Jared Dudley was interested in joining the Celtics in free agency this summer, but the team didn’t reach out to him, relays Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. Dudley, who averaged 7.9 points per game and shot 42% from 3-point range last season with the Wizards, has ties to the area as a Boston College alumnus. Instead, he accepted a three-year, $30MM offer from Phoenix. “Boston never contacted me, but I made it known I was interested in them,” Dudley said. He added that the Celtics may not have believed they had a role for him because they want to give playing time to first-round pick Jaylen Brown.
There’s more news this morning from the Atlantic Division:
- Power forward shapes up as the Nets‘ best position battle heading into training camp, writes Brian Lewis of The New York Post. Free agent additions Trevor Booker and Luis Scola will compete for time at the position, along with second-year player Chris McCullough. “A good thing about our situation, I think we have versatile bigs,” said new coach Kenny Atkinson. “I don’t think [of] Scola simply as a four. I’m thinking of Luis Scola as a four and five. I’d even say that with Trevor Booker. Trevor Booker, why can’t he take another step as a player with more responsibility and the talent he has? We look at these guys, we’re looking upside.”
- The Nets plan to be very patient with the health of rookie Caris LeVert, Lewis adds in the same piece. The first-round pick out of Michigan has broken his left foot multiple times and is still recovering from a Jones fracture. LeVert wasn’t able to use a treadmill until July and is limited to strengthening exercises as camp opens. “We’ll be progressing him slowly and building him in,’’ said GM Sean Marks. “He hasn’t played in six months, so it’s been intermittent for the last couple years with him. … He has a long, long road ahead of him.”
- Jakob Poeltl should be part of the Raptors‘ rotation at the start of the season, writes Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders. In the site’s season preview for Toronto, Hamilton calls Poeltl the team’s best offseason acquisition, citing his footwork, rebounding instincts and international experience.