Odds & Ends: Olympics, Butler, Bosh, Chandler
Let's check out some odds and ends from around the Association as we prepare for a pair of second-round playoff games in Boston and Oklahoma City….
- Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com reports that the following players have been named to the U.S. select team, which will scrimmage against the Olympic roster this July: Klay Thompson, Jeremy Lin, Paul George, Gordon Hayward, Kawhi Leonard, DeJuan Blair, Ryan Anderson, Taj Gibson and Derrick Favors. We'd previously heard that Kyrie Irving, John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, and DeMar DeRozan would be part of the squad.
- With the Clippers and Spurs preparing to face off in round two, Caron Butler tells reporters, including Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News, that he very nearly signed with the Spurs in December (Twitter link).
- The Heat announced today that Chris Bosh has a strained abdominal muscle and will be out indefinitely (Twitter link). Bosh's comments to the media today indicated that he's not expecting to return during the Pacers series (Twitter link).
- Defensive Player of the Year Tyson Chandler would like to become a bigger offensive threat for the Knicks next season, as Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com writes.
Magic Rumors: Nelson, Ewing, Clark, Foyle
With an unusual and drama-filled season finally in the books, the Magic look ahead to an offseason that could be just as eventful. As one NBA GM told Sean Deveney of the Sporting News, "You can take all of those stories from December and January and February and cut them out and paste them into May and June and July."
With the futures of Dwight Howard, Stan Van Gundy, and others up in the air, here's the latest out of Orlando….
9:06pm:
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel examines the dilemma facing Jameer Nelson, who has three days to decide on his option for next season.
- Stan Van Gundy believes assistant Patrick Ewing is ready to take on a head coaching job, Robbins reports in the same piece.
- Robbins passes along another note about Earl Clark, who said he hasn't thought about his $1.24MM option for next season, but added, "I definitely want to be here. I don't want to be anywhere else."
Odds & Ends: Allen, Hawks, Anderson, Voting
It was a day of odd sightings on the hardwood, as the Knicks overcame the loss of Baron Davis to a dislocated kneecap to win their first postseason contest in 11 years. A No. 1 seed lost a third straight playoff game as the Bulls fell to the 76ers. And in Denver, a woman with a history of stalking the Nuggets came onto the court during Game 4 against the Lakers, reports J. Michael Falgoust of USA Today. Here's the rest of what raised eyebrows around the Association today:
- Teams interested in Celtics free agent Ray Allen this summer might not have to worry about how he'll respond to ankle surgery, since he says he may not go through with the procedure he originally thought was inevitable. Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com first tweeted the news, and Jessica Camerato of CSNNE.com adds detail.
- Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit News believes the Hawks will deal either Josh Smith or Al Horford if the team can't rally from its 3-1 deficit to the Celtics (Twitter link). Of the two, Smith seems the easiest to trade, since 2012/13 is the last season on his contract.
- Despite a subpar showing in the playoffs so far, restricted free agent Ryan Anderson figures to be near the top of this summer's market for power forwards. There's mutual admiration between Anderson and the Magic, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel, who also notes the team's recent history of matching offer sheets.
- The NBA released a statement acknowledging that Ernst & Young, the same accounting firm that handles the draft lottery, made an error tabulating the Most Improved Player of the Year voting, reports Chris Bernucca of SheridanHoops.com. A first-place vote meant for Andrew Bynum was mistakenly counted for Andrew Bogut. Either way, award winner Ryan Anderson comes out on top of the voting.
- Fran Blinebury of NBA.com examines the divergent career paths of Spurs point guard Tony Parker and Jazz counterpart Devin Harris, more than four years after Parker expressed relief that Harris was traded away from the Mavs.
Money Time: Upcoming Free Agents In The Playoffs
This is the time of year reputations are made in the NBA. A breakout performance or a disappointment at playoff time can change how teams view some of their most important players. The stakes are even higher for players about to head into free agency, since this is their last chance to make an on-court impression before they sign a contract.
With that in mind and a week of playoff action in the books, let's take a look at some upcoming free agents who've played particularly well, and some who've played especially poorly:
Winners
Nick Young, Clippers: He's always been capable of heating it up, and in his first playoff appearance since his rookie season, he hasn't shrunk from the spotlight. He canned three straight treys in the Clippers' amazing 27-point comeback in Game 1, and is the team's third leading postseason scorer at 15.0 PPG on 10 of 16 shooting so far.
Spencer Hawes, Sixers: When he wasn't in the starting lineup for Game 1, it looked like Hawes would have little opportunity to showcase his abilities, and the outlook was pretty grim when coach Doug Collins got visibly upset with Hawes when he got in foul trouble in Game 2. But as a starter in a Game 3 victory for the Sixers, he went for 21 points and nine rebounds in more than 32 minutes on the floor, and was a go-to option down the stretch.
JaVale McGee, Nuggets (restricted): It looked like he was adding to his lengthy personal blooper reel during an 0-for-6 playoff debut in Game 1. It's easy to get carried away with his 16-point, 15-rebound performance from Game 3, but it's a sign of the potential that makes the 7-footer a commodity. Plus, he had nine rebounds in 24 minutes in Game 2.
Losers
Ryan Anderson, Magic (restricted): He might have won the Most Improved Player of the Year award this week, but his performance in the playoffs has fueled speculation that his regular season play was a product of having a dominant center like Dwight Howard around. He's just 10-for-31 from the field, and has averaged 8.5 PPG and 3.8 RPG. He went to the bench early in the fourth quarter during today's Game 4 against the Pacers, and the Magic rallied from 19 down to force overtime without him.
Steve Novak, Knicks: He's played 67 minutes over three games, but the Heat's defense has only allowed him to shoot seven three-pointers the entire series. Novak has proven he's deadly when he gets the chance to fire away, but he's of little value if he can't get a shot off.
Josh Howard, Jazz: You could excuse him here, since he just came back from knee surgery that originally looked like it would end his season, but he's shot just 3-for-13 and averaged 5.0 PPG as the Jazz have struggled mightily against the Spurs.
Ryan Anderson Wins Most Improved Player
12:35pm: Anderson has officially been named the league's Most Improved Player. Ersan Ilyasova was the runner-up, with Nikola Pekovic, Greg Monroe, and Andrew Bynum rounding out the top five. Jeremy Lin finished sixth.
8:46am: The Magic have announced a press conference for 12:30pm CT today, and Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel tweets that the team and league will announce an award winner at that time: Ryan Anderson will be named the NBA's Most Improved Player.
After averaging 8.6 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest in 193 games over his first three years in the league, the Magic forward broke out this season, increasing his averages to 16.1 PPG and 7.7 RPG. While an increase in minutes, from 22.3 MPG in 2010/11 to 32.2 MPG in 2011/12, played a part in his increased production, Anderson also set career highs in rate stats like FG% (.439), 3PT% (.393), FT% (.877), and PER (21.2).
Ersan Ilyasova, Jeremy Lin, Goran Dragic, and Nikola Pekovic were among the other players expected to be in the running for the award.
Odds & Ends: Draft, McCollum, Chandler, Magic
As we approach the season's final few weeks, some teams will jockey for playoff spots while clubs on the other end of the spectrum jockey for draft position. Henry Abbott of ESPN.com's TrueHoop writes today about the issue of tanking that inevitably arises at this point in the season, and what can be done to avoid it. The piece is highly recommended, and includes a fascinating tidbit on four general mangers on non-playoff teams who reportedly only put in part-time hours.
Here are a few more links from around the Association for Tuesday afternoon:
- Lehigh guard C.J. McCollum has declared his intent to enter the draft, according to a release from the University's website. McCollum won't hire an agent, so he could still withdraw by April 10th and retain his NCAA eligibility. In his first mock draft, ESPN.com's Chad Ford had McCollum going early in the second round.
- Stephen Litel of HoopsWorld talked to Wilson Chandler and the Nuggets about Chandler's return from China and the team's chances of qualifying for the postseason.
- With a focus on Ryan Anderson and other upcoming free agents, Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida discusses how a player's height affects the sort of contract he signs.
- Scott Schroeder of Ridiculous Upside updates his list of D-League players who could receive auditions from NBA teams over the remainder of the season.
- Magic GM Otis Smith sat down for a question-and-answer session with Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel.
Kennedy On Williams, Buyouts, Nets, Magic
Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld chatted with readers this afternoon, and passed along a few intriguing nuggets. Here are the highlights:
- He rounded up the buyout candidates, listing Chris Kaman, Derek Fisher, Jermaine O’Neal, Shawne Williams, Boris Diaw, Marquis Daniels, Brian Cook and Ronny Turiaf.
- Kennedy says he's been told free agent-to-be Deron Williams wants to play in Dallas, he and predicts the point guard winds up with the Mavs.
- Since Dwight Howard's option only covers one more season, Kennedy wouldn't rule out the Nets pursuing D12 again next year.
- The Magic won't go after Derek Fisher if he's bought out by the Rockets, but they may try to work a sign and trade with restricted free agent Ryan Anderson this summer as they try to get creative to bring in the talent necessary to appease Howard.
Deadline Notes: Warriors, Nets, Mavs
A few notes in the aftermath of the trade deadline:
- Matt Steinmetz of CSNBayArea.com believes that the Warriors were willing to take on Richard Jefferson's contract because they don't believe luring a free agent with cap space is a viable option at this point.
- SI.com's Chris Mannix suggests that the Nets could target Kevin Garnett and Ryan Anderson in free agency this summer.
- Mavericks GM Donnie Nelson is happy with the team he has assembled and didn't see the need to make a move, reports Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News.
Magic, Warriors, Hornets Discussing Ellis Deal
6:13pm: According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, Golden State has moved away from talks of a three-team deal that would send Monta Ellis to Orlando. In a tweet, Stein says the Warriors are far more interested in assembling a package to offer Milwaukee for Andrew Bogut. Stein went on to say that the Warriors would be unwilling to part with Ellis, even if it meant getting rid of Andris Biedrins' contract, one of the worst in the league. According to an ESPN report by both Stein and Chris Broussard, the Magic will continue to spend the next 48 hours seeking various options on how they can add an enticing player to keep Dwight Howard happy. If they can't make a splash, they'll then spend the last 24 hours before the deadline looking at all their trade options.
1:57pm: The Magic, Hornets, and Warriors are discussing a three-way trade that would send Monta Ellis to Orlando, multiple league sources tell Jarrod Rudolph of RealGM.com. According to Rudolph, Warriors players being discussed include Ellis, Andris Biedrins, and Dorell Wright, while Magic players mentioned include Ryan Anderson, J.J. Redick, Hedo Turkoglu, Quentin Richardson, and Daniel Orton. Taking into account the Warriors' reported interest in Chris Kaman, the Hornets' involvement likely means Kaman would be going to Golden State if a deal was reached.
Although nothing is imminent, talks are ongoing, says Rudolph. I'd be surprised to see the three clubs work out an agreement, given all the moving parts involved, not to mention the presence of the league-owned Hornets — with David Stern still acting as the team's de facto owner, he'll have the opportunity to turn down any trade he doesn't feel benefits the team.
Reports in recent weeks have also indicated that the Warriors aren't looking to move Ellis unless they can acquire Dwight Howard. So it would be unexpected to see them move the Western Conference player of the week to Orlando for non-Howard assets. As Sam Amick of SI.com tweets, Joe Lacob seems unlikely to help the Magic keep Howard, since the Warriors owner covets the star center himself.
Odds & Ends: Howard, Morris, Anderson, Knicks
While there haven't been any big Dwight Howard rumors so far today, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel indicates that there has been a "shift in tone" in how Howard's desires are perceived. As we documented yesterday, the rumors are running wild, seemingly due to Howard's ambivalence. Here is what else is going on around the league on this Wednesday evening:
- Brian Schmitz from the Orlando Sentinel takes a look at the some of the hardships facing the Magic leading up to the trade deadline, including their tough schedule and inconsistency.
- Eddie Sefko from the Dallas Morning News says (via chat), should Dwight Howard not get traded by March 15th, he considers the Mavericks the heavy favorites to land both Howard and Deron Williams. He also mentions Gerald Wallace and C.J. Miles as potential complimentary fits around Dirk Nowitzki, Howard and Williams.
- According to Yahoo's Marc Spears, Lakers assign rookie guard Darius Morris to the NBDL D-Fenders. Mike Bresnahan, Lakers beat writer for the L.A. Times, adds that Morris is still counted on the roster and will continue to get paid as a Laker.
- Chris Bernucca from Sheridan Hoops examines some of the recent deadline deals, and their impact on the league today.
- Magic forward Ryan Anderson has been trying to block out the Dwight Howard rumors, says Brian Schmitz from the Orlando Sentinel. Anderson knows he could be packaged with Howard, or traded to get Howard help.
- Mike D'Antoni recognizes that the Knicks are struggling with Carmelo Anthony and Jeremy Lin on the floor, but D'Antoni thinks it's a solvable problem, writes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News.