2013 March | Hoops Rumors

Pacers Top David West’s Offseason Wish List

March 12th, 2013 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

His impending free agency isn't drawing the headlines that players like Dwight Howard, Andrew Bynum, and Josh Smith are receiving, but David West will be hitting the open market this summer after two seasons with the Pacers. If it's up to West, he and the Pacers will reach an agreement that keeps him in Indiana, as he tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Sulia link).

"Oh yeah," West said. "For what I want to do in terms of this point in my career, I want to win and Indiana is going to give me an opportunity to win and compete. And I enjoy being around this group of guys."

West is in the second and final season of a two-year, $20MM contract with Indiana. There's reason to believe that the 32-year-old should land at least a similar deal as an unrestricted free agent this July. Although he saw his scoring average dip last season with the Pacers, he's upped it from 12.8 PPG to 17.5 PPG in 2012/13, and has recorded a career-high 20.8 PER to date. West has also been remarkably durable, starting all but one game for the Pacers over the last two seasons.

Having committed long-term money to Roy Hibbert and George Hill, and with Danny Granger under contract for one more season, the Pacers have about $49MM in guaranteed money on the books for 2013/14. That should still leave plenty of room to re-sign West without approaching tax territory, depending on who else the Pacers want to add or bring back.

Hornets Sign Louis Amundson, Waive Henry Sims

March 12th, 2013 at 10:03am CST by Luke Adams

TUESDAY, 10:03am: The Hornets have officially signed Amundson for the remainder of the season, the team announced in a press release. Sims has been released to clear a roster spot, according to the club.

MONDAY, 3:26pm: Louis Amundson's brief stint with the Bulls will come to an end tonight, as the big man tells Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida (Twitter link) that he'll sign with the Hornets once his 10-day contract with the Bulls expires. Amundson's new deal with New Orleans will be for the rest of the season, adds Tomasson (via Twitter).

Amundson, 30, played just two minutes for Chicago, appearing in only one of the five games the team played during his 10 days with the club. He expects to receive more minutes with the Hornets, as he tells Tomasson (Sulia link).

"Chicago was prepared to sign me to another 10-day," Amundson said in a text message. "But I felt I should go somewhere where I can get a better opportunity to play."

In 20 games with the Timberwolves earlier this season, Amundson averaged just 8.1 minutes per contest, his lowest mark since 2007/08. His 6.4 PER and .368 FG% were also career-lows. The Wolves cut him last month when they signed Chris Johnson and Mickael Gelabale to rest-of-season deals.

The Hornets currently have a full roster of 15 players, though two of those guys are on 10-day deals. Henry Sims' 10-day contract expires tomorrow night, so I would guess that New Orleans will wait until Wednesday to sign Amundson, ensuring that the team doesn't have to release a player on a guaranteed contract.

Heat Re-Sign Juwan Howard

March 12th, 2013 at 9:32am CST by Luke Adams

Juwan Howard's 10-day contract with the Heat expired overnight, but the team didn't waste any time ensuring that the veteran big man remains under contract. The Heat announced today in a press release that Howard has been re-signed to a second 10-day deal.

Howard, 40, has yet to appear in a game with the Heat this season, but has a spot on the roster more for his off-court leadership than what he can provide on the court. Chris Tomasson of FOX Sports Florida reported last week that Howard was expected to receive a second 10-day contract, while Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported when Howard first signed that he would likely stick with the Heat for the season.

Howard's new 10-day contract will expire next Thursday night, at which point the team will have to either let him go or re-sign him to a rest-of-season deal.

Jazz Rumors: Millsap, Jefferson, Trades, Bledsoe

March 12th, 2013 at 8:56am CST by Luke Adams

Zach Lowe of Grantland leads off his weekly Tuesday column with a lengthy look at the Jazz, a team he calls "the most interesting franchise in the league right now." As Utah approaches an offseason in which it could potentially open up about $30MM in cap space, Lowe shares a few notes of interest on the club:

A desire to qualify for the postseason this year played a part in Utah's stasis at the trade deadline, according to Lowe. The team's longtime owners, the Miller family, prefer to avoid being in the lottery, so the Jazz weren't about to give up Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson in a deal that would seriously downgrade this year's roster.
According to Lowe's sources, the Raptors and Pistons were among the teams with whom the Jazz engaged in trade discussions prior to the deadline.
Had the Jazz been more aggressive about shopping Jefferson and/or Millsap last spring, they could likely have acquired a high first-round pick for Millsap, sources tell Lowe. However, Lowe notes that it's unclear whether that pick would have been attached to an unwanted contract.
Lowe expects the Jazz to sign-and-trade one of its big free agents this summer, though the new CBA and the number of teams with cap space figures to cool the sign-and-trade market a little.
League sources who talked to Utah in advance of the deadline say that the Jazz presented themselves as willing to take a step back next season and land a high pick in a loaded 2014 draft. The influence of new GM Dennis Lindsey played a role in that stance, says Lowe.
Talks between the Clippers and Jazz about Eric Bledsoe and Millsap never got too serious, according to Lowe.
Since the point guard free agent market isn't expected to be too strong this summer or next, Lowe expects the Jazz to continue exploring trades for a point guard.

Lakers Won’t Use Disabled Player Exception

March 11th, 2013 at 10:22pm CST by Zachary Links

Back in January, the Lakers picked up a disabled player exception for power forward Jordan Hill, who underwent surgery on his left hip. However, a team source tells Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times that the club plans to let their $1.78MM exception expire without being used.

The Lakers didn't use the exception prior to the February 21st trade deadline but they still had the option of using it to sign a free agent. Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has repeatedly suggested they will stay put with their current 14-player roster and their push to get an exception for Hill was believed to be a precautionary move from the get-go. Los Angeles' payroll already stands at a hefty $100MM for 2012/13.

Poll: Will Josh Smith Land A Max Deal?

March 11th, 2013 at 10:06pm CST by Zachary Links

Hawks forward Josh Smith surprised many around basketball earlier this year when he said that he believes he should be in line for a max contract this summer. While the 27-year-old is undoubtedly in line for a lucrative deal, hoping for that amount of money seems overly optimistic. Our own Luke Adams recently crunched the numbers on max contract scenarios for this summer's top free agents and showed that a max deal from the Hawks could pay him $99.7MM over five years and a topped-out deal from another club could be worth $74MM over four years, depending on how much max salaries increase this summer. Smith is a welcome addition to any club, but will he get an annual average of about $20MM from the Hawks or $18.5MM from another team?

So far, the Hawks have maintained that they will not be giving the forward a max contract. Then again, the fact that they held on to Smith at the trade deadline means that there is at least a little room for a change of heart. The high-flying veteran has a better chance of getting a max deal elsewhere and while the chances of that may seem remote as well, there will be a number of teams with cap space to burn this summer. And with all due respect, more than a few of these clubs might be desperate to make waves. The Bucks, Pistons, Cavs, Bobcats, and Jazz are just some of the clubs that will have the breathing room necessary to make a major pickup. Will an advantageous market be enough to net Smith the max deal that he seeks?

Pacific Notes: Lakers, Clippers, Kings, Seattle

March 11th, 2013 at 8:48pm CST by Zachary Links

Last season, Stan Van Gundy went viral when he told reporters that Dwight Howard was pushing the Magic front office to fire him before leaving the big man to face the scrum all by himself. One would assume that the outspoken coach and the Lakers star are not on speaking terms, but that's not the case, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. "We never stopped communicating even if there have been times he was very angry with me," Van Gundy said. "Dwight and I may not have always seen eye to eye. But I think there is mutual respect." More on the Lakers and the rest of the Pacific..

Maalik Wayns is looking to make the most of his time with the Clippers, writes Eric Patten of NBA.com. You can keep up with all of this year's 10-day deals with our handy 10-day contract tracker.
Chris Hansen, the prospective owner of the Kings, is calling on fans in Seattle to sign up for a "priority ticket waitlist" as a way to show the NBA how much interest there is in bringing pro basketball back to the area, according to the Associated Press. Commissioner David Stern said last week that Hansen's group currently has a significantly larger bid on the table than the competing Sacramento group.
Howard will return to Orlando on Tuesday night and Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun isn't sure if the Lakers star has the mental toughness to thrive in that environment.

Atlantic Notes: Nets, Knicks, Wallace, Collins

March 11th, 2013 at 6:54pm CST by Zachary Links

Tonight in Philadelphia, the Nets are looking to close in on the Atlantic-leading Knicks. Brooklyn is currently riding a three-game winning streak including Friday night's victory over the Wizards headlined by Deron Williams' 42 points and eleven three pointers. Meanwhile, New York expects to have Carmelo Anthony back in action tonight as they take on the Warriors. Here's tonight's news out of the Atlantic..

Knicks coach Mike Woodson said after the trip he and GM Glen Grunwald will talk about making a roster move, but it doesn't sound like they'll be releasing Rasheed Wallace, tweets Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. The veteran was with the team today and Woodson says that he has a chance to bounce back strong.
The Nets will be one of six teams paying luxury taxes after this season and interim coach P.J. Carlesimo is appreciative of that, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. “It’s one of the best things an owner can do. Giving a coach a longterm contract is more important,” quipped Carlesimo. “But other than that I think when you have an owner that’s willing to spend money and not pay lip-service. All the owners say they want to win a championship, When you have someone that is committed to winning it and is willing to expend funds to do it, give us the resources, that’s fantastic.”
Nets veteran Jerry Stackhouse, who has played for 76ers coach Doug Collins in two cities, praised his passion for the game and said that he can even be "borderline manic" at times, tweets Tom Moore of Calkins Newspapers. There has been speculation that Collins' job is in jeopardy going forward in part because of how his style clashes with the club.
Reflecting on his time in Philly alongside Allen Iverson, Stackhouse said, "Somebody didn't do their homework – we're both shooting guards," tweets Moore.

Aldridge On Pierce, Kings, Seattle, Hunter

March 11th, 2013 at 5:29pm CST by Zachary Links

In today's column, David Aldridge of NBA.com writes that the strong backcourts of the Eastern Conference's up-and-down teams are giving them hope for the future. Who's the best of the bunch? Evan Turner, who might be slightly biased, says it's him and Sixers teammate Jrue Holiday. "It's not an arrogant thing or anything like that," Turner said. "We're the best. It's not even — no disrespect to anybody else — it's not even close…Obviously, John [Wall] is a next-level-fast point guard. Bradley Beal has been great. But I just feel like we match up better. Kyrie Irving's a great player, and also Dion [Waiters] can definitely play. But the stuff that Jrue and I have been through, you can't really speed down that rock." Here's more from Aldridge..

Paul Pierce told Aldridge that he has never gone to Celtics GM Danny Ainge and asked him not to break up the team's core. At the same time, the star guard says that he hopes to retire as a Celtic. He believes that Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Dirk Nowitzki have a 100% chance of going out with their respective clubs but he's not quite as confident about his own odds, given the amount of trade talk surrounding him over the last two years.
There have been mixed interpretations of Commissioner David Stern's recent disclosed that the Sacramento group's bid for the Kings is well behind Seattle's. One NBA exec says that he is taking it at face value and believes that Stern sees it as a win-win since either outcome will result in a new arena.
Meanwhile, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson still has to sell the city council on the arena plan and how to pay for it. At least two council members are strongly against it but there are three swing votes that the mayor is working hard to win. Sources believe that he will ultimately be successful in picking those votes up.
Aldridge wonders if the NBPA could be working on a settlement with Billy Hunter. Sources indicate such talks could be picking up steam, though neither side would comment. One source with knowledge of the situation said the two sides had been talking throughout the process and didn't believe there was any new momentum toward a potential deal. A settlement would be the smart way to go for both Hunter and the union in order to avoid the continued airing of dirty laundry.

Celtics Re-Sign Shavlik Randolph

March 11th, 2013 at 4:02pm CST by Zachary Links

The Celtics announced that they have signed Shavlik Randolph to a second ten-day contract. Boston first inked Randolph the former Duke standout to a ten-day deal on March 1st.

Randolph, a 6’10” forward, has yet to appear in a game for the Celtics since joining the club. Prior to making his NBA return, he appeared in 28 games for the Foshan Long Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association and averaged 32.0 PPG, 14.6 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.7 steals, and 1.0 blocks in 36.5 minutes per contest while shooting 53.1% from the floor.

Prior to this stint with the C's, Randolph's last NBA action came in 2009/10 when he appeared in three games each for the Heat and Trail Blazers. The forward is still looking to see his first action in green and white and it could come tomorrow night if things get lopsided against the struggling Bobcats.

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