Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Central Rumors: Cavs, Jackson, Drummond, Cook

January 6th, 2013 at 3:28pm CST by Chuck Myron

Bob Finnan of The News-Herald blames Cavs GM Chris Grant and coach Byron Scott for the team's struggles this season, and calls on the team to take a more aggressive approach and pull the trigger on a deal for a "good, young piece" at the trade deadline if someone like that is available. The Cavs should carry that aggression into free agency, Finnan believes, and use their cap space for better assets than they've pursued recently. Finnan has more on the team, which we'll round up along with other notes from their Central Division rivals.

We've heard before that the Cavs and Wolves have had brief discussion about an Anderson Varejao trade, and Finnan confirms those talks, speculating that Minnesota would probably want to include Derrick Williams, a potential deal-breaker. Finnan believes the Cavs may have interest in taking back Nikola Pekovic instead.
There's been little talk of Scott's job security this season, but if the losing continues, Finnan doesn't foresee that immunity lasting into 2013/14.
Former Bucks swingman Stephen Jackson said he spoke with GM John Hammond about a contract extension during his time in Milwaukee, but never took a confrontational tone, as Jackson told Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times. Jackson expressed respect for Hammond and said he can envision working for him someday, though I'd guess he's referring to a front-office role rather than a return to the Bucks as a player. Jackson said Hammond was the only person from the Bucks organization he still spoke to, and balked at the suggestion that he'd reached out to coach Scott Skiles, with whom he feuded last season.
Andre Drummond has improved as the season has gone on, but he's content with the Pistons' plan to bring him along slowly, MLive's David Mayo observes.
Mayo and fellow MLive scribe Brendan Savage debate who got the better of Detroit's offseason trade with the Bobcats that swapped Ben Gordon for Corey Maggette.
Scott Powers of ESPNChicago.com writes that Daequan Cook understands that he must earn playing time with the Bulls after signing in Chicago this morning.

Grizzlies Making Rudy Gay Available?

January 4th, 2013 at 12:34pm CST by Luke Adams

Rudy Gay is no stranger to trade rumors, having been the subject of a few rumblings as recently as last summer. And it appears that 2013 will bring even more rumors surrounding the veteran forward, with Zach Lowe of Grantland reporting that the Grizzlies have made it known in preliminary talks with NBA teams that Gay could be available.

Lowe clarifies that it doesn't sound as if Memphis is actively shopping the 26-year-old. However, the club is about $4MM into the luxury tax this season, and could be heading back into tax territory in the next two seasons, based on the contracts currently on the books. As such, moving Gay's three-year, $53MM+ deal might be an attractive option.

Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley said back in June that the team had no plans to deal Gay, and a September report from the Memphis Commercial Appeal suggested that Memphis turned down a number of lowball offers for Gay over the summer. However, with a new owner (Robert Pera) in place, and new faces in the front office, such as John Hollinger and Jason Levien, the Grizzlies may be more open to revisiting the possibility of a move.

While Lowe doesn't specify which teams the Grizzlies may have spoken to about Gay, he does speculate on which clubs may be a fit, naming the Timberwolves, Bucks, Celtics, Hawks, Raptors, Rockets, and Jazz as "sensible candidates." Lowe also adds that the Warriors have "long coveted" Gay, but points out they don't really have the pieces to make a deal work at the moment.

Wolves Rumors: Pekovic, Varejao, Redick, Hayward

January 4th, 2013 at 8:36am CST by Luke Adams

Despite Kevin Love leaving last night's game against the Nuggets in the second half, the Timberwolves managed to do something only the Heat had accomplished this season: Win in Denver. The victory pulled the Timberwolves within a half-game of the Nuggets, and into a tie for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. As the Wolves continue jockeying for position in the West, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities rounds up plenty of rumors out of Minnesota. Here are the highlights:

While a trade is a possibility for the Timberwolves, David Kahn figures to wait for a few weeks to make any decisions, as he assesses what sort of impact Ricky Rubio will have.
With Nikola Pekovic in the final year of his rookie deal, his price figures to soar next year, perhaps to close to $10-12MM annually. As such, Wolfson speculates that the Wolves could explore deals involving Pekovic.
The Wolves have discussed Anderson Varejao with the Cavaliers, though those talks were "brief."
Owner Glen Taylor is willing to go into the luxury tax in 2013/14 if the right opportunity presents itself.
The Wolves like J.J. Redick a lot, but it would probably take Derrick Williams and a future first-rounder to get Orlando's attention. Wolfson adds in a tweet that there are certain teams that might give up more for Williams, but the Magic probably aren't one of those teams.
The Martell Webster compensation case between the Wolves and Trail Blazers is closed, but it's not known when the league will make an announcement. Minnesota is expected to receive no more than a second-round pick and/or cash.
Minnesota is expected to release Lazar Hayward before his contract becomes guaranteed. The team has talked to Josh Childress, but he's only interested in a guaranteed deal for now. Daequan Cook, recently cut by the Rockets, isn't on the Wolves' radar.
If Greg Oden is eventually healthy enough to return to the NBA, the Timberwolves would be among the interested teams.

Western Notes: White, Beverley, Childress, Kings

January 3rd, 2013 at 1:43pm CST by Luke Adams

Although a report surfaced recently suggesting that Royce White could explore the possibility of playing in Europe, where he wouldn't have to fly to games, the Rockets rookie insists that's not the case. He announced today via Twitter that he expects to play for Houston "once this current situation is resolved." White turned down a D-League assignment earlier this week, citing a lack of a mental health protocol.

Here are a few more Thursday updates out of the Western Conference:

Patrick Beverley is still expected to sign with the Rockets, once he receives FIBA clearance, according to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter). Beverley's deal, which we heard about back in December, will mean the Rockets will have to release another player to clear a roster spot.
Josh Childress isn't interested in a 10-day contract at this point, so the Timberwolves or any other team would have to give him a full-season guarantee if they were to sign him, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities.
According to Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld, word in NBA circles suggests that "major change" is coming to the Kings next summer when Geoff Petrie's contract ends and new management is brought in.
DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans are among the names Ian Thomsen of SI.com thinks will be dangled before the trade deadline, suggesting that if the Kings are considering a "major house-cleaning," both players could be moved.

Odds & Ends: Williams, Warriors, Magic, Roy

January 2nd, 2013 at 10:52pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from around the NBA on Wednesday evening:

Jazz guard Mo Williams is expected to miss six weeks following thumb surgery. It will be interesting to keep an eye on what roster moves Utah makes to account for his absence.
Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News examines several reasons the Warriors are having such a successful season.
John Mitchell of Philly.com writes that former Sixers big man Nikola Vucevic is beginning to realize his potential with the Magic.
Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel looks at the path Ishmael Smith followed that led to his signing with the Magic.
Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that Brandon Roy is practicing with the Timberwolves but it is still unknown when he will return to the court.
Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun writes that J.J. Hickson's stellar recent play has been a nice surprise for the Trail Blazers.

Western Notes: Jazz, Howard, Hickson, Beasley

January 2nd, 2013 at 2:01pm CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers saw their 17-game winning streak finally come to an end last night in Denver, and now sit percentage points behind the Thunder in the Western Conference standings. Still, ESPN.com's Chad Ford gives the Clips the slight edge over OKC as the best team in the West at the moment. Here are a few more Western Conference notes from Ford's chat and from a variety of other writers:

Responding to questions about trade candidates like DeMarcus Cousins and Kevin Love, Ford suggests the Timberwolves should trade Love sooner rather than later (though there's no indication they will), and says the Jazz wouldn't be a logical suitor for Cousins, since Utah isn't the sort of team that would take that risk.
Elsewhere in his chat, Ford questions whether it's a lock that Dwight Howard will sign a long-term deal with the Lakers, noting that D12 "still pines for Brooklyn." Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld also wrote last night (via Sulia) that it's hard to see a long-term marriage between Howard and the Lakers working. I still think L.A. is the overwhelming favorite to sign Howard, but it's not necessarily the sure thing it seemed to be at one point.
J.J. Hickson is an early candidate for Comeback Player of the Year, according to Alex Raskin of HoopsWorld. Hickson, who is playing on a one-year deal and could be a coveted free agent next summer, tells Raskin that he's not sure exactly what his future holds: "I don’t know. All I can do is control what I can control and that’s play the game of basketball and the rest will work itself out."
When Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors examined some of long-term deals signed last offseason that haven't worked out so far, he didn't mention Michael Beasley's three-year, $18MM contract with the Suns. But as Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic writes, Beasley has "bottomed out" in Phoenix.
Newly-signed James Anderson talks to Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle about what he hopes to bring to the Rockets.
Having been recalled by the Mavericks from the D-League earlier this week, Jared Cunningham tells Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News that his time with the Texas Legends was "good for me."

Wolves Sign Lazar Hayward

December 31st, 2012 at 12:58pm CST by Zachary Links

12:58pm: It's a non-guaranteed deal, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (on Twitter). The forward's deal could be guaranteed in a matter of days, however.

11:46am: The Timberwolves announced that they have signed forward Lazar Hayward. Terms of the deal are not yet known but it is likely a non-guaranteed contract.

Minnesota auditioned the Marquette product on December 21st following Josh Howard's ACL tear and subsequent release. The Wolves would like to replace Howard's production off of the bench as he averaged 6.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, and nearly 1 steal per game in 18.8 MPG. Hayward agreed to join the Los Angeles D-Fenders just yesterday but hopefully he didn't put his snow boots in storage.

The T'Wolves originally acquired Hayward in a 2010 draft night trade with the Wizards. Hayward played in 42 games as rookie and averaged 3.8 points per contest.

Odds & Ends: Jazz, Hamilton, Gelabale, Ahearn

December 30th, 2012 at 11:23am CST by Luke Adams

A few Sunday morning odds and ends from around the Association:

Given the number of Western Conference contenders with strong frontcourts, Lang Greene of HoopsWorld wonders if the Jazz would be better off hanging to all their big men. Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson are both in the final seasons of their deals, while Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter are considered Utah's bigs of the future.
Back in the Bulls' lineup, Richard Hamilton tells Nick Friedell of ESPNChicago.com that he isn't let trade rumors bother him. "It happens every year," Hamilton said. "Every year, if you ain't in a trade rumor, then you ain't doing something right. That's how I always looked at it. That's the way this game goes, you hear about stuff every day because GMs are talking to different players every day. It's nothing that I even get caught up or think about or anything like that."
French forward Mickael Gelabale would be open to signing with the Timberwolves if he received a 20-day guarantee, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (via Twitter). Because all contracts become guaranteed on January 10th, the team can't exactly offer a 20-day guarantee at this point, but the Wolves could be willing to sign Gelabale to a pair of 10-day deals, or perhaps write buyout terms into a contract ahead of time.
Blake Ahearn, who was released by the Pacers before the season began, has agreed to sign with China's Dongguan Leopards, according to a Weibo report (passed along by HoopsHype).
With the Mavericks struggling, and at least nine of the team's 15 players set for free agency at season's end, coach Rick Carlisle will have a challenging stretch ahead of him over the next few weeks, writes Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News.

Roy Has Setback In Rehab, Considering Retirement?

December 29th, 2012 at 6:30pm CST by Zachary Links

6:30pm: Via the official Timberwolves' PR Twitter account, Roy issued a statement saying that his goal has been, and continues to be, to return to the court as healthy as possible. The Star Tribune's Jerry Zgoda (Twitter link) interprets this as Roy holding off retirement for now.

1:10pm: "All signs are pointing toward retirement" for Roy, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. Roy has spent the last two days deciding between hanging it up and undergoing one more medical procedure to help his knees, according to Krawczynski (Twitter link).

12:39pm: Timberwolves guard Brandon Roy has had setbacks in rehabilitation from his knee injury and his return date is now uncertain, a league source tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). Roy returned to Minnesota to practice before issues with knees forced him to step away again in past 48 hours.

The Wolves rolled the dice on Roy this offseason, giving him a two-year, $10.4MM deal. However, the second year of the deal is not guaranteed if Roy does not play in 65 games or log 1,400 minutes this season. Roy obviously won't reach 65 games this year and the 1,400 minute milestone is a virtual impossibility.

If the injury forces Roy to retire, the Collective Bargaining Agreement would allow for the Wolves to wipe the guard's $5.1MM salary from the books on January 9th, 60 days from the last game that Roy played. Roy is eligible for the injury exclusion as he played in less than ten games in 2012/13.

James Anderson Close To Deal With NBA Team

December 29th, 2012 at 4:57pm CST by Chuck Myron

James Anderson is nearing an agreement with an NBA team other than the Wolves, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN. Minnesota passed on Anderson after bringing him in Wednesday for a workout, Wolfson said. Anderson was reportedly set to sign in the D-League with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers as of two days ago.

Anderson, who spent his first two seasons in the NBA with the Spurs, was in training camp with the Hawks and re-signed with the Spurs in November after Atlanta waived him prior to the start of the regular season. The Spurs let him go last week when injured Kawhi Leonard returned to the lineup.

San Antonio took Anderson with the 20th overall pick in 2010, but declined the third-year option on his rookie deal before the start of the 2011/12 season, making him an unrestricted free agent this past summer. The 6'6" swingman has averaged 6.7 points in 11.3 minutes per game over his NBA career.