Despite Mark Cuban's belief that adding an overpaid player with a massive contract would be a huge mistake considering the framework of the current CBA, Tim MacMahon of ESPN Dallas wonders if the Mavericks would explore trading for Hornets guard Eric Gordon as a possible fallback option if the team falls short in its effort to land Dwight Howard this summer. On another note, Moke Hamilton of Sheridan Hoops explains why it would be wise for Dallas to deal Vince Carter and Shawn Marion for expiring contracts and draft picks now if they want to give themselves a legitimate chance at going after Howard, Chris Paul, or Andrew Bynum in upcoming free agency.
Here are more of this evening's odds and ends:
- A report from ESPN (via the Associated Press) states that NBA Commissioner David Stern expects a concrete plan from Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson within the next two weeks regarding the Kings' future. Although the NBA Board of Governors does not meet until April 17-18, Stern believes that the official proposal could be made by March 1st "if (Mayor Johnson) follows through on what he's told us." He also put the kibosh on the idea of expansion and doesn't foresee a scenario where both Seattle and Sacramento wind up with teams.
- With 15 guaranteed contracts and the team on a roll as of late, Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida figures that the Heat will be very quiet at the trade deadline next week (Twitter link).
- Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago gets the sense that Bulls superstar Derrick Rose won't be returning this season.
- Gino Pilato of Ridiculous Upside provides a rundown of the top available point guards in the D-League and organizes them in groups by what they specifically have to offer.
- After suffering a torn ACL on Tuesday night, Kentucky big man Nerlens Noel figures to be on a six-to-eight month recovery. Once touted by some to be the number one overall pick in this June's draft, Noel has slid to number three in Chad Ford's ESPN rankings of the top 30 prospects (Insiders only). On a side note, Darren Rovell (also of ESPN) tweets that Noel has a $10MM insurance policy in the event that he suffers a career ending injury.
- In a statement issued to Michael Lee of the Washington Post, David Falk (the former agent of Michael Jordan) apologized for his disparaging comments about John Wall and the Wizards recently.
- There have been a flurry of reports today about Lakers owner Jerry Buss' bout with terminal cancer, which was first reported by Amber Goodhand of Radar Online this morning. In a statement issued by the team today, it was made clear that there is no intention of selling the team to an outside group and that the Buss family plans to keep ownership of the Lakers for many generations to come (Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News).