Knicks Shop Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani
The Knicks are active in attempts to trade Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani, reports Marc Stein and Ian Begley of ESPN.com. However, New York is clinging to Amar’e Stoudemire and doesn’t plan on trading him, Stein and Begley add. Bargnani is a candidate to hit waivers next month if team president Phil Jackson can’t find a trade partner by the February 19th trade deadline, according to the ESPN scribes.
Knicks coach Derek Fisher last month called Bargnani a “big piece to the future,” but it appears that’s changed in short order as the Knicks have plummeted to the worst record in the league. The Knicks relinquished their 2016 first-round draft pick as part of the trade that brought Bargnani from Toronto, but injury has kept him from all but two games this season. He’s making $11.5MM this year, the final season of his contract, but league executives reportedly believed over the summer that it would require the Knicks to attach two first-round picks to offload him. There’s a decent chance that price has come down some, with Bargnani drawing ever close to the end of his deal, but it still seems like it’ll be hard for Jackson to find a taker.
A report last week indicated that Jackson hadn’t yet given up on Calderon, in spite of speculation that he’d be the next Knick to go after the team sent Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to Cleveland last week. The team’s stance on Calderon, too, appears to have changed, and while there are plenty of teams who are high on him, the point guard’s contract stands as a deterrent, Stein and Begley write. Calderon is making between $7MM and $8MM each season through 2016/17.
The Knicks reportedly shopped Stoudemire over the summer and discussed a deal with the Sixers, though Stoudemire’s salary of more than $23.4MM makes him quite difficult to trade. He’s proven a key part of the Knicks this season, averaging 13.1 points and 7.4 rebounds in 26.4 minutes per game, making 13 starts. It’s conceivable that the Knicks would re-sign him, at a greatly reduced rate, for next season once his contract expires this summer, Stein and Begley write.
Knicks To Waive Samuel Dalembert?
4:45pm: The Knicks are actively trying to trade Dalembert prior to Wednesday to avoid facing the decision to retain or waive him on that day, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reports (Twitter link).
8:48am: With the Knicks’ season in a seemingly hopeless freefall, having lost 11 games in a row, and their record currently sitting at a dismal 5-31 overall, the team is considering numerous options for altering its roster. One change that could happen by this Wednesday is the team possibly waiving center Samuel Dalembert, Marc Berman of The New York Post reports.
This coming Saturday, January 10th, is the NBA’s leaguewide contract guarantee date. All players with non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed contracts still on team rosters on that date will have the remainder of their salaries guaranteed for the season. But in order for any franchise to clear undesirable or unwanted contracts off of its books, players will need to clear waivers in advance of this deadline. This means that any players, including Dalembert, would need to be placed on waivers by no later than 4:00pm Central time this Wednesday, January 7th. This would allow the requisite two days that players remain on waivers to pass prior to Saturday’s deadline.
The reason that Dalembert’s name has come up as a possibility to be waived is that only $1.98MM of his $4.05MM contract is guaranteed, Berman notes. So New York can save itself a cool $2.07MM by releasing the big man prior to the cutoff date. Waiving Dalembert would open up a roster spot for the Knicks to add a younger D-League player or sign a veteran who was waived by another team, Berman adds. One such player that the Knicks are possibly looking to sign to a 10-day contract is D-League point guard Langston Galloway, though New York is already painfully thin in the frontcourt, something releasing Dalembert and signing Galloway would not rectify.
New York is considering every option currently, Berman reports, which means that the Knicks could retain Dalembert and try to acquire an asset by trading him to a club looking to add a defensive big man for a playoff push, the New York Post scribe adds. There are numerous teams that are desperate to add a rim protecting big man, including Cleveland, Dallas, and Miami, though I’m merely speculating on their potential interest in Dalembert.
Dalembert certainly hasn’t been setting the league on fire with his performance for the Knicks, who were hoping that he could help replace the defensive presence of Tyson Chandler, whom the Knicks traded to Dallas prior to the season, in a deal which netted them Dalembert. In 32 appearances, including 21 as a starter, Dalembert has averaged an underwhelming 4.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in 17.0 minutes per game. He hasn’t fit well into the triangle offense that the Knicks are attempting to implement, though judging by the team’s record, he’s hardly the only one.
For his part, Dalembert is currently in the dark about what the Knicks’ plans for him are, Berman notes. “Maybe you know more than me,’’ Dalembert said. “I love it here. I love the team we have. Unfortunately we’re going through what we’re going through right now. It’s a great organization. I would love for my career to finish here, but it’s business. A lot of times it’s beyond your control. I’ll still see how it goes and enjoy the time.’’
Team president Phil Jackson could soon decide the best thing for the Knicks’ long-term future is playing their younger players, which could also affect Amar’e Stoudemire ’s status, Berman also notes. Stoudemire missed his fifth straight game on Sunday night, and he could also eventually be waived to open up a roster spot, Berman opines. There is no immediate deadline to do so for Stoudemire, since the remainder of his $23,410,968 salary for this season is fully-guaranteed, though March 1st is the final date that players can be waived and be eligible to play in the postseason for another team.
Knicks Notes: Stoudemire, Draft, Kidd
The Knicks have lost 11 straight games, which is one shy of the franchise’s worst streak ever, and things don’t appear likely to improve. Amar’e Stoudemire certainly didn’t envision things turning out this way back in 2010, which is when he inked a five-year, $100MM deal with the team, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “When I first signed with New York, that wasn’t the game plan,” Stoudemire said. “But the past is not here. And neither is the future, so we’ve got to deal with the now, and I think we’ve just got to continue to try to get better as a team and as players, try to keep improving.”
Here’s the latest out of the Big Apple:
- The Knicks’ multitude of injuries are forcing the team to field a D-League caliber squad, Filip Bondy of The New York Daily News writes. “Six of the guys who played tonight [Sunday night] barely played in the NBA before,” coach Derek Fisher said. “Losing isn’t enjoyable. From an emotional standpoint, you have to manage what you can manage and what you can control.” Bondy also believes that New York should shut down Carmelo Anthony for the remainder of the season due to his knee issues, but believes that the franchise is holding off until after the All-Star game, which is in New York, to do so, as not to hurt the game’s festivities and the team’s television ratings in the interim.
- With a record of 5-31, the smart money is on the Knicks missing the playoffs this season, but those looking for hope can look to the Nets’ turnaround last season under former coach Jason Kidd, Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “I think obviously, different teams, different circumstances, different rosters,” Fisher said. “But I think a better example is what the Detroit Pistons have done … the team starts feeling better about who they are. Whether the Pistons make the playoffs or not, it doesn’t take forever to start to feel better about who your team is and what you’re trying to do. I think there are those types of examples that we can look to our team compared to Brooklyn’s team last year.”
- The only thing left for the Knicks to do this season is to try and lose as many games as possible in order to garner a higher draft pick, Kevin Kernan of The New York Post opines. Kernan also adds that re-signing Anthony was a huge mistake, and the team would have been better off in the long run if it had let ‘Melo leave in free agency.
Knicks Notes: Stoudemire, Playoffs, Starters
Knicks president Phil Jackson believes there will be more parity in the Eastern Conference this season, and that it will take 45-46 wins to make the playoffs, writes Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. “I see it flattening out the Eastern Conference, dispersing the talent around a little bit because of the advent of [Kevin] Love, obviously, LeBron in Cleveland, changes the conference from having two teams that were below or around .500 to having probably all eight teams having to be above 45-46 wins to get into the playoffs,” Jackson said. “So it’s going to change how that goes.”
Here’s more out of New York:
- Amar’e Stoudemire is entering what is most likely his final season in a Knicks uniform, and though he isn’t recovering from any injuries this summer, the team will still use caution when doling out his minutes, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. Coach Derek Fisher said of Stoudemire, “Amar’e physically looks great. Looks like he’s in fantastic shape. He’s very focused on coming into this season healthy and I think he’s accomplished that goal. … His knees will be an issue at some point, just manage his minutes in some respects, how we’ll limit him in practice, give him some days to get back up to speed and get some rest. But I think he’s willing to come in and buy in to what we want to teach and he’s ready to go and he’s excited.”
- Speaking on New York’s new roster, Jackson told Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com, “This team has not got a personality. Over 35 percent of [the] team has changed. So we still have to kind of come together in a bonding way that creates trust, teamwork, identity, some things like that. It takes probably a month to six weeks for a team to kind of jell and the idea of how to do this together. So we have a month of training camp, a couple of weeks in November to kind of see how everything is blending together. And that can vary according to injuries.”
- Heading into training camp the Knicks haven’t decided on a starting lineup yet, Marc Berman of the New York Post writes. “The only person I know for sure who is going to be starting is ‘7’,” Fisher said, referring to Carmelo Anthony. “We haven’t started training camp when you learn where your team is, how different players work together,” Fisher added. “Putting together a starting lineup is not just about individual guys. It’s the five guys who work well together as a unit. Those decisions can’t be made until we observe as a coaching staff. It will start to crystallize and formalize.”
Eastern Rumors: Love, Knicks, Douglas-Roberts
The Knicks made a longshot trade offer for Kevin Love that the Wolves immediately turned down, reports Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal. The offer was Amar’e Stoudemire, Iman Shumpert, and Tim Hardaway Jr., a package well shy of the value Minnesota is looking to secure in any potential deal for Love. Stoudemire and Shumpert have apparently been on the block of late, but while Hardaway is reportedly “virtually untouchable,” New York’s shot in the dark at least shows its willingness to part with him for the right return. Here’s more from around the East:
- A Wolves official disputes the notion that the Knicks ever made an offer for Love, as Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reports (on Twitter).
Earlier updates:
- Chris Douglas-Roberts is among the free agents who interest the Heat as they look for veteran wing players, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Agent Wallace Prather has reached out to the team about client MarShon Brooks, but it’s unclear whether the Heat have any interest in him. The Heat are among 11 teams limited to paying no more than the minimum salary to free agents from other clubs, as I noted earlier today.
- Miami is remaining non-committal about bringing back free agents Michael Beasley and Greg Oden, as Jackson writes in the same piece. The agents for both veterans tell Jackson that the Heat have been in contact regarding their clients, but that they are receiving interest from other teams as well.
- The Hornets didn’t necessarily sign Brian Roberts for the room exception, as originally thought, when they made his deal official Wednesday, tweets Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times. It appears as though they have enough cap space to use on Roberts and preserve the exception to use on someone else, should they choose.
Eastern Rumors: Knicks, Miller, Deng, Ariza
With Carmelo Anthony set to re-sign with the Knicks, New York can now focus on setting up a supporting cast to play alongside him. One name they’re interested in re-signing is Toure’ Murry, tweets Chris Herring of the Wall Street Journal. Here’s more from around the East:
- Phil Jackson is said to be willing to include Iman Shumpert as part of a deal to dump the contracts of Amar’e Stoudemire, Andrea Bargnani, or J.R. Smith, writes Sean Deveney of The Sporting News.
- There is a gap between what the Cavs can offer and what Mike Miller is seeking, but not enough to end their talks, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today.
- In contrast to an earlier report of the Hornets interest in Lance Stephenson, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer tweets that Charlotte has shown no such signs.
- The Heat are now open to bringing free agent Mario Chalmers back at the right price, writes Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinal. Miami drafted point guard Shabazz Napier, and was reportedly looking to sign-and-trade Chalmers before LeBron James elected to take his talents away from South Beach.
- The Hawks have re-engaged talks with Luol Deng, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. We heard earlier that the two sides had reached an impasse on salary for the veteran small forward.
- Kent Bazemore was in contract discussions with the Lakers when he agreed to join the Hawks, but Atlanta’s urgency precluded Los Angeles from re-signing the guard on their time table, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
- Trevor Ariza received the same offer from the Wizards as he agreed to with the Rockets, but the difference in taxes between Washington and Houston will save him approximately $3MM, tweets Michael Lee of The Washington Post.
- Ariza asked for an annual salary of $10MM to stay with the Wizards, sources tell J. Michael of CSNWashington.com. Michael says that Washington declined to meet Ariza’s demands in order to maintain cap space in 2016, when Kevin Durant will become a free agent.
Charlie Adams contributed to this post.
Knicks Notes: ‘Melo, Stoudemire, Bargnani
After Carmelo Anthony had meetings with New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, a source tells Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report that Anthony was most impressed with the Bulls’ pitch (Twitter link). Despite the reported strong impression, ‘Melo is still deciding between the aforementioned three teams, says Zwerling, who adds the superstar forward remains intrigued at the notion of teaming up with Kobe Bryant as well the prospect of playing under the bright lights in New York again. More out of the Big Apple..
- The Mavericks and Rockets are out of the running for Anthony, a source tells Sam Amick of USA Today. ‘Melo hasn’t given the pair of Texas teams any formal notice saying as much, but the source suggests the Knicks, Lakers, and Bulls are the only teams the superstar is considering.
- The rumored conversations between the Knicks and Sixers about a deal that would send Amar’e Stoudemire to New York haven’t been able to gain any traction, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
- Shedding Andrea Bargnani‘s bloated contract would likely cost the Knicks two first-round picks, multiple league executives tell Berger. Given that the Knicks don’t own their 2016 pick, Phil Jackson would likely have to part with Tim Hardaway Jr. to obtain another one.
Knicks, Sixers Discussing Stoudemire
10:23am: Hardaway’s name has come up in talks regarding Stoudemire, but the Knicks remain disinclined to include the guard in any trades, a source tells Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.
8:47pm: Jackson has contacted the Sixers attempting to unload Stoudemire’s contract, but Philly wants an asset in return for absorbing the bloated deal, reports Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman thinks the inclusion of Iman Shumpert might get the deal done, but New York would prefer to retain the young guard. Contradicting earlier reports, Berman also hears Jackson would like to hang on to Bargnani this season since he thinks the sharp shooting center could excel in the triangle offense.
2:26pm: The Knicks are actively shopping Amar’e Stoudemire and Andrea Bargnani as they attempt to find trade partners willing to provide the team the cap space necessary to make significant free agent acquisitions, reports Moke Hamilton of SNY.tv. Knicks president Phil Jackson turned down an offer for Bargnani and Tim Hardaway Jr. before the Tyson Chandler trade, confident that he could find a deal involving Bargnani that wouldn’t force the team to part with Hardaway, according to Hamilton.
New York is trying to open up roughly $40MM in cap flexibility to re-sign Carmelo Anthony and build around him, and that’s been part of Jackson’s pitch to the star forward, Hamilton writes. Stoudemire is set to make $23.4MM for the coming season while Bargnani is in line for $11.5MM after they both opted in for 2014/15. Clearing Stoudemire’s salary without receiving salary in return would instantly give the Knicks the kind of flexibility they’re after, but such a trade is unlikely to surface. Bargnani would also be difficult to move, but less so.
Trading one or both of them in a deal that nets cap flexibility would also help the Knicks if they don’t re-sign Anthony. New York would still be capped out if ‘Melo signs elsewhere, which would leave the Knicks with only the $5.305MM mid-level exception as their most significant tool on the free agent market.
Stoudemire Declines Early Termination Option
As expected, Amar’e Stoudemire has declined his early termination option for the 2014/15 season, a league source tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. Stoudemire will play out the final year of his five-year, $100MM contract with the Knicks. Stoudemire, the highest paid player on New York’s roster, will make $23.4MM, much more than he would have fetched on the open market had he opted to become a free agent.
After a standout first season with the Knicks in which the former All-Star averaged over 25 points and eight rebounds a game, injuries have curtailed his playing time and effectiveness every year since. He just turned in his least productive season since missing nearly all of the 2005/06 campaign, putting up just 11.9 points in 22.6 minutes a contest. Stoudemire did play better down the stretch, averaging over 16 points a game as the Knicks made an unsuccessful playoff push over the last 23 games of the season.
Had the Relativity Sports client exercised his early termination clause, it would have given the Knicks some much needed cap relief sooner than expected. Stoudemire’s contract combines with those of Andrea Bargnani, Tyson Chandler, and J.R. Smith in preventing New York from making any significant roster improvements as they try to convince Carmelo Anthony to stay in town. Stoudemire has been anxious to see his role increased since getting clearance from his doctors earlier this season, and he might get his wish next year, especially if Anthony bolts to join a contender.
Eastern Notes: Kerr, Anthony, Jackson
Steve Kerr is seeking a five-year deal worth $30MM from the Knicks, notes Matt Moore of CBSSports.com. The article speculates that Kerr wants his deal to be the same length as Phil Jackson‘s, and he wants a salary comparable to Mike D’Antoni‘s $6MM per season when he was the team’s head coach. Kerr is expected to decide next week if he’ll become the next coach of the Knicks.
More from the east:
- The main storyline in New York this summer is going to be whether or not Carmelo Anthony re-signs with the team. Amar’e Stoudemire isn’t sure if ‘Melo will be a Knick next season, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. Stoudemire said, “My gut feeling is that Carmelo will be staying. That’s my gut feeling right now today but I’m not totally sure.”
- Pat Delany, who coached the Sioux Falls Skyforce to the NBA D-League’s playoff semi-finals, has joined the Heat‘s playoff coaching staff, reports Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel (Twitter link).
- The Pistons should give Mark Jackson serious consideration for their vacant head coaching position, writes Perry A. Farrell of The Detroit Free Press. Jackson’s career situation reminds Farrell of Rick Carlisle‘s when he was fired after winning 100 games in two seasons with the Pistons, partly due to how he treated people in the team’s administration.