Mike Miller (Former Player) Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Miller, Haywood, Hammon

July 26th, 2015 at 10:32pm CST by Will Joseph

Mike Miller landing with the Thunder seems like an unlikely outcome, Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman writes. Miller was reportedly traded from the Cavs to the Blazers and is expected to be released. Joining the Thunder would be an interesting move because Miller played under new Thunder coach Billy Donovan at Florida between 1998-2000, as Slater points out, and the two are very close friends, Slater adds. However, Miller, 35, who is coming off his worst season, reportedly wanted out from Cleveland because he wants more playing time and that would be hard to find with the Thunder, Slater adds. The team also won’t have a spot on the roster for him, Slater notes.

The Sixers discussed trading for Brendan Haywood with the Cavs before the big man was reportedly dealt to the Blazers, reports SI.com’s Jake Fischer, who cites a source (on Twitter).
Spurs assistant Becky Hammon has gained traction as a potentially serious head-coaching candidate, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes after several conversations with league executives. More importantly, from Berger’s perspective, the culture around the league toward a female head coach has changed drastically. One executive from the Eastern Conference told Berger that Hammon “would be high on my list.” Another said, “Why not? She has the qualities necessary, and with an organization’s backing, she could do it. She’s obviously learned under the best.”
Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak wanted to meet with Nick Young to tell Young not to consider the signing of Lou Williams a slap in the face, Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News reports (on Twitter). The Kupchak and Young met recently and afterward Young, who has been the subject of trade rumors this summer, said he felt confident he would remain with the team.

Mike Miller Opts In With Cavs

June 30th, 2015 at 11:04am CST by Dana Gauruder

TUESDAY, 11:04am: The move is official, the Cavs announced.

MONDAY, 11:18pm: Mike Miller has opted into his $2.8MM contract with the Cavaliers for next season, a league source told RealGM’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). Miller indicated as far back as February that he intended to exercise his player option despite diminished playing time.

The 15-year veteran Miller averaged 2.1 points and 13.5 minutes while playing 52 games last season. He appeared in nine postseason games during the Cavs’ run to the NBA Finals, averaging 1.0 points and 7.2 minutes. Miller averaged 7.1 points with the Grizzlies in 2013-14.

It’s doubtful Miller’s playing time will spike upward next season but he obviously is in no hurry to retire. For his career, Miller is an 11.3 points per game scorer, having played for six organizations.

Coaching Rumors: Nuggets, Donovan, Cheeks

June 9th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Michael Malone‘s candidacy for the Nuggets head coaching job is gathering momentum, but an increasing number of coaches around the league envision interim coach Melvin Hunt getting the position, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. In any case, it appears that Denver is drawing closer to a hire, as it’s believed that the team would like to have its new coach help with draft prep, writes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Here’s more coaching news from around the NBA:

Mike Miller lauded Billy Donovan‘s demeanor, preparation and communication when Kevin Durant asked him about the incoming Thunder head coach, as Miller tells Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. Miller makes it clear he harbors no shortage of affection for his college coach, saying to Slater that it will be “very weird” to go against Donovan in the NBA. Miller wouldn’t necessarily have to do so if he declines his player option, worth nearly $2.855MM, and signs with the Thunder this summer, of course, but the Cavs reserve didn’t suggest that such a scenario was on his mind.
The Thunder are increasingly serious about rehiring Maurice Cheeks as an assistant coach, according to Stein, who notes the strong relationship between Cheeks and Russell Westbrook (Twitter links). Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports first identified Cheeks as a possible candidate for an assistant’s job in Oklahoma City, a role that would reprise the one he filled from 2009/10 to 2012/13.
Remaining with the Magic to serve as an assistant under Scott Skiles remains a “strong option” for James Borrego, Stein also reports (Twitter link). Borrego, who was Orlando’s interim coach and a candidate to remain in the head coaching position on a long-term basis before the Skiles hire, has drawn interest from the Pelicans and had talks with the Thunder about assistant coaching jobs, as Stein previously reported.

Central Notes: Cavs, Miller, Pistons

February 23rd, 2015 at 7:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith are giving LeBron James even more reason to believe in the Cavaliers, Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group writes. Shump and Smith shined against their former team over the weekend and no moment encapsulated that better than the alleyop lobbed by the former to the latter in the fourth quarter. “They’ve given us everything we’ve asked, and more,” James said, about the former Knicks. “We love them. I know I do. I love them and I’m happy to have them on board.” More from the Central Division..

Mike Miller‘s role on the court with the Cavs has been reduced quite a bit, but he believes that he still has a place on the team and in this league. Miller has a $2.8MM player option for the 2015/16 season and as of now he says his intentions are to pick up that option, Chris Haynes of The Plain Dealer. “I would say yes. I am coming back, but it’s a long year,” Miller said. “I’m going to see how this one goes. All I’m focused on is what we do here. We’ve got 25 games here and then a playoff run. We’ll see how that goes. Where I’m at now, I’ve been blessed to do 15 years. It’s a year-by-year basis. I love what I’m doing.”
The Pistons were reluctant to trade Kyle Singler at the deadline, Vincent Ellis of the Detroit Free Press tweets. Detroit knew he was about to hit restricted free agency, however, and more importantly they really wanted to land Reggie Jackson.
More from Ellis (link), who says that despite what’s being said, it’s hard to see Brandon Jennings remaining with the Pistons after next season. Jennings is out for the remainder of this campaign after suffering a torn Achilles tendon. He makes $8MM this season and has one more year worth nearly $8.344MM left on his deal.

Cavs Notes: Irving, Allen, Miller, Cherry

December 5th, 2014 at 1:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavs and Kyrie Irving shook hands on a five-year extension this summer without knowing that LeBron James would return to Cleveland, sources insist to Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com, but Irving has had no problem adjusting his game to support LeBron’s, as Windhorst examines. Irving took a backseat to no one Thursday, popping for 37 points while James dished 12 assists in Cleveland’s fifth straight win. Here’s more on a Cavs team that’s finally on a roll:

Ray Allen is telling teams to talk to him in January and that he’ll make a decision about his future in February, tweets Ryen Russillo of ESPN Radio. The Cavs remain the favorite to sign him, according to Russillo, though Allen and his camp have continually insisted that he’s unsure whether he wants to play, much less which team he’d want to play for.
Mike Miller thought coming into the summer that he’d re-sign with the Grizzlies and spend the rest of his career in Memphis, as he tells Grantland’s Jonathan Abrams, but the team’s decision to sign Vince Carter derailed that plan, Abrams writes. He was reportedly close to a deal with the Nuggets, who offered him three years and $12MM, according to Abrams, but he chose instead to join the Cavs for two years and nearly $5.587MM. “The history of this city [Cleveland], if they go on to win one and I’m somewhere else — that’s the decision I couldn’t live with,” Miller said. “So when it came down to the money, unfortunately I left a lot on the table again. It is what it is, but I’d have a hard time [waking up] every morning if I would have went somewhere else and not had the opportunity to win [a title].”
It’s unclear where Will Cherry will play next, but it won’t be in the D-League, as a source tells Gino Pilato of D-League Digest that the point guard is heading overseas in the wake of his release from the Cavs this past weekend (Twitter link).

Cavs Notes: Love, James, Miller, Blatt

November 22nd, 2014 at 4:44pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kevin Love has had to sacrifice his game the most out of any player on the Cavs thus far this season, Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer writes. Love is playing the same 36 minutes a game as a year ago, but is taking five fewer shots each contest, notes Pluto. This is something that Chris Bosh, LeBron’s former teammate with the Heat, predicted would happen prior to the season, and it has been a struggle for Love to find his place and playing rhythm as a result, Pluto adds.

Here’s more from Cleveland:

The Cavs need to get a good look at Mike Miller in order to see if the veteran can still be productive, Pluto opines. Miller is only averaging 1.1 points per game and logging 11.1 minutes per night, which isn’t a smart return for a player the team inked to a two-year, $5.5MM deal this past summer.
With Cleveland’s defense currently ranked 23rd in the league in points allowed (102 per game), GM David Griffin would prefer to use his $5,285,816 trade exception for a big man, rather than a shooting guard such as the Wolves’ Corey Brewer, Pluto reports.
Despite the Cavs assembling a superstar laden roster this season, there isn’t the same animosity directed at this Cleveland squad as the vitriol that was thrown towards the Heat’s “Big Three,” Mike Ganter of The Toronto Sun writes. Much of this has to do with LeBron James returning home rather than leaving it, as well as a number of talented players on the Cavs roster being in place before James’ arrival, Ganter adds.
Despite the extremely small sample size of 11 games, this year’s Cavs squad doesn’t look like they enjoy playing together, and there appears to be a distinct lack of communication on the team, something that could end up costing head coach David Blatt his job, Chris Haynes of The Northeast Ohio Media Group opines.

Eastern Notes: Dudley, Cavs, Granger

September 6th, 2014 at 8:58am CST by Eddie Scarito

Bucks coach Jason Kidd believes that the newly acquired Jared Dudley will have a big impact on the team’s younger players, Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel writes. “When you look at a veteran coming from winning programs – Phoenix, the Clippers – that’s important,” Kidd said. “When I talked to him, he talked about learning from Grant Hill and what it means to be a professional. We need that in the locker room as much as we need him to be himself on the court by defending and knocking down threes and being part of the team.”

Here’s more from the east:

Mike Miller told reporters including Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer that he chose to sign with the Cavs for a chance to win another championship alongside LeBron James, and that the addition of Kevin Love reinforced those expectations. “Before [Love], we still had the same expectations,” said Miller. “With him it makes those expectations a little more exciting. Now it’s on us as players and the coaching staff and organization to do our job and come together and show our commitment by making sacrifices within the locker room.”
Miller added that Cleveland’s influx of veterans with championship experience will help instill commitment across the roster. “Every team is different and it’s a matter of commitment level,” Miller said. “The best thing is we have a handful of guys that have done it before. You add pieces like Shawn Marion, James Jones, LeBron, Brendan Haywood and that makes it a lot easier when you’re saying stuff to other players.”
Danny Granger is the Heat newcomer that has the potential to be the wild card this season and provide an unexpected boost, Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel opines. Winderman also believes that a number of Miami players who hold opt-outs after the season will be especially motivated to produce this season.

Cray Allred contributed to this post.

Cavs Sign Mike Miller

August 5th, 2014 at 5:53pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:53pm: The team has followed with an official announcement.

AUGUST 5TH, 5:32pm: The team still hasn’t made a formal announcement, but the signing has taken place, according to Pincus (Twitter link). It’s for two years and $5.6MM and it includes a 15% trade kicker, according to Pincus, who confirms that it indeed features a player option for the final season.

JULY 15TH: Mike Miller has agreed to join the Cavs on a two-year deal with a player option for the final season, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link). It’s for a total of $5.5MM, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter), though Broussard says the Nuggets and Rockets offered more. Miller had been torn between Denver and Cleveland, as Wojnarowski reported earlier this afternoon (Twitter link). The Cavs are likely using their room exception on the sharpshooting swingman, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders.

The Arn Tellem client was reportedly near a deal with the Nuggets when LeBron James decided to return to the Cavaliers, which allowed Miller a chance to play with James again. Miller was ineligible to sign with the Heat, since his previous contract with Miami, which the Heat amnestied, ran through next season. James had apparently reached out to Miller to see if he would be interested in joining him were he to leave the Heat this summer.

The Grizzlies, Clippers, Thunder, Blazers and Mavs were other teams reportedly interested in the 34-year-old, who showed this past season that his body is still capable of handling the rigors of the NBA. He played in all 82 games for the first time since he was a rookie, giving Memphis a valuable shooter in reserve. His 45.9% accuracy from behind the arc was the second-best mark of his career.

Miller’s camp appeared to try to ward off the possibility that the Cavs would claim him off amnesty waivers last summer by advancing talk about back surgery, but now Miller is willingly taking a discount to go to Cleveland, in a twist of events.

Eastern Notes: Stephenson, Miller, Knicks

July 16th, 2014 at 10:15am CST by Chuck Myron

Some Pacers players attempted to persuade the team to sweeten its offers to Lance Stephenson, but the front office resisted, according to Sean Deveney of the Sporting News. Stephenson agreed early this morning to bolt for the Hornets, and as his new three-year, $27.5MM deal quickly came together, the Pacers never received the opportunity to match Charlotte’s offer, as Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star writes. There’s more on his deal amid the latest from the Eastern Conference:

The Mavs made a three-year $20MM offer to Stephenson, reports Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link). The new Hornets two-guard would have joined the Mavs instead if the Rockets hadn’t passed on matching the Mavs’ offer sheet to Chandler Parsons, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com.
The Pacers made two different five-year offers to Stephenson, but he rejected them both, favoring a shorter arrangement, agent Alberto Ebanks tells Buckner (Twitter link). Indiana wasn’t willing to go shorter than five years, Broussard writes in his piece.
The Nuggets had a three-year, $12MM offer on the table for Mike Miller, but he passed it up for two years and $5.5MM with the Cavs thanks to persistent entreaties from LeBron James, as Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com details.
Knicks president Phil Jackson thinks the team has too many guards, and he may end up waiving Wayne Ellington, whom New York acquired in the Tyson Chandler trade, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post.
The Jazz almost doubled the average annual value of the deal that the Wizards were willing to give Trevor Booker, according to J. Michael of CSNWashington.com.
The Hawks held on to Pero Antic through Tuesday, meaning his non-guaranteed salary for 2014/15 has become fully guaranteed for $1.25MM. The same is true for Kyle O’Quinn, whose minimum salary with the Magic went from non-guaranteed to fully guaranteed when Orlando kept him Tuesday.

And-Ones: Davis, Pacers, Thunder, Miller

July 14th, 2014 at 11:21pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Baron Davis is preparing himself for a return to the NBA this fall, reports Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report (Twitter links). When asked what offensive system he likes, Davis said the Clippers’ and the Warriors’. Davis feels like he can play 15-20 minutes per game next year, notes Zwerling.

Here’s more from around the league:

Mike Miller is leaning towards signing with the Cavaliers, but the Nuggets are still in play for the free agent’s services, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
With LeBron James headed back to Cleveland, and Pau Gasol on his way to Chicago, the Central Division has gotten much tougher for the Pacers, writes Michael Marot of The Star Tribune. This makes re-signing Lance Stephenson even more of a priority, opines Marot.
Thunder assistant coach Brian Keefe will join Derek Fisher‘s coaching staff in New York, reports Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman.
The Thunder have to keep building their roster through the draft because the franchise is continuing to have difficulty luring free agents to Oklahoma City, writes Jon Hamm of ESPN.com.
With many of the biggest names in free agency now spoken for, Fred Kerber of The New York Post runs down the winners and losers in free agency thus far.
The Mavericks aren’t done upgrading their roster, writes Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. President of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said, “We’re always looking for help in the backcourt, with an eye on 3-point shooting, and then kind of a rangy defender would be nice as well. We’re still in search of those, but those spots don’t necessarily need to be filled through free agency. Obviously there are trades and all kinds of other ways you can do that.”
The Warriors may be interested in free agent Brandon Rush, writes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group. Rush averaged 9.7 PPG and 3.8 RPG in 67 games with Golden State before getting injured last season. GM Bob Myers said of Rush, “Rush was great. Everybody that’s been a fan saw how good he was for us, so if he’s healthy, and he can play, which we hear he can — we’ll go watch him and see — it’s a good addition if we could get him. You don’t know what the price would be, but we like Brandon.” The article also notes that Rush is scheduled to hold a workout for interested teams soon.