Boston Celtics Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Eastern Rumors: Love, Raptors, Stevens

May 3rd, 2015 at 4:22pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kevin Love has a complicated relationship with LeBron James but there’s a good chance that he will remain with the Cavaliers even if he opts out of the final year of his contract this summer, according to Bob Finnan of The News-Herald. James has not spoken to Love about his future plans but said that Love is focused on recovering from shoulder surgery rather than his free-agency options, Finnan adds. Early indications are that Love wants to remain in Cleveland, though Love would draw significant offers on the market despite the injury he suffered during the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, Finnan contends. Love has already proven his quality and his potential suitors will look at that rather than being overly concerned about his recovery, Finnan adds.

In other news around the Eastern Conference:

Trail Blazers guard Wesley Matthews would be a good fit for the Raptors, Doug Smith of the Toronto Sun opines in his weekly mailbag. Matthews, an unrestricted free agent this summer, averaged 15.9 points this season until he suffered a season-ending Achilles’ tendon injury. Toronto should not overspend this summer on the market, even though it also needs help in the frontcourt as well as the wing positions, because it will need plenty of salary-cap room in the summer of 2016, Smith continues. The Raptors should also be patient with center Jonas Valanciunas, Smith argues, pointing out that other top-caliber centers such as Joakim Noah, Roy Hibbert, Tyson Chandler and Marc Gasol need time to develop.
Brad Stevens has made such a strong impression in his first two seasons with the Celtics that other teams are looking at college coaches much differently when shopping for a new head coach, Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe reports. Stevens’ poised, professional approach to the job, as well as the way he has bonded with younger players and built relationships with veterans, has made it more palatable for NBA teams to look at top-level college coaches, Washburn continues. It paved the way for the Thunder to hire Florida’s Billy Donovan and strongly consider Connecticut’s Kevin Ollie even though the team is in a win-now mode, Washburn adds. Stevens had the benefit of being handed a younger club without many older players to challenge him in the locker room but his transition to the pros has still been an eye-opener, Washburn concludes.

Atlantic Notes: Towns, Sixers, Nets, Sullinger

May 3rd, 2015 at 8:53am CST by Arthur Hill

Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns said Knicks president Phil Jackson has the “presence” he’s looking for in his NBA experience, reports Marc Berman of The New York Post. “He knows how to win,” Towns said. “At the end of the day, what every player wants to do is win. If I have the opportunity to ever play for the Knicks, that’s what I would love to do.’’ Towns, who is expected to be the first or second player taken in next month’s draft, declined to say if he is rooting for the Knicks — or any other team — to land the top pick. Berman notes that Jackson has said repeatedly that he wants a defensive-oriented center, indicating a preference for Towns over Duke’s Jahlil Okafor.

There’s more this morning from the Atlantic Division:

Towns would be a better fit than Okafor with the Sixers, contends Tom Moore of Calkins Media. He argues that Towns’ shooting range and perimeter defense make him an intriguing frontcourt partner for Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid.
Count Joe Johnson among the many Nets who expect major changes this offseason, writes Roderick Boone of Newsday. “I’m sure something is going to happen,” Johnson said. “I don’t know what, but I don’t see us coming back with the same team. This is my third year here and I could see if each year we’ve gotten better, but it’s kind of been the opposite.” Brook Lopez, Thaddeus Young and Alan Anderson can all opt out of their current deals. Anderson has already said he plans to test the market, while Lopez and Young haven’t committed. Mirza Teletovic can become an unrestricted free agent if the Nets don’t submit a qualifying offer.
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge said Jared Sullinger needs to improve his conditioning if he wants to prosper in the NBA, according to Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald. “I’m a big fan of Jared’s, and I think he has a very, very bright future,” Ainge said. “But I think he’s hurting the longevity of his career and his play now by not being in as good of shape as he can be in.” Sullinger is still on his rookie contract and is under Boston’s control through the 2016/17 season.

Celtics Rumors: Ainge, Jerebko, Bass, Crowder

May 2nd, 2015 at 9:50pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics are looking forward to having cap space this summer for the first time in recent memory, according to Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com. The team has to renounce some trade exceptions and cap holds (including Stephon Marbury and Shaquille O’Neal) to get there, but president of basketball operations Danny Ainge is enjoying the thought of having some ammunition — possibly as much as $33.2MM — to chase free agents. “We need to use that space wisely,” Ainge said. “We can’t just spend it just because we have it.”

There’s much more from Boston:

The Celtics have important decisions to make on unrestricted free agents Jonas Jerebko and Brandon Bass, Forsberg writes in a separate story. He says Boston would like to keep Jerebko, who became an important bench player after being acquired in a trade with the Pistons. However, Jerebko’s large cap hold could make that problematic, and a decision will have to be made before the Celtics can start pursuing free agents. Forsberg adds that the team’s depth at power forward will likely make Bass expendable.
Ainge wouldn’t commit to bringing back Jerebko or Bass — or restricted free agents Gigi Datome and Jae Crowder — but he had encouraging words for all four, writes Brian Robb of Boston.com. “I would just say that we like all of them to some degree,” Ainge replied. “Some of it’s going to be dependent on numbers and roster spots and draft and trades and everything else.”
To become a contender, the Celtics need to find a rim protector, more size and depth in the frontcourt and a true superstar, contends Rich Levine of CSNNE.com. He also touts Crowder and Marcus Smart as the only current Celtics worthy of being locked up to long-term deals.

Eastern Notes: Magic, Celtics, Middleton

May 2nd, 2015 at 3:11pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Magic‘s biggest need heading into the 2015 NBA draft is for a rim protector who can also stretch the floor with his shooting, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel writes. Two players who could fill that need, and who Orlando could look to select in the first round, are Kristaps Porzingis or Willie Cauley-Stein, Robbins notes. While Porzingis may have a higher ceiling, the Magic’s need to win now may predicate the team targeting the more NBA-ready big man in Cauley-Stein, the Sentinel scribe adds. Orlando had hoped it found the stretch-four it was seeking when the team inked Channing Frye to a four-year, $32MM contract last summer. But Frye only notched averages of 7.3 points and 3.9 rebounds in his 75 appearances for the team in 2014/15.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

The Nets have not picked up the team option on assistant GM Bobby Marks‘ contract for 2015/16, Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com reports (Twitter links). The deadline to do so was May 1st, though the team could still elect to extend Marks’ deal once other offseason personnel decisions have been made, Mazzeo adds.
Celtics coach Brad Stevens is looking forward to what he hopes is a productive offseason for the franchise, Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe writes. When asked what he was most excited about this summer, Stevens responded, “I like the draft. I think it’s a fun thing to watch guys, to come in to learn, to meet them in interviews, to talk to them. I know a lot of them or at least a lot about them. And then free agency, we didn’t get a chance to experience it much last year because we didn’t have any [salary cap] space. And we knew that. We made a couple of calls but really we didn’t have any chance, because we didn’t have very much money available.“
Khris Middleton, coming off of a season where he averaged 13.4 points and 4.4 rebounds, both career highs, is likely in line for a hefty pay raise this summer. The Bucks can make the 23-year-old a restricted free agent if they tender him a qualifying offer worth $2,725,003. For his part, Middleton hopes to re-sign with Milwaukee this offseason, Matt Velazquez of The Journal Sentinel writes. “I got here, nobody really knew what to expect,” Middleton said. “We had a terrible season, then this year I feel like we found our foundation of what we can be and what we can become. I feel like we have a great young team going in the right direction. Would love to be a part of that here.“

Southwest Notes: Parsons, Villanueva, Fredette

May 2nd, 2015 at 1:09pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Chandler Parsons underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on Friday to address a cartilage injury to his right knee, the Mavericks announced. While no timetable for the 26-year-old was relayed, Parsons had previously stated that he might not be recovered in time for the start of NBA training camp next season. The forward just completed the first season of the three-year, $46.08MM deal he signed last summer. Parsons appeared in 66 games for the Mavs this season, averaging 15.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 33.1 minutes per contest.

Here’s more out of the NBA’s Southwest Division:

Mavs big man Charlie Villanueva, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, wants to return to Dallas and play for coach Rick Carlisle, Tim Cato of SBNation tweets. “I’ve been in the league 10 years and been coached by nine coaches. I’d love to have the same coach,” Villanueva said.
Jimmer Fredette is also an unrestricted free agent this summer, and the 26-year-old’s career is at a crossroads, Jay Yeomans of The Deseret News writes. If the guard is to remain in the NBA he will need to find a team that runs a system he can be productive in, as well as one that will use him as a shooter rather than a point guard, Yeomans opines. In 50 games for the Pelicans this past season, Fredette averaged 3.6 PPG and 1.2 APG in 10.2 minutes per contest.
While Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was aware of Rajon Rondo‘s volatile nature, the executive was caught off guard by how quickly things soured for the point guard after being dealt to the Mavericks, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News relays. “I am very surprised, yeah,” said Ainge. “I really don’t know what happened, other than media reports. So I probably shouldn’t comment any further on that. I like both individuals [Rondo and coach Rick Carlisle] and I’m very surprised it didn’t work out better.“

Celtics Notes: Thomas, Ainge, Offseason

May 1st, 2015 at 6:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge believes that Boston is indeed a marquee destination for free agents, but the team needs to be more aggressive in how it markets itself to players, Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald writes. “Most of the guys that have played here love it here, and they don’t want to leave once they’re here,” Ainge said. “Not all of them are really excited about coming here when they first get here, but usually by the time they leave they love the organization and they love the city. So we need to get that word out. Some players will like it and some won’t. It’s that simple. Some players will choose sunshine over cold, but ultimately, most players want to be paid, they want an opportunity to play their game and be respected by the league, and they want an opportunity to win.”

Here’s more out of Beantown:

Ainge also addressed point guard Isaiah Thomas‘ desire to be a starter, and pointed to past Celtics stars who embraced the sixth man role for the franchise, Bulpett notes. “Isaiah is one of the top point guards in the league, so I understand that,” Ainge said. “I think that what makes him great is he’s a driven guy who really wants to be recognized as one of the great little guys that’s ever played basketball, and I guess to encourage him to feel like he can still do that by coming off the bench, a la John Havlicek and Kevin McHale and Cedric Maxwell and many of the Celtic greats that came off the bench. But like right now for our team I think Isaiah is more suited for a bench role, but ultimately that’s Brad Stevens’ and Isaiah’s, you know, how he plays and Brad’s decisions, because Isaiah expends a ton of energy to score.“
The Celtics’ front office isn’t sure what the trade market will hold this offseason, or if the franchise will be able to capitalize on its wealth of trade exceptions, Bulpett writes in a separate article. “I mean, all we can do is guess,” said Ainge. “We can guess like the fans can guess, but no one really knows. Hey, I don’t know. There haven’t been any talks since trade deadline. Occasionally, when you have trade-deadline conversations where the trigger wasn’t pulled on certain deals, we may have some indication of players that are available or may be available. I feel like we need to have a busy summer, and we will have a busy summer.“

Celtics Likely To Seek DeMarcus Cousins

May 1st, 2015 at 2:21pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:21pm: The Celtics have been enamored with Cousins for years, but Ranadive almost certainly wouldn’t approve a trade that sends him out, tweets Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee.

8:23am: The “early word” indicates that the Celtics will try to trade for DeMarcus Cousins this summer, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Indeed, the Celtics will likely be in the hunt for just about every marquee player who might become available in the months ahead, Stein writes, echoing comments that president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made Thursday. LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Monroe, Paul Millsap and Omer Asik are among the many free agents whom Boston is expected to make a run at, as A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com details. Reports conflicted about whether Boston made a run at trading for Cousins before the deadline.

A person familiar with Kings coach George Karl‘s thinking told Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck in February that the Kings didn’t rule out trading their All-Star center at the deadline, and Karl said last month that there were no untouchables on the roster. However, Vlade Divac, whom the Kings installed in March as the head of their basketball operations, is enamored with Cousins and wants the 24-year-old’s time in Sacramento to continue, and owner Vivek Ranadive has bristled at the assertion that Cousins is a trade candidate.

The Celtics have about $40MM in guaranteed salary for next season against a projected $67.1MM cap, but opening cap space would force the team to renounce its unmatched reserve of trade exceptions. None of them, even the one worth nearly $13MM left over from the Rajon Rondo trade, would be large enough to acquire Cousins and his max deal, though the exceptions could help the Celtics structure a larger-scale multiplayer deal involving Cousins or another star. Boston’s store of draft picks loom as significant trade assets, too, as Stein points out, and those won’t disappear if the Celtics decide to use cap space in July, unlike the trade exceptions.

The Celtics don’t have any player who’s truly off-limits for a trade either, according to Stein, though among the C’s under contract, Ainge has a particular soft spot for Marcus Smart and Avery Bradley, the ESPN scribe points out. Sources told Blakely that Smart and Tyler Zeller are the least likely players to leave Boston via trade, as we noted earlier. Ainge is also high on soon-to-be free agents Jae Crowder and Jonas Jerebko, Stein writes, as previous reports have indicated.

Latest On LaMarcus Aldridge

May 1st, 2015 at 12:35pm CST by Chuck Myron

LaMarcus Aldridge is indeed thinking of signing with the Spurs or Mavericks, as Marc Stein of ESPN.com hears, advancing his report from last week that those two teams believe they have a shot to lure him back to his native Texas. San Antonio is “near or at” the top of the Arn Tellem client‘s list, Stein writes, though he suggests the Cavaliers would come into the picture if Kevin Love were to somehow depart and the Cavs found a way to sign-and-trade for Aldridge. Stein reiterates that the Knicks and Lakers plan to go after Aldridge as well. A. Sherrod Blakely of CSSNE.com named the Blazers power forward as one of many marquee free agents the Celtics are expected to pursue this summer.

Aldridge spoke of an “amazing” nine years in Portland and said he’s “not trying to have that end” in a season-ending media session Thursday. It nonetheless seems as if more executives around the league believe that the former No. 2 overall pick will leave Portland in free agency this summer than think he’ll re-sign as he pledged to do last summer, according to Stein. Aldridge, who turns 30 this summer, said “we’ll see” when ESPN’s Chris Broussard asked him recently if the Blazers remained the front-runners for him, Stein notes. Aldridge first seemed to hint at dissatisfaction when he reflected to Michael Lee of The Washington Post on a time when he felt the Blazers didn’t support him, and he told Lee that he wondered how easily the team could move on without him.

Some Blazers observers think Damian Lillard‘s growing stature on the team bothers Aldridge, according to Stein. Still, Lillard, who’s reportedly insisting on a max extension this summer, has said he believes Aldridge will be back. Some Blazers are worried that Aldridge will leave, as The Oregonian’s Jason Quick reported, and one of them told Quick a few weeks ago that he thought it was a 50-50 proposition whether the All-Star power forward would re-sign.

Eastern Notes: Hennigan, Celtics, Magic

April 30th, 2015 at 10:37pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With a large stockpile of draft picks, ample cap space, and the popularity of coach Brad Stevens around the league, the Celtics appear to be in a position to have a strong offseason, as well as possess a legitimate shot to lure a big name free agent to Boston, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com writes. “We have to be a place where guys around the league will look at and say, ‘hey it can work to play in Boston, to play for Brad Stevens, play with those guys and play in front of those fans,’” co-owner Wyc Grousbeck told Blakely. “I think people are starting to take notice.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Multiple sources around the NBA told Blakely that the Celtics players who are most likely to garner trade interest this offseason are big men Kelly Olynyk and Jared Sullinger. The players who the team are least likely to deal are guard Marcus Smart and center Tyler Zeller, Blakely adds.
Magic GM Rob Hennigan‘s contract extension also includes a team option for the 2018/19 season, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel tweets.
The Thunder’s hiring of Billy Donovan helps the Magic in their own quest for a new head coach, Robbins writes in a separate article. With OKC now out of the coaching hunt, Orlando will now only have the Nuggets to compete with for available candidates, the Sentinel scribe notes.

Atlantic Notes: Turner, Prigioni, Draft

April 30th, 2015 at 5:01pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Evan Turner said this year, his first with the Celtics on a two-year deal, has been his most satisfying in the NBA so far, as he tells Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald, and he’s sold on Boston as an attractive place for free agents to go. “Regardless, Boston is always a destination team,” Turner said. “Somebody will always come, whether we make the playoffs or not. It’s the energy and emotion. I’ve talked to some friends who have come here and played: They see that the crowd is crazy, the fan base is crazy, even when we weren’t in the playoff race at the time. People still show up. It’s about basketball, not other gimmicks. There’s certain organizations. The people who work here are classy people. The city is like that. There aren’t many people walking around parading other sports teams. It’s all Boston, compared to some of the places I’ve played in. It’s been fun.”

Here’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Pablo Prigioni admitted that he had requested that the Knicks trade him prior to February’s deadline, and he is grateful to have ended up in Houston, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. “When I saw how things were going, it was so clear they were looking more to next season, the summer,’’ Prigioni said. “I felt myself at 38, I have no future on the team. I talked to Derek [Fisher] and told him my desire to send me somewhere so I can enjoy probably my last year in the league. At the deadline it was good for me and the team because they’re looking for young guys to build for the next five years.’’
The veteran point guard indicated that he may play professionally for one more season, though it would most likely be in Europe if he does, Berman notes. Prigioni also said that he wants to try his hand at coaching once his playing career ends, the Post scribe adds.
According to ESPN’s Chad Ford (hat tip to Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com), if the Knicks end up with the No. 1 overall pick this June, the franchise would use it to select Karl-Anthony Towns. Following Towns, New York’s top five ranked players in descending order are Jahlil Okafor, Emmanuel Mudiay, D’Angelo Russell, and Justise Winslow, Ford notes.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.