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Odds & Ends: West, Moore, Durant

February 1st, 2013 at 10:41pm CST by Daniel Seco

With the last of the late games of the evening close to being in the books, let's catch up on the latest news and stories from around the league…

Delonte West will not be joining the Texas Legends of the D-League as the oft-troubled veteran looks to return to the NBA, writes Jeff Caplan of NBA.com. The decision may lead to a severing of ties between the player and his representation.
E'Twaun Moore has demonstrated growth in his all-around game after being traded by the Celtics this past offseason as he's become a steady contributor for the Magic, says Jessica Camerato of CSNNE.com.
Much issue has been made about Kevin Durant's height around the Thunder locker room as the player himself swears he's no taller than 6-foot-9, writes Caplan. While he's not exactly Hasheem Thabeet's size, many players on the team believed Durant to be taller than his listed height.

Celtics Links: Rajon Rondo Reaction

January 27th, 2013 at 9:51pm CST by Alex Lee

In light of news that Rajon Rondo has a torn ACL, it looks like most readers think the Celtics would be smart to move Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. It is a question that basketball writers around the league will be tackling for weeks leading up to the trading deadline. Let's round up all of the media fallout from the Rondo injury here:

A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England considers adding Delonte West the most likely scenario for the Celtics, adding that a league source told him earlier this season that the Celtics would only consider bringing back West if one of their guards went down with a long-term injury. Blakely also mentions Andre Barrett, the current D-League assists leader, as a possibility.
The Celtics' television broadcast team takes a shot at answering the question of how the Celtics can replace Rondo, via CSN New England.
Blowing up the Celtics' roster is way better in theory than it is in reality, writes Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. He says that there simply aren't teams out there with young talent and draft picks that are willing to give them up for Paul Pierce or Kevin Garnett. With this in mind, Wojnarowski opines that it would be a mistake for the C's to do anything drastic.

Earlier updates:

Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside wonders whether the Celtics will look to the D-League to fill the void created by Rondo's injury. Schlosser specifically mentions Delonte West, Courtney Fortson, Chris Wright, Donald Sloan, Sean Singletary and Scott Machado as potential solutions.
Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram also tweets that West and the Celtics seem like a match.
Danny Ainge and the Celtics have some big decisions to make in the near future as a result of Rondo's injury, writes Matt Moore of CBS Sports. Moore says the Celts were already contemplating blowing up their roster this season, and the Rondo news certainly makes it more likely.
Ken Berger of CBS Sports says that Pierce's contract – with only $4MM guaranteed next year – is "as tradeable as it gets." Berger adds that rival executives expect the Grizzlies to have interest in Pierce. He also speculates that a team like the Nets could be interested in Garnett. Should they decide to become buyers rather than sellers, Berger says Jose Calderon or Kyle Lowry are two possible targets for Boston.
Jessica Camerato of CSN New England writes that the Celtics locker room was stunned to hear the news about their floor general after their double overtime win against the Heat. Camerato's colleague, A. Sherrod Blakely, provides more reactions from the Celtics as well as from Miami's LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.
Blakely adds, via Twitter, that he doesn't expect a trade soon. Instead, Blakely thinks that the Celtics will add a point guard via a 10-day contract, if they choose to do anything.

Stein’s Latest: Celtics, Grizzlies, Cavs, Suns, McCants

January 26th, 2013 at 11:13am CST by Sean Highkin

Marc Stein of ESPN.com has posted his latest Weekend Dime column, which features updates on a variety of trade-related topics from around the NBA. Here are the highlights:

GMs around the league view the Celtics as likely to make a move. They have interest in J.J. Redick, and executives speculate that they may finally decide to move Paul Pierce or Rajon Rondo.
Some GMs believe a three-team trade is possible that would send Pierce to the Grizzlies, Rudy Gay to the Lakers, and Pau Gasol to Boston.
After their trade with the Cavs this week, the Grizzlies' roster is down to 11 players and they have 14 days to sign at least two players to meet the minimum requirement of 13. Memphis looked at Delonte West but decided against signing the veteran guard, Stein reports.
Stein notes that Memphis received three separate trade exceptions in the trade. Marreese Speights landed them an exception worth $4.2MM, while Wayne Ellington's was worth $2MM and Josh Selby's was worth $762,195.
Although the Cavaliers think highly of Speights and have wanted him for years, the forward is already drawing interest from other teams and could be moved before the February 21 trading deadline. Stein identifies Daniel Gibson and Omri Casspi as the other two Cleveland players most likely to be traded.
The Suns are said to be shopping Jared Dudley, Marcin Gortat, and Luis Scola in light of the team's struggles this season. It should be noted that Scola, having been claimed after being waived with the amnesty clause, cannot be traded until after this season.
Stein's column also featured a Q&A with 28-year-old former lottery pick Rashad McCants, who is playing with the Texas Legends of the NBA D-League in hopes of eventually making another run at an NBA career.

Mavericks Will Not Bring Back Delonte West

January 25th, 2013 at 8:04pm CST by Sean Highkin

Despite the news earlier today that Delonte West has rejoined the Texas Legends of the NBA D-League, the Mavericks are not considering re-signing the veteran guard. Mavs owner Mark Cuban told Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com that he has ruled out that possibility.

“Not gonna happen,” Mark Cuban said, cutting off any speculation that the Mavs might welcome back West. “That doesn’t mean we don’t like Delonte, care about him as a person, want to help him get back on track.”

Cuban added that the Mavericks are happy with the play of backup point guard Mike James, and see no reason to look for outside help.

Grizzlies Notes: West, Vujacic, Gay, Leuer

January 25th, 2013 at 3:04pm CST by Luke Adams

The Grizzlies kept their core intact, but gave up some depth, when they sent Marreese Speights and Wayne Ellington to Cleveland earlier this week to sneak under the luxury-tax line. That lack of depth didn't hurt the team on Wednesday, in a 106-93 win over the Lakers. The new-look Grizzlies will face their second test tonight at home against the Nets, in what figures to be one of the best games on the evening's schedule. Here are the latest updates out of Memphis:

The Grizzlies are still weighing their options when it comes to adding another free agent, according to Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal, who was told not to expect a signing this weekend (Twitter link).
Delonte West, who landed with the D-League's Texas Legends today, isn't in the mix at the moment for the Grizzlies, though Sasha Vujacic still might be an option, tweets Tillery.
One rival executive interested in acquiring Rudy Gay tells Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game (Sulia link) that the trade with the Cavs lessened the Grizzlies' urgency to move Gay for now, but didn't entirely eliminate the team's desire to do so eventually. I reached a similar conclusion in the aftermath of this week's trade.
Jon Leuer, the one player who came to Memphis in the deal with the Cavs, tells Marlon W. Morgan of the Memphis Commercial Appeal that he's excited to be part of a contender.

Delonte West Joins Texas Legends

January 25th, 2013 at 12:15pm CST by Zachary Links

FRIDAY, 12:15pm: The Texas Legends have officially added West to their roster, the team announced today in a press release. Despite the fact that the Legends are the Mavericks' D-League affiliate, we probably shouldn't assume West will return to the Mavs after the way the two sides parted ways earlier in the season. Still, if West impresses in the D-League, he could earn an NBA contract before season's end.

WEDNESDAY, 7:05pm: Free agent guard Delonte West has filed paperwork to join the NBA Developmental League, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Ironically, the Texas Legends, affiliate of the Mavericks, are the first team in the waiver line (Twitter link). Dallas cut West loose in November.

Earlier this week it was reported that the Grizzlies were giving serious consideration to signing West as they look to fill out their roster. However, Stein (via Twitter) hears that Memphis is likely to pass on him. The Lakers gave some thought to signing West at one point this season but they opted against it in an effort to maintain some level of stability.

Grizzlies Considering West, Walker, Others

January 23rd, 2013 at 8:07am CST by Luke Adams

WEDNESDAY, 8:07am: Chris Vernon adds yet another name to the list of possibilities for the Grizzlies, tweeting that the club is thinking about signing Josh Childress. Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial Appeal also adds (via Twitter) that the Grizzlies' interest in Vujacic is real, and that he'd be given a guarantee if it made financial sense to buy out his contract overseas.

TUESDAY, 7:28pm: Michael Redd has also been mentioned as a possibility, according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio.

12:38pm: Samardo Samuels is also under consideration for the Grizzlies, says Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (Twitter link).

10:33am: In addition to West and Walker, the Grizzlies are also considering Eddie House, Micah Downs, and Joe Ingles, tweets Vernon.

9:39am: Vernon clarifies in a second tweet that there was a misunderstanding between him and his source, and that the Grizzlies are only considering West and Walker, rather than definitely intending to sign them.

9:11am: Because the Grizzlies had already been carrying the minimum 13 players on their roster, their three-for-one trade with the Cavaliers will leave them two players short of the minimum. To fill out the roster, Memphis is expected to sign Delonte West and Bill Walker, reports Chris Vernon of 92.9FM ESPN in Memphis (Twitter link).

According to Vernon, the Grizzlies will also sign Sasha Vujacic, though we heard back in August that Vujacic's contract in Turkey wouldn't let him return to the NBA this season, so it's unclear if that has changed. According to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando (via Twitter) and Istanbul-based reporter Ismail Senol (via Twitter), Vujacic won't be leaving Turkey's Anadolu Efes. If they add West and Walker, the Grizzlies would have reached the 13-man minimum, so there'd be no need to immediately add a 14th player anyway.

West, 29, was in camp with the Mavericks this year on a guaranteed minimum-salary contract, but fell out of favor with the team and was released just before the regular season got underway. He had a productive year in Dallas in 2011/12 though, posting a career-high 15.3 PER in 44 games, including 33 starts. Walker, meanwhile, spent most of last season with the Knicks before being released just before the playoffs. The 25-year-old averaged 5.9 PPG in 32 contests for New York in '11/12.

Even if the Grizzlies sign a pair of players to rest-of-season deals, the team shouldn't have to worry about going back over the tax threshold. In each instance, Memphis would only be on the hook for a pro-rated portion of the minimum salary, an amount small enough that the Grizz would remain under the tax line.

Stein On Lakers, Evans, Holiday, Stoudemire

December 21st, 2012 at 8:04pm CST by Chuck Myron

Marc Stein of ESPN.com unveils his award winners for the first third of the NBA season, splitting the MVP award between the two conferences, with Carmelo Anthony besting LeBron James for the Eastern Conference honor and Kevin Durant getting the nod for the West. As usual, the ESPN scribe also checks in with a few rumors from around the league in his Weekend Dime, and we'll round them up here.

The Lakers gave strong consideration to signing Delonte West, but the desire for stability, which has been in short supply for L.A. this season, kept them from doing so, a source tells Stein. The Lakers remain in the market for a point guard, but they're in no rush to do so, preferring to wait and see how the team looks with a healthy Steve Nash.
Tyreke Evans wasn't rattled when he didn't receive a contract extension from the Kings, and he's likewise unfazed by his inclusion in trade rumors this season. "I'm just here to play basketball," Evans said. "If I get traded, that's what happens."
Unlike Evans, Jrue Holiday did get an extension on his rookie deal, and while he believes the new deal took some pressure off of him, he doesn't think it's had any effect on his play. He's been thrust into a leadership role with Andrew Bynum out, and he's anxious to see how he and the big man fit together on the Sixers. "More so than curious, I'm just excited," Holiday said. "I'm excited for him to finally play, and I'd love to play with him. (But) I think the season at hand is the most important thing."
Earlier today we heard the Knicks shopped Amare Stoudemire over the summer and found no takers. A source tells Stein that Stoudemire has come to grips with his reduced value and leverage, and understands that when he returns, he has to fit into whatever role coach Mike Woodson has for him.

Lakers Still Considering Backcourt Upgrade

December 18th, 2012 at 2:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

With Pau Gasol set to return to the lineup tonight, and Steve Nash on track to follow him back on the court by this weekend, the level of panic in Lakerland has gone down a tick. L.A. is carrying a modest two-game win streak into their game against the reeling Bobcats tonight, but that doesn't mean the Lakers have withdrawn from their search for help. The team is still studying its options as it seeks to improve the backcourt, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Nonetheless, signing Delonte West isn't in the team's immediate plans, Shelburne reports (Twitter links).

West, Mike James and Jonny Flynn were reportedly potential targets for the Lakers, who've been without Nash as well as Steve Blake, who'll seemingly be out for at least another month, judging from the timetable given when Blake underwent abdominal surgery. If the team wants a better backup for the 38-year-old Nash in the meantime, it may look elsewhere, but since the Lakers have a full complement of 15 players, they'd have to waive someone to bring a free agent on board. The likeliest to go would be either Darius Johnson-Odom and Robert Sacre, both of whom are on non-guaranteed deals, but the Lakers might not want to give up on one of this year's second-round picks so soon just to make a temporary fix.

According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein, the team's top target is Jose Calderon, but that would require a trade that would significantly shake up the roster. The timing isn't right for the Raptors, who are in need of Calderon while starting point guard Kyle Lowry recovers from a torn triceps. The Lakers have maintained that they want to get a look at the team with Gasol and Nash together, so it makes sense that they would hold off on making a move, particularly a drastic one, until they've played at least a few games at full strength.

Lakers Considering Adding Point Guard

December 11th, 2012 at 11:43pm CST by Chuck Myron

11:43pm: The Lakers’ top target is Jose Calderon, but the Raptors insist on packaging him with others, tweets Stein.

11:29pm: Stein believes the Lakers will also take a look at Mike James and Jonny Flynn, in addition to exploring trades (Twitter link).

10:50pm: The Lakers are thinking about signing Delonte West, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Still, the Lakers will look at other options, though as Stein points out, the team is at the 15-man roster limit. That’s why the Lakers were hesitant to sign Derek Fisher before he went to the Mavs, as L.A. was attemping to trade one of its existing point guards (All Twitter links).

10:19pm: The Lakers have been committed to waiting for Steve Nash to return before making a move, but after a disheartening loss to the Cavs tonight dropped L.A. to 9-13, the Lakers are giving thought to other options at point guard, tweets Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Nash expects to be out at least another two weeks, as we heard earlier today, and last week the Lakers announced Steve Blake would undergo surgery on a torn abdominal muscle that was to have kept him out at least another six to eight weeks.

The Lakers have been going with Chris Duhon and Darius Morris at the point, but they combined for just two points and three assists tonight. Free agent options appear to be limited, as the Wizards, also in need of a point guard, took a pass on Ben Uzoh and Blake Ahearn after working out both of them this weekend. Delonte West, Mike Bibby and Eddie House are among some of the more notable names available. Bibby and House have both played for Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni with other teams, but neither saw much time running the offense.

The trade market could be a more fruitful route, particularly once most free agents who signed this summer become eligible to be traded on Saturday. As part of a package that involves Pau Gasol, the Lakers have been linked to Jose Calderon, who acknowledges that he’s on the block. That would represent a drastic move, however, and would probably be overkill if Nash can return later this month. Calderon’s $9.7MM salary figure would prevent anyone from acquiring him unless they were willing to give up a lot, as fellow ESPNLosAngeles.com scribe Arash Markazi points out via Twitter, and the Raptors point man has a 10% trade kicker on top of that. While the Lakers may be exploring their options, the team may simply conclude that it must patiently try to sort out its difficulties until Nash returns.