Western Notes: Randolph, Sterling, Jazz
Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com explains the odd circumstance concerning Zach Randolph‘s player option with the Grizzlies next season. According to the current CBA, a player cannot earn less money in a player option year relative to how much he made in the previous season. As it currently stands, Randolph will make $16.5MM if he decided to opt in for 2014/15, which is considerably lower than the $17.8MM he made in 2013/14.
Tim Duncan had a similar issue in his contract with the Spurs, as his player option for the upcoming year was initially less than what he made this past season. While Duncan’s contract was ultimately modified to address the error, Randolph’s remains unchanged simply because the contract had been signed too long ago, Deeks hears. Randolph and Memphis reportedly are moving toward a multi-year deal, but if he opts in and the deal winds up coming in the form of an extension, Randolph’s missing money will come into play.
Here are more noteworthy links to pass along tonight:
- A Los Angeles Superior Court judge said that the terms of the Sterling family trust may give Donald Sterling little room to challenge the finding that he is mentally incapable of continuing as co-owner of the Clippers, writes James Rainey of the Los Angeles Times. This would appear to give Shelly Sterling the advantage in her case to affirm both her control of the trust and sale of the team.
- The Jazz announced the additions of Brad Jones, Antonio Lang, Alex Jensen, Mike Wells, and Johnnie Bryant to Quin Snyder’s coaching staff. Jones will be Snyder’s lead assistant, according to Jody Genessy of the Deseret News (Twitter link).
- Maccabi Tel Aviv has opted out of its contract with Joe Ingles, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Back in March, we passed along that Ingles was considering a move to the NBA this summer. The Grizzlies and Jazz were among the Western Conference teams reported to have interest in the Australian-born forward.
Grizzlies, Hawks, Jazz Interested In Joe Ingles
The Grizzlies, Hawks and Jazz are interested in point forward Joe Ingles, who is considering exercising an NBA escape clause in his deal with an Israeli team this summer, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (All Twitter links). The 6’8″ 26-year-old rejected a two-year offer from Memphis last summer, Pick tweets. The Pacers, Bucks and Clippers also reportedly had interest at that time.
“I’m definitely thinking about the NBA,” Ingles told Pick (Twitter link). “Every year I don’t go, it closes the door a little more.”
The native of Australia added that he’s not yet ready to shift his focus from helping Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Euroleague, as Pick also tweets. Despite all the intrigue from NBA clubs, his numbers in Israel aren’t eye-popping. He’s averaging 8.1 points, 3.5 assists and 3.4 rebounds in 25.2 minutes per game this year, though he is shooting 39.1% from three-point range. He put up similar stats in his previous two seasons playing in the Spanish ACB league.
He went undrafted in 2009, so he’s free to sign with any NBA team once his escape clause kicks in at season’s end.
FA Updates: Evans, Josh Smith, Pekovic, Clark
Tyreke Evans has been one of the most intriguing stories in free agency so far, with the Pelicans having extended a four-year, $44MM offer to the 23-year-old. Still, Evans has yet to agree to sign that offer, and there's no guarantee he'll do so, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets. The situation remains fluid, and Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee (Twitter link) believes if the Kings make Evans a comparable offer, he'd prefer to sign it and stay in Sacramento.
Let's round up a few more of today's free agent updates….
- As they continue to explore the possibility of making a big splash, the Warriors are trying to set up a meeting with Josh Smith, according to Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (via Sulia). However, Smith doesn't seem as interested in the Warriors, who Thompson says "aren't going to jump as high as others to get him."
- Don't expect a whole lot of movement in talks for Nikola Pekovic until after Dwight Howard makes his decision, says Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (via Twitter).
- Sean Deveney of the Sporting News says (via Twitter) the Cavaliers are being extremely aggressive in their pursuit of Earl Clark, meeting with him yesterday and again today, though no offer has been extended yet.
- Dorell Wright met with the Thunder yesterday and was presented with one- and two-year contract offers, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, adding that Wright received a similar proposal from the Trail Blazers. The Spurs, Grizzlies, and Mavericks also have interest in Wright, says Spears (via Twitter).
- Australian forward Joe Ingles is drawing interest from four NBA teams, reports Shams Charania of RealGM.com, listing the Pacers, Grizzlies, Bucks, and Clippers as possible suitors for the 25-year-old.
Southwest Rumors: Hollins, White, Ingles
Four of the five Southwest Division teams are in action tonight, including the Rockets, who have a key clash with the Blazers, the team sitting just one game behind them for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Rockets could be getting a boost from one of their lottery picks soon, as we examine along with other news from the Southwest:
- The Associated Press provides more of Hollins' comments, noting that the coach would have preferred the Grizzlies keep their core together (link via HoopsWorld). Ron Higgins of the Memphis Commercial Appeal adds even more. "Was I disappointed? Of course I was disappointed. … But that doesn’t mean I love Rudy Gay more than I love Zach Randolph. It doesn’t mean that I can’t go on without Rudy Gay."
Earlier updates:
- Royce White has passed a physical with the Rockets, and everything is set for him to join the team's D-League affiliate next week, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. White said there's no timetable for how long he'll stay with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, but added that he believes the Rockets want to make it a short stint.
- In a series of dispatches on his Twitter account, Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal shared remarks from Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins, who insists he's on board with the front office and wants to return to coach the team next season. "I hope everything I say isn't taken as I hate management," said Hollins, who made earlier comments that appeared to indicate he opposed the Rudy Gay deal. "Am I emotional about the trade? Yes. But it is the business of basketball and i understand it."
- Australian big man Joe Ingles, currently playing in Spain, drew interest from the Grizzlies in the wake of last month's three-for-one trade. While a signing didn't materialize, the 25-year-old has long dreamed of joining the NBA, as HoopsHype's Jorge Sierra examines. Ingles' deal with FC Barcelona is up at the end of the season.
Grizzlies Considering West, Walker, Others
WEDNESDAY, 8:07am: Chris Vernon adds yet another name to the list of possibilities for the Grizzlies, tweeting that the club is thinking about signing Josh Childress. Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal also adds (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies' interest in Vujacic is real, and that he'd be given a guarantee if it made financial sense to buy out his contract overseas.
TUESDAY, 7:28pm: Michael Redd has also been mentioned as a possibility, according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio.
12:38pm: Samardo Samuels is also under consideration for the Grizzlies, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Twitter link).
10:33am: In addition to West and Walker, the Grizzlies are also considering Eddie House, Micah Downs, and Joe Ingles, tweets Vernon.
9:39am: Vernon clarifies in a second tweet that there was a misunderstanding between him and his source, and that the Grizzlies are only considering West and Walker, rather than definitely intending to sign them.
9:11am: Because the Grizzlies had already been carrying the minimum 13 players on their roster, their three-for-one trade with the Cavaliers will leave them two players short of the minimum. To fill out the roster, Memphis is expected to sign Delonte West and Bill Walker, reports Chris Vernon of 92.9FM ESPN in Memphis (Twitter link).
According to Vernon, the Grizzlies will also sign Sasha Vujacic, though we heard back in August that Vujacic's contract in Turkey wouldn't let him return to the NBA this season, so it's unclear if that has changed. According to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (via Twitter) and Istanbul-based reporter Ismail Senol (via Twitter), Vujacic won't be leaving Turkey's Anadolu Efes. If they add West and Walker, the Grizzlies would have reached the 13-man minimum, so there'd be no need to immediately add a 14th player anyway.
West, 29, was in camp with the Mavericks this year on a guaranteed minimum-salary contract, but fell out of favor with the team and was released just before the regular season got underway. He had a productive year in Dallas in 2011/12 though, posting a career-high 15.3 PER in 44 games, including 33 starts. Walker, meanwhile, spent most of last season with the Knicks before being released just before the playoffs. The 25-year-old averaged 5.9 PPG in 32 contests for New York in '11/12.
Even if the Grizzlies sign a pair of players to rest-of-season deals, the team shouldn't have to worry about going back over the tax threshold. In each instance, Memphis would only be on the hook for a pro-rated portion of the minimum salary, an amount small enough that the Grizz would remain under the tax line.
Latest On Joe Ingles
Fresh off a solid Olympic performance in London, Australian forward Joe Ingles is drawing interest from several NBA teams, writes The Sydney Morning Herald's Adrian Warren. The 24-year-old forward will play out his upcoming season with Barcelona, but afterwards will likely make a leap to the NBA.
In a tweet, ESPN Radio's Darren Wolfson suggests one solid fit might be the Timberwolves. Minnesota's general manager, David Kahn, has reportedly spoken with Ingles' agent. The 6'8" Ingles showed a complete offensive repetoire in the Olympics, averaging 15 PPG, 5 RPG, and 4 APG throughout the tournament.