Ersan Ilyasova Has Five-Year Offer From Bucks
6:03pm: Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski reports that Ilyasova's five-year offer from the Bucks is worth approximately $40MM. He adds that, while the Nets are considering Ilyasova as a fallback plan if they are unable to trade for Dwight Howard, the Bucks do not appear interested in facilitating a sign-and-trade.
12:00pm: Unrestricted free agent power forward Ersan Ilyasova has a five-year contract offer on the table from the Bucks, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. The amount of the offer is unknown, says Woelfel.
Raptors Still Trying To Acquire Kyle Lowry
The Raptors continue to try to acquire Kyle Lowry from the Rockets, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Raps appear to be fading in the Steve Nash sweepstakes, but even if they're able to land Nash, the team will still have interest in trading for Lowry, says Stein.
Odds & Ends: Noah, Cavs, Pistons, Raptors
The U.S. squad for the 2012 Olympics has been hit hard by injuries, but Team USA isn't the only country that will see NBA players miss the London games. Already facing concerns over Tony Parker's health, France will be without Joakim Noah this summer, the Bulls big man told L'Equipe (French link). K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune confirms the news, noting that Noah will miss the Olympics to rest and rehab the ankle he sprained in the playoffs.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the NBA on Independence Day….
Steve Nash Rumors: Wednesday
The race for Steve Nash got awfully interesting yesterday, with a handful of developments making Nash's decision cloudier than ever. The Raptors agreed to sign Landry Fields to a hard-to-match offer sheet, removing the Knicks' best sign-and-trade chip from the equation. Meanwhile, the Lakers are making a push to land Nash in a sign-and-trade deal of their own, while the Mavericks, having missed out on Deron Williams, figure to turn their attention to Nash now. With all that in mind, we'll track today's Nash updates right here, with the latest developments added to the top of the page throughout the day….
- According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld, the Mavericks have made Nash a massive offer that rivals the Raptors' proposal.
Earlier updates:
Nets Maintain Interest In Ersan Ilyasova
The Nets still have interest in pursuing Ersan Ilyasova if they're unable to acquire Dwight Howard from the Magic, tweets Fred Kerber of the New York Post. Peter Vecsey of the New York Post first tweeted that Brooklyn would target a sign-and-trade deal for Ilyasova if Howard was unobtainable.
Odds & Ends: Hawks, D-Will, Calderon, Celtics
It's been another whirlwind day of player movement in the NBA, as the Hawks agreed to two significant trades, sending Joe Johnson to the Nets and Marvin Williams to the Jazz. Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld speculated that Josh Smith may be the next Hawk to go (Twitter link), but Brian Windhorst and Marc Stein of ESPN.com report that Smith is excited about the moves, which would free up plenty of cap space for next summer, when Atlanta could go after Smith and other major targets. Here's news from elsewhere around the busy Association.
Free Agent Rumors: Lin, Hinrich, Kaman, Nash
While a report surfaced last night suggesting that the Knicks may be reluctant to match a backloaded offer to Jeremy Lin, it doesn't appear that such an offer will come from Brooklyn. According to TNT's David Aldridge, the Nets haven't reached out to Lin, and appear to be viewing Steve Nash as Plan B if they can't lock up Deron Williams. Let's round up a few more free agent tidbits from around the league….
- While an earlier report (linked below) from K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune suggests the Bulls will only offer the minimum to Kirk Hinrich, Johnson says he's now emerging as the team's top target (Twitter link).
- Chris Kaman had a "positive" meeting with the Pacers today, but no offer was made, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
- Frank Isola of the New York Daily News believes Lin and Nash may be an either/or proposition for the Knicks.
Earlier updates:
Lakers, Others Eyeing Grant Hill
Back in March, Grant Hill told Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida that he hopes to keep playing in the NBA until he "can't go or it's not fun anymore." Hill doesn't seem to be contemplating retirement this summer, so he must still be having fun. He also recently underwent the platelet-enrichment procedure that Kobe Bryant popularized among NBA players, according to Ric Bucher of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Bucher adds that the Lakers, Suns, Raptors, and Knicks are among the teams with interest in signing the veteran forward.
Latest On Steve Nash
8:42pm: Nash met with the Raptors and Knicks today while the Nets will make their pitch tomorrow morning, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Nets like Nash both as a potential Deron Williams replacement and teammate.
4:22pm: Nash is meeting with the Nets today, a league source tells Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News (via Twitter).
1:39pm: Nash tells ESPN.com's Marc Stein (Twitter link) that he's eager to talk to the Mavericks if their pursuit of Deron Williams falls through. However, Stein hears that the Knicks and Raptors are Nash's top two choices at the moment, in no particular order.
Raptors Offer Nash Three-Year, $36MM Deal
The Raptors have offered free agent point guard Steve Nash a three-year, $36 million contract, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Industry sources monitoring the free-agent market have identified Toronto as one of the four teams with the best chance of signing him away from the Suns along with the Mavs, Knicks, and Nets.