Memphis Grizzlies Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Southwest Notes: Brewer, Barnes, Williams

January 15th, 2016 at 2:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

More than two dozen players became eligible to be traded today, and among them is Corey Brewer, about whom the Rockets and Suns reportedly had serious discussions as they entertained a swap that would also include Terrence Jones going to Phoenix for Markieff Morris. Still, Suns GM Ryan McDonough denied that any deal was prearranged or pending as he spoke Wednesday on the “Burns & Gambo” show on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, as Kellan Olson of ArizonaSports.com transcribes. McDonough predicted lots of activity between now and the February 18th trade deadline and promised he’ll take an aggressive approach, though he said he can envision Morris remaining with Phoenix through the end of the season, adding that the Suns are “under no pressure to do anything immediately.” While we wait to see what happens on that front, there’s more on the Rockets and other Southwest Division teams:

Improved defense, better 3-point shooting and the presence of Patrick Beverley in the starting lineup instead of Ty Lawson have sparked the Rockets to improved play, as Calvin Watkins of ESPN.com details, but GM Daryl Morey isn’t satisfied. “I’m worried given our goals,” Morey said, according to Watkins. “We still have a lot of improvement to do and we’re working towards that.”
The performance Matt Barnes has put on for the Grizzlies lately makes it clear his controversial October encounter with Knicks coach Derek Fisher isn’t a distraction to the team and that he’s been one of the most valuable Grizzlies on the court, writes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. The 35-year-old has maintained his high level of defensive play all season, and more recently he’s begun to regain his usual shooting touch, Tillery notes. Barnes delivered pithy comments to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, saying, “I don’t talk to snakes” when asked if he’ll speak to Fisher while the Knicks are in Memphis for Saturday’s game. Barnes sent threatening text messages to Fisher in the weeks preceding Barnes’ alleged physical attack on Fisher at the home of Barnes’ estranged wife, a source told Marc Berman of the New York Post.
A pair of small trade exceptions expired for Southwest Division teams this week, vestiges of the three-team trade that sent Jeff Green to the Grizzlies. The Pelicans allowed their $507,336 Russ Smith trade exception to lapse, while the Grizzlies didn’t find a use for the $396,068 leftover scrap of the Quincy Pondexter trade exception. Memphis used most of that Pondexter exception, originally valued at $3,146,068, to take in Luke Ridnour, whom the Grizzlies promptly flipped for Barnes.
Chris Herrington of The Commericial Appeal doesn’t think the Grizzlies will issue a second 10-day contract to Elliot Williams, whose existing 10-day deal expires at the end of Sunday (Twitter link).

Southwest Notes: Davis, Barnes, Perkins

January 14th, 2016 at 7:40pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Anthony Davis is still behind in voting for All-Star Game starters, as returns that the NBA released today show, so his chances of triggering higher salaries on the extension he signed this summer are fading. He’d need to make up a deficit of 173,877 votes that separates him from the final starting spot by the close of voting Monday to trigger the Derrick Rose rule, which would give Davis a salary of a projected $24.9MM instead of $20.4MM next season. The difference would amount to $25.875MM over the life of his contract, based on those same projections. He could still invoke the rule if he earns an All-NBA nod or wins the MVP award in the spring.

Here’s the latest from out of the Southwest Division:

Grizzlies small forward Matt Barnes isn’t optimistic that the appeal the NBPA filed on his behalf regarding the two-game suspension he received for an off-court incident involving Knicks coach Derek Fisher in October will bear fruit, Ian Begley of ESPN.com writes. “I appreciate the support I’ve got from not only my peers throughout the NBA but NFL and from the entertainment world,” Barnes told ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne. “It means a lot that the NBPA has filed an appeal on my behalf, but I won’t hold my breath. I’ve never had so much as a tech rescinded. I highly doubt I’ll be reimbursed a dime of that suspension money!“
Kendrick Perkins, who signed with the Pelicans as a free agent this past offseason, is frustrated by the lack of effort exhibited by some of his teammates, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports relays. “It’s very disappointing. At the end of the day, this is not what I signed up for,” Perkins told Spears. “I signed up after I looked from the outside, coming in to a good young team that has been making strides in the right direction. We got real comfortable. We ain’t got long to make a push. At this point in time, we are all just searching to find the right lineups and who is going to come out and compete at a high level every night. That’s been our main problem before anything else. We just come out too many nights and don’t compete at the level we need in order to win. What really is the key to everything is our level of competitiveness.”

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

And-Ones: Baron Davis, Jeff Green, Magic, Draft

January 14th, 2016 at 2:39pm CST by Chuck Myron

Baron Davis is drawing NBA interest, his agent tells Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv (Twitter link), cautioning that he has not yet signed with the D-League, as reported, but plans to do so. The Todd Ramasar client has full confidence the D-League will lead him back to the NBA, where he hasn’t played since the 2011/12 season, as Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher details.

“When someone asked me [when I’d make my comeback] before, I didn’t want to answer,” Davis said to Bucher. “If I make it in the NBA or wind up playing overseas, I will be at peace. I know the NBA is the place for me because I have the game and now I have the confidence in my body. The last six years I was hurt and in pain and I wasn’t myself. I’m moving a lot faster and better than I did then.”

Davis spawned confusion two summers ago when he made a film that appeared to poke fun at the idea of him returning to the NBA, Bucher notes. Multiple NBA executives thought Davis wasn’t serious about a comeback, though one assistant GM told Bucher that as long as Davis is engaged and in shape, he merits consideration. The Mavs have been linked to him, but owner Mark Cuban has said the team’s interest exists only at the D-League level. See more from around the NBA:

Jeff Green has frustrated at least one prominent Grizzlies teammate, as a “guy who matters” on the team “wanted to wring his neck” Tuesday, when Memphis lost to the Rockets and Dave Joerger benched Green for the second half, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal said in a podcast. Kurt Helin of ProBasketballTalk has the transcription. Green has struggled on the court and his attitude “hasn’t been the best,” Tillery also said.
The Magic accepted cash via trade for the third time since July 1st on Tuesday, when the Cavs gave them $934,614 in the Joe Harris deal, but they still have $1,286,686 remaining against the $3.4MM limit for the season, notes Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders (Twitter links).
The NCAA’s rule change to push back the date underclassmen can withdraw until 10 days after the NBA combine is a sensible move because it helps players more than it hurts college coaches, opines Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer. Bonnell wonders if it will also lead NBA officials to start working out underclassmen at their colleges instead of having the prospects go to NBA sites, since the NCAA probably wouldn’t want NBA teams paying the travel costs for players who could return to play in college.

Western Notes: Teletovic, Wolves, Grizzlies

January 14th, 2016 at 10:33am CST by Chuck Myron

Mirza Teletovic wondered if his career was over after experiencing blood clots in his lungs that led to his hospitalization last January, notes Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic. Teletovic was initially expected to miss at least the rest of last season for the Nets, though he returned for the playoffs. He wound up signing a one-year, $5.5MM contract with the Suns in the summer that looks like a bargain now that he’s playing a prominent role in the Phoenix rotation and is leading all NBA big men in 3-pointers made and 3-point percentage, Coro points out.

“I never have got the chance that I’ve got here and the chance [coach] Jeff [Hornacek] has given me,” Teletovic said.

That’s a vote of confidence for the Suns coach, who’s job was reportedly in jeopardy a few weeks ago, from a soon-to-be free agent. See more from the Western Conference:

The sale of 30% of the Timberwolves to private equity investor and Grizzlies minority owner Steve Kaplan is on track to be complete by the end of next month, according to Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The transfer is reportedly a precursor to Kaplan and his partners eventually taking over majority control from Glen Taylor, though the stipulation that the team remains in Minnesota would be a part of any deal, Walters notes.
The Wolves initially operated on the premise that the late Flip Saunders would be back coaching sometime in November after he took his leave of absence in September to recover from cancer treatment, as interim coach Sam Mitchell recently revealed to Britt Robson of MinnPost. Saunders died in October.
Jeff Green didn’t play in the second half of the Grizzlies‘ loss to Memphis on Tuesday, the one-year anniversary of the trade that brought him to Memphis, a signal that the time has come for the team to trade him, argues Geoff Calkins of The Commercial Appeal.

Western Notes: Barnes, Stotts, Scott

January 13th, 2016 at 9:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak is pleased with coach Byron Scott‘s tough-love approach with the team’s younger players and takes offense at the notion that Scott is stifling their development, writes Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times. “If you asked our young players, I think there would be a mutual respect, as you might expect maybe between a parent and a child,” Kupchak said. “In other words, I’m going to love you, I’m going to bring you along, but every now and then, I’ve got to teach you the right way to do things.”

Kupchak also told Bresnahan that Kobe Bryant‘s retirement tour is actually a benefit to the team’s young roster since the attention paid to the veteran deflects much of the spotlight away from the other players. “I guess there was some backlash to the comment that we can’t move on until Kobe retires,” Kupchak said. “There’s no doubt this season is in great part a tribute to him and what he’s meant for this organization. It’s what he deserves, it’s what we want to give him, it’s what the fans want and it’s a justifiable tribute to his career. Having said all that, to think that we’re not developing our young players? I mean, who’s starting? Larry Nance. Anthony Brown. And Jordan Clarkson. Who’s playing 20 to 30 minutes a game? Julius Randle. D’Angelo Russell. In fact, Kobe gives the younger guys a chance to fly under the radar a little bit. They can make mistakes. Maybe they don’t get the attention they normally get under a normal season. On top of that, they get to learn by being around Kobe.”

Here’s more news out of the Western Conference:

The NBPA has filed a grievance on behalf of Grizzlies small forward Matt Barnes that appeals his two-game unpaid suspension for the off-court altercation he had in October with Knicks coach Derek Fisher, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports. Barnes will lose $64,409 in salary because of the suspension if it is upheld. This appeal will ensure that Barnes is able to take the court this Saturday when the Grizzlies square off against the Knicks in Memphis.
Portland GM Neil Olshey raved about the performance of Terry Stotts and cited the coach’s improvement over his time with the Trail Blazers in an appearance on “The Vertical” hosted by Wojnarowski (audio link). Stotts has a team option on his contract for next season.
Suns power forward Markieff Morris is excited about his expanded role in the team’s rotation that’s come about because Alex Len is sidelined with a sprained right hand, though Morris is not sure if he will remain in the regular lineup regardless of how long Len is out, Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic relays.

Russ Smith To Play For Sixers D-League Affiliate

January 13th, 2016 at 11:14am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 11:14am: The affiliate of the Sixers has claimed Smith’s D-League rights, so he’ll play for the Delaware 87ers, Reichert hears (Twitter link).

TUESDAY, 10:50am: Former Grizzlies and Pelicans point guard Russ Smith has signed with the D-League, a league source tells Chris Reichert of Upside & Motor (Twitter link). The 24-year-old has spent plenty of time on D-League assignment during his season and half in the pros, but this is the first time he has a D-League contract instead of an NBA deal, so the D-League waiver system will determine which affiliate he plays for. He’ll remain eligible to sign with any NBA team regardless.

Memphis waived Smith on December 29th, despite the existence of a full guarantee on his minimum salary, to clear room for Ryan Hollins, whom the Grizzlies released about a week later. Still, the team filled the roster spot with Elliot Williams on a 10-day contract instead of re-signing Smith. The Grizzlies reportedly believed as of early this season that Smith wasn’t ready to ascend to the role of primary backup behind Mike Conley, which helped precipitate the Mario Chalmers trade. Smith saw playing time in only 21 NBA games for Memphis in between the time it acquired him from the Pelicans in the Jeff Green trade a year ago today and the time of his release. He made it into only six games for New Orleans prior to that deal.

Still, he was a consensus First Team All-American in his senior season at Louisville in 2013/14, when he averaged 18.2 points, 4.6 assists and 2.8 turnovers in 29.3 minutes per game. The Sixers drafted him 47th overall in 2014 and dealt his rights to the Pelicans shortly thereafter.

Do you think we’ll see Smith back in the NBA this season? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Western Notes: Williams, Mavs, Randle

January 9th, 2016 at 1:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Mavericks say that they look at each game as a recruiting opportunity for future free agents, Eddie Sefko of The Dallas Morning News writes. “It’s an all-year-round process,” small forward Chandler Parsons said. “Every game you go into — I know Ryan Anderson is a free agent, I know Kevin Durant is a free agent. You have relationships with guys and you understand when they’re free agents. I just try to be myself and go about the business of playing and winning games. But at the same time, you definitely have an understanding of what’s going on and what’s coming up each summer.”

“You don’t recruit individual free agents,” Mavs owner Mark Cuban said. “You define your brand as a team and attractiveness as a team to all free agents. We don’t do something geared to one guy. We try to show: ‘Here, this is who we are and this is what we stand for and this is our culture.’ That’s our recruiting message. We don’t try to be anything to anybody. We try to be ourselves and hope that that’s a good fit. You can’t try to alter who you are for one free agent. It just won’t work.”

Here’s what else is happening out West:

Lakers coach Byron Scott says his relationship with young power forward Julius Randle is like that of a father and son, and the coach believes that Randle requires some tough love from time to time, Mike Bresnahan of The Los Angeles Times writes. “The thing that I told him is that he’s probably never had adversity in his life on a basketball court because he’s been so good everywhere he’s been,” Scott said. “This is the first time that he’s had to face it. I told him, ‘You’re going to have to deal with it. And the way you deal with it is going to determine how great you’re going to be as a basketball player.’”
Elliot Williams, who inked a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies this past week, believes he can provide a spark with his fresh legs and defensive abilities, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal relays. “I can fit in pretty well defensively,” Williams said. “I know most of the guys already from staying here in the offseason and playing with them in the offseason. I’m familiar with the team and I’m looking to come in here and make an impact.”

Grizzlies Sign Elliot Williams To 10-Day Contract

January 8th, 2016 at 10:16am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 10:16am: The signing is official, the team announced via press release.

THURSDAY, 12:58pm: The Grizzlies are expected to sign Elliot Williams to a 10-day contract, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). It’ll necessitate a corresponding move, since Memphis already has 15 players on its roster. Ryan Hollins joined the club just last week, while James Ennis has a partially guaranteed contract. JaMychal Green does, too, though he’s an unlikely candidate to hit waivers. All salaries for this season become fully guaranteed if not waived by 4:00pm Central today.

Memphis will become the fourth team to sign Williams to a 10-day contract in the past two seasons, since he had 10-day deals with the Jazz, Hornets and Pelicans last year, as our 10-day Tracker shows. He didn’t end up sticking for the balance of the season with any of those three teams, though he was back with Charlotte for the preseason before the Hornets again let him go. The five-year NBA veteran who was the 22nd overall pick in 2010 joined the D-League affiliate of the Warriors in early November, and he’s put up impressive numbers in 16 appearances for that club, averaging 28.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.9 turnovers in 40.9 minutes per game.

The 26-year-old has also canned 36.1% of his 3-pointers in the D-League this season, a key stat for Memphis, which lacks outside shooting, but Williams is just a 31.2% shooter from behind the arc over the course of his NBA career. The Grizzlies, at a disappointing 19-18, begin a key six-game homestand Friday.

Grizzlies Keep James Ennis, Cut Ryan Hollins

January 7th, 2016 at 4:18pm CST by Chuck Myron

4:18pm: The Grizzlies announced via a press release that Hollins has been waived.

1:35pm: The Grizzlies will waive Ryan Hollins today, a source tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter), but they’ll hold on to James Ennis, reports Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal (All Twitter links here). Memphis needs a roster spot for Elliot Williams, who’s reportedly set to sign a 10-day contract with the team, so it appears that Hollins, who just signed last week, will depart. Ennis, who had already earned more than the partial guarantee on his salary by virtue of remaining under contract as long as he has this season, will see his full $845,059 one-year veteran’s minimum take, since today is the final day for NBA teams to waive non-guaranteed salary before it becomes fully guaranteed.

The details of the contract Hollins signed December 29th remain unclear, but Bobby Marks of Yahoo’s “The Vertical” offered a hint, tweeting that he’ll see about $96K for his time on the Memphis roster. That indicates that Hollins was on a non-guaranteed deal, just like the contract the Grizzlies had him on during the preseason and the one he signed with the Wizards in late November. Memphis waived him before opening night, and Washington cut him loose last month, so his latest release from the Grizzlies represents the third time he’s hit waivers in less than three months.

Ennis came to Memphis in early November via the Mario Chalmers trade, and he’s already gone on D-League assignment six times since then. He’s logged only 27 minutes at the NBA level with the Grizzlies so far, but Memphis apparently thinks he can grow into a productive player, since the team’s interest in keeping him for next season was the reason why it chose Ennis over Hollins today, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter link). Ennis’ contract covers 2016/17 with a non-guaranteed salary. The combo forward was the 50th overall pick in the 2013 draft.

Timberwolves Interested In Courtney Lee

January 7th, 2016 at 1:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Timberwolves have tried in vain to convince the Grizzlies to swap Courtney Lee for Kevin Martin, Sam Amick of USA Today reports (video link). Martin has his fans in the Memphis organization, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, but no indication exists that the Grizzlies will go for Minnesota’s proposal, Wolfson tweets. Grizzlies want to preserve their cap flexibility for the summer ahead, according to Amick, and while Lee is on an expiring contract, Martin has a player option worth close to $7.378MM for next season.

Minnesota made Martin available in trade talk last month, as Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press reported, and Amick indicates that it’s unlikely that the veteran shooting guard finishes the season on the Timberwolves roster. The Kings are high on him, as Wolfson reported, but a deal has yet to materialize with the February 18th trade deadline set for six weeks from today. He played Tuesday for the first time after failing to appear in Minnesota’s previous seven games partly because of a wrist injury but primarily because the team wanted to give Zach LaVine a chance to play shooting guard.

Lee, like Martin, has seen statistical declines this season, with his normally reliable 3-point shooting dropping from last season’s 40.2% rate of accuracy to 31.9%. That’s a problem for the Grizzlies, who lack outside shooting, and Lee has been in and out of the starting lineup this year. Martin is nailing 37.7% of his 3-point looks this season, and his career numbers from behind the arc are about the same as Lee’s, but Martin will turn 33 on February 1st, while Lee just turned 30 in October.

A straight-up swap of Lee and Martin would also pose financial trouble for the Grizzlies. Martin makes $7.085MM this season, compared to Lee’s $5.675MM. Memphis is already only about $2MM shy of the $84.74MM luxury tax threshold.

Do you think the Grizzlies are wise to turn down this proposal? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.