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And-Ones: Martin, Fontecchio, Jazz

April 24th, 2015 at 10:33pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Jazz have some roster decisions to make regarding Trevor Booker, Joe Ingles, and Jeremy Evans this offseason, Randy Hollis of The Deseret News writes. Ingles can become a restricted free agent if the team tenders him a qualifying offer, Evans will be an unrestricted free agent, and only $250K of Booker’s $4,775,000 salary for 2015/16 is guaranteed. For their part, all three players want to return to Utah next season, and laud the organization and its coaching staff, Hollis notes. “The Jazz organization, they do a good job. It’s very family oriented, they do a lot of stuff for the fans. I mean, it’s just great,” Booker said. “Washington was a great experience, but I definitely enjoyed my time here in Utah a little more [than his previous four years in Washington with the Wizards].”

Out of the three, Evans is the likeliest not to return, with the forward only appearing in 38 games, and averaging just 2.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in 7.0 minutes of action per contest, Hollis adds. “I feel like they have the confidence in me and I trust them that they’re going to make the right decision. That’s what they’re here for,” Evans said about Utah’s front office. “If I’m here, I’m gonna be so happy; I feel like this is my home. If not, I know it’s still going to be a bright future and I wish everybody the best.”

Here’s more from around the league:

  • LSU sophomore power forward Jarell Martin has signed with agent Andy Miller of ASM Sports, Darren Heitner of SportsAgentBlog.com tweets. Martin is the 25th-best prospect on Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress rankings and the No. 28 overall prospect according to Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required).
  • Oklahoma State senior swingman Le’Bryan Nash has hired Matt Babcock and Adie von Gontard of APAA Sports Group to represent him, Shams Charania of RealGM reports (Twitter link). Nash is ranked as the No. 98 prospect by ESPN.com.
  • Italian forward Simone Fontecchio, 19, will enter the 2015 NBA Draft, according to his agent Max Resini, Givony tweets. Fontecchio spent the last three seasons with Virtus Bologna of the Italian League. DraftExpress ranks the 6’6″ swingman as the No. 89 prospect in this year’s draft.
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Draft Notes: Saric, Stauskas, Lakers

March 7th, 2014 at 5:57pm CST by Cray Allred

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak and vice president of player personnel Jim Buss are expected to scout the Big 12 tournament next week, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (via Twitter). Prospects in the Big 12 for the 2014 draft include Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins, Marcus Smart, Isaiah Austin, Cory Jefferson, LeBryan Nash, and Markel Brown. Embiid, Wiggins, and Smart are projected in the lottery, where L.A. will likely be picking. The Lakers owe their second round pick to the Bucks, although they could certainly acquire one on or before draft night. Here are more rumors surrounding the draft:

  • Turkish team Anadolu Efes is set to offer NBA draft prospect Dario Saric a five-year deal worth 6 million euros, or about $8.32MM, a source tells Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia, who notes that there are rumors the offer would cover only three years. Saric, a potential lottery pick, is undecided about whether to enter the draft this year, but he’s seriously considering the offer from Turkey, Carchia hears. The deal would include an NBA escape clause for 2016, when Saric will be automatically eligible for the NBA draft.
  • Saric is expected to hire a new agent at the end of the season, and his choice figures to significantly impact his call on his decision to declare for the draft, Carchia tweets.
  • Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com has Saric at No. 10 on his latest draft board, which features Jabari Parker on top.
  • An NBA scout tells David Mayo of MLive.com that Michigan shooting guard Nik Stauskas would likely go in the late teens or early-20s if he entered the draft this year.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

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Draft Updates: Thomas, Smart, Nash, Saric, Burke

April 4th, 2013 at 12:42pm CST by Luke Adams

As we look forward to what should be a fun Final Four in the NCAA Tournament this weekend, let's check in on the latest updates on the 2013 NBA draft….

  • Memphis forward Adonis Thomas will forgo his last two years of NCAA eligibility and enter the draft, coach Josh Pastner confirmed to L. Jason Smith of the Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link). Thomas, who will hire an agent, is ranked just outside of Chad Ford's top 100 list at ESPN.com, and Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) questions his decision to leave Memphis.

Earlier updates:

  • ESPN.com's Chad Ford isn't ruling out the possibility that the No. 2 prospect on his board, Marcus Smart, returns to Oklahoma State, but Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com says Smart is leaning toward declaring for the draft. Within the same tweet, Goodman adds that Smart's teammate, LeBryan Nash, will remain in school.
  • Croatian prospect Dario Saric will enter the draft, reports Ford. The 18-year-old is being eyed as a "potential sleeper" by a number of teams, according to the ESPN.com scribe.
  • Michigan's Trey Burke is up to 7th on ESPN.com's big board, and could continue to rise with a strong performance against Syracuse this Saturday, according to Ford.
  • Gary Harris of Michigan State is believed to be leaning toward returning to school and undergoing shoulder surgery this summer, says Ford.
  • Multiple sources tell Ford that Kelly Olynyk is expected to declare for the '13 draft, though the Gonzaga big man hasn't made it official yet.
  • College coaches and players are aware that the NCAA's April 16th withdrawal deadline is relatively meaningless, writes ESPN.com's Andy Katz. Last month, we passed along Jonathan Givony's explanation for why that's the case.
  • Isaiah Sykes of Central Florida will declare for the draft, but won't hire an agent, giving him an opportunity to withdraw, tweets Goodman.
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Odds & Ends: Celtics, Raptors, Trail Blazers

November 29th, 2012 at 5:42pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Chris Forsberg of ESPN Boston heard from head coach Doc Rivers that the Celtics could decide to recall Kris Joseph and possibly Fab Melo up from the D-League while Jeff Green and Chris Wilcox are out of action. More notably, after Danny Ainge told WEEI radio that Rajon Rondo would be given a two game suspension (Twitter link), Rivers gave the impression that the team won't necessarily try to make any subsequent roster moves anytime soon. You can find more of tonight's miscellaneous links from the Association here: 

  • HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy says (via Twitter) that the Raptors are weighing their free agent options at the small forward position.
  • Trail Blazers GM Neil Olshey told Joe Freeman of The Oregonian of his plans to use D-League assignments accordingly for Victor Claver, Joel Freeland, Will Barton, and Nolan Smith. While Olshey thinks that his young players are currently benefitting through their NBA experience, he believes the best time to send them to the Idaho Stampede (their D-League affiliate) would be after they have built a good enough foundation with the coaching staff and need significant minutes to continue developing.   
  • According to Anthony Slater of NewsOK, Thunder GM Sam Presti was spotted at Oklahoma State University's basketball practice to supposedly begin scouting Marcus Smart and Le'Bryan Nash, two college prospects who are currently touted as potential first round picks. 
  • The Nets announced that the right foot sprain which Brook Lopez suffered during last night's game is unrelated to the foot injury he sustained last season, and added that he is only expected to miss the next two games (Howard Beck of the New York Times reports). 
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Odds & Ends: Atlantic, Previews, Draft

September 28th, 2012 at 9:22pm CST by Alex Lee

Here are a few odds and ends from around the NBA on Friday night:

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