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Southeast Notes: Heat, Jefferson, Magic, Hawks

January 1st, 2015 at 12:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Doomsday predictions for the Heat in the wake of losing LeBron James are starting to come true, and Jason Lieser of The Palm Beach Post reports that players are searching for answers. “I just don’t even know what the point of this season — I don’t know. I have no idea,” Chris Bosh said after Wednesday’s loss to the Pacers. After four straight trips to the NBA Finals, Miami is struggling through a season beset by injuries and adjustment to life without its former superstar.

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Hornets coach Steve Clifford told Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer that the decision to shut down Al Jefferson came midway through Monday’s loss to the Bucks. “At halftime we spoke and agreed that we were going to sit Al down and say, ‘We appreciate you want to play, but…’” Clifford said. “It’s great that he wants to be out there and is team-first and wants to play. But he just can’t move.” Jefferson has been diagnosed with a strained adductor muscle in his left groin and is expected to be out of action for at least four weeks.
Former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy likes Orlando’s roster but warns there will be some tough choices ahead, writes Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. “Like everybody, you get to the point in all of these projects where then you have to make decisions on money, and that’s actually in some ways tougher than assembling a lot of guys to begin with,” said Van Gundy, now coach and president of basketball operations for the Pistons. “Who are you going to pay and how much and how are you going to put the whole thing together?” Orlando’s decisions will start in July when Tobias Harris and Kyle O’Quinn are set to become restricted free agents.
The Magic have recalled Devyn Marble from the D-League, Robbins tweets.
The Hawks are among the best teams in the Eastern Conference, and Adam Fromal of Bleacher Report opines that they have a chance to be in that position for a long time. Atlanta has slightly more than $41MM committed in salary for next season, with Paul Millsap, DeMarre Carroll, Elton Brand and John Jenkins as expiring contracts. The Hawks also can exchange first-round draft picks with the Nets as one of the lingering benefits of the Joe Johnson trade, and they have an extra second-rounder coming from the Raptors.

Cavaliers Notes: James, Irving, Blatt

January 1st, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Arthur Hill

“Outlandish” was the word LeBron James used Wednesday to dismiss rumors that he might be leaving the Cavaliers again, reports Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. “I’m here to build, build something great in the present and the future, and that’s the reason I’m back,” said the four-time MVP. “I’ve got no other reason to have to continue to talk about things that’s so outlandish. So, I’m here, this is where I’ll be, and this is where I’m comfortable.” Rumors of unrest in Cleveland have accompanied a disappointing 18-14 start and have fueled reports that James is looking elsewhere. He has a two-year, $42.1MM contract with a player option after this season, but he has stated many times that he signed the short deal to maximize his market value.

There’s a lot more from Cleveland:

Some of those rumors stemmed from a video of a conversation between James and former Heat teammate Dwyane Wade after their Christmas Day game, but Wade tells Shandel Richardson of the Sun Sentinel that they weren’t talking about basketball. “It had nothing to do with [reuniting],” Wade said. “It was about bigger and better things later.”
Despite the dysfunction in Cleveland, Kyrie Irving says it’s still better than not being in contention, according to Chris Fedor of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. “I’d rather be in this position right now than [where] I was last year,” he said. “We’re just in a great mental place and I’m in a great mental place.” Irving signed a five-year, maximum-salary extension in July.
It’s up to owner Dan Gilbert to settle the team’s coaching situation, opines Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Stein contends the Cavaliers made a mistake by hiring David Blatt, who had no experience as an NBA head coach, before they knew if James was returning. He says Gilbert needs to either fire Blatt and take the heat for the move or demand that James throw his full support behind the coach, although he admits the second option is hard to picture considering James’ immense power in the organization.

Eastern Notes: Cavs, Granger, Heat

December 30th, 2014 at 7:14pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The Cavs‘ big men have left quite a bit to be desired in their performance thus far this season. Cleveland currently ranks 22nd in blocks per game, 26th in rebounds, and 22nd in overall defense. It’s for these reasons that the Cavs have been searching for a rim protecting center all season, and Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders runs down ten possible targets for GM David Griffin to try and bolster his frontcourt with, including Timofey Mozgov (Nuggets), Brandan Wright (Celtics), Jordan Hill (Lakers), and Samuel Dalembert (Knicks).

Here’s more from the East:

Danny Granger never expected to retire as a member of the Pacers and he doesn’t harbor any ill feelings toward the franchise despite being dealt to the Sixers last season, Ira Winderman of The Sun Sentinel writes. “I didn’t think I would,” Granger said of eventually retiring with Indiana. “I mean, the time I spent there was very unusual. I didn’t want to get too wrapped up in the fact that I could have possibly been there my whole career. I knew that I wanted to. But I knew that the way the NBA is, and the type of business it is.“
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has done his best to juggle Miami’s rotation in light of all the injuries that the team has had to deal with but this season has quickly become humbling for the proud franchise, Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald writes. “We’re 30 some games in. It’s enough talking,” Chris Bosh said. “We’ve talked enough. It’s about getting the job done. We’re not doing it right now. It’s been up and down for the whole season. It’s not going to change until each person makes it change. Coach has a bunch of decisions to make. He has to do his job and figure things out just like we have to do our job and figure things out. He’s going to put the best group he feels needs to be out there. We have to respond as players. We haven’t done a very good job of that.”
James Anderson signed an extension that includes a raise with Lithuania’s Zalgiris Kaunas, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Anderson, who started 62 games for the Sixers last season, inked a one-year deal with Kaunas over the summer. That deal included an escape clause, but he decided against triggering it to sign the extension, which covers the rest of the season, Pick tells Hoops Rumors.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Southeast Notes: Wizards, Napier, D-League

December 30th, 2014 at 5:29pm CST by Eddie Scarito

One major factor contributing to the Wizards‘ success this season is their excellent team chemistry, Jenny Dial Creech of the Houston Chronicle writes. Trevor Ariza was one of the team’s veteran leaders last season, but when he signed a free agent deal with the Rockets this past summer Washington acted quickly to replace that void by signing Paul Pierce, Creech notes. “You always have a contingency plan for that and that’s what we did,” coach Randy Wittman said. “Nothing ever really surprises you anymore in this league. It was a situation where we would have loved to have Trevor stay. We wanted to make sure we didn’t lose anything in that area with a guy like Trevor. We are trying to move on. We have Paul who has come in here and really moved into that spot.”

Here’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hawks have assigned John Jenkins to the Idaho Stampede, the team announced in a press release. Jenkins is headed to Idaho as part of the flexible assignment rule since Atlanta is without a one-to-one partnership with a D-League team. In one previous stint in the D-League Jenkins appeared in five games, averaging 19.4 points and 3.8 rebounds in 23.8 minutes.
Adreian Payne has been assigned to the Austin Spurs, the Hawks have announced. This will be Payne’s fourth trek to the D-League this season, and in 11 games Payne has logged 13.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 28.4 minutes per contest.
The Heat have assigned Shabazz Napier to the Sioux Falls Skyforce, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Napier has appeared in 25 games with the Heat this season, averaging 5.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 21.0 minutes while shooting 42.5 percent from the field. This will be Napier’s second sojourn of the season to the D-League.

Western Notes: Wolves, Warriors, Varnado

December 30th, 2014 at 3:33pm CST by Chuck Myron

The teams at the top of the Eastern Conference have begun to close the gap on the West, as Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal observes in his latest “Pick and Pop” column. There are as many teams with winning percentages of .700 or better in the East as there are in the West, and the top four Eastern teams have all won at least eight of their last 10 games. The Blazers are the only Western team that can boast that. Imbalance still exists farther down the standings, where the 18-14 Suns cling to the last Western playoff spot while the 14-18 Heat lay claim to eighth place in the East. Here’s the latest from around the conference that still reigns supreme:

Flip Saunders said the Timberwolves are looking at “all kinds of options” and said the team hasn’t reached a deal with anyone amid conflicting reports of an agreement with Miroslav Raduljica, notes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). Still, Saunders acknowledged there’s “no question” that the team needs to add size, as Zgoda tweets.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr doesn’t expect his team will make significant changes anytime soon, as he said on NBA TV, notes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (on Twitter). “I don’t anticipate us doing a whole lot,” Kerr said. “We’re doing well. We like our team. We’ve got good versatility and depth.”
The D-League affiliate of the Lakers acquired the rights to Jarvis Varnado in a trade with the Grizzlies D-League affiliate, the L.A. D-Fenders announced (on Twitter). That sort of move usually coincides with or precedes a signing, though it doesn’t appear as though Varnado has a contract with the D-Fenders just yet. Varnado, who was in camp with the Sixers this past fall, was one of a half-dozen players without a deal to play pro basketball after inking an NBA 10-day contract last season, as I noted earlier.
Former Jazz camp invitee Kevin Murphy has left Utah’s D-League affiliate to pursue a deal overseas, reports Gino Pilato of D-League Digest (Twitter link). The swingman was briefly with the Jazz during the preseason before the team cut him October 10th.

Heat Notes: Exception, Whiteside, Pick

December 28th, 2014 at 10:50am CST by ChrisCrouse

The NBA granted the Heat a disabled player exception this week because of the season-ending injury to forward Josh McRoberts and Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel looks at the team’s options to use the $2.65MM. Winderman argues that the Heat could have an advantage over other teams when veteran players from losing teams agree to a buyout with hopes of signing with contenders. However, he notes that timing could be an issue for this strategy because of the team’s need for immediate help. Without bringing someone in sooner than later, the team could find itself absent from the list of contenders.

Here’s more from Miami:

Hassan Whiteside has earned his spot on the roster and if he maintains his level of play, the 25-year-old center may become part of the team’s long-term plan, writes Winderman in the same piece. Winderman suggests that the team could trade Chris Anderson with the hopes of getting back into the draft. Another bonus of the potential trade would be more playing time for Whiteside, who is averaging only 7.7 minutes per game this season.
While getting value on players who aren’t in the team’s long-term plans makes sense, sacrificing wins this season to keep their own first-round draft pick does not for the Heat, writes Winderman in a separate piece. The Heat owe their 2015 first rounder (top-10-protected) to the Sixers. If the pick is not conveyed this season, it has the same provision for 2016. If not conveyed by then, it becomes unprotected in 2017. Winderman argues that the team would be better off losing the pick this season due to potential value of that 2017 first-rounder.
The Heat haven’t started the season the way they had hoped but coach Erik Spoelstra remains optimistic, writes Surya Fernandez of Fox Sports Florida. “You have to keep on plugging away; you have to keep on forging ahead,” Spoelstra said. “We are getting closer, sometimes you can get so deep in the forest you can’t see the trees, and I think that’s how we feel right now. But if you can step back objectively without emotion you can see we are making some progress. It’s a struggle, and when you can grow the most is when you embrace the struggle, learn from it and you get over that struggle. We are not quite there yet but guys are working to do the right thing.” Miami sports a record of 14-17 this season.

Heat Have Interest In Andray Blatche

December 27th, 2014 at 9:15am CST by Chuck Myron

The Heat are eyeing Andray Blatche, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The 28-year-old big man is committed to China’s Xinjiang Flying Tigers through the end of their season, a stumbling block considering that the Heat are in need of an inside player immediately, as Stein points out (on Twitter). Josh McRoberts is expected to miss the rest of the season and Chris Bosh is out indefinitely, but the regular season for the Flying Tigers doesn’t end until February 1st, and Blatche could be stuck in China until mid-March if Xinjiang makes the CBA finals as the team did last season.

Miami has been hesitant to sign Blatche in the past because of his maturity level and his behavior, as Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote over the summer. Blatche was absent from the Nets for what the team called personal reasons over a four-game stretch a year ago, but the break was reportedly a product of then-Nets coach Jason Kidd having essentially suspended him because of what Kidd saw as a lack of conditioning and preparation. Still, Miami wasn’t definitively ruling out the Andy Miller client as of August. The Raptors reportedly met with Blatche over the summer, and while another report indicated he would work out for the Clippers, Miller said that dispatch was false. Blatche was apparently telling many folks around the league that he would end up signing with the Pelicans, but he instead signed his Chinese deal in late September.

The Heat gained a disabled player exception worth precisely $2,652,500 because of the McRoberts injury, as Joseph Goodman of the Miami Herald reported late Friday, so they can offer significantly more than the prorated minimum salary. However, that exception expires March 10th, a date that might precede the end of Blatche’s obligations in China. Miami is carrying 15 players, as our roster counts show, so the team would have to let someone go to create a spot for Blatche. He was productive off the bench for Brooklyn the past two seasons, averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in 22.2 minutes per game last year, and he’s been an overall plus on the court, as I noted when I examined Blatche’s free agent stock in August.

Heat Granted Disabled Player Exception

December 26th, 2014 at 10:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The NBA has granted the Heat a disabled player exception in response to the season-ending injury suffered by Josh McRoberts, Joseph Goodman of The Miami Herald reports (Twitter link). The exception will be valued at approximately $2.65MM, or half of McRoberts’ $5.3MM salary for the 2014/15 season, Goodman notes. Miami has until March 10th to use this exception on a player whose price tag fits into that allotment, whether it be through free agency or trade. The Heat currently have 15 players on their roster, which means that they would have to waive or deal someone prior to adding another player.

McRoberts parlayed a career year with Charlotte last season, on in which he averaged 8.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 30.3 minutes per game, into a four-year, $22.652MM contract with Miami this summer. The Heat gave him a deal equivalent to the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception with the hope that he would become useful rotation piece. McRoberts had passed up a comparable deal from the Hornets that the team had made in response to Miami’s offer to the big man.

Offseason toe surgery slowed McRoberts to begin the regular season, and after missing the first seven contests, he only managed 4.2 points and 2.6 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game for the Heat prior to suffering a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. McRoberts’ career averages are 5.7 PPG, 4.1 RPG, and 2.1 APG. His career slash line is .478/.345/.707.

Western Notes: Heslip, Black, Smith

December 26th, 2014 at 9:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

D-League standout Brady Heslip is considering a jump to Europe if he doesn’t secure an NBA deal soon, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Heslip, who appeared on the Wolves’ Summer League roster after going undrafted out of Baylor, is averaging a blistering 27.1 PPG for the Reno Bighorns while completing 49.4% of his shots from beyond the arc. The Kings were close to signing the sharpshooting guard, according to Stein (Twitter link), but that was before Mike Malone was dismissed as coach. Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi hears Heslip has an offer from Baskonia of Spain.

Here’s more from out West:

Tarik Black wasn’t surprised when he was waived by the Rockets in order to accommodate Josh Smith’s signing, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston details. “You got an undrafted free agent and you got Josh Smith, superstar,” Black said. “I think most GMs would have taken him. It happens. It’s business… I’m so thankful to the city of Houston. I still love this team.“
Rockets coach Kevin McHale said that he would determine exactly how Smith would be used over time, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I hate to put guys out there until they’re comfortable,” McHale said. “He’ll get some run. We’ll play everything by ear. All that stuff takes care of itself moving forward. He’s been a quality player in this league for a lot of years. I see him continuing to be a quality player.”
Smith was pursued by a number of contending clubs, but he chose the Rockets over the Grizzlies, Mavericks, Heat and Kings because when considering his skills and Houston’s style of play, the Rockets were the best fit, Feigen adds. “I just feel like with the guys they have along on the roster, all the talent, and the opportunity to do something special for the rest of this year and in the postseason, this was the most attractive place to be,” Smith said.

Charlie Adams contributed to this post.

Central Notes: James, Boozer, Jerebko

December 26th, 2014 at 9:10am CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers felt the absence of Anderson Varejao in Thursday’s loss to the Heat, writes Joe Vardon of the Northeast Ohio Media Group. In its first game since the announcement that Varejao would miss the rest of the season with a torn Achilles tendon, Cleveland suffered a 10-point loss. Vardon noted the Cavs were late on defensive rotations and were slow getting to the kind of loose balls that Varejao typically chases down. “Guys just have to step up and do a little bit more than what they’ve been doing before,” said LeBron James, “but you can’t replace him.”

There’s more from the Central Division:

The Heat’s Dwyane Wade continues to defend James’ decision to leave Miami, telling Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that a different standard exists for players and teams. “It’s tough in this league,” Wade said. “When a player makes a decision, and however you make it, there is always backlash. But when an organization makes it, it’s the right thing for an organization to do. And it’s fine. Josh Smith just got cut. It was the right thing for the Pistons to do. It’s fine. LeBron James or players make decisions in free agency, then it becomes a different situation.”
Another player who didn’t have a happy homecoming Thursday was Carlos Boozer, reports Jon Greenberg of ESPNChicago.com. The Lakers’ forward returned to Chicago for the first time since being amnestied by the Bulls over the summer. Despite an unfriendly reception — Boozer was booed repeatedly by the Chicago crowd — Boozer still has a fondness for the Windy City. “This is like a second home for me,” he said. “I know everybody here. We became like a family over the years.”
Jonas Jerebko could benefit from all the turmoil in Detroit this week, according to Brendan Savage of MLive. The veteran Pistons’ forward, whose contract expires at season’s end, sees an opportunity to pick up more playing time after the release of Smith. “Obviously, with a 4 man gone — I see myself as a 4 man — a lot more minutes open up in practice and in games,” Jerebko said. “I feel like I’m ready to take that step and I’m ready to go in there and battle for them.