Pacific Notes: Clippers, Morris, Lakers
Here’s a quick look at the Pacific Division..
- The new look Clippers looked sharp in last night’s win over the Rockets, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. New starter J.J. Redick had a strong game, scoring 22 points off of 8-15 shooting, including 3-7 from beyond the arc.
- In his third season, Suns forward Markieff Morris is proving the club’s scouting department right, writes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. In that draft, the Suns front office went with Morris, the power forward with complete-game potential, over Kenneth Faried, known for energy and rebounding.
- New Los Angeles D-Fenders coach Bob MacKinnon spoke with Dakota Schmidt of Ridiculous Upside about his relationship with the Lakers and the future of the D-League. “The biggest thing is that your players know that the way things are done are the ‘Lakers Way’. We’re trying to be a mini-model of the Lakers and I think that’s attractive for players who want to achieve their dreams.“
Odds & Ends: Kerr, Bledsoe, Pistons, LeBron
Former Suns GM Steve Kerr is enjoying life behind the microphone, but he still has the itch to get back to the other side. However, if he does transition back to the NBA, it might not be as a General Manager. “I have a lot of thoughts about coaching,” Kerr said. “If I get back in, I think it will be on the coaching side. My favorite part of the GM role in terms of my relationships was just dealing with players down on the court. I’d go to practice every day, and I’d let the coaches coach, but just getting to know the players and dealing with them and talking strategy, that really appealed to me. I think if I get back, which I anticipate, it would be on the coaching side,” Kerr told Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld. Here’s more from around the Association..
- All indications are that even though an extension didn’t get done at the October deadline, Eric Bledsoe wants to stay with the Suns, writes John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports. Gambadoro also opines that it makes sense for both parties to wait things out until after Bledsoe’s first full season as a starter.
- Guards O.J. Mayo and Monta Ellis are playing well after swapping teams in the offseason, and as the Bucks and Mavs prepare to meet tonight, Mayo isn’t too hung up on his time in Dallas, as Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel observes. “I forgot all about it, man,” Mayo said of his Mavs stint. “It’s another year. I’ve got a short memory span. I’m looking forward to (Saturday).“
- In today’s mailbag, David Mayo of MLive.com writes that it’s too early to gauge whether coach Maurice Cheeks is the right man for the Pistons.
- LeBron James‘ wife is opening up her own business in Miami and Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel wonders if that could be a factor in her husband’s free agent decision next offseason.
Odds & Ends: Bledsoe, Stephenson, Korver
Eric Bledsoe has kicked off his inaugural campaign as a full-time starter in Phoenix with a bang, averaging 21.0 PPG, 7.2 APG, 5.0 RPG, 1.8 SPG in 33.8 MPG, and helping the Suns to a 3-2 record after five games. The 4th year veteran is set to become a restricted free agent next summer after failing to land an extension last week, and while some may be worried that this potentially means a short tenure for Bledsoe in Phoenix, GM Ryan McDonough was openly optimistic about being able to re-sign him (Adam Green of Arizona Sports, hat tip to Burns and Gambo of Arizona Sports 620):
“I feel very confident that he’s going to be a Sun long-term…We negotiated with Eric and his agents. I think the contract situation was handled very professionally on both ends…We can match any offer to Eric next summer…Another advantage would be we have an extra year to play with. Other teams who are making Eric an offer can offer him four years, we can offer him up to five if we chose to do so…So there’s some inherent advantages that I just mentioned, also we can give higher percentage increases than another team could give Eric in a contract.”
Here are some more miscellaneous news and notes to pass along tonight:
- Looking into Lance Stephenson‘s comments that he thinks the Pacers would “do anything” to keep him in Indiana for the long term, Candace Buckner of IndyStar.com (along with USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt) explores how the 23-year-old shooting guard could be positioning himself for a five-year max deal next summer. While I’m not too sure about labeling Stephenson as a max-level player at this point, if he can maintain his current averages of 16.3 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 4.6 APG, and 47% shooting from the field, he should draw some very lucrative offers next July.
- Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post notes how the Nuggets’ plans to recruit Kyle Korver this past summer led to nothing more than brief contact because of the massive turnover that had been going on within the front office and coaching staff. Korver would eventually re-sign with the Hawks.
- The Thunder have hired former Raptors vice president and assistant GM Maurizio Gherardini in a senior adviser/international affairs position, according to Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK.
Odds & Ends: Ewing, Oriakhi, Jackson
The divergent paths the Nets and Pacers took to upgrade their teams this summer underscores how the current collective bargaining agreement allows deep-pocketed owners to further their advantage, opines Mark Deeks of ShamSports in a piece for HoopsWorld. Indiana steadfastly refuses to pay the luxury tax, while Brooklyn is set to pay about $80MM in penalties on its $100MM+ payroll this season. Still, the Pacers are the NBA’s lone unbeaten team and my pick to win the championship. Here’s more from a nine-game NBA evening:
- There were 13 coaching vacancies this past offseason, and Patrick Ewing didn’t receive an interview for any of them, notes Fred Kerber of the New York Post, who catches up with the Bobcats assistant pining for a chance to lead a team.
- Alex Oriakhi, whom the Suns drafted 57th overall this summer, is leaving the French team Limoges, but he wants to continue to play somewhere in Europe, according to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.
- This year is crucial for Reggie Jackson, as he’ll have a chance to prove his worth as a sixth man. The Thunder believe he can lead their second unit, but they must find out for sure before he becomes extension-eligible in the summer, as The Oklahoman’s Anthony Slater examines.
- Larry Sanders is averaging just 17.3 minutes per game after signing a four-year, $44MM extension with the Bucks this offseason, but he simply hasn’t earned any more playing time with his performance so far, the Journal Sentinel’s Michael Hunt argues.
Poll: Will Suns Trade Goran Dragic?
The Suns have made a number of major trades since the end of the 2012/13 season, but arguably none were bigger than the three-way deal that sent Eric Bledsoe to Phoenix. In Bledsoe, the Suns acquired a player capable of being a starting NBA point guard, and one with star upside.
While the trade itself was a coup for the Suns, skeptics immediately questioned how Bledsoe would fit with incumbent point guard Goran Dragic, the club’s most productive player last season. Team executives insisted the two players could coexist in Phoenix’s backcourt, but there were rumblings that Dragic, an acquisition of the old regime, could be shipped out by new GM Ryan McDonough.
McDonough denied that he was interested in moving Dragic, and things got a little more interesting when the Suns failed to work out an extension with Bledsoe last week. That means the former Clipper will be a restricted free agent next summer, and will likely be in line for a much larger salary than the $7.5MM being earned annually by Dragic. I wouldn’t expect Phoenix to let Bledsoe walk, but it sounds like a sign-and-trade isn’t out of the question, if the price tag gets too high.
Keeping both Bledsoe and Dragic long-term doesn’t make much sense for the Suns, since each player represents a valuable asset that could be turned into a productive piece at another position. Still, that doesn’t mean that the club won’t ride out the 2013/14 season with both players still in tow.
What do you think? Will Dragic be the next veteran player moved by the Suns, or will he stay put through this season’s trade deadline?
Will the Suns trade Goran Dragic by the deadline?
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Yes 64% (422)
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No 36% (238)
Total votes: 660
Western Notes: Suns, Aldridge, Thunder, Kings
No team except perhaps the Sixers was viewed as more likely to tank the 2013/14 season than the Suns, who shipped out Luis Scola over the summer and traded Marcin Gortat just days before the regular season began. But team president Lon Babby takes issue with the idea that Phoenix is intentionally trying to lose games, as he tells Sean Deveney of the Sporting News.
“There is a key difference between acknowledging that you’re rebuilding, which we are, and some notion that you’re not trying to succeed,” Babby said. “Anybody in this business, because you’re competitive, and you have a competitive nature, it is not going to do anything but give your heart and soul to try to win every night.”
It may be an question of semantics, but Babby’s comments, along with the strong starts to the season for the Sixers and Suns, are a reminder that while a front office may put a team in position to lose games, the players on the court are certainly trying to win.
Here’s more from around the West:
- Rival team executives will continue to monitor LaMarcus Aldridge‘s situation in Portland, but the Blazers forward tells Sam Amick of USA Today that he has no desire to be moved. Asked about his current attitude, Aldridge replied: “It’s not ‘If there’s a better deal, then get me out of [Portland] or take that.’ It’s ‘We’re here. Let’s win, and let’s try to have the best season that we can.'” Amick adds that there’s a league-wide belief that GM Neil Olshey wouldn’t even consider an offer for Aldridge unless it included at least an All-Star player, among other things.
- Responding to comments made by ESPN’s Bill Simmons, Oklahoman contributor Jon Hamm rebuts the idea that the Thunder need to become a taxpaying team to win the title.
- On the heels of a 19-point outing from Ben McLemore, Kings coach Michael Malone tells Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee that the rookie guard is “a big part of our future.”
Contract Details: Sixers, Price, Stone, Christmas
Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com has updated his salary database to account for every NBA team’s opening night roster, and in the process has provided several contract details that had previously been unreported. Let’s round up Deeks’ new info, which has now been incorporated into our list of non-guaranteed salaries and our schedule of guarantee dates….
- Daniel Orton and Brandon Davies were late additions to the Sixers‘ roster, but they received the same kind of deals that many of the team’s other offseason signees did: Non-guaranteed four-year pacts. Hollis Thompson, meanwhile, landed a $35K guarantee for this season on his four-year contract.
- When Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors listed the camp cuts who had been owed guaranteed money, he noted that the guarantees for Vander Blue, Khalif Wyatt, and Richard Howell were still unknown. Deeks fills in those amounts, reporting that the Sixers paid Blue $55K and Wyatt $35K. Howell received $50K from the Trail Blazers.
- Unlike most players on non-guaranteed contracts, A.J. Price won’t have to wait until the new year for his salary to become fully guaranteed. He’ll get his full minimum salary as long as he’s not waived by the Timberwolves on or before December 8th.
- Julyan Stone‘s two-year contract with the Raptors was initially guaranteed for $50K, but that amount was bumped up to $100K when he earned a spot on the regular season roster.
- Dionte Christmas (Suns) and Henry Sims (Cavaliers) both received partial guarantees worth $50K.
- The Hawks‘ agreement with Cartier Martin is just for one year, for a fully non-guaranteed minimum salary.
Poll: Which Restricted FA Gets A Max Deal?
October 31st was the deadline for NBA teams to sign fourth-year players currently on a rookie scale contract to a contract extension and forgo the chance of that player hitting restricted free agency next summer. Paul George, John Wall, and DeMarcus Cousins were the most richly rewarded among those who locked up extensions in advance of the deadline, as all three reached deals for the max. Notable players who did not sign an extension with their team were Eric Bledsoe, Avery Bradley, Gordon Hayward, Greg Monroe, Evan Turner, and Greivis Vasquez. Assuming their teams tender qualifying offers, these players will become restricted free agents next year.
The teams these likely restricted free agents are on will have the right of first refusal for anyone bidding on them next summer. For a few of these players, the bidding seems to be plentiful. Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report quoted an opposing GM saying the “Jazz had better lock up Hayward”. (Twitter link) Jason Jones of the Sacrament Bee tweets the Kings “love” Vasquez. Lon Babby, president of the Phoenix Suns basketball operations, told Matt Petersen of Suns.com the Suns would “do everything we can to make sure [Bledsoe] is happy.”
Which of these players do you think will benefit most from becoming a restricted free agent next summer? Who do you think stands the best chance of getting a max deal?
Which Restricted FA Gets A Max Deal?
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Greg Monroe 37% (421)
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None of the Above 31% (349)
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Eric Bledsoe 21% (238)
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Gordon Hayward 9% (99)
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Greivis Vasquez 2% (22)
Total votes: 1,129
Western Rumors: Kings, Martin, Bledsoe
Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro said the lack of extensions for Greivis Vasquez and Patrick Patterson and the team’s decision to decline its fourth-year option on Jimmer Fredette aren’t necessarily a reflection of the way the club feels about those players.
“With Jimmer, we spoke to him and his representatives throughout the process,” D’Alessandro said, as Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee observes. “And they’re not easy decisions to make. We have these deadlines that are at an awkward time, Oct. 31, especially at a time when we just got our positions here.”
We heard earlier that the Kings are enamored with Vasquez and intend to match any offer he gets in restricted free agency this summer. Here’s more on free agents past and future, with a Western kick:
- There were times last season when Kevin Martin could tell his stay with the Thunder would be a short one, he tells reporters, including Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Martin also reveals that free agency was much more stressful than he imagined, but he says he’s glad he wound up in “the perfect spot” with the Timberwolves.
- Eric Bledsoe isn’t saying whether he envisions staying with the Suns for the long haul after failing to strike a deal on an extension, notes Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic.
- The rift between Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant was real and profound on the Lakers last season, as former teammate Antawn Jamison explains to Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. Meanwhile, Howard is relaxed, engaged, and confident that he made the right decision to sign with the Rockets, Marc Stein of ESPN.com writes.
- J.J. Hickson isn’t pleased about the way his Blazers tenure ended, as we noted last night, but after signing with the Nuggets in part because of an opportunity for playing time, he’s seeing plenty of minutes, as Hoopsworld’s Joel Brigham details.
Odds & Ends: Bledsoe, Turner, Bradley
The Suns might not get a discount on Eric Bledsoe this summer after passing on an extension for him last night, but team president of basketball operations Lon Babby would be OK with seeing Bledsoe’s price tag escalate if he has a breakout year. Matt Petersen of Suns.com shares that and more from Babby in the wake of last night’s extension deadline.
“I can’t say that we received an unqualified declaration of [Bledsoe wanting to stay in Phoenix long-term], but I wouldn’t expect that,” Babby said. “That’s part of the issue. He’s only been with us for a short time. But if you’re asking me is there any indication he’s not happy here, absolutely not. I think he’s very, very happy and we’ll do everything we can to make sure he’s happy. He’s an important part of this franchise for a long, long time to come.”
There’s more on a pair of players who’ll also hit restricted free agency this summer as we round up the latest from the Association:
- Evan Turner said earlier that he and Sixers GM Sam Hinkie didn’t have any talks about an extension, and that silence extends to any mention of Turner’s future in Philadelphia, as Turner told reporters, including Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News. Turner isn’t sure if that future includes the Sixers after seeing the team trade Jrue Holiday, a player he called a “walking legend.” (Twitter links).
- Avery Bradley isn’t concerned that the Celtics passed on what reportedly would have been a four-year extension, telling Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald and other assembled media today that he’d love to stay in Boston.
- We already knew that the Rockets had protected B.J. Young from tonight’s D-League draft, and Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle notes the team did the same for fellow camp casualties Jordan Henriquez and Troy Daniels (Twitter link).
- In an interview with the YES Network, Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov shared his enthusiastic response when informed of the prospect of the Kevin Garnett/Paul Pierce trade and explained that his desire for a non-traditional coach led him to Jason Kidd. Newsday’s Roderick Boone has the details.
- Commissioner-in-waiting Adam Silver spoke with Jared Weiss of CLNS Radio about the this season’s leaguewide rollout of SportVU cameras, expressing the league’s desire to create a level playing field in terms of the data and technology available to teams.