Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Odds & Ends: Meeks, Kings, Clippers, Wolves

March 31st, 2013 at 10:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Jodie Meeks has been a critical role player for the Lakers this season under coach Mike D'Antoni after sitting on the pine for much of Mike Brown's tenure. The Lakers hold a team option on Meeks and he believes that it will be exericsed. “Yeah, I think so,” Meeks told Shams Charania of RealGM when asked if he believes he will be part of the Lakers next year. “You can’t really worry about that right now, just finish out this year. I’ll do that and see whatever happens.” Here's more from around the Association..

If Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman winds up walking away this summer due to family issues, J.B. Bickerstaff won't be considered a candidate for the job, according to Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link). There are still hard feelings in the Minnesota office when Bickerstaff followed Kevin McHale to the Rockets that would keep him from being considered.
Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times rounds up the week's news on the future of the Kings, noting that Sacramento City Council's approval of an arena plan is non-binding, just like their endorsement of an ill-fated arena proposal last year (link via the Sacramento Bee).
The Clippers retooled bench worked hard in the offseason to become arguably the league's best bench, writes Derek Page of HoopsWorld. In order for everything to come together for L.A., it was essential for Jamal Crawford to check his ego at the door and accept being the club's sixth man.
While we have heard that the Wolves are set to exercise GM David Kahn's option for next season, owner Glen Taylor says that he hasn't made a decision yet, writes Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune.

Western Links: Maloofs, Rush, D’Antoni

March 30th, 2013 at 10:29pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com hears more and more that the Maloof brothers could keep the Kings rather than sell the team to the Sacramento-led group if the NBA declines the Seattle bid, adding that it's not a total longshot at this point. Howard-Cooper also says that whether the possibility could drag on into this summer or next season, the Maloofs may step back and re-assess their options (All Twitter links). Interestingly enough, Aaron Bruski of USA Today tweeted that league sources "have maintained without any equivocation that the Maloofs will not own an NBA franchise next season."

We've got more to share out of the Western Conference tonight:

Howard-Cooper reiterates that he's not saying the above scenario will happen, but it's still a possibility. He also clarifies that the Maloofs keeping the Kings would be a way for them to start a bidding war and evaluate at the type of offers they can receive (Twitter links).
Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle says that Brandon Rush plans to do some light running and jumping in three weeks, and that the Warriors guard/forward should be ready by the start of the 2013-14 training camp (Twitter links).
Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld tweets that he thinks Mike D'Antoni's job is safe for next season at least, being that the Lakers coach is still owed a lot of money and hasn't had a healthy roster.
Ray Richardson of the Pioneer Press writes that Timberwolves coach Rick Adelman has a tough challenge of trying to evaluate upcoming free agents Mickael Gelabale and Chris Johnson without enough playing time to find for them.

David Kahn To Return As GM

March 30th, 2013 at 8:37am CST by Zachary Links

David Kahn's position as General Manager of the Timberwolves is secure and the the one-year option on his contract will be exercised shortly, if it has not been exercised already, sources tell Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link). That presumably means that Flip Saunders won't return to the organization, as the club had interest in him as a possible replacement for Kahn.

Owner Glen Taylor insisted earlier this month that Kahn could return for 2013/14, despite a great deal of outside criticism for the exec. The Timberwolves have had the misfortune of being bit by the injury bug this season with Ricky Rubio missing the early part of the season and Kevin Love missing much of the second half. However, Kahn's personnel decisions during his time in Minnesota have led the club to a 58-172 record over the last three seasons.

Odds & Ends: Collins, Saunders, Martin, Jennings

March 29th, 2013 at 7:58pm CST by Alex Lee

With 22 NBA teams in action on Friday night, let's round up all of the odds and ends from around the league here:

Sam Amico of Fox Sports points out, via Twitter, that Sixers coach Doug Collins has never coached longer than three years in his coaching career, which includes stops in Detroit, Chicago and Washington. This is relevant, of course, because Collins in currently in his third year in Philly and the wreckage of the Andrew Bynum disaster has many wondering if he will return next season.
Flip Saunders is drawing interest from the University of Minnesota as well as the Timberwolves, tweets NBC's Ric Bucher. The return to the Gophers, Saunders' alma mater, would be as the team's head coach while the Wolves are interested in securing their former coach to replace current general manager David Kahn. While Bucher says that current Wolves owner Glen Taylor is tight with Saunders, he thinks that Saunders would rather coach, even in college, than enter an NBA front office.
The addition of Kenyon Martin has been the last of a series of successful moves by Knicks general manager Glen Grunwald, over the past few years, that have resulted in the team closing in on its first division title in 19 years, writes Moke Hamilton of Sheridan Hoops.
Brandon Jennings, a restricted free agent come summer, should hope to ink a new deal more commensurate with his potential than his performance, writes Sean Deveney of Sporting News. Jennings, who was recently benched, has had his moments over his four-year career and seemed to be nearing a breakout last year when he averaged 19.1 points.
The Los Angeles D-Fenders have acquired former UCLA Bruin Reeves Nelson, tweets Eric Pincus of the L.A. Times. Nelson hooked on with the Lakers and Houston in the preseason, but was waived by both teams prior to the season.

Western Notes: Kings, Pekovic, Grizzlies

March 29th, 2013 at 3:54pm CST by Luke Adams

After the Lakers and Mavericks lost their respective games on Thursday, the Jazz will look to take advantage tonight in Portland against a Trail Blazers team that's expected to be without LaMarcus Aldridge. If Utah can get a victory, the club will pull even in the standings with the 37-36 Lakers, tied for the eighth playoff spot in the West with just nine games to go. While we wait for the Jazz/Blazers game, which will be the last on tonight's schedule to tip off, let's check in on a few items from around the Western Conference….

Appearing on the Dan Patrick Show, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson expressed plenty of confidence in his city's chances of keeping the Kings, as Chris Fedor of Sports Radio Interviews writes. Asked about the chances of Sacramento's bid succeeding, Johnson likened the city's odds to "Steve Nash on the free throw line": 90%.
Restricted free-agent-to-be Nikola Pekovic is also speaking in percentages, telling Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link) that he "100%" wants to remain with the Timberwolves beyond this season. Pekovic has said in the past that he likes "everything about Minnesota," so his latest comments don't come as a surprise.
Zach Lowe of Grantland has published an entertaining interview with Grizzlies head coach Lionel Hollins, a conversation that touched on January's Rudy Gay trade. According to Hollins, while he wasn't on board with trading Gay, he was looped in during the process, having discussed the Tayshaun Prince/Ed Davis return with the front office before the deal was agreed upon.
More Hollins on the Gay trade: "They asked me my opinion, and I'd say, 'I'd rather take this over that,' or, 'I'd rather not do this until the end of the season.' But that's what they get paid to do — to make those decisions. And I'm not sure that if I were in their shoes, I wouldn't have made the same trade…. But as a coach, you're thinking about right now, and so your mind-set is different."

Odds & Ends: Ayon, Brooks, Mavericks

March 23rd, 2013 at 10:03pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Bucks center Gustavo Ayon expressed some frustration about not being able to find court time in Milwaukee, and told reporters that he could return to Europe when his contract runs out, writes Charles F. Gardner of the Journal Sentinel. Though coach Jim Boylan reportedly likes what he sees from the Mexican-born center, there hasn't been enough practice time to incorporate him into the rotation. We've got a few more tidbits to share from around the league tonight, and you can find them below:

In addition to wondering what the 76ers will do with Andrew Bynum, Tom Moore of Philly Burbs also ponders the future of Evan Turner, who will be eligible for an $8.7MM qualifying offer after he finishes his fourth year option worth $6.7MM next season. Moore adds that if Turner doesn't figure to be in the team's plans, the Sixers could look to trade him this summer or during next year's trade deadline.
HoopsWorld's Derek Page held his weekly chat with fans earlier today, and here are some of the highlights: he sees DeMarcus Cousins as a max-level player, thinks Josh Smith could be the biggest name to move in free agency, predicts that Dwight Howard and Chris Paul remain in Los Angeles beyond this season, and isn't sure that O.J. Mayo or Tyreke Evans are long-term solutions for the Mavericks.
Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK delves into what could have been as he revisits Scott Brooks' challenging contract negotiations with the Thunder last summer, and discussing the possibility that he could have joined the Trail Blazers.
Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram reeled in some quotes about upcoming free agency from Mavericks owner Mark Cuban: "Our goal is to win championships, not win the summer, and so we have to see what’s available and what’s out there…We do the same thing we do every year and be opportunistic. We’re going to be opportunistic, and depending on how things go, we’ll make our decision."

Adelman To Consider Resigning This Summer?

March 21st, 2013 at 10:28pm CST by Ryan Raroque

10:28pm: Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets that team owner Glen Taylor recently told him that he expects Adelman to be back next year, considering that the last update on his wife's condition contained good news.

10:10pm: Timberwolves head coach Rick Adelman could consider resigning if his wife's health issues persist, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com. The 66-year-old coach had taken a three week break from the team in January to be with his family and had contemplated quitting twice this season. Balancing his attention between his family and a team battling through an injury-riddled year, Adelman isn't sure where he stands right now: “there’s a couple times I really struggled whether I should come back…I’m sure I’ll be thinking more about it as we move on here (through the season).”

While he says that his wife is doing fine, Adelman remained non-commital about the possibility of returning to the team next season: “I think it’s something I’m just going to have to sit down with my wife and family and just talk about and see where we’re going with this. The most important thing is where we’re going with her health. Whatever happens will happen naturally."

He also added: “It’s unfair for me to talk about that when I’m asking these guys to finish the season off and compete…And that’s all I’m trying to do now. I think there will be a right time to look at everything. I don’t want to really talk about those types of things until it’s done.”

The former Trail Blazers, Warriors, Kings, and Rockets coach is currently finishing up the second year of a four-year, $20MM contract that he signed with Minnesota in 2011. Through 131 games with Adelman as the head coach, the team is 49-82.

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: Wolves, Rockets, Balkman, Draft

March 11th, 2013 at 12:27pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves had been looking into obtaining an injury exception to sign a 16th player, but the team is unlikely to add anyone to the roster at this point, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. That includes Dominique Jones, whose camp has been reaching out to teams. David Kahn isn't interested in the ex-Maverick, says Wolfson (Twitter links). Here are a few more updates from around the Association:

The Rockets have "quietly been sending out signals" that they'd be willing to trade Omer Asik and/or Jeremy Lin this summer in a deal that would upgrade their roster, according to Sam Smith of Bulls.com.
Former Knick and Nugget Renaldo Balkman has been banned from the Philippines' professional basketball league following an altercation with a teammate, according to a Reuters report (via the New York Times). The 2006 first-round pick had been playing for the Petron Blaze Boosters.
Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com isn't buying the narrative that borderline draft prospects should enter this year's draft because the class is weak. According to Givony, while the 2013 draft looks weaker than normal at the top, it seems to have "great depth" outside of the top five (Twitter links).
Amare Stoudemire's contract, which continues to look worse, represents the "Original Sin" of the present Knicks' era, writes Howard Beck of the New York Times.
With Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard scheduled to face their old teams this week, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com revisits the blockbuster deals that sent the two stars to their current clubs.