Uncategorized Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Austin, Melo, Celtics, Cavs

June 22nd, 2014 at 10:24pm CST by Zachary Links

Isaiah Austin‘s decision to jump to the NBA was questioned by scouts but strangely enough, it’s the NBA’s medical tests that may have saved his life, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. Earlier today we learned that the Baylor center won’t be able to play in the NBA after being diagnosed with Marfan syndrome. Here’s more from around the league..

Howard Beck of Bleacher Report (on Twitter) expects Carmelo Anthony to take a pay cut regardless of where he lands, even if it’s a return to the Knicks. To Beck, it’s not a matter of if, but how much Melo is willing to lop off.
Beck (Twitter links) doesn’t see a sign-and-trade as being all that likely for the Knicks if Melo leaves. The Knicks would be interested in expiring deals and draft picks, but it’s hard to see them taking on any salary commitments beyond 2014/15 that would handcuff their flexibility.
Celtics assistant Ron Adams is heading west to join the Warriors‘ staff, writes Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe.
The Cavs‘ hire of David Blatt as head coach might seem like a bit of a gamble, but Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio is all for it. Vinny Del Negro wouldn’t have been a bad hire for Cleveland, but Blatt represents a bold, out-of-the-box choice for the club.
The Pacers will work out Mike Moser, Roscoe Smith, Eric Moreland, Tyler Stone, David Stockton, and Nick Kellogg on Monday, tweets Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops.

And-Ones: Leonard, Wallace, LeBron, Randle

June 16th, 2014 at 10:12pm CST by Zachary Links

It sounds like the Spurs will be able to get the band back together when it comes to the core, but they will have to tackle Kawhi Leonard‘s extension this summer, writes Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders. Leonard is eligible for an extension starting July 1st and it’s obviously in their best interests to lock up the Finals MVP. Koutroupis believes that a five-year, deal in the neighborhood of $78.8MM would get it done. Here’s tonight’s look around the NBA..

Chris Wallace is in charge of basketball operations on an interim basis for the Grizzlies but when it comes to the draft, it’s a collaborative effort involving coach Dave Joerger and owner Robert Pera, writes Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal.
LeBron James joining the Clippers makes sense to A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. Between Dwayne Wade being over the hill and the deterioration of Chris Bosh‘s shooting, Blakely believes that James will seek greener pastures.
The Lakers will work out Julius Randle tomorrow, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. Randle will complete an individual workout, unlike the Lakers’ first pre-draft workout that put a dozen prospects up against each other.
Darnell Mayberry and Anthony Slater debated the odds of Thabo Sefolosha returning to the Thunder next season. Mayberry says there’s no shot while Slater thinks there’s a slim chance he could return. It would probably be in OKC’s best interest to let Sefolosha walk, Slater writes, but there’s a small chance he stays since his asking price is so low.
With assistant Kevin Eastman moving up from the Clippers‘ bench to the front office and assistants Tyronn Lue and Alvin Gentry both up for head coaching jobs elsewhere, there could be more changes on the way, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
The Clippers are giving some thought to hiring Lawrence Frank as an assistant coach, writes Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Frank was the Nets’ lead assistant last season until he was reassigned by Jason Kidd. Frank and Clips coach Doc Rivers previously worked together in Boston.

And-Ones: Knicks, Blatt, Vonleh, Wiggins

June 15th, 2014 at 10:19pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest from around the league as the Spurs hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy..

Heat guard Ray Allen told reporters he will see where his “true heart lies” in a couple of days in terms of playing or retiring, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo.
Phil Jackson will look to re-tool the Knicks‘ roster this summer, but new coach Derek Fisher told ESPN 98.7 that he believes the team can improve by 8-10 wins as currently constructed, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. “In my opinion, I believe that success and failure are not as far apart as people think. It’s pretty close. And when you think about [the Knicks] winning 37 games a year ago, there are a number of things that you can isolate with the same exact roster that can provide 8-10 more wins without a change of any kind,” Fisher said last week.
Last week we learned that David Blatt will interview with the Cavs and today, we learned the date. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports hears that the former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach will meet with Cleveland on Wednesday.
Indiana big man Noah Vonleh will work out for the Jazz tomorrow, tweets Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. Utah owns the No. 5 pick and DraftExpress has them pegged to draft the soon-to-be 19-year-old.
Executives see the Magic as the team most likely to shake up the draft, tweets Chris Mannix of NBC Sports. The question now is whether they like Marcus Smart, Dante Exum, Vonleh, or someone else in the draft.
The Sixers are slated to work out Andrew Wiggins on Tuesday in Philadelphia, a source told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Philly, of course, owns the No. 3 pick.
No surprise here, but Bosnian big man Jusuf Nurkic will keep his name in the draft, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN.com. Nurkic is projected to go somewhere between 12 and 21 in Ford’s view.
The Celtics are eyeing guard prospects such as Xavier Thames, Semaj Christon, and Russ Smith, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. Last week, Austin Ainge told Washburn that the C’s are looking into trading back into the second round and Boston might do that with one of those three in mind.
Aaron Gordon is a lock for the lottery thanks to his athleticism and defense, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The 6’9″ forward out of Arizona is more athletic than Julius Randle and Noah Vonleh and is also a better defender.

And-Ones: Wolves, Jazz, Warriors

June 4th, 2014 at 10:21pm CST by Alex Lee

With Donald Sterling reportedly agreeing to allow the sale of the Clippers, the league focus can shift to where it belongs this time of year: the NBA Finals. The Heat are in San Antonio tomorrow night for Game One. Until then, let’s look at what else is going on around the Association:

Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 is confident the Timberwolves will hire a new coach before the NBA Draft on June 26 and expects the announcement to happen in the next week or two. (Twitter links) This timeline makes sense, as we know the Wolves intend on trying to sell the new hire to Kevin Love but could still trade him, presumably in a deal that involved draft picks, before June 26 should it not work out.
A one-to-one affiliation between the Jazz and the D-League’s Idaho Stampede is likely to be announced soon, reports Gino Pilato of the D-League Digest. This news comes several months after the Blazers decided to end their relationship with the Stampede. The Fort Wayne Mad Ants are poised to become the only D-League team with multiple affiliations.
With Steve Kerr hired to restore order in Golden State after the firing of Mark Jackson, it’s time for the Warriors to “let peace and harmony reign,” opines Marcus Thompson of the Mercury News.

Lakers Notes: LaVine, Draft, Coaching Search

June 4th, 2014 at 6:48pm CST by Alex Lee

Jumping 46 inches, UCLA’s Zach LaVine broke the vertical leap record for his hometown Lakers on Wednesday, reports Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times. LaVine, who was one of 12 prospects in today’s workout in L.A., projects as a mid-first round pick but has the type of upside that could propel him into the top 10 should he continue to impress. Bresnahan outlines the team’s morning workout as well in a separate post.

Hear are some other reports, draft-related and otherwise, coming out of Los Angeles today:

Nik Stauskas and Rodney Hood both backed out of the Lakers workout on Wednesday, reports ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (via Twitter). The duo, both surefire first rounders, were replaced by Davion Berry of Weber State and Jerry Evans of Nevada.
In what seems to be becoming a theme, Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak told McMenamin that need is not really a part of the team’s strategy at No. 7: “Because we’ve only got four players on the roster, we’re not really limited to looking at a position. We need help everywhere.” (via Twitter)
Mark Medina also has some similar draft nuggets from Kupchak in his latest, but also touches on the team’s coaching search, which the GM described as “ongoing” on Wednesday. Medina believes that Kupchak prefers a veteran coach but wouldn’t rule out something as open-minded as hiring former Laker Derek Fisher. The last we heard about the team’s coaching search was that SMU coach Larry Brown would not be part of it.

And-Ones: Jackson, Hayward, Fisher

June 2nd, 2014 at 10:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Thunder guard Reggie Jackson made it clear that he wants to start and seems to want to do so at point guard, writes Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Coach Scott Brooks was non-committal when asked about the possibility of adding Jackson, under contract through next season, to the starting lineup. Meanwhile, Thabo Sefolosha spoke of his time with the Thunder in the past tense and it seems likely that he’ll wind up elsewhere next season. More from around the league..

Tony Jones of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets that the Jazz front office fully expects Gordon Hayward to be with the team going forward. Hayward is a restricted free agent this summer and there is mutual interest in a return.
The Lakers haven’t reached out to the Thunder about getting permission to talk to Derek Fisher just yet, but that could be subject to change, tweets Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News.
Former Nuggets coach George Karl had an informal phone conversation with Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak but has yet to have a formal interview, Medina tweets.
Marist announced the resignation of Jeff Bower, tweets Vincent Goodwill of the Detroit Free Press. That should be the first step towards him taking over as Pistons GM.
UCLA guard Jordan Adams was in Houston working out for the Rockets today, tweets Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com.
The Nuggets will host Rodney Hood for a private workout tomorrow, a source told Goodman of ESPN (on Twitter).
The Raptors will host Jordan Clarkson and Canadian Khem Birch for workouts tomorrow, sources tell Goodman (on Twitter).
A source told Goodman (on Twitter) that Elfrid Payton held his own in front of the Kings in a workout today against Marcus Smart. Aaron Gordon worked out for Sacramento but did not go head-to-head with Noah Vonleh. He instead matched up with Eric Moreland (link).
The Lakers will be very busy on Wednesday as they audition many of this year’s top prospects, as Goodman tweets. Among the names not previously reported are Payton, Gordon, Tyler Ennis, Zach LaVine, James Young, and Rodney Hood.

Draft Notes: Vonleh, Stauskas, McDermott, Harris

May 30th, 2014 at 11:57am CST by Chuck Myron

Indiana big man Noah Vonleh looked impressive in a workout this week, and Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com adds the Magic to the list of teams auditioning the potential top-five pick (Twitter link). There’s news on a few other projected lottery selections among the latest on the draft:

Nik Stauskas will work out for the Lakers and Celtics, Goodman reports, adding that the same two teams are on Doug McDermott‘s agenda (Twitter links).
Gary Harris will show off for the Suns and Lakers, a source tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com.
Adreian Payne is set to audition for the Celtics, Suns and Jazz, Goodman hears (Twitter link).
The Hawks worked out Nick Johnson on Thursday, notes Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Jahii Carson, Justin Cobbs, Cory Jefferson, Artem Klimenko and Akil Mitchell are all performing for the Bucks today, the team announced (on Twitter).
The Suns will audition Lamar Patterson today, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv. Phoenix is also getting a look at De’Mon Brooks, according to agent Keith Kreiter (Twitter link).
The Sixers worked out Patterson, Semaj Christon, Devon Saddler, Casey Prather and Langston Galloway, reports Tyler R. Tynes of the Philadelphia Daily News. The Pacers had a look at Galloway, Jabari Brown, Markel Starks and C.J. Wilcox, as Tynes also writes.
The Celtics and Bulls will audition Kadeem Batts, Sportando’s David Pick tweets.

And-Ones: Joerger, Hollins, Clippers, Lakers

May 25th, 2014 at 9:50pm CST by Zachary Links

After a strange week, it appears that the Grizzlies coaching situation is now settled. Dave Joerger and owner Robert Pera met today to hash things out and the coach couldn’t be happier with how things turned out. “What’s between Robert and I now is like WOW.” Joerger told Ronald Tillery of the Commercial Appeal (on Twitter). “This is how it’s supposed to be. There’s interaction and you talk about anything.” As Joerger and Pera enjoy their budding bromance, let’s take a look around the Association..

Most people who know Grizzlies owner Robert Pera says that he has good intentions and wants to build a winner, tweets Chris Mannix of Sports Illusrated. Unfortunately, however, Pera isn’t overly familiar with how the NBA works.
In addition to the Lakers’ vacancy, Lionel Hollins is also being considered for the Cavs‘ opening, writes Sam Amick of USA Today. The former Memphis coach has long been considered a top candidate for the Cavs job. Hollins will chat with the Lakers late next week and probably meet with Cleveland next weekend.
Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) learned that there are six serious bidders thus far for the Clippers. Shelburne adds that Shelly Sterling won’t use an investment bank to handle the sale.
Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com looks back on Kent Bazemore‘s season with the Lakers. There wasn’t much expected from the guard when he came over in the Steve Blake deal with the Warriorrs, but he proved to be a valuable asset off the bench.
Chris Reichert of Ridiculous Upside explains why Clint Capela has first round sleeper potential in the draft. Last season, the power forward logged nine double-doubles and shot an astounding 66% percent from the floor.

Teammates Doubt LeBron James Will Leave Heat

May 23rd, 2014 at 10:53am CST by Chuck Myron

LeBron James‘ Heat teammates have been just as reticent to speak on the record about the four-time MVP’s plans for free agency as James has, but they’ve privately dismissed the idea that he would sign elsewhere this summer, according to Bleacher Report’s Ethan Skolnick. James has an early termination option on his contract that he can exercise to hit free agency this summer, but it would take a “dream scenario” for him to sign elsewhere even if he decides to opt out, as Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com put it earlier this week. The most likely scenarios involve James either opting in or becoming a free agent and re-signing with the Heat on a new long-term deal, Skolnick writes.

James has dropped few hints about his future even as the Cavs and surely others prepare to bid for the Rich Paul client. Chris Bosh, who like James can opt out this summer, answered affirmatively when asked in March whether he and James would return to the Heat for next season. Heat owner Micky Arison recently pegged the team’s chances of keeping James, Bosh and Dwyane Wade for next season at 100%, but he suggested in the same interview that it could be a challenge to do so.

Bringing back the trio of stars at maximum salaries for next season would require a combined amount close to the projected salary cap, leaving little flexibility to assemble the rest of the roster. Norris Cole is the only Heat player with fully guaranteed salary for next season, which would put pressure on team president Pat Riley and his staff to use Bird rights to re-sign most of the club’s existing talent if James, Wade and Bosh return. Doing so would almost certainly require the Heat to pay the luxury tax for a third straight season, which would trigger repeat-offender penalties.

Coaching Rumors: Dunleavy, Fisher, Ollie

May 17th, 2014 at 11:44am CST by Cray Allred

Mark Jackson has a multiyear agreement to return as a lead game analyst for ESPN, according to a report from The Associated Press. Although this may be an indicator that Jackson isn’t occupied with any serious coaching opportunities at the moment, the contract would presumably allow for Jackson to return to the bench should he land another head coaching gig. Diamond Leung of Bay Area News Group tweets that Jackson is still in the head coaching mix. Here’s more of the day’s coaching rumors:

Phil Jackson‘s meeting with Mike Dunleavy Sr. is believed to have been an interview for the Knicks open coaching job, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post.
A confidant of Derek Fisher tells Berman that the Thunder guard would be open to coaching next season if the right opportunity presented itself. Fisher is considered a leading candidate for the Knicks job.
Jason Lloyd of The Akron Beacon Journal hears that it would take more than the $25MM contract Steve Kerr just received to lure Kevin Ollie to an NBA coaching job (Twitter link).