Minor Moves: Darius Morris, Faverani, Goodwin
Here are a few minor transactions that have occurred so far today.
- The Clippers had to decide by today whether they would retain point guard Darius Morris for the remainder of the season or allow him to become a free agent. It appears they opted to let Morris go as Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times tweeted this morning. With Chris Paul hoping to return from injury by the All-Star break, it seems the Clippers will rely primarily on Darren Collison for the nine games prior to the break. Morris appeared in 10 games for the Clippers averaging 5.4 MPG with 0.9 PPG, 0.5 APG. He is now a free agent. The Clippers now have 14 players under contract.
- The Celtics announced in a team release they have recalled center Vitor Faverani from their D-League affiliate in time for today’s matchup against the Nets. The move was expected as Celtics GM Danny Ainge stated yesterday when Faverani was sent down that it would be “just a quick assignment to get Vitor some more game action, and he’ll be back with the Celtics for shootaround tomorrow morning.“ Faverani saw 26 minutes of play last night, in which he recorded 13 points and 7 boards.
- According to a team release to NBA.com, the Suns have recalled guard Archie Goodwin from their D-League affiliate in time for Phoenix’s matchup against the Cavaliers tonight. Goodwin was sent down Thursday and was able to appear in two games during his short stint. In those two games Goodwin put up impressive numbers, averaging 44.0 MPG, 29.5 PPG, and 6.0 RPG.
Odds & Ends: Bledsoe, Cuban, Gortat
Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders runs down six things you need to know about the Suns, including their enviable cap position. While some might think that Phoenix would have a hard time landing big free agents, Eric Bledsoe is the kind of guy who other elite players will want to play with because he’s a fierce competitor and unselfish. It also helps that Jeff Hornacek is a player’s coach, being a former player himself.
- Can an NBA owner do a sufficient job while living on the other side of the world? No, says Mavs owner Mark Cuban, according to Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. “Absolutely not,” Cuban said. “Hypothetically speaking — and this only applies to individuals 6-foot-5 and under — you can’t,” Cuban said as an obvious shot at 6-foot-7 Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov. “That’s why I sit so close. It’s like trying to run a company and not being able to go to the sales meetings, not being able to go to the customer service meetings or the support meeting.”
- The Hawks announced that they have recalled guard Jared Cunningham from the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA Development League. Cunningham, who was re-assigned to Bakersfield on January 1st, has averaged 15.2 points, 4.2 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 29.8 minutes in 17 games (14 starts) over three stints with the Jam this season. He has appeared in three games with the Hawks this year and will be available tonight at Milwaukee. To keep up with all of this year’s D-League assignments and recalls, check out our running list.
- Wizards big man Marcin Gortat says he looks back on his time with the Suns fondly, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Gortat has also found a nice home for himself in Washington and the Wizards are very interested in locking him up long-term.
- Scott Rafferty of Ridiculous Upside has a breakdown of P.J. Hairston’s 40 point performance for the D-League’s Texas Legends. The former UNC standout figures to be a first-rounder in the 2014 draft and could vault himself up the board with more performances like that one.
Pacific Notes: Suns, Lakers, Collison
Owner Robert Sarver tells Dan Bickley of The Arizona Republic that he feels “OK,” but not “great” about his surprising Suns, who sit at 24-17 in seventh place in the West
“We’re a work in progress,” he said. “What I feel really good about, and what I feel, is optimism. It’s optimism that we have some really good pieces, a good coaching staff and a number of assets that, if we make smart decisions, will lead us back to the elite level of play.”
Sarver had much more to say, and we covered his comments on Eric Bledsoe earlier today. We’ll pass along another item of note from Bickley’s interview amid our look at the Pacific Division:
- Suns president of basketball ops Lon Babby endorsed Jeff Weltman, then with the Bucks and now with the Raptors, for the Phoenix GM job this summer, but Sarver made the decision to hire Ryan McDonough instead, according to Bickley.
- The Lakers aren’t sure they want to make a significant investment in any free agent other than LeBron James this summer, so they’ll probably instead pursue lower-tier free agents with short-term deals and gear up for 2015, Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding writes. Regardless, the team won’t use the draft as its primary vehicle toward contention, according to Ding.
- Darren Collison‘s success in place of Chris Paul raises the odds that he’ll opt out of his contract, as Jeff Caplan of NBA.com surmises. Collison signed his deal with the Clippers when it became apparent to him that the Mavs didn’t want him back, a stance the point guard saw as disrespectful. “As a competitor you look at it that way,” Collison said. “They had their situation. I’m just glad that I fell into a situation like the Clippers that’s given me an opportunity. Now I have a chance to play for a contending team that’s going to try to play for something more special.”
- Marcin Gortat is grateful to the Suns and says he harbors no hard feelings about their decision to trade him this past fall, though he admits there will be emotions involved as he returns to Phoenix with the Wizards for tonight’s game. Michael Lee of The Washington Post has more.
Suns Will Match Any Offer For Eric Bledsoe
Eric Bledsoe is out of action while he recovers from a torn meniscus in his right knee, and while the point guard has left open the possibility he could miss the rest of the season, Suns owner Robert Sarver says it won’t affect negotiations this summer. Bledsoe will be a restricted free agent, and while any team can offer him a four-year deal with a starting salary up to 25% of the salary cap, Sarver appears ready to exercise his right to match any such offer, as the owner tells Dan Bickley of the Arizona Republic.
“I think we had a pretty good idea of who Eric was when we traded for him,” Sarver said. “So I wouldn’t say we need to see more of him to match any offer. Obviously, we’d like to see more of him because our team plays better when he’s playing. And we’re competing (now), we’re making a playoff run this year. And I think if we can get him back, not only can we make a playoff run, we have a chance to be a team that can win in the playoffs, too.”
Sarver’s comments echo those of GM Ryan McDonough, who said at the beginning of the month that the Suns would do “whatever it takes” to keep the 24-year-old. Other teams could offer Bledsoe four-year contracts worth a total of approximately $60MM, depending on next year’s cap figure, while the Suns could sign the Rich Paul client outright to a five-year deal for between $75MM and $80MM. McDonough noted the team’s relatively clean books in the years ahead, so apparently the team is willing to turn over a sizable chunk of its cap space to the former 18th overall pick it acquired via trade from the Clippers this summer.
McDonough and coach Jeff Hornacek have said Bledsoe will definitely be back on the court this season, and Bickley thinks Bledsoe’s slightly less optimistic tone may simply be a matter of semantics. Regardless, it appears Sarver has already made his decision, based on Bledsoe’s performance so far this year in his first crack as a full-time starter. He’s put up 18.0 points and 5.8 assists per game with a career-high 20.0 PER.
Odds & Ends: Stuckey, Teague, D-League
Considering his expiring contract and recent stellar play, Pistons guard Rodney Stuckey could be a hot commodity on the trade market soon, especially for teams looking to add bench scoring or create some cap flexibility this summer, writes Brendan Savage of MLive.com. Despite the likelihood of being included in discussions as we inch closer to the February trade deadline, Stuckey insists that he’s strictly focused on playing basketball:
“Nah, I don’t think about that,..Whatever happens, happens. I’m here to play basketball. I’m a Detroit Piston right now…I have no control over that. My agent will take care of that. It’s up to the organization, what they want to do and what they’re looking at. I don’t think about it at all. I just try to come out every night and compete and try to win.”
Here’s more from around the league this evening:
- Newly acquired Nets guard Marquis Teague said he wasn’t shocked about being dealt from the Bulls and admitted that he didn’t fit well with the style of former coach Tom Thibodeau: “It just wasn’t clicking with Thibs the right way… trying to figure out the system was kind of tough for me. The way they play isn’t really my style, so it’s kind of difficult for me. But I’ve got a new start now, so I’m just looking forward to the future” (Mike Mazzeo of ESPN New York).
- As per the team’s official website, the Suns have assigned Archie Goodwin to the Bakersfield Jam.
- The Cavaliers recalled Carrick Felix and Sergey Karasev from the Canton Charge earlier today (Twitter link).
- According to Gino Pilato of DLeagueDigest.com, former University of Miami forward Kenny Kadji has entered the NBDL player pool and will likely receive a claim from a D-League team.
- Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun believes that if the Raptors sign Vince Carter as a free agent this summer, it could help the team’s perception with other free agents who may question why the franchise hasn’t honored its most decorated star.
- ESPN’s Marc Stein forecasts the makeup of the 12-man Team USA roster which will compete in this year’s FIBA World Cup. Of the 28 names listed in the USAB’s national team player pool, Stein believes that 10 of them appear to be realistic locks (barring injury), leaving an interesting race for the final two spots.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Pacific Notes: Jackson, Warriors, Goodwin
Three teams are separated by just two games in the loss column atop the Pacific Division. One of them isn’t the Lakers, of course, but the purple-and-gold are nonetheless the division’s only squad in TNT’s nationally televised doubleheader this evening. While we await tip-off, here’s the latest from the Pacific:
- Former Lakers coach Phil Jackson on Wednesday made his most definitive statement to date that he won’t return to the bench, as part of an interview on Fox Sports Live (Twitter link). The Zen Master left some wiggle room in previous comments, casting it as unlikely he’d coach again but leaving the door slightly ajar. This time, he made it almost entirely certain. “I’m not going to coach again,” Jackson said, as Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News transcribed. “I’ve done my coaching and I think I can put that aside.”
- Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob acknowledged that the team’s goal of moving into a new arena in San Francisco by 2017 will be difficult to meet, as he told Gary Radnich and Larry Krueger of KNBR radio Thursday. The hurdles to construction for the proposed bayside arena have long made the timetable seem far-fetched, as Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle points out.
- The Suns have yet to make an official announcement, but they’ve told Archie Goodwin they’ll send him to the D-League, according to Craig Grialou of ArizonaSports.com. GM Ryan McDonough says the 29th overall pick in the 2013 draft will play a pair of games this weekend for the Bakersfield Jam before rejoining the Suns. It’ll be Phoenix’s first D-League assignment this year.
Pacific Notes: Plumlee, Green, Kings
Rudy Gay has been playing some of the best basketball of his career since joining the Kings, and DeMarcus Cousins has also been on a tear, so hopefully the injuries both suffered in tonight’s game aren’t devastating. Both went out and will not return, per Jason Friedman of Rockets.com (via Twitter). Here are some more notes from around the Pacific Division:
- The Suns have gone from a presumed tanker to playoff contenders. Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck details how Phoenix has stayed competitive with a roster built for the future, even after losing breakout guard Eric Bledsoe to injury. The positive outlook still extends to the future: “The Suns could have six first-round picks over the next two drafts, including four this June. They could have $30 million to spend on free agents this summer, and more in 2015. Their rookie head coach, Jeff Hornacek, is the leading candidate for Coach of the Year.”
- A big part of the Suns‘ sooner-than-expected success has come from the additions of Miles Plumlee and Gerald Green, and Matt Peterson of Suns.com credits Phoenix GM Ryan McDonough for swinging the smart trade that landed those two players and a pick from the Pacers for Luis Scola.
- Kings rookie Ray McCallum benefited from the team’s use of the D-League while spending time with the Reno Bighorns before his recent call up, writes The Sacramento Bee’s Jason Jones. The Kings designate specific developmental areas for players sent down, working with the Reno coaching staff to ensure those areas are focused on. “For him to go down there and get minutes was well needed,” coach Mike Malone says. “And I think if there’s an opportunity for him to play during the rest of the season, he definitely will.”
Central Rumors: Bulls, Green, Scola
The Bulls could take a couple of different paths regarding trade exceptions from Tuesday’s deal with the Nets. Chicago could absorb Tornike Shengelia’s $788,872 salary into the $2,025,000 exception they received in the Luol Deng trade, leaving that exception at $1,236,128 and creating a new exception worth the equivalent of Marquis Teague’s $1,074,720 salary. It seems more likely that they would leave the Deng exception alone and create a tiny $285,848 exception from the difference between Teague and Shengelia’s salaries, simply because a roughly $2MM exception is more useful than two exceptions worth about $1MM. Still, their choice remains unconfirmed. Here’s the latest from the Central:
- Gerald Green isn’t upset with the Pacers for burying him last season or trading him over the summer, and says he has no intention of ever leaving the Suns, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
- Luis Scola says the memories of his time with the Suns are painful, as Coro passes along in the same story. Scola nonetheless had concerns about how much of a role he’d have on the Pacers when the team traded for him this summer, observes Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. Frank Vogel assured the longtime starter he’d be a major part of the team, and Scola appears content as a key player off the bench.
- The trade talk surrounding Greg Monroe is starting to bother him, as he tells Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News. “It does, to be honest. We’re still trying to get things right, here,” Monroe said. “To see that stuff … I just focus on what we’re doing here. I’m here. If that changes, then I’ll move forward. If it never does, I’ll focus on playing these games and trying to win these games.”
- The Cavaliers have assigned Carrick Felix and Sergey Karasev to the D-League, the team announced. It’ll be the fourth D-League stint this year for Felix, who just returned from the Canton Charge on Tuesday, and the third for Karasev.
- No other NBA teams made an offer to Mike James, who jumped on a 10-day contract from the Bulls and harbors no ill will toward the team for waiving him earlier this season, as he tells reporters, including K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.
Pacific Notes: Plumlee, Len, Young, Kings
Eight teams have given out at least one 10-day contract so far this season, and three of those clubs are from the Pacific Division, as our 10-Day Tracker shows. The Clippers have struck three such deals, the most of any team in the NBA, and all of them have gone to point guards as they look to make up for the absence of Chris Paul. Here’s the latest from the Pacific:
- The Suns insisted that the Pacers include Miles Plumlee in the Luis Scola trade after scouting the 25-year-old center in summer league action, and the result is what Plumlee believes is a “perfect” trade, as he tells Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Phoenix’s starting center says he’s grateful for his newfound playing time and harbors no ill will toward the Pacers for burying him on the bench.
- One of Plumlee’s backups is Alex Len, the fifth overall pick in the draft this past June. Len has played fewer minutes than 45 other NBA rookies, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. Still, the Suns are no less optimistic about his future, as Coro explains.
- Nick Young‘s strong performance for the Lakers in place of the injured Kobe Bryant suggests he’ll command much more as a free agent than he’d make if he exercises his minimum-salary player option for next season, as Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com examines. Young took a discount to play in his native Southern California this season, but he’s expressed a desire for more financial stability on his next deal.
- Ray McCallum has rejoined the Kings after a stint in the D-League, the team announced. The point guard, whom Sacramento took 36th overall this past June, has notched 20.0 points and 4.3 assists per game in seven D-League appearances.
Suns Plan To Keep Leandro Barbosa For Season
Leandro Barbosa has jumped right into the Suns rotation after signing a pair of 10-day contracts, and it sounds like he’s impressed enough to earn more than a brief stay in Phoenix. The Suns plan to re-sign him to a deal for the rest of the season once his second 10-day deal expires, as the Arizona Republic’s Paul Coro writes in a story for USA Today.
The 31-year-old Barbosa signed his second 10-day contract with the Suns on Saturday, right after his first one had expired. A third deal with the team would have to cover the balance of the season, by rule. Phoenix is missing point guard Eric Bledsoe, and Barbosa, a combo guard, has filled in with 10.0 points in 22.6 minutes per night. Those numbers are close to the averages of 12.6 PPG and 25.1 MPG that Barbosa posted in seven seasons with Phoenix at the beginning of his NBA career.
The Clippers and Lakers both had interest in the client of Excel Sports Management in the weeks leading up to his latest stint with the Suns. Phoenix has 14 guaranteed contracts on its roster, so adding Barbosa for the season would give the Suns 15, limiting their flexibility.