Los Angeles Lakers Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lakers Likely To Pursue Rajon Rondo

November 5th, 2014 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

Several executives from teams around the league believe the Lakers will make a hard push to sign Rajon Rondo next summer, the execs tell Chris Mannix of SI.com. The Celtics All-Star is set to hit free agency after the season, and he’s also perhaps the league’s most notorious trade candidate, though Mannix doesn’t suggest the Lakers are eyeing him for a swap.

The Lakers have a clear need for a long-term solution at point guard, where Jeremy Lin has inherited the starting job on his expiring contract after nerve trouble knocked Steve Nash out for the season. Reports linked them to Eric Bledsoe before he re-signed with the Suns on a long-term deal. The team has about $35.1MM in commitments for 2015/16 against a salary cap the league projects to come in around $66-68MM, leaving the Lakers with the flexibility required to sign Rondo to the maximum-salary contract he’ll almost certainly seek.

Still, Rondo has spoken fondly of Boston over the past several months even amid consistent trade rumors and the team’s inability to kick-start a return to the Eastern Conference elite. The 28-year-old is nonetheless coming to an end of a team-friendly five-year, $55MM extension, so this coming summer could present the final opportunity the BDA Sports Management client will have to command first-rate attention on the free agent market.

Western Notes: Thompson, Kobe, Fesenko

November 5th, 2014 at 1:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Klay Thompson agreed that the starting salary in his extension with the Warriors couldn’t escalate past the current $15.5MM projection for next season’s 25% maximum salary, even if the max ends up coming in higher, Grantland’s Zach Lowe reports. That means the deal will be no more lucrative than $69MM over four years, and Lowe heard from a couple of agents who believe the Warriors acted unfairly in the way they structured Thompson’s deal (Twitter link). Still, it doesn’t appear that it will end up having been a sacrifice for Thompson, since it’s unlikely next year’s salary cap, to which maximum salaries are tied, will reflect any of the revenue from the league’s new $24 billion TV deal, according to Lowe. The league’s salary cap projections for 2015/16 remain around $66-68MM as league office execs favor a gradual phase-in of the TV money that wouldn’t start until 2016, Lowe writes. There’s more on Thompson and the Warriors amid the latest from Western Conference:

The promise of future production, expendability, strong character and the ability to attract fans are a few of the qualities that current and former team executives tell Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher they believe players who sign maximum-salary contracts should possess. All of those execs agree that Thompson is a max player, but their opinions are mixed on Kawhi Leonard, to whom the Spurs decided against giving a max extension.
Kobe Bryant‘s two-year, $48.5MM extension looks like an albatross for the 0-5 Lakers, but Warriors executive and part-owner Jerry West doesn’t agree, as he told KNBR radio, “Whatever they’re paying, he’s earned it,” West said, as Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group notes (Twitter link).
Timberwolves camp cut Kyrylo Fesenko has inked with Avtodor of Russia, the team announced (translation via David Pick of Eurobasket.com, on Twitter).

Western Notes: Kobe, Durant, Spurs, Nuggets

November 3rd, 2014 at 2:03pm CST by Chuck Myron

Kobe Bryant rejects the notion that he should push for a trade to a contender and professes his loyalty to the Lakers in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. The team’s lack of success in attracting marquee free agents this summer hasn’t left him questioning whether he wants to remain with the franchise.

“It was really tough to land those free agents just because of the opportunities that they had,” Bryant said. “You got [Carmelo Anthony] going back to New York, LeBron [James] going back home to Cleveland. The odds just weren’t in our favor. But I took comfort in the fact that the Lakers did absolutely everything possible to make it happen. Absolutely everything possible. We offered Pau [Gasol] an incredible deal. I saw them put the work in. It’s much different than in 2007 when I felt like they were just sitting on their hands. This is not that case. They were going after it and being aggressive. I will fight for that till the end. They tried, tried and tried and it didn’t work out. I stand behind them 110%. I bleed purple and gold.”

Bryant has been preaching patience amid an 0-4 start for the Lakers, but as the losses mount, we’ll see how long the Black Mamba can remain serene. Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Kevin Durant cited exhaustion when he withdrew from Team USA this summer, but he reveals in a documentary film that Paul George‘s gruesome leg fracture weighed heavily on his mind, as Michael Lee of The Washington Post chronicles.
Injury marked the unofficial end of Spurs draft-and-stash prospect Erazem Lorbek‘s time with FC Barcelona before he officially left the Spanish club this summer, but he has his eye on joining San Antonio after he recovers, as he tells Gigantes Del Basket (translation via HoopsHype). The Spurs were reportedly close to signing Lorbek, a 2005 second-round draftee, in 2012, but the now 30-year-old re-signed with Barcelona instead.
The Nuggets, who voted for the league’s failed lottery reform proposal, are one of the NBA’s most vociferous opponents to tanking, as Chris Dempsey of The Denver Post writes in his mailbag column. Still, most teams aren’t nearly as concerned about the phenomenon as fans and the media generally are, Dempsey adds.

Western Notes: Bryant, Barea, Burks

November 1st, 2014 at 10:01pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kobe Bryant isn’t known for his patience, but that’s what he has been preaching through the Lakers‘ disastrous start, writes Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com. “I’ve been trained really well by the Yodas of the world,” he said. “The thing they’ve always talked about, just looking at the game, looking at the things you can correct.” The Lakers opened the season with embarrassing losses to the Rockets and Suns before keeping it closer in Friday’s defeat against the Clippers. Even worse, rookie Julius Randle suffered a broken leg that will likely keep him sidelined for the season, joining an injury list that includes Steve Nash and Nick Young. Randle’s injury could allow the Lakers to file for a disabled-player exception with the NBA that would give them another $1.499MM to spend, but that’s far from enough to vault the Lakers back to their usual position near the top of the Western Conference. Here’s more from around the West:

After returning to Dallas this week, J.J. Barea tells Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com that he wishes he had never left. Barea signed a $1.3 million veteran’s minimum deal with the Mavericks on Monday after negotiating a buyout of the final season on his contract with the Timberwolves. “I’m excited to be back,” said Barea, who was part of the Mavericks’ championship team in 2011. “The best five years of my life were here. Hopefully we can get this going again.” MacMahon reports that Barea had no discussions about his role with the team before signing with Dallas.
Mavericks management is equally happy about the reunion with Barea, according to Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram. “It’s pretty exciting stuff,’’ Mavs president of basketball operations Donnie Nelson said. “It’s a homecoming and we’re just really, really excited about having him back. Clearly, he’s a big chemistry guy and he’s a winner in every sense of the word.’’ Barea will battle for playing time with Jameer Nelson, Devin Harris and Raymond Felton, who is recovering from a high right ankle sprain.
In Utah, Alec Burks is looking forward to building a contender with the Jazz, he tells John Coon of the Associated Press. Burks signed a contract extension Friday that will give him $42MM over four years, with incentives that could stretch the value as high as $45MM. Utah GM Dennis Lindsey is ecstatic to have his young trio of Burks, Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward all signed to long-term deals. “We’ve got the future flexibility next year to be very aggressive in the free agent market,” Lindsey said. “Certainly, with expectations of a new cap in lieu of a TV deal, we’ll have great flexibility. When you have a core in place, it’s much easier to attract a significant talent.”

And-Ones: Varejao, Bryant, Cavs

November 1st, 2014 at 4:50pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Given Anderson Varejao‘s injury history, the Cavs signing him to a three year deal might seem risky, but Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer explains why it was a smart move for the team. Pluto cites the team’s desire to win now, Cleveland’s lack of depth at center, and that Varejao’s $10MM per season salary won’t seem that high once the new CBA kicks in and player salaries escalate. Pluto also notes that the non-guaranteed third year of the contract was added because the organization views it as a potential trade chip.

Here’s more from around the league:

The Lakers look to be in for a long season that is more likely to end with a lottery pick than a playoff berth. Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel believes that Los Angeles should consider trading Kobe Bryant to the Knicks for Amar’e Stoudemire‘s expiring contract. This would get Bryant’s deal off of the books in time for next summer’s free agent class, as well as reunite Bryant with Phil Jackson, and help the Knicks implement the triangle offense more effectively, Schmitz opines.
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert’s comments about a willingness to spend whatever it took to put LeBron James back on top, no matter the cost, were a jab at the Heat organization and team owner Micky Arison, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. Moves such as amnestying Mike Miller in 2013, or the team declining to use their mid-level exception last season despite a lack of roster depth, were rumored to rub James the wrong way and possibly contributed to him returning to Cleveland, notes Winderman.
Lorenzo Brown and Josh Bostic agreed to contracts with the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA D-League, David Mayo of MLive reports (Twitter link). Both players were waived by the Pistons who will retain their D-League rights.

Lakers Notes: Randle, Bryant, Roster

October 29th, 2014 at 7:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Lakers have already suffered some significant blows to their roster with both Steve Nash and Julius Randle being lost for the season with injuries. Even if the franchise is approved for Disabled Player Exceptions, they will still have two of their maximum 15 roster spots occupied by injured personnel. If Los Angeles loses another player to injury the team could apply for a temporary hardship increase that would allow the franchise to carry up to 16 players, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders notes (Twitter links). This scenario could help the team maintain its depth in the wake of another player loss, but once one of the injured players was able to return to action, the 15 player max would resume, Pincus notes.

Here’s more from Los Angeles:

The only bright side to the Lakers losing Randle for the season is that the team will be in contention for a top-five lottery pick next summer, J.A. Adande of ESPN.com opines. Los Angeles’ 2015 first-rounder is owed to the Suns but is protected for picks one-through-five, notes Adande.
The Lakers should take a page out of the Sixers’ playbook and try to hit bottom this season, Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) writes. This includes trying to convince Kobe Bryant to waive his no trade clause and dealing the future Hall-of Famer, Ford opines. Ford lists the Knicks, Nets, Mavs, and Hornets as teams that would potentially be interested in obtaining Bryant.
The loss of Randle will hurt the Lakers much more than losing Nash, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders opines. Los Angeles wasn’t expecting much from Nash, and had Jeremy Lin and Ronnie Price on board to make up for any time that Nash would have missed. With Randle, this season was important for his development, and the team was planning to run a large portion of their offense through him, Koutroupis notes.
The Lakers and Bryant have faced criticism for the two year, $48.5MM contract extension he signed back in 2013. Hornets owner and former NBA great Michael Jordan defended Bryant for inking the pact, DeAntae Prince of The Sporting News writes. “Can I criticize him for maximizing his opportunity from a financial standpoint? No,” Jordan said. “Does his decision have an effect on how the team will structure certain things? Maybe.”

Julius Randle To Miss Season With Broken Leg

October 29th, 2014 at 2:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

2:44pm: Randle will miss the entire season after undergoing surgery to repair the leg today, reports Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link).

11:24pm: The concern Tuesday night was that Randle would miss four to six months, but it will be difficult to know for sure until after he undergoes an evaluation following surgery, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). The regular season ends in about five and a half months.

8:41am: Lakers lottery pick Julius Randle suffered a broken tibia in his debut Tuesday, the team confirmed via press release. TNT’s Rachel Nichols was the first to report that the No. 7 overall selection from this year’s draft had fractured his leg (Twitter link). There’s no timetable for recovery yet on what the Lakers caution is an initial diagnosis, but the injury will almost certainly knock the rookie out for several months, if not the entire season, putting further strain on a roster that will already be without Steve Nash for all of 2014/15.

The Lakers are already planning to apply for a disabled player exception for Nash, and they could do so for Randle, too, if his injury is deemed a season-ender. The exception would only amount to half of Randle’s approximately $2.997MM rookie scale salary, or about $1.499MM, not nearly as lucrative as the Nash exception that’s worth close to $4.851MM. In any case, the Lakers are stuck with two players who have long-term injuries on their roster, so unless they decide to offload either Nash or Randle, they’ll have no more than 13 healthy players for the foreseeable future, even if they’re granted and use multiple disabled player exceptions. Point guard Ronnie Price and shooting guard Wayne Ellington have non-guaranteed contracts that become partially guaranteed on November 15th, while the team’s other 13 contracts, including those for Nash and Randle, are fully guaranteed.

Randle was highly touted coming out of the University of Kentucky, and Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress ranked the power forward as the No. 2 prospect for the 2014 draft going into his freshman season before he slipped a bit over the course of the year. Concern over how the broken foot he’d suffered as a high school senior had healed likely helped him fall to the Lakers at No. 7. The Lakers’ decision to claim Carlos Boozer off amnesty waivers this summer looks prescient in the light of Randle’s injury, though the team isn’t expected to be in playoff contention this season. The Suns will receive the Lakers’ 2015 first-round pick if it doesn’t fall within the top five selections.

Pacific Notes: Kings, Thomas, Clippers

October 29th, 2014 at 1:50pm CST by Chuck Myron

Workers broke ground today on a new arena for the Kings that’s set to open in two years, the team confirms via press release. It’s the latest in a long line of steps toward a new building that the NBA has mandated must take place in a timely fashion in advance of a 2017 deadline for completion. The league would have the power to take control of the team and move it to another city if the Kings either miss the deadline or don’t show sufficient progress, but it seems the franchise is well on its way to opening the doors of its new home in Sacramento. There’s more on the Kings amid our latest look around the Pacific Division:

The Kings are indeed looking for help on the wing even though they’re not ready to sign Terrence Williams at this point, according to Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter links). Williams, a four-year NBA veteran, reportedly worked out for Sacramento recently, and the Kings, who have an open roster spot, are looking for experience, Jones says.
New Suns guard Isaiah Thomas confirms that he had interest in signing with the Lakers this summer, adding that the interest was mutual, as he tells Grantland’s Zach Lowe. “First off, it’s the Los Angeles Lakers. Who wouldn’t want to play for them? Second off, I felt like they always needed a point guard — a small guard like myself,” Thomas said. “I always envisioned myself playing with the Lakers, but like you said, they were waiting on Carmelo [Anthony] and other moves. The Suns came out of nowhere and showed a lot of interest, and I fell in love with them.”
A report early in free agency indicated that the Lakers, Heat and Pistons were Thomas’ preferred teams, and he says to Lowe that all three, as well as the Mavs, showed interest, noting that Miami’s pursuit took place before LeBron James left, as Lowe passes along in the same piece.
Steve Ballmer can write off about half of the $2 billion he paid to buy the Clippers as he files his federal taxes over the next 15 years, report Arash Massoudi and Alan Livsey of the Financial Times (hat tip to Sean Deveney of The Sporting News).

Western Notes: Howard, Kobe, Robinson, Blazers

October 28th, 2014 at 8:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Lakers co-owner Jeanie Buss believes her team let Dwight Howard down during his year there, wants Kobe Bryant to continue playing after his contract expires in 2016, and also tells USA Today’s Sam Amick that the organization is functioning more smoothly with Phil Jackson off to New York:

“I think it is trying to find how we’re going to operate together. I believe that Phil was a source of conflict between me and my brother and Mitch, I guess, as well. And now that Phil, as of six months ago, is now off the market and has a job – isn’t in the wings – that source of conflict is removed. And I think that the way we operate is becoming more clear. I’m satisfied with everybody’s role, and now we just need everybody to step up and do what is required of them. For me, that means stepping up and talking about the organization and being the face of the organization and establishing the clear lines of authority and transparency and, ultimately, accountability, which lies on my shoulders.”

Buss adds that fellow co-owner and brother Jim Buss, along with GM Mitch Kupchak, have assured her that the team will make progress in win column each season in the coming years. More from the West..

Although the Blazers declined to pick up his team option of $4.7MM for the 2015/16 season, Thomas Robinson expressed his desire to remain in Portland, writes Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. “I don’t think that worry should be even close. I want to stay thinking positive and that’s what I’m going to continue to do. Hopefully toward the end of the summer, the Blazers have a different mindset and they want to bring me back, because I want to be a part of this team. Something special is happening here. I want to be a part of it,” Robinson said.
Howard says he didn’t bolt from the Lakers because of Kobe, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle writes. “I didn’t leave L.A. because I was afraid of Kobe Bryant,” Howard said. “I went to a good situation for myself. I can’t change people’s opinions, but I did what I had to do for myself.”
The Lakers expect big things out of offseason acquisition Carlos Boozer, an assistant coach tells Ryan Primeaux of Lakers.com. “He’s a double-double virtually every night when he’s on his game. He provides leadership. He provides a constant, consistent low-post game, and the ability to step away from the basket and keep defenses honest. So he will definitely provide stability for us in the bigs department,” the unnamed coach told Primeaux.

Chuck Myron and Chris Crouse contributed to this post.

Pacific Notes: Thompson, Lakers, Vujacic

October 28th, 2014 at 9:00am CST by Chuck Myron

Warriors owner Peter Guber expressed regret Monday after sending an email that appeared to play on ethnic stereotypes, as Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports details. At least one team employee took offense, according to Spears. Hawks controlling owner Bruce Levenson is selling his stake in the Atlanta franchise after the discovery of an email he sent that contained racial overtones, and Hawks GM Danny Ferry is on indefinite leave of absence from the team after his racially charged comments. It remains to be seen if any such fallout with happen with Guber in the wake of the Donald Sterling scandal that touched off heightened awareness around the league. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

Extension-eligible Klay Thompson reiterated his desire to stay with the Warriors in comments to Michael Lee of The Washington Post, who notes Stephen Curry‘s verbal influence on the team’s decision to keep Thompson out of Kevin Love trade proposals. “It’s arguments either way if you make a move or what not, how your team is going to look and if it’s a good move or not,” Curry said to Lee. “Obviously, you know that other guy was pretty good, but when you have a core that’s continuing to get better, you got a lot of good chemistry, we fit together, it makes sense. And you want to fight for that. [Thompson is] nowhere near his ceiling.”
The Lakers aren’t planning to apply to have Steve Nash‘s salary wiped from their cap based on a medical retirement, GM Mitch Kupchak told reporters Monday, as Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times notes (Twitter link). Nash hasn’t announced his retirement even though the 40-year-old is out for the season with nerve damage in his back. The team is instead applying for a Disabled Player Exception.
Sasha Vujacic has signed with Spain’s Laboral Kuxta, the Euroleague announced. Sportando’s Enea Trapani first reported the move involving the eight-year NBA veteran who spent time last season with the Clippers on a 10-day contract. He’ll replace former Kings swingman Orlando Johnson, whom the team is letting go, according to Trapani.