Odds & Ends: Hennigan, Fields, Asik, Harden
Magic GM Rob Hennigan will not rule out Dwight Howard being on Orlando's roster come opening night, says Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Robbins also thinks that Howard starting the season with the team could open up the possibility of the disgruntled center expanding his list of trade destinations or other teams improving their offers at that point. Here's more of what we've heard this evening…
- Mark Deeks of ShamSports examines the Gilbert Arenas provision and demonstrates how the Knicks and Bulls could have avoided facing hefty offer sheets to Landry Fields and Omer Asik this summer by signing them to three-year deals in 2010.
- Royce Young of DailyThunder.com says that fans shouldn't jump to conclusions about James Harden's recent comments about considering the Suns if he were a free agent. Harden, who attended Arizona State University before joining the NBA, is still eligible to sign an extension with the Thunder before October 31st and could thus avoid free agency next summer.
- Forward Omri Casspi is very happy to be a part of the Cavaliers and thinks the team has a very bright future, writes Stephen Brotherston of HoopsWorld.
- Frank Isola of the New York Daily News says that Manu Ginobili, Luis Scola, and Jose Calderon all gave a "thumbs up" to recently-signed Knicks guard Pablo Prigioni (Twitter link).
- Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports discusses the challenge that NBA stars face amidst the NBA owners and FIBA working together to potentially re-direct its stars out of the Olympics and into a rebranded world championship tournament similar to the World Cup of soccer. The new Olympic format would involve a "23-and-under" competition, which would essentially prevent many NBA stars from being able to participate. Wojnarowski adds that the inefficacy of NBPA executive director Billy Hunter has only made the efforts to preserve the current Olympic format a more difficult task.
- Eddie Sefko of SportsDayDFW wonders if the Mavericks are improved after their additions this summer (Subscribers only). In a separate piece, Sefko explains why he thinks the team projects to win 47 games and finish sixth place in the Western Conference.
- Sean Deveney of the Sporting News writes that despite being teased by his Team USA teammates, Carmelo Anthony continues to reiterate his support for Jeremy Lin.
Magic Notes: Howard, Hennigan, Head Coach
The Magic's general manager search came to an end yesterday, and the team will officially introduce Rob Hennigan as its new GM in a press conference at the top of the hour. Hennigan inherits a tricky situation involving Magic superstar Dwight Howard, who is under contract for one more year, but may not finish the season in Orlando. According to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel (via Twitter), Howard hasn't requested a trade this summer, but many people in the organization believe he wants out. Let's round up a few more notes on the Magic's star center and their new GM:
Magic Hire Rob Hennigan As GM
5:49pm: NBA.com's David Aldridge confirms that Rob Hennigan has accepted the Magic's offer to become the team's next general manager.
5:23pm: CBSSports.com's Ken Berger tweets that the Magic have officially offered the GM job to Hennigan. The two parties are currently in contract negotiations.
5:00pm: The Magic are in advanced talks with Thunder executive Rob Hennigan to make him the next general manager in Orlando, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Hennigan is one of three finalists for the position that has made with Magic ownership this month. According to Wojnarowski, Hennigan was brought to Michigan in recent days to meet with the DeVos family for a second time (Twitter link).
Orlando Expected To Name GM This Week
Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reports that the Magic are expected to make a decision on their GM search no later than this work week, adding that CEO Alex Martins had planned all along to name a GM within 10 days of the NBA Draft. The three finalists – Jeff Bower, Rob Hennigan, and Dennis Lindsey – have all met with the DeVos family to conclude the final round of interviews.
Dave Twardzik, the current assistant GM, has been handling draft preparation in the meantime.
Magic Narrow GM Search To Three Finalists
2:56pm: Lindsey and Hennigan will head to Michigan to meet with the DeVos family this week, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). According to Berger, Bower may meet with owner Rich DeVos later on, but not yet. The Magic are expected to wrap up their search either later this week or early next week (Twitter links).
Orlando Targeting Spurs, Thunder Executives
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports that the Magic are looking at Thunder vice president and assistant general manager Troy Weaver as well as Spurs assistant general manager Dennis Lindsey as candidates for their vacant GM position. Rob Hennigan, another assistant GM of the Thunder, is also being targeted.
Wojnarowski says that Weaver is one of the league's elite young executives and has a strong record as a talent evaluator, most notably pushing hard for the team to draft Russell Westbrook higher than most draft boards had projected. Lindsey has been the assistant to RC Buford in San Antonio for the last five years after an 11-year-stint with the Rockets.
Magic CEO Alex Martins reportedly plans to allow his new GM to control the search for the team's next head coach.