Eastern Notes: Humphries, Meeks, Patterson
Free agent Kris Humphries is still open to returning to the Celtics, writes Ben Rohrbach of WEEI 93.7 FM. Humphries said, “I could definitely see it. My agent handles most of the stuff with free agency. We’ll see what happens. I definitely could see it. I played out last year and didn’t look to jump to a playoff team before the end of the year, so I definitely enjoyed my time there, and we’ll see what happens.”
Here’s the latest from the east:
- Jodie Meeks wants to reward the Pistons on the court this season for making his signing a priority, writes Vincent Goodwill of The Detroit News. Meeks said, “I was their No. 1 priority. He [Stan Van Gundy] liked the way I competed on offense and defense. That’s my motto: Not worry about the bad shooting nights. Just play hard and let the chips fall where they may.”
- Patrick Patterson never had any desire to leave Toronto, which made his decision to re-sign with the Raptors easy, writes Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun. On remaining in Toronto, Patterson said, “Toronto was always one of my top choices as far as coming back. The fans and organization and the team and the friendships I have with these guys — I didn’t want to leave. I didn’t want to give those up, so there was no real uncertainty or doubt. It was all about coming to the right terms and getting everything situated.”
- The Bucks may announce their new partial owners soon, possibly as soon as tomorrow, reports Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times (Twitter link).
- Van Gundy admits that Greg Monroe‘s contract situation with the Pistons has him a “little nervous,” writes David Mayo of MLive. Van Gundy said, “The nervousness is just the unknown. It’s not knowing, beyond this year, especially, where you’re going. But again, we have plenty of time, if something happened, to adjust for next year and everything else.”
- The Lance Stephenson free agency situation could drag out for awhile, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. A league executive told Mannix that the Pacers couldn’t increase their offer much more above what they have already presented Stephenson.
And-Ones: LeBron, Pierce, Jazz, Kidd
The first domino that was LeBron James‘ free agency decision certainly set off the chain we anticipated, with a flurry of activity taking place over the last two days. Here’s a rundown of the league’s action this evening:
- James hopes that his player option for the second year of his Cavs contract can be worked out quietly in the offseason, sources tell Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer. Of course, a stress-free contract renewal for James would be the first of his career.
- Paul Pierce‘s first choice wasn’t to sign with the Wizards, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com. Pierce was more interested in joining the Clippers or returning to the Nets, but became more intrigued by the Washington roster as time went by this offseason.
- Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey told reporters including Jody Genessy of Deseret News that Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors will both have a voice regarding Utah’s decision making (Twitter link).
- Tom Moore of Calkins Media wonders if the Sixers might end up leveraging their abundant cap space to take back one of the Knicks burdensome contracts in exchange for draft compensation.
- Jason Kidd tells Charles F. Gardner of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that he has been working closely with Bucks GM John Hammond and assistant GM David Morway despite reports he was looking for front office power in the process that brought him from Brooklyn to Milwaukee. “We’re a family,” said Kidd. “Being able to talk to them every day about things, they have ideas, I share some of the things I think about. We’re still learning each other, how we want to play. A lot of things get misinterpreted with me, I guess. I’ll leave it at that.”
And-Ones: LeBron, Novak, Hibbert, Butler
The Heat and Cavs expect LeBron James to make his decision on where to sign before he gets on his flight to Brazil this weekend, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. It’s likely that any decision James makes will impact where Chris Bosh, Kevin Love, and Chandler Parsons find themselves next season as well. While much is seemingly tied to the four-time MVP’s choice, odds are low anything is decided tonight. Let’s catch up on the rest of the league while we wait on LeBron and the 2014 edition of “The Decision”:
- The Raptors are finalizing a buyout with Lucas Nogueira‘s team in Spain, writes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (on Twitter). We had heard earlier this week that Toronto was likely to bring over Nogueira and Bruno Caboclo prior to the start of 2014/15.
- The $9.8MM trade exception that the Warriors had created from the Richard Jefferson deal with the Jazz expired tonight, as David Aldridge of NBA.com observes (via Twitter).
- The Steve Novak trade, which became official today, allows the Raptors to create a $3,445,947 trade exception equivalent to Novak’s salary. The three-teamer between the Nets, Cavs and Celtics that was also formalized today allows the Nets to create a diminutive $741,160 trade exception equal to the difference between Marcus Thornton’s salary and the sum of the salaries for Jarrett Jack and Sergey Karasev. The Cavs could end up with trade exceptions out of the deal, too, but they’re poised to open cap room, so those exceptions would disappear when they officially dip below the cap.
- The Bucks and Pacers have had discussions for a trade including Roy Hibbert, writes Gery Woefel of the Racine Journal Times. Milwaukee is interested in acquiring Hibbert, says Woelfel, but it isn’t clear if Indiana is interested in any packages the Bucks could put together.
- Nikola Vucevic and Tobias Harris‘ rookie deals expire after 2014/15, and as a result, the duo became extension eligible this summer. Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel hears discussions about new contracts between the Magic and the young big men will pick up some time around Labor Day.
- Caron Butler is being pursued by the Clippers and Thunder, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. Butler, of course, has spent time with both organizations.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Raptors Waive Julyan Stone
8:22pm: In addition to the new teams mentioned, the Raptors remain a possibility to sign Stone, per Charania.
WEDNESDAY, 5:53pm: Stone has cleared waivers and is now discussing a possible deal with the Sixers, Bucks, and Kings, a league source tells Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link). Presumably, any deal would slot Stone on a team’s training camp roster and be partially or non-guaranteed, although that’s just my speculation at this point.
MONDAY, 2:49pm: The Raptors have waived point guard Julyan Stone, the team announced (on Twitter). Stone’s non-guaranteed minimum-salary contract was to have become fully guaranteed if he remained on the roster through today, so Toronto saves some cash and some room under the tax line with the move.
Stone’s relationship with Raptors GM Masai Ujiri dates to their time together with the Nuggets, with whom the 25-year-old spent the first two seasons of his career. Still, even news that fellow reserve guard Nando De Colo had turned down Toronto’s offer to accept a deal to play in Russia wasn’t enough to keep Stone on the roster as the Raptors seek to re-sign Greivis Vasquez and stay below the tax threshold.
Eastern Notes: LeBron, Monroe, Magic, Bulls
LeBron James is scheduled to meet Wednesday with Heat president Pat Riley in Las Vegas, league sources told ESPN’s Chris Broussard. A few days ago, we passed along that the free agent superstar was planning to have a sitdown with Riley at some point this week. Here’s what else has been buzzing in the Eastern Conference this evening:
- Pistons president/head coach Stan Van Gundy reiterated that restricted free agent Greg Monroe is still part of the team’s future plans, reports David Mayo of MLive. Mayo also explains how Detroit could potentially create an additional $4.5MM in cap space this summer by making other moves in free agency first before signing Monroe to a new contract.
- In their final move of this summer’s free agency, the Magic aim to land a third point guard to back up Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
- The Bulls’ pursuit of Pau Gasol is dependent on what Carmelo Anthony decides to do in free agency, reports Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, who hears that the wait has become “frustrating” for Chicago’s front office.
- When Knicks head coach Derek Fisher spoke with Carmelo last week, he guaranteed that the team would be better next season with the new system, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. Fisher, who hasn’t spoken with Anthony since Thursday’s meeting, wouldn’t say whether he felt good or not about New York’s chances of retaining the star forward.
- In another piece, Berman writes that Anthony has held out faint hope that Knicks president Phil Jackson can clear the necessary cap space this summer to bring LeBron James to New York. Doing so would at the least require New York to find takers for Amar’e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani in salary dump deals.
- Having completed his workout for the Raptors, former NBA swingman Yakhouba Diawara will be auditioning for the Bucks next, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket (Twitter link).
- Celtics guard Rajon Rondo recently spoke with Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe and brushed off speculation that the arrival of rookie point guard Marcus Smart could affect his future in Boston. “I don’t think (anything) of it… I can be here today, gone tomorrow. You never know. For me to get bent out of shape, or to feel threatened by the Celtics drafting a point guard, it means nothing.”
Bucks Sign Jabari Parker
7:05pm: Parker’s contract is worth $22.3MM over the next four seasons, and his first year salary will indeed be $4.9MM, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel.
6:57pm: Jabari Parker signed his rookie deal with the Bucks today, a source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). Assuming that he signed for 120% of the rookie scale, Parker projects to earn around $4.9MM in the first year of his deal, as our table of salaries for this year’s first-round picks details. The former Duke Blue Devil is the first among the top three picks of this year’s draft to sign his rookie contract.
The second-overall pick didn’t have much of an opportunity to showcase himself in this year’s NCAA tournament, as Duke – a number three seed – was upset in the opening round by 14th-seeded Mercer. As Charlie Adams of Hoops Rumors pointed out, Parker still has ample room to develop and has to get used to playing against longer, athletic opponents; however, Parker’s tremendous offensive skill set and readiness to compete at the NBA level immediately makes him a fine prospect to work with nonetheless.
Eastern Notes: Anthony, Bucks, Meeks
The Lakers interest in Carmelo Anthony could possibly help the Bulls acquire the free agent forward, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Johnson opines that the presence of a third serious contender could make the Knicks more amenable to a sign-and-trade deal for Anthony if they are unable to re-sign him.
More from around the league:
- The Bucks are looking to sign a point guard this summer, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Their primary targets will be the Suns Eric Bledsoe and the Raptors Greivis Vasquez, both players are restricted free agents, so their teams will have the opportunity to match any offer.
- The Nets are attempting to sign Bojan Bogdanovic of Fenerbahce, and the proposed deal is for a length of three years, reports David Pick of Eurobasket (Twitter links).
- The three-year, $19.5MM deal the Pistons agreed to with Jodie Meeks has been criticized for being an overpay, but Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press thinks it could turn out to be a good deal for the team.
Bucks Pursuing Eric Bledsoe, Greivis Vasquez
In addition to considering a possible trade for Jeremy Lin, the Bucks are pursuing restricted free agents Eric Bledsoe and Greivis Vasquez, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Milwaukee is in the process of pitching an offer sheet to Bledsoe, says Stein, but the Suns will be able to match whatever the Bucks present to the 24-year-old if they truly intend on retaining him as they’ve stated.
We heard yesterday afternoon that Vasquez and the Raptors were close to a deal that would bring the point guard back to Toronto, so Milwaukee’s pursuit might be in vain. However a lucrative enough offer from the Bucks might derail talks between Vasquez and the Raptors, since nothing official has reportedly been agreed upon.
The Bucks made a deal for Brandon Knight last summer and also roster Nate Wolters, but bringing aboard a talented young guard certainly couldn’t stand to hurt Milwaukee, the NBA’s worst team in 2013/14. Still, such a scenario seems unlikely given that each restricted free agent’s respective club seems intent on matching any offer sheets set to be presented.
Bucks, Sixers Interested In Jeremy Lin
12:56pm: The Bucks like Lin as a player, but have no interest in his $15MM salary next season, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo (on Twitter).
12:32pm: The Sixers and Bucks have expressed interest in trading for guard Jeremy Lin, sources tell ESPN.com’s Marc Stein. Of course, both clubs want to see what kind of sweetner Houston is willing to throw in.
The 76ers, who have tons of room to absorb Lin’s deal and won’t have to send salary back, have emerged as a leading contender for the guard. If the Rockets can dump Lin’s salary without having to absorb any other contracts, they can give themselves enough room necessary to possibly land Carmelo Anthony or Chris Bosh.
It’s believed that the Rockets would have to send Philly at least one future first-round pick to convince the Sixers to go through with the deal, given that Lin is owed $15MM next season. Only $8.4MM will count against the salary cap, but that’s still a hefty amount to take on. Sources say that the Sixers, though, are happy to take on Lin, despite having Michael Carter-Williams slated as their starting point guard, provided that the extra asset or two they get from Houston is sufficiently attractive.
Of course, it helps that Sixers GM Sam Hinkie is close with Rockets GM Daryl Morey from their days in Houston together.
Central Notes: Waiters, Monroe, Morrow, Bucks
The Central Division has been a hub of activity again today, with the Pacers striking a trio of deals a day after the Pistons reached agreements with Jodie Meeks and Cartier Martin. Here’s the latest from the NBA’s busiest division in free agency so far:
- The Cavs aren’t actively shopping Dion Waiters in spite of apparent interest from around the league, but a source close to the shooting guard tells Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio that Waiters believes there’s a strong chance he’ll be dealt.
- Multiple sources told Grantland’s Zach Lowe that Greg Monroe would sign his qualifying offer if Josh Smith remained on the roster, but Monroe’s camp denies it, and Lowe calls it an “empty threat” that represents the exercise of the restricted free agent’s only true leverage.
- The Pistons are no longer interested in Anthony Morrow after coming to terms with Meeks and Martin on Tuesday, reports John Reid of The Times Picayune. The Pelicans have been in contact to see if they can reach a deal to re-sign him, according to Reid, who suggests the Thunder and Bulls are suitors, too.
- Bucks owner Marc Lasry admitted it was a mistake to keep GM John Hammond in the dark about the team’s negotiations with Jason Kidd, observes Andrew Wagner of The Associated Press. He also apologized to former coach Larry Drew for the way the club handled his ouster, as USA Today’s Sam Amick noted earlier.