2014 June | Hoops Rumors

Channing Frye Opts Out Of Deal With Suns

June 23rd, 2014 at 6:52pm CST by Zachary Links

As expected, Channing Frye has decided to opt out of the final year of his deal with the Suns, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Marc Stein of ESPN.com heard from a source yesterday that this was “99%” likely to happen.

The Suns have a desire to re-sign Frye, sources tell the Yahoo scribe, but much will be determined about that viability through the draft and possible trades. The Warriors and Cavs have the big man on their radar, according to yesterday’s report from Stein.

Frye will have his suitors with several teams on the lookout for a stretch four, but he has previously said that he’d like to work out a new contract with Phoenix. The 31-year-old missed all of 2012/13 with an enlarged heart but wound up playing and starting in all 82 of the Suns’ regular season games last season. Frye averaged 11.1 PPG with 5.1 RPG and 0.8 BPG in 28.2 minutes per contest. He’s had slightly better marks in those categories and in PER, but he was nonetheless a bright spot for the Suns last season.

Mo Williams To Opt Out

June 23rd, 2014 at 6:27pm CST by Luke Adams

JUNE 23rd: Williams has formally informed Portland that he will become a free agent, agent Mark Bartelstein tells Jeff Goodman of ESPN (on Twitter).

MAY 16th: Williams said once more that he will opt out of his contract, as he told reporters, including Haynes, at the team’s exit interviews today (Twitter link). He’ll seek a three-year contract which he believes will be his last, notes Joe Freeman of The Oregonian (on Twitter),

JANUARY 9th: Mo Williams intends to turn down his 2014/15 player option at season’s end, becoming an unrestricted free agent, he tells Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com. According to Williams, opting out was always his plan, but he hopes to sign a new contract with the Trail Blazers in July.

“I would like to be here long-term,” Williams said. “My goal is to work something out with Portland this summer. I like it here and I want to make this place home…. For me, it’s about finishing my career the right way for the X amount of years that I have and I’d love to do it here because of the fan support, the familiarity with the coach and [GM] Neil [Olshey].”

Williams, 31, signed a two-year contract with the Trail Blazers in the offseason that will pay him $2.65MM this season, with a second-year player option worth $2.77MM. Often, in that sort of modestly priced two-year deal, the player option serves as an insurance policy — for instance, if Williams were to suffer a serious injury this spring, he’d have the chance to opt into the second year, ensuring him a regular pay check for 2014/15.

Many of Williams’ per-game averages this season (9.4 PPG, 24.4 MPG) are the lowest marks since his rookie year. Still, he has filled the role Portland had anticipated for him, providing a veteran presence and serving as a dangerous third guard off the bench, backing up Damian Lillard and Wesley Matthews. While he may not be in line for a big raise if and when he opts out, he could easily secure another multiyear deal.

Tim Duncan To Opt In For Next Season

June 23rd, 2014 at 5:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:43pm: It’s official: Duncan has submitted the paperwork to the league to notify everyone that he will be opting in, tweets Jeff McDonald of the Express News.

3:05pm: Tim Duncan has decided to opt in for 2014/15 with the Spurs, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. The news appears to signal that Duncan will return this fall for his 18th NBA season, as had seemed likely in spite of his refusal to say definitively that he would not retire. The 38-year-old’s decision also dismisses the notion that he would opt out and sign a discounted contract. Duncan will make more than $10.361MM for the Spurs next season, the final year of his deal.

The contract originally called for Duncan to make $10MM, but that was the result of the league’s oversight of a rule that prohibited him from making less in the option year than he took in this past season. The NBA therefore adjusted his 2014/15 salary to match the money he made this year.

There was never any realistic chance that the Jim Tanner client would leave the Spurs this summer, with the only question surrounding his continued willingness to play. It appears as though he and San Antonio will embark on a quest for a repeat championship, a goal they’ve failed to achieve four times during Duncan’s certain Hall-of-Fame career.

The Spurs have slightly more than $44MM in salary for next season with Duncan in tow, but they’ll assuredly keep Tony Parker and pick up the $9MM non-guaranteed portion of Tony Parker’s deal. That would give San Antonio about $53MM in commitments, not including their first-round pick, putting the team roughly $10MM under the $63.2MM salary cap for next season.

Draft Notes: Bucks, Wiggins, Payton, Hood

June 23rd, 2014 at 5:00pm CST by Zachary Links

Bad news for Joel Embiid and Dante Exum. Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry says that it would be “hard to take Embiid” given his foot injury and indicated that it’ll come down to either Jabari Parker or Andrew Wiggins, according to Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. Here’s the latest draft news from around the league..

League sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that the Kings are seriously considering Louisiana-Lafayette product Elfrid Payton Jr. at No. 8 and few expect him to slip past the Magic at No. 12.
Duke sharpshooter Rodney Hood is back with the Hornets for a second attempt at a workout tomorrow, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer (on Twitter). Hoops Rumors chatted with Hood back in May about the draft process and his NBA goals.
K.J. McDaniels will also receive a second audition for the Hornets and he’ll be joined by UCLA’s Jordan Adams, Missouri’s Jabari Brown, Jarell Eddie of Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh’s Lamar Patterson (Twitter links).
Former North Carolina wing P.J. Hairston is working out today for the Bulls, who may end up trading one or both of their first-round picks, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY. Chicago is currently slated to pick at Nos. 16 and 19.
Former Syracuse forward C.J. Fair will audition for the Thunder today, the Pistons tomorrow, and the Nets on Wednesday, Zagoria tweets.
The Bulls have Michigan State’s Adreian Payne matching up against Chad Posthumus of Morehead State in a workout today, according to Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (via Twitter).
The Wizards will look to take the best player available when they’re called at the podium but J. Michael of CSNWashington.com hears that they’re favoring size.

Atlantic Notes: ‘Melo, Garnett, Felton, Draft

June 23rd, 2014 at 3:55pm CST by Chuck Myron

Neither New York team has a pick in either round of Thursday’s draft, but it seems there’s a decent chance that will change. The Knicks are thinking about trading Iman Shumpert for the first-rounder they’re seemingly intent on landing, and the Nets have scheduled workouts for this week with a bunch of potential second-round prospects, as we detail below amid the latest from the Big Apple:

Carmelo Anthony has opted out of his deal with New York, but it wasn’t news to the Knicks. He told the team three weeks ago that he still planned to opt out and reiterated as much during their meeting a little more than a week ago, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. The Knicks nonetheless like their chances of re-signing him, Berman also notes.
The Nets are quietly optimistic that Kevin Garnett will return next season, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. His willingness to play out the final year of his contract, worth $12MM, is reportedly key to the future of soon-to-be free agent Paul Pierce, as Stein notes.
Raymond Felton avoided jail time as part of a plea agreement to resolve felony gun-related charges stemming from a February incident, reports Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com. The Knicks point guard has been a part of trade rumors.
C.J. Fair, Semaj Christon, James Michael McAdoo, Johnny O’Bryant III, Xavier Thames, Ronald Roberts Jr., Langston Hall, Branden Frazier, Cameron Clark, Kyle Casey, Akil Mitchell, Cory Jefferson and Artem Klimenko are all working out for the Nets this week, the team announced.

Lakers To Pursue Kyle Lowry

June 23rd, 2014 at 2:15pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Lakers will be atop the list of teams making a play for soon-to-be free agent Kyle Lowry this summer, according to TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip for NBA.com. Lowry figures to be the strongest point guard among this year’s class of unrestricted free agents, though the Andy Miller client has indicated a strong preference for staying in Toronto.

Kendall Marshall was more than capable as a midseason replacement at point for the Lakers this past season, and while the former lottery pick remains on a non-guaranteed contract for next season, it appears as though the Lakers are at least considering an upgrade. A report in February indicated that the Lakers weren’t too high on him, and while thinking certainly can change over the course of several months, it’s unclear just how much GM Mitch Kupchak and company are willing to shell out as they keep an eye toward the summer of 2015.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports suggested in April that Lowry is in line for $11MM annual salaries, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up with more than that. The Heat and Lowry appear to have some level of mutual interest in a deal, so the competition figures to be stiff.

Western Rumors: Love, Warriors, Duncan, Lakers

June 23rd, 2014 at 1:46pm CST by Chuck Myron

Sources tell Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher and Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe that the Warriors trade talks for Kevin Love are “dead,” but Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune isn’t so sure (All Twitter links). The stumbling block appears to be Minnesota’s insistence on Klay Thompson and Golden State’s refusal to give him up, according to Holmes (on Twitter), but Zgoda insists neither Thompson nor Kevin Martin is the stumbling block. Rather, it has to do with whether Harrison Barnes or Draymond Green are involved in the deal, Zgoda says. Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

It appears as though the Spurs and Tim Duncan are considering a scenario in which Duncan would opt out and re-sign with the club for two years in a way that lowers team payroll and yet rewards the longtime star, tweets Buck Harvey of the San Antonio Express-News. Duncan’s option is worth more than $10.361MM.
The Lakers aren’t seriously considering a rumored trade proposal involving the No. 7 pick and Michael Carter-Williams, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. It’s more likely that the Lakers will make a deal that moves them back in the draft order, Deveney writes.
The Nuggets reportedly had interest in signing 2013 second-round pick Joffrey Lauvergne this summer, but the big man has signed a two-year deal with Khimki Moscow, Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia.

Carmelo Anthony Talks Free Agent Decision

June 23rd, 2014 at 12:14pm CST by Chuck Myron

Carmelo Anthony has opted out of his contract with the Knicks for next season and will hit free agency, as has been the plan since October. The Leon Rose client opened up in a video interview with Vice Sports about his thinking as he considers where he’ll sign next month, as Marc Berman of the New York Post and RealGM transcribe. We’ll share some of ‘Melo’s most noteworthy quotes from the interview, which was taped on June 3rd:

On his desire to help shape the roster of his team:

“As far as player personnel goes, I would love to be involved in that. At the end of the day, you’re creating a family.”

On the practical implications of his decision:

“The average person sees the opportunity to say ‘Melo should go here, ‘Melo should go there, he should do this, I think he should do that. They don’t take in consideration the family aspect of it. Where are you going to be living at? Do you want your kids to grow up in that place or that city? Do I want to stay the rest of my career in that situation and city? All that stuff comes into play.”

On how his family will come into play:

“My son goes to school and loves it here. To take him out and take him somewhere else, he has to learn that system all over again. He has to get new friends. I know how hard it was for me when I moved from New York to Baltimore at a young age, having to work to make friends and fit in and try to figure out the culture in that area. As far as basketball goes, it’s hard to just say OK I’m going to go there. Everybody is affected by it.”

On the importance of the 2014/15 season:

“The average person is looking at it next year — like it’s one year — you can win a championship if you go here. We’re looking at the big picture. You’re looking at the next six to eight years of your career.”

Bulls, Kings Discuss No. 8 Pick

June 23rd, 2014 at 11:50am CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls have spoken with the Kings about a deal that would send the No. 8 pick in Thursday’s draft to Chicago, reports Sean Deveney of The Sporting News. The target for the Bulls is Doug McDermott, according to Deveney, who seconds an earlier report that Chicago has interest in Gary Harris and Nik Stauskas, too.

Chicago has been active in attempts to move up in the draft order, reportedly engaging in serious talks about the No. 11 pick with the Nuggets. The No. 12 pick is also part of multiple conversations the team has had with the Magic as Chicago pursues Arron Afflalo, according to Deveney. A top-flight shooter appears to be Chicago’s aim, and McDermott would fit that bill, having nailed 44.9% of his three-pointers last season.

Sacramento is actively attempting to move the No. 8 pick and is more likely to trade it than to use it to select a player on Thursday, as Chad Ford of ESPN.com reported last week. The Hawks have also reportedly been linked to talks for the eighth pick.

Ford’s Latest: Bulls, Sixers, Lakers, Afflalo

June 23rd, 2014 at 11:28am CST by Chuck Myron

The latest Insider-only mock draft from Chad Ford of ESPN.com is full of rumors, draft-related and otherwise. Let’s dive in and hit the highlights:

The Bulls are offering Taj Gibson, Tony Snell, and the 16th and 19th picks in this year’s draft to the Wolves, Ford hears. That’s presumably as part of a Kevin Love package, though Ford doesn’t make it clear exactly what Chicago wants back in return for those assets.
The Sixers continue to explore the idea of a Michael Carter-Williams trade as they seek another top-10 pick. The Lakers would like to acquire Carter-Williams and Thaddeus Young for No. 7 and Steve Nash, but they’ve gained no traction on that proposal, according to Ford.
The Magic have offered picks Nos. 4 and 12 plus Arron Afflalo to the Cavs and Bucks as they attempt to move into the top two, but neither Milwaukee nor Cleveland has bitten. They’re also dangling Afflalo to the Kings and Nuggets for the eighth and 11th selections, respectively.
The Bucks are looking for an additional lottery pick, Ford reports, citing “serious” interest from other teams in Larry Sanders, John Henson and Brandon Knight. The Nuggets have spoken with Milwaukee about the No. 11 pick, according to Ford.
A source close to both the Nuggets and Dario Saric deny that Denver has given him a promise to draft him at No. 11.
There are several other medical issues that came up in Joel Embiid‘s physical in addition to his foot and back, sources tell Ford. It’s unclear how much concern there is regarding them.

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