2013 March | Hoops Rumors

Qualcomm CEO Joins Sacramento Bid For Kings

March 26th, 2013 at 8:14am CST by Luke Adams

After recently adding Silicon Valley entrepreneur Vivek Ranadive to a bid led by Ron Burkle and Mark Mastrov, the Sacramento group vying to keep the Kings has added a fourth "whale," as Tony Bizjak, Ryan Lillis, and Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee report. Ranadive announced last night that the Jacobs family, founders of Qualcomm, would also be joining the Sacramento group.

The Qualcomm trio is led by company CEO Paul Jacobs, and includes his brothers Jeff and Hal Jacobs. Ranadive and Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson both referred to the new four-headed Sacramento group as a "dream team."

"Each person in this has the capacity to do this on their own," Ranadive said. "This is about building a global brand. It's about putting more wood behind the arrow."

"Some of the most successful leaders in the state are coming together to do something truly transformational for the capital city," Johnson said. "Their belief in Sacramento speaks volumes about a community that's growing stronger by the day."

Things are looking more and more positive for Sacramento's bid for the Kings, which was at one point considered a long shot to challenge Seattle's offer for the franchise. The Sacramento group has finalized its bid and arena proposal, and that arena plan will be put before the City Council tonight. Assuming the council votes to move forward, the Sacramento group will get a chance to make its pitch to the NBA's Board of Governors next month, with a decision to follow shortly thereafter.

Odds & Ends: Jazz, Hoiberg, Raptors, Gay

March 25th, 2013 at 9:47pm CST by Zachary Links

Earlier today, the Mavericks made their signing of Justin Dentmon official after letting Chris Wright's 10-day contract expire. The Mavs can give Dentmon a new deal in a week-and-a-half, but odds are that they'll let him walk as well. Dallas is reportedly looking to audition three different point guards and they'll likely go back to the D-League well to find their next pickup. Here's more from around the Association..

Tyrone Corbin reiterated his comments from earlier this week about his team's free agents, saying that it "might" have impacted the squad while crediting them for blocking out distractions, tweets Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune. Both Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap will hit the open market this summer and all signs point to Utah keeping one or the other, not both.
Fred Hoiberg has the tools to be a successful coach in the NBA, writes Jonathan Tjarks of RealGM.com. Last night we learned that the Iowa State coach is being targeted by multiple teams as a head coaching candidate this summer.
While Raptors head coach Dwane Casey thinks that the club may shut Rudy Gay down for the season, the forward doesn't think that his year is over, writes Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun.

Prospect Profile: Nerlens Noel

March 25th, 2013 at 7:46pm CST by Zachary Links

A few months ago, there was little question that Kentucky big man Nerlens Noel would be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 draft. However, a gruesome knee injury suffered against Florida in February changed all of that. After chasing down Mike Rosario on a fast break layup and swatting his shot with authority, Noel slammed his left knee against the base of the hoop, resulting in a season-ending ACL tear.

The 18-year-old was close to a mortal lock to go first overall in the draft, but now no one is sure exactly where he'll go in the draft, or if he'll even enter. Kentucky's other standout freshmen, Alex Poythress, Willie Cauley-Stein, and Archie Goodwin, could all return to campus next season, despite being projected first round picks. Noel seems less likely to come back for his sophomore year on the surface, but he may be tempted to stay in school by the prospect of playing with the nation's most talented college team next season. Heck, if things really go John Calipari's way, next year's UK team could also feature top high schoolers Andrew Wiggins and Aaron Gordon.

Odds are, however, that Noel will play it safe and enter this year's draft. After all, it doesn't make a great deal of business sense for Noel to return to Lexington, risk aggravating his injury, and jump in with the hyper-talented 2014 group when he can instead go top five in a historically weak class on one leg. If Noel can show that his knee is back to 100%, he could easily reclaim his spot as the consensus No. 1 overall pick ahead of Kansas' Ben McLemore.

In the 24 games that he did play for the Wildcats, the 6'10" forward showed that he has very rare athleticism for a player of his size. With tremendous footspeed and a wingspan that is reportedly six inches larger than his height, he has a highlight reel that most NBA big man can't accumulate in an 82 game season. Defensively, he is a game changer with a mindset similar to that of a young Kenyon Martin. He won't just lock on to his assignment, he'll go wherever he is needed on the hardwood to pressure both big men and guards.

Offensively, well, it's a different story. His size should lend itself to a strong back-to-the-basket game that attracts multiple defenders, but he isn't much of a scorer. This year's Kentucky team was fairly thin on offense and they did not call on Noel for points on a regular basis. He doesn't have a mid-range game either, but he'll have to come up with something at the next level to be effective in a halfcourt set. Of course, at the age of 18, there's no reason to think that he can't develop his offensive tools over time. Noel probably doesn't have as high of a ceiling as Kentucky alum Anthony Davis, but he can eventually become an impact player in his own right.

Tiago Splitter Plans To Test Free Agency

March 25th, 2013 at 5:56pm CST by Zachary Links

Spurs center Tiago Splitter is in the midst of his best NBA season so far and certainly appears to have found a groove in San Antonio’s system. While the big man says that he’s happy with the club, he told Brazilian outlet Estado.com that he plans to test the open market this offseason, according to Jeff Garcia of ProjectSpurs.com.

“I spoke to my agent that I wanted to take a break, and not think about it during the season, and wait for the end of the season to see what are my options, what’s best for me. But surely, I am very well here in San Antonio. I will look at all of my options,” Splitter said.

In his third season with the Spurs, the 28-year-old is averaging 10.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest while shooting 73% from the free throw line and 57% from the floor. The Spurs can make Splitter a restricted free agent by extending him a $4.93MM qualifying offer this summer. Given his play this season, it seems likely that he’ll be in line for a raise from his current $3.9MM salary.

Atlantic Notes: Martin, Knicks, Nets, Pietrus

March 25th, 2013 at 5:32pm CST by Zachary Links

Deron Williams was bested by the Chris Paul-led Clippers on Saturday night but he bounced back in a major way yesterday against the Suns. Goran Dragic gave the Nets all they could handle, but D-Will's 20 point, 11 assist performance pushed Brooklyn to a 102-100 victory. It wasn't a pretty win, but the Nets will take it, especially considering that they were without Joe Johnson in Phoenix. Here's more from the Atlantic..

Kenyon Martin told reporters, including Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter) that he has thoughts that he "probably can’t say on camera" about teams that ignored him as a free agent. However, he says that he is now "in a happy place." Martin sat on the sidelines for most of the 2012/13 season before hooking on with the Knicks.
Tim Bontemps of the New York Post spoke with former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy about his thoughts on the Nets and he's not as enthused as some about the club's prospects going forward. “[There are] significant things that they have to find out about their team to try to make that next step up to what they want to be, which is a championship-caliber team,” said Van Gundy.
Raptors forward Mickael Pietrus wants to finish out the season strong and show that he is once again healthy, writes RealGM's Shams Charania. Pietrus will be a free agent after this season when his one-year, minimum salary contract expires.

Draft Notes: Moreland, Point Guards, McDermott

March 25th, 2013 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams

The talk of the NCAA Tournament so far has been No. 15 seed Florida Gulf Coast, one of 16 teams to survive the opening weekend of March Madness. While the Eagles don't have a legit draft prospect on their roster, plenty of potential lottery picks are still alive in the tournament, including Ben McLemore of Kansas, Trey Burke of Michigan, and Indiana's Cody Zeller and Victor Oladipo. As we wait to see if those guys or others can improve their NBA stock in the next round, let's round up a few draft items….

As I noted this morning, Oregon State forward Eric Moreland has filed paperwork to become eligible for this year's draft. The sophomore told John Hunt of the Oregonian that he's "testing the waters," so he could still withdraw his name and return to school for his junior year.
Although conventional wisdom suggests we shouldn't put much stock into March Madness results, Peter Keating of ESPN.com (Insider-only link) writes that at least one study suggests that the NCAA tournament is a "meaningful simulation of NBA conditions."
TNT's David Aldridge takes a look at this year's class of point guards, which he expects to feature plenty of solid future pros, despite a lack of starpower.
In his latest draft piece, Sean Deveney of the Sporting News speaks to Harrison Barnes about the draft prospects of Creighton's Doug McDermott, who played high school ball with Barnes.
Joe Kotoch of Sheridan Hoops makes his picks for the players who helped and hurt their draft prospects during the first four days of the NCAA Tournament.

Kevin Martin Talks Free Agency, Thunder

March 25th, 2013 at 2:50pm CST by Luke Adams

Based on various reports this year, it appears there's at least some level of mutual interest between the Thunder and Kevin Martin in extending the shooting guard's stay in OKC beyond this season. However, according to Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman, there's a "growing sentiment" that the team may not need to re-sign Martin to continue contending.

In addition to offering three reasons for and against the Thunder bringing back the ex-Rocket, Mayberry spoke to Martin about his looming free agency. Here are a few of the notable quotes:

On what factors will play a role in Martin's free agent decision:

"I don't know. I can have a perception of what's going to go into it, but this is going to be my first time doing it. My perception would be happiness and a good fit basketball-wise. I'm in a situation that after nine years I don't have to chase money. So I think that part goes into a lot of guys' minds when it happens. But for me, I found a new happiness here when I got traded here. It feels like a good fit. But we'll see when it comes around."

On the possibility of joining a non-contender that could pay him more and provide a larger role:

"I think that's where it just comes down to, what would you be happy with? And I love being a major piece on a championship-caliber team. I'm enjoying the ride."

On what he expects from the free agent process:

"I guess that time for any player — especially one in my position where teams may still see me as a guy that can carry an offensive load for any team; and I still feel like I can score 20 just by waking up — is interesting. But it'll be fun also. Hopefully it's over as soon as possible and I'll be in a place where I'll want to be and where a team will want me."

On whether he's as happy in OKC now as he was when he first arrived:

"Oh, most definitely. And a lot of that goes beyond basketball. To me, basketball's the easy part. It's how the organization is ran, how the community is, just interacting with the players the past five months that I've been here. It's honestly one of the greatest basketball experiences I've had in my career. I've been on one of the worst teams record-wise, and now I'm on one of the best. I've been a focal point of the offense and now I'm like the third option."

Royce White Returning To D-League

March 25th, 2013 at 1:32pm CST by Luke Adams

Last week, Royce White announced on his Twitter feed that he'd be leaving the Rockets' D-League affiliate for the rest of the season, returning to Houston to work out. It seems the team wasn't on board with that plan, however, so White will be rejoining the Rio Grande Valley Vipers this week, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter). Wojnarowski adds that White could return to game action as soon as Tuesday.

When White announced his decision last Thursday, he cited the "team physician," but the Rockets didn't, and still haven't, commented on the subject, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle notes (via Twitter). Feigen reported last week that the club wasn't a part of White's decision to leave the Vipers.

Including tomorrow night's game, the Vipers have six more regular-season contests before the D-League postseason gets underway. Rio Grande Valley has clinched a playoff spot, so White figures to be a part of the team's postseason roster next month.

Clippers Re-Sign DaJuan Summers

March 25th, 2013 at 12:23pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers have re-signed DaJuan Summers to a second 10-day contract, the team announced today in a press release. Summers' initial 10-day deal with the Clips expired last night.

Summers, 25, has only briefly appeared in two games for Los Angeles so far, scoring a single basket in seven total minutes of action. In his three previous NBA seasons, the former second-round pick played in a total of 81 games for the Pistons and Hornets.

With Summers locked up for another 10 days, the Clippers will soon be facing decisions on him and Maalik Wayns, who is also on his second 10-day deal. Both players will have to either be re-signed for the season or released when their current contracts expire.

Eastern Notes: Nets, Raps, Maggette, Heat, C’s

March 25th, 2013 at 11:29am CST by Luke Adams

With the Bucks currently holding a seven-game lead on the ninth-seeded Sixers for the Eastern Conference's final postseason spot, there won't be a race for the playoffs over the season's final few weeks. But if we flip the standings upside-down, there is a race developing for the best chance at June's first overall pick. A pair of Bobcats wins last week pulled them within two games of the Magic, and the two teams are set to square off in Charlotte this Wednesday. As we, uh, look forward to that contest, let's round up a few Monday items from around the conference:

Following up on the latest report linking John Calipari to the Nets, Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game suggests (via Sulia) that owner Mikhail Prokhorov is too discerning to simply be interested in Calipari because the Kentucky coach is a "big name." According to Bucher, Prokhorov had genuine interest in Phil Jackson, but Bucher thinks the idea of Calipari being a worthwhile fallback option is "absurd," despite the improvements he has made since his last NBA stint.
Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun looks ahead to the summer and predicts which Raptors will be back with the team next season.
Corey Maggette isn't entirely sure why he hasn't played in over three months, but he isn't going to complain about his situation, as David Mayo of MLive.com writes. Earlier this month, a report suggested that Maggette and the Pistons were both open to the veteran returning to the team next year via free agency. I have to think he'll at least explore the market in search of an opportunity for more minutes though.
Responding to a reader's question in his latest mailbag, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel agrees that Shane Battier has been the Heat's best non-Big-Three signing of this era.
Last summer, the Celtics participated in both the Orlando and Las Vegas summer leagues. However, since the C's aren't expecting to add as many young prospects to the roster this summer, they'll only participate in the Orlando league, according to Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.

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