As the first day of free agency continues, reports continue to pour in on teams reaching out to certain players, perhaps to schedule meetings or make contract offers. We've rounded up plenty of those items already today, but we'll use this space to follow a few more updates, as they come in….
Having reached an agreement with Kevin Garnett to bring him back to Boston, the Celtics have turned their attentions to another one of their veteran free agents — Ray Allen. According to Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald, GM Danny Ainge called re-signing Allen his "number one priority" with free agency underway.
"We want Ray back, and we’re approaching this as the first thing we have to get done," Ainge said.
The Raptors don't necessarily have to amnesty Jose Calderon to create the necessary cap space to make Steve Nash an aggressive offer in free agency, but it seems like the team is at least considering it. Clearing Calderon from their books could give the Raptors the flexibility to try to sign not just Nash, but another quality free agent as well. If Toronto does decide to use its amnesty provision on Calderon, the Lakers may have the inside track on picking him up, says ESPN.com's Marc Stein.
With free agency underway, Jordan Hill appears to be something of a hot commodity. We've already heard today that the Warriors are expected to kick the tires on the big man, who will also meet with the Timberwolves on Monday. The Lakers have interest in bringing Hill back, and have had a "very good discussion" with his agent tonight, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter). McMenamin says the Magic have expressed interest as well (Twitter link), while Sean Deveney of the Sporting News tweets that the Heat and Suns are also in pursuit.
Jameer Nelson decided yesterday to opt out of his contract, which will make him an unrestricted free agent this summer. However, turning down his player option with the Magic doesn't mean Nelson doesn't want to return to Orlando. According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld, signing a long-term deal with the Magic is still Nelson's number one goal, and the point guard confirmed as much on Twitter today
"Like I have said over and over," Nelson tweeted. "I'd love to stay a Magic and I would love to play for the best fans in the NBA. And I still have faith that it can happen. So again thanks you guys for all the support."
Here are a few more updates on some soon-to-be free agents….
The Heat consider Ray Allen their top priority in free agency and will start pursuing him when the free agent period begins late tonight, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The Heat intend to offer the veteran sharpshooter their $3MM taxpayer mid-level exception, an opportunity for significant playing time, and the chance to win another title with the defending champions.
Ronny Turiaf will not exercise his option to remain with the Heat, choosing instead to become an unrestricted free agent, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Had Turiaf picked up his option, he would have been under contract for another year at $1.2MM.
Turiaf was traded from the Wizards to the Nuggets at the deadline for salary-matching purposes in the JaVale McGee/Nene deal. After Denver released him, the 29-year-old signed with Miami for the team's playoff run, inking a contract that included a player option as an "insurance policy." While Turiaf wasn't overly productive in the regular season or playoffs with Miami, he at least showed he was healthy, which should earn him more than a $1.2MM guarantee on the open market.
On the heels of teammate Dwyane Wade pulling out of the Olympics due to injury concerns, Chris Bosh has decided to withdraw as well, tweets Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Agent Henry Thomas told Winderman that Bosh has pulled out of the London games to deal with his lingering abdominal injury.
The Heat were among the active teams tonight, sending their first-round pick to Philadelphia in exchange for a second-rounder and a future first-rounder. After the draft, team president Pat Riley spoke to Miami media about the team's summer plans, and provided a number of interesting quotes. Here are the highlights, courtesy of Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald and Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (all Twitter or Sulia links):
10:17pm: Ford has the details on the future first-rounder headed to Miami in the deal (Twitter link): It will be lottery protected for 2013, 2014, and 2015. If the Heat don't receive the pick by '15, they'll receive a pair of second-rounders — one in 2015 and one in 2016.
9:11pm: The 76ers have traded for the 27th overall pick and will receive Arnett Moultrie, according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Twitter links). Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports tweets that the Heat will receive a future first-rounder and the Sixers' 2012 second-round pick (45th overall) in the swap.
Landing Moultrie at No. 27 could be a coup for the Sixers, as the Mississippi State big man was a candidate to be drafted in the mid-teens.