Oklahoma City Thunder Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Martin, Cheeks, Pleiss, Burke

February 17th, 2016 at 6:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Martin is hoping the Wolves will trade him to a winning team before Thursday’s deadline, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports. A source said Martin would like to see the deal done as a reward for his “professionalism and mentoring of young teammates.” The 12th-year shooting guard is making $7.085MM this year and has a player option worth nearly $7.38MM for next season.

There’s more news from the Northwest Division:

Thunder assistant coach Maurice Cheeks will be out of action for about six weeks after undergoing hip surgery, the team announced today. Mark Daigneault, head coach of the Thunder’s D-League affiliate, will take Cheeks’ place, while OKC Blue assistant Jarell Christian will coach that team for the rest of the season.
The Jazz recalled center Tibor Pleiss from the D-League today, tweets Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. However, the move was just so Pleiss could attend practice, and he was sent back down later in the day.
Jazz point guard Trey Burke, who is rumored to be in a proposal that would send him to Houston in exchange for Ty Lawson, works better as a backup than a starter, according to Bobby Marks of the Vertical on Yahoo Sports. In his guide to the trade deadline for Utah, Marks says the Jazz have been missing a floor leader in the absence of Dante Exum, who is out for the season after undergoing knee surgery last summer. Marks advises the Jazz to hang onto Rudy Gobert, Derrick Favors, Gordon Hayward and rookie Trey Lyles as they push for a playoff spot.
Randy Rigby will retire as president of the Jazz at the end of the season and will be replaced by Steve Starks, Genessy tweets. “I am excited about the future of the Jazz and my continued involvement as an adviser,” said Rigby, who has been with the organization since 1986.
The Nuggets may be able to get a second-round pick for J.J. Hickson, Marks writes in his trade deadline guide for Denver. Hickson has fallen out of the team’s rotation and has been on the market for weeks. Marks credits the Denver front office with being on the right track for rebuilding and says the team should consider moving either the Rockets’ or Blazers’ first-round picks, which are both conditional, in exchange for a future pick or veteran player.

Central Notes: Augustin, Carter-Williams, Harris

February 16th, 2016 at 8:34pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Pistons are a bit thin in their backcourt after today’s trade of Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova to the Magic in exchange for combo forward Tobias Harris, Dan Feldman of NBCSports.com writes. As a result of the trade Detroit is now combing the market for a veteran guard it can add to its rotation, Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports relays (via Twitter). Some potential targets for the Pistons include Thunder point guard D.J. Augustin, Kings playmaker Darren Collison and Mo Williams of the Cavaliers, Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press notes (Twitter links).

Here’s the latest from the Central Division:

Bucks point guard Michael Carter-Williams has been told by the team that he will not be traded prior to Thursday’s deadline, Marc J. Spears of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports tweets. The 24-year-old, who is said to be “undeniably gettable,” was also told the same thing by the Sixers last season prior to being shipped to Milwaukee, Spears notes, so he’s likely to take any assurances with a grain of salt.
Cavs superstar LeBron James believes he and his teammates need to tune out outside distractions and criticism and focus on the task at hand if the team is to make strides during the second half of the season, Marla Ridenour of The Akron Beacon Journal writes. “There’s so much talk about what we should be, we should do this, we shouldn’t do that. The only thing that matters is what we come together and talk about and how we prepare every single night and our coaching staff putting us in position to win,” James told Ridenour.
The Pistons are excited by the athleticism and versatility that Harris will provide them, David Mayo of MLive relays.
Orlando likely could have netted a better return if it had waited to deal Harris until this summer, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post opines in his examination of the Harris/Jennings/Ilyasova trade. The scribe notes that the trade was a big win for the Pistons, who now possess a solid core of players who are 25 years of age or younger to build around, and though Orlando did receive the veterans it craved, unless this deal was the first in a series of trades, it failed to improve the Magic as a team, Bontemps concludes.

Northwest Notes: Miller, Durant, Blazers

February 14th, 2016 at 1:58pm CST by Will Joseph

There is one team inquiring about Wolves veteran point guard Andre Miller, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities hears (on Twitter). While it is unclear which team that is, Wolfson rules out the Kings, despite Sacramento coach George Karl‘s relationship with Miller. At 39 years old, Miller has played sparingly this season and likely would not return much for the Wolves. It is reasonable to think Miller would be part of a bigger package for that reason, but I speculate the Wolves are motivated to move Miller to allow rookie Tyus Jones to play more.

Here’s more out of the Northwest Division:

Steve Novak is a potential trade chip for the Thunder because of his expiring contract, Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports writes in one of his latest deadline primers. Expiring contracts, however, are not as valuable as they have been in previous years because of the salary cap’s expected rise, as Marks points out.
That’s another reason why the Thunder would much rather prefer to have Kevin Durant than the expected $19MM in cap space this summer if Durant signs elsewhere and team decides against bringing back restricted free agent Dion Waiters, Marks adds in the same piece.
Speaking of Durant, Draymond Green told Sam Amick of USA Today Sports (audio link) that although the star players are friends, Green will not be trying to recruit Durant to sign with the Warriors this summer during the rest of All-Star weekend (h/t Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman).
With close to $20MM in cap space, the Blazers are in position to take on contracts with the goal of obtaining a future pick or significant asset and thus should be viewed as a sleeper team at the deadline, Marks writes in his look at Portland.

Heat Rumors: Whiteside, Wade, James, Bosh

February 14th, 2016 at 11:01am CST by Arthur Hill

There will be plenty of shooters on the trade market this week, but the Heat may have to give up center Hassan Whiteside if they want a more complete player, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel. Three-point shooting has been a problem in Miami all season, and Winderman lists the Thunder’s Steve Novak and Anthony Morrow, the Kings’ Omri Casspi and the Nets’ Wayne Ellington as possibilities if the Heat want an inexpensive solution. But he points out that coach Erik Spoelstra rarely relies on one-dimensional shooters, and says the Miami front office may be looking for something more. With Marc Gasol out indefinitely, the Grizzlies might have interest in Whiteside, even though he is only months away from free agency, Winderman posits. Whiteside and filler [such as Chris Andersen] could bring back Courtney Lee, Winderman speculates, while throwing in some more salary could be enough to land Jeff Green.

There’s more news out of Miami:

There is an increased feeling in the front office that trading Whiteside might be the best move for the franchise, Winderman writes in the same story, but he adds that Whiteside’s representatives aren’t expecting a deal.
Even before Whiteside made waves with his nationally televised ejection this week, Heat officials were having doubts about signing him long-term, according to Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Miami expects Whiteside’s next contract to start at $17MM or more, and there are questions within the organization about whether that’s a wise investment. Jackson cited two sources who say the team is considering a Whiteside trade.
A reunion with LeBron James in the All-Star Game — the first time they have been teammates since James left the Heat in 2014 — is bringing back memories for Dwyane Wade, writes Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post. Miami’s Big Three was almost completely back together, but Chris Bosh had to pull out of tonight’s game with a strained right calf. Wade said the roster upheaval in Miami has changed the atmosphere in the locker room. “We all can deal with each other’s success and failures and family things a lot differently than what we deal with now with younger teammates that grew up watching us play like fans,” he said. “It was cool playing with our peers, guys that we came into the league with. That’s a totally different relationship.”

Latest On Carmelo Anthony

February 14th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Arthur Hill

Denials continue regarding the rumor that broke Friday of a proposed three-team deal that would send Carmelo Anthony to Cleveland, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Berman cites two league sources who told him the Knicks haven’t talked to either the Cavaliers or Celtics about the trade, which would have shipped Kevin Love to Boston and a package of players and draft picks to New York.

Anthony, who said Saturday that he wouldn’t waive his no-trade cause to make the deal possible, attracted attention earlier this weekend with comments that “it won’t sit well with me” if the Knicks miss the playoffs for a third straight season. He plans to eventually talk with his representatives from Creative Artists Agency about his future in New York, but on Saturday Anthony expressed a desire to stay in the city.

“Doing it in New York is better than doing it any place in the world,’’ Anthony said. “One in New York is better than multiple somewhere else. That was the reason I wanted to come to New York. That’s the reason I’m in New York. It just bothers me when I start hearing all these trade rumors. Nobody has talked to me. I don’t know where it comes from. Sometimes it gets to you. As a player you get tired of hearing something all the time.”

There’s more Anthony-related news as Thursday’s trade deadline draws closer:

In addition to the no-trade clause, Anthony’s contract contains a 15% trade kicker, which means the Knicks would pay a heavy price if they deal him away. “That was something my agent really talked about,’’ he told Berman. “Knowing how few people had that, that was a big part of signing that contract. It’s security at the end of the day. You never know what could possibly happen or what it can do. All players would want that.”
Anthony is still hoping to find another star willing to join the Knicks, Berman writes in the same piece. One possibility is the Thunder’s Kevin Durant, whom New York plans to target this summer with an estimated $19MM in cap room. Anthony said talk about star players joining forces is common around the league. “I say why not come with me,’’ he said. “When I say playing with stars, that’s conversations. Everybody has those conversations. Guys that are in my circle have those conversations. On the Olympic team, guys have those conversations — 90% of the time it never happens. The Miami thing came into fruition, but it took a lot. That’s just dreams and wishes.’’
All parts of the proposed deal aren’t dead, according to Frank Isola of The New York Daily News, who broke the story Friday. Isola writes that the Celtics and Cavaliers have talked about a trade sending Love to Boston, and Anthony’s name was included as part of “very preliminary discussions.” Anthony would prefer to stay with the Knicks for now because he has a good relationship with owner James Dolan and he wants to keep his family in New York, which was a factor when he re-signed with the franchise in 2014.
If Anthony ever does decide a trade is in his best interest, the Cavaliers remain a possibility, along with the Celtics and Clippers, according to Isola. Anthony owns a house in Los Angeles and has a friendship with Chris Paul.

Western Notes: Cousins, Trades, Thunder

February 13th, 2016 at 11:43pm CST by ChrisCrouse

DeMarcus Cousins doesn’t believe he’s in the best situation with the Kings, Ken Berger of CBS Sports writes. “I prefer to be in a perfect situation,” Cousins deadpanned, “but that’ll never happen.” The center described the perfect situation as one where everyone is happy before reiterating that it just won’t happen. “There’s nothing in life that’s perfect,” the 25-year-old said. Cousins will be an unrestricted free agent following the 2017/18 campaign.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Oklahoma City has a pair of trade exceptions that are set to expire at the trade deadline Thursday, Erik Horne of The Oklahoman notes in a piece that analyzes the Thunder’s trade assets. The team has a $2.2MM trade exception from last year’s Reggie Jackson trade and a trade exception worth roughly $861K from last season’s Ish Smith deal.
If the Rockets look to make drastic changes, Trevor Ariza and Corey Brewer would be realistic trade targets for Oklahoma City, Horne opines in the same piece. The scribe also names Courtney Lee and P.J. Tucker among the players on the market who would be good fits for the Thunder.
The Thunder shouldn’t be making trades to try to bridge the gap between them and Golden State, and they especially shouldn’t consider dealing away Serge Ibaka, Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman argues.

Thunder Notes: Westbrook, Durant, Novak, Augustin

February 13th, 2016 at 4:33pm CST by Arthur Hill

Thunder point guard Russell Westbrook is brushing aside talk that he might join the Lakers when his current contract expires, writes Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Westbrook, who will be a free agent in 2017, has close ties to the Los Angeles area, being born in Long Beach and playing college basketball at UCLA. Westbrook was a Lakers fan growing up, but he says he has no plan to play for them. “I like where I am now,” Westbrook said. “Oklahoma City is a great place for me.”

There’s more news today regarding the Thunder:

Signing a one-year contract may be Kevin Durant‘s best strategy in free agency, Slater writes in a separate piece. The All-Star small forward, who is expected to be the most sought-after free agent this summer, can benefit financially by testing the market again in 2017. Slater explains that Durant can get a max deal this summer worth 30% of a salary cap that is projected at about $90MM. Next season will be Durant’s 10th in the league, which qualifies him for 35% of the cap, which is expected to rise to about $108MM in 2017/18. Chuck Myron recently examined Durant’s free agency options in depth.
Durant would be interested in a front office position once his playing days are done, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports.
Little-used combo forward Steve Novak could be a valuable trade chip for Oklahoma City, according to Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports. Novak has only played 24 minutes over seven games this season, but Marks thinks a team could be tempted to take on his expiring $3.75MM contract. Novak has been with eight franchises during his 10-year NBA career. Marks also advises the Thunder to hold onto all of their starters and rotation players to make a run at the NBA title. That includes reserve point guard D.J. Augustin, who averages just 15.3 minutes per night, but whose experience might be valuable in the playoffs, as the only other backup at that position is rookie Cameron Payne.

Western Notes: Durant, Paul, Carter

February 13th, 2016 at 10:16am CST by Eddie Scarito

Thunder small forward Kevin Durant said he was shocked that the Knicks fired coach Derek Fisher, who was considered a strong link to the pending unrestricted free agent, Al Iannazzone of Newsday writes. Durant noted that stability was important to him in an organization, Iannazzone adds. “No matter what profession, you always want to be stable,” Durant said. “You always want to have good people around you. And you always want to work with great people. That’s how it is in Oklahoma City. … Sometimes you can put your spirit in and you can kind of dictate that environment for yourself.”

Durant did add that while he enjoys that stability with the Thunder, he could be a stabilizing force elsewhere, the Newsday scribe relays. “I think I have that ability and that capability of just improving wherever I go, also improving the environment wherever I go,” said Durant. While Durant enjoys the weekend’s All-Star festivities, here’s more from out West:

People close to Mavs power forward Dirk Nowitzki believe he wants to play another two seasons in the NBA before retiring, Chris Ballard of SI.com said in an installment of SI Now (video link; transcription via the Dallas Morning News). Nowitzki has one year remaining on his current deal, which is a player option worth a team-friendly $8,692,184 for 2016/17.
Scratch one potential post-NBA career off point guard Chris Paul‘s list, as the Clippers playmaker said he has no desire to join the coaching profession in the future, Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post tweets.
Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle isn’t surprised that Grizzlies swingman Vince Carter is still productive at 39 years of age, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News notes. “I’m not surprised,” Carlisle said. “Vince is a great player. He’s established some unbelievable longevity. He’s been a great role player with two different clubs – us and Memphis.” Carter’s salary of approximately $4.264MM for next season is partially guaranteed for $2MM, and Commercial Appeal scribe Chris Herrington suggested recently that the Grizzlies will “almost certainly” waive him this summer and pocket the savings.

And-Ones: Colangelo, Tavares, Durant

February 12th, 2016 at 10:25pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Sixers executive Jerry Colangelo indicated that the franchise may take a page out of the Warriors‘ organizational playbook and add more voices to their front office, Kurt Helin of NBCSports.com relays. “[Golden State] proves the point,” Colangelo told reporters today. “If you have the right mix of people you can have a collaborative effort because people respect one another, and usually that comes from people who have had experience, who’ve been around the track. You add all of that to the mix and it could work.”

“I think that any time you have an opportunity to enhance your organization, and you bring people in to accomplish that, you consider it. Big time. You really do,” Colangelo continued. “And I think in our case we have a very bright young guy in [GM] Sam Hinkie, who holds the title of president and GM, and in his space he’s really strong. One could build a case for saying you’d like to have more people added who have experience in other aspects of those jobs. That’s the kind of conversation that’s going on. “

Here’s more from around the league:

The Thunder haven’t given any consideration to trading small forward Kevin Durant, who will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, prior to next week’s deadline despite the uncertainty that revolves around his future, Marc J. Spears of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports relays. “I never thought about that at all,” Durant said about being dealt by OKC. “I don’t know, man. I don’t want to be moved. I want to finish this thing out with my team. I think we got a really good thing going right now, so I haven’t really thought about it. We never talk about that stuff, me, [GM] Sam Presti, our assistant GM [Troy Weaver]. It’s always about how I can be better for my teammates and with my leadership skills.”
Jeff Ayres‘ second 10-day deal with the Clippers expired Thursday night, so he became a free agent. Teams are only permitted to ink any single player to a total of two 10-day pacts per season, and if Los Angeles wishes to retain Ayres, it would have to sign him for the remainder of the season. The Clippers’ roster count now stands at 14 players.
The Hawks have recalled center Edy Tavares from the Spurs‘ D-League affiliate where he had been sent as part of the flexible assignment rule, Atlanta announced via press release. Tavares has averaged 9.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 21.1 minutes during his seven D-League assignments this season.

Max Contract Scenarios For Kevin Durant

February 12th, 2016 at 4:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kevin Durant today denied that he’s given thought to signing a two-year deal with a player option when he hits free agency this summer. It’s a contractual strategy that LeBron James has pursued the last two years to provide for the most flexibility and money possible, and given the rapid escalation in the salary cap that’s about to take place and Durant’s relative youth, it would be an even smarter idea for him than it would be for LeBron.

First, let’s look at what Durant would make if he signs a five-year, maximum-salary contract with the Thunder, based on the NBA’s maximum-salary projections:

2016/17: $24,900,000
2017/18: $26,767,500
2018/19: $28,635,000
2019/20: $30,502,500
2020/21: $32,370,000
Total: $143,175,000

He’d see slightly less if he signed a max deal for as many years as he could with another team. Only the Thunder can give him a fifth year, and everyone else is limited to offering 4.5% raises instead of 7.5% raises. Again, the figures here rely on the league’s projection for next year’s maximum salaries.

2016/17: $24,900,000
2017/18: $26,020,500
2018/19: $27,141,000
2019/20: $28,261,500
Total: $106,323,000

Signing a two-year deal with a player option after the first season would take him down a more lucrative path, assuming the NBA and the players union don’t significantly alter maximum salaries or contract parameters when they negotiate the next collective bargaining agreement, which will likely kick in for the 2017/18 season. It’s a distinct possibility that they will indeed make changes, as Bobby Marks of The Vertical on Yahoo Sports notes (Twitter link). So, uncertainty exists, but the existing structure makes the short-term deal an intriguing option.

We haven’t seen maximum-salary projections for 2017 yet, but the salary cap is projected to hit a whopping $108MM that summer, a drastic escalation not just from the $70MM cap for this season but also from next season’s projected $89MM cap. The sizes of maximum salaries are tied, though indirectly, to the size of the cap, so using the $108MM projection, it’s possible to estimate how much Durant’s max will be.

The NBA has three different maximum-salary tiers. Players with six or fewer years of experience see a max of roughly 25% of the cap. Those with seven, eight or nine years of experience are eligible for approximately 30% of the cap. And veterans of 10 or more seasons can get as much as about 35% of the cap. Durant is in his ninth season, so he’ll fall into the 30% tier for his free agency this year. That’s reflected in the $24.9MM figure used in the scenarios above. He’d fall into the 35% category after one more season, taking his starting salary in a contract he’d sign in 2017 even higher. I estimated for an earlier piece that the 35% maximum salary for 2017/18 will be $35.603MM, based on the league’s projections and formula for determining max salaries, which Larry Coon explains at the bottom of question No. 16 in his Salary Cap FAQ.

So, with that number in mind, and assuming the next collective bargaining agreement doesn’t bring about drastic change, here’s what Durant could get if he signs a deal with the Thunder this summer that allows him to opt out next year and re-signs on a five-year max deal in 2017:

2016/17: $24,900,000
2017/18: $35,603,000
2018/19: $38,273,225
2019/20: $40,943,450
2020/21: $43,613,675
2021/22: $46,283,900
Total: $229,617,250

Durant wouldn’t have the advantage of signing a five-year deal with higher raises with a team other than the Thunder in 2017, even if he signs with that non-OKC team this summer. That’s because he’d need to have been with that team for at least three seasons to accrue full Bird rights. So, here’s what Durant would get if he signs a max deal in 2017 outside of Oklahoma City:

2016/17: $24,900,000
2017/18: $35,603,000
2018/19: $37,205,135
2019/20: $38,807,270
2020/21: $40,409,405
Total: $176,924,810

That would give Durant close to $37MM more than he would make over the same five-year period if he simply re-signed for five years at the max with Oklahoma City, even though the Thunder can pay him more than anyone else on a long-term deal this summer. That’s why it would behoove Durant to at least consider the option of signing a short-term deal this year, even given the uncertainty of collective bargaining agreement negotiations ahead. For all we know, the environment for max players could be better under the next labor deal than it is under this one, and with LeBron and Chris Paul, both of whom are currently on max deals, playing prominent roles in the union, that’s certainly not out of question.