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J.J. Redick Rumors: Thursday

February 21st, 2013 at 1:39pm CST by Luke Adams

Based on reports late last night, it sounds like the Magic are still on the fence about whether or not they'll trade J.J. Redick. While the team is clearly fielding offers, Orlando also seems willing to hang on to Redick for the season if no suitable proposals are made. We'll track today's Redick rumors here, with the newest items added throughout the day:

The Pacers are out of the running for Redick, tweets ESPN.com's Chris Broussard.
The Redick talks are coming "down to the wire" with the Pacers, Sixers, and Bucks still involved, tweets David Aldridge of TNT. The Spurs are out, according to Aldridge.
A source involved in the Redick talks now believes there's a strong chance the sharpshooter will remain in Orlando, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.

Earlier updates:

Trade Rumors: Knicks, Lakers, Pierce, Pistons

February 21st, 2013 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

With so many trade rumors swirling around in the hours leading up to the deadline, we're scrambling to keep tabs on them all. Here's the latest:

The Knicks won't make a major move, but they're exploring make a trade to clear a roster spot for an eventual free agent pickup, tweets Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times is fairly confident the Lakers won't make a move today (Twitter link).

Earlier updates:

Although the Celtics continue to discuss Paul Pierce, they're seeking a big package of expiring contracts and draft picks, which is unlikely, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com. The Nets are "on the outside looking in" when it comes to Pierce, tweets Sam Amick of USA Today.
TNT's David Aldridge was told unequivocally that the Rockets won't flip Thomas Robinson in a second trade. Houston "loves" Robinson, according to Aldridge (Twitter link).
"Nothing at all" is happening on the trade front for the Pistons, reports Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, though he notes there's still some time for that to change (Twitter links).
The Warriors and Suns are on Eric Gordon's list of desired destinations, tweets Amick. While there's a chance Gordon is moved today, a deal down the road, perhaps this summer, is more likely — Gordon isn't even eligible to be traded to Phoenix until July.
Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News is hearing that the consensus is the Spurs' asking price for DeJuan Blair remains too high.

Kyler’s Latest: Suns, Redick, Lakers, Novak, Blair

February 21st, 2013 at 8:17am CST by Luke Adams

With less than six hours until today's trade deadline, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld explores a few of the latest rumors in his NBA AM piece. Here are the highlights:

Besides Jermaine O'Neal, Sebastian Telfair is another candidate to be a roster casualty once the Suns finalize their acquisition of Marcus Morris, says Kyler. If Phoenix trades either player for virtually nothing, the Grizzlies, who have seven trade exceptions and a need to add a 13th man to their roster, could get involved.
As they explore J.J. Redick deals, the Magic continue to seek a high-level first-round pick or a package that includes a young player and second-round picks. Several teams have questioned whether it's worth meeting that asking price for what could be a 30-game rental of Redick, according to Kyler.
If the Lakers make a trade, it's expected to be one that reduces their luxury-tax bill rather than one that drastically changes the roster.
In addition to shopping Ronnie Brewer, the Knicks have also made Steve Novak available. The duo isn't drawing a whole lot of interest though.
The Hawks are a potential destination for DeJuan Blair, particularly if Atlanta finalizes a Josh Smith trade.

Odds & Ends: Dwight, Cavs, Blair, Wizards, Gordon

February 21st, 2013 at 1:41am CST by Chuck Myron

As the hours tick down to tomorrow's 2:00pm Central trade deadline, Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News is already starting to look ahead to free agency, and he writes that the Cavaliers believe they could make a longshot bid to sign Dwight Howard. That one seems hard to believe, and even Lawrence intimates that it's a little far-fetched. Still, the Cavs were reportedly in the mix for Andrew Bynum last year, and they'll have plenty of cap space this summer, so I suppose it's not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

In the meantime, there's more on potential deadline deals, and here's the latest:

We've already heard that Danny Granger is staying put, and TNT's David Aldridge hears that's likely the case for Spurs big man DeJuan Blair, too (Twitter link).
An Eastern Conference executive tells Michael Lee of The Washington Post he believes there's "very little" the Wizards can get for Jordan Crawford.
The Wizards reportedly gave up on acquiring Josh Smith because they aren't willing to give up any of the players the Hawks would want in return, and HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy identifies John Wall, Bradley Beal and Nene as the three players the team wants to keep in any deal.
With a deadline trade to the Warriors unlikely and his knee still not 100%, it looks like Eric Gordon will stay put with the Warriors past the deadline, writes Jimmy Smith of The Times Picayune, who hears from a source who said "nobody wants" Gordon.
The Suns agreed to a deal to acquire Marcus Morris for a second-round pick tonight, but considered trading a first-round pick for Morris when the Rockets took him on draft night. Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic has the details.
The Magic have been trying to unload Al Harrington's contract, but the power forward figures he's not going anywhere, since other teams are likely wary of his health, as John Denton of Magic.com tweets.
Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times identifies Devin Harris as a trade candidate and tweets that the Wisconsin product would mind playing for the Bucks, though I think if he ends up in Milwaukee, it's more likely via free agency this summer than in a deadline deal.

Magic Still Mulling Possible J.J. Redick Deal

February 20th, 2013 at 11:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

11:58pm: Redick prefers either staying in Orlando past the deadline or a trade that sends him to a contender, according to Robbins. He said he and the Magic haven't begun discussions about a new deal, and denied a report that he would seek a four-year, $40MM contract this summer.

11:50pm: Marc Stein of ESPN.com tweets that the Spurs also have interest in Redick. The Magic, from the start, have wanted no less than a first-round pick in return, Stein adds.

11:43pm: The Magic remain in discussions about possible deals involving J.J. Redick, but league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports they wouldn't rule out the notion of Redick remaining with Orlando the rest of the season (Twitter link). Though Redick, in his seventh year with the Magic, has become a fixture with the team, the DeVos family, owners of the Magic, won't stand in the way of any deals, as Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel tweets.

Several teams have reportedly sought the sharpshooting Duke product, including the Bucks, Wolves, and Grizzlies, who've all been linked to him just within the last 24 hours. He'll be an unrestricted free agent this summer, so if any team trades for him, it could merely be a rental, though the team would acquire his Bird rights. Still, Redick is frustrated by restrictions in the new CBA he believes are limiting the number of teams willing to take him on, as John Denton of Magic.com notes via Twitter. The Associated Press recently spoke with team officials and agents as they examined the inhibiting effect the CBA is having on trades.

Redick is making $6.19MM in the last season of a three-year deal with the Magic that was originally an offer sheet he signed with the Bulls in 2010. He's scoring 15.2 points per game on 45.4% shooting, both career highs.

Odds & Ends: Kings, Hickson, Pacers, Blair

February 20th, 2013 at 12:17pm CST by Luke Adams

The Sacramento City Council voted in favor of supporting mayor Kevin Johnson's quest to keep the Kings in town yesterday, by a 7-2 margin, according to Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee. While the vote was mostly symbolic, it shows that the city is open to providing a subsidy for a new arena that would be vital to Johnson's cause.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA, with a focus on tomorrow's trade deadline:

The availability of big men like Marreese Speights and Jermaine O'Neal has softened the market for J.J. Hickson, according to Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge (via Twitter).
While Danny Granger is viewed as the Pacers' top trade candidate, a deal involving Granger is unlikely, albeit not impossible, says Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. According to Kyler, the Pacers would prefer to move Gerald Green, though he doesn't have much value on the trade market at this point.
Despite the fact that the 2013 draft class is perceived as subpar, teams around the league are very reluctant to part with first-round picks, tweets Chris Mannix of SI.com.
DeJuan Blair isn't letting himself be affected by trade rumors involving him and the Spurs, as he tells Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News. "Of course I would like to stay," Blair said. "I’d like a better opportunity, also, so it goes both ways. It’s a business at the end of the day, so it’s not about what I want. It’s about what they want."
Tim Bontemps of the New York Post spoke to Ersan Ilyasova about the Nets' pursuit of him last summer in free agency, before Ilyasova re-upped with the Bucks.
ESPN.com's 5-on-5 panel names the ideal landing spots for a handful of trade candidates.

Spurs Expressed Interest In Omri Casspi

February 20th, 2013 at 9:45am CST by Luke Adams

Earlier this season, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported that Omri Casspi had requested a trade. A subsequent report suggested that wasn't the case, but Casspi himself didn't address the subject. Whether or not he asked for a deal, Casspi is a candidate to be moved because of his expiring contract and his limited role in Cleveland.

According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld, sources believe that San Antonio would be a good fit for Casspi, and the Spurs have expressed some level of interest in the Israeli swingman. The Spurs aren't willing to offer a whole lot for Casspi, but would be open to including DeJuan Blair, according to Kyler. A Blair/Casspi swap wouldn't work financially though, so San Antonio would need to include more salary to make it a realistic possibility.

Kyler adds that the Cavaliers are also exploring moving Marreese Speights, and could package the two players together if the right opportunity arises. Cleveland remains well under the cap, so the club could take back more salary than it send out in any trade.

DeJuan Blair Likely To Be Dealt

February 19th, 2013 at 10:26pm CST by Ryan Raroque

The Spurs are reportedly willing to trade DeJuan Blair for the best final offer, says Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski. Although they originally sought a first-round pick for the 6'7" power forward, San Antonio has likely lowered their asking price to a second-round pick or an expiring contract at this point.

According to Wojnarowski, Blair has wanted out of San Antonio since last season, and consequently wouldn't be expected to re-sign with the team this summer when he would become a free agent. If last season gave any indication that he was frustrated (starting in 62 of 64 games and playing 21.3 MPG), his concern about his role could only have worsened this year, having played just 13.8 MPG (marking the lowest average in his four seasons with San Antonio). The former Pittsburgh standout is on the books for $1.05MM this season, so it'd be difficult to imagine the Spurs not being able to move him by Thursday.

It's puzzling to see how DeJuan's career in San Antonio has transpired, going from what was considered one of the better steals of the 2009 NBA draft and averaging 8.3 PPG and 7.0 RPG in only his second pro season to becoming a fringe rotation player in a matter of two years. Looking at his production on paper, Blair could be of worth to teams looking for frontcourt help, especially if he's given the minutes and opportunity to showcase himself for upcoming free agency.

Spurs Won’t Look To Acquire Smith, Jefferson

February 19th, 2013 at 8:02pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Ric Bucher of Comcast Sports says that the Spurs won't be looking to deal for Josh Smith or Al Jefferson before the deadline (Sulia link).

San Antonio's interest in Smith dwindled after the team decided that the Hawks' star wouldn't be a good fit with the team's 'DNA,' whereas the supposed interest in Jefferson wasn't very serious considering their salary-cap situation. The Jazz forward is making $15MM in the final year of his deal, and at age 28 would likely be looking for the most lucrative contract of his career this summer.

Odds & Ends: Bargnani, Nets, Jennings, Greene

February 19th, 2013 at 4:28pm CST by Luke Adams

Earlier today, we heard that the Sixers are a good bet to stand pat at this year's deadline, and given how their last trade turned out, perhaps that shouldn't be a surprise. One player acquired by the 76ers in the deal, Jason Richardson, underwent successful surgery on his left knee this morning, according to a team release. Meanwhile, the centerpiece, Andrew Bynum, told reporters today that he still intends to play for Philadelphia this season, though it won't happen until at least March.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA:

According to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter), while the Raptors would move Andrea Bargnani in the right offer, teams don't sense an urgency on Toronto's part. That falls in line with comments Bryan Colangelo made today.
I questioned earlier today whether Nets GM Billy King was being honest when he told reporters there's a 10% chance he makes a trade, but Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News says (via Twitter) that's the same line King has been giving privately to rival teams.
Despite his agent change, Brandon Jennings really doesn't have a ton of leverage, and the Bucks should still be expected to match any offer sheet he receives this summer, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Donte Greene, who was set to sign with the Nets last summer before he fractured his ankle, is back to 100% and is drawing interest, according to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). The Nets, Pacers, Hornets, Spurs, Bulls, Knicks, Magic, Rockets, and Cavaliers have inquired on Greene, says Spears.