Brook Lopez Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Rumors: Celtics, Pierce, Lopez

May 4th, 2015 at 7:49pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Celtics need to improve their interior defense and make smart draft choices to become a serious contender, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com opines. Comparing Boston’s current situation with the Warriors’ rise to prominence, Blakely believes the club needs to make a free agent signing that helps establish its identity, much like Golden State did two years ago when it locked up defensive-minded swingman Andre Iguodala. The Celtics could pin their hopes on Kelly Olynyk and Jared Sullinger becoming better defenders but they could also sign a proven interior defender in free agency this summer, Blakely continues. They also must continue to build through the draft as the Warriors did with Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Harrison Barnes, who have all outperformed their draft positions, Blakely points out. The Celtics’ lottery pick last season, Marcus Smart, has the potential to make a much bigger impact and he will be tutored this summer by assistant coach Darren Erman, who helped develop Thompson as a Warriors assistant, Blakely adds.

In other news around the Atlantic Division:

Paul Pierce would be just the type of veteran leader the Celtics need for their youth-laden roster, according to Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com. Boston’s first-round playoff series against the Cavaliers might have played out differently if they had a confident, seasoned veteran like Pierce to give them guidance and confidence, Forsberg asserts. Some fans in Boston have wondered if Pierce might eventually return to the place where he started his career and won a championship in 2008, Forsberg continues. Pierce has made a major impact for the Wizards during this postseason and could get mid-level range offers if he leaves approximately $5.54MM on the table and opts out of his contract this summer, Forsberg adds.
Nets center Brook Lopez might be wise to seek two-year offers with an opt-out clause for a third season if he goes on the free agent market this summer, Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com speculates (All four Twitter links). Lopez, who holds a player option on the final year of his contract this summer worth approximately $16.74MM, would then be eligible to return to free agency in the summer of 2017 when the salary cap is projected to reach $108MM, Mazzeo continues. That would not only protect him financially in case of an injury, it would maximize his value since the cap is expected to drop to $100MM the following season, Mazzeo adds.

New York Notes: Lopez, Young, Gasol

May 3rd, 2015 at 7:59pm CST by Will Joseph

The Nets have made it clear to Brook Lopez and Thaddeus Young — both can opt out of their current deals — that they would like them to return, Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com writes. Young said he first would want to see what Lopez plans to do before making a decision. “I definitely wanna see what the big fella’s gonna do also, but we’ve already been told that they expect us back next year and they want us back next year — no matter if we pick up our options or opt out,” Young said. “But for me, like I said, I’m just gonna factor in everything possible across the board and just try to make the right decision.” In what Mazzeo describes as an uncertain offseason for the Nets, Alan Anderson said he plans to opt out of his current deal, while Mirza Teletovic can become an unrestricted free agent if the Nets don’t submit a qualifying offer.

Here’s more from the Big Apple:

In the same piece, Mazzeo writes that Nets coach Lionel Hollins believes Lopez has the potential to be a franchise player — if the big man’s low-post game gets better.“I think when you look at Brook, I think that you can think about him that way,” Hollins said. “He has some limitations. When I say limitations, I think that if he developed his post-game, he could be a franchise player. But I don’t want to put that pressure on him, to say that if he doesn’t do that, he isn’t. I’m just saying that potentially with size and athleticism and the whole nine yards, from an offensive perspective. But there’s a lot more that goes into a franchise player than just skill, so I don’t even want to go there.” There’s a strong belief around the league, according to previous reports, that Lopez will opt out but re-sign with the Nets on a max deal this summer.
Lopez said his mind isn’t made up on what to do, Tim Bontemps of The New York Post writes. “You know, I don’t know,” Lopez said. “There’s lots of different stuff. I haven’t thought about it at all. The season just ended, so I haven’t given it any thought.”
Anderson, on the other hand, is very sure about opting out, Bontemps adds in the same piece. “I’m free,” Anderson said. “I mean, I would love to stay in Brooklyn, but I am a free agent. So I will be free.” The Nets, as Bontemps notes, will have Anderson’s Early Bird rights, giving them some additional flexibility to re-sign him, after he spent the past two years with the team.
Former Knicks player Beno Udrih, who is now on the Grizzlies, said New York doesn’t have much of a shot at landing Memphis’ Marc Gasol, who will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end, tweets Bleacher Report’s Jared Zwerling. “They’re not going to get him. He’s a laid-back guy and doesn’t like drama,” Udrih told Zwerling.

Latest On Brook Lopez

May 1st, 2015 at 10:19am CST by Chuck Myron

FRIDAY, 10:19am: Beck has been given every indication that the Nets will re-sign Lopez this summer (Twitter link). Mason Plumlee‘s improvement was in part behind Brooklyn’s willingness to trade Lopez earlier this season, writes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News. The dynamic has changed since then, as the departure of mentor Kevin Garnett and Plumlee’s free-throw shooting woes have helped push the 25-year-old big man from the rotation, as Bondy details.

TUESDAY, 10:11am: The prevailing belief around the league is that Brook Lopez will opt out but re-sign with the Nets on a max deal this summer, one opposing GM tells Fred Kerber of the New York Post. The GM and other executives to whom Kerber spoke point to Brooklyn’s urgency to re-sign him, since the Nets would be unlikely to have the cap space necessary this summer to afford a replacement who’d produce at Lopez’s level if he were to leave. Lopez’s player option is worth more than $16.744MM, but he’d be eligible for a new deal with a starting salary of up to an estimated $19MM or so, depending on where the league sets the maximum salary for a player with his seven years of experience.

That maximum-salary figure won’t be released until after Lopez has to decide on the option, but projections make it clear that he stands to gain if he can indeed command a max deal. A GM who spoke to Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops suggested that Lopez was worth $16MM salaries that would fall in line with the value of his option. Most executives around the league have expected Lopez to turn down the option, Grantland’s Zach Lowe wrote a few weeks ago, though Lowe had heard the opposite early in the season, before Lopez’s sudden surge over the last couple of months. Even in December, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck heard from many executives who expected Lopez to opt out.

Lopez said in late March that he hadn’t thought about what to do with the option, but regardless, Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov made it clear earlier this month that he wants Lopez to stay, telling reporters, including Tim Bontemps of the New York Post, that, “We need him.” The return of Lopez would almost assuredly push the Nets into luxury tax territory for a fourth year in a row, meaning they’d pay repeater penalties if they didn’t get under the tax line by the end of the regular season next year, but Prokhorov indicated a willingness to shell out the extra money.

The client of Darren Matsubara and Arn Tellem has led the Nets this season in postseason scoring, with 21.3 points per game, rebounding, with 11.0 per game, and blocks, with 2.3 per game. Lopez turned 27 this month and, in spite of missing 134 games over a three-year span because of three surgeries on a broken foot, he played 72 regular season games this year. A strong majority of Hoops Rumors readers who voted in a recent poll advised Lopez to capitalize on his health and strong play and opt out.

Eastern Rumors: Copeland, Jackson, Nets

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

Chris Copeland is intensive care in a New York hospital and will remain there for the next two or three days, a source tells ESPN’s Josina Anderson (Twitlonger link). The Pacers combo forward and soon-to-be free agent was the victim of a stabbing early Wednesday morning, and the attack left him with a punctured diaphragm, according to Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. He also suffered lacerations on his left hand, Anderson hears. Copeland didn’t engage in an argument or initiate any altercation, a source tells Buckner. While we hope for the best for Copeland, here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Knicks owner James Dolan expressed continued faith in team president Phil Jackson and GM Steve Mills and again insisted that he wouldn’t meddle with the team as he spoke in an interview with Matthew Belloni of The Hollywood Reporter. “You got to believe, baby!” Dolan said, when asked if Jackson is still worth his $12MM annual salary. “I believe, I believe!”
The Nets want Brook Lopez back, as owner Mikhail Prokhorov on Wednesday made clear to reporters, including Tim Bontemps of the New York Post. Still, the owner acknowledged the primary choice rests with the center, who has a player option worth more than $16.744MM, as Bontemps relays. “We need him,” Prokhorov said. “I think the Brooklyn Nets, it’s his home.”
Brooklyn would pay the repeater tax if they’re a taxpayer again next season, and the return of Lopez would make that a strong possibility. Still, Prohorov said he’d be willing to do so, Bontemps notes. Prokhorov also insists he never sought to sell a majority stake in the Nets and said that while he’s been approached by 10 people with interest in buying a minority share, there’s nothing on the table for now, notes Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News.
The Cavs have some interest in Salah Mejri, a center playing for Spain’s Real Madrid, as Chema de Lucas of Gigantes Del Basket hears (translation via HoopsHype). The 28-year-old who went undrafted in 2008 is averaging 4.6 points and 2.4 rebounds in 9.8 minutes per game.

Poll: Should Brook Lopez Opt In Or Opt Out?

April 7th, 2015 at 3:56pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Nets appeared close to trading Brook Lopez at least two times before the February deadline, but since coach Lionel Hollins put him back in the starting lineup on March 8th, he’s been sizzling, and the Nets have gone 11-6. He’s averaged 21.9 points and 9.5 rebounds in 33.8 minutes per game during that stretch, helping carry the Nets into position for a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Those numbers would be career highs if extrapolated over an entire season, and his rebounding is particularly encouraging for a 7-footer who’s somehow managed only 8.1 boards per 36 minutes for his career. He’s put up 26.2 PPG on 61% shooting in his last 11 games, becoming the only NBA player to do that over any 11-game stretch this season, as Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders points out (Twitter link).

All of this is cast against the backdrop of a crucial decision for Lopez and for the Nets. The 27-year-old has a player option worth more than $16.744MM that, if he were to opt in, would leave Brooklyn with seven players with guaranteed salaries that add up to only about $6MM shy of the projected $81MM luxury tax line for next season. If he opts out, the Nets still wouldn’t have the ability to open significant cap room to replace him, and Brooklyn would be liable to lose the catalyst for its turnaround this season with nothing to show for it.

The stakes are perhaps even more consequential for Lopez. He played in all 82 games his first three seasons in the league, but a broken foot that required three surgeries in three years and forced him to 134 missed games during that span left him with a reputation as damaged goods. He’s started only 39 games this season after playing in only 17 last season, and there’s no telling if his revival and return to health are but short-lived phenomena.

Lopez said last month that he hadn’t given thought to the option, though executives around the league seem to have had it on the minds for some time. Grantland’s Zach Lowe heard in December that most of those execs thought he would opt in. Today, Lowe wrote that the opposite is now true, which echoes what Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck had heard in December, when he reported that many execs expected him to opt in.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports said last week that he’s heard estimates that Lopez will draw offers with annual salaries of $13-14MM if he hits free agency this summer. Those figures would give him less next season than he would make on his option, but free agency would likely give him the chance to lock in those salaries on a long-term deal that would ensure him of far more money than the option would. Lopez, a Wasserman Media Group client, also must consider the rising salary cap for 2016/17, and the rising maximum salaries that will come with it. Lopez’s existing deal is a maximum-salary arrangement, and if he opts in and continues playing the way he has the past month, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to see him land another max deal in the summer of 2016.

So, let us know what you would tell Lopez to do if you were one of his agents. Should he opt in, take a higher salary than it seems he would otherwise see for 2015/16 and the risk of injury and regression that comes with it, or opt out and cash in while he’s hot, even if it means missing out on a better payday next year? Use the comments section if you’d like to give him more specific advise.

Lowe’s Latest: Lopez, Biyombo, Davis

April 7th, 2015 at 11:30am CST by Chuck Myron

Most executives around the league expect Brook Lopez to turn down his player option for next season, worth more than $16.744MM, writes Grantland’s Zach Lowe. That’s on the heels of his surge over the past month, as he averaged 20.9 points and 9.1 rebounds per game in March, and he’s upped those numbers to 22.8 PPG and 9.8 RPG so far in April. Lowe wrote in December that most execs thought Lopez would pick up the option, so it seems his hot streak has changed thinking around the league. Still, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck wrote just a week after Lowe’s report in December that he had heard from many executives who expected even then that Lopez would opt out. The Nets center said a few weeks ago that he hadn’t thought about what to do with the option, so there’s some mystery here. Lowe has more rumors from his latest column, which focuses on players with decent chances of becoming this year’s version of what DeMarre Carroll was in 2013, when he signed a two-year, $5MM pact that wound up a bargain deal for the Hawks.

Bismack Biyombo will almost certainly see the value of his qualifying offer from the Hornets shrink from more than $5.194MM to nearly $4.046MM thanks to the starter criteria that he has virtually no chance of meeting. Executives are “nearly unanimous” that he wouldn’t command annual salaries of that nearly $5.2MM amount in free agency this summer, according to Lowe, though while most people believe a team could snag him for about $4MM a year, no one is sure about that, Lowe adds.
Ed Davis rejected a multiyear contract offer from the Grizzlies this past summer, several league sources tell Lowe. He instead signed with the Lakers on a two-year deal for the minimum salary with a player option that he’s said he plans to decline in search of a long-term deal this summer. Davis turned down a rookie scale extension in the fall of 2013 that would have given him annual salaries of $5-6MM beginning this season, as Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal reported this past October.
Derrick Williams doesn’t intrigue front offices as much as he did a year ago, Lowe writes. He, too, is in line for a reduced qualifying offer from the Kings for failing to meet the starter criteria.
Lowe identifies the Spurs as a team to watch on Mirza Teletovic, though it’s unclear if that’s just speculation. The Nets can match offers if they extend a qualifying offer of more than $4.21MM.

Eastern Notes: Napier, Lopez, Tavares

April 1st, 2015 at 7:57pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Shabazz Napier underwent successful surgery to repair a sports hernia, the Heat announced. The point guard is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season, though no mention was made about Napier’s availability for the playoffs, should Miami hold onto its postseason spot. The Heat currently hold a half game lead over the Nets for the seventh seed in the East. In 51 appearances for the Heat as a rookie, Napier averaged 5.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists.

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports hears estimates that Brook Lopez would draw offers with annual salaries of $13-14MM in a new deal this summer if he turns down his player option, as Wojnarowski said in a radio appearance with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts on WFAN-AM (transcription via NetsDaily). Lopez’s option with the Nets is worth more than $16.744MM, but a long-term deal would guarantee him more.
A report Tuesday linked Brad Stevens to the University of Texas opening, but the idea that he’ll be coaching any team other than the Celtics anytime soon is far-fetched, as Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com explains. Stevens has indicated that he has no intentions of leaving Boston, flatly telling reporters today, “I’ll be in Boston,” as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com relays.
The Hawks intend to bring 2014 draftee Edy Tavares, who is also known as Walter Tavares, to the NBA next season, David Pick of Eurobasket.com tweets. Tavares’ deal with CB Gran Canaria contains NBA outs, Pick adds. The 7’3″ center was selected with the No. 43 pick in last year’s NBA draft.
The Cavs have recalled guard Joe Harris from the Canton Charge, their D-League affiliate, the team has announced. Harris has played in nine games for the Charge this season, averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in 31.7 minutes per contest.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Atlantic Notes: Lopez, Calipari, Turner, Knicks

March 30th, 2015 at 1:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

Brook Lopez says he’s undecided about his player option worth more than $16.744MM for next season, but Lionel Hollins made it clear today that he wants Lopez back one way or another, as the Nets coach told reporters, including Alex Raskin of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter link). There were conflicting reports earlier this season about which way the big man was leaning, and the Nets appeared close to trading him to the Thunder in January and again at the deadline, but he’s having a resurgent March, averaging 20.7 points and 8.9 rebounds per game this month. There’s more on the Nets amid the latest from the Atlantic Division:

There are still some advocates for John Calipari within the Nets organization, as Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports said last week in an appearance on WFAN-AM with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts (audio link), as Robert Windrem of NetsDaily transcribes. It still appears unlikely that either the Nets would pursue him or Calipari would want to leave Kentucky, Wojnarowski believes.
Evan Turner isn’t a perfect match for any particular role, but Celtics coach Brad Stevens sees him as versatile rather than a misfit, as USA Today’s Howard Megdal examines. “I’ve been a fan of Evan Turner since his high school days,” Stevens said. “He played for my first boss [Ohio State coach Thad Matta], so I’ve known him, inside and out, for a while. I felt really good about the opportunity to sign him this summer, and was an advocate of that.” The C’s signed Turner for two years and more than $6.7MM this past offseason.
The Knicks fired D-League coach Kevin Whitted and named assistant Craig Hodges his replacement on an interim basis, the team announced, confirming an earlier report from Marc Berman of the New York Post (on Twitter). The move was the result of tension between Whitted, whom Knicks assistant GM Allan Houston hired, and Hodges, a former player under Jackson, as Berman details in a full story. Hodges spoke to Zach Links of Hoops Rumors at the start of the season.

Western Notes: Beverley, Nuggets, Kanter

March 29th, 2015 at 10:13pm CST by Will Joseph

Rockets coach Kevin McHale told reporters, including Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, that injured point guard Patrick Beverley will “probably” miss the rest of the season. Beverley tore ligaments in his left wrist in a game against the Pacers on Monday. Beverley has been seeking opinions of specialists to determine whether he can play with the injury or would need surgery, Feigen added. Multiple sources close to the situation told Feigen on Sunday that no decision has been made.

Here’s more on the Rockets and the Western Conference:

Rockets rookie Nick Johnson has seen an uptick in minutes because of injuries like Beverley’s and his role in the point guard rotation will likely continue, Feigen writes in a separate story.
Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post believes the Nuggets could make a run at acquiring Nets big man Brook Lopez after the season if Lopez decides to opt out of his $16.7MM player option for the 2015/16 season. The Nets reportedly made attempts to trade Lopez at the deadline. The Nuggets had interest in landing Lopez before the deadline, Dempsey added.
Enes Kanter, who will become a restricted free agent this summer, is back to enjoying basketball because the Thunder have the big man playing to his strengths, Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) writes. Kanter was traded from the Jazz, at his request, in a deadline-day move. Kanter is averaging 17.6 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game in 17 games with the Thunder as opposed to 13.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game in 49 games with the Jazz earlier this season. Elhassan writes that the improved production with the Thunder is a result of fewer spot-up opportunities in Oklahoma City, more offensive rebound opportunities and a much higher pick-and-roll efficiency.

Atlantic Notes: D-League, Lopez, Noel

March 28th, 2015 at 8:48am CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite the Nets’ reported attempts to trade Brook Lopez prior to the February deadline, the big man is keeping the team in the playoff hunt, Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com writes. Over his past four games, Lopez is averaging 30.8 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.5 blocks in 36.8 minutes while shooting 65.8% from the field. Lopez has a player option worth $16,744,218 for 2015/16, and while he may want to opt out and try to secure a long-term deal given his injury history, the center might be wise to wait until the salary cap increases in 2016 to test the free agent market, Mazzeo opines.

Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

The switch to the triangle offense has also been a difficult one for the Knicks‘ D-League affiliate, Marc Berman of The New York Post writes. Westchester owns the second-worst record of the 18 teams D-League teams with a mark of 10-35. There are also rumblings that coach Kevin Whitted hasn’t been on the same page as assistant Craig Hodges all season, a league source tells Berman. There’s speculation Hodges could be Westchester’s head coach next season, according to Berman’s source.
Westchester has also failed to develop its younger players, Berman’s source relayed. That opinion also included that the team has filled out its roster with too many veterans. Knicks second-rounder Thanasis Antetokounmpo was not considered not ready to play for a woeful New York squad after a season in Westchester, Berman notes. In addition, prospect Orlando Sanchez left the squad recently because of financial reasons when told he wasn’t going to be signed to an NBA deal, according to Berman.
Nerlens Noel has begun to prove that he can remain healthy and become a force for the Sixers, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com writes. Coach Brett Brown has been particularly impressed with how well the 216 pound rookie has held up this season, Howard-Cooper adds. “He’s 216 pounds and an NBA center right now,” Brown said of Noel. “We’re trying to play him as a four or a five. The fact that he’s got through it with no knee problem and only missed four games, one because of another injury and a few because of sickness, to only miss four games as a rookie, that is a hell of an effort. To take it further and zoom in on the knee, I just feel like he is heading in the right direction on all levels.”