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Celtics Rumors: Clarke, Crowder, Thomas, Smart

March 27th, 2016 at 10:30am CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics won’t give Coty Clarke another contract after his second 10-day deal expires today, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Boston would have needed to sign the 6’7″ small forward for the rest of the season to keep him on the roster. A source told Himmelsbach the Celtics will consider bringing back Clarke in the future, but the team prefers to keep an open roster spot heading into the playoffs to guard against injury. Clarke, who spent most of the season with Boston’s D-League affiliate in Maine, first signed with the Celtics on March 7th. He saw six minutes of action in three games.

There’s more this morning out of Boston:

  • Jae Crowder, who hasn’t played since suffering a high ankle sprain March 11th, is considered day-to-day and could return this week, Himmelsbach relays in the same piece. There were initially fears that the injury could sideline Crowder through the first round of the playoffs.
  • Isaiah Thomas, who on Saturday made his second trip to Phoenix since being traded in February of 2015, told Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic that this visit was much less emotional. “Everybody when I got to the arena was showing a lot of love, like the workers and all that,'” the All-Star point guard said. “It’s a place that I like. I like the city. When I was here, they showed me a good time. There’s no bad feelings no more. It was just that one game. Now, it’s just another team, another game.”
  • Marcus Smart, whose recent shooting woes have led to trade speculation, impressed coach Brad Stevens with his all-around game in Saturday’s win, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com. Smart was just 2 of 7 from the field but had eight rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block. “Those are the things that make Marcus special,” Stevens said. “Sometimes those go in a box score, sometimes they don’t. But he does them every game.”
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And-Ones: Durant, Harden, Most Improved, Hawks

February 28th, 2016 at 10:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kevin Durant has a shot at the largest contract in league history when his free agency officially arrives this summer, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Durant will have plenty of options to choose from, starting with the Thunder, who would love to keep him and Russell Westbrook together through the prime of their careers. The Warriors are believed to be the front-runners if Durant decides to leave Oklahoma City, and his hometown Wizards will surely be calling, along with the Lakers, who will need a star to replace Kobe Bryant. Or Durant could sign a one-year deal with OKC, maximize his earning power as a 10-year veteran and put off the larger decision until 2017. “Everybody’s going to ask me, so of course I’m going to have to think about it now,” Durant said. “To tell you one thing, it’s great to feel wanted, I guess.”

There’s more news from around the world of basketball:

  • James Harden says he feels unfairly targeted for the bad situation in Houston, Washburn writes in the same piece, particularly the rumored rifts with Rockets center Dwight Howard and former coach Kevin McHale. “All the time,” Harden said when asked if he feels he’s being singled out over team disunity, “but I don’t really pay attention to it. I can’t focus on negativity because that drains you. I focus on what I can do, what I can control, and go out there and just compete at a high level.”
  • The Blazers‘ C.J. McCollum is almost certain to win this season’s Most Improved Player award, according to Eric Saar of Basketball Insiders. McCollum, who’ll be up for a rookie scale extension this summer, has become a full-time starter and has raised his scoring average from 6.8 points a game last year to 21.1 points this season. Saar’s other candidates for the award are the Warriors‘ Draymond Green, the Celtics‘ Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder and the Raptors‘ Kyle Lowry.
  • The Hawks have recalled center Edy Tavares and guard/forward Lamar Patterson from the Austin Spurs of the D-League, the team announced today. Tavares has averaged 10.1 points and 9.6 rebounds in 14 D-League games, while Patterson’s averages are 15.6 points, 5.7 assists and 5.0 rebounds in seven games with Austin.
  • Chris Douglas-Roberts, whom the Pelicans cut in training camp, will be rejoining the D-League’s Texas Legends, who are the affiliate of the Mavericks, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
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And-Ones: Ashley, Williams, Thomas

February 25th, 2016 at 10:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

During an appearance on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, Suns GM Ryan McDonough admitted that he’d erred in trading away point guard and 2016 NBA All-Star Isaiah Thomas last February. “I think in retrospect trading Isaiah Thomas when we did was a mistake. I think sometimes in the recruitment process things sound better in July [luring Thomas in free agency] than they do in November,” McDonough said. “He wanted more. He wanted a bigger role and I understand why: He’s a talented player. In retrospect, we should have carried him into the summer. If there’s one [decision] that stands out, if I could get a mulligan, that’d be it.” In 58 appearances for the Celtics this season Thomas is averaging 21.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 6.8 assists with a slash line of .422/.348/.898.

Here’s more from around the league:

  • Mavs affiliate player Brandon Ashley has signed with the German club Alba Berlin, Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor reports (on Twitter). The exact terms of the deal are unknown, but international journalist David Pick (Twitter link) notes that Ashley’s deal includes an option for 2016/17, though it is unclear if that option belongs to the player or the team.
  • Thunder coach Billy Donovan indicated no date has been set for assistant coach Monty Williams to return to the team, John Reid of The Times-Picayune writes. Williams is still mourning the tragic loss of his wife Ingrid in a car accident earlier this month. ”I don’t have really know the answer to that,” Donovan said regarding Williams’ return.”We haven’t talked about when he’ll be coming back. It’s been more of how he and his children are doing; just them adjusting to life without Ingrid and just getting the kids settled and back in school. I haven’t really talked to him about that, but whatever he decides to do I’m behind him on that 100% because the one thing I know and respect about Monty is that he’s going to put his family and children first. Those decisions I think will be made once he gets to a point when he can get them into some kind of rhythm and routine after what happened.”
  • If the Rockets sign another player this season, he will likely be a power forward who is a solid defender, which probably rules out any interest in Joe Johnson, Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com tweets. The Nets waived Johnson earlier today as part of a buyout arrangement.
  • Tim Frazier, whom the Blazers waived last week, is expected to rejoin the Maine Red Claws in the coming days, Reichert relays (via Twitter). Maine is the Celtics‘ D-League affiliate, though Frazier will be free to sign with any NBA team that were to come calling.
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Celtics Rumors: Lee, Thomas, Horford, Love

February 14th, 2016 at 10:02am CST by Arthur Hill

The trade deadline is just four days away, but the Celtics don’t feel any urgency to make a deal, according to Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. A league source told Murphy that Friday’s rumored three-team trade with Cleveland and New York “never existed” and that Boston hasn’t talked to the Rockets about acquiring Dwight Howard. The Celtics are willing to add a player for the right price, but they believe everyone currently in play is overpriced. The source said that includes the Hawks’ Al Horford, whom the Celtics don’t want to invest heavily in because of his looming free agency. Boston had interest in the Nuggets’ Danilo Gallinari, but the source said that would-be deal was “a dead issue” before it was even reported.

There’s more this morning out of Boston:

  • The Celtics haven’t found any teams interested in David Lee and his $15.5MM contract, Murphy writes in the same piece. The source said Lee has “no value” around the league, even though his expiring deal presents an opportunity for cap relief this summer.
  • Isaiah Thomas recently became a recruiter when a player from another team asked him about the benefits of Boston, Murphy adds. Thomas, who used the reputation of coach Brad Stevens as one of his selling points, wouldn’t offer any clues as to who the player was. “The coaching staff is great and the organization is 100% – it’s A1,” Thomas said. “I told him, You watch us. It’s fun to watch us. We were joking around the locker room about how everyone likes to watch the Boston Celtics, and how hard we play.”
  • The unidentified player may have been Horford, speculates A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. He noted that Thomas smiled and said, “I didn’t say that” when asked if it was Horford he was talking about. A late replacement pick for the All-Star Game, Horford is trying to focus on business as usual despite the trade talk. “I’m going to continue doing what I do,” he said. “I can’t control the speculation that’s going on.”
  • It’s unlikely the Celtics can get Kevin Love from Cleveland without a third team involved, Blakely said in an interview on SportsNet Central. Blakely explained that Boston has enough young players and draft picks to make a deal happen, but such a move wouldn’t get Cleveland any closer to a championship.
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2016 NBA All-Star Game Reserves Announced

January 28th, 2016 at 6:14pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The NBA has officially announced the reserves for the 2016 All-Star game, which will be played at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on Sunday, February 14th. The names of the reserves were first reported by Carron J. Phillips of The News Journal and confirmed by Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal Constitution (All four Twitter links). The starters for both conferences were announced last week, with Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard voted to tip off the exhibition in the West and LeBron James, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade and Kyle Lowry slated to represent the East.

While the starters are selected by the fans, reserves are chosen by the coaches in each conference, though they are not permitted to vote for players on their own team. Listed below are the reserves for the 2016 NBA All-Star game for each conference:

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

Who was the biggest surprise among the All-Star reserves announced tonight? Share your thoughts with a comment.

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Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Thomas, D-League Recalls

January 19th, 2016 at 8:26pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Celtics’ pipeline to the lottery, via the Nets, and the possibility of moving some of those picks for an established star, gives them real hope of becoming a serious contender, Jonathan Tjarks of RealGM.com opines. Brooklyn must give Boston unprotected picks in 2016 and 2018. The Celtics also have the right to swap picks in 2017. There’s a good chance all those picks might be top five selections, Tjarks deduces, providing them multiple opportunities to select a future superstar. It might be wiser, however, for Boston to accelerate its timetable by acquiring a franchise-caliber big man for those picks, with the Kings’ DeMarcus Cousins and Cavs’ Kevin Love being obvious targets to upgrade their flawed frontcourt, Tjarks adds.

In other doings around the Atlantic Division:

  • Isaiah Thomas’ improvement as a defender makes him an All-Star candidate, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com outlines through advanced metrics. While the Celtics’ diminutive point guard hasn’t become a defensive stopper, he’s become a more willing defender by fighting through screens and using his quickness to cover more areas of the court, Forsberg continues. Thomas’ impact on the team’s offensive efficiency remains his best argument for All-Star selection, as he’s one of its few players who can create for himself off the dribble and get to the free throw line, Forsberg adds.
  • Raptors coach Dwane Casey clearly misses having power forward Amir Johnson on his team, Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports reports. Johnson signed a two-year, $24M contract with the Celtics during the offseason. “Amir plays with pure heart,” Casey told Lewenberg. “There’s no agendas. He’s about the team, he’s about winning, he’s about giving everything on the court, he’s about his teammates … each and every night he was going to give you the same effort.”
  • The Raptors recalled power forward Anthony Bennett, small forward Bruno Caboclo and and combo guard Delon Wright from their D-League affiliate, Raptors 905, the team’s media relations department tweets. Toronto plays six home games the remainder of the month.
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Atlantic Notes: Brand, Smith, Love, Wroten

January 6th, 2016 at 10:01am CST by Chuck Myron

It wasn’t initially clear whether the Sixers wanted Elton Brand as a player or for a non-playing role with the organization instead, but coach Brett Brown likes having the 17th-year veteran in uniform, as John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com relays. Brand became just the second Sixers player older than 27 when Philadelphia signed him Monday.

“Because you wouldn’t believe what goes on at halftime when a coaching staff is in another room,” Brown said, explaining the value of having a veteran presence on the playing roster. “And you wouldn’t believe what goes on on the bench when you’re down 20. And you wouldn’t believe what goes on in a player’s mind when it’s a two-point game with a minute and a half left and ‘Do they know their assignments?’”

See more on the Sixers amid the latest from the Atlantic Division:

  • Brown said earlier in the season that he felt it necessary to bear the responsibility that would normally go to veteran players, and just as Brand takes that burden off the Sixers coach, the acquisition of Ish Smith makes Brown’s job easier, too. Fellow CSNPhilly.com scribe Jessica Camerato has the details. “It allows me to coach less, which is good. I mean it,” Brown said. “There’s nothing worse than sitting on the sideline feeling like you’ve got to run the whole game, calling the play every single [time] — that’s not how I see the game. So when you’re playing with that pace, as long as you feel like you’ve got the right people on the floor and the spacing is the way that you want, then you let the game flow. I feel like he brings that to me, for me.”
  • The Celtics thought Kevin Love was legitimately interested in their organization, coach Brad Stevens, and the city of Boston before he chose to re-sign with the Cavs this past summer, Celtics team sources told MassLive’s Jay King. Isaiah Thomas, appearing on “The Vertical” podcast with Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (audio link via Twitter), said that he tried to recruit Love to the Celtics, “but I think he already had his mind made up,” Thomas said of his former AAU teammate.
  • The Knicks reportedly have interest in Tony Wroten, but the former Sixers combo guard is unlikely to wind up in New York, and he’s looking for someplace where he feels he has a better opportunity to stay for the long term, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.
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Atlantic Notes: D’Antoni, Thomas, Knicks

December 13th, 2015 at 4:00pm CST by Will Joseph
Sixers head coach Brett Brown said the franchise reaching out to Mike D’Antoni is unrelated to last week’s hiring of Jerry Colangelo as chairman of basketball operations, according to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. What’s more, Brown said the team has been thinking about adding a veteran coach “for a while,” Pompey relays. Of course, and as Pompey points out, Colangelo and D’Antoni have a history together. Colangelo is the former Suns owner and D’Antoni went 253-156 in five seasons as the Suns coach. The Sixers confirmed reports that they are talking to D’Antoni about joining the team as an associate head coach, Pompey notes.
“This is a good thing,” Brown said in regards to D’Antoni, per Pompey. “That name is a good thing. How could that not be a good thing?”
Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:
  • The Celtics have been a different team since the arrival of Isaiah Thomas in last February’s trade deadline and the point guard is emerging as a possible all-star this season, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com writes. Boston owns a .627 winning percentage in his Thomas’ first 51 games in Boston, according to Forsberg. After making only one start last season with the Celtics, Thomas has started 21 times this year and is averaging 20.8 points per game.
  • In order to turn their season around, the Knicks need more out of Carmelo Anthony despite the star coming off surgery, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News opines. Bondy compares Anthony to Rajon Rondo of the Kings because they are both polarizing figures, and writes that Anthony needs to have the kind of season that Rondo is experiencing before Kristaps Porzingis becomes the clear face of the franchise.
  • Kendall Marshall, who played in his first game of the season Friday night, should provide the Sixers stability at the point guard position with his ability to take care of the ball and 3-point shooting, Derek Bodner of Phillymag.com details.
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Pacific Notes: Bryant, Morris, Thomas

December 5th, 2015 at 3:17pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lakers coach Byron Scott said that he found out that Kobe Bryant intends to retire after this season when the shooting guard informed him during the third quarter of last Saturday’s game against the Blazers, Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com relays. “I said, ‘KB, I played you 20 minutes in the first half. I’m going to cut those minutes down. I’ve got to cut them down,‘” Scott told ESPN. “He said, ‘That’s good, coach. That’s all right. I’m going to announce my retirement after the game.’”

Bryant didn’t intend to inform Scott in that manner, Holmes notes. “I have no idea. I don’t know,” Bryant said on why he told his coach during the game. “It just slipped out. It just slipped out. He was worried about the minutes. I said, it doesn’t matter. I’m not playing next year anyway. He was like [gives an odd stare]. I looked at him at his face, and I realized I said it. He was just shocked. I said, you know what? I’m just leaving him like that. I’m not even going to soften him up. I’m just going to mess with him a little bit. Then after the game, he walks by and he goes, ‘Hey, um, remember what you said during the game?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘Did you mean it? I said, ‘Yeah.’ He was like, ‘OK, all right.’ But it just kind of slipped out.”

Here’s more from out of the Pacific Division:

  • Markieff Morris disputes his brother Marcus’ assessment that he looks unhappy playing for the Suns this season, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic writes. “That’s just his opinion,” Morris said. “He knows me and he thinks he knows. Outside looking in, really. It’s his opinion. We don’t really talk too much about it. I’m just trying to get my job done. Missing [expletive] shots. I’m all right. If you didn’t hear it from me, then I’m all right.” The forward also downplayed any notion that he isn’t engaged this season, Coro adds, with Morris saying, “I’ve got to be the same,” said Morris. “Nothing different. I’m good where I’m at and just trying to move forward.”
  • Former Kings point guard Isaiah Thomas was disappointed that he wouldn’t have the opportunity to play in Sacramento this season since the teams squared off in Mexico City instead, Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee writes. “I definitely wanted to go back to Sac,” Thomas said. “It’s always a home for me and always a special place in my heart. When the schedule came out, I was looking for that Sac game and then it was in Mexico, so I was like, I won’t be able to go back to Sac.”
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Atlantic Notes: Thomas, Knicks, DeRozan

October 3rd, 2015 at 10:10am CST by Eddie Scarito

Knicks coach Derek Fisher is focusing on his squad’s intangibles and professionalism, rather than lament the fact that New York didn’t land any of the top names in free agency, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. “Character, professional mindset,’’ Fisher said when listing the team’s strengths. “You’re not in the NBA if you’re not talented. We don’t have to get into who’s talented. The character of our group and the way we’re approaching what’s going on daily, those are going to be the strengths. We’ll have rough nights, rough stretches. We have the beginnings of at least a group able to handle some of the adversity and setbacks that come with a long NBA season. The basketball part will take care of itself as long as we become a team. We have the type of guys that are interested in being a team.’’

When asked if the professionalism he was speaking of was an improvement over last season’s team, Fisher said, “It’s just different. Until the season starts and we figure out who we are, you can’t really say it’s better. But it’s different. We’re all different. Teams have different strengths and weaknesses. The strength of this particular group is not in having what people consider the sexy names or guys who didn’t come play with our team, but guys who truly want to be here. I think it’s going to help us.’’

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

  • Sixers owner Josh Harris admits that while he wishes that his team was further along in its rebuild, he is content with the progress that is being made, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I think we are making progress,” Harris said. “I’m an impatient person at heart. I would rather get to the end point as fast as possible. But at the same time, the goal is still the same goal: to be an elite extremely competitive team that goes deep in the playoffs. But at the same time, there aren’t shortcuts to it. So you have to react to the realities . . . I certainty wish it was going faster. But at the same time, I’m happy with the progress.“
  • Since being acquired at last season’s trade deadline, Isaiah Thomas has been the Celtics‘ best player, and this coming season will provide him with an opportunity to take the next step toward being recognized as one of the top players in the league, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes.
  • DeMar DeRozan is eligible to opt out of his current deal with the Raptors and become an unrestricted free agent next summer, but he is adamant about wanting to focus on the coming campaign, and not his next pact, Eric Koreen of The National Post relays. Discussing the wealth of questions he receives about next season, DeRozan told Koreen, “I hate that, honestly. I never speak about it. With me, I’ve always been that one player: I’ve been loyal. I’ve been every single thing you can think of here. I think people don’t understand how much pride I take in playing [in Toronto]. A lot of times when I do get asked that, it kind of frustrates me. Everyday I wake up, I take pride in being the longest Raptor here. People bring up third or whatever in franchise scoring — there is so much stuff like that.”
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