Bryan Colangelo Talks Telfair, Bargnani, CBA
Earlier today, we rounded up post-deadline comments made by one general manager, the Thunder's Sam Presti, in the wake of yesterday's moves. Now we'll turn our focus to Toronto, where GM Bryan Colangelo spoke to reporters today about the Raptors' deadline decisions. Eric Koreen of the National Post has the key quotes.
On the Raptors acquiring Sebastian Telfair:
"We feel like we’re getting a player that gives us the necessary depth at that position. [John Lucas III] has done a great job filling in on the short term. The ability to score, the ability to man those minutes, he did an admirable job and I don’t necessarily see him getting supplanted right away. But what I do see is a guy that is capable of playing those minutes if need be and if someone were to go down with injury you’ve got a guy that has started I believe 192 games in the NBA who can come in and play this games if need be."
On trade talks involving Andrea Bargnani:
"Once the [elbow] injury occurred, his return, as late as it was in the process, as near to the trade deadline [as it was], it probably did not leave enough runway with respect to a deal being made now. That didn’t stop us from having dialogue with other teams or teams expressing interest. I believe it did affect some of the deals that we were probably discussing in advance of the injury, and even some that we were maintaining connection or dialogue over the course of the last couple months."
On revisiting a Bargnani trade this summer:
"The summer is the next potential opportunity to engage in trade discussions with respect to our entire roster. And with 27 games left in terms of us looking at where we are and how this group can come together and what the chemistry looks like. Continuity is obviously something nice to look at going forward. I think a lot of the pieces we do have in place are pieces we want to keep and hang onto and we’ll see how it all plays out."
On the impact of the CBA and increasing tax penalties:
"Of course, every team in the league is tax-averse. You do not want to be in the tax for various reasons…. Some people have said different things about the transaction we made yesterday. It not only shored up a point guard position need that we had, but it also took a $200K commitment off of the books for next year with [Hamed] Haddadi’s contract. It sounds like nothing, but $200K over the tax next year is actually a $300K tax with a $1.50-per-dollar principle for the first $5MM over. It was a $500K decision just for next season. … We made a very large transaction and have climbed into the tax for next season prior to three weeks ago. It certainly didn’t affect us in terms of a decision that was made in terms of the acquisition of Rudy Gay."
Atlantic Notes: Celtics, Sixers, Shumpert, Kleiza
The Celtics are in the market for a free agent big man, and we heard this morning that the club is considering signing D.J. White to a 10-day contract. White isn't the only player Boston has its eye on, however. According to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald, Jerome Jordan, Tim Ohlbrecht, Shavlik Randolph, and Louis Amundson are among the other players being considered by the Celtics.
Here are a few more post-trade-deadline notes out of the Atlantic Division:
- 76ers GM Tony DiLeo spoke to the media about acquiring Charles Jenkins in what he calls a "no-risk" move, and said that he talked to every NBA team about potential trades before the deadline (video link via NBA.com).
- As Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News tweets, DiLeo also said that re-signing Andrew Bynum remains "Plan A" for the Sixers, but that the team's cap flexibility allows for "Plan B"s as well.
- Knicks GM Glen Grunwald told ESPN Radio that the Knicks had "a number of inquiries" on Iman Shumpert, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.
- While Nets fans may be disappointed that the club couldn't land Josh Smith yesterday, Tim Bontemps of the New York Post thinks hanging on to assets will benefit the team in the long run.
- Although a Lithuanian report suggested that injury woes could put Linas Kleiza's career in jeopardy, the forward told reporters today that's not true, and that he expects to return soon (Twitter link via Holly MacKenzie of Sportsnet).
Odds & Ends: Deadline, Nets, Colangelo, Hibbert
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Thursday evening:
- Ken Berger of CBSSports.com writes that the Collective Bargaining Agreement has restricted player movement, resulting in an underwhelming trade deadline.
- Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News laments the Nets' inability to find Deron Williams more help at the deadline.
- Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun writes that Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo deserves a contract extension.
- Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star writes that Roy Hibbert is looking to ramp up his performance as the Pacers gear up for a playoff run.
- The Oklahoman has a primer on Georgios Printezis, acquired by the Thunder on Thursday.
- Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel praises the Bucks' acquisition of J.J. Redick.
- Tim Cowlishaw of SportsDayDFW.com writes that the Mavericks' relative inactivity at the trade deadline puts increased pressure on the team to have a successful offseason.
- John Canzano of The Oregonian praises the Blazers' acquisition of Eric Maynor from the Thunder.
Kennedy On Trade Deadline Winners
Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld posted a new column examining the reasoning why many teams opted to stand pat at the trade deadline rather than make any major deals. He also wrote that, although the trade deadline was relatively uneventful, it could set up an exciting summer of trades and free-agent signings.
Kennedy also ran down the teams he thought improved with deadline deals:
- Kennedy thinks J.J. Redick will be valuable to the Bucks as they push for a playoff spot.
- The Thunder added Ronnie Brewer at little cost, and Kennedy believes he will form a formidable perimeter defense tandem with Thabo Sefolosha.
- Kennedy praises Rockets GM Daryl Morey for acquiring the fifth pick in the 2012 draft, and believes Thomas Robinson will flourish in a better situation than the one he was in with the Kings.
- The Raptors picked up Sebastian Telfair, giving them a serviceable backup for Kyle Lowry at little cost, Kennedy writes, also noting that Telfair has strong relationships with several players already on the team.
- Kennedy praises the Blazers for acquiring much-needed bench help in Eric Maynor.
Recap Of Deadline Trades
A complete recap of trades that were completed before Thursday's trade deadline:
- The Houston Rockets traded Marcus Morris to the Phoenix Suns and Patrick Patterson, Cole Aldrich, and Toney Douglas to the Sacramento Kings for Thomas Robinson, Francisco Garcia, Tyler Honeycutt, and a future second-round pick.
- The Miami Heat traded Dexter Pittman and a future second-round pick to the Memphis Grizzlies for the rights to Ricky Sanchez and cash considerations.
- The Washington Wizards traded Jordan Crawford to the Boston Celtics for Leandro Barbosa and Jason Collins.
- The Oklahoma City Thunder traded Eric Maynor to the Portland Trail Blazers for a trade exception and the rights to Georgios Printezis. The Blazers waived Ronnie Price to clear a roster spot for Maynor.
- The Thunder also acquired Ronnie Brewer from the New York Knicks for a future second-round pick.
- The Atlanta Hawks traded Anthony Morrow to the Dallas Mavericks for Dahntay Jones.
- The Suns traded Sebastian Telfair to the Toronto Raptors for Hamed Haddadi and a future second-round pick.
- The Orlando Magic traded J.J. Redick, Gustavo Ayon, and Ishmael Smith to the Milwaukee Bucks for Beno Udrih, Tobias Harris, and Doron Lamb.
- In a separate deal, the Magic traded Josh McRoberts to the Charlotte Bobcats for Hakim Warrick.
- The Golden State Warriors traded Jeremy Tyler to the Hawks for a second-round pick. They also traded Charles Jenkins to the Philadelphia 76ers for an additional second-round pick.
Afternoon Rumors: Turner, Bargnani, Rockets, Cavs
A few last-minute rumors as the 2:00pm deadline approaches….
- Evan Turner's name is "all over the place" in trade talks, but the Sixers aren't expected to move him today, tweets Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.
- There doesn't seem to be any progress on an Andrea Bargnani deal, tweets TNT's David Aldridge, adding that the Raptors seemed to recognize a week ago that they wouldn't be able to move Bargnani.
- The Rockets likely won't make another deal today, but count on them being active this summer, tweets Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game.
- As an executive tells Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, the Cavaliers don't have many options that won't negatively affect their cap flexibility, so they've been relatively quiet (Twitter link).
- The Knicks are still working to move Ronnie Brewer, tweets Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
Raptors, Suns To Swap Haddadi, Telfair
1:33pm: The second-round pick headed to Phoenix will either be the Raptors' or Kings' 2014 pick, whichever is lower, reports Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (via Twitter).
1:03pm: The Raptors and Suns have agreed to a deal that will send Sebastian Telfair to Toronto and Hamed Haddadi to Phoenix, reports ESPN.com's Chris Broussard (via Twitter). According to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter), the Suns will also acquire a second-round pick in the trade, as ESPN.com's Marc Stein reported earlier today.
Since trading Jose Calderon to the Pistons in the deal that landed them Rudy Gay, the Raptors had been exploring avenues for adding another point guard, having reportedly targeted Eric Maynor and Luke Ridnour along with Telfair. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported this morning that the Raptors had emerged as the frontrunners for Telfair, who had a cheaper salary and trade cost than Toronto's other options.
In addition to landing a protected second-rounder from the Raptors, the Suns will also cut costs a little, as Haddadi is earning just $1.3MM compared to Telfair's $1.57MM. The move also lets the team create playing time for rookie point guard Kendall Marshall, which was Phoenix's initial motivation for exploring a Telfair trade.
Raptors Frontrunners To Land Sebastian Telfair
10:44am: If the Suns and Raptors reach an agreement, it's likely to come in the final hour before the deadline, tweets ESPN.com's Marc Stein, who says that Telfair would likely be swapped for Hamed Haddadi and a second-round pick.
8:34am: NBA fans may not breathlessly be discussing the Sebastian Telfair sweepstakes, but according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter), the Raptors have emerged as the frontrunners to land Telfair.
We heard earlier this week that the Suns were looking to move Telfair in order to create playing time for rookie point guard Kendall Marshall. The club's efforts to trade Telfair likely intensified after Phoenix agreed to acquire Marcus Morris — with 15 players already on the roster, the team will need to trade or release a player to clear room for the newest Sun.
The Suns' need to move or let go of a player should create leverage for the Raptors, who have been eyeing a number of backup point guards on the trade market. However, because Telfair makes more than the minimum salary, the Raps would have to send out a little salary of their own to make a deal work financially. Doug Smith of the Toronto Star suggested today that trading Alan Anderson in a deal for a backup point guard is a possibility for Toronto.
Rudy Gay Talks Grizzlies’ Exit, Raptors’ Future
Before the Grizzlies traded Rudy Gay to the Raptors last month, one avenue they explored was a deal with the Nuggets, according to Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida. Tomasson tweets that Denver turned down an offer that would have involved sending Danilo Gallinari to Memphis in a deal for Gay. All parties involved seem happy with the way things eventually turned out, and Sam Amick of USA Today spoke to Gay about the forward's exit from Memphis and the deal that sent him to Toronto. Here are the highlights from the conversation:
On telling a Toronto radio station that he missed "nothing" about Memphis:
"Obviously that was just out of a little bit of anger. There were a lot of people in Memphis and a lot of relationships I left in Memphis that I'll always have. I'm so thankful for the city doing what they've done for me up until now."
On whether he saw the trade coming:
"It was a total shock to me. I never went to any of (the new management) and told them that I wanted to be traded. I've never done that. The summer before, I did. I said this team has a chance to be a competitor in the West, and we're going to be good, but if you plan on doing anything – this is the summer before – I said I want to express to you that I may be wanting to move on."
On why he expressed an openness to a trade last summer:
"It was a post-dominated team, and I didn't get a chance to have a guy who you could say was a stone-cold guy who you went to all the time. A couple games it'd be Marc [Gasol], then it'd be me, and then it'd be Zach [Randolph], you know what I mean? So at that point, I was like, 'I want to see what I can do with an open floor.' And I got that (in Toronto), but as long as we were winning, I'd like to see myself as a great teammate. And as long as we're winning, I'll do whatever, just be on the perimeter and open the floor for the big fellas, then that's what I'll do."
On staying in Toronto long-term:
"I've played six games. I don't know about (re-signing), but I love the organization. I possibly could be here for the rest of my career, but who knows."
On the Raptors' outlook:
"I'm excited about this team — excited about the possibilities of how good we can be. It was kind of a mixture of feelings when it first happened, getting traded and not knowing anything and one day thinking you're competing for a championship and the next day you're getting shipped off somewhere. It was a mixture of feelings… and now I've just got to embrace where I'm at. I'm happy I'm a Raptor right now…. I want to see this team be a good team, to be a playoff team again."
Broussard On Gordon, Ellis, Rondo, Crawford
- The Hornets have made Eric Gordon available for a trade, but Broussard anticipates a lack of interest considering doubts about his health moving forward. The notion that New Orleans is willing to listen to offers for Gordon shouldn't come as a surprise, as we heard a similar report earlier this month.
- The Celtics are willing to move Rajon Rondo in the right deal. The Wizards have been actively shopping Jordan Crawford.
- A list of players who are currently on the trade market: Nets forward Kris Humphries, 76ers guard Evan Turner, Bobcats guards Ben Gordon and Gerald Henderson, Spurs' DeJuan Blair, Raptors big man Andrea Bargnani, Jazz big men Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap, Magic guard J.J. Redick, and Timberwolves forward Derrick Williams (All Twitter links).