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Pelicans, Greg Smith Deal Nixed

October 9th, 2015 at 11:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

11:59pm: The sides had a signed contract, and the Pelicans voided it, according to the RealGM transactions log.

9:30pm: Smith has failed his physical, which means the pending agreement between the two sides has been canceled, John Reid of The Times-Picayune reports.

2:29pm: The Pelicans are bringing aboard four-year NBA veteran Greg Smith, sources tell Scott Kushner for The New Orleans Advocate, who indicates that the big man has already put pen to paper on a non-guaranteed contract. The team has yet to make an official announcement, but the Pelicans yesterday revealed that starting center Omer Asik is set to miss three weeks with a right calf strain, and they’re also without backup center Alexis Ajinca for about four to six weeks as he deals with a strained right hamstring. The move will give New Orleans 19 players, 13 of whom have full guarantees, as our roster count shows.

Smith, 24, didn’t appear to generate much interest in free agency this summer after he saw little playing time for the Mavs, who didn’t re-sign him in spite of their need at center. He failed to impress in a workout last month for China’s Guangdong Southern Tigers, as international journalist David Pick reported. He’s spent most of his time in the NBA with the Rockets, who gave him 15.9 minutes per game in 70 contests, including 10 starts, during the 2012/13 season, but they waived him shortly before the 2014 playoffs. The Bulls snapped him up just days later and signed him to a deal that included a fully guaranteed 2014/15 season, but he never made it into a game for Chicago before a trade sent him to the Mavs.

The Pelicans focused on the backcourt with their camp invitees, as power forward Jeff Adrien had been the only frontcourt player without a full guarantee on the New Orleans roster. Shooting guard Bryce Dejean-Jones is the sole Pelican with a partial guarantee, as he’s assured of $50K, so Smith would appear to have a decent chance to hang around into the regular season.

Do you think the Pelicans should keep Smith into the regular season even if Asik is back for opening night? Leave a comment to tell us.

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Southwest Notes: Clippers, Jenkins, Aldridge

October 9th, 2015 at 7:16pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Employing daily meditation and a vegan diet, one that he’s trying to convince Anthony Davis to adopt, Chris Douglas-Roberts is taking a more sanguine approach to his career than he used to as he fights for a regular season roster spot on the Pelicans, as John Reid of The Times Picayune details. The Pelicans have six players, including Douglas-Roberts, who don’t have fully guaranteed salary and 13 who do. ”I was a first-team All-American [in college] — top five player in the country — and got drafted second round,” Douglas-Roberts said. ”So I carried a little bit bitterness and anger from that. I still performed when I was given an opportunity. But my energy just wasn’t right. Now my energy is right.”

Here’s more happenings from the Southwest Division:

  • John Jenkins has impressed Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle with his aggressive play, though Jenkins, a shooting guard by trade, has had his struggles while filling in at point guard due to a number of injuries, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. “The learning curve is always going to be there with young players. You know, we’ve got some young guys that are getting a real chance to play and are learning things. That said, I really like Jenkins. You know, Jenkins has played a real aggressive game both of the last two nights. He’s shown he can handle the ball a little bit. He’s done a good job, and he’s got to continue doing what he’s been doing,” Carlisle told Sneed.
  • The Rockets have been encouraged thus far by the preseason showings of second-year players K.J. McDaniels and Clint Capela, Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle notes. Capela was selected with the No. 25 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, and McDaniels re-signed with the team over the summer after having been acquired from the Sixers at last February’s deadline in exchange for Isaiah Canaan and a second-round pick.
  • LaMarcus Aldridge, who left the Trail Blazers over the summer to sign a four-year, $84MM deal with the Spurs, is still acclimating himself to San Antonio’s system, but he is pleased with his progress thus far, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. After making his preseason debut against his former team, Aldridge said, “The night was [a] little overwhelming because it doesn’t really hit you until you really go put on the jersey and then you go play. I knew I was in San Antonio, but it doesn’t really hit you until you’re on the court trying to figure out how to run an offense again and things like that. But I think the process has been going well so far.“

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Southwest Notes: Parker, Anderson, Lawson, Mavs

October 9th, 2015 at 11:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Tony Parker has let the Spurs know that he wants another three-year deal when his three-year extension that kicks in for this season expires in 2018, as the point guard said to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports. That would give him 20 years in the NBA, and after that he’d be ready to retire, Parker told Spears, adding that he’s confident he’ll have a bounceback season after struggling last year.

“It’s very rare for any player in any sport – soccer, football, baseball – to play their whole career with the same team,” Parker said. “So it would definitely mean a lot to me to do like David Robinson and Timmy [Duncan] and Manu [Ginobili]. It would be great to be a part of the history of being with the same team. My time will come soon. But I definitely want to enjoy my last years in the NBA.”

Parker also mentioned to Spears that he sought advice from Steve Nash this summer about how to sustain his body. See more from around the Southwest Division:

  • Ryan Anderson is entering a contract year and thinks the arrival of new Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry will be beneficial for him, as the stretch four explained to Joel Brigham of Basketball Insiders. “His up-tempo pace is perfect for this group, and it’s great for me personally,” Anderson said. “[We’re] able to spread the floor, play naturally and go with the flow of the game rather than being really precise and running specific plays or getting over-organized and over-thinking things. There are players that can do a lot of different things and we want to take advantage of that. I think I fit into that category, that there’s a lot of things that I can do in this offense. We’re pushing it up the floor and pushing the pace. That’s good for me.”
  • James Harden finished second in MVP voting last season, but the Rockets traded for Ty Lawson in part to change Harden’s role in the offense in a way that Harden called for prior to the deal, as Jonathan Feigen writes for Bleacher Report. “With Ty, I think we can take the ball out of [Harden’s) hands, let him play off the catch, let him play a little more free, not having so much ball responsibilities. I think that will help him. I think he’s harder to guard like that,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. “We talked about that. That was kind of our goal.”
  • The Mavericks are at a potential turning point for their franchise as they slip farther from the elite, and even Dirk Nowitzki admits, as he enters his age-37 season, that the team doesn’t have a superstar anymore, observes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
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Southwest Notes: Terry, Grizzlies, Leonard, Gentry

October 6th, 2015 at 12:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Pelicans offered Jason Terry more than the guaranteed one-year deal for the minimum salary that the Rockets gave him, but he preferred a better chance to make the Finals with Houston, even though his role on the Rockets will likely shrink, reports Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com.

“I don’t have to play a lot of minutes to be effective,” Terry said. “With the minutes, I know my role and what’s expected out of me, and that goes a long way.”

Terry saw 21.3 minutes per game for Houston in the regular season last year but 28.6 in the playoffs as he filled in for the injured Patrick Beverley, a duty that would now fall to trade acquisition Ty Lawson. See more from the Southwest Division:

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Southwest Notes: Butler, Ajinca, Green

October 5th, 2015 at 4:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs weren’t the only NBA team interested in Rasual Butler when he signed with San Antonio last month, as a Western Conference suitor lurked, but the 36-year-old finds there’s “no place better to be than here,” reports Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News. Butler’s contract is non-guaranteed, but he has a line on a regular season roster spot, according to coach/executive Gregg Popovich, as Young notes.

“He’s a seasoned pro in a sense that he knows himself, he knows what role he can play,” Popovich said. “He’s at a stage in his career where he just wants to be a part of something that’s just positive and good. He obviously can shoot the basketball. If he couldn’t shoot, we wouldn’t be talking to him. You got to have a skill to play. For all those reasons, he’s somebody that’s got a great shot to make our team.”

The Spurs have 13 fully guaranteed contracts, seemingly leaving two available spots on the opening night roster. See more on the Spurs amid the latest from the Southwest Division:

  • Pelicans backup center Alexis Ajinca will miss the next four to six weeks because of a right hamstring strain, the team announced. New Orleans committed a four-year, $19.5MM deal to Ajinca this past summer, and the team is without any other natural center to play behind Omer Asik, with the possible exception of Anthony Davis. The injury could bode well for power forward Jeff Adrien, the only big man without a fully guaranteed salary on the Pelicans.
  • Jeff Green says he was frustrated with the lack of a consistent role with the Grizzlies following the midseason trade that took him to Memphis, but he’s optimistic about this year, and coach Dave Joerger is expecting a breakout season, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal details. Green is set for free agency this coming summer after picking up his $9.2MM player option this past June. “It was tough to not be in one role. One day I’d start, one day I’d come off the bench. I was playing the 3 and the 4. It was tough,” Green said. “It’s hard to do. There’s only a few players that can really do that. I’m thankful to be in that position to be able to do that. But when you come onto a team halfway through the year, having to do that is tough because you never get a grasp of what you really need to do for the team. This year, I have an open mind. It doesn’t matter what position I play, I’m going to give it my all.”
  • Cory Joseph started for the Spurs most of December last year and wound up seeing only 22 total minutes during the postseason. A similarly occasional place in Sacramento’s rotation has trade acquisition Ray McCallum willing to embrace the same stop-and-start playing time with the Spurs, as Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News chronicles. Joseph snagged a four-year, $30MM deal with the Raptors this past summer, and McCallum is due for restricted free agency at season’s end.
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Pacific Notes: Bryant, Pierce, Green, Curry

October 3rd, 2015 at 9:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kobe Bryant, who will take the court Sunday for the first time since late January, enjoys playing beside a true point guard in D’Angelo Russell, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com. Bryant, whose 2014/15 season was cut short by a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, said he is “definitely playing” in the Lakers‘ preseason opener. He is looking forward to a revised role with Russell on the roster. “I do not like setting up the offense,” Bryant said. “I hate it. [Former Lakers coach Phil Jackson] made me do it years ago, and I had to learn how to do it years ago, to set up the triangle [offense]. I haven’t played with point guards that are playmakers at heart, and D’Angelo is a ridiculous playmaker.”

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Paul Pierce has only been a Clipper since July, but he knows his new team pretty well, according to Ben Bolch of The Los Angeles Times. Pierce, who signed a three-year, $10MM deal with L.A., is very familiar with coach Doc Rivers from their time together in Boston. Pierce also was a teammate of Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell with the Celtics and spent several summers training at L.A.’s practice facility. Pierce said he “already felt like I knew the guys” when he signed.
  • Draymond Green said Warriors players will hold one another accountable during coach Steve Kerr’s absence, writes Carl Steward of The Bay Area News Group. Kerr will be gone for an undetermined amount of time while recovering from back surgery. “It’s like if your boss leaves work, everyone relaxes,” Green said. “It’s like a weight off your shoulders. When you’re boss checks out, it’s like, ‘Oh man, what’s up, now we can chill.’ It’s just human nature.”
  • The Kings‘ Seth Curry won’t change his approach to the game, even though he has a guaranteed contract for the first time in his NBA career, according to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee. Curry signed a two-year deal worth $1.96MM with Sacramento this summer. Curry said he expected to go to New Orleans, but the Kings submitted their offer first. “I think it just gives me a sense of trying to fit in with the team and find my role instead of just trying to make the team,” Curry said of the guaranteed money. “But I still have the same sense of urgency that I’ve had in the past.”
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Southwest Notes: Matthews, Jones, West

September 29th, 2015 at 10:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Mavs coach Rick Carlisle has already reportedly ruled out Wesley Matthews for the team’s opener, but the swingman has designs on proving his new coach wrong, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com writes. “I’m trying to be ready by opening day,” Matthews said. “Whether I can play in it or not, I can’t really control that. But my goal is to [be] ready and available opening day.”

Matthews doesn’t think it relevant to compare how long it has taken other players who have had similar injuries to his own to recover, MacMahon adds. “I don’t really pay too much attention to that because if I paid attention to people that were in my situation before me, then I wouldn’t be up here standing and talking to you guys,” Matthews said, “because I can’t think of too many undrafted free agents that have done what I’ve done.”

Here’s more from the Southwest Division:

  • Rockets forward Terrence Jones enters the 2015/16 season with a different, more mature outlook, Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I felt like I really needed to grow as a person,” Jones said. “I think I am a lot more mature this year.” Jones is eligible to ink a contract extension with Houston prior to the deadline on November 2nd.
  • David West said that the Spurs‘ signing of LaMarcus Aldridge was the deciding factor for him to join the team as an unrestricted free agent this summer, Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express News tweets.
  • Despite concerns regarding his agility and foot speed, the Spurs‘ signing of center Boban Marjanovic is exactly what the team needed to help offset the free agent losses of Aron Baynes and Tiago Splitter, writes Dan McCarney of The San Antonio Express-News. McCarney notes that Marjanovic’s ample size (7’3″), as well as his inexpensive contract, make the 27-year-old a wise pickup.
  • Pelicans star big man Anthony Davis is hoping that the additional 15 pounds of muscle he added from working out over the summer will make him an even more dominant player, Brett Martel of The Associated Press relays. “I feel great right now. Even just working out, I feel explosive. I feel quick,” Davis said. “When you start actually going against people and all that, it’s a lot different. So I’m going to see how it is during training camp and preseason and go from there.“
  • Despite the expectations that arrived in San Antonio along with him, Aldridge is doing his best to fit in and adapt to the way the Spurs organization handles its business, Jeff McDonald of The San Antonio Express-News writes. “It’s never been about one guy here,” said Aldridge. “It’s always been about the team. So it’s not about me.”
  • After missing the end of the 2014/15 regular season and the playoffs, Rockets guard Patrick Beverley is itching to get back on the court, Creech writes in a separate piece. “Six months, nine days,” Beverley said. “That’s the longest I have ever been out and away from basketball. Injuries aren’t something you can control, but I am ready to get back, ready to play and get this thing started.”
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Southwest Notes: Williams, Parsons, McGee, Butler

September 29th, 2015 at 3:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

Deron Williams admits he bought into the idea of himself as a reduced player the past few seasons with the Nets, but both he and Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle are optimistic about what the 31-year-old point guard can do in Dallas, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com details.

“I want to prove myself wrong,” Williams said Monday. “I started to doubt myself in the past. Mentally, it took a toll on me. I just got to get out of that rut that I was in the last couple years mentally, and I look forward to this situation. I think I’m past that. This fresh start has definitely helped that a lot. I’m looking forward to this year. It’s a better situation.”

The Mavs invested a two-year, $11MM deal in the hopes that Williams can indeed perform better. See more on the Mavs and their Southwest Division rivals:

  • Chandler Parsons spoke about his close relationship with Mavericks owner Mark Cuban in an interview with GQ’s Alex Wong that further addressed the Mavs’ failed effort to recruit DeAndre Jordan this summer. “He didn’t do anything illegal. I’m not mad at him,” Parsons said of Jordan. “At the end of the day, he’s a grown man and he’s entitled to do whatever he wants,” Parsons says. “He’s one of the best young centers in the NBA, and I wanted to play with him. He could have made us great. But he screwed us over.”
  • JaVale McGee is unlikely to be healthy enough to play at the start of the regular season, MacMahon tweets. McGee, who continues to recover from a recurring stress fracture in his left tibia, has a partially guaranteed contract, and his continued place on the Mavs roster depends on how other players perform in camp, MacMahon says. McGee’s partial guarantee of $250K jumps to $500K if he remains under contract through the end of business today.
  • Rasual Butler‘s deal with the Spurs is non-guaranteed for the minimum salary and only covers this season, reports Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
  • Jeff Adrien‘s one-year, minimum salary contract with the Pelicans is non-guaranteed, reports Pincus also reports (Twitter link). The team’s non-guaranteed pact with Corey Webster is for two years, not three, as initially reported, Pincus reveals.
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The Beat: John Reid On The Pelicans

September 28th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Chuck Myron
johnreid

John Reid

Nobody knows NBA teams better than beat writers, save for those who draw paychecks with an NBA owner’s signature on them. The reporters who are with the teams they cover every day gain an intimate knowledge of the players, coaches and executives they write about and develop sources who help them break news and stay on top of rumors.

We at Hoops Rumors will be chatting with beat writers from around the league and sharing their responses to give you a better perspective on how and why teams make some of their most significant moves. Last time, we spoke with Jabari Young, who covered the Blazers last season for Comcast SportsNet Northwest and will cover the Spurs this season for the San Antonio Express-News. Click here to see all of the previous editions of this series.

Today, we gain insight on the Pelicans from John Reid of The Times Picayune. You can follow John on Twitter at @JohnReid64, and check out his stories right here.

Hoops Rumors: Most of the roster is back, and so is GM Dell Demps, so the shift from Monty Williams to Alvin Gentry was the most significant change for the Pelicans. Why do you think the front office singled out coaching as the one part of the team in need of a shakeup?

John Reid: After Monty Williams was fired in May, Pelicans executive vice president Mickey Loomis acknowledged that they thought their group needed something different to get them to the next level. If the Pelicans had not blown a 20-point lead in the fourth quarter in Game 3 against the Warriors in their first-round playoff series and not been swept in four games, Williams probably would have kept his job. The Pelicans’ front office felt they had enough talent, but the team wasn’t consistent enough despite finishing with a 45-37 record and landing the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Throughout the regular season, the Pelicans underperformed on the road, going 17-24, a record that included losses to the lowly Knicks and 76ers.

Hoops Rumors: Which player do you think will benefit most from the coaching change, and whose game is most liable to suffer with Williams out of the picture?

John Reid: Anthony Davis is likely to benefit the most from the coaching change because Alvin Gentry is going to get him the ball more in his choice spots that increase his usage rate. Davis is most effective in the open court and Gentry’s up-tempo offense is ideal for him. Also, Davis’ ofensive game will be more extensive and expect for him to take more three-pointers, which is something he worked on improving this offseason.

Omer Asik probably will not play as many minutes this season under Alvin Gentry as he did for Monty Williams. Asik’s minutes are going to be split with backup Alexis Ajinca, who is a more polished scoring threat in the post. Asik has limited offensive skills and with the Pelicans’ plan to push the tempo, Asik could struggle to emerge because he is more of a back-to-the-basket, low-post player who is more effective in the slow-down halfcourt game.

Hoops Rumors: Anthony Davis, Omer Asik and Alexis Ajinca all signed long-term deals with the team this summer, but Ryan Anderson is on an expiring contract. Given the crowded frontcourt, do you think the Pelicans still see Anderson as part of their long-term plan?

John Reid: I think Ryan Anderson is part of the franchise’s long-term plans.

There are not many players in the league like Anderson, a stretch four with three-point shooting ability. However, it has been difficult for him the past two seasons trying to overcome injuries. Anderson admitted last week that he is in the best shape of his career and could be poised to have a breakout season. If that happens, Anderson will be a priority for GM Dell Demps to re-sign next summer.

Hoops Rumors: Is the qualifying offer a better deal for Norris Cole, a better deal for the Pelicans, or simply a fair outcome for both sides?

John Reid: The qualifying offer was a better deal for the Pelicans since they had the leverage from the start because Norris Cole was a restricted free agent. The Pelicans wanted Cole to let the market dictate his value but in the end he couldn’t land a deal that would play him more than the Pelicans’ $3MM qualifying offer. So in turn, the Pelicans signed him to a one-year deal at the price they thought was warranted without having to overspend to re-sign him. But next summer, Cole will become an unrestricted free agent.

Hoops Rumors: The Pelicans have traded their last three first-round picks. Do you think the team will be especially hesitant to trade this year’s first-rounder as a result?

John Reid: The Pelicans have not had a first-round pick since the 2012 NBA Draft when they selected Anthony Davis as the No. 1 overall pick. Although the franchise appears to be stable, they still have to look ahead and there is a need to develop young talent instead of just relying on trades and free agency.

Hoops Rumors: What are reasonable expectations for the season ahead? Can the Pelicans compete with the top six teams in the West, or will they once more find themselves fighting for one of the last playoff spots?

John Reid: The Western Conference is so tough and even with the Pelicans re-signing all of their top returning players in free agency this offseason, they will still be in a tough fight to earn a playoff spot. But I think this team is capable of landing a sixth or seventh seed under Alvin Gentry, if they can avoid injuries. I think the Pelicans are clearly ahead of Portland, who lost LaMarcus Aldridge in free agency and the Mavericks, who were unable to sign Clippers center DeAndre Jordan in free agency. The Pelicans will be in a fight with Phoenix and Oklahoma City for one of the final three seeds.

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Southwest Rumors: Parsons, Lawson, Spurs

September 28th, 2015 at 8:12pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mavericks small forward Chandler Parsons had a “minor hybrid” microfracture operation on his right knee, sources told Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Parsons confirmed the procedure during the team’s media day session on Monday, MacMahon tweets. Parsons has not been fully cleared for the beginning of training camp but coach Rick Carlisle said he might be ready for the opener, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News tweets. Wesley Matthews, who is recovering from a torn Achilles tendon, might be ready by Christmas, Townsend reported in the same tweet. Matthews has already been ruled out for the opener by Carlisle, MacMahon adds (Twitter link).

In other news around the Southwest Division:

  • Ty Lawson knows this season with the Rockets will be a pivotal one in his career, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Lawson was dealt by the Nuggets after he was arrested twice on DUI charges this year. “This is like a turning point. What kind of career are you going to have?” Lawson told Feigen.
  • New Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry plans to install an up-tempo offense focused on spacing, ball movement and quick-strike scoring, John Reid of NOLA.com reports. Gentry believes he has the personnel to play that style, Reid adds. ”I think it’s going to be an exciting brand of basketball,” Gentry told Reid. “We’re going to try and get the ball up and down the floor.”
  • Tim Duncan doubted that the Spurs would land free agent prize and power forward LaMarcus Aldridge, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News tweets. “Honestly, I was betting against us … right up to the end,” Duncan told McDonald.
  • Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich admitted the team needed to trade center Tiago Splitter to create financial flexibility, according to Jabari Young of the San Antonio Express-News (Twitter link). Splitter, who has two year and $17.35MM remaining on his contract, was shipped to the Hawks in July. “We knew if we wanted to change the team and add talent, [trading Tiago] was something we had to do,” Popovich said during the team’s media day.
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