Oklahoma City Thunder Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Notes: Durant, Anderson, Heat, LeBron

January 27th, 2016 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

Some executives around the NBA expect that the Knicks will at least “get an audience” with Kevin Durant, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com, who points out that New York will likely have to maneuver to create enough cap space to place a max offer on the table for him. Durant praised the Knicks’ roster construction, mentioning Kristaps Porzingis, Robin Lopez, Arron Afflalo and Derrick Williams, as well as coach and former Durant teammate Derek Fisher, notes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News, but in spite of Durant’s much-publicized “unicorn” comment about Porzingis, the Thunder have a strong roster and a unique player of their own in Russell Westbrook, observes Royce Young of ESPN.com. See more on a few of New York’s Eastern Conference rivals:

Alan Anderson is expected to return to game action around the All-Star break, a source told Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post. The Wizards signed the swingman in the offseason thinking he’d be ready to start the season on time, but he wound up needing a second surgery on his injured left ankle, and he’s yet to suit up for the team.
Heat majority owner Micky Arison has been trying to buy out minority share owner Ranaan Katz for years, and Heat employees have long been barred from talking with him, according to Dan Le Batard of ESPN, who adds that the assertion that LeBron James tried to have Erik Spoelstra fired is untrue (Twitter links). Katz reportedly made that assertion, but he denies that, claiming that what he said on a radio show hosted by Ofira Asayag on ONE.co.il’s 102 FM in Israel was incorrectly translated from Hebrew to English, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald (Twitter link). For what it’s worth, international journalist David Pick provided a full transcription for Bleacher Report, which depicts Katz saying that Riley’s refusal to fire Spoelstra was the primary reason James returned to Cleveland and that the Heat drafted Shabazz Napier in 2014 because James wanted them to. Katz also denies that he said LeBron was the catalyst for the Cavs firing David Blatt, as Pick notes in an addendum to the transcription.
James said today that he never hesitated to give his opinion but that he’s never undermined a coach, adding that he’s never met Katz, note Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com (Twitter links). James has indeed met Katz, counters Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, who points out that Katz sits next to the visitors bench for every Heat home game (Twitter link).

And-Ones: Karl, D-League, Smith

January 26th, 2016 at 10:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kings coach George Karl, a two-time cancer survivor, says that he’s healthy but his well-being is always a concern for him after his previous scares, Joe Davidson of The Sacramento Bee writes. “Cancer hangs with you,” Karl told Davidson. “You always wonder. If you wake up in the morning and your stomach hurts, you wonder if it’s stomach cancer. If your back hurts, same thing. If it’s a headache in a place you’re not used to having a headache, you wonder. Every little ache and pain makes you question your health. And you value every day that you’re healthy. No question, health has moved into my priority more than it ever has in my life. In my coaching journey, balance is becoming more important in my life.”

Here’s more from around the league:

Josh Smith feels completely comfortable as a member of the Rockets, and the team should benefit from his return to Houston, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. “We understand Josh and his teammates understand him,” interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Josh just wants to hoop. That’s where the problems come in, because if he doesn’t get to play, like any competitor, you want to play and you’ve proven you can play. So for us there’s a fit, and Josh and I go back a long way. We have a good understanding of one another. And even with Mac [former coach Kevin McHale], because of Mac’s personality, Josh could thrive with him.”
The NBA D-League is not a surefire way for aging veteran players to make their way back into the NBA, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor writes. In his analysis of D-League trends, Reichert notes that since the 2011/12 season there have been 220 NBA call ups and only 10 of those have gone to players at least 30 years old with at least 100 games of NBA experience already under their belts. As the league continues to expand, older players may have a tougher time catching on with D-League teams since NBA franchises will look to use their affiliates to develop younger players, Reichert adds.
The Thunder recalled Josh Huestis and Mitch McGary from their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This was McGary’s fifth stint with the Blue on the season and Huestis’ ninth.
The Raptors have assigned Lucas Nogueira, Norman Powell and Delon Wright to their D-League affiliate, the team announced.

Western Notes: Durant, Burke, Cauley-Stein

January 26th, 2016 at 8:33pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Thunder small forward Kevin Durant maintains that his mind is not on his impending free agency this summer, Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman writes. “I’m just really, to be honest with you, I haven’t sat down and thought about it,” said Durant. “The season moves along so quickly. Every time I get alone, it’s on the plane or in the city thinking about the game the next day. Of course, I can’t say I haven’t totally thought about it at all. But I haven’t sat down and really put a lot of time into what I’m looking for. Just focusing on my teammates, focusing on the season and how I can be better as a player, as a leader. Everything else comes after that.”

When asked if his friendship with point guard Russell Westbrook would make him think twice about leaving Oklahoma City, Durant responded, “Like I said, I haven’t really thought about that much. I’m just enjoying every single moment. I told myself that before the year. It’s easy for me to kinda stray off path and think about the future. It’s my ninth season in the league and I can remember my first game in Madison Square Garden like it was yesterday. Just try to stay in the moment and we’ll worry about that stuff when I get there. I know that’s people want to hear, information, want to get it out and talk about everything right now. But to be honest, I’m just trying to stay in the moment and enjoy where I am. I’ll tell you everything you need to know when that time comes.”

Here’s more from out West:

Trey Burke is settling into his new role with the Jazz as a reserve point guard and he believes that the early results have been positive, Rod Beard of The Detroit News writes. “It’s been great; for me, it’s just been doing whatever the team asks me to do,” Burke said. “Coach told me he wanted me to be a spark coming off the bench and being a team guy, I’ve always just wanted to win. That’s really what it’s all about for me. I’ve grown a lot this year, mentally as a player, going through some adversity, but it’s helped me out.”
Kings rookie center Willie Cauley-Stein believes that he has found a home in Sacramento and in return the franchise has clearly let him know that he is wanted, Ailene Voisin of The Sacramento Bee writes. “When I came here [for a predraft workout], I sensed they wanted me,” Cauley-Stein said, “and I loved it. I can’t really explain it. It’s just a feel.”

And-Ones: Durant, Noah, LeBron, Draft

January 26th, 2016 at 2:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kevin Durant fielded the first direct questions in more than two months about his upcoming free agency today as the Thunder prepare to play the Knicks in New York, and his answers revealed little, with mostly boilerplate responses surrounding his sentiments for playing at Madison Square Garden, as The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater transcribes. Still, he dismissed the notion that a large market would be any better for his business profile than small-market Oklahoma City and said his main focus is on the court, anyway. He spoke fondly of New York basketball culture, but that’s standard fare, as Durant himself essentially suggested.

“They link everybody with New York City,” Durant said, according to Slater’s transcription. “One of the greatest cities in the world. They link everybody with this city. So it’s not a bad thing. Great city. Great place to visit, great place to live, I’m sure. They link everybody, it’s not just me.”

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Joakim Noah, another soon-to-be free agent, hopes he’ll be back with the Bulls next season, as he told reporters, including Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com (Twitter link). It’s not uncommon for players to say that about their incumbent teams as they approach free agency, but he has reportedly been displeased with how the team has viewed him this year, one in which he played mostly in a backup role before suffering a shoulder injury that’s likely to have ended his season.
Heat minority share owner Ranaan Katz is among those who say that LeBron James engineered the firing of former Cavaliers coach David Blatt, adding that James tried and failed to oust Erik Spoelstra when they were together in Miami, according to international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). Spoelstra is currently the NBA’s second longest-tenured coach.
Ben Simmons goes to the Sixers, Brandon Ingram to the Lakers and Dragan Bender to the Celtics in the top three picks of the latest mock draft from Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.

Northwest Notes: Hayward, Durant, Plumlee, Davis

January 26th, 2016 at 9:47am CST by Chuck Myron

The Jazz are “poking around” the market for a point guard, several league sources tell Zach Lowe of ESPN.com. It’s not entirely clear if such efforts are related to the team’s reported 10-day deal with Erick Green, though it would seem given the timing of that agreement, so soon after Raul Neto suffered a concussion Monday, that the team had already been looking. The Heat reportedly rebuffed Utah when it tried to engage them in Mario Chalmers trade talks over the offseason, but the Jazz’s interest in Chalmers was minimal, according to Lowe. The ESPN scribe speculates about other options, including Jrue Holiday, whose leg issues leave teams “petrified” and whom the Pelicans are reluctant to deal, anyway, Lowe reports. Lowe also believes Jeff Teague would be a fit for Utah, but reports that the Hawks have had “major trust issues” with backup Dennis Schröder and are focused on contending this season. In any case, the Jazz appear reluctant to pilfer from their store of future picks, which includes the Warriors unprotected 2017 first-rounder as the relative cost of rookie scale contracts becomes cheaper amid the rapid salary cap escalation, Lowe writes.

“Picks are that much more valuable,” GM Dennis Lindsey said to Lowe.

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The impending financial realities threaten the core of the Jazz, as Lowe details in the same piece, and Gordon Hayward, who can opt out after next season, acknowledged to Lowe that they cast a shadow on his future. “I’m constantly thinking about that,” Hayward said. “Contracts are so short now. A lot of our guys are on their rookie deals, and they’ll come up for extensions. It all might determine whether or not I stay in Utah.”
The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater examines the surprising lack of legitimate rumors about Kevin Durant‘s impending free agency, writing that the idea of the Thunder star signing a deal that would allow him to opt out after just one season “has gained traction.” It’s not clear whether that idea is growing on Durant himself or if more people are simply realizing that it would likely represent the most lucrative path for the former MVP. That would allow him to take advantage of a projected $108MM cap for the summer of 2017 and a higher maximum-salary tier, since he’d be a 10-year veteran.
The playmaking ability of Trail Blazers offseason acquisitions Mason Plumlee and Ed Davis has helped alleviate the pressure from incumbent guards Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum, as Mike Richman of The Oregonian examines. Plumlee will be eligible for a rookie scale extension in the offseason.

Northwest Notes: Roberson, Gallinari, Onuaku

January 25th, 2016 at 5:30pm CST by Chuck Myron

Andre Roberson will miss at least three weeks with a right knee sprain, The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater reports, and because of the timing of the All-Star break, it means he’s not expected to play again until February 19th at the earliest. The Thunder will seek to find ways to mitigate the loss of Roberson’s defensive prowess in the meantime, with Kyle Singler seemingly his most likely replacement in the starting lineup, Slater writes. The trade deadline is February 18th, one day before Roberson would return. See more from the Northwest Division:

Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post rates Danilo Gallinari below only LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard. Paul George and Carmelo Anthony among NBA small forwards, placing Gallo above Gordon Hayward, Rudy Gay and Harrison Barnes as he writes in his mailbag column. The Nuggets signed Gallinari to a renegotiation-and-extension this past summer that gives him $45.15MM from this season through 2017/18.
Former Timberwolves power forward Arinze Onuaku has decided against signing in the D-League, according to international journalist David Pick, who hears he might be headed for the Philippines instead (Twitter link). Onuaku, who joined Minnesota with a week to go in the 2014/15 season, had been set to return to the D-League affiliate of the Cavs.
The Timberwolves have assigned Adreian Payne to the D-League affiliate of the Magic, Minnesota announced (Twitter link). The plan the Wolves have for the former 15th overall pick is for him to play five D-League games before returning to Minnesota, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Orlando’s affiliate is involved because the Wolves don’t have a D-League team of their own.

Eastern Notes: Thibodeau, Allen, Durant, Sixers

January 25th, 2016 at 9:28am CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavs would have given strong consideration to hiring Tom Thibodeau if they’d made a coaching change this past summer, a league source told Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com, but now, management has faith in Tyronn Lue, McMenamin writes. They’ve seen him manage to remain loyal to David Blatt while developing relationships of his own with the team’s stars, and they’re confident that Lue will command a level of effort from the team that they believe wasn’t always present under Blatt, McMenamin adds. See more from the Eastern Conference:

The Heat have had a standing offer to Ray Allen since the 2014 offseason, but he remains unmoved and that’s no surprise, given his frustration with the team during the 2013/14 season, his last one in Miami and last to date in the NBA, writes Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald. All of the former teammates and other acquaintances of Allen’s to whom Skolnick has spoken expect him to remain out of the game, though Allen said this past summer that he had no plans to officially retire.
Agents from around the league insist that the Nets are “in the mix” for soon-to-be free agent Kevin Durant, even though they look like long shots, writes Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com. Durant’s free agency, expected to be one of the major storylines of the 2015/16, has largely been a backburner issue in large measure because Durant has spoken little about it and has rarely given any indication that he wants to leave the Thunder.
Meddling from owners who aren’t basketball personnel experts is most damaging when it affects draft decisions, which is why a report that Sixers ownership was worried about how fans would react to Kristaps Porzingis and pushed the team to draft someone else instead is troublesome, contends Derek Bodner of Philadelphia magazine. Sixers CEO Scott O’Neil says the report isn’t true, however (Twitter link).

Northwest Notes: Garnett, Towns, Durant, Jazz

January 23rd, 2016 at 8:40pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Wolves‘ Kevin Garnett had glowing words for rookie center Karl-Anthony Towns, but sidestepped a question on interim coach Sam Mitchell, according to Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune. “Next question,’’ the veteran forward said when asked if Mitchell is the right coach for the team’s future. But he had much more to say about Towns, who is among the favorites for Rookie of the Year honors. “He’s very smart,” Garnett said. “He has a high IQ. He understands basketball. Sometimes [it’s] a little difficult teaching him because he is so smart. I guess that’s a young thing. But he gets a lot of things you teach him very quickly.’’

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Towns’ skills weren’t fully appreciated coming out of college because he was sharing minutes on a deep, talented Kentucky team, writes Jonathan Tjarks of Real GM. Tjarks compares Towns to a larger version of the Hawks’ Al Horford and says he has a chance to be like Garnett, only with the ability to play center and hit 3-pointers.
Although Brooklyn seems like an improbable free agency destination for the Thunder’s Kevin Durant, Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com warns not to count out the Nets entirely. Durant’s representatives are Roc Nation Sports and Jay Z, who used to hold a minority ownership stake in the Nets. Also, Roc Nation’s president/chief of branding and strategy is Michael Yormark, whose twin brother Brett is CEO of the Nets. If Durant decides he wants to play in a big market and get away from the Warriors and Spurs in the Western Conference, Mazzeo believes Brooklyn could be on his radar.
There is a bright side to the injuries that have limited the Jazz to a 19-24 start, claims Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. With Dante Exum out for the year and Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors missing big chunks of the season, rookies Trey Lyles and Raul Neto have gotten valuable playing time. Neto has emerged as the starting point guard and is averaging 5.8 points and 2.4 assists per game, while Lyles overcame a slow start to become an effective scorer and 3-point shooter.

Western Notes: Aldridge, Williams, D-League

January 22nd, 2016 at 6:40pm CST by Eddie Scarito

LaMarcus Aldridge, who signed with the Spurs this past offseason as an unrestricted free agent, said he was very close to joining the Suns instead, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “It was very close,” said Aldridge. “It came down to the final minute, to the final day of me trying to make a decision of coming here or going to San Antonio. They [Phoenix] made a strong case. They knew who I wanted to play with and some things I valued and they made those things happen. I couldn’t not take them seriously because they did everything that I was asking at the time. It came down, neck and neck, between Phoenix and San Antonio. It wasn’t overplayed. That was accurate.”

Here’s more from out West:

Aldridge also noted that he is happy not having to be the alpha in San Antonio’s system and happiness for he and his family and a chance to win an NBA title trump any ego-driven concerns, Coro adds. “Things change,” Aldridge told Coro. “I’ve always enjoyed being the guy. I think working so hard in Portland to earn the right to have it be my team and to have my own team over the years and try to play at a high level, that was hard-earned. So I take pride in that. I cherish those years. I don’t want to be that guy. This team is so stacked that they really don’t need me to be that guy here. This is more Kawhi’s [Leonard] team and we all kind of fit in around him and try to make him better and try to make his life a little bit easier. I think if I was trying to be that guy still, then I should’ve not came. But I’m OK with trying to help Kawhi be great every night.”
Shooting guard Elliot Williams, whom the Grizzlies didn’t sign to a second 10-day contract after his first expired on Sunday, has rejoined the Warriors’ D-League affiliate in Santa Cruz, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor tweets.
The Thunder have assigned Josh Huestis and Mitch McGary to their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Huestis’ ninth stint with the Blue on the season and McGary’s fifth.

Northwest Notes: Mudiay, Singler, Felton

January 21st, 2016 at 3:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Emmanuel Mudiay is taking a cue from Russell Westbrook of late, playing more aggressively and confidently and impressing coach Michael Malone, as Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post examines. Mudiay’s stock fell in the lead-up to the draft last year, but the Nuggets have empowered the seventh overall pick.

“I love how aggressive he’s playing,” Malone said. “Obviously he’s got to be able to make his free throws. In the last couple of games he’s not converting at the foul line. But I think the art of finishing is something that comes with time, experience, and getting used to playing against the size and length that they have in the paint, and he’s only going to get better. I just like how aggressive he’s playing right now.”

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Kyle Singler played sparingly earlier this season even though the Thunder re-signed him to a five-year, $24.3MM deal, but the desire for more defense has led coach Billy Donovan to put Singler back in the rotation in place of Anthony Morrow, who’s in the final guaranteed season of his contract. The Oklahoman’s Berry Tramel has the details.
The Mavericks tried to entice the Timberwolves into trading for the No. 21 overall pick this past June, with Raymond Felton attached, but the late Flip Saunders turned down the proposal, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter links). Minnesota wound up trading with the Cavs instead to nab 24th overall pick Tyus Jones.
The Trail Blazers shrewdly signed Al-Farouq Aminu and Ed Davis to deals that will give them salaries below league average and decline in value over time, allowing the team to benefit from their production at a relatively cheap cost as they move into their primes, contends Keith P. Smith of RealGM. GM Neil Olshey has Portland ahead of schedule on its rebuild, which provides a refreshing contrast to the tear-down efforts of other teams, Smith writes.