- Top international prospect Dragan Bender is coming stateside this month, but he may work out for just three NBA teams when he arrives, according to Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link), who hears that the Celtics figure to be among those clubs.
Last month, we heard that former Providence point guard Kris Dunn may refuse to release his medical records to the Celtics and Suns, since he prefers not to land with a team with a young point guard or two already in place. John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM is hearing similar rumblings, tweeting that Dunn isn’t interested in working out for Phoenix or sharing his medical records with the Suns — Gambardo hears that the point guard would like to land with the Timberwolves.
Let’s check out a few more draft-related updates…
- While the Celtics may not be Dunn’s preferred destination, ESPN’s Chad Ford (Insider link) has the Providence product going to Boston at No. 3 in his latest mock draft, writing that he thinks the C’s will choose one of Dunn, Jamal Murray, or Marquese Chriss. Dragan Bender, who has also been viewed as a candidate for that No. 3 pick, goes sixth overall in Ford’s latest mock, with the ESPN.com scribe writing that the Pelicans are believed to be “pretty big fans” of the 18-year-old big man.
- Also within his mock draft, Ford writes that Kings GM Vlade Divac and owner Vivek Ranadive love Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield, and suggests that the Raptors have been “secretly hoping” Chriss falls to them at No. 9, which appears increasingly unlikely.
- Former Seton Hall point guard Isaiah Whitehead has workouts with the Nuggets and Pistons lined up for June 10th and 15th, respectively, and will work out for the Bulls and Nets after that, according to Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- After working out for Philadelphia on Thursday, Daniel Hamilton (UConn) will work out for the Rockets, Warriors, and Bucks, while Alex Caruso (Texas A&M) will work out for the Knicks, Wizards, and Celtics, per Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter links).
Celtics coach Brad Stevens, who received a contract extension from the team this week, isn’t looking for a larger role or louder voice in the franchise’s decision-making process, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes. “My voice is plenty loud,” said Stevens. “I’m not worried about that.” The coach trusts not only the front office, but the members of his coaching staff as well, to do their jobs, leaving him to coach, Blakely adds. “Those guys have a lot of responsibility to help, grow and enhance young players,” Stevens continued. “We all have a role to play. Certainly my opinion is asked but I’m not involved in the day to day. It’s good. We all just try to play our role as well as we can. We have great ownership that allows us to do that.”
- French shooting guard Isaia Cordinier also worked out for the Sixers today and also has workouts scheduled with the Hawks, Celtics, Raptors and Pelicans, Camerato tweets.
- The Celtics liked what they saw from Dragan Bender during their overseas scouting trip despite the big man only seeing limited action while playing on a talented Maccabi Tel Aviv squad, Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald relays. “It’s a small body of work, but he was very good last year as a junior,” said Austin Ainge, Boston’s director of player personnel. “Combine that with the tools he has, and you can see it all come together in 10 minutes of playing time.”
- Texas A&M prospect Danuel House has a busy workout schedule, according to Deveney. House has worked out for the 76ers and Celtics, and will work out for the Knicks, Hawks, Lakers, Mavericks, and Timberwolves within the next couple weeks. The Suns and Pistons are also expected to be added to his list of visits, per Deveney, who says House looked good against Cal freshman Jaylen Brown at his workout with Boston.
[SOURCE LINK]
Before the NBA offseason gets underway in earnest, the Celtics have given new contracts to two key members of their organization, announcing today in a press release that general manager Danny Ainge and head coach Brad Stevens have signed extensions. Terms of those new deals have not yet been disclosed.
“A major job of ownership is to find the right people to run the basketball side,” Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck said in a statement. “We believe we have found them in Danny and Brad. Once you find your people, you need to support them in their efforts and create a work environment that enables them and the team to succeed. If all of that is in place, the topic of extending contracts becomes an easy one, because everybody wants to keep moving forward together.”
Stevens, who took over as the Celtics’ head coach in 2013, has a losing record overall, but the team has made tremendous strides under his watch. After winning just 25 games in 2013/14, Boston won 40 and 48 in Stevens’ next two seasons, earning playoff berths in both years. Stevens’ contract with the Celtics was a six-year pact and wasn’t set to expire until 2019, so the team has made a very early decision to extend it, signalling how pleased the franchise is with its coach.
“Brad has demonstrated the ability to get the very best out of his players,” Grousbeck said. “A number of guys have had career years playing for him: Isaiah Thomas and Jae Crowder, for example. And our young players have been developing very nicely. [Stevens] is a natural leader and a very skilled, strategic coach who is the right man to coach the Celtics.”
As for Ainge, he has been the Celtics’ GM since 2003, so his latest extension doesn’t come as a surprise. As a result of Ainge’s maneuvering, Boston holds eight picks in this year’s draft – including the No. 3 overall selection from Brooklyn – and has an excess of picks lined up for future years as well.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Evan Turner has made a change to his representation, according to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News, who reports (via Twitter) that Turner has fired agent David Falk. The veteran guard will now be repped by Kevin Bradbury of BDA Sports, says Deveney.
It’s a big summer for Turner, who is eligible for unrestricted free agency in a month. Despite being a second overall pick in the 2010 draft, Turner signed a fairly modest second contract with the Celtics, inking a two-year deal worth about $6.7MM in 2014.
The 27-year-old has been extremely durable in recent years, missing just two regular-season games over the last four seasons, and he set a new career high by shooting 45.6% from the field in 2015/16. Turner isn’t about to morph into a superstar overnight, but he was a solid role player in Boston, and with the salary cap on the rise, he has a chance at a decent payday this offseason.
Turner did say in May that he’d be open to the idea of taking a “hometown discount” to stay with the Celtics, but we’ll see if that comes to fruition when he’s given the opportunity to talk to other teams in July. At that time, it’ll be Bradbury, not Falk, who is tasked with negotiating Turner’s next NBA contract.
League insiders believe the second-round win over the Spurs was enough to keep Kevin Durant in Oklahoma City, according to Bobby Marks of The Vertical. In a video, Marks says the most likely scenario is for Durant to sign a one-year deal with the Thunder worth about $25.9MM that includes a player option for 2017/18.
Next summer, Durant will have 10 years of NBA experience and will become a Tier Three Max player, which means Oklahoma City could offer him more than $200MM over five seasons. If Durant opts for a long-term deal this offseason, OKC can offer five years at about $145MM. Risks involved in choosing a single-season deal are Durant’s injury history and the possibility of a new collective bargaining agreement next year that would shake up the league’s salary structure. Marks lists the Spurs, Heat, Celtics and Warriors as teams expected to make a run at Durant, while ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter) adds the Rockets, Knicks, Lakers, and Wizards to that list.
Durant told Sam Amick of USA Today that he was able to push the free agency issue aside and concentrate fully on every playoff game. “If this would have happened four years ago, I would have been everywhere – my mind would have been everywhere,” he said. “So I’m happy that I was able to focus and lock in and give my all to my team every single night.” Whether it’s a clue to his decision or not, Durant later added, “I see bright things for this team. And it’s great to be a part of it.”
San Antonio, Miami and Golden State are the top contenders if Durant decides to go elsewhere, writes Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. Isola contends the Knicks could be helped if Durant opts for a one-year contract because it gives them another season to improve, along with another year of growth for rookie Kristaps Porzingis.
The Knicks hurt their case when they fired coach Derek Fisher, Durant’s former teammate, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. Two advantages they have are that Carmelo Anthony, who has a good relationship with Durant, wants to be part of the recruitment process, and that Durant’s father is a longtime fan of the Knicks. However, New York assistant Brian Keefe, who was Durant’s workout partner in Oklahoma City, reportedly won’t be part of Jeff Hornacek’s new staff.
The odds against Durant signing with the Heat are even greater than they were against LeBron James coming to Miami in 2010, argues Ethan Skolnick of The Miami Herald. Skolnick writes that team president Pat Riley’s best chance is to sell Durant on the possibility of winning a championship with the Heat. However, the 55-win Thunder are also serious title contenders, Durant doesn’t have a close relationship with any of the Miami players like James did with Dwyane Wade and the new restrictions on sign-and-trade deals make it more difficult for players to recoup whatever money they give up to sign with another team.
Durant and the Clippers could both change their postseason fortunes if they unite, writes Dan Woike of The Orange County Register. Woike notes that L.A. won’t have the money to pursue the OKC star because two thirds of its cap room is tied up in Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan, but he argues that it might be worth trading one of those three to create the room to sign Durant.
Durant’s friendship with James Harden and the addition of an offensive-minded coach in Mike D’Antoni give the Rockets a least a fighting chance of landing Durant, according to Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com. In addition, Rex Kalamian, who may join D’Antoni’s staff, coached both Harden and Durant when he was an assistant with the Thunder.
- Danny Ainge, the Celtics‘ president of basketball operations, is in Israel this weekend to scout Dragan Bender, according to Mike Petraglia of WEEI. Ainge was accompanied by his son, Austin, who serves as director of player personnel. They planned to watch Bender practice Saturday and today, but will not see him in a game. The 18-year-old is considered a possibility with Boston’s No. 3 pick in next month’s draft.
The Sixers’ need at point guard and the Celtics’ desire for help in the front court make them natural trading partners, says Jessica Camerato of CSNPhilly. In a TV interview, she addressed rumors of a possible swap between the teams that would include Boston’s No. 3 pick and one of Philadelphia’s young big men, Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel. Camerato thinks the Celtics would have to throw in a player — someone like Marcus Smart or Avery Bradley — and it would be a fair exchange because Boston would be getting a recent draftee who already has NBA experience. The Sixers would probably target Kris Dunn of Providence or Jamal Murray of Kentucky with that third pick.
There’s more out of Philadelphia:
- If the Celtics have a choice in the deal, they should take Noel, opines Josue Pavon of WEEI. Pavon believes the 22-year-old Noel would be the rim protector that Boston needs and would be a better alternative than chasing Hassan Whiteside or Bismack Biyombo in free agency. Pavon speculates that the Sixers would ask less for Noel than for Okafor, and that the Celtics might be able to obtain him for the No. 3 pick, multiple second-round choices and a prospect such as Terry Rozier or James Young.
- The Celtics shouldn’t give up too much for either Noel or Okafor, says A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. Blakely notes that Boston has been slowly working its way into contender status, and he doesn’t believe either player significantly accelerates that process.
- Ben Simmons hasn’t made a public comment since the Sixers won the draft lottery last week, writes John Smallwood of The Philadelphia Daily News. Smallwood says he can’t find a statement from Simmons on anything since he signed with the Klutch firm in March. In contrast, Duke’s Brandon Ingram, considered the other top candidate for Philly’s No. 1 choice, interviewed with the Sixers at the draft combine earlier this month. Smallwood says Simmons’ actions add to the perception that he wants Philadelphia to bypass him so he can go to the Lakers with the second pick. Still, the Sixers have a “strong preference” for Simmons, tweets Derek Bodner of PhillyMag.com, and he should be considered a heavy favorite to go at No. 1.
The Celtics have just one player (Evan Turner) currently in line for unrestricted free agency this summer, but with Amir Johnson and Jonas Jerebko on non-guaranteed deals for 2016/17, and Jared Sullinger and Tyler Zeller facing restricted free agency, there could be a decent amount of roster turnover in Boston. Of course, that doesn’t mean we should expect the Celtics to select players with all eight(!) draft picks they’ve stockpiled for 2016, but those selections, along with the affordable guaranteed salaries and the max cap room on Boston’s books, give the team some interesting options for the offseason. General manager Danny Ainge will be tasked with making sure all the puzzle pieces fit together, and while he has a ton of assets to work with, it remains to be seen whether Ainge can maximize them to turn a solid playoff team into a championship contender.
See how Boston’s cap situation looks for 2016/17 as Hoops Rumors continues its offseason salary cap digest series.
Guaranteed Salary
- Avery Bradley ($8,269,663)
- Isaiah Thomas ($6,587,132)
- Jae Crowder ($6,286,408)
- Marcus Smart ($3,578,880)
- Kelly Olynyk ($3,094,013)
- Terry Rozier ($1,906,440)
- James Young ($1,825,200)
- Jordan Mickey ($1,223,653)
- R.J. Hunter ($1,200,240)
- Total: $33,971,629
Player Options
- None
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- Amir Johnson ($12,000,000)
- Jonas Jerebko ($5,000,000)
- John Holland ($874,636)
- Total: $17,874,636
Restricted Free Agents (Qualifying Offers/Cap Holds)
- Jared Sullinger ($4,433,683/$5,673,150)
- Tyler Zeller ($3,695,169/$6,542,438)
- Totals: $8,128,852/$12,215,588
Unrestricted Free Agents (Cap Holds)
- Evan Turner ($4,453,163)
Other Cap Holds
- No. 3 pick ($3,952,500)
- Luigi Datome ($2,275,000)
- No. 16 pick ($1,573,500)
- No. 23 pick ($1,151,900)
- Total: $8,952,900
Projected Salary Cap: $92,000,000
The Basketball Insiders salary pages were used in the creation of this post.