2014 June | Hoops Rumors

Clippers Hire Dave Wohl As GM

June 16th, 2014 at 5:44pm CST by Zachary Links

The Clippers have reorganized their front office, pushing Gary Sacks out of his position as General Manager, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (Twitter links). Dave Wohl, a longtime league exec and assistant coach, will take over as GM with Sacks being bumped down to assistant GM.

In other changes, Doc Rivers has ascended from senior VP of basketball operations to president of basketball operations. Kevin Eastman, an assistant on Rivers’ staff, will move into the VP of basketball ops role. Rivers has had final say on personnel say on personnel matters since he was hired last summer in his coach/executive role and while it’s not explicitly outlined in the press release, that will presumably stay the same.

“I am extremely excited to work closely with Kevin, Dave and Gary in their new roles as we continue to move the culture of the Clippers forward,” Rivers said in the press release. “Our goals are not only to become a championship team, but a championship organization as well. I feel with the new structure of the Basketball Operations Department, we have taken a positive step in that direction.”

Wohl becomes General Manager of the Clippers after working as the team’s Director of Professional Scouting last season. Wohl has more than four decades of NBA experience under his belt, including a stint as an assistant coach for the Wolves from 2009-2011 and serving as the Assistant GM of the Celtics from 2007-2009. He has also worked in various capacities for Orlando, Miami, Sacramento and the Lakers in addition to serving as the head coach of the Nets from 1985-1988.

Draft Notes: Jazz, Kings, Warren, Nurkic, LaVine

June 16th, 2014 at 5:13pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest draft news from around the league..

In addition to Indiana big man Noah Vonleh, today’s Jazz work out included George Mason guard Bryon Allen, Oklahoma State guard Markel Brown, Syracuse forward C.J. Fair, UCLA forward David Wear, and Marquette forward Jamil Wilson, according to Jody Genessy of the Deseret News.
Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro, assistant GM Mike Bratz, and advisor Chris Mullin are meeting with prospects Doug McDermott and Nik Stauskas right now in Chicago, tweets Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee.
N.C. State forward T.J. Warren was slated to work out for the Nuggets today but he’s a late scratch, according to Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post (on Twitter). Taking his place will be Trevor Wages of Colorado School of Mines (link).
The Nuggets are bringing in Jusuf Nurkic for medical exams and perhaps a workout, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Nurkic is currently slated to go No. 12 to the Magic in DraftExpress’ mock.
UCLA’s Zach LaVine will work out for the Timberwolves, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN. Minnesota likes him at two guard and they’ll think about him at No. 13 along with Stauskas and Adreian Payne.
The Raptors will audition Payne tomorrow, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca.
Meanwhile, Clemson’s K.J. McDaniels wasn’t able to work out for the Timberwolves, tweets Wolfson. The small forward got stuck in South Carolina due to bad weather.
The Celtics will have more workouts on Thursday, highlighted by UCLA guard Jordan Adams, tweets A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com.

Eastern Rumors: ‘Melo, Fisher, Cavs, Chalmers

June 16th, 2014 at 2:18pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat won their fourth straight Eastern Conference championship this year, but like the last team to pull that off, the 1986/87 Celtics, they fell short of an NBA title. Miami certainly hopes it doesn’t repeat the fate that befell Boston, which failed to win another Eastern Conference title for 21 years after that. Here’s the latest from the East:

Carmelo Anthony would prefer to stay in New York, but he knows his best chance to win would be to leave, a source tells Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. ‘Melo is reportedly leaning toward signing with a team other than the Knicks this summer.
Derek Fisher‘s contract to coach the Knicks runs for four years instead of five, as had been initially reported, according to TNT’s David Aldridge, who writes in his Morning Tip column for NBA.com. Another report indicated the deal contains at least one team option, so perhaps it’s guaranteed for four seasons with a team option for the fifth, though that’s just my speculation.
It’s logical to suspect that David Blatt would prefer a head coaching job to an assistant’s post, but it seems he won’t wait around on the Cavs opening if they dally, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports explains. The Warriors and some close to the former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach believe that he’ll accept a job on Steve Kerr‘s Golden State staff if Cleveland doesn’t move quickly to hire him after its face-to-face interview with him this week, Wojnarowski hears.
The Cavs continue to pursue high-profile college coaches behind the scenes, Wojnarowski also writes in the same piece.
The Heat benched the slumping Mario Chalmers in Game 5, but the soon-to-be free agent hasn’t soured on Miami, as he tells fellow Yahoo! Sports scribe Marc J. Spears. “I hope we stay together,” Chalmers said. “I think we have a good thing going.”

Draft Notes: Bucks, Parker, Embiid, Hornets

June 16th, 2014 at 1:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bucks aren’t having any trouble getting a look at the top prospects. Milwaukee is reportedly set for a pair of workouts with Andrew Wiggins, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears that Jabari Parker will work out again for the club this week after having done so last week (Twitter link). Joel Embiid was already apparently slated to audition for the club, and GM John Hammond also met with the Kansas big man last week, Ford tweets. The Bucks appear to be the only team with which Wiggins, Parker, Embiid and Dante Exum have all agreed to visit and work out, Ford notes (Twitter link). Here’s more on the draft, now just 10 days away.

Jerami Grant, De’Mon Brooks, Josh Davis, Jarell Eddie and Mike Moser are among the draft prospects showing off for the Hornets today, the team announced via press release.
The Heat are auditioning Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.
Keith Appling, Dave Dudzinski, Markel Starks, Tyler Stone and Jermaine Marshall are showing off for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com notes via Twitter. Marshall will also audition for the Cavs, Sportando reports (via Twitter).
Roscoe Smith has the Raptors and Mavs on his agenda, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv hears (Twitter link).
Richard Harris of NBADraft.net adds the Bulls to the list of teams for which Johnny O’Bryant III has worked out. O’Bryant also has auditions slated with the Rockets, Heat, Hornets, Bucks, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons, Harris reports.
Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic adds the Sixers, Mavs, Rockets and Heat to the list of teams that are getting a look at Jordan Bachynski (Twitter link).
Jahii Carson, Kendrick Perry, Earnest Ross and Alec Brown are all performing for the Rockets, Scotto tweets.
The Lakers are one of more than a dozen teams for which Ronald Roberts Jr. is working out, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
The Warriors are auditioning Eric Moreland, Roberto Nelson and Travis Bader, according to Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter links).

Non-Bird Rights

June 16th, 2014 at 11:45am CST by Chuck Myron

Players and teams have to meet certain criteria to earn Bird rights and Early Bird rights, but Non-Bird rights are something of a given. They apply to players who’ve spent a single season or less with their teams, as long as they end the season on an NBA roster.

Teams are permitted to sign their own free agents using the Non-Bird exception for a salary starting at 120% of the player’s previous salary or 120% of the minimum salary, or the amount of a qualifying offer (if the player is a restricted free agent), whichever is greater. Contracts can be for up to four years, with 4.5% annual raises. The cap hold for a Non-Bird player is 120% of his previous salary.

The salary limitations that apply to Non-Bird rights are more severe than those pertaining to Bird rights or Early Bird rights, so in many cases, the Non-Bird exception isn’t enough to retain a well-regarded free agent. For instance, the Mavs have Non-Bird rights with Devin Harris, who signed a one-year, minimum salary contract with the team in the summer of 2013 after playing with the Hawks in 2012/13. Dallas can only use Non-Bird rights to sign him for 120% of what he made in 2013/14. The guard nearly signed a three-year, $9MM contract in 2013 with the Mavs before a toe injury scuttled the deal, so it’s reasonable to suspect that Harris is in line for a heftier raise than his Non-Bird rights can provide. That would force the Mavs to use another exception or cap room if they’re to re-sign him, which could prove tricky, given the team’s plans to use cap space to attract marquee free agents.

Non-Bird rights might not be of help to the Mavs and Harris, but there are cases in which the exception proves useful. Jermaine O’Neal signed a one-year, $2MM deal with the Warriors in the summer of 2013 after finishing up 2012/13 with the Suns. Golden State can offer up to $2.4MM for 2014/15, 120% of his 2013/14 salary. That gives the Warriors an advantage over other teams for a still-valuable backup who’ll probably command more than the minimum salary.

Note: This is a Hoops Rumors Glossary entry. Our glossary posts will explain specific rules relating to trades, free agency, or other aspects of the NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. Larry Coon’s Salary Cap FAQ was used in the creation of this post.

Earlier versions of this post, written by Luke Adams, appeared on April 20th, 2012 and April 26, 2013.

Cavs To Interview Mark Price

June 16th, 2014 at 11:16am CST by Charlie Adams

JUNE 16TH: Cleveland is strongly considering a second interview for Price this week, reports Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link).

JUNE 9TH: The Cavs are set to interview Hornets assistant Mark Price for a chance at their vacant head coaching position tomorrow, tweets Mary Schmitt Boyer of the Plain Dealer. Price, a former Cavs All-Star, was quoted a couple of weeks ago as having interest in the role, but at the time, the team reportedly wasn’t sold on the idea of bringing him aboard.

The news comes as a bit of a surprise since Alvin Gentry and Tyronn Lue are both reportedly going to receive second interviews with the team. We’ve also heard Vinny Del Negro and Lionel Hollins are expected to meet with Cleveland team officials for a second time later this week.

Price, a fan favorite in Cleveland, lacks NBA head coaching experience, but he’s been an assistant since the 2007/08 season. Besides Charlotte, he’s seen stints in Denver, Atlanta, Golden State, and Orlando. The former point guard spent nine of his 12 seasons as a member of the Cavs, and his No. 25 jersey was retired by the team shortly after his retirement.

Shane Battier Retires

June 16th, 2014 at 9:24am CST by Chuck Myron

Shane Battier confirmed last night that he’s retiring from the NBA, removing any sliver of doubt he may have left in previous statements foretelling the end of his 13-year career, notes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. The 35-year-old Heat forward’s contract is up this summer, and he apparently has no intentions of signing a new one.

“I’ve given everything I can to the game and I don’t have any more to give,” Battier said. “And I’m OK with it.”

Battier averaged career lows in points, rebounds, assists and minutes per game this season as he wound up an NBA journey that began when the Grizzlies made him the No. 6 overall pick in the 2001 draft. He also played for the Rockets before joining the Heat, earning praise as the “No-Stats All-Star” along the way for his subtle contributions best appreciated among members of the advanced metrics community. He finished with career averages of 8.6 PPG and 4.2 RPG in 30.7 MPG, numbers that belied his value.

The Jim Tanner client made nearly $56.6MM in the NBA, according to Basketball-Reference. He took in $3.72MM with the Heat this season, and Miami will likely renounce his Bird rights to clear his $6.213MM cap hold if the team elects to dip under the cap this summer.

Chris Andersen To Opt Out, Hit Free Agency

June 16th, 2014 at 9:07am CST by Chuck Myron

Chris Andersen will opt out of his minimum-salary contract and become a free agent this summer, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. The Birdman re-signed with the Heat in 2013 to a two-year deal that included a player option for the second season. Today’s news doesn’t necessarily mean that Andersen will leave the Heat, or even that he’ll wind up with a higher salary, since he took less than market value to stay with Miami last summer. Still, it appears as though the client of Mark Bryant will explore his options as the future of the Heat’s roster is in flux.

Andersen, who’ll turn 36 next month, scored 6.6 points per game this past season, the second-highest total of his 12-year career. He also averaged 5.3 rebounds in 19.4 minutes per contest with an 18.5 PER as Miami’s first big man off the bench.

The Heat have his Early Bird rights, meaning they can sign him for a starting salary of up to 104.5% of the league average salary, which will likely come in around $6MM. It’s unlikely he’ll merit that much, but he’s probably earned a raise on the minimum. Taking another minimum-salary deal would help Miami keep its team together, but given Andersen’s advanced age, I’m not so sure he’ll be willing to pass up another opportunity to cash in. Still, his decision to opt out does the Heat a small favor, since his cap hold will be $915,243, compared to the $1,448,490 he’d take up on Miami’s balance sheet were he to opt in.

Bulls Willing To Trade Joakim Noah

June 16th, 2014 at 8:46am CST by Chuck Myron

Derrick Rose is the only “untouchable” player as the Bulls actively seek improvements to their starting lineup, several sources tell Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. That would mean First-Team All-NBA center Joakim Noah and others are available, though Cowley doesn’t specify whether the Bulls are dangling anyone in particular in ongoing talks. Carmelo Anthony remains Chicago’s No. 1 target, but the team is making a hard push to trade for Kevin Love, too, Cowley writes, suggesting the team will also make a serious run at LeBron James should he hit free agency this summer.

Noah, 29, is coming off a career year, and he’s set to make $12.7MM next season on a contract that runs through 2015/16, so his value is probably at an all-time high. Still, he’d seemingly be the last player other than Rose whom the Bulls would be willing to give up, with Taj Gibson not far behind. Noah has tried to recruit Anthony to Chicago, but the center doesn’t want to sacrifice Gibson to obtain the Knicks star forward, according to Cowley. Bulls executives have also been reluctant to part with Gibson, but it seems the hesitancy of Chicago’s brass is loosening if it would mean landing an All-Star caliber player in return, as Cowley observes.

It’s “not by choice” that the Bulls are making Rose the only player off-limits, Cowley writes, and that appears to indicate that other teams have signaled to Chicago that they’re wary of the point guard’s health. Rose has been unavailable for all but one game in the last three postseasons because of injury, and he’s missed most of the past two regular seasons.

The Bulls are open to just about any scenario, but it’s doubtful the team would part ways with Tom Thibodeau, Cowley hears. Chicago could extract valuable draft choices for the former Coach of the Year, who remains under contract, but in spite of rumors, it’s almost always seemed a long shot that he wouldn’t return to coach the Bulls next season.

And-Ones: Knicks, Blatt, Vonleh, Wiggins

June 15th, 2014 at 10:19pm CST by Zachary Links

The latest from around the league as the Spurs hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy..

Heat guard Ray Allen told reporters he will see where his “true heart lies” in a couple of days in terms of playing or retiring, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo.
Phil Jackson will look to re-tool the Knicks‘ roster this summer, but new coach Derek Fisher told ESPN 98.7 that he believes the team can improve by 8-10 wins as currently constructed, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. “In my opinion, I believe that success and failure are not as far apart as people think. It’s pretty close. And when you think about [the Knicks] winning 37 games a year ago, there are a number of things that you can isolate with the same exact roster that can provide 8-10 more wins without a change of any kind,” Fisher said last week.
Last week we learned that David Blatt will interview with the Cavs and today, we learned the date. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports hears that the former Maccabi Tel Aviv coach will meet with Cleveland on Wednesday.
Indiana big man Noah Vonleh will work out for the Jazz tomorrow, tweets Aaron Falk of the Salt Lake Tribune. Utah owns the No. 5 pick and DraftExpress has them pegged to draft the soon-to-be 19-year-old.
Executives see the Magic as the team most likely to shake up the draft, tweets Chris Mannix of NBC Sports. The question now is whether they like Marcus Smart, Dante Exum, Vonleh, or someone else in the draft.
The Sixers are slated to work out Andrew Wiggins on Tuesday in Philadelphia, a source told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). Philly, of course, owns the No. 3 pick.
No surprise here, but Bosnian big man Jusuf Nurkic will keep his name in the draft, tweets Chad Ford of ESPN.com. Nurkic is projected to go somewhere between 12 and 21 in Ford’s view.
The Celtics are eyeing guard prospects such as Xavier Thames, Semaj Christon, and Russ Smith, according to Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe. Last week, Austin Ainge told Washburn that the C’s are looking into trading back into the second round and Boston might do that with one of those three in mind.
Aaron Gordon is a lock for the lottery thanks to his athleticism and defense, writes Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The 6’9″ forward out of Arizona is more athletic than Julius Randle and Noah Vonleh and is also a better defender.

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