Carmelo Anthony Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Pacific Notes: Kings, Salmons, Lakers, Scalabrine

July 9th, 2013 at 11:27am CST by Luke Adams

Let's round up a few Tuesday morning items out of the Pacific Division….

Having missed out on Andre Iguodala, the Kings are still seeking a small forward, as Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee writes. Within his piece, Jones notes that the Kings haven't shown interest in Andrei Kirilenko or Corey Brewer, and explores some trade possibilities for the club.
The Kings continue to have interest in Monta Ellis, and ESPN.com's Marc Stein points out in a tweet that the team could potentially amnesty John Salmons to create the cap space necessary to sign Ellis. Of course, that would create an even bigger hole at small forward.
Marc Berman of the New York Post is the latest to speculate that Carmelo Anthony might decide to sign with the Lakers next summer, especially if the Knicks underachieve in 2013/14. However, Tom Ziller of SBNation.com is skeptical about the Carmelo-to-L.A. rumblings, explaining in his latest piece why he thinks it's a comical idea.
Warriors head coach Mark Jackson tweeted word last night that the team has brought Brian Scalabrine aboard as an assistant.

Atlantic Notes: Melo, Celtics, Rondo

July 6th, 2013 at 11:51pm CST by Spencer Lund

The Celtics are in the process of rebuilding, and never was that more evident than in the hiring of 36-year-old Butler coach Brad Stevens. Mark Murphy of the Boston Herald writes that Celtics' management was impressed with Stevens' charm. They weren't the only ones, it appears.

Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe contends that unlike other college-to-professional coaching jumps, like that of former Celtics coach Rick Pitino, Stevens is different. Celtics general manager Danny Ainge tells Washburn that he has complete confidence turning the reigns of the Celtics' future over to the fresh-faced Stevens whose only coaching experience lies in his six years as head coach at Butler, after seven previous seasons as a Butler assistant coach.

Washburn went on to add that Stevens wowed assembled media personnel during his introductory press conference on Friday displaying "confidence, humility, and passion." But the Celtics have a lot more to do as they begin to reassemble a squad that had been at the forefront of the Eastern Conference since Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen joined Paul Pierce in the summer of 2007.

Below are some more Celtics links about moves they might make involving Rajon Rondo and others, as well as other tidbits from the rest of the Atlantic Division.

Nate Duncan of HoopsWorld believes now is the time for the Celtics to trade their All-Star point guard despite a contract that's considered frugal after he signed a five-year extension for $55MM in October of 2009. Rondo's also been said to be keeping an open mind after the hiring of Stevens.
With so much of the Celtics' future still up in the air, it's natural that Celtics' players still on the roster would be stressed. But guard Courtney Lee isn't sweating all the summer wheelings and dealings with his team this summer, writes the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett.
One player who knows Brad Stevens all too well, is former Gonzaga big and Celtics rookie, Kelly Olynyk. The rookie Olynyk's 8th-ranked Gonzaga team lost to Stevens' 11th-ranked Butler squad back in January, writes ESPNBoston's Chris Forsberg.
Brad Stevens wasn't the only head coach without any prior NBA head coaching experience hired this summer. The recently retired Jason Kidd, and former off-guard Brian Shaw, will also be rookie NBA head coaches this coming NBA season, writes the New York Daily News' Mitch Lawrence.
Lawrence's fellow colleague at the Daily News, Frank Isola, writes that the recent Knicks trade for embattled Raptors power forward Andrea Bargnani provides "Il Mago" with a second chance in the NBA after coming over from Italy as the number one pick in the 2006 draft.
Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com notes that Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire will meet with Hakeem Olajuwon over the summer to train, but mentions in a tweet that Tyson Chandler won't be joining them.

Atlantic Notes: Knicks, Celtics, Sullinger

June 8th, 2013 at 6:14pm CST by Spencer Lund

Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com talked with two NBA scouts who said the Knicks might need an offensive-minded assistant to help head coach Mike Woodson. The Knicks small ball lineup with Carmelo Anthony at power forward, had them playing well in a run of wins to start and end the 2012/13 season.

Unfortunately, those wins didn't come about with the Knicks' two ostensible superstars sharing the front court together. Amar'e Stoudemire was out with an injury to start the season, and in the month leading up to the playoffs when the Knicks won 10-straight to secure the 2nd playoff seed in the East.

But if the Knicks are going to take advantage of their two highest-paid players–Anthony and Stoudemire, who are set to make $23.742MM and $23.411MM next season–they'll have to find a way to share the ball on offense from their naturally overlapping high-block positions on the court.

A couple of the candidates offered by Zwerling include David Blatt and his Princeton offense, which has been successful with Maccabi Tel Aviv, and former Lakers assistant during the 2011/12 season and an assistant with Woodson on the title-winning 2004 Pistons team, John Kuester. Kuester's "early offense" approach as an offensive assistant with the Cavs from 2007-2009 helped another point forward led team, with LeBron James initiating a lot of that early offense.

Here are some more notes surrounding two of the three Atlantic division playoff teams:

Tony Mitchell, the power forward out of North Texas, thinks he’s the answer for the Knicks’ front court problems this past season, writes Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com. He’s expected to be a mid-first round pick, and the Knicks have the 24th pick in this year's draft.
The Knicks also looked at Providence combo guard, Ricky Ledo, during a workout on Friday, which he told Zwerling was his best during the run-up to the draft. The Knicks might use him as a replacement for the recently retired Jason Kidd.
The Celtics have a lot of questions that need answering this offseason regarding franchise cornerstones, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, but they’ve also got to figure out what to do with their younger players as well, writes Steve Bulpett of the Boston Herald.
One of those younger players on the Celtics’ roster was last season’s rookie from Ohio State University, Jared Sullinger. He wasn’t able to play for the Celtics in the playoffs because of a back injury before the season ended, but ESPNBoston.com has tracked his recovery and Sullinger told MassLive.com his back is “completely fixed.”
A reader asked ESPNBoston.com’s Chris Forsberg if the Spurs’ success in this year’s finals will persuade Danny Ainge the Celtics can compete for a title with the aging Pierce and Garnett. Forsberg says the Spurs’ fate in the Finals will have no impact on Ainge’s decision making process.

Knicks Notes: Camby, Carmelo, Woodson

May 20th, 2013 at 8:33am CST by Zachary Links

The Knicks' offseason is now underway after the blue-and-orange were downed by the Pacers. Now, the aging Knicks have a whole lot of questions to answer as they look to take another step ahead in 2013/14. Here's the latest out of MSG..

Marcus Camby's agent told Jared Zwerling of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter) that his client was healthy enough to play in the playoffs and has been ready to go for some time now. When asked about the big man's future, he said, "He's under contract and there is no question they can use him, so one would expect he'd be back," (link). Camby is set to earn roughly $7.5MM over the next two seasons.
More from Zwerling, who has four key questions facing the Knicks this summer. One scout told Zwerling that New York will have to target athletic, rebound-minded big men and a few available options include Al-Farouq Aminu, Louis Amundson, Dante Cunningham, and Gani Lawal, who played with Iman Shumpert at Georgia Tech.
Frank Isola of the New York Daily News (on Twitter) hears that Carmelo Anthony's right knee appears to be fine, two months removed from having fluid drained from it. His shoulder, on the other hand, is another story.
Chris Sheridan of Sheridan Hoops is scratching his head after some questionable decisions from coach Mike Woodson.

Eastern Notes: Knicks, Colangelo, Bulls

May 19th, 2013 at 10:56pm CST by Spencer Lund

The Knicks season ended last night when the Pacers defeated them in Indiana to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. The Knicks were the oldest team in NBA history for the 2012/13 season, and they have a lot of offseason decisions to reach in lieu of their loss to the Pacers.

The first such decision concerns the 2013 Sixth Man of the Year, J.R. Smith. Smith recently reiterated his desire to remain in a Knicks uniform next year despite the popular consensus he'll opt out of the contract that will pay him $2.9MM next season. He tweeted about wanting to return (Twitter link) today as SheridonHoops.com's Ben Baroff pointed out. But Smith isn't the only question mark as the Knicks head into the offseason after their best playoff performance in more than a decade.

Despite a postseason showing that saw them get out of the first round for the first time since the 1999/00 season, Howard Beck at the New York Times writes that with very little cap flexbility, the Knicks' window for continued postseason magic may have run out.
Ian Begley at ESPNNewYork.com brings readers through five pressing issues the Knicks face this summer, including what to do with Amar'e Stoudemire, who didn't start a single game this season after Carmelo Anthony agreed to play power forward in Mike Woodson's small-ball lineup. Begley also discusses whether the Knicks will continue to go small next season.
One of the injuries hampering Knicks franchise star Carmelo Anthony this postseason, was his left shoulder. Frank Isola of New York Daily News says Anthony will have his injured left shoulder examined.
Another Eastern Conference team that was eliminated in the conference semifinals, the Bulls, are looking to get healthy this offseason while figuring out what to do in free agency, writes Aggrey Sam at CSNChicago.com. The free agency questions center around their backcourt, since Nate Robinson and Marco Belinelli are free agents this summer and the Bulls are not likely to pick up Richard Hamilton's $5MM option next year, but will have to pay him the $1MM that's guaranteed.
Aggrey Sam at CSNChicago.com also writes that the Bulls' draft picks, they hold the 20th and 49th overall selections this June, could be a lot better than expected in what is considered a down draft year. A lot of players predicted to be selected in the later rounds of the draft performed well in Chicago's predraft combine this past week.
Mike Ganter of the Toronto Sun, says it's time for Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo to go, and with reports the Raptors are pursuing current Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri, the end appears close for Colangelo. The Raptors are expected to make a decision about their future general manager some time tomorrow after Doug Smith of the Toronto Star reported the Raptors have until Monday to exercise or decline their option on Colangelo for the 2013/14 season.

Atlantic Links: Bynum, Knicks, Green

March 21st, 2013 at 8:11pm CST by Ryan Raroque

With an All-Star appearance and two championships on his resume, Andrew Bynum looked primed to stake his claim as the Eastern Conference's premier center after joining the 76ers last summer. Unfortunately, injury setbacks have kept Bynum from suiting up in a regular season game in Philadelphia, and a huge question mark looms over his future as he approaches free agency this summer. ESPN's Chris Broussard, who originally thought that the 76ers were the biggest beneficiaries of the Dwight Howard trade, spoke with six other NBA executives about how they would handle the 7-foot center's contract situation this summer (Insiders only). Although they each offer unique approaches, it's not much of a surprise that none would offer a max contract. Here's more out of the Atlantic Division:

Jared Zwerling and Ian Begley of ESPN New York discussed the latest on the Knicks, most notably about the health of Carmelo Anthony and Iman Shumpert. Begley also added that he thinks that the team will revisit adding another player before the playoffs start, being that it would be a big gamble to start the postseason with three players unavailable due to season-ending injuries.
Newsday's Barbara Baker says that Shumpert appears healthy today after a scare during last night's game against the Magic, when the second year guard said he felt a "pop" in the same knee that he suffered an ACL injury almost one year ago.
Tim Smith of the New York Daily News talks about Kenyon Martin's resurgence with the Knicks as the former number one pick fills in for the team's injured big men.
Danny Ainge told Salk and Holley of 93.7 WEEI FM that Celtics swingman Jeff Green is starting to prove that he deserves to be on the court for "most minutes of the game" (Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com reports).

New York Notes: Deron, Chandler, Carmelo

March 16th, 2013 at 8:05pm CST by Ryan Raroque

With the Knicks set to face the Clippers during what has been a dreary road trip and the Nets hosting the Hawks in Brooklyn, both teams could find itself in a virtual tie for first place in the Atlantic Division tomorrow if Los Angeles wins and Atlanta loses. While Manhattan deals with the uncertainty of Carmelo Anthony's knee, Brooklyn finds Deron Williams in the middle of what appears to be his second wind, as Newsday's Roderick Boone observes that the point guard looks to be past the ankle pains that limited him early on this season. Here's more out of New York tonight:

Tyson Chandler, who joins Anthony in recovering from an injury, views this as an opportunity for both of them to get enough rest to prepare them for a last season push, writes Al Iannazzone of Newsday. In addition to calling it a "blessing in disguise," Chandler also told reporters: "I feel like (Carmelo) will fully heal and be back over the next couple of games…I know I will be back in the next couple of games. So we won with this lineup at the beginning of this year. That's when we went on our tear, and there's no reason why we can't get right back to that."
In reading a Wall-Street Journal piece about Carmelo, Marc Berman of the New York Post points out the impact that the Knicks star had on J.R. Smith, who credits Anthony for reigning in his focus this year (Sulia link).
Despite the two teams being finished with their regular season meetings, Howard Beck of the New York Times breaks down the remaining challenges that the cross-town rivals face in the race for the Atlantic Division.

Knicks Links: Carmelo, Nets, Stoudemire

March 13th, 2013 at 9:59am CST by Luke Adams

One reunion between a star player and his former home court received plenty of fanfare yesterday, as Dwight Howard put up a monster 39-point, 16-rebound line in his return to Orlando. Tonight will feature another star playing his former team, as Carmelo Anthony and the Knicks face the Nuggets in Denver. Because of the 2011 lockout, the Knicks didn't travel to Denver in a shortened '11/12 season, making this time the first time Carmelo has played in Denver since being traded in February 2011.

Here are a few Wednesday morning Knicks notes, with a focus on that Carmelo trade:

Discussing his desire to be traded to New York, Anthony tells Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that a number of Nuggets players at the time were on expiring contracts, and he was facing the possibility of being on a rebuilding team. "People didn't really know the business side of the situation we were in," Anthony said. "Everybody's contract was up. They had plans of going younger. People from the outside looking in didn't really get it."
When the Nuggets and Knicks finalized the blockbuster deal, it was one of two options on the table for Denver GM Masai Ujiri. According to Spears, an offer from the Nets was also available, which included Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, Troy Murphy, and three draft picks. The Nets ultimately sent a similar package to the Jazz for Deron Williams.
Sunny Saini of ESPN Stats & Info and Ian Begley of ESPNNewYork.com each explore the question of who "won" the 'Melo trade between the Nuggets and Knicks. Begley reaches the same conclusion I would, arguing that both sides would likely do the deal again.
Ian O'Connor of ESPNNewYork.com believes that, as bad as Amare Stoudemire's contract looks for the Knicks, it was a necessary evil, since it contributed significantly to the team becoming relevant again.

Injury Notes: Rose, Gasol, Anthony

March 12th, 2013 at 6:51pm CST by Michael Pina

A few injury related notes about a few of the league's brightest stars.

According to CBSSports.com's Ken Berger, Lakers forward Pau Gasol is close to returning, as it's been six weeks since he tore the plantar fascia in his right foot against Brooklyn in early February.
Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony could get his knee drained, according to a tweet from Newsday's Al Iannazzone. But it's probable that this would only occur as a last solution. The knee injury won't force Anthony to miss time in the short term, but it's a situation that's constantly being monitored and reevaluated by the team.
According to the Chicago Tribune's K.C. Johnson, Derrick Rose told reporters earlier today that he has no specific return date, and that he might not play at all this season.

Beck On Knicks, Melo, Lin, Felton, Lakers

January 25th, 2013 at 6:18pm CST by Sean Highkin

Howard Beck of the New York Times has posted a new mailbag in which he answers reader questions about the New York Knicks and the rest of the NBA. Here are the highlights:

Beck stands by criticsms he made at the time of the Knicks' trade for Carmelo Anthony but admits it has worked out better than he expected.
Many people in and around the NBA are impressed with the Bulls' success this season despite Derrick Rose's absence, writes Beck.
Beck doesn't see Kenyon Martin as a realistic option for the Knicks in the event that the injury to Rasheed Wallace is season-ending, citing his advanced age and the team's abundance of forwards.
Beck doesn't believe the Lakers will move Dwight Howard before the trading deadline, although he doesn't consider it as much a lock that he will re-sign in Los Angeles this summer given the team's struggles.
The decision to let Jeremy Lin go and sign Raymond Felton has worked out for the Knicks despite facing heavy criticism at the time, writes Beck.