Oklahoma City Thunder Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Notes: Blazers, Rondo, Thunder

February 28th, 2015 at 12:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Trail Blazers, who have an empty roster spot, are more likely to sign a younger player who they could possibly develop for a role off the bench next season than bring in a veteran, Jabari Young of CSNNW.com writes. There are a few NBA D-League players who Portland could target, including Seth Curry and Glen Rice Jr., or the team may look to ink Jordan Hamilton if the Clippers don’t sign him for the remainder of the season, Young notes. Hamilton was recently inked to his first 10-day contract of the season with Los Angeles.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Despite his recent one game suspension for conduct detrimental to the team that resulted from a dust up with Mavs coach Rick Carlisle, Rajon Rondo is committed to helping Dallas to contend for a title this season, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com writes. “I’m going to do what’s best for the team and play my heart out for these next 22 games we have left, and [help] make a run in the playoffs,” Rondo said. “We’ve moved forward and our team has moved forward, and we’ve got a game to look forward to tomorrow. You know, I’m playing with some great players, with the addition of Amar’e [Stoudemire] now, and I think we’ve got a great chance to win a championship. So, that’s my main focus. I’m going to continue to work to get better and do what’s best to lead this team.”
The veteran point guard also said that he and the team both want to achieve the same goals, Sneed relays (Twitter link). “I’ve talked to pretty much everybody in the organization, and everyone is pretty much on the same page,” Rondo said.
The trades that Thunder GM Sam Presti made this season will help the team not only in 2014/15, but in the summer of 2016 when Kevin Durant becomes a free agent, Shaun Powell of NBA.com writes. The depth that Presti has added should make the team more competitive, which will in turn make the franchise harder to walk away from for Durant, Powell opines. The Slim Reaper is enthusiastic about the Thunder’s mid-season moves, Powell adds. “It shows how great our organization is,” Durant said. “You keep getting talent after talent and keep rolling them in there like that. It shows we’ve got a great eye for talent.“

Knicks Notes: Draft, Jackson, Shved, Larkin

February 27th, 2015 at 1:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

Knicks team president Phil Jackson called Ohio State combo guard D’Angelo Russell a “great prospect” when he spoke to Doug Lesmerises of Cleveland.com upon his visit to Ohio State amid a scouting trip, and while it’s no surprise he would say that, the comment sparked trouble nonetheless. The NBA doesn’t allow team officials to talk about college underclassmen, so the league has begun an investigation into Jackson’s comments and is likely to fine him for the remarks about Russell, a freshman, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The Knicks top the Reverse Standings, and Russell is No. 3 in Eddie Scarito’s Hoops Rumors Prospect Power Rankings. Here’s more on the Knicks:

The Knicks indeed made another push to deal for Reggie Jackson at the trade deadline, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. They were reportedly likely to make a renewed effort after coming up short in an attempt to trade for him last month. New York lacked the assets for the future to snag Jackson at the deadline, Berman writes, but the team is reportedly planning to target him again when he hits restricted free agency this summer. The Knicks have the potential recruiting advantage of employing coach Derek Fisher, a former Jackson teammate, as Berman examines.
The Knicks took on salary to trade for Alexey Shved because they view him as a fit for the triangle, Berman observes in the same story. “We definitely see the potential and his ability to play with our team and operate well within our format,’’ Fisher said. “He’s a good ballhandler and good passer and he can get to the rim and he’s pretty capable shooting.”
Shane Larkin would rather re-sign with the Knicks than play elsewhere in the NBA next season, Berman notes in a separate piece. However, the point guard can seek better offers than the $1,675,320 that New York is limited to paying him next season since the team declined his option for that same amount. “The league is watching at all times,’’ Larkin said. “If I go out there and play well the last 25 games, the Knicks could want me or someone else could want me. It’s not that I’m set on one team. They didn’t pick up my option. I can go wherever, but of course I want to stay in New York.’’

Jazz, Tibor Pleiss Discuss Deal

February 27th, 2015 at 8:24am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 8:24am: It appears there will be no deal between the Jazz and Pleiss this season, according to Pick (on Twitter).

1:21pm: The talks have encountered a hurdle, Pick hears (Twitter link). Barcelona has offered to trade Pleiss to Brose Baskets Bamberg, Carchia reports, but Pleiss and Barcelona are haggling over money, which would make such a trade difficult, according to Carchia. Utah is reportedly set to sign Bryce Cotton to a 10-day contract, though with two open roster spots, that wouldn’t necessarily signal the team is ready to move on from Pleiss, particularly since he and Cotton play different positions.

MONDAY, 11:46am: The Jazz and draft-and-stash prospect Tibor Pleiss are working on a deal that would bring the 7’2″ center to Utah, a source tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). The 25-year-old is on a contract with Barcelona of Spain that runs until 2016, as Mark Porcaro’s log of draft rights held players shows, but Barcelona isn’t satisfied with his play and is willing to let him go, as Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia reports (Twitter links). Pleiss isn’t pleased with his role in Spain, Carchia adds, and a source told Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune last week that there was a decent chance he’d leave Barcelona.

Pleiss has remained overseas since he became the 31st overall pick in 2010. His playing time this season with Barcelona is down sharply from last year, when he was with Laboral Kuxta, another Spanish team. He’s putting up 5.7 points and 3.6 rebounds in 12.8 minutes per game this season as opposed to his 12.4 PPG and 6.0 RPG in 21.8 MPG in 2013/14.

Utah acquired his rights from the Thunder last week in the three-team trade that sent Enes Kanter to Oklahoma City. It’s unclear if Barcelona would demand a buyout to spring Pleiss from his contract, but the Jazz have nearly $2.826MM in cap room and two open roster spots, allowing for plenty of flexibility.

And-Ones: Daniels, Shved, Towns

February 24th, 2015 at 11:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The amount of cash the Thunder sent the Pelicans in the Ish Smith trade is $801K, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). The 2015 second-round pick headed from Oklahoma City to New Orleans is Philly’s top-55 protected pick, as Pincus shows on his Pelicans salary page. The 2016 second-rounder headed to the Thunder is the less favorable of Sacramento’s top-55 protected pick and the Pelicans’ pick, according to RealGM.

Here’s more from around the league:

The Hornets gave up Gary Neal two weeks ago in the trade that netted Mo Williams and Troy Daniels, but Steve Clifford can envision Daniels developing into the sort of role Neal has played in the NBA, notes Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Bonnell’s piece examines just what the Hornets have in Daniels, who has a fully guaranteed minimum salary for next season.
The Heat sent the Suns $2.2MM in cash in the Goran Dragic trade, according to Pincus (Twitter link).
The Knicks did indeed take Alexey Shved‘s $3,282,057 salary into their $3,637,073 Raymond Felton trade exception as part of their trade with the Rockets, reducing that exception to $355,016, as Pincus tweets. The move allowed New York to create a new $1,662,961 trade exception worth the equivalent of Pablo Prigioni‘s salary, Pincus adds.
A number of NBA GMs and scouts are beginning to view Karl-Anthony Towns as having greater long-term potential than Jahlil Okafor, and the freshman could play his way into being drafted No. 1 overall this June, Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) writes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Northwest Notes: Garnett, Mitchell, Claver, Kanter

February 23rd, 2015 at 11:03pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Rockets’ Jason Terry believes Kevin Garnett will make an immediate impact with the Wolves, reports Jenny Dial Creech of The Houston Chronicle. Garnett, a star with Minnesota for more than a decade, was reacquired Thursday in a trade deadline deal. He may not see much playing time, but he is expected to have a strong influence over the Wolves’ young players. “He will infuse discipline right away,” said Terry, who teamed with Garnett with both the Celtics and Nets. “Guys will come in and they are going to be expected to be professional at all times and I think learning from KG the last two seasons in Brooklyn and in Boston, I learned how to be a better leader myself, even in my 16th year in the league.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Some expect that Timberwolves assistant coach Sam Mitchell will succeed Flip Saunders as Minnesota’s head coach, according to Sam Smith of Bulls.com. Mitchell reportedly interviewed for the head job last summer.
After a week that saw him get both traded and waived, Victor Claver got some advice from a former teammate on the Spanish national team, the Grizzlies’ Marc Gasol, writes Jabari Young of CSNNW.com. Claver was part of a five-player deal on Thursday that sent him from the Blazers to the Nuggets, but on Sunday he was waived by Denver. “He needed a change from [Portland]” Gasol said. “I don’t think he expected to get waived from Denver, but that’s part of the game.” Gasol’s advice was to stay aggressive and look for an opening where he can fit in. One possibility for Claver is a return to the Euroleague, where he played before coming to Portland.
Enes Kanter gives the Thunder the inside scoring presence they’ve needed for years, writes Dave Leonardis of Bleacher Report. Kanter came to Oklahoma City from the Jazz in a three-team deal just before last Thursday’s deadline. Kanter was inserted into the starting lineup and delivered two straight double-doubles in wins over the Hornets and Nuggets.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Aldridge’s Latest: Thunder, Lopez, Jackson

February 23rd, 2015 at 2:36pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Thunder aren’t making moves simply out of fear that Kevin Durant will jump ship in 2016 and Russell Westbrook will follow suit the next year, a league source tells TNT’s David Aldridge for his Morning Tip column on NBA.com. Still, it’s been an active season for GM Sam Presti, who went over the tax line to acquire Dion Waiters and stayed above it after Thursday’s swap that sent out Reggie Jackson and brought in Enes Kanter. Aldridge has much more in his column, and we’ll hit the highlights, many of which are Thunder-related:

The Thunder let the Nets know they wouldn’t do the proposed Jackson/Brook Lopez trade just 15 minutes before the deadline, Aldridge reports. The Nets likely would have dealt Jarrett Jack to the Wizards if they’d done that deal, Aldridge adds.
The concern that Arron Afflalo would turn down his player option and hit the open market dissuaded the Thunder from trading for him, as Aldridge explains.
The Rockets preferred Goran Dragic to Jackson and the Celtics weren’t willing to trade young players for the then-Thunder guard, Aldridge writes.
The Thunder didn’t have plans to re-sign Kendrick Perkins in the summer even before they traded him at the deadline, according to Aldridge.

And-Ones: Durant, Heat, Celtics, Hawks

February 22nd, 2015 at 11:32pm CST by Zachary Links

The Thunder announced via press release that Kevin Durant underwent a procedure on his right foot to help alleviate the soreness he has been experiencing. There’s no exact timetable for KD’s return at the moment, but we should have a better idea when he’s reevaluated a week from now. Here’s tonight’s glance around the Association..

Because of luxury-tax implications, the Heat may have to bypass spending the entire $2.65MM salary-cap exception received for Josh McRoberts‘ knee injury, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel writes. The Heat have until March 10th to use that DPE, but they’re only $1.4MM below the 2014/15 luxury tax line of $76.8MM. The immediate luxury tax payment would be minimal, but it would reset the team’s luxury tax clock.
Even with Isaiah Thomas now in the fold, the loss of Jared Sullinger may be enough to sink the Celtics‘ playoff hopes, Jeremy Gottlieb of Boston.com writes. The C’s announced on Sunday that Sullinger will miss the remainder of the season because of a metatarsal stress fracture in his left foot. Sullinger was averaging 14.4 points and 28.7 minutes per game this season, both career highs.
Who says you need a superstar to win? The Hawks are shunning convention with their roster and soaring, Eric Koreen of the National Post writes.

And-Ones: Wolves, Augustin, D-League

February 21st, 2015 at 5:25pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the trade deadline passed the Timberwolves‘ focus is now on seeing which players fit into their long-term plans, Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune writes. “It’s an evaluation time for some of these guys, for where they’re at,” president of basketball operations Flip Saunders said. “But also for what they have to work on, once the season ends and they start getting ready for next year, what they need to do to become solid rotational players. So it’s a little of both.”

Here’s more from around the league:

The Grizzlies didn’t need to be make a deal prior to the trade deadline according to coach Dave Joerger, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal relays (subscription required). “We’re pretty happy with where we are,” Joerger said. “What we could possibly add I don’t think is better than what we have here.”
Toronto GM Masaj Ujiri said that the Raptors had “productive talks” with NBA D-League officials during the All-Star break about the team getting its D-League affiliate, Ryan Wolstat of The Toronto Sun tweets.
Thunder coach Scott Brooks is excited for what point guard D.J. Augustin can bring to the team, Nick Gallo of NBA.com writes. “I like the toughness that he brings to the table,” Brooks said. “Every night he’s had to battle to be in the position that he’s in. He’s making a nice career for himself. He’s a great shooter. He can run the team. He looks to make plays for others. He’s a pesky defender. He’s a great pickup for us.” Augustin arrived in OKC as part of the deal with Detroit and Utah that sent Reggie Jackson to the Pistons.
The Magic have recalled Devyn Marble from the the Erie BayHawks, their D-League affiliate, John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com reports (Twitter link). This was Marble’s third D-League assignment of the season.
San Antonio has re-assigned Kyle Anderson to the Austin Spurs, the team announced. In two treks to the D-League this season, Anderson has appeared in 10 games, averaging 22.3 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 4.9 assists in 41.0 minutes per contest.

Northwest Notes: Young, Lauvergne, Lawson

February 21st, 2015 at 12:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With the trade deadline passed the Timberwolves‘ focus is on seeing which players fit into their long-term plans, Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune writes. “It’s an evaluation time for some of these guys, for where they’re at,” president of basketball operations Flip Saunders said. “But also for what they have to work on, once the season ends and they start getting ready for next year, what they need to do to become solid rotational players. So it’s a little of both.”

Here’s more from the Northwest Division:

The first-round pick the Jazz netted in their trade of Enes Kanter is Oklahoma City’s 2017 choice, and it’s lottery-protected every year through 2020, as RealGM shows. If it doesn’t convey by then, the Thunder will send their 2020 and 2021 second-round choices.
Thaddeus Young‘s representatives had asked the Timberwolves to trade him prior to Thursday’s deadline, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reports (Twitter link). Young was dealt to the Nets for Kevin Garnett.
Joffrey Lauvergne‘s contract with the Nuggets is for three years and $5.2MM, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link). The big man will earn $1.89MM the first year, and then $1.7MM in each of the two remaining years, with the third season non-guaranteed, Pincus notes. Denver used part of its mid-level exception to sign the big man, Pincus adds.
Nuggets GM Tim Connelly was critical of Ty Lawson, whose relationship with the team has reportedly deteriorated, Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post reports (Twitter links). Speaking about Lawson, Connelly said, “He needs to grow up. The organization, top to bottom, can’t be anymore supportive. It’s time for, not just Ty but for several of our guys to be pros or it’s time to take a hard look at our roster.“
As a result of their deadline dealings the Blazers now have an empty roster spot, something president of basketball operations Neil Olshey is in no hurry to fill, Joe Freeman of The Oregonian writes. Olshey believes that the Blazers’ player rotation is set and the organization believes that it has enough talent and depth to be a contender in the Western Conference, Freeman adds.
With the Nuggets reportedly set to waive him, Victor Claver‘s representatives are working to find the player a spot on an NBA roster, Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype.com relays. “The priority would be to find a new NBA deal even if it has to be a 10-day contract,” a league source told Sierra. “That would not be a problem, especially considering it may be too late for a deal in the Euroleague at this point.“

Pistons Notes: Jackson, Prince, Singler

February 20th, 2015 at 10:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Pistons president of basketball operations and coach Stan Van Gundy stressed that Detroit acquired Reggie Jackson with an eye on signing him to a long-term deal this summer, Keith Langlois of NBA.com writes. “We wouldn’t have made the move we did if we didn’t feel ready to make it a long-term commitment,” Van Gundy said. “There’s no guarantees. He’s a [restricted free agent]. We know we can keep him through next year no matter what he does, but we feel good about making a long-term commitment to him and hopefully he’ll feel real comfortable making a long-term commitment here and we’ll get it done. We’ve got a chance to put together a really solid young core and continue to develop them. You’ve got to have some patience, but I’m not all that patient, so hopefully it will come together sooner. But you do see a window there and it’s not a short window. It’s not a two- or three-year window.”

Here’s more from Motown:

Van Gundy told newly acquired swingman Tayshaun Prince that the team had no intention of buying out the veteran’s contract, Langlois tweets.
Jackson is overjoyed to be a starter with the Pistons, and relieved to be putting the difficulties he had with the Thunder behind him, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports writes. “I wasn’t always perfect, nor was the situation, but I became the brunt of the blame there,” Jackson said. “Everything bad that happened, I was the scapegoat. I’m taking all this blame, and I’m wondering: ‘How am I supposed to change it all here, make an impact, in eight minutes a game?’ Everybody is jumping down my neck, and it gets annoying when I’m supposed to have this great impact playing so little this season.”
Out of the four players the Pistons traded on Thursday, the only one who the team didn’t want to part with was Kyle Singler, David Mayo of MLive.com writes. Detroit liked the idea of having Singler as a lower budget backup at small forward, Mayo notes.
It was Jackson’s desire not to stay in Oklahoma City beyond this season, not his trade request, that led to him being dealt by the Thunder, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes. The point guard also had an offer sheet in the $14.5MM per season range “already in the bank,” a league source told Berger. OKC wasn’t willing to remain in luxury tax territory to re-sign a player who didn’t want to commit to them, Berger adds.