Western Notes: Jazz, DeMarre Carroll, Suns
- Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor is moving into a new role with Utah as a top executive within the organization and will no longer serve as GM, writes Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune. O'Connor will oversee the process of hiring his replacement, which has already begun, as the 2012/13 season quickly draws closer. Troy Weaver of the Thunder and Cavs assistant GM David Griffin were both tied to the job but will remain with their respective organizations, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links).
- Jazz small forward DeMarre Carroll welcomes the challenge of competing with the glut of forwards currently on the Utah roster, tweets Smith. Head coach Tyrone Corbin told Carroll that starting positions are up for grabs heading into the season as the former Missouri star plans to stake his claim to one of the spots. Carroll, 26, averaged 4.5 PPG and 2.2 RPG in 24 contests with the Nuggets and Jazz.
- Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com takes an optimistic view of the Suns as they move forward without Steve Nash. While the organization may have lost its backbone from nearly the past decade, the team isn't in shambles as they enter the season sans Nash for the first time since 2003, which Howard-Cooper considers to be a good thing. "Eventually there was going to have to be closure," coach Alvin Gentry said. "The organization decided to do it right now, so it's just a matter of us taking that transition and moving into another phase of Suns basketball."
Paul Millsap Unlikely To Sign Extension With Jazz
SUNDAY, 9:33am: Joel Brigham of HoopsWorld suggests the Jazz may be better off keeping Millsap for the long term and trading Favors instead. The move would allow the Jazz to retain an established player to help the continued development of young talent like Gordon Hayward and Kanter.
SATURDAY, 3:34pm: The Jazz and power forward Paul Millsap engaged in initial talks this week about an extension, and the Jazz made the maximum allowable offer of three additional years and $25MM, according to Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune. While talks were positive and there's mutual interest in keeping Millsap in Utah, Smith reports, he's likely to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
Millsap will make $8,603,633 this year in the final season of a four-year, $32MM contract he originally signed in 2009 as an offer sheet from the Blazers that the Jazz matched. Under the new CBA, veterans can only receive contract extensions for four seasons, which includes the final season of their current deal. Raises are limited to 7.5% each season. By my calculations, he's eligible for an extension closer to $30MM, but his 2012/13 salary may be lower than what's been widely assumed. Either way, it's not surprising Millsap is looking ahead to free agency next summer, when he can sign for significantly more. Smith identifies Gerald Wallace, Andrei Kirilenko, Nicolas Batum and Ryan Anderson as forwards with comparable skill. All of them signed deals for average annual salaries of at least $9MM this summer.
Millsap averaged 16.6 points and a career-high 8.8 rebounds this past season. He took 13.5 shots a game, but his shooting percentage of 49.5% was below 50% for the first time in his six seasons in the NBA. His 21.8 PER was a career best, however, and Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld surmises he'll be one of the most sought-after free agents next summer, when he'll be 28 years old (Sulia link). The presence of Al Jefferson, along with Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter, both recent third overall picks, could make Millsap expendable in Utah. The team has experimented with Millsap at small forward at times the last two seasons to fit their wealth of frontcourt talent on the floor.
Smith says the Jazz could explore trading Millsap, and adds that Millsap will have to compete in training camp for the starting power forward position (Twitter links).
Northwest Rumors: Miles, Lillard, Canales, Stotts
A pair of decisions involving the Trail Blazers are looming tonight. Owner Paul Allen has completed final interviews with coaching candidates Kaleb Canales and Terry Stotts, and the team is expected to make its choice shortly. Free agent center Joel Przybilla is reportedly making his pick between the Blazers, Bucks and Mavericks tonight, though if his drawn-out midseason decision on where to sign is any indication, it could be a few more days. Here's what we're hearing from Portland and other Northwest Division cities in the meantime:
- With C.J. Miles on his way to the Cavs, Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune looks back at the seven years Miles spent with the Jazz after the team drafted him out of high school in 2005.
- Smith also catches up with Damian Lillard, the sixth overall pick this June by the Blazers. Lillard dishes about his success in the Las Vegas Summer League, where he was co-MVP, and his recent conversations with LaMarcus Aldridge, in which both players have set making the playoffs as the goal for this season.
- Dwight Jaynes of CSNNW.com says he thinks Canales will coach the Blazers next season, and theorizes that Stotts remains in the running in part so that he'll be seen more favorably the next time an NBA head coaching job opens. Stotts is represented by Warren LeGarie, who's also the agent for Canales and GM Neil Olshey. Being perceived as a legitimate candidate for the Blazers' job will help Stotts get another head coaching job someday, Jaynes says.
Josh Howard Rumors: Monday
Last night, we heard that Josh Howard was close to making a decision on his free agent destination, having narrowed his options to five teams: the Jazz, Pacers, Knicks, Nets, and Warriors. While we wait to see where the veteran forward lands, there are a few rumblings today detailing how serious a couple of his suitors are. Let's round those rumors up right here….
- A source very close to Josh Howard told Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter) that nothing is imminent between the forward and the Knicks.
- The Warriors' interest in Howard is very minimal, according to Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (Sulia link). Golden State is still prioritizing power forwards, with Carl Landry atop the team's wish list. If the Warriors were to shift their focus to small forwards, they would target players that could also play the four, and Howard probably doesn't fit that description.
- Howard feels some loyalty to the Jazz, since they took a chance on him last year, so Utah is "near the top of his list," says Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune (Sulia link). It's also worth noting that, since they have his Non-Bird rights, the Jazz can offer Howard a first-year salary up to $2.58MM without using a mid-level exception.
Raja Bell Close To Buyout With Jazz
JULY 30: Bell's buyout with the Jazz hasn't been finalized and there's a holdup in negotiations, a league source tells Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune (via Twitter). Utah would like to sign off on Bell's buyout and move on from last season's drama while Bell's camp has yet to agree to the terms, Smith tweets.
JULY 8: Brian T. Smith of The Salt Lake Tribune tweets that Raja Bell is on the verge of a buyout with the Jazz. The 6'5'' shooting guard averaged 6.4 PPG and shot 39.1% from three point range in 34 games last season. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo (via Twitter) says that Bell could be interested in returning to his hometown to play for the Heat. The Lakers could also be a possibility, as the 35-year-old guard would be reunited with former-Suns teammate Steve Nash.
Smith also mentions that Bell holds no ill-will toward the Jazz and greatly respects GM Kevin O'Connor. The 12-year-veteran elaborated further on his current situation with Smith (Sulia link):
"We typically play it pretty close to the vest. [Agent] Herb [Rudoy] and I are pretty private. But, in essence, [I'm] pretty much a free agent. I don't think the Is are dotted and the Ts are crossed. But we've been given the greenlight by Utah to go ahead and find something that works for us. We've agreed to the terms. So I think it's safe to say now we are in the market again and we're entertaining our options at this point."
During the summer of 2010, Bell signed with Utah despite heavy interest from the Bulls and Lakers. In May of this year, we documented Bell's intentions of moving on from the Jazz and recalled the tension brewing between him and head coach Tyrone Corbin over the course of the season. Although Utah made the playoffs this year, Raja did not play in any of team's postseason games.
Josh Howard Close To Decision
Yahoo!'s Marc J. Spears tweets that unrestricted free-agent forward Josh Howard is close to making a decision on where to sign for the 2012/13 season. Spears reports that Howard's current team, the Utah Jazz, are in the mix to land him, along with the Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, Brooklyn Nets, and New York Knicks.
Terms of Howard's upcoming deal are not known. Howard, 31, made approximately $2.1MM last season, averaging 8.7 PPG and 3.7 RPG for the Jazz.
Odds & Ends: Celtics, Alonzo Gee, Randy Foye
The Celtics and Heat will kickoff the upcoming season as the NBA released the schedule for 2012/13 on Thursday. In another notable matchup, the Nets will host the Knicks on opening night in the inaugural basketball game at the Barclays Center. Among the highlights of the five Christmas Day contests include the Thunder taking on the Heat in Miami and the Knicks heading to the Staples Center to battle the Lakers. Here's the latest news and happenings from around the league…
- The Celtics may appear to have a complete roster as the calendar turns to August, but general manager Danny Ainge is always looking for another piece that may make his team better, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com. "I'm always looking for ways to improve the team," Ainge said. "I like our team; I like our guys. But I'm always looking. You're never going to hear me say, 'I'm done.' Because you never know what may open up down the road or in the near future."
- Talks are slow but steady between the Cavaliers and Alonzo Gee, says Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal (Sulia link). Gee's agent, Andre Buck, won't rule out accepting the Cavs' qualifying offer if that's the best contract his client receives from Cleveland.
- The Jazz wanted Randy Foye more than any other team and that made the former Villanova star's decision easier when it came time to sign a contract, writes Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. "I felt," Foye said, "I could come in and contribute and help these guys."
- The Wizards have invited former Gonzaga guard Steven Gray to attend the team's training camp, reports HoopsHype (via Twitter). Gray spent the 2011/12 season in Europe playing for Latvian club BK Ventspils where he averaged 11.5 PPG and 2.9 RPG.
- The Lakers continue to have interest in Jodie Meeks as the two sides are in talks about a potential contract, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld.
Jazz Sign Randy Foye
TUESDAY, 7:39am: Foye's deal with the Jazz is worth $2.5MM over one year, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (via Twitter). It appears the team used a portion of its mid-level exception for the signing.
MONDAY, 10:01pm: The Jazz have signed Randy Foye to a one-year deal, according to Ric Bucher of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Terms of the deal are not yet known.
The Knicks have long been linked to the Tri-state area native, but the shooting guard did not factor into their plans. The Mavericks, Rockets, Hawks, Suns, and Bucks were all said to be interested in Foye as well but the Jazz were never known to be among his suitors.
Foye, 29 in September, hooked on with the Clippers as a free agent in the summer of 2010 on a two-year, $8.5MM contract. In two years with Los Angeles, Foye averaged 10.4 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 25. 3 minutes per contest. For his career, the former seventh-overall pick has put up 11.6 PPG and 3.2 APG.
The Villanova product joined the Clips' starting lineup last season after Chauncey Billups' season ending injury and shot 39% from long range, his best of any full season. As a team, the Jazz shot just 32.3% from beyond the arc in 2011/12.
Free Agent Rumors: Timberwolves, Rush, Mills
A couple more notable names came off the free agent market this morning, when Kris Humphries landed a two-year deal from the Nets and Grant Hill agreed to sign with the Clippers. While a number of solid rotation players are still available, the market is rapidly thinning for teams in search of starters. As clubs continue to jockey to sign the remaining available players, we'll track many of today's free agent rumors right here:
- Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune lists who the Timberwolves will target with nearly $14MM in cap space if they lose out on Nicolas Batum, specifically highlighting Courtney Lee, Jordan Hill, and Greg Stiemsma.
- Marcus Thompson of the Contra Costa Times says that despite the delay on an official decision regarding Brandon Rush's future, the Warriors are still likely to retain him.
Earlier updates:
Latest On Magic Coaching Search
2:57pm: Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel confirms (via Twitter) that Vaughn, Curry, and Hunter are indeed the three finalists for the Magic coaching job.
12:59pm: A day after we heard that Brian Shaw and Michael Malone are no longer candidates to coach the Magic, Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune reports that another name is out of the running. Jeff Hornacek was informed by the team that he's no longer being considered for the head coaching job, according to Luhm.