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Atlantic Notes: Larkin, Seraphin, Porzingis

October 10th, 2015 at 8:13pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Shane Larkin hasn’t lived up to the hype that surrounded him entering the 2013 draft, but the point guard is excited about how his game can progress with the Nets, Tim Bontemps of the New York Post writes. Larkin believes joining Brooklyn will give him an opportunity to play to his strengths, which are using his speed to push the tempo and running the pick and roll.

“[Those skills are] not the only reason I got here, but that’s a big part of why I got drafted where I got drafted, and why I’m in the league,” Larkin said. “Last year, I obviously wasn’t in the best system for my style of game, but this year I’ve been implemented back into a pick-and-roll [offense], so it’s really good.”

Here are some notes from Brooklyn’s crosstown rival:

Coach Derek Fisher said he and the Knicks pitched new addition Kevin Seraphin on being able to use him in the post more than he’d been used in Washington, Chris Herring of The Wall Street Journal passes along via Twitter. Seraphin agreed to a one-year deal worth $2.814MM with New York this offseason.
Fisher also said the Knicks are not going to get “caught up” in what Kristaps Porzingis does statistically, and instead they are focusing on “his development over time,” Al Iannazzone of Newsday tweets.
Sasha Vujacic has taken Porzingis under his wing and the veteran believes the fourth overall pick has what it takes to prosper in the league, Ian Begley of ESPN.com writes. “He’s someone that loves basketball. … He wants to be better every single day,” Vujacic says of Porzingis. “There’s always something he’s improving on — every little thing. If it’s not the offense, it’s that he can run better, improve his body. You don’t see a lot of that in young players anymore because they come in a little bit comfortable and just different. I love that in him.”

Atlantic Notes: Seraphin, McConnell, Anthony

October 10th, 2015 at 2:00pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Kevin Seraphin, who signed with the Knicks this offseason after being dissatisfied with his playing time with the Wizards under former coach Randy Wittman, took exception to some comments that Wittman had made regarding Seraphin’s time in Washington, Marc Berman of The New York Post relays. “Listen, the players dictate who plays and what minutes they get,’’ Wittman said. “I’m not going to get into inconsistent minutes or not. He played. I wish him luck.’’ In response to Wittman, Seraphin said, “He said players dictate playing time? I don’t really agree there. What can I say. I was doing pretty much everything right, working hard. I’m not mad at all. That’s the business. He has the right to play me at the end of the day. … I don’t think he didn’t want to play me.’’ The 25-year-old made 79 appearances for the Wizards during the 2014/15 campaign, averaging 15.6 minutes per night, which was actually an uptick from the 10.9 minutes per night Seraphin averaged the previous season.

Here’s more from out of the Atlantic Division:

The Knicks are flush with players who can play the power forward position, which should limit the time that Carmelo Anthony sees at the four spot this season, a position he has excelled at in the past, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News writes. Anthony, who says he prefers playing small forward, notes that this was part of the team’s offseason plan, Bondy adds. “I think that spot is wide open, just as far as who’s going to play it, when they’re going to play,” Anthony said. “I’m pretty sure you’ll see some times with me at the four throughout the course of the season. To be honest with you, throughout these first 10 days of camp, Seraphin showed some shine at that position, K.P. [Kristaps Porzingis] showed some upside at that position. Guys we brought in at that position are showing why we brought them.“
T.J. McConnell is considered a longshot to make the Sixers‘ regular season roster, but he has been impressing the team’s coaching staff with his solid all-around play, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “We want to encourage him to get a set shot going,” coach Brett Brown said regarding the undrafted point guard out of Arizona. “The other stuff is proven. He’s a heady defender. He passes the hell out of it. He plays with amazing pace. I think he will be very popular in the city.” Brown acknowledged that McConnell is still in a “fist fight” to make the team, but added, “But what we’ve seen so far, you say he’s done well.“

Atlantic Notes: Sloan, Fisher, Sixers

October 9th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Donald Sloan knew at this point last season that his salary was guaranteed, and he went on to put up career-best numbers across for the Pacers, but now he is one of seven on the 20-man Nets roster without a full guarantee. He’s nonetheless confident, and Nets coach Lionel Hollins is high on the point guard’s ability, too, observes Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.

“I thought Donald Sloan’s athleticism, size and quickness could help us,” Hollins said. “We’re looking for a third guard, and he was a guy that was out there that showed a little bit of tenacity and toughness, as well as athleticism and quickness.”

Bontemps suggests that Sloan, who has a partial guarantee of $50K, is fighting for the third point guard job, and ostensibly a regular season roster spot, with rookie Ryan Boatright, who has a $75K partial guarantee. See more from the Atlantic Division:

It was a plane issue that kept Knicks coach Derek Fisher from making it back to New York from Los Angeles for Monday’s practice, not his alleged scrap with Matt Barnes, Fisher contended Thursday, according to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. Fisher added that he’s spoken with his boss, team president Phil Jackson, about what happened. The coach drew criticism for his absence from work.
Nerlens Noel and new addition Jahlil Okafor experienced some growing pains Thursday as they failed to mesh as well as they had two nights before, and Sixers coach Brett Brown admitted, “We’re going to have this conversation for a while, growing these two guys,” observes Tom Moore of Calkins Media.
Brown expects Kendall Marshall and Tony Wroten to miss at least the next month as they continue to recover from their injuries, Moore notes in the same piece, further jumbling the point guard picture for the Sixers, who have six point guards on their preseason roster.

Eastern Notes: Fisher, Griffin, Magic, Celtics

October 8th, 2015 at 5:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Knicks coach Derek Fisher, who was reportedly involved in a physical altercation with Grizzlies forward Matt Barnes last weekend, understands how some would question his focus on the team after he missed Monday’s practice session as a result of his West Coast jaunt, Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com writes. “I think we all remember there are a ton of people that work in New York City that have families in other cities or back on the West Coast,” Fisher said. “You work six days, you have a seventh day off. You go back and visit family. You come back to work on Monday morning. That was my plan. It didn’t work out that way for reasons that were not in my control and I can’t change it at this point.”

Here’s more out of the East:

Pistons coach/executive Stan Van Gundy said it was the team’s wealth of power forwards that led to Eric Griffin being waived, writes Aaron McMann of MLive.com. “We thought it would be best for him to sort of give him the opportunity to move on and pursue other things,” Van Gundy said. “I really liked him, very good kid, hard worker, great attitude, really athletic. Certainly has the talent to be an NBA-level defender.“
Heat power forward Chris Bosh believes that the Magic are poised to make a jump in the standings this season courtesy of the young talent the franchise has accumulated over the past few years, John Denton of NBA.com relays. “I mean, the talent is there, but it’s on them if they want to make the next step now or a couple of years down the line,’’ Bosh said. “That core of Victor Oladipo, Nikola Vucevic and Tobias Harris, that’s about as young and talented as it gets. You’ve got everything there with playmaking, outside shooting, rebounding and athleticism. And with [coach] Scott Skiles and the new regime in there I’m sure they are trying to pump those guys up and tell them, `We may not be expected to win every night, but we can play hard and win games.’ I’ve been there in that spot before, but I think they will give themselves a chance to be really good this season.’’
David Lee, who was a member of the NBA champion Warriors last season, says that he sees a lot of similarities between the 2015/16 Celtics and his former squad, especially in the areas of team chemistry and depth, Tales Azzoni of NBA.com writes.

Western Notes: Kobe, Morris, Barnes, Davis

October 8th, 2015 at 3:02pm CST by Chuck Myron

The majority of the two dozen team executives, scouts, agents and other figures from around the NBA who spoke with Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com said the Lakers definitely shouldn’t re-sign Kobe Bryant if he decides to play beyond the expiration of his contract at season’s end. Another sizable chunk of respondents said it should depend on his health, while only one said the Lakers should definitely bring him back. Part of the issue involves repeated assertions from people around the league that free agents won’t want to sign with the Lakers and play with their longtime star, as Holmes relays. Bryant has said he won’t play for an NBA team aside from the Lakers, but if he did, few teams would have interest, Holmes hears. One executive mentioned the Knicks as a possibility, and another brought up the Clippers. See more from around the Western Conference:

Markieff Morris gave further indication Wednesday that he indeed wants to stick around Phoenix, telling reporters, including Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, that he intends to convince local fans he’s on board. “I’ll win them back,” Morris said. “That’s all I can say about that.” Morris last week backed off his trade demand from the summer, and the Suns apparently have no interest in sending him out, even though the Pistons are reportedly interested.
Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger and Matt Barnes sloughed off the notion that reports that Barnes physically attacked Knicks coach Derek Fisher will have any bearing on the team, and Joerger expressed full support for his player, notes Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal. Barnes said that he hasn’t spoken with anyone from the league office, but the NBA is investigating, Tillery adds. Memphis traded for Barnes this summer, and he’s entering the final season of his contract.
Ed Davis prioritized the chance for minutes over money when he decided to sign a three-year, $20MM deal with the Blazers this summer, as Casey Holdahl of Blazers.com details. “I was playing well in Toronto my third year, then I got traded to Memphis,” Davis said. “I played behind [Zach Randolph] and Marc [Gasol] for a year and a half, didn’t really get the opportunity. I was playing 13, 14 minutes a game and there’s no way that’s you’re going to be successful in the NBA with those minutes. That set me back for a year and a half. I guess the media or whatever thought I couldn’t play, or whatever it was. Went to L.A. [Lakers] last year, had a decent year and everything turned. Now I’m in a great situation and I’m looking forward to it.”

Fisher Mulls Legal Action Against Barnes

October 8th, 2015 at 2:23pm CST by Eddie Scarito

THURSDAY, 2:23pm: Barnes drove to his ex-wife’s home when one of his children Facetimed him and expressed concern, as Barnes told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN.com, who shares Barnes’ details of the leadup to the incident. Barnes didn’t address the reported altercation with Fisher, though he did address his relationship with his former Lakers teammate.

“We were close. We were friends. Some things have happened to change that. It is what it is,” Barnes said to Shelburne about Fisher.

4:57pm: During his pregame press conference today, Fisher was asked if there would be any legal ramifications from the incident, to which he replied, “We’ll see,” Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com tweets.

WEDNESDAY, 4:24pm: Knicks coach Derek Fisher and Grizzlies small forward Matt Barnes had a physical confrontation Saturday in Los Angeles and Fisher is considering legal action for the incident, but has not yet filed any charges, Shams Charania and Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports report. Ian Mohr of The New York Post first reported the altercation. The Knicks, Grizzlies and NBA security have been made aware of the incident and are expected to soon start working together on a probe of the events, according to Charania and Wojnarowski. “We are aware and currently gathering information regarding today’s report involving Matt Barnes,” the Grizzlies said in a press release.

The conflict stemmed from Fisher’s romantic involvement with the estranged wife of Barnes, a former teammate, and when Barnes found out, he allegedly attacked Fisher, sources informed Mohr. Fisher and Barnes’ ex, Gloria Govan, have been dating for “a few months,” a source told the Post scribe, a relationship that began after Fisher filed to divorce his wife of 10 years, Candace, this past March.

“Derek was in Gloria’s back yard with about 10 people having a bonfire on Saturday,” said Mohr’s source. “Derek’s separated from his wife and there’s a relationship with [Gloria]. Barnes was in Santa Barbara [at Memphis Grizzlies training camp] and heard that Fisher was in his house. He went crazy. He got in his car and went to the house and went after Fisher.” A source close to Fisher who spoke with Mohr confirmed the fight, but had conflicting information regarding whether or not Fisher would pursue legal action, saying, “Matt came after Derek but he only had a few scratches … Derek’s not going to press charges, he’s going to let it go.”

A significant part of the NBA’s security department is overseas working closely on the league’s preseason games in Europe, sources told Charania and Wojnarowski. This could certainly delay any investigation from being completed fully, as well as any subsequent disciplinary action, if warranted, though that is merely my speculation.

Atlantic Notes: Bennett, Fisher, Celtics, Knicks

October 8th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Anthony Bennett doesn’t regret having become the No. 1 overall pick in 2013, but in encouraging him to move past that, Raptors GM Masai Ujiri hinted in comments to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports that he can envision keeping Bennett beyond this season even if he doesn’t make a leap this year. Toronto signed Bennett to just a one-year deal for the minimum salary when the team brought him aboard last month.

“We look at giving Anthony an opportunity to actually grow and be a player,” Ujiri said. “It’s not a one-year thing here. It’s going to take time. All that No. 1 pick and all that stuff, we had a conversation with him. Let’s move on from that. Now it’s about how you become a very good NBA player, which we all know he can be.”

See more from the Atlantic Division:

It was Derek Fisher who was the victim when Matt Barnes reportedly attacked him, but the Knicks coach invited scrutiny when he skipped practice to travel 3,000 miles away, ostensibly to see his children, and wound up at the home of Barnes’ ex-wife, opines Frank Isola of the New York Daily News. The missed practice and the distraction brought upon his team will make Fisher’s job performance a more common subject for criticism this season, Isola believes.
The first-round picks that the Nets, Timberwolves and Mavericks owe them and the playoff appearance from last season signal that the Celtics would be well-served to put more of an emphasis on winning this year, as Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald argues. Bulpett points to this summer’s moves as evidence that the C’s feel the same way.
The Knicks formally hired Mike Miller as the coach of their D-League affiliate, the team announced. Miller, who’s not the player by the same name, is a former associate head coach at Kansas State. Isola first reported in August that the move was close.

Travis Wear Signs To Play In Spain

October 7th, 2015 at 10:57am CST by Chuck Myron

WEDNESDAY, 10:57am: The deal is official, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia).

TUESDAY, 3:36pm: Former Knicks small forward Travis Wear will sign with Gipuzkoa Basket of Spain, reports Juanjo Lusa of the Spanish outlets Onda Vasca and Mundo Deportivo (Twitter links; translation via Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi). The 25-year-old didn’t appear to generate much interest from NBA teams this offseason, as his rumors page indicates, even though he stuck on the Knicks roster for the entire season last year after making the team out of training camp.

New York had the chance to make him a restricted free agent, but the team elected not to make a qualifying offer that would have been worth $1,045,059, so he became an unrestricted free agent instead. It had seemed at the end of last season as though the Knicks would likely invite him back to camp, but he struggled on New York’s summer league team, notching just 2.0 points in 16.7 minutes per game with 26.7% shooting over four appearances. That small sample size represented a regression from this past season, when he posted 3.9 PPG in 13.2 MPG with 40.2% shooting.

Wear is set to join his twin brother in Spain, as David Wear signed with Fuenlabrada this summer after spending time with the Kings on a 10-day contract last year. Both went undrafted out of UCLA in 2014.

Do you think we’ll see Travis Wear in the NBA again? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.

Eastern Notes: Porzingis, Raptors, Hawks

October 5th, 2015 at 9:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Kristaps Porzingis‘ shooting ability has Knicks assistant coach Kurt Rambis comparing the lottery pick to Pau Gasol and Dirk Nowitzki, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News reports. “He might be a combination of both of them just because he can do so many things,” Rambis told the team’s beat reporters on Monday. “You guys haven’t seen it yet and probably all of it won’t come out for three or four or five years, either. He’s got to grow up, mature, develop, get stronger, get used to the NBA game. But he already understands basketball.” Rambis anticipates that opponents will have to craft their defensive gameplans around the team’s rookie power forward because of his “effortless 3-point range,” Bondy adds.

In other news around the Eastern Conference:

The Raptors’ unheralded free agent signings of veteran power forward Luis Scola and center Bismack Biyombo could pay large dividends, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca opines. Both are expected to play key roles off Toronto’s bench, as coach Dwane Casey values Scola for his experience and durability while Biyombo could anchor the second unit’s defense, Lewenberg continues. “His [role] is to be our defensive captain,” Casey told Lewenberg. “I think his talking, his shot blocking, his protecting the rim is off the charts.”
Lamar Patterson has made a strong impression on his Hawks teammates as he battles for the 15th roster spot, Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Al Horford, Jeff Teague and Kent Bazemore have all singled out Patterson as having an impressive camp, Vivlamore continues, but the 6’5” shooting guard faces competition from Terran Petteway, Earl Barron, DeQuan Jones, Edgar Sosa and Arsalan Kazemi.
Tobias Harris is showing better accuracy on 3-point attempts above the break, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. The Magic’s starting small forward became an above average 3-point shooter from the corners last season and wanted to improve in other areas around the arc, Robbins continues. He hit an above-the-break 3-pointer in the team’s preseason opener and showed that shot again in an open practice on Monday. “I think it’s a big weapon, and I think it’s only going to help our spacing on the court to extend that range out,” Harris said to Robbins. “It’s something that I’ve been working on all summer and I’m going to continue to work on.”

Carmelo Anthony Says He Won’t Ask For Trade

October 5th, 2015 at 12:45pm CST by Chuck Myron

Carmelo Anthony rebuked speculation that he would eventually become disenchanted with the Knicks and ask for a trade, saying “hell no” in response to a reporter’s question to that effect, notes Al Iannazzone of Newsday (Twitter link). He once more reiterated his faith in team president Phil Jackson, Iannazonne observes, and ‘Melo added that he was bothered all summer by the notion that he wanted to be traded and the idea that he was against the team’s decision to draft Kristaps Porzingis fourth overall, tweets Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com.

Anthony’s contract, which still has four years and more than $101.606MM left on it, includes a no-trade clause and also features a 15% trade kicker, a bill the Knicks would have to pay if Anthony ever did consent to a swap. That would further complicate any potential trade scenario. The Knicks plummeted to a 17-65 record this past season, the first on Anthony’s contract and the first full season for Jackson as team president. They drafted chiefly for the long run when they chose the still-developing Porzingis, and they missed on Greg Monroe and other key free agent targets, but they upgraded the roster for the near term with signings of Robin Lopez, Arron Afflalo and others. Anthony’s return from knee surgery, which limited him to 40 games last season, also figures to help the Knicks bounce back.

‘Melo hinted this weekend that he intends to remain with the Knicks even beyond his contract, which carries a player option for the final season. The 31-year-old said recently that he’s taking Porzingis, 19, under his wing, having called the Latvian big man “a steal” in the initial wake of the draft.

Do you think Anthony will remain with the Knicks for the entire term of his contract? What about for the rest of his career? Leave a comment to share your thoughts.