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Western Notes: Pekovic, Saunders, Suns

April 2nd, 2015 at 7:47pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Wolves big man Nikola Pekovic will undergo surgery next week to remove damage and repair his right Achilles tendon, the team announced via Twitter. Pekovic is out of action indefinitely, and it’s not yet known if the injury is career-threatening, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes. Coach/executive Flip Saunders had all but ruled out Pekovic for the season last week, saying, “We’€™ve got to do something. We’€™re not just going to sit there. We tried different ways to let it heal, trying to be as proactive as we can. We have to re-evaluate what we do with him. He’€™s constantly seeing doctors the last three weeks. We’€™ll see where it takes us.”€

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

  • Saunders said that he and Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor haven’t addressed whether or not Saunders would coach the team next season, Andy Greder of The Pioneer Press relays. “I’m gonna coach until I tell you I’m not the coach, so you can take it that way,” Saunders said. “I’ve enjoyed what I’ve done this year. It’s been a trying year from the injury standpoint, but our staff, we feel when we look at the progress of what our young players have made, that we’ve done what we set out to do when things changed over the first month of the season.” The coach/executive and Taylor reached a deal that’€™s €œopen-ended€ in terms of length last offseason. Saunders also serves as the team’€™s president of basketball operations.
  • The Suns‘ injury issues have led to increased playing time for rookies Archie Goodwin and T.J. Warren, giving the team a chance to see them shine, Matt Petersen of NBA.com writes. Phoenix’s president of basketball operations Lon Babby is especially happy with what he’s seen of Warren. “He’s just an amazingly efficient scorer,” Babby said. “Every game, [he shoots] 6-for-9, 5-for-7, he’s just around the basket and it seems to come easily to him. Both of those draft picks [referring to Goodwin and Warren], along with Alex Len…are all doing well and bode well for the future.”
  • Gordon Hayward said Enes Kanter’€™s critical comments angered the Jazz and that the players took his remarks personally, Doug Robinson of The Deseret News writes. After defeating the Thunder 94-89 last week, the first time Kanter returned to Utah after his remarks, Trevor Booker said, “€œI definitely wanted to kick his butt. He got his stats and he got his L [loss] as always.“
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Pacific Notes: Clarkson, Crawford, Len

April 1st, 2015 at 9:20pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The Lakers believe they have a potential All-Star in Jordan Clarkson, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles News writes. “The more he gains experience, he will learn the pace of the game, how to slow it down and use his speed when he has to do so,”coach Byron Scott said. “His ceiling is pretty high.” Clarkson will make roughly $845K next season, although his salary is non-guaranteed.

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Jamal Crawford is nearing a return to the court, Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com reports. If the shooting guard continues to progress the plan is for Crawford to play against the Lakers on April 7th, according to Markazi. The 35-year-old has missed the last 14 games because of a calf injury and it was previously reported that there was a chance he wouldn’t return at all this season.
  • Alex Len is expected to miss a week because of a broken nose, Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports. Len should only miss two games, but the team doesn’t have an easy path to add a free agent big man if they find it necessary. The Suns currently have a 15-man roster, after inking Jerel McNeal to a 10-day contract earlier today. Phoenix is four and a half games behind Oklahoma City for the eighth seed in the conference with seven games remaining.
  • Eric Bledsoe started more games this season than in his first four seasons combined and the team believes he is still getting acclimated to the increase in playing time, writes Paul Coro in a separate piece. “Sometimes, you just don’t have the energy. We ask him to do a lot defensively and offensively. The great players will do it and they’ll bring it every night. He’s on that verge,” coach Jeff Hornacek said. Bledsoe has played 2.1 more minutes per game since the Suns dealt Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas at this year’s deadlines.
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Suns Sign Jerel McNeal To 10-Day Contract

April 1st, 2015 at 2:38pm CST by Eddie Scarito

WEDNESDAY, 2:38pm: The deal is official, the team announced.

TUESDAY, 7:07pm: The Suns intend to sign Jerel McNeal to a 10-day contract, and they will not re-sign A.J. Price, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic reports (Twitter link). Price’s first 10-day deal with Phoenix expired last night. The Suns’ roster count will move back to 15 players once McNeal is officially signed.

McNeal is a 6’3″ shooting guard who went unselected back in the 2009 NBA draft. The 27-year-old had been playing for the Bakersfield Jam, the Suns’ D-League affiliate. In 27 games for the Jam, McNeal averaged 18.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in 32.6 minutes per contest. He has previously had NBA training camp stints with the Clippers, Raptors and Rockets. The Pelicans and Jazz have briefly carried him on regular season rosters in the past, but he didn’t see action during either stint, so he’s technically a two-year veteran even though he has yet to make his official NBA debut.

Price had also played for the Pacers and Cavaliers this season. He appeared in 10 games with Indiana, averaging 10.5 points, 2.7 assists and 19.3 minutes, before the club waived him in late November. Cleveland then claimed him off waivers and he appeared in 11 games with the Cavs, averaging just 2.0 points, 1.2 assists and 7.9 minutes, until they waived him in early January. In five appearances for the Suns, Price notched 1.2 PPG and 1.2 APG in 8.8 minutes per contest.

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Western Notes: Durant, Kanter, Frazier, Kings

March 31st, 2015 at 10:53pm CST by Charlie Adams

Rumors are already suggesting that Kevin Durant might be eyeing an exit from Oklahoma City in the summer of 2016, but the reigning MVP spoke out and expressed an interest in spending the rest of his career with the Thunder, as Royce Young of ESPN.com transcribes.

“I love it here, man. I love my teammates, I love the city, I don’t really think about anywhere else,” Durant told Revolt TV. “I love staying in the moment, and I’m one of those guys that would love to stick it out with one team my whole career; Kobe [Bryant], Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki type. That’s awesome. But you never know what the future holds sometimes and how teams may feel about you after a while, but I love it here and I would love to get my jersey retired here.”

While Durant’s comments are far from a guarantee that he’€™ll stick around in OKC for life, they certainly must provide a level of comfort for Thunder fans who have seen reports linking KD to several different clubs. We’€™ve got more on the bunch from Oklahoma City in tonight’€™s look out west:

  • The candid way in which Enes Kanter has spoken about the Jazz since Utah traded him to the Thunder at the deadline has some executives wondering if the big man will be able to land a lucrative new deal this summer as a restricted free agent, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders. Concerns about his attitude coupled with his less-than-stellar defense might scare some teams off, the executive suggests.
  • Tim Frazier will have a chance to remain with the Blazers beyond this season, hears Joe Freeman of the Oregonian, who says Portland’€™s latest addition will get the opportunity to appear with the team in training camp next fall. However, it’€™s unclear if Frazier has a non-guaranteed year tacked on to his deal or if he’€™s merely a just lock to garner an invite to camp before next season begins.
  • Chris Mullin’€™s recent departure from the Kings organization isn’€™t a total shock, given that Mullin opposed the pursuit of George Karl, hoping he could land Sacramento’s vacant coaching position himself, as Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee observes. If Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro can’€™t mesh with Vlade Divac, the team’€™s new VP of basketball operations, D’€™Alessandro might not be long for the organization either, Voisin writes.
  • Holly Mackenzie of Triangle Offense chronicles Brandon Knight’s evolution as a player and steps through the series of events that brought him to the Suns. Knight is poised for a significant raise as a restricted free agent this summer, Mackenzie believes.
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Atlantic Notes: Bradley, Thomas, Ish Smith

March 31st, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Multiple executives from other teams around the league are impressed with all of the trades that the Celtics have made the last two years, but there’s no grand design behind it, president of basketball operations Danny Ainge tells Grantland’s Zach Lowe.

“We don’t have any master plan,” Ainge says. “You just hope you have the assets when a deal comes along.”

Ainge pledges an active run in free agency this summer, though he believes some of the team’s existing players could grow into the sort of star-level performers who usually are among the top three players on a contender, as Lowe details. The Celtics love Marcus Smart, last year’s No. 6 overall pick, Lowe writes, and while multiple teams offered expiring deals and picks toward the back end of the first round for Avery Bradley, Ainge turned them away, several league sources tell Lowe. There’s more on the Celtics amid the latest from the Atlantic Division:

  • The Celtics think Isaiah Thomas is a better asset to trade than the protected 2016 first-round pick from Cleveland that they gave up to get him from the Suns at the deadline, according to Lowe. The C’s talked about waiting to do the Thomas deal to avoid winning too many games down the stretch this year, but decided against that, with Ainge informing coach Brad Stevens, whom he normally keeps in the loop, of the deal just an hour before it happened, as Lowe examines. “Ideally, he might have been someone you pick up in the summer,” Ainge said. “But someone else might trade for him. You might be in a bidding war. You have to move while the iron is hot.”
  • Nerlens Noel on Monday called Ish Smith “the first real point guard I’ve ever played with” and expressed a desire that Smith, a free agent at season’s end, return to the Sixers, notes Tom Moore of Calkins Media. Of course, Noel spent the first half of the season with reigning Rookie of the Year Michael Carter-Williams at the point. In any case, Noel’s development has taken off since Smith arrived shortly after the deadline trade that sent Carter-Williams out, notes Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Daily News, who refers to the big man’s growth as the team’s most important mission this season.
  • Marc Berman of the New York Post wonders just what the Knicks‘ D-League coaching change Monday means for the future of assistant GM Allan Houston, once seemingly a GM-in-training. Houston’s duties with the NBA team had already been curtailed under Phil Jackson, Berman writes.
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Pacific Notes: Love, Lakers, Sacre, Len

March 28th, 2015 at 6:54pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook teaming up and playing for the Lakers is a real possibility, opines Nick Dudukovich of Fansided.com. Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com discussed the rumors of Love leaving Cleveland either this season or next on his podcast, which airs on ESPN Cleveland. Windhorst notes that out of all the stars in the league, the player that Love has the best relationship with is Westbrook.

Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • Robert Sacre would like to play for Los Angeles next season, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. “I would love to be back here. It would be fun,” said Sacre. “You’re a Laker. What else can you ask for? There’s no other franchise like it. It’s an honor to wear purple and gold.” Sacre has a non-guaranteed salary for the 2015/16 season, which is worth slightly more than $981K.
  • Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic believes that Alex Len is the center of the future for the Suns. Phoenix picked up Len’s rookie scale option before the season and the team is likely to make the same decision regarding Len’s 2016/17 option, although that is just my speculation.
  • Pablo S, Torre of ESPN The Magazine chronicles Jeremy Lin‘s time to date for the Lakers and his career up to this point. Lin is in the last season of a three-year deal worth slightly over $25MM that he originally signed with Houston. The point guard will become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
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Suns Tops In Newcomers Since Start Of Season

March 27th, 2015 at 10:55am CST by Chuck Myron

The Suns have done a lot of roster shuffling this season to reach more or less the same point. Phoenix was widely expected when 2014/15 began to fall somewhere near the final playoff berth in the Western Conference, just as the team did last year, and that’s right where the Suns are, three games out of eighth place. They nonetheless have a league-high seven players who weren’t around for opening night, thanks in large measure to six trades, including three on deadline day. The likes of Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas have given way to Brandon Knight and Brandan Wright, but the Suns are more or less right where they started.

A pair of new coaches who also run the basketball operations for their teams have been active as well. Stan Van Gundy and Flip Saunders have brought six new players apiece to their respective rosters since the beginning of the season, though neither the Pistons nor the Timberwolves are playoff-bound. The same is true of the Sixers, who have just as many new faces, to no one’s surprise. By contrast, the Heat, whose most significant move was either acquiring Dragic from the Suns or signing Hassan Whiteside midseason, are in position to make the postseason with six players who weren’t around on opening night.

They’re competing for a playoff spot with the Pacers, who clearly haven’t panicked with Paul George out. Indiana picked up A.J. Price earlier this season via the hardship exception, letting him go when some of the team’s other injured players returned. Aside from that, the Pacers have stood pat in the face of a trying season. The Magic haven’t touched their roster all year, instead seemingly placing the blame for their continued struggles on Jacque Vaughn, whom they fired as coach. The Bulls and Raptors have high hopes for deep playoff runs, but neither team has anyone it didn’t have when the season began.

Here’s a look at how each team stacks up in terms of additions since the beginning of the season, categorized by the volume of new players. Those on 10-day contracts have an asterisk by their names.

Seven newcomers

Six newcomers

Five newcomers

Four newcomers

Three newcomers

Two newcomers

One newcomer

No newcomers

  • Bulls
  • Magic
  • Pacers
  • Raptors
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And-Ones: Mudiay, Thomas, Orton

March 26th, 2015 at 9:05pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Goran Dragic was a bit shocked that the Suns dealt his former teammate Isaiah Thomas to the Celtics at this season’s trade deadline, Ben Rohrbach of WEEI 93.7 FM writes. “If I’m honest, I was a little bit surprised, especially because I asked for the trade,” said Dragic. “But that’s how the NBA goes. It’s a business. Unfortunately, we had three point guards at the same position and only one ball, so it’s kind of hard to satisfy everybody.”

Presumably, Dragic was talking about his request that the Suns trade him, as they ultimately did when they sent him to the Heat, rather than suggesting that he asked the Suns to trade Thomas, though that’s not entirely clear. Here’s more from around the league:

  • Metta World Peace‘s deal for the remainder of the season with Italy’s Pallacanestro Cantù is worth approximately $40K plus bonuses, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando reports.
  • Projected 2015 lottery pick Emmanuel Mudiay has parted ways with agent Raymond Brothers, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress reports (Twitter link). The guard will now be represented by Jason Martin and Dwon Clifton of Rival Sports Group, Givony adds. Mudiay is currently the No. 3 ranked prospect according to DraftExpress and ESPN.com.
  • Daniel Orton, who appeared in 22 contest for the Sixers during the 2013/14 campaign, doesn’t look back at his time in Philadelphia fondly, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Orton discussed what it was like to go from the Thunder organization to the Sixers’, saying, “Leaving the Thunder, you see the greater side of the NBA. I went into Philly and a situation where it was the total opposite. You got a team just trying to rebuild basically from scratch and blowing up anytime you had something going good. So you definitely learn the business side of it.” Orton has played in China and the Philippines this season after attending training camp with the Wizards.
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Western Notes: Anderson, Douglas, Barron

March 26th, 2015 at 7:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Ryan Anderson, who has been out of action since February with an MCL sprain in his right knee, could be making his return for the Pelicans next week, John Reid of The Times Picayune writes. ”We’re progressing each day and continue to ramp up to be ready,” Anderson said. ”We’ll do a little more on the court. There is a mental aspect where I got to get over the fact that my knee is stronger and OK. There is still some strengthening I need to build up. But we’re doing everything we can and it is frustrating and it’s tough being out.”  In 52 games this season the big man has averaged 14.6 points and 5.1 rebounds in 28.6 minutes per night.

Here’s more out of the Western Conference:

  • Earl Barron‘s deal with the Suns for the rest of the season is indeed just that, without any extra years tacked on, according to Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
  • Jordan Hamilton‘s latest Clippers contract is a two-year arrangement with non-guaranteed salary for next season, Pincus tweets.
  • The Pelicans tacked a non-guaranteed minimum salary for next season onto their deal with Toney Douglas, Pincus relays (Twitter link). His 2015/16 pay becomes guaranteed if he remains under contract through August 1st, as Pincus shows on the Basketball Insiders Pelicans salary page.
  • Bryce Cotton‘s multiyear deal with the Jazz covers both 2015/16 and 2016/17 with non-guaranteed salaries, as Pincus also reports (Twitter link).

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Mavs Want New Deal With Amar’e Stoudemire

March 26th, 2015 at 12:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

Mark Cuban signaled that he’d like to keep Amar’e Stoudemire beyond the rest-of-season deal he signed with the team following his buyout with the Knicks, as Cuban told reporters, including Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News and Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. Stoudemire’s choice of the Mavs over the Suns, a team in which he had an “extremely high” level of interest in joining, and other suitors indicates that he’ll again consider signing with Dallas this summer, MacMahon figures, though it doesn’t appear an open-and-shut case. Stoudemire called the summer ahead a chance for him to choose a team that has confidence in him and understands that he’s eager to play at a high level for years to come, as Sefko relays, and MacMahon believes he’ll prioritize winning, playing time, and money.

“I love Amar’e — love, love, love the guy,” Cuban said. “There’s not enough superlatives. He’s just a great guy on the court and off. I just love his physicality. He just wants to win and is a great guy.”

Cuban makes a habit of saying he wants to keep his teams intact only to shuffle the roster, Sefko points out. Still, the owner isn’t upset about Stoudemire’s criticism of his new teammates, citing the 13-year veteran’s experience as reason to let him speak his mind, Sefko notes. Dallas will probably offer Stoudemire a “significant” portion of the mid-level exception this summer, MacMahon believes. The non-taxpayer’s mid-level will be $5.464MM and the taxpayer’s amount will be $3.376MM, though if the Mavs dip below the cap, they’ll instead have the $2.814MM room exception.

MacMahon envisions Stoudemire asking for a multiyear deal, which jibes with the 32-year-old’s intent to maintain his performance well into the future. Stoudemire said he believes he can play another five or six years if he keeps his body in tune, as Sefko and MacMahon relay. The strong reputation of Mavs athletic trainer Casey Smith helped persuade the big man to sign with Dallas, as MacMahon wrote last month, but Phoenix’s training staff is as well-regarded as any in sports, and Stoudemire would reportedly welcome a return to the Suns this summer. In any case, Stoudemire said “there’s no way” he’s retiring this summer, according to Sefko.

Reports linked Stoudemire to the Blazers, Grizzlies, Spurs, Clippers, Raptors and Warriors while he was considering where he would play following his Knicks buyout, and that suggests there will be plenty of teams in the mix for him again this summer. In any case, he assuredly won’t be making the salary of almost $20.911MM the Knicks are shelling out for him this year, an amount that was to have been even greater before he gave up $2.5MM in the buyout. His deal with the Mavs gives him a prorated minimum salary, and Dallas would have to use cap room or an exception to give him more than 120% of the minimum next season, since they have only Non-Bird rights to him. The Mavs have about $28MM in guaranteed salary for next season, but several members of the team are set to hit free agency.

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