Marc Stein On Mike Brown, Josh Smith, Thunder
The start of the regular season means the return of Marc Stein's Weekend Dime feature on ESPN.com, and as usual, there are a few notable tidbits within the piece. Stein praises Lakers coach Mike Brown for his refusal to run from "ridiculously early" questions about his job security despite the specter of available names like Phil Jackson and Mike D'Antoni. In response to the notion of D'Antoni taking over the team, HoopsWorld's Steve Kyler calls it overreaction (Twitter link), which would seem to carry over to Jackson as well, especially considering the doubts about his desire to coach again. Here's more of what Stein had to say.
- Josh Smith is in the final season of his deal, worth $13.2MM this year, and he could represent an attractive trade chip. Stein nonetheless hears the Hawks will most likely hang on to Smith this year while retaining cap flexibility for what could be an active summer of 2013.
- One of the reasons why the Thunder traded James Harden is because the team is projected to pay, instead of receive, under the league's revenue-sharing model, despite playing in a small market.
- Seven coaches are in the final year of their contracts, including Larry Drew of the Hawks, Avery Johnson of the Nets, Vinny Del Negro of the Clippers, Lionel Hollins of the Grizzlies, Scott Skiles of the Bucks and Alvin Gentry of the Suns. Frank Vogel is the other member of that group, though the Pacers hold a team option on his deal for 2013/14.
Bucks Notes: Ilyasova, Jennings, Hammond, Skiles
Ersan Ilyasova would have been my choice for the NBA's Most Improved Player in 2011/12 if I had a vote, but the Bucks forward finished as the runner-up behind Ryan Anderson. Even without the award, Ilyasova appears poised for a big payday in free agency this summer. Bucks GM John Hammond said today that "it's not going to be easy" to re-sign Ilyasova, though Milwaukee would like to bring him back.
Hammond and Bucks owner Herb Kohl spoke at a news conference today about a number of topics, with Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times rounding up the highlights via Twitter:
- A contract extension for Brandon Jennings is "not something we have to do," says Hammond. Jennings is entering the fourth year of his rookie deal and will be eligible for an extension.
- Kohl says he has no plans to extend Hammond or coach Scott Skiles this summer. The pair are entering the final year of their respective contracts.
- The team will be seeking a "real quality big man," according to Kohl.
- Kohl went on the offensive for a new Milwaukee arena, saying he'd put his own money into it, according to Woelfel. However, the owner added that he wants to secure the Bradley Center for the "next several years."
Odds & Ends: Skiles, Griffin, Colangelo, Pierce
With great anticipation of the weekend ahead full of playoff basketball, let's take a look around the league to see what's happening from coast to coast.
- Count Brandon Jennings and Mike Dunleavy Jr. among Bucks players hoping head coach Scott Skiles is retained by Milwaukee after just missing out on making the playoffs, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com says Blake Griffin expects the playoffs to be more physical as the Clippers head into their first-round series against the Grizzlies.
- Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo is excited to continue the process of rebuilding the franchise after carefully adhering to his long-term plan, reports Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun.
- Paul Pierce tells ESPNBoston.com's Jackie McMullan that the thought of retirement has crossed his mind after playing 14 seasons for the Celtics.
- ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin says Lakers executive vice president of player personnel Jim Buss is over the heartbreak of losing out on Chris Paul to the Clippers this past offseason.
- Newsday's Al Iannazzone reports Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire are working to improve how they co-exist on the court after incessant chatter from the media and fans finally drew their attention.
Central Notes: Bird, Hibbert, Pistons, Skiles
In what's becoming a monthly ritual, Pacers president Larry Bird has denied a report suggesting he'll be leaving the team at season's end. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reported that Bird has told Pacers owner Herb Simon and several friends that he has decided to leave, but the Hall-of-Famer told Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star that he hasn't made up his mind yet.
"Once again, no decision has been made," Bird told Wells. "I'll sit down with my owner at the end of the season and we'll talk about things."
Here are the rest of the morning's updates out of the Central Division:
- Roy Hibbert's playoff performance could have a significant impact on what sort of contract he signs this offseason, Wells writes in a separate piece for the Star. As Wells notes, Dwight Howard's absence will give Hibbert and the Pacers a good opportunity to dominate the Magic in the first round.
- Charlie Villanueva is aware that he'll head into the offseason as a candidate to be traded or amnestied by the Pistons, as he suggests to David Mayo of MLive.com: "I would like to stay here. I love it here, I love it here. At the same time, I'm a realist."
- Pistons coach Lawrence Frank addressed the team's future in a Q&A with Terry Foster of the Detroit News.
- Keith Glass, agent for Bucks coach Scott Skiles, dismissed rumors that Skiles will seek a buyout on the final year of his contract, according to Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. "That’s news to me," Glass said. "I haven’t talked to anyone about that. I’d be surprised if that was true."
Central Links: Bulls, Skiles, Sanders
- Nick Freidell of ESPN Chicago gives an update of the current state of the Bulls, reporting that Carlos Boozer looks to be the most primed for a playoff run, going over coach Thibodeau's plan to play his starters in order to maintain the team's approach, and looking at the strides that Derrick Rose is making as he is steadily recovering from injury.
- K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes about Thibodeau's focus on defense and rebounding as the keys to Chicago's road success this season.
- Michael Hunt of the Journal Sentinel wonders if Scott Skiles is worth retaining for the Bucks as they move forward but is confidently in support of keeping John Hammond as the GM.
- Bucks forward/center Larry Sanders sounded apologetic when addressing the media after returning from a two-game suspension (Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel reports). Sanders had been ejected from a game in Indiana last week.