Andrew Bynum Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Western Rumors: Nuggets, Turkoglu, Spurs

January 10th, 2014 at 8:29pm CST by Chuck Myron

There’s a chance, albeit a slim one, that Andre Miller will return to the Nuggets’ lineup before the team finds a trade for him, a source tells Chris Dempsey of the Denver Post. Miller has not rejoined the team since being suspended for a confrontation with coach Brian Shaw last week, and while the Nuggets continue to explore deals, they’ve been unsuccessful so far. One stumbling block has been the Kings‘ insistence on including Travis Outlaw in any such swap, as USA Today’s Sam Amick wrote earlier this evening. As we wait to find out when, or if, a Miller trade will happen, here’s more on the Nuggets and the rest of the Western Conference:

Hedo Turkoglu impressed during his workout with the Clippers today and the team is interested in signing him, Doc Rivers told reporters, including Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link). Still, Rivers didn’t say when a signing might happen. Rivers is wary of change, as the coach also said in noting his reticence to consider Andrew Bynum, Markazi tweets.
Gregg Popovich explains that the “scary” effect midseason trades can have on team chemistry generally helps dissuade the Spurs from making such moves, as Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News observes. The Spurs are reportedly taking an “unusually aggressive” approach to trade talks this season.
The insurance on Danilo Gallinari‘s contract will pay the Nuggets 80% of his salary for any games he misses over the remainder of the season, Dempsey notes, amending his earlier report that said the insurance would cover 50%. The team will save about $99K per game.
Ricky Rubio was supposed to represent one of the Timberwolves’ notable draft successes in recent years, but his lack of development is making 2009’s haul, which included Jonny Flynn, look even worse, opines Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Pacific Rumors: Suns, Frye, Clippers, Bynum

January 10th, 2014 at 1:52pm CST by Luke Adams

Here’s the latest on two of the three Pacific teams currently in playoff positions, the Suns and Clippers:

In a piece on Eric Bledsoe‘s injury, Grantland’s Zach Lowe examines whether it makes sense for the 21-13 Suns to try to “re-tank.” Lowe offers up a few potential destinations for Goran Dragic, if Phoenix wants to trade him, but suggests that he’d rather see the team stay on its current path, perhaps adding a solid point guard behind Dragic.
Lowe also reports that the Suns were prepared to use Channing Frye as a trade chip in three-team trade scenarios involving Omer Asik when the Rockets were actively looking to move the big man. Phoenix wouldn’t have been the club acquiring Asik in those hypothetical deals.
The Clippers have frequently been mentioned as one of Andrew Bynum‘s preferred destinations, but reports have indicated that L.A. is lukewarm on the former All-Star center. According to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter), the Clips have gone “back and forth” on Bynum, but have had a few more internal discussions recently and have some interest. The club currently has no open roster spots, but two players are on 10-day deals, so there could be a pair of openings soon.
Ricky Davis was last seen in the NBA with the Clippers, and even as L.A. searches for backcourt help, a reunion is not too likely. Still, speaking to Howard Beck of Bleacher Report, Davis, who is currently averaging 14.1 PPG for the D-League’s Erie BayHawks, says he’d love one more shot at the NBA: “It could be one game. It could be 20 minutes. It could be a 10-day contract. It just lets me know that guys are watching and guys do see that I can still play the game. However long it is, just as long as they know I can play.”

Odds & Ends: LeBron/Melo, J.R. Smith, Deng

January 9th, 2014 at 9:16pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Both Al Iannazzone of Newsday and Mitch Abramson of the New York Daily News passed along some of LeBron James‘ comments on Carmelo Anthony with regards to free agency:

“You got to do whatever makes you happy…When you’re happy, the game of basketball is going to be fun for you. Strive to be great every day and live with whatever else happens. So we’ll see.”

Asked further if he’d recommend Anthony leave some money on the table when he signs his next contract, LeBron had this to say:

“I recommend it to me…It doesn’t work for everybody. The way I live my life don’t work for everybody. All I care about is winning. I came to Miami to win. Money didn’t make me happy. Winning made me happy, and it still does. That’s what matters to me.”

We’ve got more links to pass along out of the Association tonight, and you can find them below:

Not surprisingly, George Karl deplored J.R. Smith‘s recent behavior, telling Michael Kay on 98.7 ESPN radio in New York that his former player is going to wake up one day and realize how much he’s wasted great opportunities because of this “mockery he brings to the game.” In spite of that, Karl added that Smith still has a “skill that championship teams need” and suggested that a team like the Heat or Spurs may be able to corral the erratic shooting guard: “There’s that possibility…I think right now that’s the position if I was J.R.’s agent [I would take]. I would be looking at a culture where there would be more peer pressure…I know San Antonio has always liked (J.R.) and I know they’ve thought about bringing him in…San Antonio doesn’t make a lot of mistakes” (Ian Begley of ESPN New York).
Although Luol Deng‘s agent Herb Rudoy didn’t expand upon how far apart the numbers were with the Bulls regarding contract extension discussions, he mentioned Andre Iguodala‘s contract with the Warriors (four years, $48MM) as one that would be commensurate with Deng’s ability, writes Nick Friedell of ESPN Chicago.
When asked about a potential return to Chicago for his client in the near future, Rudoy responded: “Never discussed…I have no idea. We didn’t talk about it.”
Tom Haberstroh of ESPN explores the topic of whether or not Andrew Bynum would be a good fit with the Heat (Insiders only).
Ian Begley and Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN New York, Robert Silverman of Knickerblogger, Ethan Sherwood Strauss of TrueHoop, and Brian Windhorst of ESPN have a roundtable discussion on the Knicks and Nets‘ chances of making the playoffs, winning the Atlantic Division, getting to the second round of the playoffs, and which has the brighter future.
K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune goes in-depth about how the Deng trade presents an enormous opportunity for Bulls rookie Tony Snell (Subscribers only).

Stein On Bulls, Bynum, Bledsoe, J.R. Smith

January 9th, 2014 at 8:00pm CST by Ryan Raroque

During a five-and-a-half minute interview earlier tonight, ESPN’s Marc Stein offered his thoughts on the Deng-Bynum trade, Eric Bledsoe‘s latest injury, and the latest on J.R. Smith and the Knicks (ESPN Radio link). You can find some of the highlights from the interview below.

On what the Deng-Bynum trade means for the Bulls:

“I really like this deal better for Chicago because they’ve reset themselves entirely as far as finances…nobody wants to part with first-round picks, but to be able to get a first-round pick for a guy who was headed to free agency, that’s a pretty impressive feat…when you look at what’s left over in Chicago, lets assume Derrick Rose comes back, they still have Jimmy Butler, they have Joakim Noah, they’ve got some picks coming in, they’re going to try to get Nikola Mirotic – who’s considered one of the top players in Europe…there’s still some pieces there…if they can hang onto Tom Thibodeau, they still have a good platform for a team moving forward.”

On Andrew Bynum‘s free agency prospects:

“…the issue with Bynum is I think everyone’s concerned because it’s been so long since he’s been motivated…the reality is that he’s still a very big guy who takes up a lot of space and did show enough flash in Cleveland to let you know he can still be a productive player when he’s in the mood…He wants to go to a contender and somewhere where he can (make more) than the league minimum. I know Dallas is very interested in him. Miami and the Clippers are two teams that have been mentioned, but I think in both cases there’s probably some hesitation as well…Miami already has Greg Oden there, do they really want two reclamation project centers on that team?

Doc Rivers has been very vocal this week saying that our concern is on the perimeter because we lost Chris Paul for six weeks…they’re not looking for a big man. Is that smoke screen from (Rivers)? I think we’ll find out pretty soon.”

On how Eric Bledsoe’s injury affects the Suns plans:

“It’s a crusher…there’s been all kinds of talk that Phoenix would move (one or two of their stash of future first-round picks) in order to try to get another frontline player and make a playoff push now…those plans are going to have to be revised most likely because it looks like Bledsoe (could) miss a significant amount of time.”

“…they won’t know exactly how bad (the condition) and they won’t know until the surgery takes place, but this is the first depressing downer to happen to Phoenix after a fairy-tale two months.”

On J.R. Smith and the Knicks:

“The reality is that I don’t think they’ll be able to move him. Now I would not co-sign on the notion that this is purely a Knicks ‘scare tactic’…the Knicks weren’t the ones who told me or Ian Begley that J.R. Smith was being shopped…I don’t think this was some sort of thing the Knicks strategically leaked because they’re trying to light a fire under (him)…They’re undoubtedly frustrated with him, they (feel) like it’s time for a fresh start for all parties, but the reality is that (Smith) has two more years left on his contract after this one, his production has dropped considerably, and off the cour there’s been four or five flareups already that have resulted in fines or negative headlines…the Knicks are realistic, they know that chances are they’re not going to find a trade partner for him, but they’re trying. They are trying and that is legitimate.”

Andrew Bynum Clears Waivers

January 9th, 2014 at 6:16pm CST by Ryan Raroque

According to ESPN’s Marc Stein (via Twitter), Andrew Bynum cleared waivers as of 6PM Eastern time and is now free to sign with any team, with the exception of the Cavaliers. Technically speaking, it should be noted that if Bynum were to eventually desire playing for the Cavs again, which is highly unlikely at this point, he’d be unable to sign with them until July.

Yesterday, we passed along that as much as eight teams showed interest in signing the former All-Star, and that the Heat and Clippers were among Bynum’s top choices as potential landing spots. As ESPN’s Chris Broussard also pointed out, playing time, contending status, and salary are all factors in determining the 26-year-old center’s interest (Twitter link). Miami can offer anything up to their mini-mid level of $3.2MM, whereas the Clippers are only equipped with a $1.19MM veteran’s minimum.

Based on Doc Rivers‘ recent comments about his roster, the Clippers don’t appear to be actively scouring the free agent market for a big man. As for the Heat, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (via Twitter) doesn’t get a sense of overwhelming desire from Miami’s end.

Eight Teams Interested In Andrew Bynum

January 8th, 2014 at 2:26pm CST by Luke Adams

2:26pm: The Hawks are unlikely to make a serious play for Bynum, a source tells Broussard. On the other hand, Broussard hears from a league source that Pat Riley and the Heat are expected to “go hard” after the center.

11:12am: Despite some speculation that the Nets may kick the tires in Bynum, a league source tells NetsDaily.com that Brooklyn has “no interest at all” (Twitter link).

11:00am: The Mavericks are among the teams interested in Bynum, according to ESPN.com’s Marc Stein (via Twitter). As Stein notes, Dallas only has the minimum salary exception available to make an offer.

9:46am: There are eight NBA teams interested in signing Andrew Bynum when he clears waivers later this week, reports ESPN.com’s Chris Broussard (via Twitter). As we’ve heard for the last several days, the Heat and Clippers are Bynum’s top choices, but Broussard says that playing time, contending status, and salary will all factor into the big man’s decision.

While Bynum’s injury woes and off-court question marks have significantly diminished his value over the last two seasons, he has managed to stay healthy enough this year to post 8.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and a 15.4 PER in 24 games for Cleveland. If there were no red flags related to health and attitude, the 26-year-old would likely draw interest from just about every NBA team, but it sounds like at least a quarter of the NBA’s 30 clubs are still intrigued enough by his upside to inquire.

Broussard’s mention of money being a factor in Bynum’s decision is worth noting. Virtually all mid-season signings are for the minimum salary, but Bynum could be an exception to that general rule. If he’s seeking offers worth more than the minimum, teams with cap space or exceptions (mid-level and bi-annual) would presumably have an edge over teams with no financial flexibility, such as the Clippers, Knicks, and Nets.

After Bynum was released yesterday, we heard that the Clippers may not be overly interested in him, while the Hawks were said to be in the mix.

Bynum Options: Clippers, Heat, Pacers, Hawks

January 7th, 2014 at 10:01pm CST by Jonathan Nehring

The dust has barely settled from the Bulls waiving Andrew Bynum this afternoon before teams are beginning to be rumored as possible landing places for the All Star center. Here are a few of the teams rumored to be in the lead for his services.

The Heat and Clippers have been rumored to be Bynum favorites even before he was traded and waived. Bob Finnan of The News-Herald confirmed those rumors in a tweet this evening. The Heat and Clippers are both already in the luxury tax, so signing Bynum would cost those teams more than just his salary. The Clippers would only be able to sign Bynum to the minimum salary ($1.19MM) whereas the Heat still have their full $3.2MM mini mid-level exception remaining.
In the same tweet, Finnan speculates the Pacers may also try to sign Bynum purely to ensure the Heat can’t sign him. The Pacers are below the luxury tax but would only be able to offer up to $2.15MM to Bynum via their mid-level exception.
With center Al Horford out for the season, and a freshly opened roster spot, the Hawks are in the running for Bynum, tweets Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio. Amico adds that Bynum has also previously lived in Atlanta. Due to Horford’s season-ending injury, the Hawks could request the disabled player exception from the league. If Atlanta is granted this exception, the club could offer Bynum up to $5.15MM in salary for a one-year deal.

Latest On Andrew Bynum

January 7th, 2014 at 4:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Here’s the latest on the NBA’s hottest soon-to-be free agent..

The Knicks one of a few teams who have not at least made an inquiry into Andrew Bynum, tweets Marc Berman of the New York Post. The Knicks may have decided that they have enough interesting personalities on their club as it is.
Bynum’s preference would be to hook on with the Heat, with the Clippers as his second favorite, a source tells Sean Deveney of the Sporting News.
It doesn’t sound like the Clippers will be in on Bynum however, write Arash Markazi and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. “I honestly haven’t given it a lot of thought, I can tell you that,” coach Doc Rivers said of searching for a big man. “We’ve had very few discussions about anyone big right now. We’re far more focused on the perimeter part of our team.“

Bulls Waive Andrew Bynum

January 7th, 2014 at 2:14pm CST by Luke Adams

As expected, the Bulls have waived Andrew Bynum, a league source tells Ken Berger of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). The move comes in advance of today’s guarantee deadline, so Bynum’s cap hit on Chicago’s books will be worth $6MM rather than his full-season salary of $12.25MM.

Bynum was a Bull for less than 24 hours before being cut, having been acquired from the Cavaliers in the trade involving Luol Deng that was finalized late last night. Because Bynum’s contract acts as a midseason expiring deal, Chicago will be able to dip below the luxury tax threshold, saving more than $20MM in total salary and tax payments.

Due to his significant cap figure and less significant recent impact on the court, Bynum will pass through waivers without being claimed, which will free him up to sign with any team besides Cleveland as soon as this week. The 26-year-old is believed to be interested in the Heat and Clippers, though Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times suggests (via Twitter) that L.A. is lukewarm about the idea of pursuing the big man. The Knicks are expected to be in the mix as well.

It’s unlikely that Bynum will draw more than minimum-salary offers, but if he does, Miami could be well positioned, since the Heat have yet to use their mid-level exception this season.

Fallout, Leftover Details From Deng/Bynum Trade

January 7th, 2014 at 8:15am CST by Luke Adams

Late last night, the Cavaliers and Bulls struck 2014’s first deal, and arguably the most interesting swap of the ’13/14 season so far, with Chicago sending Luol Deng to Cleveland in exchange for Andrew Bynum‘s contract and several draft picks. In our story on the trade last night, we made note of a few potential ramifications of the deal, including the possibility of the Cavs re-signing Deng in July, and the effect that losing the All-Star forward will have on the Bulls’ chances of a high lottery pick. There are many other leftover details related to the trade to round up though, so let’s dive right in and tackle a few of them….

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reported last night that Deng turned down a three-year, $30MM extension offer from the Bulls before the team decided to trade him. In his full piece on that news, Woj notes that Chicago was unwilling to go as high as $12-13MM over four or five seasons for the 28-year-old.
Following up with more details on those extension talks, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link) hears there’s a chance the two sides also discussed a four-year, $40MM contract, while Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today tweets that Deng’s reps may have been looking for a deal in the $15-16MM per year range.
Although the Bulls will sneak below the tax threshold when they waive Bynum, that move will leave them with 12 players, one short of the league minimum. ESPN.com’s Brian Windhorst points out (via Twitter) that adding a player today for the prorated veteran’s minimum would still keep the Bulls below the tax, albeit not by much. Chicago also doesn’t have to add a 13th player immediately, since teams can drop to 12 for up to two weeks at a time, so the club could retain a little flexibility by waiting, then signing players to 10-day contracts.
More financial details from Windhorst (Twitter link): Chicago’s total payroll and tax savings add up to more than $20MM+, and the Bulls will also receive another $2-3MM when this year’s tax money is dispersed, assuming team payroll remains below the $71.748MM threshold.
A source tells Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio that this likely won’t be the last trade of the season for either the Bulls or the Cavs (Twitter link).
The Cavs had been trying for “quite some time” to move the Kings‘ first-round pick, tweets Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal. The pick isn’t quite as valuable as Cleveland’s other first-rounders, since its protection, combined with the Kings’ recent futility, could result in it eventually becoming a second-round pick. The first-rounder is top-12 protected this year, then top-10 protected from 2015 to 2017. Lloyd adds that the Cavs tried to give the pick back to Sacramento or loosen the protection in various deals before sending it to Chicago.
Pau Gasol and the Lakers were connected to the Cavs frequently over the last week, but L.A. remained adamant about receiving a young player or premium pick from Cleveland, which wasn’t going to happen, tweets Amico. ESPN.com’s Marc Stein adds (via Twitter) that acquiring Deng was always the Cavs’ dream scenario, which is why the team was willing to send picks to the Bulls, but not the Lakers.
According to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com (Twitter link), the Lakers still believe they have other ways to get under the luxury tax after not landing Bynum. In my opinion, that’ll be pretty difficult.
In his trade story at ESPN.com, Windhorst adds the Knicks to the list of teams expected to have interest in Bynum once he clears waivers.
The Bulls created a modest trade exception in the deal, worth the difference in Deng’s ($14,275,000) and Bynum’s ($12,250,000) salaries: $2,025,000.
Sean Deveney of the Sporting News writes that the Cavs completed this trade with Kyrie Irving‘s long-term future in mind, while ESPN Chicago’s Nick Friedell says that the divorce of Deng and Tom Thibodeau may lead to an adjustment period for both guys over the next few weeks.