City of Seattle Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Another Potential Owner Emerges For Kings?

March 21st, 2013 at 5:07pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Sam Amick of USA Today reports that Vivek Ranadive – founder of the multi-billion dollar software company Tibco and a minority owner of the Golden State Warriors – has emerged as a new figure who could take the lead for the Sacramento group previously spearheaded by Mark Mastrov. Amick's source spoke on the condition of anonymity because there has been no official agreement as of yet.

Amick writes that while Mastrov and Ron Burkle are still involved in both the bid for the team and plans for a downtown arena, Ranadive agreed to enter the picture after strong efforts to have a larger influence in personnel matters. In order for Ranadive to purchase the team, he would first have to sell his minority stake in the Warriors. Yahoo's Marc J. Spears tweets that the Tibco CEO will only sell his share of Golden State if the city of Sacramento is able to retain the Kings. Otherwise, he would keep his investment with the Warriors.

Having another 'whale investor' can't hurt Sacramento's effort to keep the Kings, especially after David Stern recently commented that the initial bid offered by the Mastrov-led group was short of being a competitive offer. Amick mentions that although Kings minority owner John Kehriotis has been planning a bid of his own, Ranadive will be joining Mastrov and Burkle with Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, who will try to persuade owners at the NBA Board of Governors meeting in April to block the approval of the sale agreed upon by the Maloof Brothers and the Chris Hansen-led Seattle group.

Amick identifies other issues that would need to be addressed, namely the $77MM in loans that the Maloofs owe the city of Sacramento, along with the non-refundable $30MM that the Maloofs received from the Seattle group as a deposit for the team's sale earlier this month.

Odds & Ends: Blatche, Suns, Wolves, Cavs, Lillard

March 15th, 2013 at 10:24pm CST by Chuck Myron

Without Bird or even Early Bird rights, The Nets could be in a tricky situation if they want to re-sign Andray Blatche, whom Luke Adams of Hoops Rumors ranked among the best one-year contract signings this season. Blatche indicated to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News that he might make it easy on Brooklyn, since he'll still be drawing paychecks from his amnestied contract with the Wizards. "I’m very aware (of my unique situation)," Blatche said. "That’s what I’m saying. Everybody is probably thinking I’m looking to get that big check. I’m not. Not at all. I’m looking at what’s best for me."

Here's more from around the league on the one-year anniversary of the 2012 trade deadline:

Wesley Johnson is headed for unrestricted free agency this summer after the Suns turned down his fourth-year option, but he tells Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic that he still views Phoenix as a "longtime place" for him.
The Timberwolves seem content to carry 15 players for now, rather than applying for a hardship exception and adding a 16th man. Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities reports that the team isn't interested in free agents like Donte Greene, Tony Gaffney, and Raja Bell.
The Cavs want to see how rookie Dion Waiters handles minutes at point guard, so the team hasn't discussed adding another player at the position while Kyrie Irving misses the next three to four weeks with a sprained left shoulder, notes Jodie Valade of the Plain Dealer.
Damian Lillard believes he's improved since he started playing alongside Eric Maynor, whom the Blazers acquired at the trade deadline, as Mike Tokito of The Oregonian observes.
Thaddeus Young, who's on a deal that runs through 2016 with annual salaries under $10MM, is the Sixers player who'll draw the most trade inquiries from other teams, opines John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The threat of a referendum on public funding for a new arena in Sacramento will have no impact on the city's bid to retain the Kings, sources tell Aaron Bruski of NBCSports.com (Twitter link).

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Western Rumors: Grizzlies, Johnson, Smith, Kings

March 14th, 2013 at 10:06pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Spurs topped the Mavericks tonight for their 50th win of the season, extending their string of 50-win seasons to a league-high 14. The Mavs, who had an 11-year stretch of 50-win seasons snapped in 2011/12, are merely fighting for their playoff lives this time around. Tonight's loss leaves them three games out of the eighth spot in the West. There's plenty more going on around the West this evening, and we've got the latest here:

Along with his leaguewide roundup, Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld shares a video interview with Tony Allen, who points to the Grizzlies' run to the conference semifinals in 2011 as justification for the Rudy Gay trade. Gay missed the playoffs that year with an injured shoulder. "Well, I just think we turned into the team we were two years ago, without the guy we traded," Allen said.
Big man Chris Johnson's deal with the Wolves includes a non-guaranteed season next year, and coach Rick Adelman is calling for the wiry Johnson to improve his strength going into 2013/14, observes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.
Craig Smith, who spent last year with the Blazers, is headed back to the States after his Israeli team cut him loose following a clash with the club's coach, reports Sportando contributor David Pick (Twitter links).
A pair of Sacramento-area attorneys are threatening to petition the city to hold a referendum on whether to provide an expected $250MM in public funding for a new Kings arena, as Tony Bizjak, Dale Kasler and Ryan Lillis of the Sacramento Bee report. Such a petition would require 20,000 signatures, according to estimates by city officials.
Neither Patrick Patterson nor Cole Aldrich has seen extensive playing time since coming to the Kings at the trade deadline, but they've made positive impressions in their brief stints, as Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee details in a pair of stories.

Odds & Ends: Arenas, McGrady, Sixers, Kings

March 13th, 2013 at 7:16pm CST by Alex Lee

It's a Wednesday night full of storylines in the NBA, as LeBron James and the Heat go for their 20th consecutive win in Philly and Carmelo Anthony returns to Denver for the first time since he was traded to the Knicks. Let's round up all the other Wednesday links from around the league here:

An NBA executive told Sports Illustrated's Ian Thomsen, via text, that he would be "shocked" if any team picked up Gilbert Arenas or Tracy McGrady in the final month of the season. Both former NBA stars have spent this season playing in China.
Tom Moore of PhillyBurbs.com caught up with 76ers president Rod Thorn on what has become an intriguing organizational situation in Philadelphia due to Andrew Bynum. While Thorn initially refused to comment on Bynum, he eventually said, "It's a little bizarre, no doubt about it." (Twitter links)
With regard to Nikola Vucevic, who the Sixers gave up for Bynum and is now averaging a double-double at 22-years-old, Thorn said, "Nik is a very skilled player with great hands. You could tell he had a very good future ahead of him." (via Twitter)
Sacramento city officials have given themselves an eight day window to construct a financing plan for a new downtown arena, writes Ryan Lillis, Tony Bizjak and Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee. With that timeline, the plan would be complete five days before the city council voted on the plan on March 26. Cementing the terms of an arena deal is vital in the city's claim to keep the Kings.
The Bee's Marcos Breton writes that many knowledgable businessmen in the Sacramento area and beyond consider the city's last-ditch effort to keep the Kings a fool's errand. Breton spoke with a leading authority on arena financing who describes the offer from the Seattle group "considerably stronger."

Western Notes: McGuire, Iguodala, Kings, Mavs

March 12th, 2013 at 1:12pm CST by Luke Adams

As we look forward to an eight-game evening slate that includes Dwight Howard's return to Orlando, let's round up a few of today's stories relating to Western Conference clubs….

The Warriors elected not to sign Dominic McGuire after the trade deadline using one of their open roster spots at least in part because coach Mark Jackson didn't want McGuire taking minutes away from rookie Draymond Green, according to Marcus Thompson of the Bay Area News Group (via Sulia).
Andre Iguodala admits to Paola Boivin of the Denver Post that his 2013/14 player option is in the back of his mind, but says he won't make a concrete decision on whether or not to exercise it until after the season.
Despite David Stern's insistence that the Kings sale won't result in a bidding war, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that the Sacramento group may be in trouble if the Seattle group "keeps pushing up the price."
Part of the reason the Mavericks released Dominique Jones was to give him an opportunity to find playing time with another club, as GM Donnie Nelson explains to Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "The playing time that Dominique probably deserves wasn’t here and available," Nelson said. "Hopefully that presents itself with another team some place."
Darren Collison isn't complaining about coming off the bench for the Mavericks, but when he becomes a free agent this summer, he'll hit the market believing that he's capable of being a starter somewhere, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.

Pacific Notes: Lakers, Clippers, Kings, Seattle

March 11th, 2013 at 8:48pm CST by Zachary Links

Last season, Stan Van Gundy went viral when he told reporters that Dwight Howard was pushing the Magic front office to fire him before leaving the big man to face the scrum all by himself. One would assume that the outspoken coach and the Lakers star are not on speaking terms, but that's not the case, according to Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. "We never stopped communicating even if there have been times he was very angry with me," Van Gundy said. "Dwight and I may not have always seen eye to eye. But I think there is mutual respect." More on the Lakers and the rest of the Pacific..

Maalik Wayns is looking to make the most of his time with the Clippers, writes Eric Patten of NBA.com. You can keep up with all of this year's 10-day deals with our handy 10-day contract tracker.
Chris Hansen, the prospective owner of the Kings, is calling on fans in Seattle to sign up for a "priority ticket waitlist" as a way to show the NBA how much interest there is in bringing pro basketball back to the area, according to the Associated Press. Commissioner David Stern said last week that Hansen's group currently has a significantly larger bid on the table than the competing Sacramento group.
Howard will return to Orlando on Tuesday night and Frank Zicarelli of the Toronto Sun isn't sure if the Lakers star has the mental toughness to thrive in that environment.

Aldridge On Pierce, Kings, Seattle, Hunter

March 11th, 2013 at 5:29pm CST by Zachary Links

In today's column, David Aldridge of NBA.com writes that the strong backcourts of the Eastern Conference's up-and-down teams are giving them hope for the future. Who's the best of the bunch? Evan Turner, who might be slightly biased, says it's him and Sixers teammate Jrue Holiday. "It's not an arrogant thing or anything like that," Turner said. "We're the best. It's not even — no disrespect to anybody else — it's not even close…Obviously, John [Wall] is a next-level-fast point guard. Bradley Beal has been great. But I just feel like we match up better. Kyrie Irving's a great player, and also Dion [Waiters] can definitely play. But the stuff that Jrue and I have been through, you can't really speed down that rock." Here's more from Aldridge..

Paul Pierce told Aldridge that he has never gone to Celtics GM Danny Ainge and asked him not to break up the team's core. At the same time, the star guard says that he hopes to retire as a Celtic. He believes that Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, and Dirk Nowitzki have a 100% chance of going out with their respective clubs but he's not quite as confident about his own odds, given the amount of trade talk surrounding him over the last two years.
There have been mixed interpretations of Commissioner David Stern's recent disclosed that the Sacramento group's bid for the Kings is well behind Seattle's. One NBA exec says that he is taking it at face value and believes that Stern sees it as a win-win since either outcome will result in a new arena.
Meanwhile, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson still has to sell the city council on the arena plan and how to pay for it. At least two council members are strongly against it but there are three swing votes that the mayor is working hard to win. Sources believe that he will ultimately be successful in picking those votes up.
Aldridge wonders if the NBPA could be working on a settlement with Billy Hunter. Sources indicate such talks could be picking up steam, though neither side would comment. One source with knowledge of the situation said the two sides had been talking throughout the process and didn't believe there was any new momentum toward a potential deal. A settlement would be the smart way to go for both Hunter and the union in order to avoid the continued airing of dirty laundry.

Pacific Notes: Howard, Gasol, Kings, McMillan

March 11th, 2013 at 10:31am CST by Luke Adams

With the Lakers preparing to play the Magic in Orlando tomorrow night, Dwight Howard will be returning to the city where he spent the first eight years of his NBA career. In advance of the game, Howard spoke to Sam Amick of USA Today and expressed some regrets about the way he handled the situation in his final year with the Magic.

"In Orlando, I handled a lot of stuff the wrong way," Howard said. "If any of those people in Orlando are upset with how I did it, I apologize for the way I handled it and the way it was handled in the media."

Here's more from Howard and the rest of the Pacific Division:

Howard and Amick spoke about several other topics, including his recovery from back surgery and his recent comments about his former Magic teammates. USA Today has a transcript of the Q&A.
Amnestying Pau Gasol this summer may be an option for the Lakers if the team can't find a suitable trade, says Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (via Sulia). Clearing Gasol's near-$20MM cap hit from the books wouldn't get the Lakers out of the tax, assuming they re-sign Howard, but it would greatly reduce their bill. Still, I'd be pretty shocked if it came to that for the Lakers and Gasol.
Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee takes a look at the transition Patrick Patterson has been making as he takes on a new role with the Kings.
Appearing on 710 ESPN in Seattle, Nate McMillan said he's "definitely looking to get back into coaching" and suggested that if the Kings were moved to Seattle, that job is one that would interest him. Eric Schmoldt of Sports Radio Interviews has the details.
Dale Kasler, Ryan Lillis, and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee provide an update on the latest news related to the Kings sale.

Odds & Ends: Bulls, Gasol, Nuggets, Kings

March 10th, 2013 at 10:24pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's tonight's look around the Association..

The Bulls may have the best trade package for the Lakers if they try to trade for Pau Gasol, but Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (on Twitter) can't really see the big man playing for coach Tom Thibodeau.
The Nuggets roster has been shaped by the club's blockbuster Carmelo Anthony deal of 2011, writes Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post. "It was a great trade," said former NBA guard Steve Kerr. "The pieces all fit really well with a coach who is renowned for player development and up-tempo basketball… In the end, it's not as if the team was winning in the playoffs with Carmelo anyway."
There's an eight-figure gap between the bids being put up by the Sacramento group and the Seattle group for the Kings, sources close to the situation tell Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee.
The Mavericks cut guard Dominique Jones over his unwillingness to go to the D-League, but Dirk Nowitzki hopes that Jones finds new work rather quickly, according to Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram (on Sulia).
Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (on Sulia) hears from sources that the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas is adopting an NCAA tournament-style elimination format.

Odds & Ends: Oden, Mavs, Rose, HGH, Kings

March 9th, 2013 at 4:35pm CST by Chuck Myron

Greg Oden and the Cavs appeared to engage in heavy flirtation last night, as the former No. 1 overall pick sat in one of owner Dan Gilbert's courtside seats at the Cavs-Grizzlies game. While Oden regards Cleveland as one of his favored destinations for a return to the league, the Cavs haven't made him an offer, agent Mike Conley Sr. tells Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida (Twitter link). Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld believes the big man will eventually sign with the Heat, based on multiple sources who insist Miami will be his choice, in spite of the ability other teams have to offer him more money and a longer contract (Twitter links). Oden isn't expected to sign with any team until the summer, so we'll likely be hearing plenty more about him in the coming months. In the meantime, here's more from around the league:

Coach Rick Carlisle expects the Mavs will look at players to fill the roster spot vacated today when the team waived Dominique Jones, tweets Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com.
Bulls GM Gar Forman says there's no rift between Derrick Rose and the team's front office over the timing of the former MVP's return from injury, notes Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune.
Henry Abbott of ESPN.com reported yesterday that the NBA and the players union were nearing an agreement that would subject players to blood tests for human growth hormone as soon as next season, but Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News hears no deal is close.
Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com interprets David Stern's call for Sacramento bidders to pour more money into their efforts to buy the Kings as a sign that the commissioner isn't as closely aligned with the city as it might have otherwise appeared.
Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic caught up with Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson, who spoke at length about his push to keep the Kings in town.
For draft prospects on college teams that might not make it to the NCAA tournament, the week ahead will be their final opportunity to make an impression before the combine. Chad Ford of ESPN.com, in an Insider piece, takes a look at five prospects who could be seeing their last collegiate action.