Western Rumors: Lakers, Claver, Casspi
The majority of Hoops Rumors readers who voted today think at least one New York team will make the playoffs this season, in spite of a combined 7-24 record for the Knicks and Nets. That might not be the case if those clubs were in the much tougher Western Conference. The Hawks are in third place in the East with a 9-8 record, while the Lakers have the same mark and sit in 10th place in the West. The imbalance figures to soften to some degree as the season wears on, but it’s still troubling for Western teams competing for a postseason berth. Here’s more from the West:
- Wesley Johnson could have signed for more money and years to play with that Atlanta team and its much easier road to the playoffs, and the Bucks also offered a better deal than the Lakers, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Coach Mike D’Antoni‘s system prompted Johnson to instead choose the L.A. and a one-year contract for the minimum salary.
- César Nanclares of TuBasket.com hears that Victor Claver is strongly considering a return to Europe amid disappointment over a reduced role this season with the Blazers (translation via HoopsHype). Nanclares points out the Spanish native’s contract runs through this season and next and that Portland isn’t likely to let him engineer a buyout this season, though the scribe wonders if the Blazers might be willing to cut ties this summer.
- Rockets forward Omri Casspi is leaving agent Steven Heumann of the Creative Artists Agency and will sign with Dan Fegan of Relativity Sports, as Fegan tells Sportando contributor David Pick.
- Former second-round draft pick Chukwudiebere Maduabum has signed with Tin Kalev Tallin of Estonia, Sportando’s Enea Trapani reports. The Nuggets hold the rights to Maduabum, the 56th overall pick in 2011.
Odds & Ends: Tanking, DeRozan, Vucevic
While ownership, team executives, and coaches may sometimes choose to tank games (usually referred to by some as “focusing on the future”), Alex Kennedy of Hoopsworld writes that players aren’t in on it, especially if they’re trying to prove themselves or avoiding the possibility that their potential replacement gets drafted.
Here’s more of tonight’s miscellaneous news and notes:
- Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (via Twitter) wonders if the Raptors should look to move DeMar DeRozan while his value is high, especially if they can’t find a taker for Rudy Gay.
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel writes that the Magic are trying to figure out center Nikola Vucevic‘s worth and thinks that the potential numbers on an extension could be between what Larry Sanders and Nikola Pekovic got from their respective teams this past summer.
- Looking back at how his tenure as the Trail Blazers’ head coach came to an end, Pacers assistant Nate McMillan tells Joe Freeman of the Oregonian that his one regret was trying to fit Gerald Wallace into the starting lineup (to keep the veteran from becoming disgruntled) despite Nicolas Batum needing the development.
- ESPN looked to 5 of its writers to give their thoughts on how much hope that Knicks, Nets, Cavaliers, Bulls, and Lakers fans should have moving forward this season.
- Hoopsworld’s Moke Hamilton discusses what he calls the “Derrick Rose dilemma” for Chicago – deciding whether or not to stay the course or start tear down the current team in order to build for the future.
- Although it’s possible that the Bulls will make a move or two to address the team’s current situation, Herb Gould of the Chicago Sun-Times points out that the return of Jimmy Butler to the lineup will help and how Chicago already proved they can at least stay competitive during the regular season without Rose.
Northwest Notes: Nuggets, Aldridge, Rush
Three Northwest teams will host games tonight, including the Thunder welcoming the Warriors to Oklahoma City for a rematch of perhaps the best game of the season’s first month. As we look forward to the evening’s schedule, let’s check in on a few items out of the Northwest….
- The Knicks are in Denver tonight, which will result in the inevitable look back on the 2011 trade that sent Carmelo Anthony to New York. As Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post writes, that deal should continue paying dividends for the Nuggets this season, since Denver could end up with both a playoff berth and a lottery pick, thanks to the Knicks.
- Wilson Chandler, one of the players acquired by the Nuggets in that Carmelo blockbuster, has long since moved on, as he indicates to Dempsey. “It’s just another game,” said Chandler of the Knicks’ visit. “It’s been a long time since that trade.”
- After the Trail Blazers bolstered their roster over the summer, LaMarcus Aldridge decided it was time for him to step up and take a larger leadership role with the club, writes Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
- Brandon Rush, who was acquired from the Warriors by the Jazz in July, appears ready to return to action, as Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune observes. Making $4MM in the final year of his contract, Rush could turn into an intriguing deadline trade chip if he stays healthy and plays well for Utah over the next couple months.
Western Notes: Blazers, Williams, Allen
Let’s round up a few of the day’s items out of the Western Conference….
- Owner Paul Allen says GM Neil Olshey did a “great job” bolstering the Trail Blazers‘ bench this offseason, and tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com that the club’s play has exceeded his expectations so far.
- Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press spoke to Derrick Williams about the opportunity to get a fresh, pressure-free start with the Kings.
- Grizzlies guard Tony Allen is a player the Celtics shouldn’t have let get away, writes Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. Although he left Boston for Memphis in 2010, Allen had no desire to sign with anyone except the Grizzlies when he hit free agency again this past summer, as he tells Washburn.
Western Notes: Wolves, Thunder, Mavs, Kings
Following up on comments he made yesterday about trading Derrick Williams to the Kings, Timberwolves president Flip Saunders acknowledged that the deal could end up looking very short-sighted, but said he still felt comfortable pulling the trigger.
“You have to look and see: What is the value where you’re at?” Saunders said, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. “What’s the value going to be in two months? What’s the value going to be at trading deadline? What’s it going to be next year?I just didn’t foresee Derrick being able to play much. And if a guy’s not playing, usually your value is not going to go up.”
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Thunder GM Sam Presti is prioritizing longevity and sustainability when it comes to roster-building and culture-building in Oklahoma City, as Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman details.
- David Kahn‘s drafting of Williams in 2011 was understandable, since the forward was viewed as the consensus No. 2 pick at the time. But this week’s trade is the acknowledgment of another failure for the Timberwolves franchise and for the Kahn era, writes Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune.
- Chatting with Mavericks fans on Tuesday, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News discussed the possibility of moving Shawn Marion, Jordan Farmar as a potential trade target, and why a playoff berth could help the Mavs in free agency.
- After averaging 22.0 PPG in his first three contests with the Reno Bighorns, Ray McCallum has been recalled from the D-League by the Kings, the team announced today in a press release.
- Current Pacers assistant Nate McMillan spoke extensively to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com about his time as head coach of the Trail Blazers, including his regrets about how he handled Nicolas Batum.
Amico On Aldridge, Turner, Bulls, Thornton
Sam Amico of FOX Sports has tons of great stuff in his latest column, let’s dive in and check out some of the highlights..
- LaMarcus Aldridge was all over Hoops Rumors this summer with talk of dissatisfaction with the Blazers and trade demands, but it sounds like we can finally put that to rest. Aldridge, who looks like the best power forward in the league so far this season, appears to be content with his 12-2 club.
- There is some relevance to a suggested potential trade involving the 76ers and Cavs, according to league sources. Philly is likely to shop small forward Evan Turner, an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, and the Cleveland is exploring the idea of landing a starting-caliber small forward. It could be a good match, depending on the Cavs’ desire to gamble on the uncertainty of Turner’s contract. The possibility also exists the Sixers will hold on to Turner and re-sign him in the summer as he has played well and been a team leader under new coach Brett Brown.
- However, Cavs GM Chris Grant is not actively trying to make a deal, even though he likes to make trades and is always willing to listen.
- League sources believe Kings swingman Marcus Thornton is available. Thornton is a talented scorer, but a less-than-stellar defender and has fallen out of Michael Malone‘s rotation.
- The Derrick Rose-less Bulls could shake things up. Chicago still wants to win and get into the playoffs, sources say, but if things head south quickly, they could gut the roster and aim for a high lottery pick to pair with Rose when he returns. A team source says if the Bulls trade Luol Deng, they would have to get what they consider a steal (a young player and picks) to move him within the Eastern Conference. The asking price from a Western team wouldn’t be as high.
- One league source said that as of today, the Bulls won’t even think about what to do with Deng until the trade deadline nears.
- Guards Richard Hamilton, Shannon Brown, and Kendall Marshall remain unsigned, but they’re all drawing interest from several teams. League sources expect Brown and Marshall to sign somewhere by the New Year, and Hamilton perhaps not long after that.
Blazers Have Engaged Rockets About Omer Asik
The Blazers have been talking to the Rockets about acquiring Omer Asik, reports Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News, who passes along the news amid his league roundup. Portland’s lack of an outside-shooting power forward, the sort of asset the Rockets are seeking, is a stumbling block, according to Lawrence.
Blazers management is cognizant that much of the team’s 11-2 start has been accomplished against a relatively easy schedule so far, prompting them to seek improvements to the roster. Lawrence speculates that Portland could give up Robin Lopez, and his cap hit, though more than $2MM less than Asik’s, is close enough to accommodate a one-for-one swap. There’s no indication Lopez is a part of the talks, however.
Asik is one of the league’s primary trade candidates, and has reportedly made weekly trade requests since the Rockets acquired Dwight Howard in the summer. Still, the Rockets appear to be in the early stages of sorting through trade possibilities for their backup center.
One team that apparently won’t be in the mix for Asik is the Bulls, as Lawrence writes that owner Jerry Reinsdorf is “dead set against” bringing the 27-year-old back to Chicago, since doing so would likely push the team further into luxury tax territory. The Bulls could probably find some sort of package, perhaps involving a third team, that would allow them to trade for Asik without taking on salary, but it sounds like no such deal is on the table.
Western Notes: Aldridge, Turner, Mavs, Rockets
LaMarcus Aldridge is starting to feel a sense of urgency in Portland, writes Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated. Aldridge is the star of the Blazers in 2013, but he points out that it wasn’t really supposed to be that way. “I was the glue guy when I came in..They definitely didn’t think that I’d be their go-to guy one day,” he said. “I think they felt that I was a fit-in guy, pick-and-pop, that I needed guys to create a shot for me. I was supposed to fit in with Greg Oden and Brandon Roy and Andre Miller.” Here’s more out of the Western Conference..
- The 9-2 Blazers have had a tremendous start to the 2013/14 season, but Zach Lowe of Grantland wonders if they can keep this up. It might make sense for Portland to explore trading for an upgrade. Defensive wizard Omer Asik is unhappy in Houston and would give the Blazers a big upgrade at center over Robin Lopez, but finding a workable trade is tough for a number of reasons. Chief among them is that they don’t really have a sweetener to package with Lopez to pry him away.
- Addressing trade speculation on Evan Turner, Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News says there are those in the Mavs organization who “are not big fans of his game.” Sefko adds that Shawn Marion may be more valuable helping Dallas win games and making the situation look attractive to 2014 free agents, rather than as a trade chip.
- Kevin Pelton of ESPN.com (Insider sub. required) runs down trade possibilities for Asik. Aside from Ryan Anderson, whom colleague Marc Stein says is unlikely to be a match, Pelton suggests Ersan Ilyasova, Paul Millsap, Thaddeus Young, and Jeff Green. Pelton adds that Houston could also move Asik primarily for draft picks and give more minutes to Terrence Jones.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Offseason In Review: Portland Trail Blazers
Hoops Rumors is in the process of looking back at each team’s offseason, from the end of the playoffs in June right up until opening night. Trades, free agent signings, draft picks, contract extensions, option decisions, camp invitees, and more will be covered, as we examine the moves each franchise made over the last several months.
Signings
- Dorell Wright: Two years, $6.14MM. Signed via cap space.
- Mo Williams: Two years, $5.42MM. Signed via room exception. Second year is player option.
- Earl Watson: One year, $1.4MM. Signed via minimum salary exception.
Trades
- Acquired the No. 31 pick in the 2013 from the Cavaliers in exchange for a 2015 second-round pick and a 2016 second-round pick.
- Acquired cash from the Thunder in exchange for the No. 40 pick in 2013.
- Acquired Thomas Robinson from the Rockets in exchange for the rights to Kostas Papanikolaou, the rights to Marko Todorovic, the Timberwolves’ 2015 second-round pick, and a 2017 second-round pick.
- Acquired Robin Lopez and Terrel Harris from the Pelicans in exchange for the rights to Jeff Withey (to Pelicans), the Knicks’ 2016 second-round pick (31-37 protected, to Kings), and the rights to swap 2018 second-round picks (to Kings). Harris was subsequently waived.
Draft Picks
- C.J. McCollum (Round 1, 10th overall). Signed via rookie exception.
- Allen Crabbe (Round 2, 31st overall). Signed via cap space for three years, $2.63MM. Third year is non-guaranteed.
- Jeff Withey (Round 2, 39th overall). Rights traded to Pelicans.
- Marko Todorovic (Round 2, 45th overall). Rights traded to Rockets.
Camp Invitees
- Dee Bost
- Richard Howell
- E.J. Singler
Departing Players
Rookie Contract Option Decisions
- Meyers Leonard (3rd year, $2.32MM): Exercised
- Damian Lillard (3rd year, $3.34MM): Exercised
- Thomas Robinson (3rd year, $3.68MM): Exercised
The summer of 2012 was about the arrival of star rookie Damian Lillard for the Blazers, while the headlines of 2013’s offseason were more about whether another star would stay. LaMarcus Aldridge gave conflicting statements to reporters about whether he asked GM Neil Olshey for a trade. The power forward entered the summer frustrated with the team after it finished its fourth straight season with a record worse than the one that preceded it. There were no shortage of potential suitors for Aldridge, who’s made the last two Western Conference All-Star teams, but Olshey wasn’t about to move him. Aldridge wants to play on a competitive team, but his remarks as camp began this fall indicated that he’s optimistic the Blazers can fit the bill after seeing the moves Olshey made in the offseason.
The Blazers again pounced on a team willing to give up a chance to strike gold with a young talent. Olshey had acquired the pick that turned into Lillard from the Nets at the 2012 trade deadline, and this summer he landed the player drafted immediately before Lillard, taking on Thomas Robinson from the Rockets in Houston’s rush to clear cap room for Dwight Howard. The price was a relative bargain for a player with such promise, with the draft rights to a pair of overseas players and two future second-round picks going to the Rockets in the swap. Robinson had a trying and tumultuous rookie campaign, having been traded from the Kings to Houston at the deadline, but it’s premature to assume he can’t produce. Robinson’s rate of 4.5 rebounds in 15.1 minutes per game last season is an auspicious indicator, and if he develops, he may even be a capable replacement should Aldridge force a trade or bolt in free agency.
Robinson’s acquisition was part of Olshey’s retooling of last year’s subpar bench. The Blazers gave up 1.8 more points per 100 possessions than they scored with Lillard, Aldridge, Wesley Matthews, Nicolas Batum and J.J. Hickson on the floor, per NBA.com. Portland surrendered 4.2 more points per 100 possessions overall, demonstrating that the reserves lagged far behind most other second units.
The Blazers used their lottery pick to help with backcourt depth, drafting combo guard C.J. McCollum, who’d drawn comparisons to Lillard. They brought in another player capable of playing both backcourt spots in veteran Mo Williams, who’s come in handy with McCollum out with a broken foot to begin the season. Olshey snagged Williams for about half of what I figured the Mark Bartelstein client would make when I examined his free agent stock in April. Williams had spent six of the previous seven seasons as a starter, and the 30-year-old even made an All-Star team as LeBron James‘ sidekick in Cleveland, so he’ll be the most significant weapon Portland brings off its revamped bench.
That’s in spite of having spent slightly more money to pry forward Dorell Wright from a handful of other free agent suitors. He led the NBA in both three-pointers attempted and made in 2010/11. A year later the Warriors felt they needed an upgrade at small forward, where he’d been the starter, so they traded him to the Sixers, who put him in a more fitting role as a bench piece. His 37.3% rate of success from behind the arc the past four seasons will help the Blazers, who finished 20th in the NBA in three-point accuracy in 2012/13.
Still, it wasn’t all about the bench for Portland this summer, as Olshey acquired a new starting center with a trade for Robin Lopez. The Blazers didn’t send anything other than second-rounders out in the deal, so the move amounted to an absorption of Lopez’s $5.9MM salary. Olshey used the largest chunk of the team’s roughly $15.5MM in cap flexibility to bring in a traditional 7’0″ center while allowing undersized J.J. Hickson to leave in free agency. Lopez isn’t nearly the rebounder that Hickson is, despite the three-inch height difference, but he’s better at rim protection, as Lopez blocked nearly three times as many shots per minute as Hickson did last season.
The offseason also entailed a purge of three former first-round picks whom Olshey inherited when he took the job. Nolan Smith, Elliot Williams and Luke Babbitt seemed destined to head elsewhere when Olshey declined to pick up their 2013/14 options in the fall of 2012, and while they managed to remain on Portland’s roster throughout last season, the team elected not to re-sign them. The league essentially validated Olshey’s decision not to wait any longer for them to develop, as none of the three made an NBA opening-night roster this season.
The Blazers are off to a hot start, and all appears well in Portland. Aldridge seems as upbeat as he’s been in at least four years, as Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com tweets, and while the 28-year-old remains non-committal about his long-term future, there aren’t any alarm bells ringing. Aldridge is under contract for this year and next, and short of the unlikely prospect that he’ll consider an extension, it’s not yet time for the team and the Arn Tellem client to negotiate. Olshey has a window of this season and next to show that the team is headed in the right direction, and it looks like he’s well on his way to doing so. The real test will be in how the Blazers can craft not just a playoff team, but a squad capable of competing for a championship. Aldridge probably won’t be satisfied with losing in the first or second rounds of the playoffs, and neither should Olshey.
Luke Adams contributed to this post.
Odds & Ends: Marshall, Warriors, Knicks
The Bulls aren’t in action today, but it’s a big basketball night in Chicago nonetheless, as Kentucky plays Michigan State and Duke plays Kansas in the NCAA’s Champions Classic. In the eyes of ESPN.com’s Chad Ford (Insider link), those four teams have 13 projected first-rounders for the 2014 draft, including an incredible eight projected lottery picks. As GMs and scouts look forward to an eventful night of college basketball, let’s check out what’s going on around the NBA….
- Kendall Marshall, traded last month by the Suns and then released by the Wizards, is drawing some NBA interest, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that Marshall had been considered by the Jazz, and remains on other teams’ radars.
- Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle talks extensively to Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob about the challenges he’s faced since taking over the team, and the direction in which the franchise is headed. Lacob provides a number of interesting quotes on the acquisition of Andre Iguodala, the plans for a new arena, and increasing expectations for the Warriors.
- In his latest mailbag for SI.com, Ian Thomsen examines the Knicks and discusses a hypothetical trade between the Rockets and Trail Blazers.
- D.J. Foster of Bleacher Report explores the possibility of the Knicks trading Iman Shumpert.