles wouldn't necessarily have to send out any more players in addition to Bynum and Eyenga.
10:08am: The pick heading to the Magic from the Sixers will be lottery-protected for the first two years, top-11 protected in year three, and top-eight protected in year four, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com. Since the Sixers have already dealt their 2013 first-rounder (lottery protected) to Miami, presumably the one going to Orlando would be for 2015, as Sam Amick of SI.com notes. If the Magic don't get a first-rounder from Philadelphia after four years, they'd get two second-round picks instead, tweets Berger.
9:32am: According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld, Josh McRoberts may be headed to Denver in the four-way deal. This makes sense, since by my calculations, the Lakers would be unable to take back Howard, Duhon, and Clark without sending out another player in addition to Bynum and Eyenga.
8:49am: The first-rounder heading from the Lakers to Orlando will be the team's 2017 pick, while the first-rounder from Denver will be the lower of the club's two 2014 first-rounders, tweets TNT's David Aldridge. It's still not clear which first-round pick will be coming from the Sixers, but it figures to be 2015's, since their lottery-protected 2013 first-rounder is ticketed for Miami.
8:26am: Duhon is definitely involved in the four-way deal, as he tells Joshua Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link).
FRIDAY, 7:33am: According to Spears, one of the second-rounders heading to the Magic in the trade will be the Warriors' 2013 second-round pick, from the Nuggets (Twitter link). Orlando will receive one more second-rounder, to bring their total haul to five future draft picks, tweets Kennedy.
Additionally, multiple reports indicate that the conference call with the league to confirm the blockbuster deal will happen no later than about noon eastern today.
More Reactions To The 4-Way Howard Blockbuster
On a day when Team USA's semifinal game against Argentina was expected to dominate the headlines, the Olympics have taken a back seat to an epic four-way trade that will see three 2012 All-Stars changing hands. In a deal that's expected to be officially agreed upon later today, the Lakers will acquire Dwight Howard, the Sixers will land Andrew Bynum, and the Nuggets will get Andre Iguodala, while the Magic acquire a package of players and picks. We already examined some of the reactions to the agreement last night, but the links continue to pour in, so let's round up a few more….
- According to Wojnarowski, the Rockets' offer for Howard included recent first-rounders, future lottery and unprotected first-round picks, and the opportunity to move bad contracts and gain cap space (Twitter links). I've maintained for a while that Houston's looked like Orlando's most logical trade partner, and none of the details about the Rockets' offer make me think otherwise.
- In response to John Hollinger's tweet linked below, Brian Schmitz stresses, via Twitter, that the Howard deal ran through Hennigan first, before progressing to Martins and the DeVos family.
Earlier updates:
- ESPN.com's John Hollinger tweets that it was likely Magic CEO Alex Martins, rather than GM Rob Hennigan, that ran the Howard deal.
- In an Insider piece for ESPN.com, Hollinger says he likes the four-way trade for three teams, but really can't understand it from the Magic's perspective.
- Sam Amick of SI.com argues that it's unfair to criticize the Magic for the deal yet, since there's a major "wait-and-see" aspect to their haul.
- With everyone wondering whether the Magic could have acquired more from the Nets a month ago, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets Brooklyn's final offer for Howard: Brook Lopez, Kris Humphries (on a one-year, $9.6MM guarantee), MarShon Brooks, and four unprotected first-round picks for Howard, Jason Richardson, Chris Duhon, and Earl Clark.
- Bynum had been open to re-signing with the Lakers, but was also very receptive to signing with a team where he could earn more touches, according to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio. Acquiring Bynum and his Bird Rights makes the Sixers the overwhelming favorites to retain him long-term, as I suggested earlier this week.
- The Howard trade is the latest bitter pill for the Mavericks' front office to swallow, writes Jeff Caplan of ESPNDallas.com.
- National NBA fans may consider the Dwightmare to be over, but Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel says Howard's departure could haunt Magic fans for years.
Fallout From Dwight Howard/Andrew Bynum Trade
The news of the night is the news of the year in the NBA: An agreement has been reached on a trade that sends Dwight Howard to the Lakers. Andrew Bynum is also involved, as he heads to the Sixers. Of course, both players are eligible to become unrestricted free agents next summer, so the rumor mill is unlikely to stop for either of them anytime soon. Nonetheless, it still represents a blockbuster and a major turning point for several teams in 2012/13 and beyond. Here's what writers around the league are saying:
- If the Lakers can't re-sign Howard next summer, the Mavs "will be there waiting for him," a source tells Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Howard has expressed fondness for the Mavs in the past. In the same report, Kobe Bryant is described as being "ecstatic" about the deal.
- Brian Kamenetzky of ESPNLosAngeles.com says Howard represents an upgrade over Bynum because of his defense, his athleticism, and his ability to fit better with Steve Nash.
- A few league executives believe there has to be something more in the deal for the Magic, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com wonders why the Magic waited so long to make a deal when the offers never improved (Sulia link). Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel isn't sure any notable free agents would be interested in signing with the depleted Magic next summer (Sulia link).
- Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News says the Sixers now have the dominant big man team president Rod Thorn and coach Doug Collins have coveted. Cooney took to Twitter to say the trade is a coup for the Sixers, who get at least one season from Bynum and cap space if he leaves.
- Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post says the Nuggets will lose some offense, but Andre Iguodala will allow them to make major strides on defense, where they've struggled in recent seasons.
- Tim Bontemps and Fred Kerber of the New York Post look at the deal from the perspective of the Nets, who were once considered frontrunners for Howard. Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News says, via Twitter, that the deal demonstrates that the Magic were never too high on Brook Lopez.
- The Cavs were asked to give up a lot more for Bynum when they were a part of trade talks, says Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio (Sulia link).
Magic Close To Four-Team Howard Blockbuster
9:12pm: Stein says there are still unreported names in the deal, but the Magic are getting Arron Afflalo, Al Harrington, Nikola Vucevic, Maurice Harkless and a future first-round pick from each of the other three teams in the deal. The Sixers will get Andrew Bynum and Jason Richardson. The Nuggets will get Andre Iguodala, and the Lakers will land Dwight Howard. Pau Gasol is not in the deal, Stein hears (All Twitter links).
8:59pm: A conference call has been scheduled for Friday morning with the league office to process the deal, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).
7:34pm: Berger says the most likely scenario involves the Magic getting neither Andrew Bynum nor Pau Gasol, adding credence to earlier reports that Gasol won't be a part of the deal (Twitter link).
7:29pm: Various Twitter reports indicate differing levels of confidence that the deal will get done. Chris Broussard of ESPN.com says the deal will happen "barring any last minute snag." ESPN.com colleague Ric Bucher believes the Magic and Lakers are pushing hard to complete the trade, but adds there are still many question marks. Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel says the talks are serious, but cautions there are a lot of moving parts. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reports "guarded optimism" about the deal.
7:11pm: The deal has "huge legs," a source tells Dei Lynam of CSNPhilly.com, and the teams have made progress toward its completion today, Lynam tweets.
6:55pm: A source close to Gasol says he's not in the trade, Ric Bucher of ESPN.com tweets.
6:39pm: Chris Broussard of ESPN.com hears the deal is "very close" and could take place as early as Friday morning. Broussard says that Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles also hears Gasol may not be a part of the trade. Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com tweets that there is greater confidence a Howard deal will get done than in the past. The Sixers are willing to take on Bynum even without assurances he'll re-sign next summer, according to the ESPN report.
6:23pm: Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld, in an updated version of an earlier story, says one of the variants of the deal doesn't include Gasol, and it's unclear whether it includes Al Harrington. Devin Ebanks, on a sign-and-trade, and Josh McRoberts may also be a part of the deal.
5:52pm: A source close to the talks tells HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy that reports so far have the teams right, but the deal would likely include different players if it gets done, as the Magic, Lakers, Nuggets and Sixers discuss multiple scenarios. No deal is imminent or near completion, the source says (Twitter links).
5:41pm: Sixers center Nikola Vucevic would also go to the Magic as part of the deal, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
Pincus On Howard, Bynum, Gasol, Green, Clippers
Sources tell Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld that the Lakers would be "far more comfortable" building around Dwight Howard rather than Andrew Bynum. If today's rumored four-team trade comes to fruition, the Lakers would get their wish. Pincus has a few more items of note in his latest piece, and we'll hit the highlights here:
- If the Rockets can't land Howard or Bynum, they might have interest in acquiring Pau Gasol if he's dealt to the Magic, Pincus says. Gasol would net the Magic fewer assets than if they dealt Howard to the Rockets, but Pincus believes it would still be a solid haul.
- The Lakers have their $3.09MM taxpayer's mini mid-level exception available, but are reluctant to tie it up with a trade for Howard still in play.
- Pincus has the details on Willie Green's deal with the Clippers, who acquired the veteran shooting guard in a sign-and-trade last month. It's a three-year deal for $4.2MM, but only the first season, at $1.375MM, is fully guaranteed. He also looks at the multiple trade exceptions held by the Clippers, which gave the team a choice when they acquired Green. The team opted to use part of a $2.76MM exception left over from dealing Al-Farouq Aminu in the Chris Paul trade.
Steve Nash Talks Suns-To-Lakers Decision
As SportsRadioInterviews.com documented, Steve Nash recently appeared on KTAR in Phoenix to talk to hosts Burns and Gambo about his decision to leave the Suns for the Lakers in free agency last month. The two-time MVP admitted that prior to the free agent period, he was still considering re-signing with Phoenix, and didn't view the Lakers as an option. Here are a few highlights from the conversation:
On whether he expected the regular season finale to be the last time he wore a Suns uniform:
"Not at all. I wanted to come back, to be honest. One, primarily with my children being in Phoenix, but second, I felt dissatisfied with the last two seasons, not being in the playoffs. And I felt a big part of me wanted to leave the franchise in a better place than it was the last two seasons, and be a part of moving it forward. So not at all, I didn’t know for sure that I would be moving on and in many ways was hoping to come back."
On when he started to shift his focus from the Suns to other potential destinations:
"It started to become apparent in June, and then I guess you could say the writing was on the wall. But I never really gave up on it until free agency actually came and I realized that there wasn’t really an offer and that they wanted to go in another direction. So it wasn’t till late in the game, and it just all kind of came to light at that point."
On the Lakers' unexpected interest in him:
"It was completely out of the blue. Even though you’re not allowed to talk to teams, you kind of know what teams are interested and to a certain degree you can kind of guess what’s going to happen. But the Lakers weren’t an option. I didn’t even realize they had a trade exception for Lamar Odom. There wasn’t really any talk, there wasn’t anything my agent hadn’t spoken about as an option, and then they called shortly after midnight on the 1st and the door swung open."
On deciding to play for the Lakers:
"Going to L.A. was not an easy thing. I think I said a week before free agency it would be hard to put on a Lakers jersey, and I meant that. We’ve gone through some playoff battles and they’re a rival and an enemy to some of the Suns fans, but at the end of the day the Suns were moving in a new direction and in some ways I felt like I couldn’t cut off my nose to spite my face. Chance to go to Los Angeles, be as close as possible to the kids, primarily. And then other than that, a chance to win, to live in a new place and all the things that come with that as well."
On where he'd be playing if Suns owner Robert Sarver hadn't agreed to do a sign-and-trade deal with the Lakers:
"It would’ve been Toronto or New York. Those were the two next teams, and I don’t know. I would’ve crossed that bridge had the Lakers situation fell through."
Odds & Ends: Green, Hummel, Bynum, Prospects
Let's check in on a few links from around the league on a Wednesday afternoon, as Argentina and Brazil battle for a spot in the Olympic semi-finals….
- Jeff Green spoke to Josh Zavadil of CelticsBlog about his heart surgery, having to sit out the 2011/12 season, and returning to the Celtics this summer. Green also praised Celts president of basketball operations Danny Ainge for the team's roster moves this summer.
- Purdue forward Robbie Hummel has signed with Spanish team Obradoiro, the club announced (hat tip to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Hummel was drafted 58th overall by the Timberwolves in June, so Minnesota will hold his rights if he hopes to play in the NBA in the future.
- Kevin Ding of the Orange Country Register suggests that the Lakers' public courting of Dwight Howard is only giving Andrew Bynum reason to leave Los Angeles. Earlier today, I looked at a few scenarios for Howard's and Bynum's next contracts.
- In an Insider-only piece, ESPN.com's Chad Ford takes an early look at the rising and falling stocks of some of 2013's top prospects.