Atlantic Rumors: Williams, Chandler, Celtics

Seeking to clarify comments he made on Monday, Nets coach Avery Johnson reiterated last night that, while he views the Mavericks and Mark Cuban as a threat to sign Deron Williams this summer, he still expects his point guard to return to the Nets.

"I think somebody kind of got it twisted where the focus was more on the threat and saying that I said that I think he’s going to Dallas, which I never said, never said that," Johnson told reporters, including Andy Vasquez of the Bergen Record. "I said that [Cuban was a threat] because anybody that’s under the cap would be a threat to get a guy that’s a unbelievable point guard. But I said I believe he has every intention to re-sign."

Here are a few more morning rumors on Williams and the rest of the Atlantic Division:

• Talking to Eric Pincus of HoopsWorld, Williams admitted he isn't sure whether he'll be a Net next year.
• Within the same HoopsWorld piece, Pincus says that the Nuggets have offered a multiyear deal to Wilson Chandler, but that it's not as lucrative as Chandler hoped. Still, the Raptors likely won't sign the 24-year-old to an offer sheet, says Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun. Although Toronto hasn't moved on entirely, the club is currently put off by Chandler's asking price.
• Wolstat adds that it appears the Raptors are listening to trade inquiries made by other teams rather than actively seeking deals themselves.
• Yahoo's Adrian Wojnarowski, appearing on NBC's SportsTalk, says the Celtics have been actively pursuing trades, and won't hesitate to break up their core in the right deal. Wojnarowski speculates that, of Boston's "big three," Paul Pierce may be the most likely trade candidate, since Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett have contracts that Boston could simply let expire.