Southeast Notes: Wade, Satoransky, Muscala
Veterans Al Horford and Paul Pierce made the key hoops for their respective teams Wednesday in Atlanta’s victory in Game 5 of the Hawks-Wizards series, one that serves as a de facto Southeast Division championship. Whichever team wins the series, which the Hawks lead 3-2, will make its first appearance in the conference finals in more than three decades and will perhaps be in a better position to attract stars via free agency. The Hawks have a much better chance to clear cap room this summer than the Wizards do, but both teams have plenty of flexibility for the summer of 2016, when Kevin Durant and others are set to come free. While we wait to see how that all plays out, here’s the latest from around the Southeast:
- The agent for Dwyane Wade wouldn’t say this week whether the Heat star would pick up his $16.125MM player option for next season, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. That adds to the confusion of conflicting reports about Wade’s plans for the option. Henry Thomas of the Creative Artists Agency represents Wade, as our Agency Database shows.
- Wizards draft-and-stash prospect Tomas Satoransky still dreams of playing in the NBA but intends to finish his contract with Barcelona of Spain, as he told Adriano Correal of Gigantes Del Basket (translation via HoopsHype). Barcelona’s deal runs through next year for the shooting guard whom Washington drafted 32nd overall in 2012, as Mark Porcaro shows in our Draft Rights Held Players Database.
- Mike Muscala played in only about half of Atlanta’s regular season games, but he’s been a part of the rotation for the Hawks in the playoffs and is drawing raves from his teammates, as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution chronicles. Muscala’s minimum salary for next season is non-guaranteed.
- A lack of offensive development and a failure to convince either Jacque Vaughn or James Borrego that he deserved more playing time this season leave plenty of uncertainty about any future that Maurice Harkless has with the Magic, as Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel examines. Harkless is eligible for a rookie scale extension this offseason but seems unlikely to end up with one, as I speculated in a look at this year’s extension market.
Pelicans Rumors: Calipari, Cole, Williams
A potential Pelicans coaching candidate appears close to coming off the market, as John Calipari is nearing a deal on extension that would tack an extra season worth $8MM onto his deal with the University of Kentucky, reports Mike DeCourcy of The Sporting News. The amended contract would run through 2021/22, according tp DeCourcy. Calipari received a similar extension last year, though that didn’t stop NBA rumors. In any case, here’s more on the latest NBA team with a coaching vacancy:
- The Cavs sought to trade for Norris Cole when he was on the Heat prior to the deadline before the Pelicans were instead able to wrangle the point guard from Miami, as Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal writes within his Final Thoughts column. Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com spotted the Ohio native in Cleveland’s for last night’s Game 5 between the Cavs and the Bulls (Twitter link). Cole, a restricted free agent, is a client of Klutch Sports, the same Cleveland-based agency that represents LeBron James and Tristan Thompson.
- Monty Williams thought Tuesday’s meeting with Pelicans management would include discussion about a contract extension, league sources told John Reid of The Times-Picayune. Instead, it was in the meeting that the Pelicans told Williams they were firing him, and executive vice president of basketball operations Mickey Loomis admits the coach was surprised by the termination, Reid writes. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported Tuesday that the expectation was that the Pels would use the meeting to tell the coach that they would at least pick up his option for 2016/17.
- Williams regarded Loomis as his immediate supervisor rather than consulting with GM Dell Demps, and the coach last week admitted that he and Demps hadn’t always seen eye-to-eye about the roster, Reid writes in the same piece. Demps, who wasn’t in the meeting in which Williams learned of his firing, denied that there was a disconnect between him and the coach.
- Anthony Davis was close with Williams, as USA Today’s Sam Amick notes, but the star was cognizant that Williams probably wouldn’t be his coach for his entire career, and Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel posits that the Pelicans made the change in part to try and entice Davis to stay. Williams sits atop the market for rookie scale extensions, as I examined earlier today, and if New Orleans doesn’t sign him to one this offseason, he’d hit restricted free agency in 2016.
Draft Notes: Larsen, Turner, Russell
Hoops Rumors extends its condolences to those close to European standout Rasmus Larsen, who was found dead at his home, as Emiliano Carchia of Sportando tweets. The 20-year-old from Denmark was an early entrant for the 2014 NBA draft before withdrawing, though he didn’t apply for this year’s draft as he’d struggled with injury. The cause of the death has yet to be identified, agent Doug Neustadt told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). He was a mobile big man and versatile scorer reminiscent of Cody Zeller, according to Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link). Here’s more draft-related news:
- Myles Turner‘s unusual running style has been cause for concern, but tests through the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York showed his gait is correctable with a series of daily exercises, as Matt Kamalsky of DraftExpress examines. The results of the tests, arranged by agent Andy Miller in concert with Turner’s father and trainer Ken Roberson, have been sent to NBA teams, Kamalsky notes. Turner is the 11th-ranked prospect on DraftExpress, and Eddie Scarito of Hoops Rumors wrote about the way the center from Texas runs in his prospect profile of the draft hopeful whom Eddie lists 10th in the Hoops Rumors Draft Prospect Power Rankings.
- The Timberwolves will interview D’Angelo Russell at the Chicago predraft combine this week, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). Russell is a candidate for Minnesota’s lottery selection, which will fall between No. 1 and No. 4, as the lottery odds show. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and Chad Ford of ESPN.com both rank him as the fourth-best prospect.
- Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel delivers his mock draft, which has the Heat taking Kelly Oubre at No. 10, given team president Pat Riley‘s affection for players with upside. Miami would lose its pick if it falls out of the top 10 in the lottery, though there’s only about a 9% chance of that happening.
Eastern Notes: Wizards, Blatt, Fournier
League insiders are split in their opinions regarding the Wizards’ chances to lure Kevin Durant to Washington D.C. when he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2016, Zach Lowe of Grantland writes. While the franchise’s future appears brighter than many teams in the East, its success is tempered by the fact that it plays in a relatively weak conference, Lowe adds. What the Wizards will also need to decide upon is how aggressive they wish to be in pursing Durant, considering his mounting injuries, the Grantland scribe notes. Lowe also opines that the team should consider if coach Randy Wittman is the coach who will take them to the next level, and if not, then Washington should attempt to find that person this offseason.
Here’s more from the NBA’s Eastern Conference:
- David Blatt has proven himself to be a good coach during his career overseas, but that doesn’t mean he is the right coach for LeBron James and the Cavs‘ current roster, Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report writes.
- Swingman Evan Fournier did not disappoint during his first season with the Magic, John Denton of NBA.com writes in his season review of the player. Fournier proved himself to be one of the Magic’s best outside shooters and finishers at the rim, though he did miss 24 games due to various injuries, Denton notes. In 58 appearances the 22-year-old averaged 12.0 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 28.6 minutes per night.
- The Heat have not traditionally had great luck in regards to the NBA draft lottery, and the team will need that to change if it is to retain its first-rounder this year, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. Over the past 15 years, no team seeded beyond No. 10 has moved up in the lottery, Winderman notes, and if Miami’s pick falls out of the top 10 selections it will convey to the Sixers.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Goran Dragic
The Heat lost their top free agent last summer, and even though the stakes are much lower this time around, the franchise is hoping to keep Goran Dragic in Miami. The Heat are still reeling from LeBron James‘ announcement last July that he was returning home to Cleveland. After four straight trips to the NBA Finals, Miami missed the playoffs with a 37-45 record this season. Now, instead of dominating the NBA, the Heat have started rebuilding.
Part of that process will be re-signing Dragic, who came to Miami from Phoenix in a three-team deal at February’s trade deadline. It cost the Heat four players and two first-round draft picks to acquire Dragic, who was a Third-Team All-NBA selection in 2013/14. To get the seventh-year guard from Croatia, Miami dealt Danny Granger to the Suns, along with a top-seven protected pick in 2017 and an unprotected selection in 2021. The Heat also sent Norris Cole, Shawne Williams, Justin Hamilton and cash considerations to New Orleans to complete the deal.
After shelling out so much to get Dragic, Miami wants to make sure he stays with the franchise for the long term. He has a $7.5MM player option for next season that he has already announced he will decline. Dragic has seemed to form a bond with Miami since the trade, calling it his favorite U.S. city. “I had a great time in Miami and I want to come back,” he told Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post last month, “but we’ll see what happens.”
What might happen is a large offer from the Lakers or Knicks, who were both reportedly on a list of favored destinations — along with Miami — that Dragic compiled before being traded from Phoenix. Both teams could use an experienced point guard and both have plenty of cap room to throw maximum offers at Dragic. And there are likely to be more suitors. Dragic, represented by agents Rade Filipovich and Bill Duffy of BDA Sports Management, has repeatedly made it clear that he will listen to every offer that comes his way.
One possible landing spot for Dragic is Houston, although the Rockets would have to clear some cap room to become serious bidders. Dragic spent part of the 2010/11 season and all of 2011/12 in Houston before leaving in the summer of 2012 to sign a four-year, $30MM free-agent deal with Phoenix. The Rockets were pursuing Dragic at this year’s trade deadline before he was dealt to Miami. It was reported in February that Dragic wasn’t willing to sign a long-term deal with Houston or any other team not on his list of preferred destinations. Dragic was apparently reluctant to sign long-term with the Rockets for fear that they would trade him later.
No matter who comes calling, Dragic noted that the Heat have a “huge” advantage because they own his Bird Rights and can offer a five-year deal, while other teams are limited to four. The total value of a maximum offer from Miami would be roughly $110MM, compared to about $81MM from anyone else. Miami also has the built-in financial advantage of being located in Florida, which has no state income tax.
“As long as I’m in a happy environment and a healthy organization, that’s the most important thing,” Dragic told Lieser in a separate story. “The next three, four, five years — I want to spend it on this kind of team, like the Miami Heat. They have great players, great coaching staff and great training staff.”
The attraction of Dragic, who turned 29 last week, is obvious. In 26 games after being traded to Miami, he averaged 16.6 points and 5.3 assists. He’s a 36% career shooter from three-point range and has a reputation for being durable, appearing in 77, 75 and 78 games the last three seasons.
The Heat have been open about their desire to retain Dragic. Shortly after their season ended, coach Erik Spoelstra said that he wants to bring back Dragic and Luol Deng, who also has a player option. “They’re absolute pros,” Spoelstra said, “the kind of guys you want to build your team around, the guys you want to go to work with, the guys you want to be in a foxhole with.”
Still, the Heat have some cap concerns. Chris Bosh signed a max deal last summer that will pay him more than $118MM through 2018/19; Dwyane Wade has a player option worth more than $16MM next season, and Hassan Whiteside will be seeking a sizable new deal next summer. But if Dragic stays in Miami, his new contract will be offset by an expected jump in the salary cap once the new television deal kicks in after next season. Dragic is certain to get plenty of offers this summer, but his fondness for the city and the Heat’s financial edges should be enough to make him one of the leaders of a post-LeBron resurgence in Miami.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Eastern Notes: Haslem, Harris, Bucks
Next season could be the end of the line for “Heat lifer” Udonis Haslem, writes Surya Fernandez of Fox Sports Florida. Haslem, who has been with Miami since 2003, will make $2.9MM in 2015/16 during the final season of a two-year contract. Although he can pursue free agency, at age 36 he might find few interested parties outside of Miami. Teammate Dwyane Wade said he would be happy to have Haslem back. “I always feel like we have a great shot when he is on the floor because he will bring something that no one else can bring,” Wade said.
There’s more from the Eastern Conference:
- A New Hampshire mathematics professor has identified the Magic’s Tobias Harris as the NBA’s most underrated player, according to Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel. Harris, who will be a restricted free agent this summer, got high marks for his ability to shoot three-pointers, drive, rebound and defend.
- The Bucks will likely make roster changes this summer, but they would like to keep Khris Middleton, writes Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The team hopes the restricted free agent will choose to stay in Milwaukee and be part of the team’s young core. Co-owner Marc Lasry noted that it’s easier in the NBA to do a one-year turnaround than to maintain success. “Well, I think next year is going to be harder,” he said. “It’s definitely going to be harder. People won’t take us lightly.”
- It’s been a long journey for the Hawks‘ Mike Budenholzer to go from a small Arizona town to becoming a successful NBA coach, according to Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Budenholzer’s pro experience started as a film coordinator for the Spurs in 1994. He was promoted to assistant coach two years later, and stayed in San Antonio for 17 more years before landing the head coaching position with the Hawks. “One of the things that’s amazing to me is his demeanor,” said his father, Vince Budenholzer. “The Hawks don’t panic and that’s him staying calm. I think we’ll give the other Pop [Spurs coach Gregg Popovich] credit for that.”
Southeast Notes: Pierce, Dedmon, Williams
The Wizards are enjoying great dividends from their investment in Paul Pierce, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Pierce, who hit a game-winning shot against the Hawks Saturday, came to Washington last summer after free agent Trevor Ariza left for Houston. Michael notes that the Wizards were able to sign Pierce for a little more than $5MM a year over two seasons, which was about half the money and half the commitment that Ariza wanted.
There’s more this morning from the Southeast Division:
- The Magic moved Dewayne Dedmon into their starting lineup March 4; now he hopes to stay there, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Dedmon quickly became a favorite of interim coach James Borrego with his shot blocking and high-intensity style of play. He is signed through next year, although the nearly $950K he is due to make is fully non-guaranteed if he is waived by August 1st.
- Consistency was the main thing Marvin Williams brought to the Hornets after signing as a free agent last summer, notes Matt Rochinski of hornets.com. Charlotte lured the North Carolina alum from the Jazz with a two-year deal worth $7MM each season. Through the first four months of the season, Williams averaged 6.7 points and 4.5 rebounds. From March 1 onward, he raised those numbers to 8.8 points and 6.7 boards. “I feel like I finished a lot stronger than I started,” he said. “Obviously with change, sometimes it takes a little while to get acclimated, but that’s an experience I had before in my career so it wasn’t terrible for me.”
- With their draft status uncertain, the Heat are turning their attention toward the annual Chicago pre-draft camp, which gets under way Tuesday, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Miami faces a 9% chance of losing its first-round pick, but that won’t be determined until the May 19th lottery. In the meantime, team president Pat Riley, GM Andy Elisburg and the scouting staff are going to get an up-close look at the top prospects, not just for the first round, but also for Miami’s second-round pick, which falls at number 40.
Heat Notes: Carroll, Chalmers, Deng
Heat president Pat Riley had the opportunity to blow it all up and build from scratch when LeBron James left to join the Cavs last summer. Instead, he re-signed Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade and added Luol Deng in an effort to keep Miami in the playoff mix. As an executive who wants to win in the here and now, it’s perhaps not surprising to hear that Riley’s focus is more on free agency than the draft.
“The very, very best teams in this league are playing developed players, who have had three or four years, or five or 10 years of experience,” Riley said late last month.
More from Miami..
- If the Heat don’t re-sign Deng, Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post wonders if Miami could look to pluck a replacement from a divisional rival. Hawks small forward DeMarre Carroll will be available this summer and he is coming off of a career year. Carroll is also a year younger than Deng and has logged 20,000 fewer minutes, so he could be a safer investment. On the other hand, Carroll will probably command a longer pact than Deng this offseason.
- Going into another contract year, Mario Chalmers must show more consistency and poise if he wants to remain with the Heat beyond 2015/16, Surya Fernandez of FOX Sports writes. Last season, Chalmers’ scoring went up only slightly (9.8 PPG in 2013/14 to 10.2 PPG in 2014/15) but his shooting percentage dropped dramatically (45.4% to 40.3%). His three-point shooting also plummeted as he fell to a career-worst 29.4% from the outside.
- In today’s mailbag, a reader asks Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if he’s concerned about Goran Dragic and Deng hurting the Heat’s salary cap situation. In Winderman’s view, neither Dragic or Deng really look like salary cap obstacles when considering what the Heat will be paying Chris Bosh for the next four seasons. On top of that, many have said that the Heat have been hurt by a lack of continuity, so retaining both players long-term could be the smart move.
And-Ones: Coaches, Jokic, Payne, Draft
Most of the college coaches who’ve come into the NBA over the past two decades have either left basketball schools that gave them wide autonomy, joined NBA teams with little hope of success, or both, observes Phil Taylor of Sports Illustrated. Brad Stevens doesn’t fit either category, and neither does new Thunder hire Billy Donovan, Taylor argues, suggesting that the success Stevens has found with the Celtics is an auspicious omen for Donovan and a signal that more college coaches are on their way to the league. In any case, Stevens is the only college head coach to jump directly to the NBA since 2000 to guide his NBA team to the playoffs, as I pointed out. Here’s more from around the Association:
- The Nuggets are expected to sign 2014 second-round pick Nikola Jokic prior to summer league in July, according to Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. It’s not entirely clear whether the deal will cover only summer league or will formally bring the 6’11” draft-and-stash prospect onto the roster for training camp in the fall. However, the Nuggets are anxious to see last year’s 41st overall pick compete against NBA-caliber talent, Dempsey writes. The 20-year-old center averaged 14.9 points and 9.0 rebounds in 30.1 minutes per game this season for KK Mega Vizura in his native Serbia.
- It’s Murray State point guard Cameron Payne‘s dual threat of scoring and passing that truly distinguishes him as a top prospect, but his ability to perform on defense is a question mark, as Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz of DraftExpress examine. Givony ranks Payne as the 20th-best draft hopeful.
- Chad Ford and Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com, in an Insider-only piece, debate the avenues the Nuggets, Heat, Pacers and Jazz have to improve via the draft, sharing conflicting viewpoints on whether it would behoove Utah to spend a third consecutive lottery pick on a point guard.
2014/15 D-League Usage Report: Heat
The relationship between the NBA and the D-League continues to grow, and 17 NBA franchises currently have one-to-one D-League affiliates amongst the 18 D-League teams. The remaining 13 NBA teams shared the Fort Wayne Mad Ants this season. We at Hoops Rumors will be recapping each team’s use of the D-League this season, looking at assignments and recalls as well as the players signed out of the D-League. We’ll continue onward with a look back at how the Heat utilized the D-League during the 2014/15 campaign…
D-League Team: Sioux Falls Skyforce
Affiliation Type: One-to-one
D-League Team Record: 29-21
Number of NBA Players Assigned To D-League: 4
Total D-League Assignments: 5
Player Stats While On Assignment
- Andre Dawkins: 1 assignment, 7 games, 16.1 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.4 APG. .382/.325/.818.
- Zoran Dragic: 1 assignment, 4 games, 16.5 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.3 APG. .382/.391/.750.
- Shabazz Napier: 2 assignments, 4 games, 19.5 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.5 APG. .419/.450/.810.
- Hassan Whiteside: 1 assignment, 1 game, 21.0 PPG, 12.0 RPG, 4.0 BPG. .909/.000/.500.
D-League Signings
- Tyler Johnson (Sioux Falls Skyforce-Heat affiliate): Signed 1st 10-day contract on January 12th; inked 2nd 10-day deal on January 29th; signed for the remainder of the season on February 8th.
- Henry Walker (Sioux Falls Skyforce–Heat affiliate): Signed 1st 10-day deal on February 21st; inked 2nd 10-day pact on March 3rd; signed for the remainder of the season on March 13th.
- Hassan Whiteside (Iowa Energy-Grizzlies affiliate): Signed on November 24th for the remainder of the 2014/15 season.
Assignment/Recall Log
- December 4th: Assigned Andre Dawkins (Recalled December 21st)
- December 13th: Assigned Hassan Whiteside (Recalled December 15th)
- December 13th: Assigned Shabazz Napier (Recalled December 15th)
- December 30th: Assigned Shabazz Napier (Recalled January 6th)
- March 4th: Assigned Zoran Dragic (Recalled March 15th)