Southeast Updates: Wall, Harrington, Bobcats
Michael Lee of the Washington Post spoke with John Wall today about his expectations for this upcoming season, which will be Wall's fourth in the league. Wall was matter-of-fact about his focus for next season tell Lee (via Twitter):
"My whole goal is, this is my 4th year & I need to be in the playoffs. Nothing more & nothing else needs to be said about that.”
Wall will make $7.259MM this season with the Wiz and if he and the team don't reach a deal on an extension by October 31st this year, the Wizards have the option to extend him a QO of $9.698MM in the spring.
Here are some more notes from around the Southeast division…
- Lee also writes at the Washington Post that third pick Otto Porter's versatility will be put to the test.
- Heat President Pat Riley says the team will try to find young veterans who can supplant the team's stars when they move on, as Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel notes.
- The Magic will likely buy-out Al Harrington tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.
- Louis Williams missed a large part of last season after he tore his right ACL, but as Lang Green at HoopsWorld finds out he's still a big part of the Hawks' plans after talking to coaches and executives. If the Hawks were to trade Williams to free up cap space, Mark Deeks of Shamsports.com says they would have no problem doing so.
- The Bobcats finally made a splashy free agency signing by getting Al Jefferson with a three-year $41MM deal earlier this summer. Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer writes that Jefferson has special skills as one of the last dominant low-post big men in the game today.
- Bonnell's colleague, Charlotte Observer columnist Scott Fowler sounds off on the hysteria over the Bobcats/Hornets name change.
Southeast Notes: Jones, Magic, Harrington
When the Magic declined to tender a qualifying offer to DeQuan Jones last month, that left open the possibility that the team could re-sign him as unrestricted free agent. However, Jones spoke with Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, who says that the Magic told him that won't happen. In 12.7 minutes per contest last season, the University of Miami product averaged 3.7 PPG and 1.7 RPG. Here's more out of the Southeast Division..
- The Magic's deals with Al Harrington and Hedo Turkoglu are only partially guaranteed, and neither veteran expects the team to keep them, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, noting that both of them hope the front office decides their futures soon.
- Wizards coach Randy Wittman would like the team to add a stretch four, but team president Ernie Grunfeld is content to leave the roster alone for now, as Michael Lee of the Washington Post observes.
- The NBA's Board of Governors will vote this week to formally approve the Bobcats' plan to change their nickname to Hornets for 2014/15, HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy tweets.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Magic Seeking Depth At Point Guard, Center
The Magic have been one of the NBA's quietest teams so far in July, having not agreed to a single trade or free agent signing since the offseason got underway. That doesn't mean the club will remain inactive all summer though. According to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, the Magic are looking to add depth at point guard and center.
In addition to incumbent starter Jameer Nelson, Victor Oladipo and E'Twaun Moore could see some time at the point, but both are traditionally shooting guards. At the very least, Orlando figures to ink a minimum-salary free agent to add another point guard to the mix, Robbins says, citing former Western Kentucky product A.J. Slaughter as one possibility. As for bigs, Brandan Wright has been connected to the Magic, but according to Robbins, the team hasn't had significant discussions with his reps.
As Robbins notes in a separate piece, the Magic are currently capped out, but if the team reaches buyout agreements with Al Harrington and/or Hedo Turkoglu, as is expected, cap space could be created. Even if Harrington and Turkoglu are retained for a few more months, it shouldn't affect the club's spending plans, since it's not as if Orlando is eyeing any big names — if the team remains over the cap, the mid-level exception should provide more than enough spending flexibility.
Magic, Turkoglu Making Progress On Buyout Talks
The Magic have engaged in buyout talks for Hedo Turkoglu's contract, and are making progress, according to Adrian Wojnarwoski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Turkoglu is in the last year of his deal, but only $6MM of his $12MM salary is guaranteed, so Orlando could save at least $6MM by releasing him.
GM Rob Hennigan had indicated late last month that he expected to talk to the agents for Turkoglu and Al Harrington in the near future, presumably to discuss buyouts. Like Turkoglu, Harrington has a contract that's only 50% guaranteed, though his deal is for two more years rather than just one.
If the Magic and Turkoglu were to reach an agreement, he'd be waived, would become an unrestricted free agent, and would be able to sign with any team besides Orlando. However, as Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel tweets, there's no real rush to complete a buyout. Turkoglu's contract has no guarantee date on it, so the Magic aren't on the hook for that full $12MM until January 10th.
Post Dwightmare Reactions: Shaq, Lakers, Howard
Dwight Howard's decision to spurn the extra $30MM the Lakers could offer in order to join the Rockets has led to some revelations around the rest of the league. With Dwight as the big free agency coup of the summer, he's turned into the first domino as other teams have made moves in the wake of his announcment.
But the fall-out from Dwight's decision is just starting to expand in scope, and there have been reactions all over. Perhaps most notably, are the words from another former Lakers and Magic star, Shaquille O'Neal.
O'Neal has been critical of Dwight Howard in the past, but he was a bit more condescending when he called Dwight's decision the "safe move," while speaking to assembled media Saturday. But O'Neal's reaction to Dwight's decision wasn't the only fall-out from D-12's move to Texas. Here are more Dwight Howard links now that he's finally made up his mind on where he's going next year:
- A year ago, Howard's camp warned the Rockets that he wouldn't re-sign with Houston if he were traded there. This summer, other Howard suitors tried to convince the big man that James Harden is a selfish teammate. Still, the Rockets persevered, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
- Former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy thinks Orlando got the better end of the deal when they dealt Howard in the blockbuster trade involving the Sixers, Nuggets and Lakers this past fall. Van Gundy spoke with Fox Sports Florida's Chris Tomasson about how the Magic ended up on top after the initial response had them losing the deal badly.
- There's video of Shaq talking about Howard and the decision, via NBA.com
- ESPN.com columnist J.A. Adande writes about the flummoxing decision by Dwight to leave the Lakers and the extra money, especially when considering his stated motivation to win now.
- The Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen sat down with the best Rockets center since Hakeem Olajuwon to get Howard's side of the story about what brought him to Houston.
- Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News offers a sobering insight for Lakers fans after Howard's decision: Kobe Bryant might have lost his last chance at title number six.
- Finally, we have Mike Bresnahan at the Los Angeles Times on the sketchy Lakers future after Dwight's decision to leave. Their first decision appears to have been not to amnesty Pau Gasol before the last season of his contract.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Magic Sign Victor Oladipo
The Magic have signed No. 2 overall pick Victor Oladipo, the team announced via press release. His rookie-scale figure is close to $4MM, so he’s likely to receive a first-year salary equal to 120% of the scale amount, like most first-round picks. That would give him slightly more than $4.76MM, as our salary chart for this year’s first-rounders shows.
The signing of first-round picks is one of the few transactions allowed during the July Moratorium, so the move is official. Oladipo gives the Magic a high-energy defender with a rapidly improving offensive game. When I examined his potential this spring, I figured Oladipo would continue his rise on draft boards around the league, and he wound up just one pick shy of the top spot.
He was a full-time starter for just one season in high school and two at Indiana University, but the 21-year-old wound up eclipsing fellow shooting guard prospect Ben McLemore in the eyes of the Magic, who have appeared ready to deal Arron Afflalo to clear a space in the lineup for Oladipo.
Howard Notes: Mavs, Magic, Lakers
Our long, national Dwightmare is over, but the ripple effects from his move to Houston will be felt for some time. Here's the latest news and fallout concerning the summer's biggest free agent move..
- Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com wonders aloud if Mark Cuban's grand plan is officially a failure. When MacMahon posed that question directly to Cuban in an email, the owner responded, “We haven't played a game yet. Look back at the big deal that won last summer and ask how it’s working for everyone now.” Still, it's hard to overlook the fact that Cuban struck out on Deron Williams last summer and was unable to land Dwight Howard or Chris Paul this summer.
- The Magic have officially won the Howard trade, opines Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel. While the Lakers lost Howard, the Nuggets lost Andre Iguodala, and free agent Andrew Bynum didn't play a minute for the 76ers last season, the Magic ended up with a couple of nice, young building blocks in big man Nikola Vucevic and Maurice Harkless, a consummate pro in Arron Afflalo, and five future draft picks.
- Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com (Twitter links) hears that Howard already made up his mind before boarding a plane for Aspen, Colorado, but wanted a little bit more time to think about things before shutting the door on the Lakers.
Los Angeles Rumors: Bledsoe, Redick, Vujacic
Dwight Howard has met with the Rockets, Warriors, and Hawks so far this week, and the Lakers, along with the Mavs, will finally get their shot to make a pitch to the All-Star free agent today. As Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets, Golden State's and Atlanta's presentations yesterday went well, with Howard considering both team's head coaches (Mark Jackson and Mike Budenholzer) to be impressive.
As the Lakers prepare to meet with the biggest free agent left on the market, let's round up a few more updates out of Los Angeles….
- It's sounding "more and more" as if the Clippers may just hang on to Eric Bledsoe, says Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. As Shelburne notes, it's hard to imagine Bledsoe re-signing with the Clippers long-term, either this offseason or next summer as a restricted free agent, but Doc Rivers seems in no hurry to part with the point guard, even after exploring possible deals (all Twitter links).
- According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, the Clippers have received trade inquiries on Bledsoe from the Raptors, Magic, Pistons, Bucks, and Mavericks.
- The Clippers are searching for a way to sign-and-trade for J.J. Redick, who dined with Rivers on Monday night, tweets Wojnarowski. However, sources call the possibility a long shot.
- Sasha Vujacic intends to return to the NBA for the 2013/14 season, and the Lakers would be his top choice, reports Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter).
- Kobe Bryant offered his latest hints that he'll be sticking around past next summer, insisting to Mike Trudell of Lakers.com that he'll be able to play at a high level for "at least another three years," and pointing to his injury and the Spurs' run to the Finals as motivation (Twitter links).
- The Lakers have expressed interest in re-signing Earl Clark, who is drawing attention from "two or three teams" besides L.A., writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
Wojnarowski On Copeland, Allen, Oladipo
Adrian Wojnarowski has passed along a few nuggets this afternoon on free agents and the teams chasing them, so let's check out what the Yahoo! Sports scribe has for us….
- The Pacers and Chris Copeland have a "strong mutual interest," according to Wojnarowski, who says Indiana is emerging as a potential destination for the restricted free agent.
- If the Grizzlies are unable to re-sign Tony Allen, the Nuggets may become a real threat to land the defensive specialist, tweets Wojnarowski. The Trail Blazers, Pacers, Bucks, and Knicks have also been identified as possible suitors for Allen, while Ken Berger of CBSSports.com throws the Mavericks into the mix as well (Twitter link).
- In a non-free-agent tweet, Wojnarowski suggests No. 2 overall pick Victor Oladipo will get "major run" at point guard in Summer League play for the Magic.
Trade Rumors: Asik, Bledsoe, Afflalo, Chandler
Most of the news and rumors we're passing along today relate to free agency, but during the July moratorium, it's likely we'll see a few trades agreed upon as well. Let's round up a few of today's reports on potential trade possibilities….
- Ostensibly, the Trail Blazers' acquisition of Thomas Robinson allows the Rockets to clear the cap room to make a max offer to Dwight Howard. However, the underrated aspect of the deal, according to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com, is that the Rockets could look to move Omer Asik if they land Howard. Haynes says Portland is "closely monitoring" that situation, since the big man would be the kind of rim-protecting defensive specialist the club has been lacking.
- The Clippers and Magic are still discussing a potential deal that would send Arron Afflalo to L.A. for Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler, says Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). However, before getting serious about Afflalo, the Clippers figure to make a run at free agent shooting guards such as O.J. Mayo and Tony Allen.
- A source tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link) that while the Knicks haven't offered Tyson Chandler in any trade talks, the team wouldn't be opposed to moving him in the right offer. I'm guessing Chandler will stay put, but as their acquisition of Andrea Bargnani showed, the Knicks are willing to get creative to try to improve their roster.