2012 NBA Draft Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Haslem, Howard, Wizards, Lakers

May 24th, 2012 at 3:37pm CST by Luke Adams

Udonis Haslem will sit out Game 6 of the Heat/Pacers series tonight, serving a one-game suspension for his flagrant foul in Game 5. But Haslem and agent Henry Thomas intend to appeal the suspension nonetheless, hoping to regain the $35K the Heat forward will lose.

"We'll file an appeal to the union," Thomas told Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida. "This is a guy who has been in the league for nine years and he doesn't have the reputation of being a dirty player. He's a hard-nosed player. But he's not dirty, and he doesn't want this to follow him around. … He's disappointed (with the suspension). He feels he tried to make a play on the ball."

As Haslem waits for his appeal to be heard, here are a few more Thursday notes from around the NBA:

If Dwight Howard is available this summer, the Rockets are one team who might be willing to trade for him without assurances he'd re-sign, according to Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld. I wrote earlier today that acquiring a star will be the Rockets' primary goal this offseason, and even coming off back surgery, Howard would certainly qualify.
The Wizards have yet to make a decision on coach Randy Wittman, but sources suggest to Michael Lee of the Washington Post that Wittman is a good bet to return to Washington.
Appearing on Colin Cowherd's radio show, Jerry West weighed in on the state of the Lakers, and Dave McMenamin of ESPNLosAngeles.com has the details.
One NBA GM told Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider link) that Dion Waiters might be the player besides Anthony Davis with the most superstar potential in this year's draft class.
Members of the Pistons' staff were upset that Greg Monroe wasn't named to this summer's U.S. Select Team, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.
Tom Ziller of SBNation.com explains why it will be difficult for the Mavericks to trade Lamar Odom next month.

Draft Notes: Robinson, Ford, Acy, Jones III

May 23rd, 2012 at 9:02pm CST by Alex Lee

We're down to six teams in the 2012 NBA playoffs. While none of them will have lottery picks in June's NBA Draft, good teams that supplement their rosters via end of the first round picks significantly add to the longevity of their success. Here are some draft links on this Wednesday night:

In an interview with HoopsWorld, Kansas' Thomas Robinson says he thinks he should be the first pick in June's NBA Draft. “I think I’m very capable of being the number one pick. No disrespect to Anthony Davis, he’s a great player. But at the same time, as a competitor, I do feel that I’m worthy of the number one pick," Robinson said. Robinson has impressed scouts with an improved jumper in workouts, but I can't see anyone unseating Anthony Davis for that honor.
Chad Ford (via Twitter) released an updated top 100 available to ESPN.com insiders. Ford fingers Syracuse guard Dion Waiters as the big mover on the updated list, who is now up to number eight overall.
Quincy Acy worked out for the Warriors on Sunday, and had some positive things to say about former teammate and projected lottery pick Perry Jones III, via Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle on Twitter. "He’s 6-foot-11, and he can do what the little guys do. It’s amazing. People criticize him, but it’s nonsense to me. He loves the game of basketball. He’s going to play hard and he’s going to compete. I play very hard, so it might look like he’s not playing hard. But he goes hard in practice, and he’s not a prima donna," Acy said. Acy is ranked 80th on the Draft Express top 100, while Jones III is 8th.

Draft Notes: Combine, Machado, Jones, Blazers

May 22nd, 2012 at 7:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Many members of last year's draft class received recognition for their first NBA seasons today, when the league announced its All-Rookie squads. Kyrie Irving, Ricky Rubio, Kenneth Faried, Klay Thompson, Brandon Knight, Iman Shumpert, and Kawhi Leonard all earned first-team honors due to a three-way tie for the fifth spot. The second team consisted of Chandler Parsons, MarShon Brooks, Derrick Williams, Tristan Thompson, and Isaiah Thomas. Here's the latest on the 2012 draft class that will be eligible for All-Rookie accolades a year from now:

HoopsWorld's Alex Kennedy interviews Kansas forward Thomas Robinson, who says he believes himself worthy of the top overall pick.
Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio examines Jared Sullinger's potential to succeed at the NBA level.
The NBA announced all the players who will participate in the Chicago draft combine on June 7th and 8th, and Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com passes along the list. Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com points out (via Twitter) that, besides #58 Casper Ware, the top 67 prospects on DraftExpress' top 100 were all invited to Chicago.
Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider link) takes note of a few prospects who may have improved their stocks during the weekend workouts in New Jersey. Iona point guard Scott Machado tops Ford's list.
Teams need to be careful of being wowed by Perry Jones' individual workouts and drafting him too high, one scout tells Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio.
2012 represents the Trail Blazers' most important draft since they selected Greg Oden in 2007, writes Joel Odom of the Oregonian.
Don't forget to follow Hoops Rumors' Prospect Profile series, where we've taken a closer look at many of the players expected to be drafted in the first round next month.

Draft Updates: Cunningham, Ross, Jenkins

May 21st, 2012 at 11:05pm CST by Chuck Myron

The latest draft news as we count the days to next Wednesday's lottery:

Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com unveiled his latest prospect rankings by position. Here are the links to the point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward and center lists.
Oregon State shooting guard Jared Cunningham, currently 35th on the Draft Express ranking of the top 100 prospects, impressed at a workout for low-level draft prospects held by the Warriors, writes Marcus Thompson II of the Bay Area News Group. A list of the participants is on Warriors.com.
Washington swingman Terrence Ross, ranked 16th on the Draft Express list, and Vanderbilt shooting guard John Jenkins, the No. 32 prospect, top the list of players working out for the Nuggets tomorrow, the team announced.
St. Bonaventure big man Andrew Nicholson, the 30th ranked prospect by Draft Express, headlines the list of prospects who will work out for the Celtics tomorrow, Goodman reports via Twitter.

Odds & Ends: Knicks, Bucks, Heat, Nicholson

May 21st, 2012 at 12:54pm CST by Daniel Seco

Here's the latest news and headlines from around the NBA…

There are five ways the Knicks' Big 3 can improve in their second season together, writes Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com.
Don Walker of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports the Bradley Center will be now known as the BMO Harris Bradley Center in a step toward getting the Bucks a new arena in the near future.
The Heat's success is predicated on strong play by LeBron James and Dwyane Wade but also relies on a different role player stepping up each night, suggests Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports tweets that the Thunder and the Celtics are the two most likely teams to draft St. Bonaventure's Andrew Nicholson.
Teams from smaller markets are at a serious disadvantage when it comes to winning an NBA championship, writes Richard Florida of The Atlantic.
HoopsWorld's Joel Brigham gives his take on the top five comebacks in NBA playoff history.
Commissioner David Stern filled the NBA's Competition Committee with his own people so that changes can be made to existing rules, writes Matt Moore of CBSSports.com.
Kurt Helin of NBC's ProBasketballTalk blog says Mo Williams expects to pick up his player option of $8.5MM for the 2012/2013 season.
Mike D'Antoni isn't up to much these days after resigning as the Knicks head coach in March, writes SI.com's Jack McCallum.

Central Notes: Collison, Jones, Cavs, Bulls

May 21st, 2012 at 10:50am CST by Daniel Seco

With the Bulls falling to the Sixers in the first round of the playoffs, the Pacers are the lone representative out of the Central Division still doing battle as their series against the Heat continues Tuesday night in Miami. Here's the latest news and stories making headlines out of the Central Division.

Thanks to his speed and quickness, Darren Collison continues to show that Larry Bird made the right decision to acquire him two summers ago from the Hornets, writes Zak Keefer of The Indianapolis Star. The backup point guard for the Pacers scored 10 points during the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Heat in what could have been a less competitive effort for the Pacers if not for Collison. "As long as I try and be aggressive, I can create opportunities not only for myself, but for my teammates, too."
Brendan Savage of MLive.com says Perry Jones III might be a good fit for the Pistons thanks to his talent but his lack of desire may lead to a steep learning curve in the NBA. The 6-foot-11, 235-pound power forward has all the skills that make a player attractive teams especially with his ability to rebound and run the floor, but the former Baylor star showed little progress from his freshman to sophomore year in Waco. Simply put, the Pistons must be able to determine if they can get the most out of his boundless talents.
While it's all but certain that Anthony Davis will be the first pick of the NBA draft next month, the Cavaliers will have many different options to choose from if they end up selecting third, suggests Starting Blocks of Cleveland.com.
Sam Smith of Bulls.com wonders what star the Bulls need to add to their roster in order to remain competitive without Derrick Rose and how the team should go about making such an acquisition. Smith suggests the option of the Bulls looking to rebuild with eyes on adding a player or two from the 2014 free agent class to join Rose. Chris Bosh, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Danny Granger headline the list of possibilities that could end up in Chicago two seasons from now.

Cavs Notes: Kidd-Gilchrist, Free Agency, Irving

May 20th, 2012 at 10:43am CST by Daniel Seco

The Cavs head into the offseason with a mix of upside and uncertainty as they finished the season with a 21-45 but featured the NBA Rookie of the Year in Kyrie Irving. The moves made by the team's front office will be critical as they look toward building a strong core around Irving and Tristan Thompson through the draft and free agency. Let's check in with The News-Herald's Bob Finnan who has the latest news and stories making headlines in Cleveland.

Finnan reports that some NBA insiders think the Cavs should avoid drafting Michael Kidd-Gilchrist due to his poor perimeter shooting, but Ryan Blake, senior director of NBA scouting operations holds a different opinion. "He is a great athlete who has a great motor," he said. "He's a tough, physical defender. He attacks the rim and is a good finisher. He's a good rebounder. When you think about the ability he has, along with his (basketball) IQ and maturity, it's very important."
The Cavs will have three restricted free agents this summer and need to decide if they will tender the players contracts before the June 30 deadline, writes Finnan. The players currently on the Cavs roster who will become restricted free agents include center Semih Erden and forwards Luke Harangody and Alonzo Gee. Finnan says to look for the Cavs to give Erden and Gee qualifying offers but will probably allow Harangody to become an unrestricted free agent.
There were countless reasons why Irving took home the NBA Rookie of the Year award, but Finnan points to the grueling practices head coach Byron Scott put the Cavs through during training camp as Irving called them the most difficult part of the season. "Coach Scott is a little crazy in the preseason," Irving said. "It's a certain look he has with that whistle. He's mad at us. There are no basketballs, just running."

Western Notes: Nuggets, Fisher, Jordan

May 20th, 2012 at 8:40am CST by Daniel Seco

The Western Conference playoff picture became a bit clearer on Saturday evening as the Thunder knocked off the Lakers at the Staples Center to take a 3-1 series lead. The Lakers entered the fourth quarter with a nine-point advantage but could not overcome timely shooting from Kevin Durant as they fell 103-100. Let's take a look around the rest of the conference to catch up on the latest stories making headlines on this Sunday morning.

Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post suggests the Nuggets use some of their depth to move up in the draft to acquire Austin Rivers. The team has too many wing players and not enough minutes to go around, which makes some combination of Arron Afflalo, Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler expendable. The Nuggets currently hold the 20th pick in the draft and would need to move up to approximately the 10th slot to have a chance to draft Rivers.
The signing of Derek Fisher earlier this season has proven to be a key move for the Thunder as his leadership has been evident in the team's locker room, writes Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. It helps that Fisher, 37, won five rings during his two stints with the Lakers, giving him instant credibility with players like Nick Collison. "It's like having another coach, but he still has the respect of the players. It doesn't feel like he's preaching at you, he just makes a lot of sense."
T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times says while DeAndre Jordan is a fun teammate to have around the Clippers organization, he needs to do more on the court to justify his hefty contract. Chris Paul, nearly a foot shorter than Jordan, is averaging the same amount of rebounds per game as the former Texas A&M star (5.0).

Draft Links: Lillard, Zeller, Sullinger, Papanikolaou

May 18th, 2012 at 2:18pm CST by Luke Adams

Let's round up a few updates on this year's draft prospects as the May 30th lottery inches a little closer….

Sam Amick of SI.com completes his week-long look at the top draft prospects by examining the "safe bets," a list highlighted by Damian Lillard, Tyler Zeller, and Jared Sullinger.
Amick also notes (via Sulia) that Michael Jordan's former agent David Falk hasn't exactly fallen off the map, and continues to recruit young players. Sullinger and Austin Rivers are among Falk's clients in this year's draft class.
General managers who spoke to ESPN.com's Chad Ford identified Perry Jones III, Terrence Jones, Terrence Ross, Quincy Miller, and Andrew Nicholson as five players whose stocks could rise in pre-draft workouts.
Ford adds that a number of NBA scouts returned from the Euroleague Final Four talking about Greek forward Kostas Papanikolaou. If the 22-year-old were a better shooter or athlete, he'd have a chance to be a first-round pick, but he'll likely come off the board in the second round, according to Ford.

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2012 NBA Draft

Southwest Links: Suns, Mavs, Olympics

May 17th, 2012 at 10:22pm CST by Alex Lee

With the veteran Spurs looking to take a commanding 2-0 lead on the Clippers tonight, lets look at some links for the Western Conference's Southwest division:

Stefan Swiat of Suns.com takes an initial look at the Suns draft situation. The team has a miniscule chance of obtaining the top pick and will likely pick around number 13, where last year they took Markieff Morris. Swiat rounds up the mocks of several websites, most of which have the Suns taking a guard, presumably anticipating the departure of free agent Steve Nash.
Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News answered questions in a chat today (full transcript here). Cowlishaw points to the Spurs as an example of why the Mavericks must draft a "contributing rookie" regardless of position in June.
Cowlishaw adds that the Lamar Odom experiment in Dallas was a worthwhile endeavor that never should have gone as sour as it did. He says trading Odom is an option, but is skeptical of the number of suitors and the return.
Finally, Cowlishaw gives his take on Mavericks owner Mark Cuban's position against his players participating in the Olympics. Cowlishaw tends to agree with Cuban, saying that professional basketball players aren't as engrained in Olympic history as other athletes, like hockey players for example.