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The Beat: Chris Vivlamore On The Hawks

April 6th, 2015 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

Nobody knows NBA teams better than beat writers, save for those who draw paychecks with an NBA owner’s signature on them. The reporters who are with the teams they cover every day gain an intimate knowledge of the players, coaches and executives they write about and develop sources who help them break news and stay on top of rumors.

We at Hoops Rumors will be chatting with beat writers from around the league and sharing their responses to give you a better perspective on how and why teams make some of their most significant moves. We began the series last time with Dan Woike, who covers the Clippers for the Orange County Register. Today, we hear from Hawks beat writer Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. You can follow Chris on Twitter at @CVivlamoreAJC. Click here to check out his stories and here to see his blog at AJC.com.

Hoops Rumors: Are the Hawks as surprised by how well their season has gone as much as everyone else is, or did the organization feel as though this roster was capable of a giant leap?

Chris Vivlamore: I’m not sure anyone saw such a dramatic leap this season but the Hawks thought they had a good team. They were third in the East last season before Al Horford got hurt and pushed the top-seeded Pacers to seven games in the playoffs, a series they probably should have won. With Horford back, they certainly thought they could be a contender in the Eastern Conference. Also, another season under Mike Budenholzer’s system — with nearly the entire roster back — was reason for heightened expectation.

Hoops Rumors: A healthy Horford has certainly helped, but aside from that, what’s been the most significant difference this season compared to last?

Chris Vivlamore: The most significant differences from last season were the additions of Thabo Sefolosha and Kent Bazemore and the incredible progress of Dennis Schröder from his rookie season. Not much was made of the acquisitions of Sefolosha and Bazemore during the summer. However, they added much needed depth – especially at the wing behind DeMarre Carroll. That has led to an improved defense, which is really the staple of Budenholzer’s system. Too often last season, the Hawks would falter without Carroll in the lineup or as he tired from guarding the opposition’s top non-frontcourt threat. Sefolosha and Bazemore firm up the defense and allow the Hawks to come at an opposing star player in waves. Schröder has turned into a legitimate point guard in the NBA, which is a major step from last season. He continues to use his speed to get in the paint and either finish at the rim or kick to an outside shooter. He has also improved his outside shot, which can be a threat.

Hoops Rumors: The Adreian Payne trade seemed like a curious one. He hadn’t played much at all, but he’s a 15th overall pick and he wasn’t even around for a full season. What was the team hoping to accomplish with that deal, and were you surprised that the Hawks would give up an asset like that with so much uncertainty surrounding the front office?

Chris Vivlamore: While the Payne trade was surprising, the thought process inside the organization was to free up a roster spot as Payne was stuck behind several others at the forward/center spot. He had Paul Millsap, Pero Antic, Elton Brand, Mike Muscala and even Mike Scott ahead of him. They ended up getting another first-round pick for him. I don’t believe the “uncertainty” around the front office had any impact on the deal.

Hoops Rumors: Budenholzer is acting as GM in place of Danny Ferry, but how much has the coach leaned on assistant GMs Wes Wilcox and Scott Wilkinson, senior adviser Rick Sund, and others in that front office? Who has the most prominent voice aside from Budenholzer?

Chris Vivlamore: The front office continues to work much the same as it did with Ferry. It’s a group effort with Wilcox and the basketball operations staff doing all the same work. They all meet and hash out decisions that need to be made — not unlike it works with the Spurs — to arrive at a consensus. Ultimately, Budenholzer has the final say. Even when Ferry was involved, the organization used the team approach for player personnel decisions and other matters. In that regard, not much has changed.

Hoops Rumors: It’s tough to gauge where the roster is headed with Ferry in limbo and the ownership situation still up in the air. That said, do you get a sense from Millsap and Carroll that, all things being equal, they’d like to stick around if the money is right?

Chris Vivlamore: The process really hasn’t even begun for Millsap and Carroll as they must go to free agency. I believe there will be plenty of suitors for both and each will get a significant salary increase when it’s all said and done. They have both earned a raise with their play. Quite frankly, they are bargains for what they have produced on the court. I think the Hawks want them back and are prepared to pay each. I think the players want to come back based on the success of the team and their increased roles in Atlanta. However, once teams start making offers you never really know what will happen.

Hoops Rumors: It doesn’t seem as though there’s been a shortage of potential bidders for the team, but you wrote that the sale process could drag on into June. Why do you think it’s taking so long?

Chris Vivlamore: I wish I had a good answer for this question. I can just say with an organization that is so structured with different groups and individuals — who are so divided — that the smallest of details take forever to complete. The process of selling the franchise and arena is a huge undertaking to get every group on the same page – or at least in enough agreement to move forward.

Hawks Sign Austin Daye To Two-Year Deal

April 4th, 2015 at 9:44am CST by Chuck Myron

SATURDAY, 9:44am: The signing is official, the Hawks announced in a press release.

1:55pm: Next year’s salary will be non-guaranteed, according to Vivlamore (Twitter link).

12:53pm: Daye’s new contract will cover next season as well, Vivlamore also reports (on Twitter).

12:22pm: The Hawks will indeed sign Daye, Vivlamore confirms (Twitter link).

12:05pm: Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer didn’t confirm that the team would sign Daye for the season, but he dropped a hint, saying, “I would say he’s in a good place,” as Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution relays.

FRIDAY, 11:42am: The Hawks are expected to sign Austin Daye through at least the end of the season, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). Daye’s second 10-day contract with the team expires overnight tonight.

Daye’s playing time has been sparse during his time with Atlanta, as he’s averaged 3.0 points in 6.6 minutes per game across five appearances. He saw 10.3 MPG in 26 games with San Antonio earlier this season, but the last time he averaged double figures in that category was 2012/13, the season the Pistons traded him to the Grizzlies. That ended a tenure with Detroit that began when the team made him the 15th overall pick in 2009. The veteran small forward won’t offer the Hawks much in the way of playoff experience, since he’s only played a total of 26 postseason minutes.

Atlanta’s other 14 players already have contracts that carry through the end of this season or beyond, but the team has retained flexibility with its other roster spot since trading Adreian Payne, the No. 15 pick from 2014, to the Timberwolves in early February. It originally seemed as though the club had made the trade in part to clear room on the roster to ink sought-after free agent Ray Allen, but he decided against playing in the NBA this season. The Hawks have cycled through 10-day contracts with Daye and Jarell Eddie instead, as our 10-Day Contract Tracker shows, but now it appears they’ve settled on Daye.

Eastern Notes: Napier, Lopez, Tavares

April 1st, 2015 at 7:57pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Shabazz Napier underwent successful surgery to repair a sports hernia, the Heat announced. The point guard is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season, though no mention was made about Napier’s availability for the playoffs, should Miami hold onto its postseason spot. The Heat currently hold a half game lead over the Nets for the seventh seed in the East. In 51 appearances for the Heat as a rookie, Napier averaged 5.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports hears estimates that Brook Lopez would draw offers with annual salaries of $13-14MM in a new deal this summer if he turns down his player option, as Wojnarowski said in a radio appearance with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on WFAN-AM (transcription via NetsDaily). Lopez’s option with the Nets is worth more than $16.744MM, but a long-term deal would guarantee him more.
A report Tuesday linked Brad Stevens to the University of Texas opening, but the idea that he’ll be coaching any team other than the Celtics anytime soon is far-fetched, as Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com explains. Stevens has indicated that he has no intentions of leaving Boston, flatly telling reporters today, “I’ll be in Boston,” as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com relays.
The Hawks intend to bring 2014 draftee Edy Tavares, who is also known as Walter Tavares, to the NBA next season, David Pick of Eurobasket.com tweets. Tavares’ deal with CB Gran Canaria contains NBA outs, Pick adds. The 7’3″ center was selected with the No. 43 pick in last year’s NBA draft.
The Cavs have recalled guard Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Harris has played in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 31.7 minutes per contest.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Executive Of The Year Candidate: Danny Ferry

March 28th, 2015 at 11:08pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Hawks GM Danny Ferry has had his troubles off the court and is currently still on an indefinite leave of absence. On the court, the team he put together has surpassed expectations on its way to locking up the top seed in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks are 55-18 on the season with a roster void of a true superstar. Atlanta currently ranks fourth in the league on defense in terms of raw points allowed, giving up 97.0 points per game, and 10th on offense, scoring 102.4 points per game. The Spurs are the only other team in the league to rank in the top 10 in both categories.

Team building isn’t usually done in one year. There are exceptions, like the 2008 Celtics, where the main parts of the team come together in one offseason. However, the Executive of the Year award usually exists to honor the culmination of all the transactions that a GM or team president has made in order to turn a roster into a masterpiece on the court.

Atlanta hired Ferry after the 2011/12 season and about a week later, he traded Joe Johnson, who was the team’s leading scorer, to the Nets. While the trade didn’t bring immediate help, it allowed for future flexibility. Later in the offseason, Ferry acquired Kyle Korver from the Bulls in exchange for cash. After the 2012/13 season, Ferry hired Mike Budenholzer, who is a favorite to win the 2014/15 Coach of the Year.

During the same offseason, Ferry signed Paul Millsap. The forward was coming off a good season with Utah and most likely expected to land a deal that vastly exceeded the two-year, $19MM contract he signed with Atlanta. Having such a productive player on such a team-friendly pact does wonders for the roster-building process; just ask the Mavs, who were able to offer Chandler Parsons a bloated offer sheet because of Dirk Nowitzki’s team-friendly deal. Millsap’s deal isn’t as far below market value as Nowitzki’s deal is, but it allows for tremendous flexibility in roster construction all the same.

To become an Eastern Conference power, the Hawks never went into full rebuild mode. Ferry has never had the opportunity to pluck potential stars from the top of the draft, as the Hawks haven’t had a pick higher than No. 15 under his reign. Instead, like most good GMs, he had to search through the third and fourth tier of prospects to find players who could make an NBA rotation and contribute. He found contributors in 2012 second round pick Mike Scott and 2013 No. 17 overall pick Dennis Schroder. Both players have been key in helping the Hawks achieve their goals this season.

All of Ferry’s moves have put the Hawks in the position they’re in, but he has been absent from the team for most of the league year. Although some of the Hawks players seem to be open to having him back in the front office, uncertainty with the team’s ownership situation makes a resolution in the near future unlikely. Budenholzer has been running the front office in Ferry’s absence, and perhaps Budenholzer should be a candidate for the award himself. In a vacuum, Ferry probably would win Executive of the Year, as the team has a decent shot at winning the Eastern Conference while being under the salary cap, but the perils of his candidacy make it unlikely he takes home the honor.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Southeast Notes: Harris, Jefferson, Heat, Wittman

March 26th, 2015 at 2:35pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Lakers, Knicks, Sixers and Hawks have been linked to soon-to-be restricted free agent Tobias Harris, but the belief is that the Magic would match just about any offer of less than $13MM a year, according to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, who looks at Harris and other top free agents. It’s unclear whether those four non-Orlando teams are interested, Harris is interested in them, or both, though the Knicks are reportedly planning a pursuit amid conflicting reports about whether he’s eager to play for them. Kyler wrote earlier this month that there’s a sense that the Sixers will make a play for Harris, too. Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

It’s likely that Al Jefferson will turn down his $13.5MM player option for next season, Kyler writes in the same piece, adding that while the belief is that he’d like to remain with the Hornets, there’s also a sense that the 30-year-old will go to the highest bidder in free agency.
Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel wonders whether the Heat will sign a big man to help a thin frontcourt rotation in the wake of Hassan Whiteside‘s injury. Whiteside is out at least a few more days with a hand laceration that will probably take two weeks to heal completely, as Jason Lieser of the Palm Beach Post relays. The Heat were reportedly among the teams with interest in signing JaVale McGee earlier this month.
Coaches rarely last in the NBA, but SB Nation’s Tom Ziller argues that the Wizards have been too patient with Randy Wittman.

Hawks Sign Austin Daye To Second 10-Day

March 25th, 2015 at 9:01am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 9:01am: The deal is official, the team announced via press release.

12:27pm: The team will indeed sign Daye to another 10-day contract, Vivlamore reports (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 10:19am: The Hawks haven’t made a final decision about whether to sign Austin Daye to a second 10-day contract, but “indications are” that the former 15th overall pick will be back for at least another short-term stint, tweets Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. That’s in spite of a better-than-expected prognosis for Mike Scott, whose toe injury prompted the team to sign Daye to his first 10-day deal, which expires overnight tonight.

Daye has played just nine minutes across two games for Atlanta, draining a three-pointer for his only make in four shot attempts. Still, he spent nearly a calendar year in a similar system with San Antonio, and he averaged 4.0 points in 10.3 minutes per game during 26 appearances for the Spurs this season before the team waived him in January to sign JaMychal Green instead. It was nonetheless inefficient play, at least as his 7.3 PER with the Spurs this season would indicate, and he and San Antonio didn’t circle back to each other after the Spurs failed to re-sign Green upon the expiration of his 10-day deal. Daye instead spent a brief time with the Magic’s D-League team.

Atlanta has 14 players signed through at least the end of the season, so Daye occupies the team’s lone flexible roster spot. Jarell Eddie was in that spot on a 10-day contract that expired just before Daye joined the team.

Eastern Notes: Young, Price, Robinson

March 24th, 2015 at 5:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Thomas Robinson is making a strong case that he should be a part of the Sixers‘ future plans, Bob Cooney of The Philadelphia Daily News writes. “I’ve never played this much before and never played this consistently, so this is my first time getting an opportunity,” Robinson said. “You always want that momentum. This time of the year, it’s hard mentally when you know you’re not playing for anything. Us, in this locker room, we want to go out with momentum and know that we’re getting better, and we’ll go into the summer where we’ll know that we have a platform to start on. That’s all that really matters right now.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Celtics have assigned James Young to the Maine Red Claws, their D-League affiliate, the team announced. This will be Young’s eleventh trek of the season to Maine. The swingman has appeared in 11 contests for the Red Claws this season and is averaging 22.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals in 33.2 minutes per game.
Thabo Sefolosha is expected to make his return to the Hawks‘ lineup on Wednesday night against the Magic, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports tweets. Sefolosha has been sidelined since January 30th with a calf injury.
Hornets assistant coach Mark Price has been offered the head coaching position at UNC Charlotte, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com reports. Sources told Goodman that Price has been offered a five-year deal and is mulling whether or not to accept it.

Southeast Notes: Sessions, Deng, Oden, Scott

March 24th, 2015 at 9:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Ramon Sessions is growing more comfortable with the Wizards, especially offensively, after a deadline-day trade that brought him to Washington ended a brief and unusual tenure with the Kings, as Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post details.

“I’ve been around for a while and I’ve been around with a few different teams and it was probably one of the strangest things, to have three coaches by the All-Star break,” Sessions said. “A lot different things you’re hearing from different people and it didn’t really correlate with what was going on on the court. So it was tough. It definitely was tough. Me being an older guy, it was a little easier, but I know for some of the young guys it had to be real tough.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast Division:

The Suns reportedly had interest in Luol Deng at last year’s trade deadline and during this past offseason‘s free agency, but they didn’t ask about him as they negotiated the Goran Dragic deal with the Heat last month, Grantland’s Zach Lowe reports.
The Heat have been planning a free agency push for 2016, but that’ll be difficult unless team president Pat Riley wants to break up the core he has now, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel examines.
Ohio State coach Thad Matta has suggested that Greg Oden will make another NBA comeback attempt, but the former No. 1 overall pick had limited passion for the game last season with the Heat, Winderman writes in the same piece.
The toe injury that’s sidelined Hawks power forward Mike Scott doesn’t involve a broken bone as previously reported, writes Paul Newberry of The Associated Press. Scott was reportedly expected to miss four to six weeks as of a week ago, but now it’s likely he’ll be back at full strength for the playoffs, according to Newberry. The postseason begins three weeks from Saturday. The team’s 10-day contract with Austin Daye, whom the Hawks signed to offset the loss of Scott, expires overnight tonight.

Southeast Notes: Ferry, Bazemore, Bosh, MKG

March 18th, 2015 at 9:06pm CST by Charlie Adams

Kent Bazemore admits that Danny Ferry‘s name gets brought up in the Hawks‘ locker room quite a bit and the guard believes Ferry deserves credit for putting a championship contender together, as he tells Charles Bethea in an interview for Grantland.com.

“[Ferry is] definitely a huge part of this year’s success. It was unfortunate what happened, but that doesn’t change the way I feel about Mr. Ferry. I flew into Atlanta this summer and had lunch with him. And he’s a great guy,” Bazemore said. “We sat there, we laughed, we joked. He has a huge group of friends, believe it or not, in the NBA. So I look at it as a business. He’s trying to do his best for his organization, and he’s done a great job of getting the right guys in and creating a team that’s number one in the East and almost the best team in the NBA right now, recordwise. He could win the GM award.”

In our latest poll, about 30% of Hoops Rumors readers believe Ferry should win the Executive of the Year award. As we wait to see whether or not the summer controversy surrounding the Hawks prevents Ferry from taking home the trophy, we’ll round up more from the Southeast:

Bazemore, before signing his two year, $4MM deal with the Hawks, played last season with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. Some have suggested that free agents would be disinterested in signing with Los Angeles because of Bryant. Bazemore tells Bethea that that’s simply not the case and that it wasn’t difficult to play with the 17-time All-Star.
Chris Bosh isn’t letting his season-ending injury prevent him from contributing to the Heat, as Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel observes (subscription only link). Bosh has been playing the role of an assistant coach, and Dwyane Wade is supportive of what the big man brings to the bench. “If he sees something, he’ll come to you and he’ll tell you,” said Wade. “He’s been exciting. He’s been into it. I think he’s just enjoying being around the game again. We feel his excitement. It’s just good just to look over there and see him.”
Hornets coach Steve Clifford believes Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has the talent to become the best perimeter defender in this generation of NBA players, according to Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Kidd-Gilchrist becomes extension-eligible this summer, and such strong words likely indicate the Hornets would prefer to keep the Kentucky product around going forward.

Chris Crouse contributed to this post.

Southeast Notes: Beasley, Bazemore, Magic

March 17th, 2015 at 7:29pm CST by Charlie Adams

The Hornets and Heat are two of the five clubs competing for the final pair of playoff spots in the East, and Charlotte will have a chance to move into a tie with Miami for the eighth seed if they can find a way to steal a win from the Clippers tonight in Los Angeles. While there’s still over a month left in the regular season, it wouldn’t be shocking to see four of the Southeast’s five teams end up with postseason berths. We’ve got the latest from around that division below..

Erik Spoelstra pointed to Michael Beasley’s familiarity with the Heat’s system as a major reason why the club went after him once his season ended in China, observes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel (subscription required). The 26-year-old called the roster movement he’s been a part of throughout his career “humbling” and admitted he’ll need to continue to work hard every night if he wants to stick in Miami.
It wasn’t exactly a splashy signing when Kent Bazemore inked a two-year, $4MM deal with the Hawks last summer, but Jeff Teague and others from Atlanta’s locker room contend that the third-year guard’s presence has been a boon to the club’s chemistry and overall success, according to Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Shaun Powell of NBA.com breaks down James Borrego’s coaching credentials and wonders if his popularity among the Magic players and relative success so far as interim head coach could lead Orlando’s front office to keep him at the helm of the club going forward.