Central Rumors: Bulls, Udoh, Oden, Jones
Pau Gasol said he has no worries about the health of Derrick Rose and added that the Knicks had only long shot to sign him as part of an interview with Jesus Sanchez of Marca.com, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune translates (Twitter links). The Bulls are scheduled to introduce Gasol and Nikola Mirotic to fans in a press conference today after agreeing to deals with both this past weekend, and there’s more from Chicago amid the latest Central Division rumors:
- There appears to be mutual interest between the Bulls and point guard Aaron Brooks, as Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com details. Sam’s story reveals that Brooks is considering the team, while the headline and Sam’s tweet indicate that Chicago is eyeing the 29-year-old point guard.
- The Lakers’ winning bid for Carlos Boozer was $3.251MM, not just $3.25MM as previously reported, tweets Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders, giving the Bulls slightly more savings than previously thought. The Bulls will be on the hook for $13.549MM of the $16.8MM remaining on Boozer’s contract, which expires next summer, but it won’t count against the salary cap for Chicago.
- Ekpe Udoh has his sights set on joining a contender, and was close to a deal with the Clippers before they struck a deal with Glen Davis, USA Today’s Sam Amick reports (on Twitter). That wouldn’t appear to bode well for any chance the Bucks have of re-signing the big man, who became an unrestricted free agent when Milwaukee declined to make him a qualifying offer.
- The Cavs have interest in Greg Oden, but it’s not clear if they’ve spoken with him or have any plans to do so, according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. Still, it appears that either the Cavs, LeBron James, or both have been in touch with the free agent center this summer, Amico writes.
- A lack of playing time with the Heat was one reason why James Jones decided to bolt for the Cavs, as Jones said in a radio appearance on The Ticket Morning Show in Miami, tweets Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald.
Spurs Re-Sign Boris Diaw
JULY 15TH: The deal is official, the Spurs announced via press release.
JULY 6TH: Spurs forward Boris Diaw announced on Twitter that he’ll be re-signing with the Spurs. It’s a three-year, $22.5MM deal, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.
The 32-year-old was a key part of the Spurs’ championship team and his return was considered a vital part of management’s plan to compete for a sixth franchise title next season. The third year of Diaw’s deal is partially guaranteed, according to sources. Diaw is guaranteed $15.5MM over the first two years of the deal.
Spurs GM R.C. Buford and Diaw’s agent Doug Neustadt completed the deal earlier today. With Diaw’s return set, the Spurs will continue their pursuit of free agent Pau Gasol with an offer of their midlevel exception, league sources tell Wojnarowski.
The deal includes protections for the Spurs’ salary-cap space should the organization change direction in the next few years and move toward a rebuild. In his 11 NBA seasons with Atlanta, Phoenix, Charlotte and San Antonio, Diaw has averaged 9.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
And-Ones: Davis, Pacers, Thunder, Miller
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.
Western Notes: Gasol, Love, Mavs, Deng
The Lakers have officially renounced the rights to Pau Gasol along with an entertaining list of long-retired players, according to Mark Deeks of ShamSports (via Twitter). Prepare for a stroll down memory lane. The Lakers renounced the rights to Horace Grant, Ron Harper, Jim Jackson, Karl Malone, Ira Newble, Theo Ratliff, Mitch Richmond, John Salley, Brian Shaw, Joe Smith, and Shammond Williams. The Lakers had to drop the rights to those players in order to help make the Jeremy Lin trade possible. For more on cap holds, check out our cap holds entry in the Hoops Rumors Glossary. More out of the West..
- The main holdup in the Kevin Love talks between the Wolves and Warriors is obviously Klay Thompson, but there’s more to it, as Tim Kawakami of the Mercury News explains. The Wolves don’t regard David Lee and Harrison Barnes as highly as Golden State does, thanks to Lee’s hefty contract and Barnes’ down season in 2013/14.
- Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak told reporters, including Bill Oram of the Orange County Register, that he wasn’t banking on landing Carmelo Anthony this summer. “We always felt like it was a longshot,” Kupchak said. “We gave it our best shot and we’re happy to accomplish what we did and we still have more work to do.”
- Lance Stephenson could prove to be this summer’s Monta Ellis for the Mavericks, tweets Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. The Mavs weren’t necessarily high on Ellis last summer but he fell to them at a great price after everyone else passed.
- The Cavaliers’ re-signing of James complicated Deng’s situation, as sign-and-trade options that could have led to a bigger payday for him were no longer available and James’ decision to sign a two-year deal set a new precedent on the market that came into play, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. The Mavericks‘ preference to go after Stephenson if they can’t land Chandler Parsons also limited Deng’s options.
Eastern Notes: Boozer, Garnett, Bradley
With the reported agreement to sign Pau Gasol and the potential stateside arrival of their 2011 draft pick Nikola Mirotic, the Bulls will likely amnesty Carlos Boozer, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune. Chicago has until the July 16th amnesty deadline to decide on Boozer’s fate. Johnson also notes that the team is still in talks to re-sign veteran point guard Kirk Hinrich.
More from the east:
- Paul Pierce‘s agreement to sign with the Wizards won’t affect Kevin Garnett‘s decision on whether or not to return for his 20th season, and the Nets are expecting Garnett to play for them next year, tweets Tim Bontemps of The New York Post.
- With the Nets trying to cut back on payroll, it would be surprising to see the franchise release Marquis Teague, tweets Bontemps. Teague’s salary of $1,120,920 for next season is fully guaranteed, and the Nets have a team option of $2,023,261 for the 2015/16 season.
- Avery Bradley‘s four-year, $32MM deal with the Celtics is expected to be finalized shortly, reports Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (Twitter link).
Pau Gasol, Bulls Close To Agreement
4:28pm: Gasol is close to joining the Bulls, but it won’t be through a sign-and-trade, tweets Brian Windhorst of ESPN.
3:23pm: Dunleavy won’t be included in any sign-and-trade for Gasol, tweets Wojnarowski. Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle hears the Rockets’ most likely role in the suggested deal would be to take on expiring contracts (Twitter link).
3:04pm: The Lakers appear to be in line to get “one or two picks” in a sign-and-trade for Gasol, writes Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter), who adds that Houston might be involved in the deal in some fashion as well.
10:30am: The sign-and-trade discussions with the Lakers have involved sending Dunleavy and the non-guaranteed contracts of Mike James, Louis Amundson, and Ronnie Brewer to Los Angeles for Gasol, reports K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. The possibility remains that the Bulls could work out agreements to acquire both Gasol and Anthony, but appears increasingly slim, per Johnson.
10:24am: A deal should be complete today, tweets David Aldridge of NBA.com. The mechanics of the deal, along with the ultimate implications for Chicago’s pursuit of ‘Melo, are still unknown.
8:12am: Free agent Pau Gasol is working with the Bulls on completing an agreement, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link), confirming an earlier report from Spanish newspaper Marca.com. The deal would rely on the Lakers agreeing to a sign-and-trade with Chicago, and sources tell Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com that Los Angeles is holding out for draft compensation to participate in such a deal. LA received a future first-round pick in Friday’s agreement to acquire Jeremy Lin, and the ESPN duo’s sources say the Lakers are looking for the same in exchange for paving Gasol’s path to Chicago.
If the Bulls can’t work out a sign-and-trade for Gasol’s services, the Spurs are still poised as front-runners to acquire the skilled big man, per Stein and Shelburne. The talks indicate that the Bulls have lost optimism of signing Carmelo Anthony, despite reports that they are the Knicks’ only competitor to land the New York free agent, and that the Lakers are resigned to losing Gasol after having several contract offers rejected by him. The Thunder and Knicks are both likely out of the running for Gasol, the ESPN scribes write.
The Bulls have been hoping to find a willing partner to take back the final year of Carlos Boozer‘s contract rather than amnesty him, and Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders has tweeted out his cap calculations that show a Gasol deal including Boozer is possible, albeit complicated (Twitter links). Pincus also identifies Mike Dunleavy‘s contract as a piece that would make the deal work.
Latest On Pau Gasol
SATURDAY, 12:13am: The Lakers made a pair of offers to Gasol prior to today that were even higher than the two-year, $10MM figure Wojnarowski cited, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). They were worth $23MM over two years and $29MM over three years, and Gasol rejected them both.
FRIDAY, 11:05pm: According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link), the top two contenders for Gasol are the Bulls and the Spurs. If the Bulls can’t work out a sign and trade with Lakers, it’s likely he goes to Spurs, notes Shelburne.
10:00pm: If Gasol ends up in Chicago, it’s unlikely to be as part of a sign-and-trade with Los Angeles for Boozer, tweets Wojnarowski.
7:40pm: The Hawks are making an aggressive pitch for Gasol, tweets Wojnarowski. Atlanta is reportedly offering $11MM per year, but Gasol will likely pass on the offer, adds Wojnarowski.
FRIDAY, 5:47pm: Gasol has turned down a two-year, $10MM per year deal with the Lakers, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link).
10:33am: Gasol met Wednesday night with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
THURSDAY, 8:15am: The Spurs are moving closer to the front of the pack for Gasol, Wojnarowski tweets. The Bulls remain a favorite, as Wojnarowski suggests, and sources indicated to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune that the Bulls hope to pursue a sign-and-trade with the Lakers involving Gasol and Carlos Boozer. It’s unlikely that the Bulls would give Gasol a deal longer than three years, Johnson adds.
TUESDAY, 2:16pm: The Knicks aren’t entirely out of the running for Gasol, but they’re way behind the Bulls, Thunder and Lakers, a source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). The Spurs are on the “periphery,” Berger adds.
1:55pm: The Bulls and Thunder remain the front-runners for Pau Gasol, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter), but Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com conflicts that report as far as the Thunder go, hearing that Oklahoma City believes it merely has a long shot hope for the free agent big man (Twitter link). The Lakers are “lurking” as a possibility for Gasol while the Spurs continue to forge ahead with their pursuit, Wojnarowski adds.
The Yahoo! scribe identified the Bulls and Thunder as Gasol’s most favored destinations late last week, and the 34-year-old met Monday with Thunder coach Scott Brooks. Confusion over Oklahoma City’s standing in the race for Gasol isn’t new, as multiple reports painted different pictures last week. In any case, it seems that Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have also been recruiting the Arn Tellem client, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported last week.
The Bulls have pitched Gasol on the idea that he would start for them, while the Lakers have used the notion that he’ll be back with them next season as part of their recruiting efforts with other free agents, confident he’d return if they can sign Carmelo Anthony or LeBron James. The Spurs envision signing him for the $5.305MM mid-level exception, and Gasol would reportedly consider San Antonio if he decides to sign for less than he could receive elsewhere. The Thunder also appear to be in the mix at the mid-level unless they can work a sign-and-trade, but the Bulls might be able to offer more if they amnesty Carlos Boozer, and the Lakers hold his Bird rights.
Western Notes: Clippers, Billups, Blazers
The judge in the trial to determine whether Shelly Sterling has the right to sell the Clippers to Steve Ballmer put the proceedings on hold until later this month at the request of Donald Sterling’s lawyers, as Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com details. Still, it’s likely that Ballmer will move back a July 15th deadline to finalize the sale, Markazi adds. Shelly Sterling said in testimony Thursday that her husband asked her to sell the team when it became apparent the league would seize control of it otherwise. Donald Sterling has said he has no intention of selling the team and has vowed a lifelong legal fight against the NBA.
More from the west:
- Chauncey Billups engaged in a “wide-ranging” discussion with Nuggets president Josh Kroenke and GM Tim Connelly recently in Denver, though it’s not clear whether they talked about a playing role or a front office job, as Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post reports.
- Blazers GM Neil Olshey said Thursday that he doesn’t anticipate making another offseason move, as The Oregonian’s Joe Freeman observes. Freeman doesn’t mention the fate of Mo Williams, who remains unsigned, though agent Mark Bartelstein told Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com this week that there was still a chance that Williams would re-sign with Portland.
- Pau Gasol‘s interest in returning to the Lakers was contingent upon Carmelo Anthony coming to Los Angeles, tweets Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News . Now that the Lakers have used up their available cap space, it’s likely that Gasol’s days with the team are at an end.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Mavs Nearing Deal With Vince Carter
WEDNESDAY, 7:35pm: If Rockets don’t match the max offer sheet the Mavs and Chandler Parsons have agreed to, it would eliminate cap room in Dallas, but the Mavs are still hopeful Carter would re-sign under their $2.73MM cap room exception, a source tells Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com. That amount would be a pay reduction from Carter’s previous deal, and lower than the steady sixth man anticipated accepting this offseason.
MONDAY, 3:27pm: Carter is indeed drawing closer to a deal with the Mavs, but several teams remain in the running and some are pushing aggressively to snatch him away, as Jeff Caplan of NBA.com hears (Twitter link).
3:02pm: The Mavericks are closing in on a deal with Vince Carter, a source tells Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Twitter link). The team is still in the market for Chandler Parsons, Luol Deng, Lance Stephenson, Trevor Ariza and Pau Gasol, Price adds.
The Mavs had been growing confident that they’d reach a deal with Carter, as Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com wrote earlier. It’ll likely be a one- or two-year arrangement between $3.5MM and the $5.305MM mid-level exception, MacMahon adds.
Carter has reportedly been the subject of pitches from the Heat and others, but there’s been strong mutual interest in getting a deal done that would bring the 37-year-old sixth man back to Dallas.
‘Melo Wants To Play With LeBron On Knicks
1:59pm: Heat assistant GM and salary cap expert Andy Elisburg will also be at Miami’s meeting with LeBron, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
12:31pm: James and agent Rich Paul will meet with only Riley today, according to Broussard, who corrects his earlier report that Spoelstra, Arison and Wade would take part (Twitter link).
11:51am: Several teams believe Anthony is delaying his decision until he knows what James is going to do, as Ian Begley and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com write. There’s been a strong belief of late that Anthony is likely to choose between the Lakers and Knicks, the ESPN scribes say. The Lakers are waiting on both Anthony and James, but they’re beginning to get impatient, worried that they’ll miss out on Pau Gasol and Trevor Ariza, among others, as they hesitate, according to Begley and Shelburne. The Lakers, like the Suns and Cavs, have explored the notion of clearing cap room both Anthony and James, but they haven’t gotten far, according to the ESPN report.
10:38am: There’s still a belief among GMs that James will end up re-signing with the Heat on a one- or two-year max contract, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. That conflicts with Mannix’s report that James is seeking a three-year commitment.
8:47am: Carmelo Anthony dreams of playing with LeBron James on the Knicks, a friend of Anthony’s tells Marc Berman of the New York Post. Berman reported earlier this week that the Knicks were worried that Anthony was hesitating to make a decision while the possibility still exists that he could join James on the Heat or the Lakers, but it appears that ‘Melo’s ideal setting for that scenario would instead be New York. Still, Anthony’s friend says the Knicks star hasn’t made up his mind about returning to New York.
Most NBA executives are confident that Anthony will return to the Knicks, given the inherent financial advantage of re-signing with the team, according to Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Still, money won’t be the only factor in the decision, a person close to Anthony tells Isola. Anthony worked out with Thunder star Kevin Durant in Los Angeles recently, and Durant gave Anthony a strong endorsement of new Knicks coach Derek Fisher, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Knicks president Phil Jackson is attempting to clear cap room to facilitate Anthony’s long shot hopes of teaming with James in New York, as Berman hears from Anthony’s friend. The Knicks have reportedly shopped Amar’e Stoudemire, and perhaps Andrea Bargnani as well, to open up space. Yet there’s a growing belief that Jackson would be open to a sign-and-trade with another team should Anthony decide to play elsewhere, Isola writes.
The friend of Anthony’s who spoke to Berman insists that James is fond of Jackson and would like the chance to play with ‘Melo. Another source tells Berman that the buzz surrounding the possibility that James would sign with the Cavaliers is coming from the Cavs themselves in an effort to enhance their reputation. The Mavs expect another meeting with LeBron’s representatives again this week in Las Vegas, although it isn’t clear whether or not LeBron will attend, a source tells Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.
James is meeting today with Heat president Pat Riley, and Chris Broussard of ESPN.com hears coach Erik Spoelstra, owner Micky Arison and Dwyane Wade will also be in attendance (Twitter link). Miami’s contingent enters the sitdown with “nervous anticipation” and no real sense of how James will react to the club’s offseason moves, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. James is looking for a three-year commitment in his next deal, Mannix adds (Twitter link), contradicting earlier reports that indicated he would look for an opt-out after one season.
Ryan Raroque contributed to this post.