Atlantic Notes: Turner, Valanciunas, Lin
The Sixers, who once looked as though they might run away with the Atlantic Division title, shouldn't look behind them now. The Celtics have gone 10-3 since starting 5-9, and entered the night three and a half games back. The Knicks, infused with Jeremy Lin's mojo, have won five straight and are six games back. Meanwhile, Philadelphia is just 3-3 in its last six games. Here's what's going on as the race tightens:
- Behind the smiles surrounding the Sixers' fast start is the worry about getting worthwhile returns from the second overall pick in the 2010 draft. Evan Turner's minutes have been in decline. Coach Doug Collins says it's a result of other wing players performing well, and not a slump on Turner's part, reports Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News. Turner believes he's on the wrong end of supply and demand, saying, "There's a recession, baby. We're like the stock market with playing time."
- Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun details how Raptors coach Dwane Casey almost signed Lin for the Mavericks a couple of years ago when Casey, a former Dallas assistant, was running a summer league team.
- The fifth pick in the 2011 draft, Raptors pick Jonas Valanciunas, just scored some new hardware, notes Wolstat in the same report. He's FIBA Europe's Young Player of the Year, joining Ricky Rubio, Rudy Fernandez and Jan Vesely, all of whom won the award in the past. Valanciunas recently met with Raptors GM Brian Colangelo for the first time since last summer as the two move closer to a deal to bring the 6-foot-11 center to Toronto next year.
Knicks Notes: Stoudemire, Lin, Nash, Felton
Amare Stoudemire has rejoined the Knicks, practicing with the club today and expecting to play tomorrow, but New York's attention is still on Linsanity. So let's kick off today's Knicks notes with the latest on Jeremy Lin….
- The Knicks won't have Early Bird rights on Lin this summer, but the Gilbert Arenas provision will prevent other teams from out-bidding New York for the restricted free agent, says Marc Berman of the New York Post. For an in-depth explanation of the Arenas rule, check out Larry Coon's CBA FAQ.
- Howard Beck of the New York Times confirms Lin's contract status as outlined by Berman (all Twitter links).
- The Knicks had targeted point guards like Steve Nash and Raymond Felton for their mid-level exception, Berman adds. However, if Lin's impressive play continues, New York may end up having to use their full MLE to retain him.
- Lin will have to carefully manage the off-court commitments and distractions that come with his newfound celebrity, writes John Hollinger of ESPN.com (Insider link).
- Sam Smith of Bulls.com argues that Lin's emergence opens the door for the Knicks to offer Carmelo Anthony and Tyson Chandler to the Magic for Dwight Howard. Not sure I'm on board with this one — the Knicks have yet to even see how their current roster looks when fully healthy, and there's no guarantee Howard would sign long-term in New York. Plus the Knicks would likely have to take on a bloated contract to make the salaries work.
Odds & Ends: Lakers, Knicks, Celtics, Bulls
Teams in three of the top markets in the NBA, the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, and New York Knicks, are struggling through disappointing seasons (though the Knicks have picked up lately under the promise of Linsanity). A fourth big-market club, the Chicago Bulls, now has a potential injury problem.
- Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports officials from the Lakers attended a private workout for Gilbert Arenas. Arenas was amnestied this off-season by the Orlando Magic, and is hoping the same knee procedure that benefited Kobe Bryant in the off-season can produce similar results.
- Amare Stoudemire returns Monday and Al Iannazzone of Newsday wonders how the Knicks' offense will look when Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony return. Stoudemire seems a natural fit alongside Lin. His skill set has always been maximized alongside a pick and roll point guard. Anthony, however, is one of the best isolation scorers in the NBA and the ball tends to stop in his hands.
- Derrick Rose sat Sunday's game against the Celtics out with a back injury and will meet with some specialists Monday in Chicago reports Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times. Rose had similar back issues in high school, but this is the first time he's had trouble since. The Bulls lack the star power of some of the other team, but compensate with their depth and chemistry. That chemistry, however, still depends on Rose operating near peak form.
- Brandon Bass is ailing, and Jermaine O'Neal is often injured. The Celtics have been looking for front court depth for some time. Today they got some good minutes from rookie JuJuan Johnson and veteran Chris Wilcox writes Green Street's Mike Petraglia.
- Paul Flannery of WEEI.com wonders if Rajon Rondo is the centerpiece of the next generation of Celtics, or will he prove to be too unorthodox for a team minus three future Hall of Famers?
Odds & Ends: Hornets, Clippers, Knicks, Magic
The New Orleans Hornets are dropping like flies, reports John Reid of the Times Picayune. Chris Kaman is the latest casualty with a mysterious ankle injury. These injuries could hurt trade value for a Hornets team that needs as many assets as possible. Some other news around the NBA:
- Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles reports the Los Angeles Clippers are pursuing J.R. Smith. Their sales pitch includes Chauncey Billups vacated starting slot, a chance to showcase his game on a contending team, and his familiarity with Chris Paul–and their shared agent, Leon Rose.
- Also pursuing Smith, according to the same report, is Carmelo Anthony. The New York Knicks have slightly more money to offer with the prorated $2.5MM mini-mid-level exception, and Leon Rose likewise represents Anthony.
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel wonders if Jason Richardson can be a reliable go-to guy after a breakout game against the Milwaukee Bucks. If so, it would relieve a lot of the pressure for an immediate roster overhaul for general manager Otis Smith and the Orlando Magic.
- Naturally after watching Richardson's performance over the Bucks comes reports from Schmitz that a disgruntled Dwight Howard would like to see the ball more in the fourth quarter.
Knicks Notes: Lin, Stoudemire
With his legs feeling heavier than Shaq after a Krispy Kreme donut binge, Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin willed his team to a 100-98 road win over the Timberwolves on Saturday night. Lin managed to score 20 points for a fifth straight game but shot only 8-24 and had six turnovers for a second consecutive game. Let's take a look at some Knicks-related news as the team has two days off before heading to Toronto to take on the Raptors.
- Mike Monroe of Spurs Nation named Lin to his All-Undrafted Team after the second-year player out of Harvard averaged 28.5 PPG during four games last week. While Monroe concedes no undrafted player in the history of the NBA had ever enjoyed a week on the level of Lin's, his ability to get the basket with such ease will become more difficult as teams adjust to his style of play. Over the long haul, Knicks fans should expect a level of play similar to an Avery Johnson-type player rather than one who will challenge for MVP awards.
- Yao Ming and Lin have forged a friendship in which Lin chats with Yao via text message after every game for advice and support, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post. The two pals even go out to dinner together whenever they are in the same city. The friendship, however, almost became business related when Yao tried to bring Lin, 23, to China to play for his Shanghai Sharks during the NBA lockout.
- Amare Stoudemire undertook the arduous task of eulogizing the life of his older brother on Saturday, says Kevin Kernan of the New York Post. The emotional Stoudemire was supported by numerous members of the Knicks organization including injured stars Carmelo Anthony and Baron Davis. Stoudemire, 29, is expected to return to the Knicks lineup on Tuesday with hopes of securing a sixth straight victory for the team.
Latest On Jeremy Lin
It's safe to say the Knicks' acquisition of Jeremy Lin is the most successful waiver claim the NBA has seen in some time. Lin has scored 89 points in his first three NBA starts, the most for any player since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976, as Tommy Beer of HoopsWorld points out. Statistician Nate Silver looks at the numbers to compare Lin to several players in a piece for The New York Times. Here are a few more notes on the second-year sensation:
- Phil Taylor of Sports Illustrated wonders whether Mark Jackson did his due diligence in evaluating Lin before the Warriors let him go. (Twitter link)
- There's confusion over how much money Lin can make on his next contract. Salary cap guru Larry Coon said in a stream of tweets that he's not sure if Lin qualifies as an "Early Bird" free agent. Howard Beck of The New York times reported earlier that Lin does. If he does have Early Bird rights, the Knicks could re-sign him for up to 175% of his previous salary or th e average player salary, whichever is greater. There have also been reports that Lin will be limited to receiving the full mid-level exception. What is clear is that he will be a restricted free agent, meaning he can sign a deal with any team, but the Knicks would have three days to match the offer.
- Count Tyson Chandler as one who doesn't think Lin will soon fade back into obscurity. He believes Lin's performance is "not a fluke," as Tom Pedulla and Rachel Shuster of USA Today report. The story also notes how Lin believes the difference between his production in New York this year and Golden State last year is all about opportunity.
- Lin's popularity may force Time Warner cable, in a carriage battle with the MSG network, to put the channel that shows Knicks games back in the lineup, writes Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News.
Knicks Notes: Lin, James
Here's a look at some Knicks-related items as New York succumbs to Linsanity..
- The Knicks are in position to keep Jeremy Lin beyond this season and almost certainly will, writes Howard Beck of the New York Times. The guard will be a restricted free agent and will be limited to receiving the full mid-level exception under the new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
- As the deadline for guaranteeing contracts approached, the Knicks were learning towards releasing Lin and had begun targeting other guards, including veteran Mike James, sources told Marc Stein of ESPN.com. James has been back with the club's D-League affiliate since being waived by the Bulls earlier this month.
- We've heard that Lin slipped through the Lakers' fingers earlier this season, but the guard was also very close to signing overseas before the NBA lockout ended. Emiliano Carchia of Sportando Basket (via Twitter) writes that Lin was near a deal with Italy's Banca Tercas Teramo.
- As the Knicks waffled on whether or not to keep Lin beyond the deadline, team exec Mark Warkentien began calling associates in the D-League to gather more background info on the guard, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.
Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Stevenson, Bargnani
Jeremy Lin's bandwagon is getting mighty crowded after the Harvard grad outscored Kobe Bryant 38-34 in a 92-85 win for the Knicks over the Lakers tonight. HoopsWorld writer Alex Kennedy tweets that the locker room chatter suggests Lin, a restricted free-agent at season's end, could get a contract on par with Wesley Matthews, who inked a five-year, $34MM contract with the Blazers after his impressive rookie season in Utah. But as Brian Cronin of KnickerBlogger.net points out, Lin will be limited to receiving the full mid-level exception. Under the new collective bargaining agreement, the mid-level exception is four years, starting at $5MM a year with annual raises of 4.5%.
Notes from elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:
- Peter Vecsey of the New York Post delved into the past to reveal how the Nets nearly drafted Bryant in 1996.
- Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni believes Lin and Carmelo Anthony will fit together just fine when Melo returns from injury, reports Al Iannazzone of New York Newsday. The coach believes it will be similar to the way Chauncey Billups and Anthony meshed with both the Nuggets and the Knicks.
- The Nets made a $12,000 investment in DeShawn Stevenson's knees. Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reports that the team paid for Stevenson to get the same blood-spinning treatment Kobe Bryant received. Stephenson, who paid for the other half of the $24,000 procedure, says his arthritic knees feel as healthy as they have since 2004. Stephenson also said that Knicks point guard Baron Davis had the same treatment as well.
- Brook Lopez, who's been out since training camp with a broken foot, is on his way back for the Nets. He's set to practice this week, Andy Vasquez writes on NorthJersey.com.
- James Johnson tells Raptors announcer Matt Devlin that the absense of Andrea Bargnani, who could be out until after the All-Star Break, is affecting the play of the rest of the team. His comments are at the four-minute mark of this video on Raptors.com.
Lakers Notes: Arenas, Bryant, Lin
The Lakers are in New York tonight for the fifth game of a six-game road trip, their longest of the season. Here are a few dispatches from their travels:
- Kobe Bryant is on board with the possibility of the Lakers signing Gilbert Arenas, as Ken Berger of CBSSports.com notes at the end of his piece today. The Lakers are reportedly considering inking Arenas for the veterans' minimum.
- Nets swingman DeShawn Stevenson says he's seen Gilbert Arenas lately, and says the free-agent point guard "looks great, a lot thinner," tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
- L.A. Times beat writer Mike Bresnahan tweets that Knicks rookie Jeremy Lin was on the Lakers' radar before the season began. Lin's family had been given indication that the Lakers would take him with the 58th pick in the 2010 draft, writes Kevin Ding of The Orange County Register, but they went with the recently waived Derrick Caracter instead.
Odds & Ends: Sloan, Nets, Novak, Nash
Let's check out the latest notes from around the league, as we prepare for a busy slate of games that includes a Southeast battle in Orlando, the Clippers in Philadelphia, and, of course, Kobe Bryant against Jeremy Lin….
- Marc Spears of Yahoo Sports reports that former Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan has been approached by at least six teams trying to lure him back into coaching. Although he wasn't ready yet when those opportunites arose, he's feeling recharged and could return to the NBA next season.
- The Nets will roll with their current roster rather than signing or waiving anyone, despite all the injuries, tweets Ben Couch of NJNets.com. The club wants to retain their Bird-rights players like Damion James in order to build around max contracts this summer, tweets Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
- In an Insider-only ESPN.com column, John Hollinger examines whether or not the Big Three model is all it's cracked up to be.
- The "Linsanity" surrounding Jeremy Lin is overshadowing Steve Novak's recent success, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Novak, who was claimed off waivers by the Knicks in December, is eligible for unrestricted free agency at season's end.
- Although Steve Nash doesn't appear to be going anywhere before the trade deadline, Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle thinks a reunion with the Mavericks could make sense.