D.J. Augustin

Wojnarowski On Augustin, Kaman, Blazers

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports is sending out plenty of tweets today on a variety of trade topics. Here are a few of his latest updates (all links go to Twitter):

Jamal Crawford Rumors: Monday

No Jamal Crawford trade is imminent, but Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld reports (via Twitter) that one league source believes a deal is coming. With less than 72 hours remaining until the trade deadline, Crawford could be the "first domino" to fall, says Kennedy. Here are the latest rumors on Crawford trade talks:

  • The Blazers and Clippers are discussing a trade that would send Crawford to Los Angeles for Eric Bledsoe and Ryan Gomes, tweets Ken Berger of CBS Sports.
  • David Aldridge of NBA.com mentioned earlier today that the Bobcats and Blazers could be talking about a deal involving Crawford and D.J. Augustin. Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com also hears that the two teams have engaged in discussions. Said one league exec: "At this point, they are just talking right now and it's just part of what happens around this time of season."
  • Haynes adds that the Timberwolves are purusing Crawford more aggressively than ever, which is somewhat surprising — Luke Ridnour had been mentioned in previous rumors as a Blazers' target, but the Wolves presumably need to keep Ridnour following Ricky Rubio's season-ending injury. Haynes thinks perhaps the two teams are trying to involve a third club to get Crawford to Minnesota.

Augustin Drawing Interest From Pacers, Others

The Trail Blazers aren't the only team talking to the Bobcats about the possibility of acquiring D.J. Augustin. According to Sean Deveney of the Sporting News (Twitter link), the Pacers are also among the clubs who have inquired on Augustin. Deveney says (via Twitter) the Bobcats would want to package a bad contract with Augustin if they were to trade the point guard.

Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld reported in January that the Bobcats weren't shopping Augustin, but were willing to listen if it meant gaining draft picks or financial flexibility. Unloading a contract like Corey Maggette's or DeSagana Diop's would certainly qualify as gaining flexibility.

Augustin, whose cap figure for 2011/12 is just $3.24MM, will be eligible for restricted free agency this summer. So the team he finishes the season with would be able to match any competing offers and keep him, if it so chooses. In 28 games this season, the former ninth overall pick has averaged 12.2 PPG and 6.5 APG in 30.8 MPG.

Aldridge On Howard, Kaman, Crawford, Nash

In the latest installment of his weekly NBA.com column, David Aldridge runs through the notable names on the trade market, including the big fish, Dwight Howard. While Aldridge doesn't have any new updates for today's round of Howard rumors, the NBA.com scribe thinks the Magic will end up dealing D12 by Thursday's deadline. Aldridge predicts an offer of Brook Lopez, MarShon Brooks, and multiple first-round picks from the Nets will be the best deal Orlando sees this week.

Here are a few more items of interest from Aldridge's piece:

  • The Hornets are "determined" to move Chris Kaman by the deadline. There's no clear frontrunner, but Aldridge says not to rule out the Hawks or Mavericks.
  • Alridge hears from a source that the Bobcats and Trail Blazers could be discussing idea involving Jamal Crawford and D.J. Augustin.
  • Asked about his situation with the Suns, Steve Nash said that perhaps the team will have a change of heart on its stance this week, but "I don't feel like it's my place right now to kind of ask to be traded."

Bonnell On Possible Bobcats Moves

The Charlotte Observer's Rick Bonnell posted a breakdown of the options the Bobcats are likely to explore at the deadline:

  • The likeliest avenue the Bobcats will go to add a player will be to use the $3.5MM trade exception they got from trading Shaun Livingston to the Bucks, probably packaged with a draft pick.
  • Bonnell doesn't believe Boris Diaw has much trade value despite his $9MM expiring contract, due to his lack of on-court production and the lack of teams with the ability to absorb his salary without sending players back.
  • Bonnell cautions against moving D.J. Augustin now, arguing that rookie Kemba Walker isn't fully developed yet, and that Augustin could have value in a sign-and-trade as a restricted free agent this summer.

Assessing Stocks: Charlotte Bobcats

Portfolio review: This is the basketball equivalent of declaring bankruptcy. Michael Jordan mortgaged the team's future for one playoff run and the Bobcats are finally paying the ultimate price.

This is an atrocious team playing under a perfect storm of terrible circumstances (condensed season, injuries, not practice time) with nary a potential All-Star on its roster. On the bright side the team has almost purged all of its toxic assets and is under better management, leaving some hope the team can start stockpiling talent and finally begin to build the foundations of something.

Prime assets: Tyrus Thomas is the only player on the roster who might be able to fetch an established rotation player or mid first-round pick. Last year's draft picks Kemba Walker and Bismack Biyombo might be the perfect bankruptcy assets–players with defined NBA roles with room for growth beyond that whose immediate impact is so negligible that it won't prevent them from losing enough for their badly needed top-five pick.

Walker and Biyombo should grow to be perfect complementary players to the star or stars the Bobcats hope to draft in the next two years, or be good enough trade assets to find those players.

Toxic assets: At some point this summer either Corey Maggette or DeSagana Diop will be amnestied. The other shopped as an expiring contract. Boris Diaw is almost as bloated as his contract, which is thankfully almost over.

The rest: The Bobcats have an abundance of what I like to call trade filler across their roster. Rotation players with at least one viable NBA skill attached to a contract that might be slightly overpaid, but still falls within perfectly reasonable for a rotation player. Theoretically a team would attach these contracts to the prime asset in a trade to make contract figures work. 

Gerald Henderson, D.J. Augustin, and Matt Carroll would all qualify. Unfortunately the Bobcats lack any prime assets to attach these valuable contracts to. The best thing about this roster is that it's almost completely liquidated.

Kyler On Rockets, Nets, Augustin, Chandler

Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld took a look this morning at a few names he expects to be discussed in the weeks leading up to March's trade deadline. Here are a few highlights from the piece:

  • The Jazz and Grizzlies are among the many teams that have some interest in Chris Kaman.
  • The Rockets have been active, but are seeking a significant return for players like Jordan Hill, Chase Budinger, and Luis Scola.
  • With just over $34MM committed in 2012/13 salaries, the Nets wouldn't mind clearing some future cap room by moving Anthony Morrow or Jordan Farmar prior to the trade deadline.
  • If the Cavaliers are still in the mix for a playoff spot as the deadline approaches, don't expect them to become sellers.
  • Although the Bobcats aren't shopping D.J. Augustin, Kyler hears from sources close to the team that they'll listen to offers if they can obtain draft picks and gain financial flexibility.
  • When Wilson Chandler returns to the NBA from China, the Raptors plan to "make life hard" for the Nuggets. Denver has the rights to Chandler as a restricted free agent, but Toronto may try to move Jose Calderon or Leandro Barbosa to gather assets for a sign-and-trade offer for Chandler.