Odds & Ends: 2014 Draft, Jay Z, Wolves, Mavs
We're 290 days away from the 2014 NBA draft, but for ESPN.com's Chad Ford, it's by no means too early to forecast next June's first round. In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Ford presents his first 2014 mock draft, headlined by a top five of Andrew Wiggins, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart, Dante Exum, and Jabari Parker.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the Association:
- The NBPA is still waiting for official confirmation that Jay Z has divested his ownership stake in the Nets before granting him full NBA agent certification, according to Liz Mullen of Sports Business Journal (Twitter links). We heard last week that the rapper is selling half his Nets share to head coach Jason Kidd, and the other half to a current minority owner.
- The Timberwolves officially announced today that they've hired Bobby Jackson as a player development coach and promoted David Adelman, Rick Adelman's son, to assistant coach (Twitter link). Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune adds (via Twitter) that the Wolves didn't pick up Shawn Respert's option at the end of August, leaving Jackson as the team's only player development coach.
- Bryan Gutierrez of ESPNDallas.com loves the Mavericks' decision to re-sign Brandan Wright to a two-year, $10MM contract, giving the team a grade of A+ for the move. I'm not sure I'd go quite that far, though it looks like a solid value for Dallas.
- Speaking to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, Marcus Camby discusses his decision to sign with the Rockets, the recruitment he received from Dwight Howard, and his plan to coach after his playing career is over.
- In a piece for Secret Rival, Hoops Rumors contributor Mark Porcaro examines a few former Big East standouts, rounding up where they're playing now. You can take a more in-depth look at the latest international player movement in our tracker, which we introduced earlier today.
Fallout From Greg Oden’s Choice To Sign With Heat
Greg Oden let former college teammate Mark Titus of Grantland know about his decision to sign with the Heat ahead of the news breaking this evening, and heard from the one-time can't miss prospect about why Miami won him over.
"Obviously the chance to play with the best player in the world and compete for a championship was a big selling point," Oden said. "But more than that, what I really liked was how they thought I could really add something to their team. They’ve won back-to-back championships without me, so for them to pursue me as hard as they did meant a lot, especially given all that I’ve gone through."
Here's more on the Heat's second major victory of the summer:
- Other teams offered more money, but a conversation Oden had with Heat coach Erik Spoelstra last week at a Chili's in Indianapolis played a key role in the decision, agent Mike Conley Sr. says to Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida.
- Sources tell Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio that the Heat were willing to make promises to Oden that other teams wouldn't. Some of Oden's other suitors wanted a team option in year two rather than the player option the Heat gave him, Amico says (Twitter links).
- Oden tells Marc Stein and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com that the Heat's willingness to bring him along slowly this season was a “big deciding factor” for him. Oden's not sure he'll be ready for opening night, and just wants "to finish the season healthy."
- The Heat expect Oden to take part in training camp, but they aren't putting any pressure on him to play in the regular-season opener, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, who wonders if Oden's arrival signals that the team will look to trade Joel Anthony.
- Heat team president Pat Riley and company passed on signing Marcus Camby while they were waiting on Oden's decision, Winderman also reports.
- Oden isn't expected to play back-to-backs early in the season, a source tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
- The Heat will pay an approximately $2.6MM tax bill on Oden's contract, pushing their total projected tax payment to $18.8MM, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. With no further roster moves, the team's payroll, tax included, will be $101,539,013, according to Windhorst's math.
- The Cavs showed early interest in Oden, but the Andrew Bynum signing took them out of the running, tweets Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer.
Rockets Sign Marcus Camby
MONDAY, 12:50pm: The Rockets have officially signed Camby, the team announced today in a press release.
SUNDAY, 12:23pm: Camby will sign for one year at the minimum salary, reports Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (Twitter link).
11:59am: The Rockets will sign Marcus Camby today, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston reported just moments earlier that the move was expected to take place (Twitter link). Camby already passed a physical with Rockets team doctors, and agent Rick Kaplan recently told Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle that the Rockets were at the top of Camby's list of suitors.
Camby, a resident of nearby Pearland, Texas, had a desire to play at home and with a contender, Feigen tweets, giving the Rockets the edge over the Bulls and Heat, the other leading candidates for the 39-year-old. The Bulls appear to be the first runner-up, as talks between Camby and Chicago were reportedly going "extremely well" on Friday. The Heat's interest appeared to be on the wane.
The 17-year veteran will probably receive a minimum-salary deal, though the capped-out Rockets have their full $2.652MM room exception available. Camby has had one prior stint with the Rockets, who acquired him at the trade deadline in 2012 before participating in a sign-and-trade last summer with the Knicks. Camby inked a three-year, $13.151MM contract to go to New York, but injuries kept him from living up to it, limiting him to just 42 points in 24 games this past season.
The Knicks shipped him to the Raptors in the Andrea Bargnani trade this month, and Toronto accepted Camby's request that they buy him out. The Raptors reportedly recouped $2MM of the guaranteed portion of Camby's deal.
Latest On Marcus Camby
Marcus Camby scored a total of 42 points over the 24 games he played for the Knicks this past season, so that alone would make it difficult to understand why the 39-year-old is generating so much chatter less than a month into free agency. Teams appear to be focusing more on his production in 2011/12, when he averaged 9.0 rebounds in just 22.9 minutes per game. Here's what we know:
- The Bulls met with Camby on Friday, and Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com hears the talks are going "extremely well." He's telling teams he intends to go into coaching after he's done playing, echoing a report from earlier this month indicating he wanted to play two more years and then coach.
- Camby recently met with Rockets doctors and passed a physical, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston reports. Agent Rick Kaplan told Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle a couple of days ago that the Rockets were at the "top of his list" (Twitter link).
- Multiple reports show Camby is also considering the Heat, though Miami is showing less interest in him than Houston and Chicago are, tweets Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida.
Odds & Ends: Raptors, Camby, Oden, Bynum
The Raptors' buyout of center Marcus Camby will save the club $2MM in 2013/14, according to Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld. The veteran had a guaranteed $5.4MM between this year's salary and the $1MM partial guarantee on 2014/15 and he agreed to part ways with Toronto for $3.4MM. The Raptors will take a cap hit of $2.8MM for the coming season and $646K for 2014/15. Here's more from around the Association..
- In addition to the Hawks, Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter) hears that the Spurs and Pelicans also have representatives at Greg Oden's latest workout audition in Indianapolis.
- It's no secret that the Andrew Bynum deal didn't work out for the Sixers and yesterday, new CEO Scott O'Neil apologized to fans for how it turned out, writes Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- There are two main questions to consider when weighing the idea of the Wizards giving point guard John Wall an extension, argues Tom Ziller of SBNation.com.
- The Raptors announced that they have filled out their coaching staff with assistants Bill Bayno and Jesse Mermuys.
Western Notes: Camby, O’Neal, Jordan, Pekovic
A few notes from around the Western Conference
- According to a tweet from the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, Marcus Camby's agent insists that the Rockets are atop his list of teams to play for next season.
- New Warriors center Jermaine O'Neal says he is ready to help his new team in any role, any way he can, writes the San Francisco Chronicle's Rusty Simmons.
- Clippers center DeAndre Jordan found himself in a major trade rumor earlier this summer, with constant speculation of him being involved in a deal to the Celtics. Today, Jordan says he looks at those rumors as a sign of respect, according to RealGM's Shams Charania.
- Timberwolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders will fly to New York City early next week to sit down with restricted free agent Nikola Pekovic's agent with hopes to finalize a contract in the area of four years and $50MM, according to the Star Tribune's Kent Youngblood.
Eastern Notes: Irving, Bulls, 76ers, Wall, Heat
Speaking to reporters in Las Vegas, including Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, Kyrie Irving was dismissive of a recent report suggesting he wants out of Cleveland.
"I’m a Cavalier right now, I’m happy to be a Cavalier," Irving said. "I kind of had a sarcastic approach to [the report] because it was a rumor starter. I don’t think he knows anybody in my camp and I don’t know who the guy is. That type of stuff I don’t pay any attention to. Right now I’m a Cleveland Cavalier and I’m happy to be here."
Here's more from around the Eastern Conference:
- Malcolm Thomas' release doesn't necessarily mean the Bulls are clearing room to sign Marcus Camby, a source tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- Sixers GM Sam Hinkie confirmed to Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com (Twitter link) that the first-round pick the team will receive from the Pelicans is top-five protected over the next six drafts, starting in 2014.
- John Wall confirmed to Shams Charania of RealGM.com that his reps and the Wizards have begun discussions on a contract extension, but Wall says he doesn't plan to get too involved in those talks.
- After passing along a few Joe Dumars quotes on the amnesty provision and his team's offseason yesterday, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press has a few more items from the Pistons GM on Rasheed Wallace's new gig as a coach, and the trade that sent Chauncey Billups to Denver five years ago.
- The Magic signed Jason Maxiell in part so he can act as a mentor and leader for the team's younger players, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
- Ira Winderman's latest mailbag for the South Florida Sun Sentinel includes questions on a potential Joel Anthony trade and the possibility of the Heat signing Greg Oden. Winderman adds (via Twitter) that Miami was among the teams in attendance at Oden's workout today.
Free Agent Rumors: Miller, Oden, Camby, Blair
Free agent rumors and rumblings have slowed down since the start of July, as most of the bigger names have come off the board. Still, even though not a ton of teams have significant cap space or exception money remaining, plenty of intriguing players remain on the market. We're entering the point in the summer where teams are hunting for bargains and value signings, so here's the latest on a few players who could fit that bill:
- Mike Miller is meeting face-to-face for a second time with both the Thunder and Grizzlies, who appear to be the two favorites for him, says Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Rockets and Nuggets aren't out of the running yet, but Miller's choice will likely come down to OKC or Memphis (Twitter links).
- The Heat, Pelicans, and Kings will observe Greg Oden in person as he works out this week, according to Stein and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com, though Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports says (via Twitter) it'll just be the Pelicans and Kings. The Spurs and Mavericks are still in the hunt as well, with Miami and San Antonio still viewed as the frontrunners for the former first overall pick.
- Marcus Camby is expected to make a decision on his next team within the next week, with the Rockets, Bulls, and Heat among the finalists, tweets Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
- According to Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com, DeJuan Blair's asking price is in the $3MM range, Lamar Odom is only interested in playing for a Los Angeles team, and Josh Akognon is drawing heavy interest from Chinese teams.
- Zwerling adds (via Twitter) that the Knicks have some interest in Ivan Johnson, but the big man is still seeking a mini mid-level deal.
- Prior to reaching an agreement with the Nuggets, Nate Robinson received serious interest from the Wizards, according to Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld (via Twitter). Washington had already used its mid-level and bi-annual exceptions, so making a competitive offer would have been tricky.
- Free agent point guard Delonte West spoke to Tzvi Twersky of SlamOnline.com about his desire to return to an NBA roster.
Marcus Camby Clears Waivers
7:35pm: Camby's three finalists are the Heat, Rockets, and Bulls, sources tell Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
4:19pm: Marcus Camby has cleared waivers and is now officially a free agent, according to Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The waivers process was more or less a formality as no one was expected to claim him following his buyout from Toronto.
The Heat are among the teams with interest in the veteran center along with the Rockets and Bulls. The Clippers were believed to have interest as well, but that notion was shot down last last week. The shot-blocking big man has impressed in recent years with his tremendous rebounding but played in just 24 games for the Knicks last season.
His recently-terminated deal called for him to earn $7.5MM between next season and 2014/15. Camby apparently wants to play for a couple more years before transitioning into coaching.
Clippers Not Considering Camby?
Having just agreed to terms with big man Byron Mullens, sources say that the Clippers are not looking to sign free agent Marcus Camby (LA Times' Brad Turner via Twitter). The fact that DeAndre Jordan and Ryan Hollins are also on the team's depth chart doesn't make it likely that Los Angeles would be looking to add another center at this point. Earlier this evening, we relayed a report that listed the Clippers as one of three teams considered to be the leading candidates to sign the 6'11 big man.
Camby, who was bought out by the Raptors last week, averaged 1.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG, and 10.4 MPG in just 24 games for the Knicks last season. Just a few days ago, we heard of the former UMass star's plans to play in the NBA for two more years before moving into coaching.