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Odds & Ends: LeBron/Melo, J.R. Smith, Deng

January 9th, 2014 at 9:16pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Both Al Iannazzone of Newsday and Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News passed along some of LeBron James‘ comments on Carmelo Anthony with regards to free agency:

“You got to do whatever makes you happy…When you’re happy, the game of basketball is going to be fun for you. Strive to be great every day and live with whatever else happens. So we’ll see.”

Asked further if he’d recommend Anthony leave some money on the table when he signs his next contract, LeBron had this to say:

“I recommend it to me…It doesn’t work for everybody. The way I live my life don’t work for everybody. All I care about is winning. I came to Miami to win. Money didn’t make me happy. Winning made me happy, and it still does. That’s what matters to me.”

We’ve got more links to pass along out of the Association tonight, and you can find them below:

  • Not surprisingly, George Karl deplored J.R. Smith‘s recent behavior, telling Michael Kay on 98.7 ESPN radio in New York that his former player is going to wake up one day and realize how much he’s wasted great opportunities because of this “mockery he brings to the game.” In spite of that, Karl added that Smith still has a “skill that championship teams need” and suggested that a team like the Heat or Spurs may be able to corral the erratic shooting guard: “There’s that possibility…I think right now that’s the position if I was J.R.’s agent [I would take]. I would be looking at a culture where there would be more peer pressure…I know San Antonio has always liked (J.R.) and I know they’ve thought about bringing him in…San Antonio doesn’t make a lot of mistakes” (Ian Begley of ESPN New York).   
  • Although Luol Deng‘s agent Herb Rudoy didn’t expand upon how far apart the numbers were with the Bulls regarding contract extension discussions, he mentioned Andre Iguodala‘s contract with the Warriors (four years, $48MM) as one that would be commensurate with Deng’s ability, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago.
  • When asked about a potential return to Chicago for his client in the near future, Rudoy responded: “Never discussed…I have no idea. We didn’t talk about it.” 
  • Tom Haberstroh of ESPN explores the topic of whether or not Andrew Bynum would be a good fit with the Heat (Insiders only).
  • Ian Begley and Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN New York, Robert Silverman of Knickerblogger, Ethan Sherwood Strauss of TrueHoop, and Brian Windhorst of ESPN have a roundtable discussion on the Knicks and Nets‘ chances of making the playoffs, winning the Atlantic Division, getting to the second round of the playoffs, and which has the brighter future.
  • K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune goes in-depth about how the Deng trade presents an enormous opportunity for Bulls rookie Tony Snell (Subscribers only).
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Stein On Bulls, Bynum, Bledsoe, J.R. Smith

January 9th, 2014 at 8:00pm CST by Ryan Raroque

During a five-and-a-half minute interview earlier tonight, ESPN’s Marc Stein offered his thoughts on the Deng-Bynum trade, Eric Bledsoe‘s latest injury, and the latest on J.R. Smith and the Knicks (ESPN Radio link). You can find some of the highlights from the interview below.

On what the Deng-Bynum trade means for the Bulls: 

“I really like this deal better for Chicago because they’ve reset themselves entirely as far as finances…nobody wants to part with first-round picks, but to be able to get a first-round pick for a guy who was headed to free agency, that’s a pretty impressive feat…when you look at what’s left over in Chicago, lets assume Derrick Rose comes back, they still have Jimmy Butler, they have Joakim Noah, they’ve got some picks coming in, they’re going to try to get Nikola Mirotic – who’s considered one of the top players in Europe…there’s still some pieces there…if they can hang onto Tom Thibodeau, they still have a good platform for a team moving forward.”

On Andrew Bynum‘s free agency prospects: 

“…the issue with Bynum is I think everyone’s concerned because it’s been so long since he’s been motivated…the reality is that he’s still a very big guy who takes up a lot of space and did show enough flash in Cleveland to let you know he can still be a productive player when he’s in the mood…He wants to go to a contender and somewhere where he can (make more) than the league minimum. I know Dallas is very interested in him. Miami and the Clippers are two teams that have been mentioned, but I think in both cases there’s probably some hesitation as well…Miami already has Greg Oden there, do they really want two reclamation project centers on that team? 

Doc Rivers has been very vocal this week saying that our concern is on the perimeter because we lost Chris Paul for six weeks…they’re not looking for a big man. Is that smoke screen from (Rivers)? I think we’ll find out pretty soon.”

On how Eric Bledsoe’s injury affects the Suns plans: 

“It’s a crusher…there’s been all kinds of talk that Phoenix would move (one or two of their stash of future first-round picks) in order to try to get another frontline player and make a playoff push now…those plans are going to have to be revised most likely because it looks like Bledsoe (could) miss a significant amount of time.” 

“…they won’t know exactly how bad (the condition) and they won’t know until the surgery takes place, but this is the first depressing downer to happen to Phoenix after a fairy-tale two months.”

On J.R. Smith and the Knicks: 

“The reality is that I don’t think they’ll be able to move him. Now I would not co-sign on the notion that this is purely a Knicks ‘scare tactic’…the Knicks weren’t the ones who told me or Ian Begley that J.R. Smith was being shopped…I don’t think this was some sort of thing the Knicks strategically leaked because they’re trying to light a fire under (him)…They’re undoubtedly frustrated with him, they (feel) like it’s time for a fresh start for all parties, but the reality is that (Smith) has two more years left on his contract after this one, his production has dropped considerably, and off the cour there’s been four or five flareups already that have resulted in fines or negative headlines…the Knicks are realistic, they know that chances are they’re not going to find a trade partner for him, but they’re trying. They are trying and that is legitimate.”

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Update On Non-Guaranteed Contracts

January 7th, 2014 at 9:16am CST by Luke Adams

As has been discussed ad nauseam in recent reports on Andrew Bynum, the NBA’s contract guarantee deadline for 2013/14 arrives later today. If a team waives a player on a non-guaranteed contract by 4:00pm central time, that club won’t be on the hook for the remainder of the player’s salary. However, if the player remains on a roster beyond that, he’ll be assured of his full ’13/14 salary.

The NBA’s contract guarantee date technically lands on January 10th, but teams must ensure that players must clear waivers before Friday to avoid being on the hook for their full salaries. Because the waiver process takes 48 hours, that means making cuts today.

A number of players on non-guaranteed contracts are in no danger of being waived, but we’re still anticipating plenty of roster moves today, with veterans like Bynum and Stephen Jackson among the players expected to be released.

Here’s a quick rundown of the remaining players believed to be on non-guaranteed contracts, whose full 2013/14 salaries will be assured if they survive today’s round of roster cuts. Unless otherwise indicated, these players are on minimum-salary deals.

This post is just a refresher, so it won’t be updated throughout the day. However, we’ll keep our long-standing page of non-guaranteed deals up-to-date as teams make their cuts, so be sure to check that out, or keep tabs on our transactions feed for the latest moves.

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Heat Notes: Beasley, Mason, Riley

January 5th, 2014 at 6:11pm CST by Zachary Links

Former Heat big man Kurt Thomas is considering an NBA return, but it won’t be with the club he played for more than any other.  The veteran’s agent says that he won’t play for the Knicks as he wants to play for a team with a “legitimate” chance of winning the title.  Ouch.  Here’s the latest from South Beach..

  • The Heat‘s reclamation projects continue to pay off, writes Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report.  Michael Beasley, Chris Andersen and Roger Mason Jr. have all contributed off of the bench and Greg Oden could provide another major boost when he returns.
  • The contract guarantee deadline is Tuesday, but Heat coach Erik Spoelstra spoke confidently about Mason being on the roster for the rest of the season, writes Shandel Richardson of the Sun-Sentinel. “We don’t take him for granted or other players like that off the bench,” Spoelstra said. “Roger, now, is gaining more confidence each game that he plays with our system. Those kind of guys are hard to find. They really are. To be able to sacrifice, to understand the big picture, to be available when we need him and to be able to produce and not be cluttered in the mind, I think a lot of teams would like to have a guy like him or some of the other guys we have.“
  • Drew Voros of Index Universe spoke with Heat president Pat Riley about his methods for success in a wide-ranging interview.
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Eastern Notes: Pacers, Young, Harrellson

January 4th, 2014 at 2:58pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Pacers announced their recall of Solomon Hill from the D-League today, a move that came none too soon for the rookie, as Scott Agness of Pacers.com details. Hill averaged 29.5 minutes in two games for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, about 10 fewer minutes per game than Pacers teammate Orlando Johnson saw during his assignments to the D-League last season.

“The D-League is for developing talent and I didn’t get a chance to play,” Hill said. “I sat the whole fourth quarter. It’s like, is it really a developmental league? I’m very grateful for the opportunity to play with the Mad Ants organization, but in order for me to try to develop, I have to be on the floor. That just makes me think about my next trip, if I want to go back down there. I’m kind of not tempted to go back down there now just because if I go down there and play 25 minutes after a two-hour drive, it’s like, am I really developing?”

Hill went on to say that he still feels like he got something from the experience, but it’s a reminder that the continued growth of the D-League will face some resistance. Pacers coach Frank Vogel doesn’t believe in sending players to the D-League if they don’t want to go, so don’t count on seeing Hill in Fort Wayne again. Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

  • Any team in the league would love to have Thaddeus Young, an NBA executive tells Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who calls the forward the Sixers‘ best trade chip. Young says to Cooney that he wants to be in a winning situation, but he laughs off the notion that he’s disgruntled with the Sixers.
  • This time around, Josh Harrellson doesn’t have to worry as much about Tuesday’s contract guarantee date, writes David Mayo of MLive.com. The Pistons forward didn’t survive the cut with the Heat last season, but this year, he’s a rotation player and much more likely to stick.
  • As the Cavs ponder their options with Andrew Bynum, the Plain Dealer’s Terry Pluto implores the team to make a move to upgrade its roster and stick to its plan of striving for a playoff berth this season.
  • In today’s mailbag, a reader asks Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel if the Heat should consider making a run at the recently waived Hedo Turkoglu. Rashard Lewis more or less already has the role that Turkoglu would fill as a big man with range, even if there’s no such thing as too much three-point shooting, Winderman writes.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

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Berger On Asik, Lakers, Clippers, Lowry

January 3rd, 2014 at 3:12pm CST by Zachary Links

Word is the Rockets now expect to keep center Omer Asik past next month’s deadline and beyond, writes Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.  Houston worked hard to find a deal last month but the market for the big man right now isn’t so great.  “Teams that are tanking don’t want him to make them better and winning teams want to steal him,” one rival GM said.  On top of that, the teams with room in 2015 can sign him anyway as a free agent on a more reasonable contract.  More from Berger’s column..

  • For now, the Lakers intend to keep Pau Gasol and ride it out with the current group.  In fact, league sources say the Lakers even inquired on Raptors guard Kyle Lowry to help patch up at the one spot, though the talks didn’t go anywhere.  Things could change, however, as the temptation to dump salary and avert a date with the dreaded repeater tax will remain given their current position
  • Doc Rivers is realizing the Clippers‘ roster has more holes than he initially thought and league sources say he’s is looking for frontcourt help on the trade market.  It would help matters if they still had Eric Bledsoe to dangle but he went in the three-team deal that yielded J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley.
  • Meanwhile, the Timberwolves are also after frontcourt help in the form of an athletic rim protector.
  • League sources say the pairing of Bledsoe and Goran Dragic in the Suns backcourt isn’t expected to be a long-term solution for the Suns.  Execs believe Dragic will opt out of his contract following the 2014/15 season, putting pressure on GM Ryan McDonough to make a trade.  Jazz standout Gordon Hayward has put his team in a similar spot as his price may prove too high for Utah when he hits restricted free agency this summer.
  • The Cavaliers and Kings have been among the most aggressive teams in pursuit of trades, league sources say.  On the heels of acquiring Rudy Gay from Toronto, the Kings are “swinging for the fences” on the trade market, one rival executive said.  Sacramento wants to shore up the point guard position, but Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro‘s true long-term target is said to be Warriors sharpshooter Klay Thompson.
  • In addition to the Lakers, Knicks, and Nets, the Timberwolves, Warriors, and Celtics are among the teams that have inquired about a deal with the Raptors for Lowry, league sources say.  Raptors GM Masai Ujiri is said to have multiple deals he could do for Lowry that would involve receiving an expiring contract in return or slotting him into another team’s trade exception.  For Toronto take on future salary, they’d probably demand a first-round draft choice.
  • The reception to the proposed “wheel system” to determine NBA draft placement has been mixed.  Meanwhile, it has sparked other ideas, including a straight lottery with all 14 non-playoff teams getting an equal shot at the No. 1 pick.
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Following Specific Players On Hoops Rumors

January 3rd, 2014 at 11:47am CST by Luke Adams

As we’ve outlined before, there are a number of different ways to follow Hoops Rumors via Facebook, Twitter, and RSS. If you don’t want to follow all the site’s updates, you can subscribe to team-specific or transaction-only Facebook, Twitter, and RSS feeds. Although we don’t have Facebook pages or Twitter feeds for specific players, you can also easily follow all our updates on your favorite player.

If, for instance, you want to keep track of all the latest news and rumors on Carmelo Anthony as he plays a potential contract year, you can visit this page. If you’re interested in keeping tabs on the latest trade rumors involving Andrew Bynum, you can find Bynum’s page right here.

Every player we’ve written about has his own rumors page. You can find your player of choice by using our search box (located in the right sidebar); by clicking his tag at the bottom of a post where he’s discussed; or, by simply typing his name in your address bar after hoopsrumors.com, substituting dashes for spaces. For example, Carmelo’s page is located at hoopsrumors.com/carmelo-anthony.

In addition to players and teams, there are a number of other subjects you can track by clicking on the tags we use at the bottom of posts. Items related to the NBA D-League, for instance, can be found on this rumors page. If you want to follow updates on the 2014 NBA draft, those are all available here.

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Notable January Trades

January 2nd, 2014 at 6:01pm CST by Chuck Myron

Most of this season’s deals will go down within 24 hours of the February 20th trade deadline. That doesn’t mean January won’t feature at least one intriguing swap. Last season there were two trades, and while the Grizzlies helped their ledger with a three-for-one swap with the Cavs on the 22nd, the deal that really made waves came eight days later, when Memphis shipped Rudy Gay out of town. The Raptors put Gay into yet another trade last month, so there’s certainly precedent for big names changing teams at or before this point in the season.

Here’s a look back at the most significant January trade from each of the past four years, deals in which the Grizzlies and Mavericks figured prominently:

January 30th, 2013: In a three-team deal, the Grizzlies traded Rudy Gay and Hamed Haddadi to the Raptors, the Pistons traded Austin Daye and Tayshaun Prince to the Grizzlies, and the Raptors traded Jose Calderon to the Pistons and Ed Davis and a 2013 second-round pick (Jamaal Franklin) to the Grizzlies.

  • The only player from this trade still with Toronto less than a year later is Daye, and he wasn’t even sent to the Raptors in this deal; he signed with the Raptors in the offseason after playing out the rest of 2012/13 with the Mavericks. The Pistons are similarly empty-handed, though they used the cap flexibility created when they sent out Prince’s long-term deal to help them sign Josh Smith this past summer.

January 4th, 2012: In a three team deal, the Grizzlies traded Xavier Henry to the Pelicans and a 2012 second-round pick (Tornike Shengelia) to the Sixers, the Pelicans traded a second-round pick (Glen Rice Jr.) to the Sixers, and the Sixers traded Marreese Speights to the Grizzlies.

  • The Pelicans (then Hornets) wound up with a player picked 12th overall just 18 months prior for the cost of a mere second-round pick, though Henry didn’t display his promise until he wound up with the Lakers this season. The Grizzlies dealt Henry away for frontcourt depth in the wake of an injury to Darrell Arthur, and Memphis would shed Speights a little more than a year later in last year’s three-for-one trade. The Sixers sent out both of the second-rounders they acquired in later trades.

January 24th, 2011: The Mavericks traded Alexis Ajinca, cash, and a 2013 second-round draft pick (Jamaal Franklin) to the Raptors for Georgios Printezis.

  • Recent Pelicans signee Ajinca endured his second trade in a little more than six months and was on his way out of the league for two years until New Orleans brought him back two weeks ago.

January 11th, 2010: The Mavericks traded Kris Humphries and Shawne Williams to the Nets for Eduardo Najera.

  • Humphries was a lightly regarded backup before he got to the Nets, but the then-sixth-year power forward assumed his most significant role to date in New Jersey, and the Nets re-signed him to a one-year, $8MM deal after the lockout. He made even more on his next contract, a two-year, $24MM pact that expires at the end of this season.
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Hoops Rumors Features

January 2nd, 2014 at 12:17pm CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors passes along the latest news and rumors on NBA player movement 365 days a year, but those aren’t the only updates you’ll see on the site. On our right sidebar, you’ll find a number of additional features and featured posts. Here’s a rundown of a few of them:

  • You can follow all our updates about your favorite teams or players on your iPhone or iPad using the Hoops Rumors app.
  • We’re still keeping a close eye on free agency with the help of our list of 2013 free agents. If you want to look ahead to the summer of 2014 or 2015, we’ve rounded up those free agents as well. All of these FA lists will continue to be modified as needed.
  • Not all the players currently on NBA rosters have guaranteed deals, and we’ve broken down the non-guaranteed contracts by team. All the deals on that page will become guaranteed next week if players aren’t waived on or before Tuesday.
  • Our list of 2013/14 roster counts is a convenient tool for keeping tabs on how many players your favorite NBA team is carrying, and how many guaranteed contracts are on each club’s books.
  • It’s trade season in the NBA, so we’re tracking this season’s deals and profiling players we consider trade candidates.
  • If your favorite team has a better chance at Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker than at a playoff berth, be sure to follow our reverse standings, which are updated daily to reflect the projected 2014 draft order.
  • We’re keeping tabs on this season’s D-League assignments right here.
  • Our agency database is a handy reference point for determining the representation for virtually every NBA player.
  • Using our 10-day contract tracker, you can find any 10-day contract signed since 2007, sorting by player, team, year, and other variables.
  • On Mondays at 4:00pm CT, I answer readers’ questions in a live chat. You can check out transcripts of our past live discussions here.
  • Our list of outstanding traded player exceptions is updated whenever a trade exception is created, is used, or expires.
  • We’re tracking teams’ amnesty provisions — using our complete list, you can check to see which clubs have used the amnesty clause and which will have it available next summer.
  • The Hoops Rumors glossary helps explain some of the more complex concepts in the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement.
  • Zach Links rounds up the best of the blogosphere every Sunday in his weekly Hoops Links feature.
  • If you’re looking to catch up on a few days worth of content, our Week in Review posts round up the week’s news and rumors, while our Hoops Rumors Originals posts recap the site’s original content for the week. Both round-ups are published every Sunday.
  • Be sure to check out the Featured Posts section on the right sidebar for more original pieces from the Hoops Rumors writing team. Recently, we detailed how December’s Kings/Raptors trade worked financially, listed players with trade kickers, and explained why the Rockets had imposed an unofficial deadline to trade Omer Asik.
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Odds & Ends: Irving, Raptors, Trade Talk

January 1st, 2014 at 9:16pm CST by Alex Lee

As the Andrew Bynum rumors continue to pour in, the Cavaliers got some very good news today. Currently sitting only three games out of the East’s eight seed, the Cavs announced that star guard Kyrie Irving‘s left knee sustained no structural damage on Tuesday when he had to be helped off the court after an awkward fall.

Let’s take a look at what else is happening around the NBA on Wednesday:

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