Spears On Trade Candidates
In addition to the well-documented cases of Pau Gasol, Jose Calderon and Anderson Varejao, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports shares a litany of tidbits from high-ranking executives on trade candidates from around the league. Here's the chatter going on about each player:
- Andrea Bargnani, Raptors — "Toronto definitely wants to move Bargnani," a GM told Spears.
- MarShon Brooks, Nets — The Nets put him on the trading block over the summer, but his rookie-scale contract is making it hard for the team to part with him, since there are few more valuable players on the market with a matching salary.
- Andrew Bynum, Sixers — The Sixers are trying to find another starting center, according to Spears, who hears from a GM who figures the team is starting to get panicked about Bynum health. "They could get a really interesting deal for (Bynum)," the GM said. "I could see them doing that."
- Tyreke Evans, Kings — Despite a meeting with GM Geoff Petrie that went well, according to a source close to Evans, the Kings will trade him if they don't think they can afford to re-sign him as a restricted free agent this summer.
- Tyler Hansbrough, Pacers — Spears speculates that the team could trade him for help at the wing.
- Gerald Henderson, Bobcats — Like Evans, Henderson will likely be dealt if the team decides against re-signing the restricted free agent over the summer.
- Kevin Love, Timberwolves — "I don't think that's a match that is permanent in Minnesota," an assistant GM tells Spears. "I'm not saying they're shopping, but if they can get the right deal they would look at it. And I don't think he wants to be there."
- Paul Millsap, Jazz — The Jazz are more likely to trade Millsap than Al Jefferson because Millsap, who makes almost half as much money, will "go to the highest bidder" in free agency next summer, according to a GM.
- Timofey Mozgov, Nuggets — With Mozgov a restricted free agent next summer, the Nuggets are likely to go with Kosta Koufos and JaVale McGee in the middle instead, and with other Nuggets set to hit the market, a rival GM tells Spears that Denver won't pay the luxury tax.
- Derrick Williams, Timberwolves — Both player and team would be pleased with a trade, and an executive for another team warns that Williams' value is shrinking as he continues to sit on Minnesota's bench.
Stein On Pau, Raptors, Varejao, Jazz, Gentry
ESPN.com's Marc Stein has published his Weekend Dime, and leads off the jam-packed column with a look at a handful of players that are candidates to be dealt before February 21st's trade deadline. Here are the highlights on those guys, and from the rest of Stein's piece:
- The Lakers continue to recognize that they're unlikely to get fair value for Pau Gasol, given his health, salary, and performance, and would prefer to avoid another major shakeup anyway. So for now, they're still not seriously considering a Pau trade.
- Multiple front-office sources view the Raptors as the team most motivated to make a move. The team would like to make Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon in tandem, but Bargnani's elbow injury may force Toronto to deal Calderon on his own. The Lakers and Mavericks have interest, though neither team is an obvious match for Calderon's $10.5MM+ salary.
- NBA teams believe Anderson Varejao is "highly available," but are skeptical he'll be dealt, since the Cavaliers' high asking price is only increasing. Cleveland is seeking multiple young assets for Varejao, according to Stern, who says the Thunder, a potential match, have exhibited little interest.
- Teams around the league aren't sure whether the Jazz would be more inclined to trade Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson, but the general consensus suggests one of the two will be dealt by the deadline for a front-line point guard.
- Stein lists a few other names that come up repeatedly in talks with sources as trade candidates: Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, Derrick Williams, Luke Ridnour, J.J. Barea, Michael Beasley, Courtney Lee, and D.J. Augustin.
- Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley may already be interested in buying another team, with the Bucks as a potential target, according to Stein.
- Robert Sarver's assurances that Alvin Gentry will keep his job as Suns head coach shouldn't be viewed as a "dreaded" vote of confidence. Sources tell Stein that Sarver likes Gentry "too much personally to make an in-season change."
Raptors Notes: Bargnani, Calderon, Colangelo
As our tentative 2013 draft order shows, if the season ended today, the Raptors would have the league's second-worst winning percentage. If the standings and draft lottery were to form, that would be a silver lining in a disastrous year for the Raps — their first-round pick in 2013 is top-three protected, so the team wouldn't have to give it up if it lands at No. 2. Still, there aren't many other silver linings in Toronto these days, a subject Andrea Bargnani addressed in a conversation with Gazzetta.it. Here are the details on that interview and a few other Raptors links:
- Any trade scenarios involving Bargnani or Jose Calderon are on hold with Bargnani and Kyle Lowry injured, reports Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
- Colangelo, his senior advisor Wayne Embry, and team ownership met in Toronto this week and are evaluating the club's options, according to Berger (Twitter links).
Earlier updates:
- Emiliano Carchia of Sportando translates and passes along a few of Bargnani's quotes from his interview with Gazzetta.it's Davide Chinellato. According to Carchia, Bargnani said he'd miss at least three weeks with his elbow injury, acknowledged that the Raptors were playing way below expectations and were currently one of the worst teams in the league, and admitted he'd heard trade rumors and would be ready if he were to be moved.
- Although there has been speculation about Dwane Casey's job security, DeMar DeRozan still has faith in the head coach, writes Eric Koreen of the National Post.
- There's no real point in firing Raptors president Bryan Colangelo right now, according to Damien Cox of the Toronto Star.
- The Toronto Star staff grades Colangelo's major moves since he was hired in 2006.
Wolves Rumors: Rubio, Varejao, Love, Roy
It's Friday, which means Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities has checked in with his weekly edition of Scoops. Here are Wolfson's Timberwolves updates from his latest piece:
- The Timberwolves are likely to make a deal before the February trade deadline, but aren't making any calls yet while they wait to see how the lineup looks when Ricky Rubio returns.
- David Kahn has been answering incoming calls, however. Wolfson reports that the Raptors and Cavaliers have both been in touch with the Wolves, to gauge interest in Andrea Bargnani and Anderson Varejao, respectively. Minnesota likes Varejao a lot, according to Wolfson, though in my opinion it would take a massive package for the Cavs to move him this season.
- One league source doesn't believe money is a source of frustration for Kevin Love, since the All-Star forward is still in position to earn as much or more over the long-term as he would have if he'd received a five-year extension. The source points to a Kahn quote from 2009 ("On a championship-contending team… Kevin might be the fourth-best player") as something that still irks Love.
- Obrad Fimic, the agent for Alexey Shved, on the Timberwolves recruitment of his client: "Honestly, the whole deal was done thanks to David, who convinced us that Shved is a perfect fit for coach Rick Adelman's system. Alexey and I liked what we heard and here we are."
- Although Brandon Roy denied that retirement wasn't something he thought about following his latest knee procedure, a league source insists to Wolfson that Roy at least considered it.
- There should be closure on the Martell Webster compensation case soon, with the Wolves expecting to receive cash and/or a second-round pick from the Trail Blazers.
Odds & Ends: Knicks, Harden, Terry, Draft
The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Wednesday night:
- Al Iannazzone of Newsday.com writes that Mike Woodson has been more successful at coaching Carmelo Anthony than Mike D'Antoni was.
- James Harden was indifferent in his reaction to reports that the Wizards had rejected an offer from the Thunder to send him to Washington.
- Jason Terry did not rule out a return to the Mavericks later in his career, writes Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com.
- ESPN.com's Chad Ford took a variety of questions from fans relating to the 2013 NBA Draft in a live chat.
- SNY.com's Adam Zagoria reports that Jabari Parker, the second-rated prospect of the 2014 Draft, is down to Duke and Michigan State in his choice of colleges.
- Chris Broussard of ESPN.com reports that John Wall will have his knee re-examined on Friday.
- Sam Amico of FoxSportsOhio.com writes that youth is not an excuse for the Cavs' poor play.
- D.J. Augustin has been a disappointment since signing with the Pacers this summer.
- Sean Michael Meager of the Oregonian has an interview with Trail Blazers rookie Will Barton about his recent D-League assignment and the adjustment from college to the NBA.
- Brandon Jennings was perhaps the best player up for a rookie-scale extension who didn't get one, but he's drawing comparisons to Chris Paul and Mike Conley from Bucks coach Scott Skiles for his play this season, as Charles F. Gardner of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel documents.
- Stephen Curry is feeling happy with his level of play this season and is not disappointed with his contract extension, he tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
Injury Roundup: Rubio, Bargnani, Lowry
The latest updates on the statuses of several high-profiled injured players from around the NBA:
- Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN.com reports that Ricky Rubio will play for the Timberwolves on Saturday for the first time this season.
- The Raptors announced that forward Andrea Bargnani, recently the subject of widespread trade speculation, has a ligament tear in his right elbow and a strained wrist and is out indefinitely.
- Raptors guard Kyle Lowry is also expected out 10 days with a partial tear in his right triceps.
Atlantic Notes: Kidd, Amare, Bargnani, Raptors
After a tight intra-division game in Brooklyn last night between the Nets and Knicks, the Nets head to Toronto for a matchup with the Raptors tonight. The Air Canada Centre won't have the same energy the Barclays Center did, but at least one team will snap a long losing streak tonight — both Brooklyn and Toronto have dropped five straight games. Here are a few afternoon notes out of the Atlantic:
- Tyson Chandler tells Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com that he called former Mavericks teammate Jason Kidd a few times over the summer in an attempt to recruit him to the Knicks. "I told him, 'We have some other guys that we may get in free agency, so this could be a really deep roster and we need a guy like you.'" Chandler said. "I felt like he could be the key to put us over the hump."
- Kidd also said on the radio that Amare Stoudemire could be back by the end of the month, according to ESPNNewYork.com's Ian Begley (via Twitter).
- Andrea Bargnani has been ruled out indefinitely with an elbow injury, tweets Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. The injury will likely curb the Bargnani trade rumors and speculation at least temporarily.
- There are some within the Raptors organization who say that Dwane Casey's job status has been discussed, but president Bryan Colangelo flatly denies it, says Bruce Arthur of the National Post.
- Colangelo's tenures with the Suns and Raptors have been polar opposites, writes Eric Koreen of the National Post.
- Dei Lynam of CSNPhilly.com points out that even without Andrew Bynum, the Sixers have the most wins of the four teams involved in the Dwight Howard trade this summer, a point of pride for coach Doug Collins.
- Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com tweets that Collins is no longer planning to send rookie Arnett Moultrie to the D-League.
D-League Moves: Acy, Melo, English, Middleton
Here are Wednesday's D-League assignments and recalls from around the NBA:
- The Raptors have recalled Quincy Acy from their D-League affiliate, the Bakersfield Jam, the team announced today in a press release. Toronto is short-handed, with Kyle Lowry, Andrea Bargnani, Landry Fields, and Mickael Pietrus among the players suffering from injuries, so Acy will provide some depth.
- Fab Melo, who was recalled from the D-League by the Celtics on Monday, has been assigned back to the Maine Red Claws, the team announced today in a press release. The 22nd overall pick has yet to make his NBA debut.
- The Pistons have assigned rookies Kim English and Khris Middleton to their D-League affiliate, the team announced today. The duo is expected to spend a three-game stint with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, tweets Keith Langlois of Pistons.com. English, the 44th overall pick in this year's draft, has appeared in ten games for Detroit, averaging 3.2 PPG in 9.2 minutes per contest. Middleton, the 39th pick, has played in just three games for the club.
Odds & Ends: Terry, Mayo, Belinelli, Crawford
We heard earlier today that Mavs owner Mark Cuban would have liked to have kept Jason Terry, who signed with the Celtics. Terry said he was disappointed that the first call he fielded this summer wasn't from the Mavs, as Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram details. Cuban also claims that he vetoed a deal former Mavs coach Don Nelson had set up during the 2004/05 season that would have sent Terry to the Jazz for Raul Lopez, Price notes. That one seems far-fetched, but if it's true, you'd have to give Cuban credit for quite a save. Here's the rest from a busy day and night in the NBA.
- O.J. Mayo can opt out of his contract this summer, but Cuban hopes he'll stay with the Mavs even longer than the eight years Terry was around, Price tweets.
- Chris Paul and former Hornets teammate Marco Belinelli are close friends, but Paul didn't recruit Belinelli to join the Clippers this summer because he thought the Bulls would be a better fit for the Italian sharpshooter, as K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune observes (Sulia link).
- The Bulls went hard after Jamal Crawford before last season, but wound up giving the money they had set aside for him to Richard Hamilton instead, according to Johnson (Sulia link).
- Though Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo was telling reporters Monday that coach Dwane Casey's job is not in jeopardy, Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun wonders whether that will be Colangelo's call to make, surmising everyone in the organization except Jonas Valanciunas shouldn't get too cozy.
- Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times corrects his earlier statement about the draft pick the Lakers owe the Suns, detailing the protections on that and other draft picks that will prevent L.A. from drafting in the first round next June.
- Sean Deveney of The Sporting News gauges the early returns on the rookie-scale extensions handed out before the season, and believes Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday and DeMar DeRozan are the steals of the bunch.
- SB Nation's Tom Ziller goes in depth on the Maloof family dynamics at play as the fate of the Kings, the team they own, hangs in the balance.
Lakers Considering Adding Point Guard
11:43pm: The Lakers’ top target is Jose Calderon, but the Raptors insist on packaging him with others, tweets Stein.
11:29pm: Stein believes the Lakers will also take a look at Mike James and Jonny Flynn, in addition to exploring trades (Twitter link).
10:50pm: The Lakers are thinking about signing Delonte West, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Still, the Lakers will look at other options, though as Stein points out, the team is at the 15-man roster limit. That’s why the Lakers were hesitant to sign Derek Fisher before he went to the Mavs, as L.A. was attemping to trade one of its existing point guards (All Twitter links).
10:19pm: The Lakers have been committed to waiting for Steve Nash to return before making a move, but after a disheartening loss to the Cavs tonight dropped L.A. to 9-13, the Lakers are giving thought to other options at point guard, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Nash expects to be out at least another two weeks, as we heard earlier today, and last week the Lakers announced Steve Blake would undergo surgery on a torn abdominal muscle that was to have kept him out at least another six to eight weeks.
The Lakers have been going with Chris Duhon and Darius Morris at the point, but they combined for just two points and three assists tonight. Free agent options appear to be limited, as the Wizards, also in need of a point guard, took a pass on Ben Uzoh and Blake Ahearn after working out both of them this weekend. Delonte West, Mike Bibby and Eddie House are among some of the more notable names available. Bibby and House have both played for Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni with other teams, but neither saw much time running the offense.
The trade market could be a more fruitful route, particularly once most free agents who signed this summer become eligible to be traded on Saturday. As part of a package that involves Pau Gasol, the Lakers have been linked to Jose Calderon, who acknowledges that he’s on the block. That would represent a drastic move, however, and would probably be overkill if Nash can return later this month. Calderon’s $9.7MM salary figure would prevent anyone from acquiring him unless they were willing to give up a lot, as fellow ESPNLosAngeles.com scribe Arash Markazi points out via Twitter, and the Raptors point man has a 10% trade kicker on top of that. While the Lakers may be exploring their options, the team may simply conclude that it must patiently try to sort out its difficulties until Nash returns.