Dwight Howard Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Carmelo, Howard, Allen, Flopping

May 25th, 2023 at 3:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Carmelo Anthony recently announced his retirement after 19 seasons, and he doesn’t regret the decision at all, Chris Herring of Sports Illustrated writes in an in-depth feature.

“It’s weird to use the word happy, but I’m happy,” Anthony said. “It took a lot for me to get to that point, and to be able to see it all clearly. But I do.”

As Herring notes, despite plenty of individual and team accolades (with Team USA), Anthony was labeled as one of the top players to have never won an NBA championship. He says he’s “at peace” with that label, according to Herring.

“That doesn’t bother me no more; that idea that you’re a loser if you don’t win a championship,” Anthony said. “For me, I’ve won. I won back in 2003, the night I shook David Stern’s hand on that [draft] stage. I made it out of Red Hook. I’ve won at life. The ring is the only thing I didn’t get. It would’ve been a great accomplishment, but I don’t regret it, because I feel like I did everything I could to get it.”

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

Dwight Howard, Anthony’s teammate with the Lakers in 2021/22, says he “would love to come back” to the NBA if he finds an opportunity next season, he tells Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter video link via FanDuel TV). “I would love to finish off my career with an NBA team, hopefully win an NBA championship,” Howard said. The eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year spent this season in Taiwan with the Taoyuan Leopards.
Former NBA player Tony Allen has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care and wire fraud, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Allen was one of 18 players charged with allegedly defrauding the NBA’s health and welfare benefit plan by submitting false claims for dental and medical expenses that were never incurred. Allen has repaid the money that he gained and faces up to two years in prison, according to Cole, who notes that two other former players have pleaded guilty in the case and avoided jail time.
The NBA’s competition committee is considering adding an in-game penalty for flopping, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. The penalty would be a technical free throw, with a possible trial run set for Summer League in a couple months.

And-Ones: Cousins, Howard, Vezenkov, 2023 Draft

November 26th, 2022 at 10:32am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on the All The Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers said that free agent big man DeMarcus Cousins got in touch with him in October to ask why he’s not in the NBA, as Tristi Rodriguez of NBC Sports Bay Area writes.

According to Myers, he explained to Cousins that because of his reputation as a potentially disruptive locker-room presence, the veteran center has to go above and beyond what people expect from him.

“I said, ‘You want that answer? … Because people are afraid of how you’re going to act,'” Myers said. “And he’s like, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘Well whatever the reason is, it’s here now.’ And I like DeMarcus. … I can’t blame him for him because of all he’s been through.

“… I said, ‘Here’s the issue, you have to act better. To get back, you can’t just be average. You’ve got to convince people.’ And that’s not really fair, but that’s just what it is.”

As Dario Skerletic of Sportando relayed earlier this week, reports out of Taiwain have indicated that Cousins could follow in Dwight Howard‘s footsteps and join a Taiwainese team, but that has yet to be confirmed.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Speaking of Howard, the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year will miss the next couple weeks for the Taoyuan Leopards due to a knee injury, his Taiwanese club announced (story via BasketNews.com). Howard, who logged 91 total minutes during a back-to-back set last weekend and averaged 30.5 PPG, 17.0 RPG, and 9.5 APG in the two games, said his body is still adjusting to playing so much.
In other international basketball news, Olympiacos forward Sasha Vezenkov won the EuroLeague’s “MVP of the Round” award on Saturday for the fourth time in 10 weeks so far this season, per a press release. Vezenkov, whose NBA rights were acquired by the Kings this past summer, is one of five draft-and-stash players we highlighted on Friday as candidates to eventually make an impact in the NBA. He ranks second in the EuroLeague with 20.1 points per game.
Sam Vecenie of The Athletic prefaces his list of top 100 prospects by observing that the 2023 NBA draft looks “wide open” outside of the top 10, with a ton of first-round slots potentially up for grabs depending on which players have strong seasons. Vecenie adds that several of this year’s highest-rated freshman have been slowed by injuries or have underperformed in the early going, making the class more difficult to evaluate.

Stein’s Latest: Simmons, Mavs, Lakers, Freedom, I. Thomas

November 14th, 2022 at 4:22pm CST by Rory Maher

“Contrary to recent reports,” the Mavericks have no interest in trading for Nets swingman Ben Simmons, league sources tell Marc Stein in his latest post at Substack.

A couple of weeks ago, Ian Begley of SNY.tv reported that the Nets had “cursory” trade talks with a Western Conference team, then later said those discussions were about a veteran shooter, and Simmons’ name came up. Begley cautioned that those talks may not have advanced beyond the exploratory stage, but Brooklyn was rumored to be “aggressive” in its pursuit of shooting.

On the heels of Begley’s reports, a Western Conference executive told Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney last week that the Mavericks might be worth watching.

“Dallas is a team to watch, Simmons would be an interesting fit next to Luka (Doncic) if the Nets were willing to take back (Tim) Hardaway and (Davis) Bertans. I am not sure how much higher the Mavs could go in terms of an offer but that would definitely be interesting for Luka.”

Stein says the Mavericks may have been mentioned “to try to create some sort of market for Simmons,” who has yet to regain his old form after missing all of last season. Simmons missed his fifth game of 2022/23 Sunday with knee soreness, though he seems confident it won’t be a long-term injury.

Here’s more from Stein:

The Lakers have taken a look at some free agents, but Stein gets the sense that they’ll wait until Dennis Schröder and Thomas Bryant return before making any roster changes. Both players have yet to make their season debuts after each had thumb surgery last month, but they’re expected to play on Friday. The Lakers are hopeful Schröder can provide an offensive boost, Stein adds.
After Dwight Howard signed a seven-figure deal to join the Taoyuan Leopards, other Taiwanese clubs are looking at veteran NBA free agents, according to Stein, who writes that Enes Freedom and Isaiah Thomas are among the targets.
Carmelo Anthony is another veteran being pursued by a Taiwanese team, but “it’s widely presumed” that the 38-year-old “is holding out for another NBA opportunity,” says Stein. Anthony averaged 13.3 points and 4.2 rebounds on .441/.375/.830 shooting in 69 games (26.0 minutes) for the Lakers last season.

Taiwanese Team Pursuing Carmelo Anthony

November 13th, 2022 at 6:39pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Could Carmelo Anthony follow Dwight Howard‘s footsteps and resume his playing career in Taiwan? The Tainan TSG GhostHawks are hoping to sign Anthony to a contract, RealGM relays via Focus Taiwan.

GhostHawks head coach Liu Meng-chu said the team’s ownership has given the go-ahead to make an offer to Anthony, who hit the free agent market this summer.

Howard signed with the Taoyuan Leopards on Monday.

Anthony, 38, appeared in 69 games with the Lakers last season, averaging 13.3 PPG and 4.2 RPG while coming off the bench in all but three of those games. The 10-time All Star played two seasons with Portland prior to joining Los Angeles.

While there has been plenty of speculation regarding Anthony’s free agency, there have been no known firm offers.

The six-team T1 League will soon start its second pro season.

Dwight Howard Signs With Taiwanese Team

November 7th, 2022 at 8:42pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Longtime NBA center Dwight Howard has signed a contract with a Taiwanese team, the Taoyuan Leopards, he announced in an Instagram video.

Howard played 60 games with the Lakers last season, including 27 starts. He became a free agent after the season and remained unsigned before the overseas opportunity came along.

Howard, 37, has appeared in 1,242 regular season games during his career with averages of 15.7 points and 11.8 rebounds. He also has 125 postseason games on his resume.

He’s an eight-time All-NBA member and three-time Defensive Player of the Year but with traditional centers becoming nearly obsolete in today’s game, Howard has bounced around the league in recent seasons.

His latest stint with the Lakers was the third of his career. He also played for Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington and Philadelphia since the 2015/16 season.

Warriors Notes: Losing Streak, Kuminga, Kerr, Howard

November 7th, 2022 at 11:58am CST by Arthur Hill

The Warriors are thankful to return to home after going 0-5 on what Klay Thompson called a “road trip from hell,” writes Kendra Andrews of ESPN. The defending champs are frustrated to be 3-7 — and winless on the road at 0-6 — but they believe they’re close to a turnaround. Coach Steve Kerr pointed to a 2-9 stretch last February and March, noting that even the league’s best teams run into adversity.

“There are times in the NBA season when things can go off the rails a little bit,” Kerr said. “A big part of being a great team, being a solid organization, is just understanding how to work through that.”

Kerr is placing an emphasis on boxing out and defending without fouling, two areas of concern that have cost the team in close games. Transition defense, where Golden State led the league last season, also needs improvement as the Warriors are 25th in points per shot allowed in transition and 23rd in field goal percentage allowed in transition.

“We just need to bring more of a sense of urgency,” Thompson said. “We had a long run last year, but 2022 is over. It’s time to kick into high gear and play that championship level of basketball that we’re used to. I fully expect us to do that. We know how good we are in this building. So I think we’re going to be off to a fresh start.”

There’s more on the Warriors:

Jonathan Kuminga has been promoted to a rotation role after scoring 18 points in 38 minutes Friday night, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Kerr has been giving frontcourt minutes to James Wiseman and newcomer JaMychal Green, but it appears Kuminga is now the priority.
The Warriors are in the unusual position of trying to develop several young players while defending a title, Slater adds. Kerr talked about the difficult adjustment to the NBA now that players are spending less time in college. “What’s changed is we are now doing the work that college coaches were doing back then,” Kerr said. “But you don’t have the advantage of allowing a guy’s confidence to grow playing against inferior competition. You’re throwing him right into the deep end. It’s sink or swim for a lot of these guys. I don’t blame anyone for taking the money. It’s a lot of money. If a guy doesn’t come out and gets injured and has thrown $10 or $15 million away, how do you reconcile that? So it’s a really difficult situation. But I’d say for the league now and these players coming in, it’s not at all an ideal setup for success.”
Free agent center Dwight Howard said he would be a perfect fit for the Warriors during a recent appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast. Howard said Golden State needs another center and he would welcome the opportunity to serve as a mentor for Wiseman.

Atlantic Notes: Grimes, Toppin, Celtics, Warren

September 21st, 2022 at 8:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

Second-year guard Quentin Grimes could replace Evan Fournier in the Knicks‘ starting lineup, according to Ian Begley of SNY.tv. When New York signed Jalen Brunson this summer, there were concerns that he and Fournier might not provide enough defense as a backcourt combination.

Begley states that starting Grimes as the shooting guard and having Fournier come off the bench was among several scenarios discussed by Knicks management this summer. Another option the team considered is moving RJ Barrett into the backcourt and giving Cam Reddish a chance to start at small forward.

Although Fournier would be an expensive reserve, Begley doesn’t believe New York should try to trade him. Begley notes that the Knicks need all the shooters they can get, which is why they signed Svi Mykhailiuk earlier this week.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Members of the Knicks‘ coaching staff believe Obi Toppin could see an increased role, Begley adds in the same piece. Toppin showed progress during his second NBA season and could become a starter if New York finds a taker for Julius Randle.
Despite some speculation to the contrary, Jay King of the Athletic hears that the Celtics don’t plan to reach out to a veteran big man to help replace Robert Williams (Twitter link). Sources tell King that the roster spot that formerly belonged to Bruno Caboclo will likely go to another young center or power forward. Williams will undergo arthroscopic surgery and is projected to miss four to six weeks.
Surgeries for both Williams and Danilo Gallinari have been scheduled for Thursday, tweets Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens called Williams’ injury “short term.”
T.J. Warren could be the Nets‘ leading scorer off the bench if he can overcome the foot problems that have plagued him for the past two seasons, Alex Schiffer of The Athletic writes in an overview of Brooklyn’s roster. Warren averaged 19.8 points per game and shot 40.3% from three-point range during his last healthy season. Schiffer believes the team is strong everywhere but center, and he points to Dwight Howard as a potential low-cost addition who could provide experience in the middle.

Knicks Notes: Griffin, Aldridge, Carmelo, Howard, More

September 15th, 2022 at 9:49am CST by Luke Adams

The Knicks still have two projected openings on their 15-man regular season roster, and several former All-Stars who have experience playing in New York are still available on the free agent market. Former Nets big men Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge and ex-Knicks star Carmelo Anthony are among the notable names who remain unsigned.

However, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post, the Knicks don’t currently view Griffin, Aldridge, or Anthony as a great fit for their roster. If the team makes a trade or two, it’s possible that stance could change, but for now it seems unlikely that any of those veterans will sign with New York, Berman writes.

Here’s more on the Knicks:

In a separate subscriber-only story in The New York Post, Berman cites a source who says free agent center Dwight Howard would love to play for the Knicks. New York’s depth chart at center already features Mitchell Robinson, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Jericho Sims, so it’s unclear if the team would reciprocate that interest.
The Knicks’ Donovan Mitchell trade talks with Utah shone a light on a front office hierarchy that many league sources have described as confusing, according to Berman. President of basketball operations Leon Rose, advisor Gersson Rosas, head coach Tom Thibodeau, senior executive William Wesley, general manager Scott Perry, and strategist Brock Aller all have a say in basketball decisions, making it challenging for the front office to come to a consensus, Berman explains.
Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News and Michael Scotto of HoopsHype explored several Knicks-related topics in the latest episode of the HoopsHype podcast, including the Mitchell trade negotiations — Bondy claims the Knicks and Jazz were “at the two-yard line” before those discussions fell apart. Bondy and Scotto also discussed Cam Reddish‘s status, Thibodeau’s future, and which star the Knicks might target next, among other issues.

Community Shootaround: Top Remaining Free Agents

September 11th, 2022 at 5:32pm CST by JD Shaw

As the NBA offseason nears its end, several players who ended last season under contract with a team remain available in free agency. Training camps are set to open across the league later this month, so time is running out for those players ahead of the regular season.

Teams are also still rounding out their training camp rosters by signing players to Exhibit 10, two-way and non-guaranteed deals. As shown by our current list of free agents, Dennis Schröder, Isaiah Thomas, Jeremy Lamb, Lou Williams, Lance Stephenson, Andre Iguodala, Carmelo Anthony, Blake Griffin, DeMarcus Cousins and Dwight Howard are among the veterans still available.

Of course, many of those players are likely nearing the end of their careers, including Williams (36 next month), Anthony (38) and Howard (36). Iguodala, 38, still hasn’t decided whether he’ll be playing or retiring. The Warriors likely value his leadership and experience more than his production at this point in his career.

The rest of those players are all 33 years old or younger, but several young players are also available. Schröder has a case to be the best option, averaging 13.5 points in 28.7 minutes per game with Boston and Houston last season. Plenty of the others hold All-Star experience.

We want to know what you think. Among the remaining free agents, who do you think is the most valuable one? Who could help a specific team this season, even if they wind up signing later in the year? Which players on our current list of free agents interest you the most? Take to the comments section below and voice your opinions!

Celtics Notes: Gallinari, Free Agents, Brogdon, G. Williams

September 3rd, 2022 at 10:59pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Celtics are expected to apply for a disabled player exception in the wake of Danilo Gallinari‘s ACL tear, a source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. A report Friday indicates that Gallinari hasn’t given up hope of playing toward the end of the upcoming season, but it appears to be a long shot given his age and the severity of the injury.

If the request is approved, Boston’s DPE would be about $3.2MM, which is half of Gallinari’s salary for 2022/23. The team would be able use that amount to sign a free agent, claim a player off waivers or acquire a player through trade, though Himmelsbach views that last option as unlikely because the Celtics already have two trade exceptions that are worth more.

Boston signed Gallinari in July to provide veteran help off the bench and another three-point shooting threat. His contract includes a $6.8MM player option for next season that he seems almost certain to exercise in light of the injury.

There’s more from Boston:

With Gallinari likely unavailable for the entire season, Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe looks at some options that are still available on the free agent market. He points to Carmelo Anthony, who might welcome the chance to end his career on a title contender, along with DeMarcus Cousins, Jeremy Lamb, Dwight Howard and LaMarcus Aldridge. Washburn notes that Kevin Durant‘s trade demand worked to the Celtics’ advantage because it froze the free agent market for several weeks, leaving a wealth of veteran players available in September.
Malcolm Brogdon may used as the primary backup wing to Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, Brian Robb of MassLive writes in a mailbag column. Brogdon, who was acquired from the Pacers in July, has the size to handle the role at 6’5″ and is probably the team’s best defensive option at that position. Robb notes that it would also provide more backcourt minutes for Derrick White and Payton Pritchard.
Grant Williams will likely ask for a starting salary in the mid-teens in his extension negotiations, Robb adds in the same piece. Robb doesn’t believe president of basketball operations Brad Stevens will meet that price, even though Williams becomes more important with Gallinari sidelined.