Andrew Bynum Rumors: Wednesday
Since the Cavaliers suspended Andrew Bynum last Saturday, numerous rumors have circulated about what kind of action Cleveland will take with their disgruntled center. Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today breaks down three options the club has in regards to Bynum and suggests that holding on to the big man might be the best move if the Cavs can’t find a suitable trade partner. According to Zillgitt, rival executives believe waiving Bynum is the last route Cleveland should take. Let’s have a look at the latest Bynum rumors:
- TNT’s David Aldridge agrees with Kyler, tweeting that the rumored swap of Bynum and Gasol is not likely to happen.
- Zillgitt checks back in on Twitter to confirm another piece of the Kyler report: that rival executives believe the Cavs are reaching in trade discussions because of the lack of a market for Bynum.
- Meanwhile, Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio cites a source that thinks the deal could still happen, but concedes that the Lakers are downplaying talks (via Twitter).
Earlier updates:
- In the same piece, Zillgitt notes that the Cavs reached out to the Bulls and inquired on a trade that would send Luol Deng to Cleveland in exchange for Bynum. However, a source confirmed that Chicago wasn’t interested.
- Zillgitt echoes earlier reports that the Clippers would have interest in Bynum if the Cavs were to release him.
- The Heat wouldn’t have interest in signing the center, despite earlier reports suggesting otherwise, Zillgitt hears from an anonymous source.
- Fittingly, Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report outlines reasons why Bynum wouldn’t be a good fit for the Heat. The primary reason Skolnick cites is Bynum’s lack of passion for the game, a trait which doesn’t align with Miami’s fundamental principles.
- The rumored Pau Gasol/Bynum swap that would send Bynum to the Lakers is unlikely to happen, opines Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld. He believes the Cavaliers are trying to get “something for nothing” with Bynum’s contract and hears the Lakers intend on keeping Gasol for now. (Twitter links)
Eastern Notes: Wizards, Beasley, Salmons
The Wizards have won five of their last six and are fourth in the Eastern Conference, but they’re not about to get complacent. “We just got to continue to move forward . . . not get complacent with the wins,” Beal said, according to Michael Lee of the Washington Post. “We’ve got to continue to play as a team and move forward. We’re back where we want to be, but we have to get over that hump and I think we have a great opportunity in front of us to be able to do something.” More from the East..
- In today’s mailbag, a reader asks Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if he sees offseason pickup Michael Beasley expanding his role even more this season. Ultimately, Winderman writes, it comes down to whether coach Erik Spoelstra grows confident enough to start him, which doesn’t seem that likely at the moment. Otherwise, he still sets up behind Ray Allen, Chris Andersen, Norris Cole, and possibly even Rashard Lewis in the reserve rotation.
- John Salmons is turning into quite the closer for the Raptors, even if they don’t call his number for the big shots at the big moments, writes Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. Toronto acquired Salmons in December’s Rudy Gay trade with Sacramento. Meanwhile, the forward is considered by some to be a trade candidate.
- The Bulls want to keep recent pickup D.J. Augustin in a backup role, writes Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. He was starting at the one in place of Kirk Hinrich when he was injured, but Hinrich will continue to stay in the first rotation. The Bulls signed Augustin back in mid-December and, so far, he has impressed.
- DeMar DeRozan‘s solid play has mirrored the Raptors‘ late-season surge, writes Eric Koreen of the National Post. Meanwhile, despite Gay’s absence, DeRozan is actually averaging slightly fewer field-goal attempts per game than he was before the trade.
Cavs, Lakers Discussing Bynum, Gasol
WEDNESDAY, 8:45am: The outcome of Kyrie Irving‘s forthcoming MRI exam is likely to have a big impact on how the talks proceed from here, according to the latest update from Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com.
Irving told reporters Tuesday night that he felt a “pop” in his left knee after suffering the injury during Cleveland’s loss to the Pacers and an MRI is scheduled for Wednesday. If Irving is out for a substantial length of time, it’s believed that the Cavaliers’ appetite to take on additional salary in pursuit of a playoff push would be diminished. Still, talks between the two sides continued yesterday and a deal still seems possible, provided that the Cavs’ star guard won’t miss a significant length of time.
TUESDAY, 2:37pm: Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times seems to back up Medina’s report, hearing from a source that the idea of the Lakers taking on Bynum would be a stretch.
2:25pm: Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News throws cold water on the idea of such a deal, writing that “the Lakers would never under any circumstances” accept the proposal that Windhorst and Shelburne reported overnight. The Lakers don’t want Bynum back, and they wouldn’t even be interested in acquiring his contract just so they could waive him before the deal becomes guaranteed next week, according to Medina. The Lakers are also holding out hope that Gasol will improve his play as the season goes on.
2:19pm: The Lakers are seeking a first-round pick in a Bynum-Gasol deal, but the Cavaliers are balking at that idea, according to the Plain Dealer’s Terry Pluto. If they were to trade a pick, the Cavs would be more willing to give up the Heat’s 2015 first-rounder acquired through a previous trade than surrender one of their own selections. Nonetheless, both teams are serious about striking some kind of compromise, Pluto writes.
7:51am: Nearly 17 months after they sent him to the Sixers, the Lakers are mulling the possibility of reacquiring Andrew Bynum, according to Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com. The ESPN duo reports that the Lakers and Cavaliers have had discussions about a trade that would sent Bynum back to Los Angeles in a package for Pau Gasol. No deal is imminent, but the two sides are weighing their options in advance of January 7th, this season’s contract guarantee deadline.
By trading Gasol for Bynum, and subsequently waiving Bynum before his full 2013/14 salary becomes guaranteed in January, the Lakers could potentially get out of luxury-tax territory for this season, depending on what other pieces were included in the deal. At the very least, it would significantly reduce the team’s payroll and tax bill, and would give L.A. more financial flexibility going forward. Since Gasol’s full-season salary is worth about $7MM more than Bynum’s, the Cavs would have to include at least one other player in the hypothetical swap for it to work under CBA rules. Adding C.J. Miles, or any player or combination of players earning more money than Miles’ $2.25MM, would make a Gasol/Bynum trade legal.
Still, the Lakers would have a hard time parting with Gasol without receiving some assets of value in return, according to Windhorst and Sherburne. Given the club’s storied history, a simple salary dump likely isn’t in the cards, even if the ability to avoid the repeater tax would be extremely beneficial. The ESPN duo notes that there’s still a strong organizational sentiment within the Lakers to let the current group get healthy and try to contend before the front office does anything drastic.
As for the Cavs, they also pursued Gasol in the summer, conducting extensive discussions with the Lakers before Dwight Howard signed with the Rockets, according to the ESPN report. Windhorst and Shelburne also suggest that Cleveland has engaged in talks with the Bulls about a similar deal that would involve Bynum and Luol Deng. Like the Lakers, the Bulls could get out of tax territory, or at least very close to it, by swapping Deng in a package for Bynum, then cutting the big man before his $12.25MM salary becomes guaranteed. However, Chicago still doesn’t seem inclined to move Deng at this point.
Cost-cutting moves by teams like the Lakers and Bulls, who are typically perennial contenders, may not have even been considered if not for the new CBA. As Windhorst points out (via Twitter), the new luxury tax, and the repeater tax in particular, is far more punitive than it was a few years ago, so clubs with expensive, non-contending rosters may be more inclined to cut their losses. Whether or not the Lakers or Bulls opt for that route, it’ll be something to watch closely as 2014’s trade deadline approaches.
Central Notes: Augustin, Bulls, Cavs, Thompson
Tonight’s look at the Central Division as the Pistons get set to take on the Wizards and the Bulls travel to Memphis to face the Grizzlies..
- Mark Deeks of ShamSports.com confirms (via Twitter) that D.J. Augustin’s contract with the Bulls is fully non-guaranteed and is just a one-year deal. James Johnson’s contract with the Grizzlies is also a one-year, non-guaranteed pact worth the minimum salary.
- The Cavs nearly traded for Klay Thompson on draft night in 2011, a source tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon-Journal. Cleveland GM Chris Grant was trying frantically to add a third top ten pick in that 2011 draft to make it happen. Former coach Byron Scott told Lloyd months later it was the night he really came to believe Grant knew what he was doing and was the right man for the job.
- More from Lloyd, who adds that the Cavs talked to the Kings about a deal involving J.J. Hickson for the No. 7 pick, but the Kings ultimately dealt the pick in a different deal and the Cavs sent Hickson to the Kings after the draft for Omri Casspi and a future pick. Then the Cavs had a deal in place with the Jazz for the No. 12 pick, but the Warriors snatched Thompson at No. 11. The Jazz ultimately backed out of the deal with the Cavs and nabbed shooting guard Alec Burks.
Andrew Bynum Rumors: Monday
Andrew Bynum‘s suspension has been lifted by the Cavaliers, but the big man continues to be excused from team activities, at least until Cleveland figures out what to do with him. As the January 7th contract guarantee deadline approaches, the Cavs are expected to either trade or release Bynum. However, if there are no takers, the club hasn’t ruled out keeping him beyond next week, a league source tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. That’s not the day’s only Bynum update today, so let’s round up the rest….
- Despite there being a chance the Cavs could keep Bynum, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld writes that the club appears likely to waive him. Sources close to the Heat and Clippers, Bynum’s preferred destinations, have downplayed their interest in the center, according to Kyler, who adds that both teams would do their due diligence, but that Bynum would be unlikely to catch on with another team right away if he’s released.
- If the Cavs decide to keep Bynum and guarantee his 2013/14 salary, the club could try again to move him before the trade deadline, but the offers would probably be weaker than they are now, says ESPN.com’s Chad Ford.
- Expect Celtics GM Danny Ainge to kick the tires on Bynum to determine the Cavs’ asking price, according to Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com, who examines how a theoretical acquisition of Bynum could expedite Boston’s rebuilding process.
- Nick Friedell of ESPN.com takes a look at whether Bynum might be a realistic trade target for the Bulls.
Eastern Rumors: Deng, Knicks, Bucks, 76ers
When a report surfaced earlier in December suggesting that Luol Deng and the Bulls had been about $5-6MM per year apart in extension talks, I speculated that perhaps Deng was looking for an annual salary in line with his current $14MM+, while the Bulls may have preferred something in the $10MM range. However, according to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, the actual figures discussed were a little lower. Cowley reports that Deng and agent Herb Rudoy were seeking $12-13MM annually, while the Bulls slotted the All-Star forward at $7-8MM per year.
With Deng still a year away from free agency when the two sides talked about an extension, perhaps the Bulls were just driving a hard bargain, knowing that they still had plenty of time to work something out. But if Chicago stays committed to something in the neighborhood of $7-8MM annually, it seems highly unlikely that the club will be able to retain Deng beyond this season.
Here’s more from around the East….
- James Dolan is right not to scapegoat coach Mike Woodson for the Knicks’ poor performance this season, since the team’s struggles are the result of years of moves overseen by the owner, writes Marc Berman of the New York Post.
- According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, the fact that Dolan told his players there won’t be any trades simply means that the Knicks don’t have any deals imminent — it doesn’t mean the team won’t make moves before the deadline.
- The Bucks and 76ers continue to sit atop Chad Ford’s Tank Rank list at ESPN.com, though Ford says Milwaukee owner Herb Kohl hasn’t totally given up on the idea of contending for the playoffs. Ford adds that the Sixers are among the NBA’s most active teams in trade discussions.
- In his weekly Morning Tip piece at NBA.com, TNT’s David Aldridge spoke to Kohl about finding investors in the Bucks and the possibility of both private and public funding for a new Milwaukee arena. Aldridge also explored the subject of why the Knicks and Nets feel compelled to avoid undertaking a full rebuild.
- The Cavaliers have recalled rookie forward Sergey Karasev from the D-League, according to the Cleveland Plain-Dealer (Twitter link). During his weekend stint with the Canton Charge, Karasev averaged 14.0 PPG in two games, making six three-pointers in total.
Eastern Links: Nets, West, Deng, Shumpert
Nets players are reportedly confused about their roles on the team amid an organizational lack of patience with Jason Kidd, but Deron Williams tells Tim Bontemps of the New York Post that he thinks the players still support their coach.
“If we were losing some close games and he was making some bad decisions, that would be one thing, but that’s not the case,” Williams said. “We got blown out [Wednesday]. He can’t make us outrebound teams, he can’t make us put the extra little bit in to get over the hump. That’s on us as players to come out and play better.”
There’s more news on the Nets amid our look at the Eastern Conference:
- Pacers power forward David West considered signing with the Nets after the lockout in 2011, but the Teaneck, N.J., native tells Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News that the team wasn’t interested because of fears regarding his recovery from a torn ACL.
- The Bulls aren’t keen on the idea of trading Luol Deng and if they did, they’d need a piece that solidifies their future, which means they’d require someone better than Iman Shumpert of the Knicks, tweets Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld.
- The Raptors are looking to the future and would ideally like to build with the draft, but in a strange twist of fate, they’re winning games and they may not get that choice lottery pick, writes Howard Beck of the Bleacher Report. Part of the reason for their success could be that several players — as well as coach Dwane Casey — are in their walk years.
- The Heat are off to a strong start and so is their D-League affiliate, notes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Several Teams Interested In Luol Deng
6:06pm: Sam clarifies in a pair of tweets that the teams mentioned in his story are more interested in Deng as a free agent than a trade target, since they wouldn’t want to give up assets to rent him for a half-season.
4:59pm: The Cavaliers, Mavericks, Lakers, Raptors, Spurs, Grizzlies and Nets are among the teams interested in Luol Deng, sources tell Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com. It’s not clear whether those teams are looking to trade for Deng this season or sign him in the summer, when he’ll be a free agent. The Bulls, while reportedly determined not to trade Deng, would apparently do so if they receive the right offer, and according to Sam, such an offer would involve a productive young player and a first-round pick.
Deng and the Bulls had extension talks this summer, but agent Ron Shade, who represents Deng along with Herb Rudoy, tells Sam that the Bulls never even made an extension offer to his client and says that many were “shocked” that Chicago wouldn’t do so.
“Honestly, I wanted something to be done,” Deng said. “I wanted to be here. I really felt we were going to. I don’t know how the money works. I don’t know what needed to be done. I really don’t know any of that stuff. But after the spinal tap, I went away and everything, I think I was waiting to hear from the Bulls. I was waiting to hear from [GM] Gar [Forman], and I really thought there would be weeks, maybe months of going back and forth, and trying to get it done. I felt like I’ve been here since I was 18. I’ve worked hard. They’ve seen me come in and do everything. But for whatever reason, Gar felt like it wasn’t the time yet.”
Still, Deng insists Forman “didn’t do anything wrong,” and remains open to staying with the team. The Bulls could have plenty of competition if they don’t deal him, Sam writes, believing that Deng could become the most sought-after free agent of the summer if marquee stars like LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony decide not to opt out of their deals.
Odds & Ends: LeBron, Lowry, T’Wolves
Fresh off of winning the Associated Press’ 2013 Male Athlete of the Year award, LeBron James spoke in depth about being a role model off the court and having a higher calling outside of basketball in addition to how he’s continued to mature in life. With the possibility of hitting free agency once again since 2010’s “The Decision”, the Heat superstar couldn’t avoid another inquiry about what could happen this summer (Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press). Not surprisingly, LeBron didn’t elaborate on much:
“I’m so zoned in on what my task is here this year that it’s hard to think about anything else…A guy the other day asked me what I’m going to do for New Year’s, and I haven’t even thought about that.”
With that aside, here are more of tonight’s miscellaneous news and notes from around the league:
- Eric Koreen of the National Post examines the trade/free agent value of Kyle Lowry, especially now that the Raptors appear to be thriving since trading Rudy Gay to Sacramento. Koreen argues that talent-wise, Lowry is worth the price of a first-round pick for teams looking to acquire him. On the other hand, if he finishes the season in Toronto looking to stay, then the asking price could start around at least $8MM annually, similar to what Jeff Teague and Brandon Jennings garnered as restricted free agents last summer.
- Sitting at 13-15 through 28 games, the Timberwolves are on par with what president of basketball operations Flip Saunders had expected at this point. Saunders explained his stance to Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press: “Of the record, when the season started, I thought we’d be right where we’re at, or maybe 14-14, 15-13…I thought that was a very realistic goal. But we haven’t finished games like I thought we would be able to do right now.” Saunders also pointed to the team’s road-heavy schedule early on as well as the fact that many of the core players don’t have much experience with each other as reasons why he’s optimistic about brighter days ahead this year.
- Prior to this season, Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts compiled an NBA head coaching record of 148-217 over 365 games, with just one playoff appearance and a first-round exit to boot. This year, Stotts is enjoying an .821 winning percentage in Portland in what is currently his most successful season to date thus far. In a special article for ESPN.com, Daniel Nowell discusses Stotts’ long road to becoming an NBA coach.
- Taj Gibson is repaying the Bulls’ investment in him, writes K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Subscribers only).
Bulls Send Marquis Teague To D-League
The Bulls announced this morning via press release that Marquis Teague has been assigned to the D-League’s Iowa Energy. Teague has seen limited minutes for Chicago this season and figures to get more playing time as a member of the Energy. This is Teague’s second D-League assignment this season. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune writes that efforts to trade the 20-year-old Kentucky product have yielded little interest from around the league. However, Nick Friedell from ESPNChicago.com notes that Bulls GM Gar Forman spoke on ESPN Chicago 1000’s “Waddle & Silvy Show” and revealed he hasn’t lost faith in Teague:
“He’s 20 now. And I think we’ve seen potential; he’s a talented kid, he had a really good summer… And our thought was let’s get him to our D-League affiliate and give him some time on the floor. But in our minds, it’s not a long-term thing. And it’s something we may do several times throughout the season.”
Meanwhile, Bob Cooney from the Daily News tweets that a source tells him the 76ers have plans to assign Lorenzo Brown to the Delaware 87ers of the D-League. Brown hasn’t been seeing much playing time in Philadelphia, and with Michael Carter-Williams returning from his injury, there’s not much of a spot for him in the 76ers’ rotation. Brown, a product of North Carolina State, was selected 52nd overall by the Timberwolves last June but was waived and eventually signed on with in Philly during the season.