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Rockets A Serious Threat For Chris Paul?

June 28th, 2017 at 12:16am CST by Luke Adams

The Rockets have emerged as an “increasingly serious” threat in the Chris Paul sweepstakes, league sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein is the second ESPN reporter this week to make such a claim — Chris Haynes said on Monday that he has heard Houston has a “serious chance” to land Paul.

According to Stein, MVP finalist James Harden has been advocating for the Rockets to go after Paul, having made his interest in playing alongside the veteran point guard clear to both the team and to CP3 himself.

As Stein notes, the Rockets would have to make some cost-cutting moves in order to clear the cap space necessary to make a real run at Paul. Ryan Anderson, Patrick Beverley, and Lou Williams are among the players believed to be on the trade block, with ESPN’s report suggesting that Houston is focused on finding a taker for Anderson’s salary, which will be worth nearly $20MM in 2017/18.

Despite the classification of the Rockets as a “serious” suitor for Paul, I’m skeptical of the fit. Houston excelled this past season playing a fast-paced style with Harden running the point. Paul has generally played at a much slower pace, and incorporating him into the offense would mean taking the ball out of Harden’s hands. Additionally, I think the Rockets would probably have to attach at least one valuable asset – such as a future first-round pick – to Anderson’s contract in order to gain any traction in trade talks.

Still, according to Stein, the Clippers continue to worry that Paul could bolt in free agency, and view Houston and San Antonio as legitimate threats. We heard earlier today that CP3’s camp sat down with the Clippers on Tuesday to discuss the point guard’s future. The two sides plan to meet again a few days from now.

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Green, Gobert Headline 2016/17 NBA All-Defensive Teams

June 26th, 2017 at 12:14pm CST by Luke Adams

The NBA has announced its All-Defensive teams for the 2016/17 season, and Defensive Player of the Year finalists Draymond Green, Rudy Gobert, and Kawhi Leonard all earned a place on the First Team. Green led the way with 99 First Team votes, while Gobert received 97 votes for a spot on the First Team.

Here are the full rosters for the NBA’s All-Defensive teams:

First Team:

Second Team:

Avery Bradley (Celtics), Klay Thompson (Warriors), and John Wall (Wizards) were among the other players receiving votes who just missed out on an All-Defensive spot.

As Bobby Marks of The Vertical observes (via Twitter), Gobert’s cap hit for the 2017/18 season will now increase by $500K to $21.9MM based on his spot on the All-Defensive First Team.

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Stein’s Latest: George, Rockets, Spurs, Nuggets

June 25th, 2017 at 7:31pm CST by Austin Kent

News broke Sunday that the Cavaliers, Nuggets and Pacers had discussed a three-way deal that would have sent Paul George to the Cavs and Kevin Love to Denver ahead of the draft. As we wrote about earlie, one variation of the potential deal would have sent Kenneth Faried to Cleveland as well.

In an article published at ESPN shortly thereafter, Marc Stein – who sent the initial tweet Sunday night – goes into more details, sharing information about the pre-draft conversations that took place surrounding the Pacers forward.

Here are some highlights from Stein’s latest piece, co-written with Haynes:

  • While the conversations between the Cavaliers, Nuggets and Pacers didn’t amount to anything before the draft, Cleveland haven’t abandoned its pursuit of the two-way All-Star. The Cavs legitimately believe that they could convince George to abandon his dreams of playing for his hometown Lakers, something he is expected to pursue when he hits free agency in 2018.
  • In addition to Cleveland’s ongoing pursuit and the Celtics discussions that came to light on draft day, Stein and Haynes note that the Rockets and Spurs both aggressively pursued George deals before the draft as well.
  • The Nuggets are looking to upgrade at power forward and it’s the reason why Love was included in the possible three-team deal. Denver similarly intends to make plays for pending free agents Blake Griffin and Paul Millsap.
  • All of Faried, Wilson Chandler and Emmanuel Mudiay are said to be available. Big man Nikola Jokic and second-year guard Jamal Murray are supposedly untouchable.
  • The pair also confirm what we wrote about on Friday following a Joe Vardon column at Cleveland.com; the Cavs are expected to pursue Carmelo Anthony should he be bought out by the Knicks.
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Jazz Notes: Exum, Mitchell, Lindsey, Hill

June 24th, 2017 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

Dante Exum is responding well to challenges he was given in his exit interview, writes Jody Genessy of The Deseret News. Exum was in and out of the rotation this season after knee surgery forced him to miss all of 2015/16. The offseason focus in the backcourt has been on re-signing George Hill and the draft-night trade that allowed the team to add Donovan Mitchell, but Jazz officials say Exum is making progress outside the spotlight. “[Coach] Quin [Snyder] and I challenged him in the exit interview and gave him some truth,” said Utah GM Dennis Lindsey. “He’s responded in a big way.” Exum is expected to play in the Utah Jazz summer league July 3-6.

There’s more news tonight out of Utah:

  • Lindsey plans an early meeting with Hill’s representatives when free agency begins July 1st, Genessy adds in the same story. Keeping Gordon Hayward will be the priority, but the Jazz would also like to hold onto Hill, who averaged 16.9 points in 49 games during his only season in Utah. The Jazz have been linked to deals involving the Rockets’ Patrick Beverley and the Timberwolves’ Ricky Rubio. They have about $16MM in available cap space to use in a trade, but that will expire once free agency begins. “It’s no secret,” Lindsey said, “that somewhere in our lineup we’re going to have a veteran point guard.”
  • The organization sent a message to Exum by maneuvering to get Mitchell, states Gordon Monson of The Salt Lake Tribune. Utah was so eager to find a possible replacement for Exum that it gave up Trey Lyles, a former lottery pick, to acquire the No. 13 selection from Denver. Exum wasn’t able to capitalize on the opportunities that Snyder gave him last season and is facing the most important four months of his NBA career, according to Monson.
  • Hill is a key part of the team, but he’s not a superstar who the Jazz have to re-sign, contends Brad Rock of The Deseret News. The Jazz reportedly offered Hill an extension over the winter starting at three times his $8MM salary, but no agreement was reached. There is a feeling that Hill’s next contract could start at $30MM annually, and Utah is reluctant to pay the luxury tax.
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Southwest Notes: Morey, Rockets, Noel, Ferrell

June 24th, 2017 at 12:52pm CST by Joshua Fischman

Rockets GM Daryl Morey, who recently signed a four-year extension, continues to work on large-scale moves after a quiet draft, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. On draft night, the Rockets had just one second-round pick and used it on Isaiah Hartenstein, who will remain overseas next season, Feigen tweets. The Rockets also traded their second-round pick, Dillon Brooks, to the Grizzlies for a second-round pick next season. Morey discussed his approach:

“We were very focused on two things, to get someone who can help us now and in the future. The second, we did a lot of potential discussions with teams that advanced a little bit today. Obviously, we’re focused on the team now, focused on chasing Golden State. Anything we can push in the future to help us upgrade the team, potentially through trade, we’re ready to do.”

The Rockets were discussing Paul George with the Pacers on Thursday and continue to do so, but nothing was considered close on draft day, per Feigen. The team was simultaneously having conversations directed at making cap room available if they needed it for an expensive free agent addition. Morey stated that the team was considering some deals to move into the first round of the draft, but the Rockets prioritized saving cap space to pursue big trades.

What else is going on in the Southwest division?:

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Rockets To Sign L.J. Peak, George De Paula

June 23rd, 2017 at 4:28pm CST by Austin Kent

The Rockets have agreed to free agent deals with a couple of undrafted prospects, though the moves are not yet official. Per Mark Berman of Fox 26, the club has an agreement in place to sign Georgetown’s L.J. Peak.

Ranked 46th of DraftExpress.com’s list of top 100 prospects, the junior Hoya will look to stick on a roster seeking to add as many potential weapons as possible. In Peak, the Rockets will get a 21-year-old fresh off a campaign in which he posted 16.3 points and 3.5 assists per game.

Per Chris Haynes of ESPN, the Rockets will also take a flyer on Brazilian point guard George de Paula. An international early entrant in this year’s draft, de Paula comes in at No. 72 on DraftExpress’ big board.

At this time it’s not entirely clear whether the deals will be for Summer League or for training camp, but it sounds like both players should have a spot on Houston’s 20-man camp roster.

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Rockets Trade Dillon Brooks To Grizzlies

June 23rd, 2017 at 12:11am CST by Arthur Hill

JUNE 23, 12:11am: The trade is now official, the Grizzlies confirmed in a press release announcing the acquisitions of both Brooks and Rabb.

JUNE 22, 10:47pm: The Rockets drafted Oregon’s Dillon Brooks at No. 45 and will trade him to Memphis, tweets Shams Charania of The Vertical. In return, Houston will receive the worst of the Grizzlies’ 2018 second-rounders. In addition to their own, Memphis has the rights to picks from Charotte and Miami.

A 6’7″ junior, Brooks averaged 16.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Ducks. He could be part of a youth movement for the Grizzlies, who also acquired 35th pick Ivan Rabb from the Magic tonight.

Houston eliminated a potential financial commitment by dealing the 45th pick and using the 43rd choice on 19-year-old Isaiah Hartenstein, who will likely spend at least one more year overseas. That fits in with the Rockets’ reported desire to clear cap room and pursue elite free agents next month.

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Celtics’ Paul George Talks Stalled After Gaining Momentum

June 22nd, 2017 at 8:07pm CST by Luke Adams

8:07pm: Discussions between the Pacers and Celtics on George have stalled for now, according to Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

7:06pm: The Pacers and Celtics are engaged in “serious” discussions about a potential Paul George trade, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (Twitter link). While the sides remain apart on a potential deal, talks have gained momentum, per Wojnarowski (via Twitter).

The Celtics used their third overall pick tonight to select Jayson Tatum. If the Pacers and C’s can come to an agreement on a George deal, it’s not clear whether or not Tatum will be involved in the swap.

George is one of the top trade candidates available now that Jimmy Butler is now off the board, with the Bulls having reached an agreement to send him to the Timberwolves. Before finalizing that deal, the Pacers and Wolves discussed a deal involving George, tweets Darren Wolfson of ESPN 1500 in Minneapolis. The Pacers asked for Zach LaVine and more in return, which Minnesota refused, opting for Butler instead.

The Rockets also haven’t given up their pursuit of George, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. I’d expect the Lakers to check back in as well if a deal appears close.

Arthur Hill contributed to this post.

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Jazz Rumors: Beverley, Rubio, Draft, Favors

June 22nd, 2017 at 4:37pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz continued this afternoon to engage in talks for Rockets point guard Patrick Beverley, according to Tony Jones of The Salt Lake Tribune, who notes (via Twitter) that Utah also has another point guard on its radar.

It’s possible that other point guard is Timberwolves veteran Ricky Rubio. Jody Genessy of The Deseret News reports that Utah has explored the possibility of acquiring Rubio in a trade. However, Genessy acknowledges that there’s no traction on that front for now.

Here are several more Jazz-related rumors:

  • According to Genessey, the Jazz continue to be “very active” in trade talks as they explore the possibility of moving up in the draft. Utah currently has the 24th and 30th overall picks, but wouldn’t mind moving up into the 12-17 range to grab a shooter, sources tell The Deseret News.
  • The Jazz aren’t shopping Derrick Favors, who is entering the final year of his contract, but he is receiving “a lot of interest” from teams, says Genessy. Although Utah would prefer to keep Favors, he’s not entirely off-limits.
  • The Jazz still feel “pretty comfortable” that Gordon Hayward will remain with the team after opting out, but the club doesn’t know for sure, which is complicating offseason planning, writes Genessy.
  • Utah has increased its international budget, making a draft-and-stash prospect a possibility for one of the club’s picks tonights, per Genessy. Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated tweets that the Jazz, Spurs, and Nets are all keeping a close eye on international big man Isaiah Hartenstein, who will likely be picked in the 20s tonight.
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