Nicolas Batum Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Notes: Batum, Calderon, Whittington

March 17th, 2016 at 2:28pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The impact that Nicolas Batum has had on the Hornets this season has him in line to land a major payday when he becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes. The swingman is likely to seek a maximum salary contract this summer, and while it’s debatable whether Batum is worthy of that amount even with the salary cap set to increase drastically for 2016/17, Charlotte’s inability to lure top-tier free agents may make investing in him for the long-term a wise move, Bonnell adds. While Batum is not a star in the traditional sense, he does make his teammates around him better as well as provide coach Steve Clifford a well-rounded set of skills to utilize, Bonnell writes. Batum is averaging 14.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists in 35.6 minutes per outing on the campaign.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Much-maligned Knicks point guard Jose Calderon said he’s looking forward to playing with the Spanish national team in this summer’s Olympics, noting that he is “appreciated there,” Marc Berman of The New York Post relays. “I want to be there,’’ said Calderon. “It will be my fourth Olympics. I don’t know if I’ll have a chance to play more. I think four is a good number. After 16 years on the national team, I’m not going to get to 2020. It’s a little bit too far for me.” Calderon has one year and approximately $7.7MM remaining on his contract but the Knicks could use the stretch provision to waive him and save $5MM on next season’s cap.
The Pacers have recalled Shayne Whittington from their D-League affiliate, the team announced. The center has appeared in 34 games for the Mad Ants this season, averaging 12.1 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.5 steals.

Southeast Notes: Wade, Bosh, Williams, Magic

March 6th, 2016 at 6:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

Dwyane Wade will be a free agent for the second straight year, but there’s virtually no chance he will leave Miami, writes Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Wade is proud of spending his entire 13-year NBA career in one city and persevering through the ups and downs. “It’s not that common in today’s game, but, yeah, you feel very prideful,” Wade said. “It hasn’t all been great, but you continue to stick with it, you continue to fight with it. I’ve been here, good or bad, the Miami Heat stays relevant.” Wade cashed in last summer, earning the highest salary of his career when he re-signed with the Heat for one year at $20MM. He stands to increase that figure this year with the expected jump in the salary cap.

There’s more news from the Southeast Division:

Chris Bosh has been working out with Heat staff members rather than his teammates, according to Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. “Not necessarily with the team. But, yeah, he’ll work out with the staff,” said coach Erik Spoelstra. “He’s staying engaged and he’s in great spirits. And that never surprised me with C.B.” Miami is trying to assess Bosh’s chances of returning to action this season after reportedly suffering a blood clot in his calf. The team hasn’t confirmed his condition and is simply putting him on the inactive list without explanation.
The Hornets‘ Marvin Williams is posting some career-high numbers in his 11th season, notes Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer. Williams is having his best season in rebounding and 3-point shooting, and at 10.9 points per game, he has his highest scoring average in seven years. Those figures should be attractive on the open market this summer, as Williams is wrapping up the final season of a two-year, $14MM contract. “One thing my father always taught me is hard work pays off,” Willliams said. “I worked extremely hard this summer and I feel like I’m benefitting from that. It’s helping me and it’s helping our team.”
The Magic could strengthen their presentation to this summer’s free agents with a berth in the playoffs, writes Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando is expected to be aggressive in the free agent market, and Schmitz lists Al Horford, Mike Conley, DeMar DeRozan, Bradley Beal, Nicolas Batum, Chandler Parsons, Ryan Anderson and Harrison Barnes as possible targets.

Southeast Notes: Splitter, Batum, Jefferson, Frye

February 17th, 2016 at 5:29pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks‘ Tiago Splitter may miss the start of next season after having surgery on his right hip, according to Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The procedure will be performed Thursday, and Splitter estimates it will take “eight months, at least” to recover, which means he won’t be able to represent Brazil in the Summer Olympics. “I just got here this season and I wanted to help this team more” said Splitter, who was acquired from the Spurs in a July trade. “I wasn’t able to perform 100%, that’s for sure. I’ve been feeling this pain, you guys know, for some time. We tried several techniques and treatments. It ended up being I need the surgery. I hope it goes fast and I’m ready to play again.” Splitter will make $8.25MM next season on the final year of his contract.

There’s more from the Southeast Division on the eve of the trade deadline:

Trade rumors have swirled around the Hawks as much as any team during the past month, and coach/executive Mike Budenholzer isn’t offering any hints about whether a deal for Al Horford or Jeff Teague is in the works, as Vivlamore notes in a separate piece. “We are very happy with our group,” Budenholzer said. “We feel strongly about them. I’ve been protective of them and would expect to continue to be that. You never know what can happen.”
The Hornets will likely present Nicolas Batum with a full max offer on the first day of free agency, tweets Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer, passing on a prediction from ESPN cap expert Tom Penn. It’s the only way Charlotte can keep him, Penn said (Twitter link).
The Hornets hope to welcome back center Al Jefferson this weekend, Bonnell tweets. Jefferson hasn’t played since undergoing arthroscopic surgery after suffering a tear in the lateral meniscus of his right knee in late December.
The Magic’s Channing Frye takes trade deadline talk in stride, tweets Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. The Clippers are reportedly close to a deal that would bring the veteran power forward to L.A. “It’s not my first time being on the trading block,” Frye said. “… I was supposed to get traded at the beginning of the season. I was supposed to get traded last year.”
Wizards center Marcin Gortat has officially chosen Todd Ramasar as his new agent, writes J. Michael of CSNMidAtlantic.

Western Notes: Pierce, Martin, Bass, Batum

February 1st, 2016 at 4:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Clippers signed Paul Pierce to a three-year deal in the offseason, but the 38-year-old has shown the ravages of age this season, and coach/executive Doc Rivers admits the team’s maintenance plan for him isn’t foolproof, as Dan Woike of the Orange County Register examines. Pierce hasn’t ruled out retirement after the season.

“It has to be [hard for him],” Rivers said. “You could see he didn’t have great rhythm tonight and he didn’t practice and he takes the days off. Again, it’s an imperfect science. I think at the end of the year it will be great for him because now the rhythm will start and he’ll start playing, but I really don’t know. I’m just trying to do the best with him so we can preserve him.”

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

Some teams with interest in trading with the Timberwolves for Kevin Martin would prefer that he picks up his player option worth nearly $7.378MM for next season, but a larger and more seriously intrigued bunch of teams wants him to turn down the option, as Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders hears. The same is true among suitors for Lakers power forward Brandon Bass, who has a $3.135MM player option, Kyler adds.
Soon-to-be free agent Nicolas Batum said after Friday’s game that he “loved” playing for the Trail Blazers, but Portland’s victory over the Hornets, in which Batum struggled, was in large measure about the Blazers moving past Batum and the other players the team didn’t bring back from last season, as The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman details. The Charlotte swingman was the last of the four former Blazers starters to play a game with his new team in Portland.
The Rockets have recalled Donatas Motiejunas and K.J. McDaniels from the D-League, the team announced (Twitter link). Motiejunas, set for restricted free agency at season’s end, gave his consent to the D-League trip as a rehab assignment, and he said he’ll again join Houston’s affiliate later in the week, notes Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston (on Twitter). Motiejunas has three previous years of experience, so the Rockets need his permission as well as the union’s to send him to the D-League.

Northwest Notes: Batum, Malone, Singler

January 29th, 2016 at 2:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Nicolas Batum‘s former Trail Blazers teammates Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum have fond memories of the small forward whom Portland traded to the Hornets this past summer, and Batum admits it will be “weird” Friday when Charlotte plays at Portland, The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman observes. Batum is a free agent at season’s end, and the Blazers will have plenty of cap space this summer, but there’s been no talk of a reunion.

“He was a really good teammate,” Lillard said. “I always remember my rookie year and my second year, when it would get to five minutes or less in the game, he would always come tap me on my back and be like, ‘Dame, it’s your time. Take over the game.’ Just being so young and having somebody who’s been a part of this team come to me and have that much confidence, that always meant a lot to me. He was always that type of person. He was unselfish. Just a good dude to play with.”

See more from the Northwest Division:

Michael Malone still stings from having been fired from the Kings in 2014, but he’s fully engaged with the Nuggets and he and former Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro, who was Malone’s boss at the time of the firing and is now in the Nuggets front office, don’t feel any “angst or hate” toward one another, Malone tells Michael Lee of Yahoo Sports.
Thunder coach Billy Donovan has said repeatedly that he’s a fan of what Kyle Singler can do on defense with his 6’8″ body, and the absence of the injured Andre Roberson will challenge Singler to live up to the five-year, $24.3MM deal he signed this past summer, observes Erik Horne of The Oklahoman.
Tyus Jones hasn’t played in 12 consecutive games for the Timberwolves, but he’s not complaining, and he prefers sitting on the bench and getting practice reps with his NBA teammates to playing on D-League assignment, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune details. The rookie spent much of December with the Jazz D-League affiliate.

Max Offers Waiting For DeRozan; Likely Batum, Too

January 12th, 2016 at 9:30am CST by Chuck Myron

Several teams, including the Lakers, are ready to make maximum-salary offers to DeMar DeRozan, and Nicolas Batum is likely to draw max offers, too, writes Zach Lowe of ESPN.com in a piece on the Raptors. Toronto GM Masai Ujiri “has long been connected” to Batum, as Lowe puts it, and Batum’s camp has spoken in the past about his desire to play for the Raptors, as Lowe reported over the summer. However, Batum was vehement in the wake of that offseason report that he wants to remain with the Hornets, and while the Lakers reportedly have a longstanding interest in Southern California native DeRozan, he’s said he’d like to play for Toronto the rest of his career. Indeed, it appears that the most likely outcome for Batum and DeRozan is that they stay put, Lowe concludes, though it appears they’ll be well-compensated to do so.

The pair are eligible for the maximum-salary tier that would give them starting salaries of a projected $24.9MM each. Their incumbent teams can exceed the salary cap using their Bird rights to give them five-year deals with 7.5% raises, while competitors must use cap space and are limited to four-year offers with 4.5% raises. DeRozan was unlikely to command max salaries as recently as a year ago, but improvement in his pick-and-roll play has changed that, as Lowe details. Batum and DeRozan are both in the midst of career seasons that have no doubt enhanced their respective values.

For what it’s worth, both have lists of suitors that reportedly include the Nets, who have $45MM in guaranteed salaries against a projected $89MM cap, leaving not quite enough room to snag both of them. The Lakers have only about $23MM committed, though it’s unclear if they have strong interest in Batum.

Which would you rather have on a max deal, DeRozan or Batum? Leave a comment to tell us.

Nets Interested In Nicolas Batum, Evan Turner

January 8th, 2016 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

The Nets are fond of soon-to-be free agents Nicolas Batum and Evan Turner, NetsDaily tweets, also confirming earlier reports of the team’s interest in Mike Conley and DeMar DeRozan. Brooklyn only has about $45MM in guaranteed salary committed for next season against a projected $89MM cap, and without a 2016 first-round pick thanks to the 2013 Kevin Garnett/Paul Pierce deal, making improvements via free agency will be that much more important to the Nets. Still, questions remain about Brooklyn’s ability to attract marquee talent to a franchise that’s experienced declines in winning percentage three years in a row.

Batum is in the midst of a career year, having taken to Charlotte in his first season there after the Trail Blazers dealt him to the Hornets over the summer. It’s no surprise to see the Nets have interest in the 27-year-old who’s averaging 16.3 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.2 assists in 34.8 minutes per game, especially since Bojan Bogdanovic and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson are the team’s only wing players with fully guaranteed contracts for next season. Still, re-signing Batum will no doubt be a high priority for Charlotte, and the Bouna Ndiaye client has said that his fondness for Hornets coach Steve Clifford, who signed an extension this fall, “could be a big factor” in his decision.

Turner is a more surprising object of Brooklyn’s interest. He started most of the season for the Celtics last year, but he’s made only four starts this season, including the past three games as he’s filled in for an injured Avery Bradley. The former No. 2 overall pick has failed to live up to his draft position since joining the NBA in 2010, and he signed with Boston in 2013 for just $6.704MM over two years. The rising salary cap and a better performance with the Celtics than he gave the Pacers before signing his last contract should push the David Falk client’s price tag higher this summer, but compared to Batum, he’ll likely be much more obtainable.

Complicating matters is the unsettled situation in the Nets front office, where GM Billy King is on a contract that expires at season’s end. NetsDaily has countered a European report indicating that owner Mikhail Prokhorov wants CSKA Moscow team president Andrey Vatutin to succeed King. Nets CEO Brett Yormark, who’s apparently a major proponent of recruiting John Calipari back to the organization in a role that would likely include player personnel power, has begun to speak more often about the team’s basketball operations, as NetsDaily has also pointed out.

Eastern Notes: Ainge, Jefferson, Wizards

December 17th, 2015 at 6:45pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Celtics are seeking to acquire a player who is a reliable scorer, especially during crunch time, Chris Forsberg of ESPN.com relays. “I think the one thing that we could really use is a go-to scorer,” team executive Danny Ainge said. “We have some guys that have carried us — Kelly Olynyk has carried us, Avery Bradley has carried us, Isaiah Thomas has carried us, Jared Sullinger has carried us at moments during the season, Evan Turner has carried us — but it would be nice to find another player that’s a reliable scorer at the end of games, night in and night out.”

During an appearance on the “Toucher and Rich” show, Ainge was asked if he would be leery of adding a player like DeMarcus Cousins, who has a reputation of being difficult, to which Ainge replied, “I think [disruptive personalities are] a problem in any locker room. There’s a time — first of all, we have good character on our team right now and we have some mature kids, even though we don’t have an old team. I don’t think it’s ever a good idea to have players that are disruptive to your team, on the court and off the court.”

Here’s more from the East:

With Al Jefferson in the final year of his contract the Hornets could look to trade him prior to this season’s deadline, a prospect that will be made more challenging by team needing to recoup more than just expiring contracts in any swap, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer writes. With Charlotte’s offseason priority likely to be re-signing Nicolas Batum, and with little desire to pay luxury tax, dealing Jefferson may be a palatable option for the franchise if it could secure some usable assets in any exchange.
The Wizards are a team caught between wanting to compete now and trying to maintain as much cap flexibility as possible for a run at Kevin Durant next summer, which is hurting the franchise in the short term, writes Jerry Brewer of The Washington Post. Washington risks regressing significantly as a team this season, which could serve to turn off a top-tier free agent like Durant, Brewer adds.

Southeast Notes: Heat, Wizards, Hornets

December 13th, 2015 at 1:46pm CST by Will Joseph

Former Heat point guard Mario Chalmers, in his first extensive interview since the trade that sent him to the Grizzlies, told Ethan Skolnick of the Miami Herald that the reason why he is having success with his new team is because he is being utilized as more of a scorer instead of a facilitator. Chalmers is averaging 9.5 points per game this season, which is better than his career average of 8.9 points per game. Interestingly, Chalmers said he was not provided a reason from Miami about why he was traded. The move allowed the Heat to shed salary.

Here’s more from the Southeast Division:

Gary Neal, whom the Wizards signed to a one-year deal in July, has filled the role of capable bench scorer, which is what Washington hoped for in inking the veteran point guard, Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post writes. Neal’s contract, which is worth $2.1MM, fit into both the Wizards’ short-term plans and long-term flexibility, Castillo adds. The move has paid off with Neal averaging 10.6 points per game.
After being traded to the Hornets from the Blazers, Nicolas Batum is playing the best basketball of his career, Jimmy Toscano of CSNNE.com details. Batum’s all-around game has been so strong this season, Celtics coach Brad Stevens thinks the small forward has a good shot to make the All-Star team, as Toscano adds.
Speaking of Batum, taking chances on him, Jeremy Lamb and Spencer Hawes — who were each at uncertain points of their respective careers — in trades during the summer has made the Hornets dramatically better offensively, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer explains. In obtaining the players, the Hornets added size and versatility, Bonnell adds. “We made a concerted effort to improve offensively, improve our versatility and find more skilled players,” Hornets GM Rich Cho said. “I knew Nic from [working in] Portland; we knew Spencer had tremendous basketball IQ and could shoot the ball and spread the floor. Jeremy was someone we pursued for a long time. We liked him in college and saw him play a lot of games in the NBA and the D-League.”

Eastern Notes: Batum, Clifford, James

November 26th, 2015 at 12:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Hornets coach Steve Clifford‘s new contract extension could enhance the team’s chance of re-signing swingman Nicolas Batum, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season, Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer notes (Twitter links). “He trusts me. He believes in me. So that could be a big factor,” Batum said when discussing his upcoming free agent decision. Batum was acquired from Portland this past summer in exchange for Noah Vonleh and Gerald Henderson.

Here’s more from the East:

The first three years of Clifford’s extension are fully guaranteed, with the final season in 2019/20 a team option, Bonnell tweets.
The Cavaliers held a players-only meeting after their Wednesday night loss to the Raptors, and LeBron James and James Jones both chastised the squad for its inconsistent play and effort, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com writes. “It’s all mindset,” James said after the game. “It comes from within. I’ve always had it; my upbringing had me like that. It’s either you got it or you don’t.” LeBron also noted that the Eastern Conference, which has been much-maligned for being mediocre the past few seasons, is greatly improved this year, McMenamin relays. “There’s always been a lot of shade thrown at our conference the last few years, so it’s great to see that our side is definitely picking it up and playing at a high level,” James said.
Knicks rookie Kristaps Porzingis is winning over the team’s fans, but he still hasn’t forgotten that his draft selection was met with boos when first announced, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. “It still sits inside of you a bit,’’ Porzingis said of the boos. “It’s not a good feeling when you get booed. But I don’t want to be good because somebody booed me. I want to be great player because that’s the way I am. It definitely gave me extra motivation.’’