Five teams, most of them in the Eastern Conference, are planning to pursue Greg Monroe when he becomes a restricted free agent this summer, a source tells Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling. The source predicts Monroe will sign early in July, which often isn’t the case with restricted free agents. There’s more from Zwerling amid our latest look around the league:
- The Celtics have interest in signing-and-trading Kris Humphries this summer, Zwerling writes in the same piece. Danny Ainge is reportedly high on the 10th-year veteran who’s expressed a desire to stay in Boston, so it seems there’s no guarantee Humphries will go elsewhere this summer, even as the C’s appear to be preparing for that possibility.
- Marvin Williams is comfortable in Utah and wants to remain with the Jazz, observes Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, who figures that was one of the reasons the team reportedly turned down at least one offer for a late first-round pick in exchange for Williams.
- Pelicans GM Dell Demps expressed confidence in his core earlier this week, but Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com, in an Insider-only piece, urges Demps to shake up the team in the offseason.
- Justin Barrasso of WEEI.com examines the transition Brad Stevens is making from college to the NBA game, noting that most college coaches who’ve entered the pros have done so with franchises far less stable than the Celtics are.