Central Notes: Hill, Pargo, Cavs, Hinrich
The Central Division has been the weakest in the NBA so far this year, as only the Bucks, at 6-4, have a winning record. That's encouraging news for the second-place Bulls, who are hoping to tread water until Derrick Rose returns from injury, and they can nab a high playoff seed by coming away with the division title. Chicago and Milwaukee square off tonight, and as we wait for that one, here's the day's news from the Central Division.
- George Hill admits he's not a true point guard, but HoopsWorld's Joel Brigham argues that he's still played up to his five-year, $40MM contract with the Pacers so far.
- Brigham also looks at the sudden emergence of Cavs offseason trade acquisition Jeremy Pargo, and lends his support to Royce White.
- Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio previews tonight's Cleveland-Miami matchup, and looks much farther ahead to the summer of 2014, when he thinks the Heat may begin to crumble just as the young Cavs start to deliver.
- Bulls offseason signee Kirk Hinrich hasn't put up impressive numbers offensively, but Tom Thibodeau said he evaluates him instead based on how he runs the team's offense, and the coach has been pleased so far, as Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com observes.
- We wrapped up covering Central Division teams in our Offseason in Review series with a look at the Bucks today.
Odds & Ends: Gasol, Billups, Batum, Heat, Cavs
Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni had some harsh words for Pau Gasol in response to a question about the thought process that led him to keep Gasol on the bench in the fourth quarter of the team's loss to the Grizzlies tonight. "I was thinking I'd like to win this game, that's what I was thinking," D'Antoni said, as Kevin Ding of the Orange County Register tweets. The coach also questioned Gasol's conditioning, Ding also tweets, and this will seemingly reignite the off-and-on trade speculation that's surrounded Gasol for the past several months. While we wait to hear more about that, here's the rest of the buzz from a 12-game night in the Association:
- Chauncey Billups is targeting the first week of December to return from his torn Achilles' tendon, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
- Wolves coach Rick Adelman explained the team's admiration of Nicolas Batum that led them to sign him to an offer sheet that was eventually matched by the Blazers, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune documents. "I felt he could do what he's doing, that with the group we had — especially with Kevin (Love) and Pek (Nikola Pekovic) and Ricky (Rubio) — it'd be a good fit," Adelman said. "But it didn't work out. They had control over it, and they got him and we're happy we got Andrei (Kirilenko)."
- Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel can see the Heat pursuing a center at some point later this season.
- Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio preaches patience on Dion Waiters, and doesn't think it would be worthwhile for the Cavs to trade Anderson Varejao.
- College seniors are no longer a commodity in the NBA draft, but several of this year's crop of upperclassmen are making a push to reverse that trend, notes Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider only).
- Croatian small forward Dario Saric is 16th on the DraftExpress.com list of the top 2013 draft prospects, but his new deal overseas doesn't include an NBA out until 2014, reports Toma Dragičević of Jutarnji.hr (translation via Sportando's Emiliano Carchia).
Eastern Notes: Heat, Wright, Knicks, Wallace
A glance around the Eastern Conference on Thanksgiving Day:
- The South Florida Sun-Sentinel's Ira Winderman writes that the Heat do not see a need for free agent forward Kenyon Martin. Winderman says if Miami makes any move, it will be to sign or trade for a defensive-minded point guard.
- Dorell Wright, acquired by the 76ers this summer, is not fazed by his decreased playing time, writes Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com.
- Nate Taylor of the New York Times attributes the Knicks' early-season success to their defensive focus.
- Jack Appleman of the New York Times examines the impact Gerald Wallace has on the Nets on the defensive end.
Southeast Notes: Smith, Livingston, Beal, Wade
A pair of Southeast teams will be in action tonight, with the Wizards aiming to finally record their first win of the season against the Jazz while the Heat look to extend their division lead in Phoenix. As we wait for the start of those games, let's round up a few notes out of the Southeast….
- Following up on yesterday's Marc Stein report that indicated the Hawks have no interest in trading Josh Smith, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld agrees, suggesting in a series of tweets that it's far more likely that Smith will re-sign in Atlanta next summer.
- Wizards head coach Randy Wittman pushed for Washington to sign Shaun Livingston when he became available, reports Michael Lee of the Washington Post. According to Lee, Livingston attracted interest from a few other teams, but chose the Wizards because they provide the opportunity to play in a familiar system.
- Bradley Beal spoke to Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld about the expectations he places upon himself in his first season with the Wizards.
- Of the three Heat stars with an early termination option available in the summer of 2014, Dwyane Wade is probably the least likely to opt out, opines Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Eastern Notes: Turner, Fields, Heat, Boozer
We've already had one update out of the Eastern Conference today, with ESPN.com's Marc Stein reporting that the Raptors have Mickael Pietrus on their radar. Let's round up a few more Friday morning items from the East….
- Evan Turner spoke to Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News about the adjustment from "standing out to fitting in" that he'd made since being drafted second overall by the Sixers in 2010. "I want to get minutes on the court and help the team out," Turner said. "Sometimes people don't think that's something that a guy who was the second pick would do. But here that's what I'm seen as and that's what I'm going to do to the best of my abilities."
- Landry Fields got off to a terrible start with the Raptors, but given his elbow issues, it's unfair to call him a bust at this point, writes Stephen Brotherson of HoopsWorld. According to Brotherson, it will be at least another month or two before the team will really be able to tell what kind of player it signed.
- In his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel says a defensive-minded point guard is still something the Heat could use.
- Sam Smith has his own mailbag up at Bulls.com, heavy on Chicago content. Among the highlights: Smith writes that every indication he's gotten to date indicates the Bulls don't plan to amnesty Carlos Boozer next summer.
- Although he acknowledges it won't happen, Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio suggests the Heat should consider trading Dwyane Wade, since a team like the Kings or Hawks would give up plenty of young talent and assets for the perennial All-Star, and the Heat could win without him (all Twitter links).
Odds & Ends: Dixon, Carroll, D’Antoni, Wade
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com thinks that the chances of the Kings remaining in Sacramento after this season (and possibly several more) continue to increase because of little movement in talks of going anywhere else. Without much momentum between the Maloofs and the potential destinations that have been mentioned (Anaheim, Seattle, Virginia Beach) nor anything that indicates a possibility that the team will be sold, Howard-Cooper writes that it bides more time for the city to find a way to keep the Kings for now.
- Eurohoops.net tweets that Panathinaikos of Greece has signed Jason Kapono.
- John Reid of NOLA.com reports that Matt Carroll has not yet reported to the Hornets since Tuesday's trade involving Hakim Warrick going to the Bobcats. Head coach Monty Williams says that there have been ongoing discussions between Carroll's agent and GM Dell Demps but did not elaborate on the specifics. The team hopes to give an update on the situation tomorrow.
- Yahoo's Marc J. Spears relayed a quote from today's press conference in which Mike D'Antoni said he'd like to get the Lakers to play "Showtime basketball."Arash Markazi of ESPN LA tweets that D'Antoni's coaching debut will likely be on Sunday against the Rockets.
- Nagging injuries have become a cause for uncertainty and concern for Heat superstar Dwyane Wade, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- Dan Bickley of AZCentral sports says (via Twitter) that Charles Barkley would be interested in becoming the Suns GM if owner Robert Sarver were to make such an opportunity available in the near future.
- The Raptors officially posted an injury update on their team website regarding Alan Anderson, Landry Fields, and Kyle Lowry. Anderson will remain out for another three to six weeks and Lowry for one to two weeks, according to the press release. There is no timetable set in place for Fields' return.
Odds & Ends: Lin, Crawford, Heat, Cavaliers
As the Pistons and Wizards hit the road in search of their first wins of the season, let's round up the latest odds and ends from around the NBA:
- After his time with the Knicks came to an unexpected and disappointing end, Jeremy Lin is building a better relationship with the Rockets, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes.
- When he was navigating free agency this summer, Jamal Crawford was advised to take his time and consider all his options. But, as he tells Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com, Crawford had his eye on the Clippers from the start: "When I came here, I don’t know if I should say this or not, but they told me I was their first option at lunch. And I told them at the same lunch that they were my first option. My agent didn’t want me to say that, but I was just being honest and we made it happen."
- In his latest mailbag for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, Ira Winderman fields questions on the possibility of the Heat signing Kenyon Martin and trading Mike Miller.
- If the Cavaliers hope to contend for the playoffs this season, they may need to trade for outside bench help at some point, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
- Yesterday's trade between the Bobcats and Hornets that sent Matt Carroll to New Orleans wasn't overlooked in Dallas by the Mavericks, writes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com.
- Within his NBA AM piece at HoopsWorld, Lang Greene speaks to Ian Mahinmi about the sign-and-trade deal that sent him from the Mavericks to the Pacers.
- Chad Ford of ESPN.com discussed the Lakers, Royce White, the 2013 draft, and plenty more in a chat with fans earlier this afternoon.
Heat At Top Of Kenyon Martin’s Wish List
8:20pm: The Wolves turned down an offer from Kenyon Martin to sign for the minimum, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. That seems to indicate he'd be willing to sign for the minimum to play for Miami, too, as well as perhaps other NBA teams.
12:29pm: The Heat have moved to the top of Kenyon Martin's wish list for potential destinations, a source tells Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Earlier this month, we heard that Martin is still seeking a contract offer, and is hoping to land with a contender.
If Martin is open to playing for the veteran's minimum, a concession he wasn't willing to make in the offseason, the Heat could potentially be a fit. Miami used its mid-level exception to sign Ray Allen, but is still eligible to sign players to minimum-salary contracts. The team is also carrying 15 players and would have to cut someone in order to make room for Martin, with non-guaranteed players Josh Harrellson and Terrel Harris the most logical candidates.
Still, there's no indication yet that the Heat are interested in signing Martin, who established career-lows in PPG (5.2), RPG (4.3), and PER (9.9) last season with the Clippers. The 34-year-old is one of a number of big-name free agents still on the market, two weeks into the regular season.
HoopsWorld On Best NBA Contracts
The staff of HoopsWorld.com has posted a new roundtable in which several of their staff writers weighed in on which players have the best contracts in the NBA.
- Joel Brigham writes that as the best three-point shooter in NBA history, Ray Allen is a steal for the Heat at $3MM per year.
- Bill Ingram believes the Spurs got an excellent value in Tony Parker. Parker is making $12.5MM this season, considerably less than other elite point guards such as Chris Paul and Deron Williams.
- Robert Wing calls Kyle Lowry's contract a "complete steal," saying the Raptors got a major upgrade at starting point guard over Jose Calderon for cheap.
- Eric Pincus thinks the Knicks were able to take advantage of Raymond Felton's low stock after his poor performance in Portland last season to land the point guard for $14.9MM over four years.
- Alex Kennedy points out that Rajon Rondo would be worth much more on the open market than the five-year, $55MM extension he signed with the Celtics in 2009.
Odds & Ends: West, Allen, Garnett, Stiemsma
Reaction has been largely negative to FIBA's announcement of changes to the basketball World Cup. John Hollinger of ESPN.com characterizes the moves as a "money grab" that degrades the tournament (Twitter link). With qualifiers taking place in the middle of the season instead of during summer, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com believes Team USA may only have non-NBA pros at its disposal for those games (Twitter link). Tom Ziller of SB Nation tweets that Team USA could simply circumvent the qualifiers by winning the World Cup and Olympic gold every time, though that might prove a difficult standard to maintain. While we await more fallout on the international basketball scene, here's what's going on around NBA. circles.
- David West wants to remain with the Pacers after this year, but he acknowledges the team's other financial commitments could make that difficult, reports HoopsWorld's Lang Greene.
- Ray Allen was open to signing an extension with the Celtics during last season, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. Washburn also notes the $12MM final season of the three-year contract Kevin Garnett signed this summer is only guaranteed for $6MM, per ShamSports.
- Greg Stiemsma credits his work with Al Jefferson and Garnett for helping him establish his NBA career, notes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
- Gino Pilato of Ridiculous Upside runs down a list of seven-footers in D-League camps, while fellow Ridiculous Upside scribe Keith Schlosser observes that the Warriors affiliate is well-stocked with talent.
- Omer Asik is the primary reason for the strong defensive play of the Rockets so far this season, concludes Jason Friedman of Rockets.com.
- A source tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv that the "odds aren't great" that top 2013 draft prospect Shabazz Muhammad will play for UCLA anytime soon. The NCAA has declared Muhammad ineligible for an unspecified number of games.